Mystery at the Pet Hotel

Emma loved working at Happy Paws Pet Hotel during her summer vacation.

The hotel was a special place where people left their pets when they went on trips.

It had comfortable rooms for dogs, cats, and even rabbits.

Each room had soft beds, toys, and fresh water.

Emma's job was to feed the animals, play with them, and keep their rooms clean.

Mrs. Miller owned the pet hotel.

She was a kind woman in her fifties who loved animals more than anything else.

She had worked with animals for thirty years and knew everything about them.

Emma learned something new from her every day.

One Monday morning in July, something strange happened.

A rich woman named Mrs. Davidson came to pick up her expensive poodle, Princess.

Princess was a beautiful white dog with perfectly cut fur.

She wore a diamond collar worth thousands of dollars.

Mrs. Davidson loved Princess very much and spent a lot of money on her.

"Good morning, Mrs. Davidson," Emma said cheerfully.

"Princess had a wonderful weekend with us."

Emma went to get Princess from Room 12, the hotel's best room.

But when she brought the dog to Mrs. Davidson, the woman's face turned red with anger.

"This is not my Princess!" Mrs. Davidson shouted.

"This dog looks like Princess, but it's not her!"

Emma looked at the dog carefully.

It was a white poodle that looked exactly like Princess.

It wore the same diamond collar and had the same pink bow in its fur.

"I'm sure this is Princess," Emma said nervously.

"She's been in Room 12 all weekend."

"No!" Mrs. Davidson insisted.

"Princess has a small brown spot behind her left ear.

This dog doesn't have it.

And look at her eyes – Princess has one blue eye and one brown eye.

This dog has two brown eyes!"

Mrs. Miller hurried over when she heard the shouting.

She examined the dog carefully and realized Mrs. Davidson was right.

This poodle looked like Princess, but it wasn't her.

"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Davidson," Mrs. Miller said.

"There must be some mistake. Let me check all our records."

They searched the entire hotel, but they couldn't find the real Princess anywhere.

Mrs. Miller checked the computer records.

Everything showed that Princess had been in Room 12 since Friday evening.

"Someone stole my Princess and left this fake dog instead!" Mrs. Davidson cried.

"I'm calling the police!"

Before Mrs. Miller could stop her, Mrs. Davidson took out her phone and called the police.

Twenty minutes later, Officer Chen arrived at the pet hotel.

"Tell me exactly what happened," Officer Chen said, taking out his notebook.

Mrs. Davidson explained everything while Emma and Mrs. Miller listened nervously.

The fake poodle sat quietly, looking confused about all the noise.

"Who has access to the hotel?" Officer Chen asked Mrs. Miller.

"Only my employees and I have keys," Mrs. Miller replied.

"We have three workers: Emma, Tom, and Sarah.

They're all trustworthy people."

"I'll need to question everyone," Officer Chen said.

"And I want to see your security camera recordings."

Emma felt worried.

She knew she hadn't done anything wrong, but she was afraid people might think she was guilty.

She was the newest employee, having started only two months ago.

Tom arrived for his shift while Officer Chen was there.

Tom was nineteen years old and had worked at the hotel for one year.

He loved dogs and wanted to become a veterinarian.

"Tom, did you notice anything strange this weekend?" Officer Chen asked him.

Tom thought for a moment.

"Actually, yes. On Saturday night, I saw a van parked outside for a long time.

It was around ten o'clock.

I thought it was strange because we close at eight."

"What kind of van?" Officer Chen asked.

"A blue van. I didn't see the license plate," Tom said.

"But I remember thinking it was odd."

Officer Chen wrote this information in his notebook.

Then he asked to see the security camera recordings.

Mrs. Miller led everyone to her office where the security monitors were.

They watched the recordings from Friday night to Monday morning.

The cameras showed the front door, the main hallway, and the yard where dogs played.

But there was a problem – the camera that watched the hallway with Room 12 had stopped working on Saturday afternoon.

"That's very convenient," Officer Chen said suspiciously.

"The one camera that could show us what happened wasn't working."

"That camera has been having problems for weeks," Mrs. Miller explained.

"I've been meaning to fix it."

Emma suddenly remembered something.

"Mrs. Miller, what about the sign-in book?

