The Garden Thief Read Online Free PDF Page B

Jessie?” Violet asked her sister.
    “We’re going to harvest carrots and radishes,” Jessie answered. “Mr. Yee says we can bring some home to Mrs. McGregor.”
    Mrs. McGregor was making toast for everybody. She looked confused. “How can you harvest full-grown carrots if they were baby carrots just two days ago?” she asked.
    “Because Mr. Yee has spread his plantings two weeks apart,” Jessie explained. “He plants a section of carrots every two weeks, and a section of radishes, and lettuce, and kale.”
    “I see,” said Mrs. McGregor. “That way, not all of the vegetables are ready at the same time.”
    “There’s something ready all season long,” said Henry. “Except for plants like tomatoes, which Mr. Yee put in all at the same time.”
    “Are you going to work on the broken towers today?” Jessie asked her brother.
    “Yes,” said Henry
    “Who would do something mean like break tomato towers?” asked Violet. “Why would they do that?”
    “The vandal must have a reason,” said Henry.
    “What about the thief?” asked Jessie. “I don’t think the thief and the vandal are the same person.”
    Her brothers and sister agreed with her.
    The Aldens were still speculating about who might be the vandal and who might be the thief when Mr. Yee arrived. It was time to leave.
    As before, Mrs. McGregor drove them all to the community gardens and dropped them off at the end, by Sections D and E. And as before, the children and Mr. Yee walked toward Section A, greeting all the gardeners they passed.
    This morning, they did not see Taylor Harris standing at her garden gate, looking perplexed. This morning, they saw two lumpy shapes on the ground, in front of Section A, Plot 1. One shape was long and low. The other shape was round and high.
    “What in the world is that?” asked Mr. Yee, scratching underneath the cast of his broken arm. “It’s in front of Roger’s plot.”
    “Look!” Benny pointed at something that sat between the two shapes. “It’s a Rex rabbit!”
    As the Aldens and Mr. Yee got closer, they saw that the long low shape was a sleeping bag, with somebody inside it. The high round shape was a burlap bag. The Rex rabbit was sitting and scratching an ear with a hind leg.
    Just then, Lucasta Kirk came around the far corner of Plot 1. She hobbled along slowly, dragging her broken leg, which was covered from toe to knee with a green trash bag.
    “Why are you limping?” Mr. Yee asked her. “You are young, you should be healed by now.”
    “I need my cast,” said Lucasta, picking up her rabbit.
    “Did you let your rabbit out of its cage?” Benny asked her.
    Lucasta frowned. “It hopped out when I went to put lettuce inside.”
    The shape in the sleeping bag groaned. It moved. Then it sat up.
    Everybody could see that it was Roger Walski inside the sleeping bag.
    “What’s going on here?” he asked, rubbing his eyes.
    “What are you doing on the ground?” asked Mr. Yee.
    “I’m guarding my plot,” Roger answered. “So that nothing else is stolen.”
    “Is that your breakfast in the big bag?” asked Benny, pointing to the bag.
    “Bag?” asked Roger, looking around. “What bag?” Then he saw the big burlap bag sitting on the ground. “What’s that? That wasn’t there when I went to sleep,” he said.
    “That means somebody put the bag there after you fell asleep,” said Henry.
    “And that means you are not much of a guard,” said Mr. Yee. “Not if somebody can sneak up in the middle of the night and deposit a big bag next to your head.”
    Roger scowled. “Never you mind,” he said to Mr. Yee. He crawled out of his sleeping bag. As Roger crawled out of the bag, a clipboard and pen fell out of the bag. Henry stooped to pick them up, but Roger shouted at him. “No! Leave that alone!” Roger quickly grabbled the clipboard and pen and shoved them far into the sleeping bag.
    Henry wondered why Roger didn’t want him to see the clipboard. I wonder what’s on it,