Who Are You?

Who Are You?

As you read the story, look for clues that will help you solve the mini-mystery and the puzzle at the end.

A. Suspects
The following characters are a list of suspects in this mini-mystery.
Katy Watkins - Katy was ten years old, and she lived with her parents in River City, Kansas (fictitious city).  She was a happy child and enjoyed reading mysteries and writing mysteries.

Jenny Watkins - Jenny was Katy's mother.  Since she had a day care in her home, she decided to teach Katy at home.

Jim Watkins - Jim was Katy's father.  He was a freelance writer and published author, and he also worked in his office, which was in his home.
Day care parents and children - Jenny took care of five children including Katy.  Susie, Timmy, Brandi, and Jody.

Susie and Timmy Johnson - Susie and Timmy, who were four year old twins, lived with their parents, Nancy and Tom Johnson.  Susie and Timmy liked going over to Jenny's house, and they liked playing with Katy.

Brandi and Jodi Sands - Brandi was three, and Jodi was four. They lived with their parents, Bill and Penny Sands. Since Jenny was their neighbor, they wanted her to take care of their children while they were at work. They were friendly, but they didn't want to be close to anyone because they were busy with their own lives.

Ron Nelson - Ron was Jenny and Jim's neighbor, and Ron and Jim were friends because they enjoyed doing the same activities.  Ron and Sandy have a cabin in the woods where they like to go and escape from their daily lives at times.

Sandy Nelson - Sandy is Ron's wife, and she enjoyed children, but she didn't have any yet.

B. Plot

"Katy, your father and I have been invited out for supper tonight."
   
"Okay.  Who invited you?"

"Sandy and Ron Nelson."

"Oh.  I'm going to be all right here."

"We know you will," her mother replied.
   
"We'll see you around 10:00 PM.  You can stay up until we get back," her father said.
   
"Thanks Dad."

"Bye Katy."

Katy stayed in her house alone several times, and when she did, she always made sure the doors were locked.  She also had her cell phone handy if she needed to call her parents. 

Katy was in her room reading a mystery book.  She was intrigued with the plot and wanted to keep reading, but she was interrupted when she heard someone enter the front door. She looked at her clock and realized that it was later than she thought. 

"Katherine, were home," she heard someone holler.
   
"I'm upstairs in my room," Katy hollered back.

When her door opened, she saw her parents standing in the doorway, but there was something different about them. However, she wasn't sure what it was.

"Katherine, it's getting late, so you need to turn off your light and go to bed."

"Okay, Mom," Katy replied, a little shocked.

After her parents shut Katy's door, Katy turned off her light and went to bed, but she couldn't sleep. She kept thinking about her parents because she knew something wasn't right.

In the morning, Katy woke up and put on her shorts and matching top. She enjoyed staying at home with her mother, so her mother could teach her the subjects she would learn in school.  She also enjoyed helping with the day care children.
   
Katy walked downstairs and entered the kitchen.  She stared a moment when she saw her mother and father sitting at the kitchen table ready to eat breakfast.  She walked to her place at the table and was surprised when saw that she had fried eggs, bacon, and toast. 

After she ate, she started to pick up her dishes to take them over to the sink, but her mother spoke up.  "Katherine, I'll do that.  You don't have to."

"Okay," Katy replied.

Within a few minutes, the doorbell rang, so Katy opened the door to let the day care parents inside. The children and parents greeted Katy. After the parents left, the children walked to the playroom and started playing with their toys.

Katy's mother walked into the room and became upset with the way the children scattered the toys over the room. When Katy heard her mother hollering at the children, she rushed into the room and wondered what happened.  She couldn't believe it, when she saw her mother's angry expression because she was normally calm.
 
Katy knew something was wrong, but she didn't know what.  She still felt that something was different about her parents.

Within a few minutes, her father entered the room, and he said he was going to work.

"Where are you going to work?"

"You know where I work," her father teased.  "It's where I always work."

"Where?" Katy asked.

"In my office."

"What are you going to do today?"

"I'm working on a different book.  I finished the other book."

"Oh," Katy replied, a little surprised.

When Katy had some time to think about her situation, she decided to contact Detective Frank Malone.  She knew he would listen to her.

Detective Frank Malone came to investigate the situation. The couple had made a series of mistakes which Katy noticed.  He thought about the clues and what Katy said about the people who had access to the house. He discovered the identity of the kidnappers and escorted them to the police station to interrogate them about his suspicions. 

C. Clues

What were the clues Katy noticed that caused her to realize the couple weren't her parents?

Did Katy realize the identity of the kidnappers?

When were Katy's parents taken?

Why were Katy's parents taken?

Did the people take Katy's parents at gun point, or were they friends and somehow drugged them and didn't return them to their house?

Did strangers take Katy's parents?

What did Detective Malone discover?

D. Motives

What motive did they have to take Katy's parents?
(a) Greed (b) Jealousy (c) Wanted a family (d) Loneliness

E. Puzzle

Directions - Fill in the blanks to solve the mystery

1.  What  clues did Katy see to make her suspicious of the couple?_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________

2.  What did Detective Malone discover?
_______________________________________________________

3.  What was their motive? __________________________________

By answering the questions, you should have solved the mystery people.