Who Killed Tom Turkey?

Marja McGraw is taking the week off to celebrate Thanksgiving, so I’m stepping in and taking her place. My name is Mikey Cross and I’m ten years old. My mom and dad star in Marja’s Bogey Man Mysteries, and I go wherever they go. Today I’m going to tell you a mystery story. I hope you have fun with it.

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My name is Mikey Cross. I’ve been called in to solve a case, along with my two trusty sidekicks, Sherlock and Watson. Oh, I should probably mention that they’re yellow Labrador Retrievers – a boy and a girl (Watson is the girl.)

Tom Turkey has been found dead by the side of the road. Four men are standing around the body, shaking their heads. There’s a board lying near the body. Sherlock and Watson are on the case, sniffing the turkey for clues. At least, that’s what I hope they’re doing.

The suspects in this case, as they stand around the body, are Farmer Joe (who owns a turkey farm), John (the butcher at the grocery store), Fred (who’s been raising a turkey for this year’s dinner), and Sam (who drank too much beer on his birthday and drove right into Farmer Joe’s turkey farm).

Looking to my right, I see another dead turkey, and beyond her is a third feathered body. Is there a serial killer on the loose? Why the heck would someone be murdering defenseless, senseless turkeys? Sherlock runs to the second turkey, and Watson doesn’t want to be left out, so she approaches the third one, to guard the body.

“Sit! And don’t touch the bodies or any evidence,” I yell. Sherlock sits, but he’s shaking like a leaf and staring at the turkey. Watson ignores me and begins sniffing the third bird.

I look at the four men and see they’re all smiling. Have they no hearts? I push my way past them. “Hmm. I see tire tracks on the turkey.” I look into the eyes of Sam, the beer drinker.

He drops his head and stammers. “Don’t look at me, sonny. I drove into the turkey farm. This bird is lying beside the road, not back at the farm.”

I walk over and check out the second turkey. “You poor thing,” I whisper. “Why would someone knock you off and leave your body here?” The turkey’s neck looks like it was broken. Another board lay by the body. “Looks like there’s a monster on the loose.” Sherlock looks at me, but quickly turns back to the dead hen.

Maybe a turkey farmer would break a turkey’s neck. I turn and walk back to the men, zeroing in on Farmer Joe. He has a guilty look on his face, but he shakes his head. “These aren’t my turkeys. You can’t blame this on me.”

“My turkeys are back at the store,” John-the-butcher says, smiling wickedly.

“And my turkey is safe and sound in the refrigerator at home,” says Fred, “just waiting to be stuffed.”

I cringe. What heartless buggers!

I take one more walk, ready to look at the third turkey. When I get close to the poor thing, I hear a feeble gobble gobble. Watson’s tail spins in a circle. Sadly, after one more gobble, the turkey is quiet. Once again, there’s a board lying by the body. The murder weapon? I sigh. How am I going to figure this case out?

Hearing a rumble, I look down the road and see a truck full of crates heading our way. It pulls to a stop right in front of the four men and I run back to see who it is. There’s a sign on the side of the truck that says, “Gimbal’s Turkey Ranch.”

I slap myself on the forehead. “Of course! A crate fell off the truck. One turkey was run over by a passing car. One landed on her head, breaking her neck. The third one? I don’t know what killed him, but at least he got one last gobble out.”

I turn to the men. “Men? You’re free to go. Have a good Thanksgiving.”

I whistle and Sherlock and Watson come running. Well, they don’t exactly run, and they keep turning back to look at the bodies. I hope that isn’t drool I see dripping from Sherlock’s mouth.

THE END

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Happy Thanksgiving from Marja McGraw, Jill, Sugar, Murphy and Clementine!

Until next time, have a great Thanksgiving and try not to overeat.

CLICK HERE to visit Marja McGraw’s website

CLICK HERE for a quick trip to Amazon.com

Once again, let me mention One Adventure Too Many – A Sandi Webster Mystery. If you’re looking for something light and mysterious to read, this is it.