Everyone who visits has to sign it."

Mrs. Miller brought out the large book where visitors wrote their names.

They looked through the weekend entries.

On Saturday, five people had visited their pets.

On Sunday, seven people had come.

"Look at this," Emma said, pointing to an entry.

"On Saturday evening, someone named John Smith visited a dog in Room 14.

Room 14 is right next to Room 12 where Princess was staying."

"John Smith is a very common name," Officer Chen noted.

"It could be fake."

Emma studied the handwriting.

Something about it seemed familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen it before.

"I need to speak with Sarah," Officer Chen said.

"When does she arrive?"

"Sarah is on vacation this week," Mrs. Miller said.

"She went to visit her family in another city."

Officer Chen looked suspicious.

"How convenient that she's away when this happens."

"Sarah has worked here for three years," Mrs. Miller defended her.

"She would never steal a dog."

Emma didn't think Sarah would steal either.

Sarah was twenty-five years old and very responsible.

She often helped train new employees and was always kind to the animals.

"Let's think about this logically," Emma said.

"Whoever switched the dogs needed two things: a dog that looked like Princess, and a way to get into the hotel."

"That's right," Officer Chen agreed.

"This wasn't a random crime. Someone planned it carefully."

Tom suddenly spoke up.

"What if the thief had help from someone inside?

Someone who knew about the broken camera and Princess's schedule?"

Everyone fell silent.

The idea that one of them might be involved was frightening.

"I have an idea," Emma said.

"Let's check if any other white poodles were in the hotel this weekend."

Mrs. Miller checked the computer.

"Yes, there was one other white poodle.

Her name was Bella, and she was in Room 8.

Her owner picked her up yesterday morning."

"Who was the owner?" Officer Chen asked.

"Mr. Robert Wilson," Mrs. Miller read from the screen.

"He's a new customer. This was his first time using our hotel."

Emma felt excited.

This could be an important clue.

"Do you have his phone number? Maybe we can call him."

Mrs. Miller found the number and called it.

But the number was disconnected.

The address Mr. Wilson had given was also fake – it didn't exist.

"So we have a fake dog, a fake name, and a fake address," Officer Chen summarized.

"This is definitely a planned crime."

Emma walked over to the fake poodle, who was now sleeping in a corner.

She petted the dog gently and noticed something interesting.

The dog's collar was expensive, but it wasn't the same as Princess's collar.

This one had fewer diamonds and was a slightly different style.

"Mrs. Davidson," Emma said, "are you sure this is Princess's collar?"

Mrs. Davidson looked closely.

"No, you're right. It's similar but not the same.

Princess's collar has her name engraved on it.

This one doesn't."

"So the thief even brought a fake collar," Tom said.

"They really planned everything."

Officer Chen's phone rang.

He answered it and spoke quietly for a few minutes.

When he finished, he looked serious.

"That was the station," he said.

"A white poodle was found wandering in the park this morning.

It has no collar, but it has a brown spot behind its left ear."

"That's Princess!" Mrs. Davidson exclaimed.

"Where is she?"

"She's at the animal shelter now," Officer Chen said.

"You can pick her up there.

But this raises more questions.

Why steal a dog just to let it go?"

"We need to find out more about this Mr. Wilson and his dog Bella," Officer Chen said.

"I'll check if any poodles have been reported missing."

While Officer Chen made phone calls, Emma kept thinking.

She walked around the hotel, looking for more clues.

In Room 8, where Bella had supposedly stayed, she found something interesting – a receipt that had fallen under the bed.

The receipt was from a pet store called Fancy Pets.

It was for dog food and toys, dated last Thursday.

Emma showed it to Mrs. Miller.

"I know this store," Mrs. Miller said.

"It's downtown. They sell expensive pet supplies."

"Maybe someone there will remember Mr. Wilson," Emma suggested.

Officer Chen agreed this was a good idea.

He decided to visit the store immediately.

Emma asked if she could go with him, and he agreed.

At Fancy Pets, they showed Mr. Wilson's description to the store employees.

A young woman named Lisa remembered him.

"Yes, he was here on Thursday," Lisa said.

"He bought a lot of expensive things.

He said he just got a new poodle and wanted the best for her."

