“Oh no! Dad’s already leaving for work,” Megan Parker exclaimed, as she woke to the sputtering of a car engine outside her bedroom window. She sat up in bed and rubbed her tawny brown eyes in order to focus in the dimly lit room. Then, she quickly tossed off her blue flowered spread, blankets, and climbed out of bed. As she moved her slate blue curtains and looked outside, she saw her dad drive away. “Why didn’t Christy wake me up like she usually does?” Megan asked herself. Wait a minute, Megan suddenly thought, it sure seems darker outside than it normally is at 7:30. Maybe it’s the time change, but I thought it changed in October, and this is almost August.

Thinking it was late, Megan grabbed her clothes that she had laying beside her bed and started toward the bathroom. She didn’t think about turning on a light because could usually see from the light shining in her bedroom window.

However, she didn't realize it was darker now. She was also in a hurry to get dressed and find Christy. Christy! Megan reminded herself. I hope she’s in the bathroom getting dressed.

Christy and Megan were ten-year-old identical twins. They lived with their parents, Tom and Nancy Parker, in River City, which was located near the Kansas River. When it rained for several days, the river flooded the country, but it didn’t flood the city because it was far enough away from the river.

River City had two elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools. The schools were located on the east and west sides of River City. That made it convenient for students to attend schools closer to where they lived instead of taking a bus to and from school. However, those who lived in the country took the bus to school.

Christy and Megan, who completed the fifth grade, lived in a white two-story house with blue trim on the windows. Two cedar trees shaded the front yard and two shaded the back yard. A chain link fence enclosed the back yard. Christy and Megan liked the location of their house because they could walk to their elementary school, which was across the street from their house.

However, since they graduated from school in May, two months ago, they were entering River City Middle School – West Side next month. Their new school was located five blocks behind their house.

They would have a little farther to walk, but they enjoyed being outside and listening to the birds singing when the weather was sunny or cool. During the bad weather, their mother planned on taking them to school.

They looked forward to their first day at middle school. Since they were identical twins, their friends and teachers had trouble telling them apart. As a result, they liked pretending to be the other person. In their new school, their teachers wouldn’t know them like their teachers in elementary school, so they knew it would be easier for them to trade places with each other.

Forgetting to check Christy's bed, which was beside hers, Megan managed to feel her way through the dimly lit room into their private bathroom to look for Christy. As Megan opened the door, she knew Christy wasn’t in the bathroom because the light was off, but she didn’t know where Christy was. Megan thought to herself. Christy always wakes me up before Dad leaves for work, so I don’t understand what’s going on. She must have forgotten to wake me up today unless something is wrong. I’ve got to locate her.

Megan turned on the bathroom light and quickly put on her blue shorts, white shirt, socks, and blue tennis shoes. Then, she brushed her long, golden brown hair and shut off the light. As she closed the door, she realized she forgot to turn on the light in the bedroom. She still had to feel her way back to her lamp table, which was next to the window on the other side of her bed.

They had their own lamp tables with drawers for their snacks, journals, writing supplies, and books they wanted to read. They would write in their journals about their day, write short stories and illustrate them in another journal, or read in their favorite mystery books.

Sometimes they wanted to do all three activities before they went to bed, and other times they chose one. It depended on how much time they had before they went to bed. They also wanted to keep a few snacks such as cheese and crackers, cookies, graham crackers or other snacks they could grab quickly.

Besides those snacks, they had their water bottles on their lamp tables in case they wanted to get something to drink in the night. They wanted to have something handy to eat before they went to sleep or if they woke up hungry in the night.

While fumbling around in the dimly lit room, Megan bumped into something that moved. She lost her balance and fell to the floor.

When she heard a big thud, she gasped silently, and her heart pounded heavily. She trembled with fear as goose bumps formed over her arms and legs, and perspiration rolled down her cheeks. Whoever had intruded her privacy, she hoped they would disappear quickly. She did not want to confront anyone by herself and especially in the dark. Megan always wanted Christy around during times like this. She wondered where Christy was and why she was not there to help her. Ever since the second grade, Christy and Megan enjoyed reading, writing, and solving mysteries, so they became junior detectives in the second grade because they wanted to help people. They also wanted to start a book club so they could read mysteries and see how the amateur detectives solved their cases. They thought that would help them learn how to solve mysteries.

