Stories of Tie Up Games

Crystal Cove

“It was nice of Fred to let us borrow the van for the weekend.” Velma nodded as she sat beside Daphne in the front of the Mystery Machine, reading the map as the brightly coloured van made its way out of their hometown.

“Well, he was so intent on staying in town for the Trap Convention, and Shaggy had the track meet, so neither of them really wanted to come with us,” Velma eventually said as she closed the book. “It makes a nice change for us to have a girl’s weekend.”

Daphne nodded, her green scarf moving slightly in the breeze that came in through the open window. “Oh I so agree - I love Fred dearly, but we do need some time away from them and the Mystery Incorporated team.”

Velma nodded as she crossed her arms in front of her. “So this cousin of yours - how well do you know her?”

“Oh, we used to visit them all the time when we were all younger,” Daphne said as they turned onto the freeway. “Penny and I used to play together all the time while my sisters were busy been the best they were at what they did. She was definitely the most normal person I knew.”

“As opposed to now,” Thelma said, a small smile crossing her face.

“Oh come on, you know what I mean,” Daphne said with another smile. “Despite the fact her great-grandmother was a world-famous racing driver, it doesn’t mean that she is one.”

“But she is, isn’t she? After all, the papers are full of the exploits of her on the NASCAR circuit - the first female to be accepted, isn’t she? So what is happening at her mansion this weekend that she wants you to be at.”

“Believe it or not,” Daphne said, “It’s a celebration of her family history. In fact, she’s getting out the car her great-grandmother drove for people to look at. And I’m told she has a special outfit planned for the occasion...”






Marrakesh, two weeks previously.

She walked down the narrow alleyways, her head held high as she stopped from time to time to speak with the stall holders. Her shoulders were bare, the sleeves of her peasant style top pulled down over her shoulders, while the brown trousers she was wearing seemed to move like a second skin on her as she walked. Her feet were in a pair of open heeled sandals, while over her jet-black hair she wore a scarf, tied over it so that only her fringe was showing, and made of material the same colour as her pants.

As she approached one particular building, the stone bleached white by the fierce sun, she glanced quickly from side to side and behind her, a smile playing on her red lips as she slipped through a curtain that covered the entrance.

“Abdul,” she called out in the darkened room, “Abdul, are you her?”

“Abdul is - indisposed,” a voice in the shadows said, strangely high pitched and whining. It was obviously not her contact, so she stood still, her hand reaching behind her back as she said “If you are a brave man, show yourself.”

“I am a brave man,” the voice continued as she saw someone step out of the shadows, “but I am also a cautious one, Ms Jezebel Jade. Boys?”

Before she had a chance to react, Jezebel felt her arms been grabbed. Out of nowhere, on each side of her had appeared a tall, burly man, one of their hands on her arm as they half walked, half pushed her towards an ottoman couch that lay in the centre of the floor.

“Make sure she cannot interrupt our conversation by trying to escape, boys,” the voice commanded, and despite her struggling Jezebel felt her arms been pulled behind her and something rough been pulled against the skin on her wrists. As she felt her arms been pulled back, she turned in the direction the voice had come from and said “A real gentleman would not have someone do their dirty work for them.”

“Well, it’s just as well I’m not a real gentleman,” the voice replied, and from the shadows Jezebel saw a thin man step out, dressed in a khaki shirt and shorts, but rather incongruously with a purple eye mask tied over his upper face and a green fedora perched on his head.

“Do I know you,” she said as she felt her ankles been pulled together.

“I don’t think we’ve had the pleasure,” he said with a laugh that made Jezebel’s skin crawl slightly. She had faced many villains in her time, and had worked alongside some as well, but this one - this one, for some reason, seemed worse than all of them, despite his stature.

“No, we haven’t, my dear,” he said as his two henchmen stood back. “But I’m sure we can get better acquainted once you answer one trifling little question for me.”

“Oh - and what is that?”

“Where is the Star of Alamein?”

Jezebel looked into his tiny, blue eyes before she started laughing. “The Star of Alamein? Now why would I know where that is?”

“Because you stole it two days ago, Miss Jade.”

“I prefer to think I returned it to the rightful owner,” Jezebel replied in a steely tone. “It was taken from her many years ago, and I was - asked to make sure it was brought home safely.”

“Oh - and where might that home be?”

Jezebel laughed as he said this. “Do you honestly expect me to tell you where it is?”