"Did he say anything else?" Officer Chen asked.

Lisa thought carefully.

"He asked a lot of questions about our most expensive customers.

He wanted to know who bought the most expensive collars and toys.

I thought it was strange, but some people like to compare themselves to others."

Emma and Officer Chen exchanged looks.

This was important information.

"Did you tell him about any customers?" Officer Chen asked.

"I mentioned that Mrs. Davidson shops here often," Lisa admitted.

"She's famous for spending a lot on her poodle.

Everyone in the pet business knows about Princess and her diamond collar."

Now they understood.

Mr. Wilson had come to the store to gather information about wealthy pet owners.

He had learned about Princess and her valuable collar, then made a plan to steal it.

Back at the pet hotel, Officer Chen shared what they had learned.

Mrs. Davidson had already gone to get Princess from the shelter.

The fake poodle was still at the hotel, waiting for its real owner to be found.

"I'll put out an alert for anyone matching Mr. Wilson's description," Officer Chen said.

"And I'll check if any white poodles have been reported missing or stolen."

Emma felt proud that she had helped solve part of the mystery.

But she still wondered how Mr. Wilson had gotten into the hotel.

Only employees had keys.

Then she remembered something.

"Mrs. Miller, didn't we have a problem with the back door lock last week?"

Mrs. Miller nodded.

"Yes, it wasn't closing properly.

We had to prop it shut with a chair until the locksmith could come."

"When did the locksmith fix it?" Emma asked.

"Saturday morning," Mrs. Miller said.

Then her eyes widened.

"Oh no. Do you think...?"

"The thief could have known about the broken lock," Officer Chen said.

"They could have entered through the back door on Friday night or early Saturday morning."

Tom looked guilty.

"I might have mentioned the broken lock when I was at the coffee shop on Thursday.

I didn't think it was a secret."

"Someone could have overheard you," Officer Chen said.

"This Mr. Wilson seems to have been gathering information all week."

Two hours later, Officer Chen received important news.

A white poodle named Snowball had been reported stolen from a dog park on Wednesday.

The owner's description matched the fake Princess perfectly.

"So Mr. Wilson stole Snowball first," Emma said.

"Then he used her to replace Princess."

"Exactly," Officer Chen confirmed.

"He needed a white poodle that looked similar to Princess.

Poor Snowball was just a tool in his plan."

By the end of the day, the police had made progress.

Security cameras from nearby businesses showed the blue van Tom had seen.

The license plate led them to a rental car company.

The man who rented it had used another fake name, but his real identity was discovered through fingerprints.

His real name was Mark Thompson.

He had a criminal record for theft and fraud.

Police found him trying to sell Princess's collar to a jewelry store in another city.

He was arrested immediately.

When Mrs. Davidson returned with Princess, she was very grateful.

Princess seemed happy and unharmed, just confused by her adventure.

Mrs. Davidson apologized for shouting at Emma and Mrs. Miller.

"I'm sorry I accused you," she said.

"You all worked hard to find my Princess."

She gave the hotel a large reward and promised to tell all her friends that Happy Paws was the best pet hotel in town.

Snowball was also returned to her real owner, who had been very worried about her.

The poor poodle had been through a strange adventure but was not hurt.

Mrs. Miller learned important lessons from the incident.

She fixed all the security cameras and installed new locks on every door.

She also started checking customer information more carefully.

Emma felt proud of her detective work.

She had helped solve her first real mystery.

Tom congratulated her on noticing important clues.

"You'd make a good detective," Officer Chen told Emma before leaving.

"You notice details that others miss."

Emma smiled.

She loved working with animals, but maybe she could be a detective who specialized in pet crimes.

It was an interesting idea for her future.

That evening, Emma wrote in her diary about the day's adventures.

She had learned that crimes could happen anywhere, even in a peaceful pet hotel.

But she had also learned that by working together and paying attention to details, people could solve mysteries and help others.

The next day, Happy Paws Pet Hotel returned to normal.

Dogs barked happily, cats meowed for attention, and rabbits hopped in their pens.

Emma fed them all and played with them, grateful that the mystery was solved and everyone was safe.

But she kept her eyes open for anything unusual.

After all, you never knew when the next mystery might appear at Happy Paws Pet Hotel.