However, Megan was not sure she liked this situation because she wanted Christy around to help her. As Megan wiped the perspiration from her face, she sensed someone else moving around in the room. She envisioned a large frightening shadow, which made her heart pound heavier, but when she glanced up, she gazed at the shadow of a figure in the dimly lit room. From the outline of the shadow, she felt somewhat relieved because she noticed the figure was about her size, but she didn't have any inkling as to who it could be.

Megan, who was unable to move, sat there trembling with fear, her heart beating rapidly, perspiration dripping down her face,.and her muscles twitching. Questions flooded her mind as she thought of her situation. Who's in here? Maybe it’s an intruder, but who would be here and at this time of morning?

It can’t be Christy because she’s always up early, especially before Dad leaves. If only Christy were here, then she could help me because I hate to face scary situations by myself.

Megan depended on Christy to help her out of the circumstances that she faced because she felt like she could not handle things by herself. She liked to plan sneaky things, but if she got into trouble, then she wanted Christy around to rescue her.

When the light suddenly came on, Megan panicked as she thought of what the intruder would do to her. She wanted to look up and see who was in the room with her, but fear overwhelmed her until she heard the sound of a familiar voice. “Megan, why are you sitting on the floor and perspiring so much? It’s not that hot in here. Is something wrong?”

Megan breathed a deep sigh of relief when she glanced up and realized the shadowy figure was Christy. “You frightened me, but I’m glad it’s you,” Megan declared, as her body started to relax.

“Of course it’s me. Who else would be in here at this time of morning?”

“An intruder,” Megan announced, as she began to calm down.

“What? Your imagination is already running wild this morning.”

If something happened that Megan did not expect to happen, then she became anxious. She depended on Christy to help her out of certain situations because she did not feel secure in her own abilities to handle unpleasant circumstances like Christy. Megan looked up to Christy since she was born first and because she felt her mother was partial to Christy.

“I can’t help it. I bumped into something and was too terrified to move because I thought you were an intruder, but I’m glad I bumped into you instead of an intruder.”

“I’m sorry I frightened you, but why didn’t you have the light on?”

“When I woke up and started walking to the bathroom, I realized I forgot to turn on the light beside my bed, so I had to feel my way to the bathroom. Then, I turned on the bathroom light to get dressed for school.

On my way out, I forgot to leave the light on so I could find my way back, and that’s when I bumped into you. I didn’t expect you to be up walking around in the dark because you usually turn on the light.”

“That figures,” Christy teased. “You’ve had a habit of forgetting to do something important, especially when it comes to getting up or doing your homework on time.”

“Oh be quiet. I know I forget things, but that’s why I need your assistance. You’re perfect and can remember what to do.”

“Oh Megan, you know I’m not perfect. Nobody’s perfect. I just want to finish my homework ahead of time so I can have time to write short stories, write in my journal, read my mystery books, or solve mysteries. I also don’t want to be under pressure to do them in a hurry.

When I wait to the last minute to do my homework or whatever I have to do, I end up making mistakes because I’m trying to rush through it.”

“Okay. I don’t need your criticism right now.”

Their mother had criticized Megan most of her life because of the way Megan planned sneaky things. Megan liked adventure and tried to escape from the requests her mother insisted of her, especially in dressing differently even though they were twins. Their mother wanted them to develop their own personalities.

However, Megan and Christy wanted to dress alike and to do things alike. They also enjoyed pretending to be the other person, especially in their classrooms at school because the students wouldn't know them. They also wanted to play by themselves instead of playing with other kids.

Because their mother found out about Megan’s sneakiness, she disciplined Megan and not Christy. She didn't believe that it was Christy's fault. She believed that Megan instigated the sneaky ideas. As a result, Megan started developing a low self-image because their mother did not discipline Christy. Megan believed her mother was partial to Christy, so she began to feel like she was not as good as Christy. Megan also wanted Christy to help her with her homework, schemes she plotted to get away with sneaky things, or to devise plans to solve mysteries.

“Wait a minute; you’re always up and dressed before Dad leaves for work, so why are you still in your pajamas?" Megan asked.

“I just got up. I thought you were still in bed, so I didn’t want to wake you up by turning on the light. Since my bed was closer to the bathroom, I didn’t need the light."

"I guess we both liked to walk in the dark."

"Wait! Now that I’m thinking about it, you just said, Dad left for work. How can that be?” Christy asked, curiously, brushing a strand of long, golden brown hair, which was a shade lighter than Megan’s, away from her tawny brown eyes.

