The Investigators, Inc. The Jigsaw Puzzle Mystery. Chapter 1. Children.

Posted on July 6, 2026 by

354 Comments

Detective reviewing documents with a translucent ghostly woman sitting beside him in a dimly lit office

We have had a few nice, quiet days since our last case and it has been very nice, but we could definitely use more such quiet days. Today Jennifer, Kat, Friskie, Carine, Mandy, Erika and Steffie are in the city shopping. I wanted to go along with them, but for some reason they all said no to that idea. Jennifer said that having 3 children to look after was enough while shopping. Not sure what she meant by that, though maybe it’s because I don’t like shopping. While at one large store they were walking along one aisle and suddenly Steffie screamed, “TOYS!” She then took off running in that direction with Erika right behind her, followed by Mandy.

The ghost team were not really that far behind, so I was told, but when they got to the toys none of the girls were in sight. They ran around quickly and frantically, checking every aisle and asking people if they had seen the 3 girls. Oddly, no one had seen them which made no sense. Before they even had a chance to inform me that the girls were gone I received a video call from an old “friend”. It was Helene. “I have your children Steve,” she said, “and I know you would like to have proof, so here it is.” She then showed me the girls, who were not looking too happy.

“Sorry Daddy,” said Mandy, “she got us, but we’re okay though.” “There you go Steve,” said Helene, “but don’t worry, I don’t plan to keep them, I’m not really a big fan of children. I will gladly give them back to you, for a price.” “Yes, I thought we would get around to money sooner or later,” I told her, “so, how much are you wanting?” “Oh, you have me all wrong Steve,” she said, “I am not looking to sell them back to you, not at all. I want you, dear Steve. Just give yourself to me and your girls are free to go.”

“And how do you propose that we make the switch?” I asked, “Especially since we don’t trust each other.” “Yes, that is always such a problem,” she admitted, “so we will meet at a popular beach in the city. You can have one person with you, of my choosing, who will take custody of your daughters. And my men will take you. If you do things correctly and follow orders, then your daughters will be returned safely. If you try to trick me, then they will have to die. Please keep your snipers away from the area. I am very good at spotting such people and that will not bring favorable results.”

“And who would you like me to bring along to pick up the girls?” I asked. “Misty,” she said, “not for any particular reason except that she is one of your team leaders, so she would be a good one to kill if anything should go wrong. However, I’m certain you will make sure that everything goes smoothly.” We then agreed on a time to make the exchange, which will happen tomorrow at 9am.

Meanwhile, back with the others in the city. “I can’t seem to communicate with Steve,” said Jennifer. So Kat tried next, but again I didn’t answer. Then Kat tried Sky who answered while I was just finishing up with Helene. “Helene has the girls,” said Kat, “and she is going to trade them for Steve tomorrow morning.” “He can’t do that,” exclaimed Jennifer, “it goes against our rules, well, sort of anyway. Okay, I guess it doesn’t really since this is a personal matter, not a team matter.” “Right,” said Kat, “so we will need to handle this very carefully, or we could lose those children.”

That made Friskie sit on the floor and begin to cry. “Hey, don’t worry,” said Kat, “we’ll get the children back safely. Let’s all go back to the van for now.” They began walking out to the van when Carine noticed that Jennifer wasn’t with them. Kat looked around. “She’s with us,” said Kat, “just invisible. She’s crying too.” Once back at the van Kat called me so we could all talk together. I told them what Helene wants and I will trade myself for the girls at 9am.

I told them to stay in the city, but to stay away from the exchange area until after the exchange has been made and I have been taken away. Then they can come and pick up Misty and the girls. “I will make sure there is a good escort for you coming home,” I said, “though I realize you don’t really need it, but I want it to look good in case you’re being watched.” “One of us could come along with you Steve,” said Jennifer, “we can’t just let her take you away somewhere. I mean, she obviously wants to kill you.”