“Frankly, my dear, no,” was the reply before he nodded, and Jezebel felt a large rough length of linen been pushed into her mouth, before a second was pulled tightly between her lips. “Trash the place,” he said as Jezebel was pushed onto her side, her eyes meeting his as he knelt behind her and whispered “I want to teach Miss Jade the error of her ways...”




Richville

“You have got to be joking,” Thelma said as Daphne turned and drove the Machine through a set of high, ornately worked iron gates, the drive running through an avenue of low hanging sycamore trees until it opened out onto what could only be called a castle. The house was large, square, and built in the style of an English manor house, with wide grass lawns on all sides and a large, gravelled area in the front.

“Yeah - nice, isn’t it,” Daphne said as she stopped the van and turned the engine off, stepping out as Thelma also left the vehicle, pulling her jumper down over her short skirt as she did so. As she turned to look at the house, she saw two men, dressed in white shirts with waistcoats and dark trousers, walk towards them.

“Miss Blake, Miss Dinkley, you are expected,” one of them said as the other took their bags from the rear of the vehicle. “If you will come with me, the mistress is waiting for you in the drawing room.”

The two girls looked at each other, then followed him as their bags were taken to another part of the house. They entered the building, walking down the oak lined hallways until he stopped and knocked on a heavy door.

“Yes,” they heard a young woman call out.

“Miss Blake and Miss Dinkley have arrived, Madame,” he said as he opened the door and showed the two girls in. A young woman, with blonde hair that fell down her head and shoulders reaching almost to her waist, turned and ran over, embracing Daphne as she said “Daffs!! How long has it been!!”

“Too long, Penny,” Daphne said as she returned the hugs. “Penny, I want you to meet my very dear friend Thelma Dinkley. Thelma, this is...”

“Penny Pitstop,” Thelma said as she shook Penny’s hand. “I’m a big fan of yours.”

“You are,” Daphne said as she looked at Thelma. “You never told me.”

“You never told me about your crush on Jonny,” Thelma shot back.

“Jonny? Jonny who? Daphne, I thought you were saying some ‘lovable lunkhead called Fred’, as you put it the other day.”

“All right,” Daphne said as she blushed slightly. “Enough of that - is this portrait who I think it is?”

“It is,” the blonde said as the three girls looked up above the ceiling. It showed a young woman, the spitting likeness of Penny, dressed in an old-style red driving jacket over a high collared purple dress, with matching gloves over her hands. Her legs were encased in a pair of red riding britches, and over her lower legs were a pair of white boots. A driving cap, in the same shade as her dress and gloves, was fastened on her head, and a pair of goggles sat on the front of them. She was smiling, and standing behind an old, but rather strange looking racing car.

“That’s her,” Penny said with a smile, “Great-Grandmother Pitstop, the darling of the 1920’s racing circuit.”




Marrakesh

“It’s not here, boss,” the henchman said as the masked man stood up. On the ottoman, he could hear Jezebel laugh through the thick gag.

“You must have sent it on,” he said as he looked at her angrily, “Who did you send it to?”

Jezebel stared back, not afraid of what he might do, but before he had a chance to do anything the second henchman said “Boss!! I found a shipping receipt!!”

“Bring it here,” the thin man said a she took a pair of wire spectacles out and put them over his nose. “Oh this is rich,” he said a she started to laugh, “This is too rich. Thank you for your time, Miss Jade - we won’t keep you any further.”

“Where are we going, Boss,” the first henchman said as the three men slipped out of the building.

“We’re going home, boys,” the thin man said with a cackle, “to meet some old friends...”



Richville

As Penny escorted Daphne and Velma into the dining room, they found a tall, well-built African American woman sitting there already, who stood up as they came in.

“Hi Daphne,” she said as she came over and embraced the new arrival, “It’s been a long time!”

“DEE!” Daphne exclaimed as she returned the hug, “I didn’t know you would be here!”

“Penelope employed me to help with the security arrangements,” she said as she finally let go of Daphne. She was dressed in a red roll neck sweater, blue denim skirt and knee-high red leather boots, with her hair tightly permed.

“So you know Dee Dee - I should have realised you would have met before.”

“It was a mystery convention,” Velma said as she sat down at the table, “Dee and the others were there as well. We’ll tell you the tale later. What’s for dinner anyway?”

“Are you sure something of Shaggy hasn’t rubbed off on you,” Daphne said as she sat at the table as well. Dee Dee laughed before saying “And how are the two lunks anyway? Fred still obsessed with traps?”

“All the time,” Daphne said as the servants brought in the dinner, “All the time...”



New York, one week previously

“Well, boys, I guess we’ll be home soon enough - but what say we take in some of the sights as we look over this fine city - what do you say, Officer?”

