DAISY
STORIES
by Crystal Jones
© 1995-2007
the search for lorna
Daisy Hamilton was a private detective. She was thirty years old
and had been a detective for the past two years. Every morning she went to her
office to wait for phone calls or open the door to clients needing her services.
Daisy wasn’t very well known yet but occasionally people
telephoned her from the advertisement she put in the local newspaper.
One morning at about eleven o’clock someone knocked on her office
door. It was a fat lady who wore a fur around her neck.
“Hello, can I help you?” Daisy asked the lady. “Please come and
sit down.”
“Oh yes indeed! I need your help desperately. Lorna, my little
one has disappeared. I don’t know what to do.”
Daisy offered the fat lady a cup of instant coffee and awaited
the details. The fat lady sat down heavily and put her large red leather handbag
on Daisy’s desk.
“Please tell me everything - Mrs. ......?”
“Mrs. Edwina Humphries is my name. I am afraid they will ask me
for money - I’m afraid Lorna has been kidnapped!”
“That’s terrible, Mrs. Humphries. Does Mr. Humphries, too, think
Lorna has been kidnapped?”
“My husband is not interested if Lorna has been kidnapped or
not!”
“Really, Mrs. Humphries? But is your husband Lorna’s real
father?”
“I don’t know what you mean. We bought Lorna together,” replied
Mrs. Humphries.
“You bought ............Mrs. Humphries, that’s illegal, you
know.”
“No it isn’t, not in India!”
“You bought Lorna in India?”
“Yes indeed! And she has always keeps me great company, you
know.” Mrs. Humphries opened her huge leather bag to pull out a handkerchief.
With horror Daisy saw a wiggling creature come out of that bag.
“Mrs. Humphries - move that away immediately!” screamed Daisy.
“What? Oh Lorna - I’ve found you at last!” said Mrs.
Humphries.”You hid in my bag - you naughty girl!”
“Mrs. Humphries. T h i s is Lorna?”
“Yes, our Bengali swamp snake. Oh thank you my dear. No I don’t
think I need your services any longer!”
As Daisy shut the door after Mrs. Humphries she made a mental
note to write in the advertisement: no animals, no snakes. |