“Yes, I figure she wants to kill me too,” I said, “but I want those girls home safely, that’s the most important thing.” “Yes, I agree, we want them safe,” said Jennifer, “but, we can do both.” “No, not this time,” I said, “we will play by her rules since she has the upper hand for now.” I didn’t get much sleep that night, yet the time went by quickly and soon I found myself sitting on a bench with Misty overlooking the beach waiting for Helene’s men to show up.

At 9:02am a van showed up and a man got out with the girls and came over to us. Before they got to us Misty whispered to me that she could easily deal with that man. I told her no, Helene likely has other men around the area, waiting for an opportunity to kill us all. She sighed, rather loudly. The man told Misty to take the girls and leave, which she did. Then he told me to get into the van. I was sure they would take me somewhere and kill me since they had blindfolded me.

However, we drove a long distance instead. A very long distance. Ten hours later we finally stopped for the last time and we all got out. We then got in a helicopter and flew for some time, then landed. We drove again until at midnight we arrived at an airport where we boarded a small jet and flew, somewhere. We then drove to a country estate where Helene was waiting for us. She allowed me to shower and she had clean clothes ready for me. I was then escorted down to the dining room for breakfast…

To Be Continued. ©2026 Steve McLeod.

Category: Adventure, Danger, Fiction, Mystery, Story, Strange Happenings, Suspense, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , ,

354 Comments on “The Investigators, Inc. The Jigsaw Puzzle Mystery. Chapter 1. Children.”

  1. Im sure they’re insured.
    I understand, I wouldn’t sit and,wait either. That ridiculous! How in the world did they ever convince people that health system was better?🤔🤪

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    • Well, at the start it was, but things changed after a while when they finally realized how much this system was actually going to cost. Plus, now we have a serious shortage of doctors and nurses so that ER’s are understaffed.
      On that note I must say good night. I have to lie down again anyway. Have a good night Dusty! 😃🥱😴🌛

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    • Good morning Dusty! How’s the wing construction coming along? It was another cool, cloudy and rainy day here, but tomorrow we return to summer, though just for the day. Then the temp drops and drops and drops.

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  3. Nope, no wing working today. I helped Bruce with pinstriping his plane to imitate panel lines before he paints it. Then I came home and went to the pool for an hour and then…. nothing, just some supper.

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    • Was it busy at the pool today? Did you actually go swimming or just lay around in the sun? It’s supposed to be 75 here tomorrow. Like I believe that one. My PSW just left, she gave me an extra long massage tonight. So nice.😃

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  4. There were a bunch if people still there from their volleyball game they have from noon until 2, but they struggled out not yo long after I got there.
    75? Wow! That’s amazing! To bad it’s only for a day.

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    • Yeah, I still doubt it will get that warm, but strange things happen sometimes. Sunday is supposed to be 55 and Monday only 47 with flurries on Tuesday!😬🥶❄️

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    • Christmas? Walmart has had Christmas decorations up since the beginning of September. They began selling Christmas decorations towards the end of August. People were buying them too. Amazing really.

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  6. Well, as a friend once told me they Christmas shop all year long. It ki d of makes me sad a little. It’s so commercial now the whole meaning is almost gone. Don’t you think?🤔

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    • Not much except lots of people are getting sick with the flu and colds. Flu season started early this year. They are not having a Thanksgiving dinner this year. Thanksgiving is Monday for us. I’m not doing anything special.

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    • It’s getting better, still not quite back to normal, but I am feeling quite a bit better now.
      Well, time for bed, have a great night Dusty and I will talk again tomorrow! 😃🥱😴🌛

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    • Not a bad day I guess. Temp reached 66, not quite as warm as they said it would be. Tomorrow will be 50 and rain. My back and arthritis are terrible, but I think that’s because of the change in weather coming up.

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  11. Yeah, it was kind of nice to have a day to take things as they come. Im going to do the same tomorrow. I hope you improve for tomorrow, it would be nice for you to have a less painful day for a change.