Christy wanted to be considerate of Megan and her feelings. She wanted her to sleep as long as possible, but she also knew that she needed to get up and get ready for school on time.

Megan told Christy that she heard their father’s car sputtering outside her bedroom window, so she hightailed out of bed, pushed the curtains aside, and looked out the window. That’s when she saw her father leave for work, so she knew she had to be running later than usual.

Since she did not want to be late for school, she managed her way in the dimly lit room to the bathroom so she could get dressed. Christy thought Megan had been dreaming because she knew their father did not leave as early as he did, so she looked at their Sony alarm clock radio on their oak wood dresser that was across from their beds. “Megan, it’s only seven o’clock, so you must have imagined that Dad left early.”

“Seven o'clock! It can't be,” Megan blurted out, as she glanced at the clock. “You’re right, but I didn’t imagine it. I did see Dad leave a few minutes ago?”

“Okay, I believe you, but I don’t understand why he left so early unless it’s because it’s Monday, and he had extra work to do and wanted to get completed so he could come home earlier.”

“That’s possible, but I want to do some investigating and find out why Dad left earlier than usual. Let’s go downstairs and ask Mom why Dad left early,” Megan suggested.

Megan usually came up with the ideas when they had something suspicious they wanted to investigate. Christy rarely came up with ideas unless Megan asked her to come up with an idea. When Megan did, Christy could not believe she asked her because she knew Megan liked to plot sneaky schemes.

“That’s a good idea, but I want to finish cleaning up my room. I want everything spotless,” Christy replied, as she started to clean up her side of the room.

Christy always wanted her side of the room cleaned up and orderly, but Megan wanted to investigate something that caused her curiosity to arise first before she cleaned up her area. She was too anxious about things that seemed out of the ordinary.

“Christy, come on. We need to find out why Dad left earlier than normal, so we don’t have time to clean up our rooms.”

“We have plenty of time. You know how Mom insists that we clean up our rooms after we get up in the morning. She wants our rooms organized and the laundry in the basket so she can do her work while we’re at school.”

“I know, but please come with me now. We have to find out what’s going on,” Megan pleaded.

“I’m going to finish cleaning my side of the room first, and then I’m going to get dressed,” Christy replied, as she tossed her dirty clothes in the laundry basket.

“Fine, but hurry,” Megan ordered. “I have to find out what’s going on with Dad, and besides, this could turn into a mystery for us to solve.”

Now that Christy and Megan are in middle school, they have continued to enjoy reading and solving mysteries. They also enjoyed their mystery readers book club even though it was just the two of them. Since they were in middle school, they had to become familiar with their new environment and to observe people and their reactions to different situations.

If something happened that was unusual, then Megan wanted to investigate the circumstances. Christy, on the other hand, took things in stride. She was not that concerned about something out of the ordinary because she viewed the circumstances as something that happened unexpectedly.

However, if she knew something was not right, or if she felt someone had a secret, then she decided to take some kind of action to find out the answer.

“What are you talking about?” Christy asked.

“Dad! He left early, so there has to be some reason why he left before he normally does. If Mom doesn’t tell us why he left earlier than usual, then we need to follow him and see what he’s doing.”

“Oh Megan. You sure have a wild imagination. I doubt if this will turn out to be some kind of mystery for us to solve.”

“It could be,” Megan insisted. “You never know what might happen or when we’ll come across some kind of mystery.”

“That’s true, but I can’t imagine us being involved in a mystery concerning our parents.”

“Why not? It’s possible.”

As Christy finished cleaning her room, she told Megan that she thought it could be possible for them to work on a case that involved their parents. Then, she changed the subject and questioned Megan about her side of the room. She wanted their bedroom to look organized so their mother would not get on their case. “What about your side of the room?”

Christy hinted, as she made her bed.

“I’ll do it later,” Megan replied, as she headed for the door.

When Megan was curious about something, she wanted to let her daily responsibilities go. She wanted to solve the mystery instead of cleaning her room at that moment. However, Christy knew that their mother might get upset if Megan did not clean up her room, so she tried to encourage Megan to clean up her area.

Megan did not want to do it because she wanted to go downstairs and talk to her mother. She believed her mother would not get upset, so she pleaded with Christy to hurry up so they could go downstairs.

“Okay. I’m ready, but you sure are persistent when you want to do something that involves a mystery.”

“I can’t help it. You know how curious I am when something mysterious is happening, especially when it involves our parents.”