The blonde-haired woman stared at the three men, eyes wide under her round glasses, and screamed into the heavy cloth gag that filled her mouth. She was still dressed in the outfit she had worn to work that day - the regulation blue female officer’s uniform of the NYPD, where she worked as a data analyst and telecommunications specialist.

“Whhhsssduwnt,” she mumbled as she tried to twist round in the tight ropes, holding her firmly to the metal pole on the high balcony of the Empire State Building. Her wrists were tightly secured behind her back, while ropes encircled her ankles, legs, waist and chest.

“Now then, my dear Miss Thyme, I need to you tell me some information, if you would be so kind.”

“Iddnntkwwhtuwnt,” the officer mumbled as she kept trying to break free.

“I know that you, Miss Rosemary Thyme, have been helping to co-ordinate the police support for the transportation of a delivery from Marrakesh, and I need to know the eventual destination of that delivery. Now, I am sure you may want to tell us, but I so hope you are going to refuse. Which is it going to be, Rosemary?”

“Mnntggngntlunfngufnd...” Rosemary mumbled as she looked round. She was hoping, praying that her saviour would show up to rescue her, as he always did, but so far there was no sign of him. She turned her head back to look at the trio, only to scream as the two bulks of muscle stepped forward and picked her and the support she was tied to up as if it was a paperweight.

“Perhaps the beauty of the view will help you to refresh your memory, reconsider your decision,” the third man said. He looked like a throwback to a hundred years before, in his purple double-breasted suit and green fedora, but the eye mask covering his face made him look menacing,

“Now, my dear,” he whispered as Rosemary found herself looking down the 102 floors to the ground, “where did the Star of Alamein get delivered to?”

“NNNNGNNNNNFFFNNNNNNNNN” Rosemary screamed as the glasses slipped off her face, falling slowly to the ground.....


Richville

“.....and it’s 7 am here in Richville. You’re listening to the mellow sounds of Casey Kasem Jr. Today is the grand opening of the Pitstop Memorial Weekend, and I wanted to remind you that the gates at Pitstop Place will be opening from 10 am for everyone to come. There will be stalls, rides, and you too will be able to sit in the famous Compact Pussycat....”

Daphne turned over and switched off the radio, before lying on her back and staring up at the ceiling. The four girls had sat up late into the night, talking about their experiences and adventures, but they had all known it was going to be an early start today.

Eventually, she threw back the covers and stood up, smoothing down her short purple nightie as she headed to where the dressing gown was hanging from the door. As she slipped it on, she looked out of the window onto the vast lawns, as workmen set up tents, stands and a large dais.

“Beautiful day for a party, isn’t it?”

Daphne turned to see a tall, blonde-haired man standing there, his jaw rugged and his manner straight. He was wearing a white polo shirt over a dark jumper, riding breeches and boots.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m Peter, Penny’s brother. I’m surprised you don’t remember me.”

“Oh I remember you now,” Daphne said with a laugh, “but the last time I saw you, you were a little squirt in shorts, and now...”

“Now I’m a bigger squirt,” Peter said with a laugh. “Penny asked me to come up and tell you that breakfast is ready, if you want to come down.” He looked at her and said “we don’t stand on ceremony too often around here, so come as you are.” He turned and left the room, Daphne following as she tied the dressing gown around her with a sash.

As she entered the dining room, she found Velma already sitting there, deeply immersed in a combination of pancakes and a technical manual. She was wearing a set of tan coloured coveralls over her red jumper, and smiled as she looked up.

“Ohhdfne,” she said through a mouthful of food, swallowing before she continued “I’ve been helping the mechanics to set up the Pussycat. For a real vintage car, it sure moves sweetly.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Penny said as she walked in. She was wearing the driving costume her great grandmother had worn, although the heavy gloves were in her hands as she put them down on the table and helped herself to some coffee.

“You really do look like the original Penelope,” Daphne said as she cut into some bacon, “how does it feel to wear that outfit.”

“Stiff - give me the coveralls and helmet any day,” Penny said as she sat back down. “Peter, have you seen Dee Dee today?”

“Yeah - she said she had some security matters to take care of, staff briefings and so on. Why?

“There’s something I need to ask her about,” Penny said as she drank from the cup, “but it can wait. Daphne, I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve asked for an outfit to be put in your room for you to wear today. It’s about your size.”

“Oh joy,” Velma said as she looked up at the ceiling, “and what shade of purple is this one in?”