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    • Yep, definitely important to toss in those relaxing days now and then. After all, you’re retired now, there’s no deadline to get things done. I keep trying to convince myself of that too, not easy sometimes.😂

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    • Hehe. Yep, that’s true enough. I watered my plants today, got everything done that needed to be done. I also found more of those thrips on my hoya plant this morning and had to remove 2 more leaves. I sprayed it again. Unfortunately new ones keep hatching so I have to keep spraying until I get them all. Hopefully not many more will be hatching. I don’t want to lose that plant, it will be the right age for possibly blooming next year. However, I don’t want it to infect my other plants either. Better to lose one than a dozen or more like last year.😬

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    • It’s in the kitchen right now, that’s the only room with no plants. However it can’t stay there indefinitely, there’s not enough light for it. Each thrip can lay 50 eggs so just 10 thrips can cause a big problem.

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    • Yep, she’s a nice girl and doesn’t mind talking and takes an interest in people which is nice. The coordinator doesn’t like that though, she wants all the PSWs to stop doing that and just get in and out as quickly as possible. Not sure how she got the job as coordinator, she doesn’t understand what older people want. One of the ladies in our building is turning 100 on Tuesday. She’s healthy and does everything on her own. Makes me feel old. Sigh.

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    • There’s another woman in here that just recently turned 101 and she is also in excellent health. I can’t even imagine being that age! Hey, you made popcorn and didn’t share??😮

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  17. Uh oh…🙄 you caught that huh?😬 um… yeah? It’s the first time in months that I’ve had it though. I can’t eat it very often, it can disagree with my stomach.

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    • It was good at church but only a handful of people came out, people are sick right now, flu season started very early this year. One person was sick with a serious case of shingles and could barely walk around, so her husband stayed home with her.

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    • Yes indeed. 😊 I’m very stiff today and sore, but that’s the weather mainly. It rained most of the day today and got to 52 degrees briefly before starting to fall this afternoon.

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    • No, don’t say that! That means what it means it means and that means, I mean, what it means! Know what I mean? My PSW left, she was running behind schedule again and yet there are 2 less people to look after now.

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    • Wednesday is going to be warmer at 55 degrees and sunny, otherwise temps will be in the 40s all week. Possibly flurries tomorrow. There was actually some *no*flakes today too.

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    • Yep, it happens every year except when it doesn’t, this early anyway.
      Well, once again time for bed, shopping tomorrow, have a good night Dusty and I will talk again tomorrow!😃🥱😴🌛🌧️❄️

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    • Thanks! It just didn’t seem like it got daylight, more like it’s just getting daylight in the morning and it just stayed that way. And rain, and rain, and rain and a high of 39 degrees!🥶🌧️🌧️

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    • Yes, if this rain was the white stuff there would be a lot of white stuff and it would be here until next spring! Ha, Ha.🙄 You would probably like some of this cold air to relax in rather than that boring heat wave.🥶

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  29. Ha! I’ll take boring warm or hot everytime over cold and frozen!🥶🥶
    How did your shopping go?
    I worked a few hours on my plane again today.
    I’ve got a busy day of cutting and fitting on the tail feathers tomorrow.

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    • But you’re missing out on all this beautiful changeable weather. Shopping was good, quite normal and boring. Surprisingly enough, the shelves were stocked fully for a change. Very odd considering it’s a holiday weekend. I didn’t know those planes had feathers.🤔🛩️

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  30. Only on the tail!🤭😂 I have to make the elevators out of wood and the rudder out of wood also, and then glue all those tiny wedge shaped pieces together and then decide if I’m going to use sloth cover like the real plane or just sheet then in balsa🤔 I’d like the realism of cloth… but! Balsa is easier.

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    • Oh, I getcha. Yep, I agree, Balsa is better for being easier since it’s easy to work with which makes it easier for working.
      Oh, did I mention that the leaves have all changed color now? It looks so beautiful, or it would have if I could have seen it through all the rain today. That rain is knocking every leaf onto the ground at alarming rate.

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    • No sun here until Wednesday and my friend will be away from early Wednesday morning until Friday evening, so, no picture possibilities until next week. By then it will be done for colors. Oh well, these things happen. No more frost for us until Friday night. We had that one frost last week which brought the colors out so nice this week. The colorful part of fall is so short up here.

