The Mysterious Thief

The Mysterious Thief
by Karen

Ike sat up bolt straight. His body was drenched in sweat despite the cold December air that filled the room. He fought to bring his breathing under control as he quickly looked around the room. Everyone was still asleep. For just a few minutes, he was glad Buck wasn’t here; he didn’t want to talk about this dream, and it always bothered Buck when this happened. Ike quietly got out of bed. He grabbed his pants, shoes, and coat. He got dressed on the porch and headed towards the stock pens; soon he was sitting on the rail, stroking Samson’s head while trying to recall the dream that had awakened him. If he could only remember the details, maybe he could make it go away.
As the sun began to peek above the horizon, Ike gave Samson one final pat and crawled down. He went to clean up before breakfast. He could almost remember. Maybe this time he’d take Buck up on his offer to help. He felt there was something important this dream was trying to tell him. If he could just remember it.
Ike shrugged his shoulders and finished washing. He returned to the bunkhouse for his shirt and bandana. That’s when he noticed that it was missing! His box wasn’t where it should be. It wasn’t sitting in the corner of his trunk. He quickly took everything out of his trunk. The box was nowhere to be found.
Ike sank to his knees and put his head in his hands. Think, he told himself. When did you last see it? He thought. Yesterday, he answered. I saw it yesterday just before Buck left. I had it on the bed; I was going to fix the hinge. Teaspoon called and I put it on Cody’s bed. He sat up straight. He crawled to the side of the bunk bed and looked at Cody’s bed. Cody was still sleeping. Ike carefully looked at the bed; the box wasn’t there. He quickly dropped flat on the floor and looked under the bed – nothing, not even a dust bunny. Rachael sure was a good housekeeper.
Ike quietly put his things away and then opened Cody’s trunk. He quickly looked through its contents. When he closed the lid, he came face to face with Cody. “Find what you were looking for?” Cody asked.
Ike shook his head. *I’m sorry,* he explained. *I put something on your bed yesterday and I thought maybe you picked it up and put it away. I didn’t want to bother you while you were sleeping…*
“Was it a small wooden box with a broken hinge?” Cody asked.
Ike nodded.
“I saw it when I came in yesterday after passing the pouch off to Buck. I was going to ask you about it so I put it on my pillow to be sure and remember. It wasn’t here when I got back. I figured whoever it belonged to took it back. Was it valuable?”
Ike shook his head. *Just trinkets from my family. Not worth anything except to me.*
Cody nodded. “Something strange is going on here. Your box is missing. Last night Lou mentioned that she’s missing something – same type of thing as yours.
Ike nodded. He remembered. Just before supper, Lou had been looking for a journal. It had been her mother’s. The cover was worn, almost all the way through. *Why would someone want things like Lou’s book and my box?* he asked.
Cody shrugged. “Why don’t we see if anyone else is missing anything?” he suggested. “Maybe we can figure out what’s going on if we all work together.”
Ike nodded. The two of them went to see if they could help Rachael any with getting breakfast ready. When they entered the house, Rachael was tearing apart her room. “I can’t have lost it,” she said. “It was right here yesterday. I know it was.”
“Rachael?” Cody hollered.
“What is it, Cody?” she answered testily.
“Ike and me was just wondering if we could help you get breakfast ready?” Cody said with a smile. “Is something wrong?”
Rachael sighed. “My pearl necklace is missing. I had it out yesterday morning, trying to decide if I should go get it fixed or not, and now it’s gone.”
*Was it worth a lot?* Ike asked.
“Not really,” said Rachael. “I wore it at my wedding. My husband gave it to me. It had belonged to his mother.” She sat down and began to sob.
“That makes three of us,” said Cody.
Rachael stopped crying. “Three of us, what?” she asked.
*Three of us who are missing something of personal value,* explained Ike. *Your necklace, my box, and Lou’s journal.*
“Yeah,” said Cody. “Ike and me were going to see if we could figure out what was going on here. We figured we’d check with everyone at breakfast to see who all is missing something.”
“That’s a good idea, Cody,” said Rachael. “Then we can talk to Teaspoon and see what he thinks we should do.”
She stood, “Did you say you two were here to see if I needed any help with breakfast?”
Ike nodded.
“Yes, Ma’am,” said Cody. “Seeing as how you are usually over at the bunkhouse getting things started by this time.”
Rachael laughed. “You trying to tell me you’re hungry?”
Cody grinned.
“Here, take this then. It will save me a trip if you both help.” She handed each of them a basket and they all three left for the bunkhouse.
Once the meal had started, Cody brought up the subject, “Anyone seen a small wooden box with a broken hinge? It was on my bed yesterday afternoon.”
“What was in it?” asked Jimmy.
“Don’t know,” said Cody. “It belongs to Ike.”
“Anything important or valuable?” asked Kid.
*Only important to me,* replied Ike. He looked at Lou, *Did you ever find your mother’s journal?*
Lou shook her head, “And now Kid’s missing something too. He can’t find Jed’s pocketknife.”
“That old rusty one?” asked Noah.
Kid nodded.