“It isn’t,” Jenny said as she put her cup down, “and the outfit I’ve put on your bed is not in orange either. You two need to mix up your dress sense a little.”

“I keep telling her that, but...”

“Sorry to interrupt, folks,” Dee Dee said as she walked in, “but I thought you ought to know the Pussycat is now in place, and we’re going to open the doors in an hour. Oh, Penny - this came for you.”

She handed Penny a plain white envelope, addressed to Miss Penelope Pitstop, but not stamped or franked. Penny opened it, and pulled out a card with “A Special Message” written on it.

“Now who can this be from,” she said as she opened the card, only for a high-pitched voice to say “I’ll Get You, Penelope Pitstop, Mwwwahhhhaaahhaaaaaa....”


“Oooookayyyy,” Penny said as she closed the card, “That was different. Wonder who sent it?”

“I don’t get it,” Peter said as he picked up the card, “What on earth is he talking about?”

“Penny?”

Dee Dee and Daphne looked at Penny as Velma examined the card. “Standard voice card - easy enough to make,” she said as she looked carefully at it, “but why send it today? And who sent it?”

“It can’t be - it just can’t be, he died decades ago.”

Velma looked at Penny as she said this. “Who died?”

Penny looked at everyone else as she slowly said “The Hooded Claw.”




New York

“HLLLLPPPPMMMMMMM!”

Rosemary screamed again as she was pulled back from the brink and set upright, her eyes wide with fear as the masked man walked up to her and stroked her cheek.

“I will ask once again, my dear girl, where was the Star of Alamein sent.”

“Lttlluu,” she mumbled as she looked at him with pleading eyes. He reached round and untied the scarf, removing the cloth as she said with a heavy Bronx accent, “All right, all right, I’ll tell you.”

“Sensible girl,” he said with a smile, “I’m waiting.”

“It was sent to someone on the west coast - her name was Brenda, and she was one of a trio of detectives. I swear that’s all I know?”

“Oh I think you know something else - the address?”

“It was an old amusement park near Haight-Ashbury - and I swear that’s all I know. The courier was most insistent.”

“Ah well, at least it’s a start,” he said a she pushed the cloth back into her mouth and tightened it, “I can always ask around there. Come on boys - we need to catch a plane.”

“Yes Boss,” the two muscle men said as they walked off, leaving Rosemary to struggle and scream before she heard some faint Chinese rock music...



Richville

“The Hooded Claw? But he must be dead - it was your great-grandmother who had all the trouble with him. Why would you think that?”

Velma looked across the table at Dee Dee and Daphne, while Peter held Penny’s shoulders. “It just seems so funny hearing that voice,” was all she would say eventually.

“Look, Penny, it’s just somebody’s stupid idea of a joke. Don’t let it get to you - besides, it’s time for all of you to get into costume. Go on - I’ll see you outside.”

Daphne and Velma stood up and walked out of the room, as Dee Dee looked at a small parcel that had arrived for her.

“Wonder what the girls are sending me now,” she said as she looked at the return address label.



San Francisco, two days ago

“I know the seventies are coming back into fashion, young lady, but even then sleeveless mini dresses and Farah Fawcett hairdos were so passé.”

Taffy tried to lunge forward to hit the man who had just taunted her, but the ropes that were wound round her torso and the back of the chair she was sitting were too strong. “Whtdummnnntttoopsseee,” she mumbled through the thick white cloth that was pulled between erg teeth.

She had been grabbed as soon as she had walked into the office by two burly men dressed like old time hoodlums, with tweed jackets over mustard jumpers, trousers and cloth caps. Their outward appearance notwithstanding, they had been very efficient, carrying her in and lashing her wrists to the side of the chair back before encasing her in the longest length of rope she had ever seen.

She was dressed as the masked man had described - a green sleeveless minidress with a zip front, and matching heels. So what if she liked the dress, she thought as she tried to kick out, forgetting for the moment that her ankles were secured to the front legs of the chair.

Instead she looked at the man in front of him, dressed in an old fashioned double breasted green suit and an oversized purple trilby. Why on earth was he wearing a cape and an eye mask anyway - he looked like something from a silent film.

“I do hope your friend will not be long,” he sneered as he looked at Taffy. “After all, the bomb under your seat is on a tight schedule, and we need time to get away from here.” Taffy shook as she heard that, the ticking under her chair seeming to get louder and louder as she mutely called out.




Richville

Velma looked at herself in the mirror, turning from side to side. Penny had been right - the outfit was not orange, but a deep red velvet. It consisted of a floor length full skirt, under which she was wearing a white lace petticoat, a high collared blouse and a fitted jacket which allowed her to show the brooch that Penny had left for her.

