"Martin, Ann M - Baby-sitters Club Mystery 014 - Stacey and the Mystery at the Mall" - читать интересную книгу автора (Martin Ann M)Back at Toy Town, I took over the cash register while Sarah slipped out for a quick break. April had stayed behind to talk to Ms. Snyder and Mr. Williams for a few minutes. When she came back, I asked her what she knew about the thefts.
"I heard about them," said April. "But nothing's been taken from here. Not big things, and not little stuff, either. As far as Toy Town is concerned, the shoplifting is over, thank goodness. But Cindy Snyder was just telling me that she heard some strange things have disappeared from Lear's Ч towels, she said, and a pair of boy's jeans that were on display. And she mentioned something about some sweaters, in kids' sizes. And three camcorders disappeared last night from that electronics store, and they can't figure out how they were taken. They were in a locked storage room." I shook my head. "ItТs too bad," I said. "I hope security can get to the bottom of this. I don't like the idea of thieves wandering around in the mall." "You and me, both," said April. "Now, how about if we get some of this stock unpacked and priced?" She handed me a magic marker and a box of stickers, and showed me a price list that matched the contents of a large carton of merchandise. Then she went off to run the cash register. For the rest of that week, I was a little nervous whenever I worked at Toy Town. I tried to get my tasks done and watch for shoplifters at the same time, but it wasn't easy. It didn't help that April had to bring Sandy on Wednesday, and I ended up watching him, too. Not that I really minded: Sandy and I were getting along very well by then. But still, it was hard to give him the attention he needed and also keep an eye on every customer in the store. By the following week, I was feeling a little calmer. Things were still disappearing from other stores in the mall, according to Kristy, but the shoplifters seemed to be avoiding Toy Town. Some food had been stolen from the Cheese Outlet, and some hairbrushes had been taken from the Dollar Store Ч but nobody seemed interested in stealing toys. A few big things had been taken, too: a treadmill, and a large-screen TV. Whoever was doing the shoplifting sure had strange habits. Meanwhile, our plans for the day-care center were going well: we had already signed up enough store-owners to more than cover the rent, and donations of equipment and supplies were coming in every day. On Tuesday afternoon, we had a short meeting in the empty store. Mary Anne brought in some paint samples she had gotten from the hardware store, and we looked them over. We planned to paint the main walls white, and then use bright, primary colors to block out areas for different age groups. We were going to have a painting party that weekend (on Sunday, when the mall was usually a little quieter), and we hoped to get a lot of the work done then. Claudia had drawn a plan of the room, and it looked terrific. "See, where this red stripe is will be the toddlers' area," said Claud, pointing to a corner where we could set up a table and small chairs for coloring, a trunk for dress-up clothes, and an area for block constructions. "And we'll put the babies over here," she went on, "in the blue corner." "The HomeStore has already offered to donate five high chairs and three cribs," said Jessi, checking her notes. "And I'm going to donate a bunch of these great animal mobiles I have," said April. "Babies love them." The biggest area, which Claud had colored green, was for the school-age children. We planned to have two play tables there, plus a small library of books (the BookCenter would be donating those), an arts-and-crafts area, and a "quiet" corner, where kids could be by themselves. After the meeting, April and I headed back to Toy Town. The store was busy, and a long line of customers was waiting to check out. April went right behind the counter to work with Sarah at the register, and asked me to help a short, blonde woman who appeared to be looking for something in the doll section. "Can I help you find something?" I asked the woman. "Oh, I hope so," she said. "ItТs my niece's birthday tomorrow, and she's got her heart set on one of those dolls that comes with a book. I think itТs called Baby Read to Me, or something like that." "Baby Tell Me a Story," I said. "I'm so sorry, but I think we're all out. That doll has been very popular." "Oh, dear," said the woman. Her face fell. "Wait a second," I