Can You Solve This Two-Minute Mini Mystery? ‘An Egg-spensive Easter Lesson’
Grab your magnifying glass and channel your inner Sherlock Holmes to crack the case!
Woman’s World readers are entertained each week with a two-minute mystery story in every issue (and have special Mini Mysteries magazines devoted to cracking even more cases!) — from whodunits to who-stole-its to who’s up to no good — and we’re sharing those stories here each week to bring more laugh-out-loud fun to our readers.
Read on for the newest installment!
An Egg-spensive Easter Lesson by Loretta Martin
“How’d the weather wizards not see this coming?” Clay Porter marveled, glancing out the window of his diner while refilling Sheriff Addison Garner’s coffee. Last night’s surprise snowfall had hit hard and fast.
Since 6 am, local stations had been announcing cancellation of the annual Easter Egg-stravaganza, an egg hunt hosted in Dover Park, now covered in slush. Faced with disappointed 3-to-5-year-olds, families had two days to improvise and coordinate indoor egg hunts.
Garner had just finished her fish tacos, Clay’s Good Friday lunch special, when the dispatcher called.
“Helen’s Hair Salon’s been robbed.”
“So much for the good in Good Friday,” Garner said when Helen met her at the entrance.
“Let’s talk in my office,” she said as uneasy looks followed them. Celine and Amy, operators, and Macy, part-time cosmetologist, were servicing clients.
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Helen’s back office was an open area with only a desk, one file cabinet and no door. Supply shelves lined a hallway leading to the washroom.
“Somebody stole my golden egg,” she lamented.
Each year, she donated a $300 gift certificate from a local store folded into a plastic egg the press called “Helen’s Golden Egg.” The store remained anonymous until revealed at the hunt.
“Where was it?” Garner asked after looking around.
“On my desk. I stopped at the mall yesterday to purchase it and a few other items before my 11:30 client. It was in an oversize holiday envelope too big for my purse, so I put it in my shopping bag. When my client arrived, I emptied the bag onto my desk and forgot about the certificate.”
“Back door’s intact. It was taken from inside. When did you realize it was gone?”
“When I opened at 11.”
“Anyone going to the washroom or getting supplies from the shelves could’ve spotted a conspicuous envelope,” Garner mused. “Who’s ticked off at you?”
“Celine and Amy are furious over my raising the chair rental rate. Yesterday, Celine left without cleaning her station, and Amy left early claiming she had a headache, leaving two customers unhappy with last-minute cancellations. Macy’s been working extra hours helping with cleanup and restocking supplies.”
“Anyone else?”
“Talk to Sybil Benedict.”
“The Krazy Krafts owner?”
“And nosy scandalmonger with a voice like an elephant trumpet. She showed up late yesterday as a walk-in. Everybody overheard her back-handed compliment, calling my donation a clever PR tactic. She has some nerve!”
“Send the three ladies back, one at a time. Then I’ll visit Sybil,” Garner said.
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“I raised a stink over another increase. As an obvious suspect, would I stick my head in a noose? If you’re not charging me, we’re done,” Celine huffed.
Amy fidgeted with an earring, “I arrived this morning shortly before my 11:15 client. Yesterday, I left early, then volunteered decorating eggs until 7:30—after Helen closed.”
“Given your extra hours, any thoughts on the theft?” Garner asked Macy.
“No, and I’m working late to avoid my boyfriend—ex boyfriend. We broke up,” she said.
But business was booming at Krazy Krafts.
“Look around. Do I look desperate? I can buy all the toys my kids want,” Sybil snapped, gesturing at customers loading carts with holiday items.
On her way back to headquarters, Garner made a U-turn. She knew who stole Helen’s golden egg.
WHO STOLE THE EGG?
Sybil’s the thief. Spotting the envelope en route to the washroom, she opened it. After settling her bill, putting on her coat and faking another washroom trip, she swiped the envelope, hiding it under her coat. Jealous of Helen’s publicity, she didn’t intend to redeem the certificate but wanted to sabotage the donation. Who except the thief knew the vendor was a toy store? After confessing, she paid a hefty fine for an egg-spensive lesson.
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