“Not bad at all,” Velma said as she lifted one leg, the skirt rising with her as she tied the laced white ankle boots onto her feet. As she set her foot down again, the door opened and Daphne came in.

“That is definitely a new look for you,” she said as she saw Velma standing there. She was wearing a white lace dress, fastened with small pearl buttons at the front and cuffs, which was tightly cinched at the waist before flowing down to the floor. A straw hat was jauntily placed on her head, and she carried a parasol in her lace glove covered hands.

“Do you think Shaggy would like this,” Velma said as she allowed herself to twirl round, the red velvet rising as she did so.

“He would be an idiot if he didn’t - but then again, he is Shaggy,” Daphne said with a laugh as the two friends made their way along the corridor and down the stairs. At the bottom was Penny, who smiled as she held a small box in her hands.

“Well, don’t you two look the part,” she said as Daphne landed gently on the floor. “Listen, Dee Dee got a package which she has passed to me, but looking at it I think it would suit you much more, Daphne.” She opened the box to reveal a dark green emerald, fitted into a gold filigree brooch.

“My god,” Daphne said, “It’s beautiful. What is it?”

“A present to me from an admirer - at least, that’s what the note said. Anyway,” Penny said as she fixed the brooch to Daphne’s neck, “I think it looks stunning on there.” Satisfied, she picked up a white racing helmet and walked to the door.

“Come on then - let’s get this party started!”

The trio walked out onto the front porch, where a small crowd had gathered around the world-famous pink racing car known as the Compact Pussycat. “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,” Penny said as she put on the helmet and climbed into the car, “I am Penelope Pitstop, and I declare this day OPEN!!”

The crowd applauded as Penny smiled, while Velma and Daphne made their way down into the crowd to look round, unaware of the people who were following them with their eyes.



San Francisco

Brenda slowly opened the office door and walked in, closing it quietly behind her. The fear on her face was plain for all to see as she looked round, her long brown hair falling in soft curves around her face.

“All right,” she called out, “I’m here. Where’s Taffy?”

“Right here, my sweet,” the voice said as the lights went up, and Taffy called out “BRNDRRNNNNN!!!!” Brenda looked at her old friend in the chair and said “If you don’t disarm that bomb right now, we won’t talk.”

“And if we don’t talk, then the bomb kills us all.”

Brenda swallowed as she said “I can take that risk - can you?”

There was silence as Taffy looked on, wide eyed at the newfound courage of her friend, before the voice said “All right - boys, go and throw the bomb into the sea.”

“Right Boss,” one of the goons said as she reached under the chair and ripped the bomb away, carrying it outside. They listened for a few moments, before an earth shattering “KA-BOOM” rent the silence and a splash of water hit the window.

“I do hope he remembered to throw it this time,” the voice continued as the masked man stepped into the light, a very real looking pistol in his hand. “Now, if you please my dear Brenda, the Star of Alamein.”

“I don’t have it.”

“Don’t try my patience girl,” he said as he walked forward and grabbed Brenda by the arm, pulling her over towards him. “Where is the Star?”

“I don’t have it,” Brenda replied in a choking voice, “It was sent directly on to my partner, Dee Dee.”

“I don’t believe you,” he said as he pushed Brenda over to the other goon. “Make her uncomfortable while I search this place,” he said as the goon pulled the frightened girl’s arms behind her back, crossing her wrists and using rough rope to bind them together as she stood there shaking.



Richville

As Daphne walked down the grass lane between the tents, she was stopped by Peter Pitstop. He was now dressed in a double-breasted red jacket, a cravat tucked in around his neck, white riding pants and knee length black boots, with a pair of grey driving gloves on his hand.

“Impersonating your great-grandfather now,” Daphne said with a smile as she twirled her parasol on her shoulder.

“Well he was her great love,” Peter replied with a smile. “I was just going to see how Penny was doing - care to accompany me?”

“Of course,” Daphne said as she took his arm and they walked to the front of the house, where Penny was posing for photographs in front of the Pussycat. Velma was at one side, talking to Dee Dee, who was wearing a dark blue jacket and skirt over a cream top for the occasion.

“Business dress? That’s different for you Dee,” Daphne said as the couple approached them.

“Well, ladies of my colour in those days tended to serve behind the master’s table,” Dee Dee said with a smile, “so I think I will take a more modern approach.” Her eyes narrowed slightly as she saw the brooch at Daphne’s neck. “I didn’t think Penny would let anyone wear that - still, it does match your eyes.”