Rachael sat down and asked, “Anyone else missing something? Jimmy, what about you?”
Jimmy nodded, “A small picture of my mother is missing. Just noticed it this morning.”
“Teaspoon?” Rachael continued.
Teaspoon shook his head, “Not that I’ve noticed, but then again, I haven’t looked at all my trinkets recently. Been too busy trying to keep these boys in line.”
The others all laughed as Rachael continued her list making, “Cody? What about you? Are you missing anything of a personal nature?”
“I’m not sure,” Cody replied. “I didn’t think to look. Just thought to check on everyone else.” He grinned as the others laughed.
“Noah?” Rachael finished the inquiry.
“Sally’s strong box,” Noah said. “I noticed it was missing the other day when I got back from my last run. I figured someone just moved it to the barn or something. It was kind of in the way in here. I hadn’t had a chance to go looking for it yet.”
Teaspoon stood up. “I suggest everyone go check and make sure we know for certain what everyone is missing. I’ll do the same. Ike, you think you could tell if Buck was missing anything?”
Ike shrugged, *Maybe.*
“Go look and see what you can find. We’ll need a list of items to try and find. Also, if you find something missing, try to figure out when is the last time you know for certain that you had it. It might help us solve this mystery if we know when things started to disappear.”
A few minutes later, they all gathered back around the dining table. Rachael had cleared away the food and dishes. She sat with pen and paper. “Now, so far we have Lou missing a journal since the day before yesterday; Ike missing a box since yesterday afternoon; Jimmy missing a picture last seen a few days ago; Kid can’t locate a knife last seen three days ago; my necklace was there the yesterday morning; Cody…”
“I can’t find my writing supplies,” he said. “I know I had them before my last run. I was using them. That was four days ago.”
“Alright, Cody – writing supplies. Teaspoon?”
Teaspoon nodded, “An old holster and gun.”
“Your Texas Ranger rig?” asked Jimmy.
“Yep,” Teaspoon replied. “Can’t figure why anyone would want that.”
Rachael wrote it down. “Ike, was anything of Buck’s missing that you know of?”
Ike nodded. *He has a letter; at least I think it’s a letter. He has an envelope he usually keeps at the bottom of his trunk. It’s not there.*
“You think he took it with him?” asked Teaspoon.
Ike shook his head. *No. He never takes it anywhere. He hasn’t ever opened it as far as I know; he just keeps it in his trunk. He won’t tell me anything about it, just says it’s personal. Kind of like my box.*
“We have a most peculiar thief, don’t we?” said Teaspoon. “I guess we need to go to town and find out if anyone else around has been similarly burgled.”
The ride into town was quiet. Each person was lost in their own thoughts trying to figure out why these particular items had been taken. What could anyone else gain by taking them? They were all of no value to anyone except the owner. In fact, most of them had something that needed to be repaired. It was such a strange thing to be happening – especially since it was the day before Christmas.
The next evening, Buck rode into the deserted station. There was a note on the door telling anyone who came calling that they were all in town at the Christmas dance. He smiled. If he hurried, he should be able to get finished before they got back. He quickly stabled his mount without removing the saddle. He took his saddlebags and quietly pushed open the door to Teaspoon’s room. He opened the bags and carefully removed a package. He placed the wrapped gift on Teaspoon’s bed and then placed a note on top of it.
He ran across the yard and entered the main house. He put a small box on the table along with a card that had Rachael’s name on it. Then he picked up his bags and hurried to the bunkhouse. On each pillow, including his own, he put a package and note. He went to the door. He surveyed the room. It was perfect. They’d never guess it was him especially since he included himself in the gift giving.
Buck gathered his saddlebags and went back to the stable. He quickly took his horse and went to the meadow nearby. Here he sat and waited. From this location, he could hear and see them without being seen. He didn’t have long to wait before he heard them returning.
Buck got up and made sure his horse was out of sight then he crawled to the edge of the clearing nearest the way station. Once again, he waited. Soon they were all standing in the yard looking, trying to find him. Buck smiled. He’d done it. He’d given them a Christmas they’d never forget. They stood showing each other what they had received:
Cody - a special made leather pouch holding his missing writing supplies
Kid - his brother’s knife cleaned up and sharpened
Lou – her mother’s journal recovered in soft deer hide
Jimmy – his mother’s picture in a simple, hand-carved oak frame
Rachael – her necklace restrung and ready to wear
Teaspoon – his gun and holster restored to their original glory
Noah – Sally’s strongbox repaired and ready to use
Ike – his small wooden box polished, fixed, and with a new lock

They also compared notes. These were all the same. They all read, “Merry Christmas to the best family a man could have.”
Buck smiled to himself as he quietly went to his horse. He headed away from the station to a place he knew where he could camp for the evening. He would wait until morning to return. That’s when he was supposed to be back. Tomorrow – the day after Christmas.