Super-Sleuths

Super-Sleuths

The two detectives snuck in through the white front door of the detached house, leaving it open behind them. They looked up the stairs to the left while listening for any sounds that would reveal where the suspect was lurking.
'We've got to be careful, we don't want her to hear us,' said Duncan quietly as he stared at the door to the lounge down the hallway to the right.
Lucy nodded as she stood behind him, her blue eyes wide as she looked and listened for any signs of the suspect's whereabouts.
There was a clinking noise from the kitchen at the far end of the hall and their eyes immediately turned to the wooden door that was slightly ajar, a gleaming, chrome sink visible through the gap.
'It sounds like she's stirring a drink,' observed Lucy in a whisper as her pulse began to race and she rubbed the tip of her slightly upturned nose in nervous agitation.
Duncan took a step towards the kitchen door, but went stock-still when the sound of a chair scraping on floor tiles issued from the room ahead. 'She's getting up,' he said in alarm, worried that she'd discover them creeping along the hallway.
He took a deep breath and looked over his shoulder at Lucy, her silver detective's badge glinting, pinned to her pink blouse. 'Shall we carry on?' he asked, seeing her wide-eyed expression of trepidation.
'Yes.' She nodded as she brushed a ringlet of blonde hair from her face.
Duncan gulped as he turned back to face the kitchen door. There was no sign that the suspect was about to exit the room and so he took another step along the hall, white trainers making no sound on the plum carpet.
A sudden rustling followed by loud crunching brought the detectives to a halt once again.
'She's eating crisps,' commented Duncan without looking at Lucy.
'I don't think she's got the faintest idea we're here,' replied Lucy, her heart pounding.
'Lets hope it stays that way.' Duncan's grey eyes remained glued to the gap between the kitchen door and doorframe as he watched for any signs of movement.
The crisp-crunching continued as the detectives made their way further along the hall, slowly drawing closer to the room where their suspect stayed hidden from sight.
Suddenly a big, black dog came wandering out of the kitchen, pausing as it spied the two detectives, who pressed themselves against the left-hand wall in a vain attempt to conceal themselves.
Tail wagging in a gesture of friendship, the large hound padded over to Duncan and snuffled his right hand. He patted its head and scratched behind its ears as it glanced behind him at Lucy.
The dog then licked his hand affectionately and Duncan winced at the sound, which was accentuated by their need for stealthy silence.
'Sssh,' he said with a finger to his lips, the dog looking up at him curiously for a moment.
Duncan tried to push him away gently and the beast finally took the hint, plodding away down the hall to exit the house via the open front door.
'What if he runs off?' said Lucy worriedly.
'He'll be fine. I think he'll just have a sniff round the front garden,' replied Duncan as he looked at his fellow detective and scratched his head, fingers in his mousy, brown hair.
'He might mess up the flower beds.' Lucy bit her bottom lip as she stared at Duncan, who glanced at the front door briefly.
He shrugged. 'It doesn't matter. What matters is catching her,' he said with a nod of his head in the direction of the kitchen. 'Okay?'
Lucy thought for a moment, continuing to nibble at her bottom lip, and then nodded weakly.
Duncan turned back to the kitchen door and began to walk forward. The sound of a chair against floor tiles echoed down the hallway for a second time and the two detectives stopped dead in their tracks as soft footsteps approached the door ahead of them.
The kitchen door opened and the suspect stood in the doorway wearing blue jeans and a white, short-sleeved shirt, her long, brunette hair tied back. She visibly jumped as her shadow fell across the detectives, an expression of amused surprise on her face.
'What are you two scallywags up too?' she asked with a smile.
'We were coming to arrest you,' answered Lucy over Duncan's shoulder.
'Oh dear, what have I¦?' Her sentence stopped abruptly as the dog wandered back into the house, the hound's filthy paws leaving muddy prints on the carpet. 'Whose idea was it to leave the door wide open?' she asked with hands on hips.
'Duncan said it was okay,' replied Lucy with eyes down-turned, biting her lower lip once again.
'No I didn't,' responded her brother defensively and with a big frown.
'As long as you both clean it up once it's dried it doesn't really matter,' said their mother softly, stepping over to them. 'For the time being you can go and do your detective work in the garden and find out if Biff has damaged the flower beds,' she said with a grin as she ruffled Duncan's mousy hair. 'There's a reward for you if you do,' she added.
They both looked up at her with curious and expectant expressions.
'What reward?' asked Lucy, eyes sparkling.
'Ice-cream,' replied their mother with a grin.
The children looked at each other with large grins on their faces and then headed straight for the front door.
Their mother chuckled as Duncan and Lucy disappeared outside to earn their reward, eager to track the big beast and put their super-sleuthing to good use.