“Why thank you kindly for saying so,” Daphne said as she looked round the crowd. A glint of light on metal caught her eye, and she squinted slightly in the direction of the sunburst. “Dee,” she said quietly, “why is someone taking camera shots from that far away of Penny?”

Dee Dee looked in the same direction, before saying “I have no idea, but I will find out.” She walked in the direction of the tents, as Velma said “I need to talk to Penny” and walked towards the car.

“Would you excuse me, Peter,” Daphne said as she looked at the young man, “I need to go and powder my nose.” Peter stood to one side and watched Daphne as she walked away, a strange gleam in his eye.


San Francisco

“It’s not here, Boss!”

The masked man looked at his goon, and then at Brenda as she rolled on the floor. Her wrists had been tied together, and then secured to her waist, before ropes had been wound over her purple striped top to hold her arms tightly into her side. More ropes surrounded her ankles and legs, the bottoms of her bellbottom jeans flaring out from under the brown band.

“I told you, if it went to the Haight-Ashbury drop it would have been sent to Dee Dee automatically,” she said as she watched Taffy sweating in the chair.

“Oh - and where is your lovely Nubian partner.”

“Security detail, somewhere in Richville - I think the name was Pitstop.”

“Pitstop? Pitstop you say?” The man stood up and started chuckling, before he laughed, a manic laugh that brought no comfort to either Taffy or Brenda. “Well, this is just too, too good. I get to kill two birds with one stone - but first, I get to send two angels back to heaven.”

Taking a length of white cloth, he pulled it into Brenda’s mouth, silencing her as he forced the corners of her mouth back and secured the ends under her brown hair. Taking a small package from the goon, he set the timer to fifteen minutes and laid it on the floor in front of Brenda’s eyes.

“I wonder if your tame Neanderthal friend will get back in time,” he smirked a she started the timer, the green neon number counting down as the two men left the office, closing and locking the door behind themselves....


Richville

As Dee Dee approached the tent, she saw the side close rapidly, as if someone was trying to hide. “Who’s in there,” she called out as she lifted the side of the tent, stepping in and stopping at the sight before her.




Daphne finished washing her hands and placed the lace gloves back over them, before picking up her parasol and leaving the ladies rest room. She had not taken more than two steps before a damp cloth was clamped over her nose and mouth, while a strong arm wrapped itself around her waist. She struggled for a few minutes, before the sweet-smelling fumes began to make her fall into a deep sleep.



As Velma approached the Compact Pussycat, a sound like a snake hissing started to fill eh rears, and she saw a dark pillar of smoke rising round the car, enveloping Penny and the vehicle. She didn’t hesitate, but ran forward, plunging into the smoke as the crowd scattered in every direction. The smoke seemed to linger for a few minutes, before it slowly started to clear, but where two women should have been standing, only one remained.

“Cavey!! What are you doing here?”

Dee Dee embraced the small, hirsute man who was standing in the tent, holding a large wooden club in his hands.

“Oogga Booga Cavey need find Dee Dee,” he eventually said as he was let free. “Oogga Booga girls had to be saved from boom.”

“What, someone attacked the girls,” Dee Dee said as she looked at him. “What happened - are they all right?”

“Oogga Booga they fine - ate bomb. Taste like spicy chicken - have same effect too.”

Dee Dee had to suppress a laugh as she stroked his head. “Thanks Cavey - I always know we can depend on you.” He blushed before saying “oogga booga - Dee Dee in danger too. Taffy say bad man coming for her.”

His words made Dee Dee frown. “Bad men - what...” Her words were interrupted by the sound of shouting outside, and as she looked out of the tent she saw the smoke bomb exploding, the black plumes enveloping the car.

“Come on, Cavey,” she shouted as she ran out. The small man smiled as he called out “Captain... CAAAVVVEEEMMANNNNN!!” and flew into the air, his club in front of him as he tore through the roof of the tent and took to the sky.

As Dee Dee ran towards the car, the smoke was beginning to clear, and she let out a sigh of relief as she saw Penny standing there, waving her arms in front of her eyes.

“What the heck was that” she said to Dee Dee as she came over and held Penny in her arms. “Are you all right?” she said as she looked into her boss’ face.

“I’m fine,” Penny coughed, “but where’s Velma? She was right here with me!”