said, remembering something. "A shipment might have come in this morning. Let me go check." I ran to the back of the store and into the stockroom. "Baby Tell Me a Story," I muttered to myself, as I searched through the boxes that were stacked on the shelves. "I'm sure April said they came in. Now where are they?" I moved a carton of Legos aside to check behind it, and there on the shelf was a big case of the dolls I was looking for. I grabbed it and pulled it down, intending to open it on the floor and take one out. Just then I heard a noise behind me, and I turned around quickly. Standing between me and the door to the store, was a man. A man in a dark red ski mask that completely covered his face. "Oh Ч " I began to say. My heart had jumped into my throat, and my knees felt weak. "Don't say a word," the man interrupted me, in a brusque voice. He ran toward me, and for a second I thought I was going to pass out. But then he pushed by me and ran out the back door of the stockroom, the one that leads into the mall. He ran silently Ч I guess because he was wearing sneakers along with his blue jeans and light blue shirt Ч pulling off his mask as he went out the door. report to the guards from security. "Did anybody catch him when he ran out?" I asked. One of the guards shook his head. "Nobody saw anything unusual," he said. "I guess once he took the mask off, he looked like everybody else in the mall." That was a scary, scary thought. Here was a possibly dangerous criminal, wandering through the mall looking just like any other shopper. I felt someone rub my shoulder, and glanced up to see Kristy, looking sympathetic and also very important, her security walkie-talkie pressed to her ear. "We'll get him," she said, patting my shoulder again. Now she looked grim. "I promise you, we'll get him." Chapter 10. Ten minutes later, I had finally stopped shaking. I was still sitting in April's office. The security guards had left, but Kristy had stayed with me. All of a sudden, I put my hand to my mouth. "Oh, no!" I said. "What?" said Kristy, reaching for her walkie-talkie. "Did you just remember something about the guy? Wait Ч I'll call Pete so he can take it down." She was on a first-name basis with all the security guards. "No, no," I said. "Ifs not that. Ifs Baby Tell Me a Story!" ''What?" asked Kristy. She looked at me as if she thought I had gone off the deep end. "Ifs a doll," I said. "This customer was looking for it." I headed into the store, Kristy following me. "April," I said, "did that woman get her doll?" April smiled at me. "She sure did," she said. "ItТs nice of you to remember. You're a great salesperson." She gave me a quick hug. "Now, why don't you get out of here? I think you have a bus to catch. Go home and try to relax for the rest of the day. Everything will be all right." She hugged me again, tighter. "I'm so sorry it had to happen," she whispered into my ear. "ItТs not your fault," I said. "I know," she replied, letting me-go, "but I still feel kind of responsible. I mean, I keep wondering if I locked the stockroom doors properly. How did he get in there, anyway?" Kristy stepped in. "Whoever this guy is, he probably has no problem getting into any of the stockrooms in the mall. I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong. And believe me, security is on the case. It won't be long before we catch him." She sounded confident, but I wondered. So far, security seemed totally baffled by the new batch of thefts. I said good-bye to April, and Kristy and I headed for the bus. As we left Toy Town, we saw Claudia walking toward us, munching a cookie covered with M&M's. "Hey!" she called, waving the cookie at us. "I got off a little early, so I thought I'd treat myself." She held out a bag to us. "I got enough for everybody," she went on, "and I even got some pretzels for you, Stace." Then she took a good look at me. "Stacey, whatТs the matter?" she cried. "You look terrible. What happened?" "I'm okay," I said. "It's just that Ч " Suddenly I felt shaky again. Kristy jumped in to explain what had happened. "Oh, Stace," said Claud, giving me a hug. "That's awful\" We walked arm in arm toward the exit, where we found the rest of our friends waiting for the bus. I saw Mal give me a questioning glance, and Mary Anne looked concerned, too. Claudia and Kristy told the story again, without waiting for anyone to ask me what was wrong. "I can't believe it," said Mal, with a shudder. "How totally creepy!" |
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