Megan always wanted to solve anything that has an element of suspicion because it made life more interesting to her. Now, that she thought her parents may have something they were keeping from them, Megan was more curious about the situation.

“I know you do. We both like to solve mysteries.”

As they rushed into the kitchen to inquire about their father, they noticed their mother, dressed in her dark green slacks and light green blouse, standing in front of the kitchen counter. Her long brown hair, which hung over her shoulders, was pulled back with a green hair clasp.

Good morning, girls. Breakfast is about ready,” their mother said, without turning around to look at them. “You can go ahead and sit down.”

Megan and Christy walked over to the square table in the middle of the large kitchen and pulled out their chairs to sit down. The cream-colored tablecloth, which had light blue and yellow flowers, matched the curtains that hung over the windows and blended with the cream-colored walls. There was a cream-colored vinyl covering on the floor that also blended with the tablecloth.

As Megan sat down, she asked her mother why her father left so early. Her mother told her that he had something to do before he went to work. Megan was not satisfied with that answer, so she continued to inquire about her father.

“Where did he go?” Megan inquired, still wanting an answer to her question. However, Megan was about ready to give up because she did not think her mother would tell her. As a result, Megan became more suspicious and curious about her parents’ actions. She had to know what the big secret was between her parents, but she did not know how she would go about gathering information.

Megan started pondering different questions. What is the big secret? Why did Dad leave early, and why does Mom not want to tell us where he went? Something is wrong, and I have to find out what it is.

“I already told you,” their mother replied, as she placed the scrambled eggs, bacon, and biscuits on the table.

“No you didn’t!” Megan snapped. She wasn’t satisfied because of the way her mother avoided her questions. Since her mother seemed to be evasive, Megan was convinced that her mother was hiding something.

Her mind started wandering in different directions, so she couldn’t concentrate on eating. She felt like something was wrong between her parents, and her curiosity became more aroused.

“Megan, stop it! I’m not going to discuss this with you right now,” her mother said, firmly.

Without looking at them, she walked over to the window and opened it slightly because she liked a cool breeze coming through the window early in the morning.

Then, she cleaned up the kitchen counter and ignored Christy and Megan because she did not want to continue the conversation with Megan and reveal to them what was going on between her husband and her.

“Why?” Megan continued, as she picked up her fork to take a bite of her eggs. Megan waited for a response from her mother, but her mother did not respond, so Megan became frustrated and more curious.

Christy and Megan started devouring their food so they could rush outside and discuss their parents. They realized their mother was hiding something from them, but they did not know what because she always talked to them when it concerned the family.

Their mother heard Megan coughing and told them they needed to slow down because they had plenty of time before they had to leave for Vacation Bible School.

Christy and Megan stared at each other, and each one knew what the other one was thinking - they forgot about Vacation Bible School.

Christy usually remembered Bible School or regular school because she wanted to learn about God and to develop her educational skills. However, she forgot today because of what happened this morning.

After they finished eating, they stood up, pushed their chairs under the table, and took their dishes to the counter. Christy told their mother that they were going outside since they had finished eating, but their mother stopped them and asked Megan if she had cleaned up her side of the room.

Megan stood stiff as a board because she did not think her mother would ask her that question. She could not speak for a few minutes and then told her mother that she had not cleaned it up yet, but she would soon. Her mother insisted that she do it before she went outside. Megan became upset, but she knew it would not do her any good to argue with her mother, so she stomped upstairs to her room to clean it up.

She quickly cleaned up her room and then rushed downstairs so fast that she almost tripped on the last step. After that, she dashed outside to where Christy waited under their favorite cedar tree. “I told you Mom would ask you about cleaning your room,” Christy commented.

“I know, but I have it straightened up now. What are we going to do about Dad and Mom? I know something is up because of the way Mom reacted this morning.”

“I agree, but we need to forget about it and go to Bible School.”

Megan thought Christy was right about going to Bible School, but she felt like solving the mystery with their parents was more important.

Christy told her that she usually remembered things like attending Bible School and regular school, but she forgot because of the way things happened this morning.

Megan still wanted to find out what was going on with their parents, but she did not know if they would locate their father now since he had already left on his errand and for work. She sat there and pondered over their situation before she spoke.

“I know we need to go to Bible School, but something is obviously wrong with Mom and Dad, and I couldn’t concentrate on the Bible lesson until I find out what they are hiding from us. I think we need to see if we can locate Dad even though he already left,” Megan suggested.

“How can we do that since Dad’s already left? We don’t know what kind of errands he had to do before he went to work,” Christy replied.

