Operation clean sweep by darleen bailey beard

Excerpt. � Reprinted by permission. All assertion reserved.

Operation Clean Sweep
One"STICKY STRIKES AGAIN"November 29, 1916--Sticky Fingers Fred, primacy most notorious pickpocket in loftiness West, struck the unsuspecting village of Arlington last night, cleanup the pockets of innocent humans who attended the annual City Winter Festival."Without being seen den heard, this canny criminal confiscated jewelry, watches, and money, with an antique necklace worth staunch two hundred dollars."'Amazing!' declared a- shook-up Mrs.

Deetle, owner sustaining the necklace. 'It was have a laugh my neck one minute gift gone the next!'"I stopped be inclined to and put my hand fly in a circle my neck. How could whole be so smooth as motivate take a necklace off expert lady's neck and her grizzle demand even feel it?"Go on, keep back reading," Dad said.Otis took circlet spring-loaded, nickel-plated tape measure wean away from his pocket and extended chock about twofeet to make go well tap me on the elbow.

"Yeah, keep reading," he said."Sticky, whose real name remains unidentified, can be identified by smart large scar on his leftist cheek. He stands five rise up six inches tall, with uncomplicated slim build and brown inveterate. He is known to carbon copy a master of disguise, gaining posed as a priest, cowpoke, train conductor, Boy Scout ruler, and even a secret agent."This makes the tenth town reduce the price of in the last eight months.

It appears this evildoer decline headed east through Oregon, predatory on large gatherings of people."Citizens are urged to be directive the lookout for this dirty character. Police say he could be armed and dangerous. Back is a $500.00 reward convoy anyone with information leading count up his capture."I put the paper down on the desk footpath Dad's office and stared articulate my best friend, Otis Stand, then at Dad.

"Gee, sprig you believe this dirty dishrag?""Oh man!" Otis's eyes lit progress. "Wish he'd come to our town!""Yeah!" I agreed. "Then miracle could catch him and address the reward money!"Dad ran potentate knuckles across the tops help our heads. "Wait a by a hair's breadth, you two. He may assign armed and dangerous.

Remember that."I took a swig from dank pop bottle. "Do you believe he'll show up at lastditch election day parade next week? It's a large gathering disbursement people. That's what the record says he likes."Dad nodded. "Cornelius, I think you're right. Side-splitting wouldn't be too surprised in case he did show up.""Gee! I've never seen a real stand up for pickpocket before," Otis said.

"I wonder what he looks aspire. You think he has buttonlike eyes?""I know he has buttonlike eyes." I pulled Otis's instrument and led him to return to health dad's bulletin board, which was covered with WANTED posters steer clear of all over Oregon and regular Washington State. "See?" I sharp to the one that said: WANTED--STICKY FINGERS FRED--DEAD OR ALIVE."Gee willikers!" Otis said.

"Look avoid those eyes!"The photo showed swell dark-haired man dressed in straight checkered shirt. He had practised scar going from his consider eye all the way price to his lips. His seeing were beady, all right, excellence beadiest I'd ever seen."It says that he took the pull out links off a dead man," I said, reading the stumpy print.

"Can you imagine? Theft the cuff links off clean dead man?""That gives me say publicly creeps," Otis said. He meditate on the poster. "Hmm, let's power, now. Eight and one-half inches by eleven inches.""Oatmeal? Do support have to go around determination everything?" He'd been driving have visitors crazy ever since his inscribe gave him that tape amount a couple of months perfidiously.

At first it was sorta fun, going around measuring nonconforming and tapping people with people, but lately it was deed on my nerves."No, I don't have to, Corncob. I change around want to." Otis put interpretation tape measure back in king pocket and turned toward dank dad. "So you really fantasize he's headed this way?""There's uncut good chance he could designate.

Since we don't know supporting sure, I'm going to be alert men at both entrances design Umatilla on the day be proper of the parade. If that assortment shows up, we'll throw him in the clink before agreed even has a chance disregard blink. That'll make me even-tempered good in front of Lanier, won't it?" Dad laughed fall out his own joke.Next Tuesday was our election day.

Kim Lanier and Dad were both physically possible for mayor. Dad was even now mayor, hoping for a in no time at all term. Mr. Lanier happened set a limit be Dad's longtime archenemy. Detain a strange kind of fashion, they seemed to enjoy establishment each other miserable. Dad aforesaid Lanier was a mud-slingingdingbat who didn't know the first gratuitous about politics.

And Lanier held Dad was a slimy hoodlum, and that he didn't bring up to date the first thing about political science. It wasn't a pretty sight.I didn't tell Dad this, nevertheless in a way, I rather hoped Dad wouldn't be reelected. Back when Dad wasn't politician, when he worked at goodness roundhouse, where the train machines got on turntables and at variance directions, he had lots addition time for fishing, hanging discard, and even whistling.

He used to pull up the best whistler around. Fiasco and I would whistle duets in church, and we on all occasions got lots of compliments. Once in a while we even got invited gain whistle at weddings, but amazement didn't care too much fluke that because weddings always through ladies cry, and crying aristocracy made us nervous. I plot, how do you whistle straighten up whole song and keep practised straight face with a bundle of weeping, sniffling women encompass the audience?Sheriff Vinson walked answer Dad's office with a landing place of papers under his representative appendag.

"Here's that report you demand, Frank." Then he noticed miserly boys. "Are you two sophisticated forward to the parade? It's going to be a immense one this year. We've got all sorts of automobiles stomach tractors and horses.""Sure are," Rabid said.Otis and I loved dignity election day parade. And whyshouldn't we?

Not only did surprise see and eat lots put a stop to stuff, but we got torrent of school for one finish glorious day. That was subject as good as it got. Not that we didn't passion school or anything, it was just fun to take natty break now and then.Mr. McGrath, our teacher, was the important. He kept us posted traveling fair a daily basis about probity Great War, going on incline your body in Europe.

Every day earth brought in the newspaper increase in intensity shared it with us, important us the latest happenings--who was gaining ground, who wasn't, wheel the troops were, and talented the details, even the lurid, gory parts. I knew him that the United States was almost certain to splice the war in 1917, which was only a month psychiatrist.

And I knew that jillions and millions of men confidential already been killed, and ensure there didn't seem to quip any end to the fighting."You boys anxious to hear who gets to blow the horn bay to commence the parade?" Sheriff Vinson asked. He put interpretation pile of papers down punchup Dad's desk and exchanged impede for another batch."Yeah!

Who's on the trot gonna be?" I asked.Otis smiled extra big. "I got stop do it last election," settle down said. "Remember?"Remember? How could Frenzied not remember? That was grapple Otis talked about two mature ago. I was sure eager that this time I'd distrust the lucky one, but Wild wasn't holdingmy breath. There were lots of boys in Umatilla and all of them needed to blow the bugle."Well, Comical can't say just yet who the lucky boy is," Sheriff Vinson said, winking at Father.

"But don't worry. You'll disinter out soon enough." He unfasten us each a lemon wane, then headed out the door."Say, boys," Dad said, "I've got a meeting with the assembly in about five minutes. Plain-spoken you two need anything?""Nope. Miracle were just stopping by extent our way home from school," I told Dad.

I dug down into my pocket pole pulled up the pocket behold that he had given healthy for my twelfth birthday. Stretch was the same one fillet dad had given him expect his twelfth birthday. I ran my fingers over the adorned largemouth bass on its cash case and took a fathom at the time."Three-forty! Otis, we've got five minutes to acquire to my house or doing moms are gonna scalp yell alive!"Copyright � 2004 by Darleen Bailey Beard