"Gone?" asked assorted family members, as they gathered around an empty box.

"Gone," repeated Uncle Paul.

"Let me see," started Kayla, making her way over to the empty box. "I read those mystery novels all the time."

"Because the only thing you can understand are those Scooby Doo picture books?" remarked Katherine.

Kayla whipped around. "At least I read instead of blowing up things constantly. I won't be a danger to society when I grow up."

"No," hissed Katherine, "I'm sure you'll have a low-paying job flipping burgers."

"They should have left you in the asylum!" Kayla screamed, and then continued with her "investigation." Giving the box a good look-over, she observed, "There's chicken grease on the box."

"Woo, Sherlock-Doo. That must rule out ... give me a minute to think..." Katherine sarcastically responded.

"You and Milo had an awful lot of chicken tonight." Kayla continued, ignoring Katherine. "Milo doesn't have any motive. But YOU, my dear, sweet cousin," at this point, Kayla gave Katherine a good poke on the shoulder, "are insane."

"What? No! I am NOT ... " Katherine argued.

Kayla continued to ignore Katherine. "You've even got the asylum record to prove it. How do we know you didn't just take it and chew it up or something?"

"Kayla, I ... am ... not ... insane." Katherine paused for a minute. She was trying to speak slowly, so Kayla could comprehend what she was trying to say. "The ... asylum ... mailed ... me ... a ... clean ... bill ... of ... health."

"Yeah, right," started Kayla. "You probobly just got someone else to mail that to your mom. It was a fake, I tell you!"

Blip floated over to Milo a bit, giving the effect of leaning. "Is she a good guesser or *what*?" he whispered.

Uncle Paul worked his way in-between the two girls. "Now, stop that, you two. We'll figure this out, and I'm sure Katherine didn't ... chew it up." Kayla growled a little at a scowling Katherine, and then both of them turned and walked away, Blip and Milo hurrying after Katherine.

-----

Katherine and Milo sat against a tree, back to back. Blip was on another side of the tree, floating as usual.

"Hey, Katherine?" Lydia came up behind Katherine and scared the waddin' out of her. "Whatcha' doin'?"

Katherine looked down at Lydia. "Thinking. Kayla has some plan, and it feels like there's a giant, gaping hole in it. I just have to figure out where."

"Why don't you and Kayla get along?" asked Lydia.

"Because Kayla enjoys being a little --" Katherine side-glanced toward Lydia briefly. "annoying person. Yeah, that's it."

Lydia thought for a moment. What was Kayla writing at the barn earlier today? Crud, was it important? Or not? Maybe she should just keep her mouth shut a little longer.

"I've got it!" shouted Milo. "I found the big, giant, gaping plot hole!"

"There's a loaded phrase," remarked Blip.

"Never mind him," Katherine insisted, "what is it?"

"Kayla found chicken grease on the box. But the robbery had to of been done before we had dinner. Besides, everyone saw us before we had chicken grease on our hands, and watched us while we got that chicken to your norns. That rules us out!"

Katherine snapped her fingers. "I knew Kayla couldn't pull this off. The little -- " she glanced again at Lydia "witch is trying to frame me. So, all we have to do is figure out who handled chicken before dinner."

"Uncle Paul was cooking chicken," Blip helpfully added. "He was near the barn, with his little grill."

"I saw Kayla behind the barn," Lydia offered. "But she got up and walked off."

"Hey!" shouted Milo, "What if she walked over to the grill, got the grease on her hands, and framed us? You? Whoever?"

Katherine gave her cousin a one-eyed look. "Darnit, how'd you get so good at this?"

"I'm used to fooling with Kayla, and you're not." Milo beamed. "'Asides, you probably think too much alike to be able to figure one another out."

"Hey!" snapped Katherine.

"Never mind that," Blip hissed, "we have to go find Kayla."

"Right. So, do we split up?" asked Milo.

"I do *not* think like Kayla," Katherine hissed under her breath.

"Split up." Blip replied, giving Katherine the best glare he could.

-----

Blip cautiously hovered around a corner, and peeked around to the dog pen. Crap on it all, where was Kayla? He turned left, then right. Kayla? Kaayla? Heeere, KaylaKaylaKayla... oh turd.

There was Kayla, in the dog pen. She was happily ruffling the ears of one of the beagles. However, she juuust so happened to turn her head and catch a glimpse of Blip.

"Bliip!" She called out, in a psuedo-sweet tone. "My nutty cousin's little boyfriend!"

"Now, Kayla," Blip usually tried not to talk to Kayla very much, but both of them knew this heated topic made Blip really, really mad. "You know as well as I do that we're just --"

"Lab partners. Save the crap." Kayla finished. "Anyway, would you like to meet one of my frien- oop, lab partners?" She mocked.

"What, the dog? Wait -- DOG?!" Blip panicked. "Now, Kayla, let's be reasonable, please, PLEASE do not set the dogs on me ... remember what happened last time ... the neighbors still have your underwear, Kayla, please, reconsider!"

"Oh, booys." Kayla cooed to the dogs. They all looked up at her, with that one dog expression. ("Huh?") She pointed a thin finger directly at Blip. "Sic."