Velma was struggling in the grip of the two massively built men as she was carried across the lawn of Pitstop Place, out of sight of everyone else. She had been pulled out of the smoke, and thick white rope wrapped round her body, almost mummifying her as it pulled her red velvet outfit against her body. A thick white scarf had been pulled into her mouth, forcing her lips apart as she bit down on it with her teeth.

“Whrrrutkngmm,” she called out to the two men. They were wearing mustard coloured roll necked sweaters with tweed jackets over them, dark trousers and cloth caps, and looked as if they could be identical twins. Velma was sure she had seen someone like them before, but for the life of her she could not figure out where. Not that it was important right then - she was being kidnapped, and these two goons were not talking to her, or offering any explanations.

As she tried to look ahead, she saw that she was been carried towards an old wooden building down by the river. She recognised it from some of the pictures in the house as an old sawmill - a little incongruous in the area, but it was apparently built as a reminder of the early days of the Pitstop fortune.

The two men ran towards the building, the man in front pushing the door to the building open as they said “We got her boss.” They stood Velma up as she stared at the man standing before her, dressed in a double-breasted suit with a large fedora over his head and a purple eye mask.

“Welcome, Miss... You idiots, you grabbed the wrong girl!”




“Mmgnggggg - whhtthppndnddd?”

Daphne slowly opened her eyes and raised her head, the room moving in psychedelic swirls as she tried to focus. Her head was thumping, and her mouth felt as if it had spent a week licking the side of the La Brea Tar Pits. As she tried to move her tongue, she slowly realised that it was been held down on the floor of her mouth, something pressing it down as she felt an all too familiar pulling on the skin of her face.

She stared at what she thought was the wall, willing her eyes to focus on it as the patterns slowly settled into a particularly garish red paper. Looking down, she saw the rough brown rope over her white sleeves, holding her arms firmly down to the wooden armrests of the chair she was sitting in.

“Great,” she thought to herself as she tried to flex her arms, “Danger Prone Daphne strikes again! Wonder who is responsible this time?” She looked down as she tried to extend her feet, only to realise that whoever had captured her had securely fixed them to the crossbeam of her chair.

“Grrtt....” she grumbled as she looked round the room. She was sat in the centre, and by the looks of things there was no other furniture. She also thought she was in the Manor, given the fact she could hear the sounds of people talking outside, but it was not a room she recognised. That did not bother her so much - it was a big house, after all - but the way she was bound suggested someone had planned this for some time.

Daphne heard a door opening behind her, and she tried to turn her head, screaming “HLPMMMMMM” as loudly as she could. There was no response, but she could hear heavy footsteps getting closer, and she started to wonder just who it was.

The thick scarf been tied over her eyes was a complete surprise, as was the yank on her skin as whatever was covering her mouth was pulled off and the stuffing removed from her mouth. A strange metallic voice said “Drink” as she felt a straw been placed against her lips, and As Daphne sucked she was relieved to feel cold, clean water going into her mouth.

“Thank you,” she said as the straw was eventually taken away, “who are you and why have you tied me up like this?”

Daphne felt a gloved hand stroking her cheek as the voice answered “You are very precious to me, Miss Blake, and a vital part of my plans. I regret the inconvenience, but I must ask you to remain where you are for a short while. Once I have completed my plans, you will be free to go. The blindfold is to ensure you cannot see me or recognise me.”

“Which explains the modified voice,” Daphne said out loud, before realising that some of Velma must be rubbing off on her. “So what is this? Kidnapping? Robbery? Old Man Johnson break loose again?”

“Very funny, Miss Blake,” the voice replied, “but I regret I need to make sure you cannot raise the alarm for a while. I will return shortly.”

“Hey, hang on you cnammmggmfmdmdg,” Daphne called out a she felt a thick cloth been pulled into her mouth, and secured around her mouth. She listened to the sound of the footsteps retreating, before starting to thrash her head around.





“Did you hear anybody, Penny?”

Penny looked at Dee Dee and slowly shook her head. “No - nobody. The smoke was too thick, and when it cleared the first thing I saw was you - and what in heaven’s name is that?”

She looked into the sky to see a small, hairy figure plummet downwards, hitting the ground in front of her with tremendous force. “Oh, Cavey!” Dee Dee said as she stepped forward and helped the figure to stand up.

“Oogga Booga power failure,” he grunted as he looked up at the pink clad woman in front of you. “Hello pretty lady - me Captain Caveman.”

“He’s funny,” Penny said as he lifted the club in his hand up, the top opening to allow a little bird to jump out with a bouquet of flowers. “Oogga booga for you,” he said with a small smile.