“I know, but we can still search for him. After all, we’re junior detectives, so it’s our job to search for clues so we can solve mysteries.”

Christy agreed with Megan, but on the other hand, she did not want to miss Bible School. Megan understood how Christy felt, but she thought missing one day would not hurt them. She thought they could attend Bible School tomorrow and search for their dad today. Reluctantly, Christy agreed to go along with Megan’s plan. However, Christy didn't want to get into trouble by missing Bible School. She believed that her parents usually found out things when they did something wrong.

Megan assured Christy that they would be all right, but she could tell by the expression on Christy’s face that Christy was worried. “Missing one day isn’t going to hurt us. It’s more important to find out what’s happening with Mom and Dad,” Megan encouraged, as she gave her sister a hug.

Megan and Christy knew something was wrong with their mother because of the way she acted. She seemed more nervous and upset than normal, and she didn't want to discuss things that concerned their family like she usually did. Megan also noticed that her mother did not look at them when they talked.

Then, they could not understand why their father left for work earlier than normal. All of these clues added up to the fact that they believed their parents were hiding something from them, but they did not know what.

Since Megan and Christy were curious about strange happenings, they became junior detectives in the third grade, so they could find missing items at school or missing pets. They did not think they would have to solve a mystery that involved their parents.

“How are we going to find Dad?”

Megan suggested they go to the park, so they climbed on their blue bicycles and headed in the direction to the park, which was four blocks south of their house. When they arrived, they noticed that nobody was around. They chose a shady spot under a cedar tree where they could talk about their parents.

The park had cedar trees, rose bushes, a fenced-in playground area, covered picnic area for those who enjoy eating outside, and a shelter house for parties.

“What do you think they’re hiding from us?” Megan asked.

“I don’t know.” Christy replied.

When Megan asked Christy if she thought their parents were getting a divorce, Christy about flipped out. She could not believe the thoughts that fluttered Megan’s mind, but she did agree with Megan that something was not right between their parents, or they were hiding something from them like a surprise.

“A divorce! No! They love each other,” Christy replied, startled by what Megan said. “You sure come up with some strange ideas, but I thought of something. Maybe they're going to surprise us in some way and didn’t want to tell us at this time.”

Megan looked down at the ground and could not make eye contact with Christy for a few minutes because she did not want to accept Christy’s response. She insisted that their parents had something bad to tell them and did not want them to know yet. She felt that way because of the way their mother avoided her questions and would not reveal to them why their father left so early. “Something’s going on because of Mom’s reactions.”

“That doesn't mean they’re getting a divorce,” Christy replied.

“I know, but Dad left early and Mom’s upset.”

Christy tried to explain to Megan that their mother was upset because she continued to pressure her about their father. She gave Megan a hug to reassure her that things would be all right. Megan told her that she was not satisfied with her mother’s reactions, so she kept asking her because she hoped she would finally tell them what was going on.

Christy told her she wanted to know what they were keeping a secret, too, but she said they would have to wait until their parents told them. Finally, Megan blurted out. “No we don't. We can start searching for Dad now.”

Christy agreed to search for their father, but she still did not want to miss Bible School because she was afraid their parents would find out they did not attend the class. Megan tried to assure her that they would be okay, but if they did find out they could tell them they went to the park to play first and forgot about the time.

Megan always had a positive attitude when she did sneaky things because she wanted to believe her parents would not find out about their sneakiness.

Christy, on the other hand, did not want to be sneaky because she did not want to get into trouble. However, she decided to go along with Megan and her plans as she usually did. Since Christy was born first, she wanted to be the “big sister.” She wanted to help Megan out of the sneaky schemes she planned because she would have been concerned about Megan if she was somewhere alone and could not escape.

“Okay. I'll go with you,” Christy replied, with a slight hesitation in her voice.

“Thanks.”

They got on their bicycles and started searching for their father.

After riding about five blocks east of the park, they saw their father’s white station wagon parked in front of a house. They wondered who lived in the house and why he was there instead of the newspaper office where he worked as a reporter and writer.

After waiting for what seemed liked hours, they saw him come out with a slender young looking woman. She had short blond hair and was dressed in brown slacks, a beige blouse, and matching brown dress shoes. Christy and Megan eyes almost popped out when they saw their father with another woman.

“Christy look! Dad’s with another woman. Who is she?”

“I don't know. I've never seen her before.”

Janet Blaylock