Solve-it-yourself mystery
Police Chief Anna Rogers was just hanging up the phone when her older sister, Katie, entered the office with a powdered donut in hand. “Is that breakfast?” Anna teased.
“The guilty kind,” Katie said, chewing happily. “Mom says Thanksgiving dinner will be served promptly at noon tomorrow, no crime-related exceptions. Who were you just talking to?”
“Alice Dunning, one of the caregivers for Becky Weldon’s father. She hasn’t seen or heard from Becky since Sunday and she’s not picking up her phone. Alice says it’s not like her.”
“I’ve seen Becky,” a male voice interrupted from the doorway. “At around six o’clock yesterday evening.”
The sisters turned to see a young man in a business suit. “Come in,” Anna said. “I’m Chief Rogers, and this is my sister Katherine, my unofficial crime-solving consultant.”
“Joe Porter,” the man nodded. “I’m the loan officer at First National Bank. I saw Becky last night, and it seemed very… off. It kept me up all night, so I figured I’d come in this morning and report what I saw, just in case.”
“What happened, Joe?” Anna asked, flipping open her notebook.
“Just before closing last night, I was working the drive-thru window and suddenly, Becky sped up with two guys. Something just seemed strange.” He shook his head. “They all looked nervous, and Becky was deathly pale as she scribbled out a check and sent it in to cash without a word.”
“How much was the check for?” Anna asked. “Twenty thousand dollars.” Katie frowned. “Do you allow that big a withdrawal?”
“Sure,” Joe shrugged. “Especially during the holidays. Besides, she has a joint account with her father. I’m told he’s bedridden, with round-theclock caregivers—and they are usually paid in cash.”
“Makes sense,” Anna said. “But twenty thousand dollars?”
“Like I said, it’s her money. I gave it to her in hundreds, and they drove off pretty fast.”
Anna nodded. “So what else seemed strange to you?”
“I’ll show you.” Porter pulled out the check and handed it over, as Katie leaned in to look.
It was a personal check with Stephen and Rebecca Weldon written in the top-left corner, along with an address, phone number and the routing and account number at the bottom. It was made out to cash, for twenty thousand and 00/100 dollars.
But there was another string of numbers near the top: 1 2 5 19 - 2 1 18 14 “What’s that?” the sisters asked together. Porter looked dismayed. “I Don’t know. It’s eleven digits—too long for an account number.”
Katie took the check in her hand. “What if it’s a message?” “What?” Anna asked. “Becky could be in trouble. Kidnapped, maybe. It could be a clue to where she was taken.” “Would she know that?” “She would if she’d heard the two of them talking about it.”
An unsettled silence fell over the group, until Anna noticed Katie’s eyes widen. “What is it?” she asked. Katie looked up. “You know Abe Morrison’s farm? East of town, on Orchard lane?”
“Sure,” Anna said. “But nobody’s there. Abe’s been dead for ten years now.”
Katie smiled knowingly. “Well, I think somebody might be there now.”
Anna took the check back, and looked at the numbers afresh. Suddenly, she blinked in understanding and hurriedly excused herself from the room.
Later, after Becky had been found safe in Abe’s barn and the kidnappers had been arrested, their Aunt Mary Lou asked the sisters how they knew where to find her. “It was easy.” Anna smiled, as her sister chimed in. “All we had to do was decipher a message.” —John M. Floyd Q: How did the duo crack the code? A: Turn to pg 47