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    • Frost on the trees doesn’t happen often up here, not where it really shows up nice. It’s generally about every ten years for a real nice show, but I can always hope. Last time was 3 years ago.

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    • Good way to put it, lost focus, or something. Sigh. But it’s on my list of things to think about. I just have to remember where I put that list. Well, I’m off to bed like a herd of turtles. Have a good night Dusty! Talk tomorrow if you’re around!😊🥱😴🌛🌧️

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    • I was outside, temporarily, only because I had to go to the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. I did some rearranging in here today. Guess what? My toe is infected again.

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    • It did heal, very nicely too. But…I kicked my toe again, twice, very hard. That caused my toenail to dig in and it got infected again. I go see my doctor about it tomorrow. Sigh.
      Some pictures and plants. I wasn’t quite satisfied with the first arrangement of plants on my new shelves, so I redid them a bit. They are fitting much better now.

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    • Yep, that’s the problem. Though it’s not really ingrown anymore, but it’s kinda close to it I guess, or maybe it’s ingrown again. I always have problems with that toenail, for years now. I need to stop kicking it so much. Sigh.
      Well, time for the ole bed again. Didn’t get much sleep last night. Have a good night Dusty and I will be back with all the “good” news about my toe tomorrow. 🙄🥱😴🌧️

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    • Oh no! Did you end up with 2 tails? Can you fix it easily, or did you fix it easily? I did that one time with a project, everything was going so nice and easy and I was happy with my days work. The next day i went out to the shop and noticed one piece was glued on upside down. 😮 I stood there looking at it for a bit,🤔 then went back in the house and had another cup of coffee! ☕ I had forgotten about that one, thanks for reminding me.

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  43. Oh… you’re welcome 😁 glad to help!
    As far as fixing goes… well, I could fix it, but it would require cutting it out and trying to reglue a new piece in the right place… I don’t know if it’s worth the effort. It would just look a little odd visually.

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    • Hmm, can you do the same thing on the other side? Then it would look like you intentionally did it, you could even paint it with a fancy design or something. Maybe. Or not. Just a thought. Stupid idea really. Forget I mentioned it. Yes, I appreciate the help, maybe I can write about it one day.😂

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  44. It’s the tailwheel air retract mount in the tail. I glued it to high and when it’s deployed it extends the wheel out to far. Not a show stopper, it just looks a little silly.

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    • Oh, okay, that means my idea wouldn’t work too well then. Oh well. I had my visit with the doctor this afternoon. I discovered a few things today. She said my feet looked very good and that I take care of them very well.

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    • No, I do have an infection, worse than last time. I discovered that doctors can use needles to drain the puss from an infected area, like my toe. I also discovered that such a thing can hurt. A lot. I got more antibiotics, more than last time. I need to soak my foot in salt water at least twice a day as well. Hopefully it will be healed by then. She also told me to stop kicking my toe. I told her I need steel toed slippers. She laughed. Your comment just got here 2 minutes ago but said 14 minutes. Sigh.

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  46. She is right.🙄 You do need to stop hitting your toe!🤭
    But I hope the medicine helps! Hey, I know… you could come down here and soak it in the salty ocean! That would get healed up real quick!😉😁

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    • Yeah, that would be a great way to do it. I thought maybe I could wrap a salty water filled plastic bag around my foot, that would make soaking it easier. I would slosh when i walked though. Oh well.
      Time for bed again, I’m tired too I think. Have a good night Dusty, sleep better, have flying dreams! 😃🛩️🥱😴🌧️

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  49. 90 inch wing span. It will have a 9 h.p. engine in it. Im just about finished building the rudder. I’ll take some pictures before I sheet it, so you can see the detail that goes into cutting and assembling it tomorrow.

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    • This just came in, just so you know I’m not slow in replying. Sigh. That’s 7 1/2 feets! That’s huge. Great, I look forward to seeing the pictures. It makes me want to start some kind of project too, and…I have a couple of ideas now.

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