by Nicholas A. Levack

Created on: April 18, 2008   Last Updated: June 11, 2008

A Darkened Veterans Day

Section I: The Suspects

Mr. Landry
Frank Thompson
Colonel Abraham
Ryan Smith

Section II: Body

They stood in a circle, eyes darting around wildly in their sockets, briefly meeting with others' to exchange uneasy glares. The intensity in the air was so thick that you could cut it with a knife, would probably be the description of some colorful sports commentator. Everyone who had come to the celebration (or had some involvement in it) had been called to the City Hall's main room, where they all stood slowly growing into cynics as each person sizes up everyone else in the room.

It certainly wasn't the most comfortable moment in the world, and it got only more stressful when a police officer strode into the City Hall, finally breaking the silence. "Now what's the trouble here?" was his first question. You could tell by the look of him he wasn't pleased to be there.

The question hung in the air for the longest time, before someone finally answered the policeman's inquiry. "There was a theft here, sir," said Frank Thompson, who had been hanging outside the circle of celebrators. He was the head custodian and overall caretaker of the City Hall, and had a very haggard appearance; his gray jump-suit was patched in several places, and the keychain at his side, heavily burdened with keys was rusted.

The police officer grunted, displeased at a response so vague. "Give me specifics, sir."

"Someone stole the Veterans' pins!" Broke in Mr. Landry, a son of one of the veterans. His father, who had served all the way back in World War II, had grown too old to speak up for himself, and quietly sat in his chair barely looking perturbed.

The officer blinked, looking surprise. "What pins?" The veteran's son gave a brief description of the pins; they were pure gold decorative pins that were given out every year at the town's Veterans Day celebration. Except this year, according to Mr. Landry, they were especially important, because they not only highlighted the services of the veterans (which they always did), but they were to celebrate the town's tenth successful Veterans Day celebration. In the past the small town had been without the funds to throw such events, but since they started doing better financially more than a decade ago, every party seemed more extravagant by the year.

"Why would someone want to steal those pins?" Asked one of the spectators, eying the box that the police officer presumed had once contained those ceremonial objects.

"I assume they'd be worth

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