“Cavey, we need your help,” Dee Dee said. “A friend of ours has gone missing - she’s about five foot eight, red hair, and wearing an old red velvet dress. Can you take to the sky and see if you can find her?”

“Oogga Booga sure thing,” he grunted. “You’d better step back,” Dee Dee said as she took Penny’s arm, while the man called out “Captain... CCAAAAVVEEMMAAANNNNN” and swung his club into the air, his body following soon after.

“I’ve heard you talk about him, but to see him face to face...”

“Once seen never forgotten,” Dee Dee said as she saw Peter come out of the house. “Hey - what’s going on out here?”

“Oh, smoke bombs, disappearing friends, just the usual stuff - why, what’s happened to you?”

“Well, I seem to have misplaced Daphne - she’s not the one who is missing is she?”

Penny and Dee Dee stared at Peter, as he looked at them and said “What?”




“Thdddcceeee?” Velma’s eyes widened as she saw the bespectacled man in front of her.

“I see my reputation precedes me,” he laughed as the two brutes held Velma in front of him. “You are obviously not the delightful Miss Pitstop, but I see no need to waste the most brilliant trap I had prepared for her. Tie her to the log, boys!”

“Nnnnnnnnn,” Velma screamed as the two men picked her up as if she was a duster, and laid her on a large wooden log that sat on the conveyor belt. As more rope was used to tie her firmly onto the rough wood, she turned her head and looked at the master criminal as he rubbed his hands and cackled.

“I regret this, I truly do, but you cannot be allowed to let the delightful Miss Pitstop know that I am here yet. Observe, if you will, the large grain of sack that is suspended from the ceiling. As you will see, it is hanging above a large bowl, which is standing next to the conveyor belt.

“In a moment, I will make a hole in the bottom of the sack, which will cause the grain to fall. That will attract the attention of the twenty starving gerbils which you see in the cage next to you. When they see the grain, they will run through the open door of the cage and unto the treadmill, in a mad attempt to get to the food, although the leashes will prevent that.

“Their running will provide the power to run this dynamo, which will in turn apply pressure to the switch on the wall by means of the ingenious lever arrangement. When that switch is pressed, it will start both the blade to spin and the conveyor belt you are on to move, sending you to an appointment with the mother of all splitting headaches. MMWMWWWWAAHAHAAAAAAA!”

As he was giving this explanation, Velma was following his line of sight, and had come to an eminently sensible conclusion which she wished to share with him.

“Uralnneeee”

“So kind of you to say so, my dear,” the masked man said as he plunged a knife into the sack, and a slow trickle of grain began to fall into the bowl. “Enjoy the sight of your life ticking away,” he said with a bow. “Come on boys - we need to prepare a new trap and find the real Miss Pitstop.”

The three men left the building, as Velma watched the ravenous rodents start to run towards the falling grain, and the conveyor belt start to turn...




As Daphne struggled in the chair, she stifled a gasp of excitement as she felt her wrists slipping under the rope on her left arm. She calmed herself down, and started to rub her arm to and fro, loosening with each pass the ropes that held her arm firmly in place. How long she did this for she was not sure, but eventually she managed to get her arm loose and shook it to her side, before she pulled the scarf off her eyes and blinked at the person she saw before her.


Velma struggled against the ropes holding her down to the log as the conveyor belt slowly started to move her towards the blade, the metal starting to spin as it slowly picked up speed. She looked frantically to one side, watching the gerbils running towards the grain, and then raised her eyes to the heavens.

“If there’s a god up there,” she thought to herself, “then do something about this - please!”

As she looked down to the spinning metal, she became dimly aware of a rushing sound in the air, and what sounded like a hoarse, deep voice calling “cffffmnnnnn.” Looking to the far side of the building, Velma heard the sound getting louder, and then instinctively closed her eyes as the wall disintegrated into a mass of wooden splinters and dust.

“Oogga booga - you friend of Dee Dee?”

She opened her eyes to see - well, a walking hairball holding a club that was looking at her with big blue eyes. “Ysssss - gtmmttghr” Velma called out as the log started to approach the spinning blade.

“Oogga Booga - okeydokey,” he said as he picked up Velma and the log and pointed his club into the sky, calling out his name as they shot through the ceiling. “Wsshshttttt!!!!” Velma called out as she saw the old sawmill collapse under her, and then felt the wind rushing into her face as she was gently lowered to the ground.




Reaching up to her mouth and pulling the cloth away from her mouth, Daphne stared at the man standing before her. Well, she assumed he was a man, but he seemed to be suffering from some form of dwarfism as he said “You all right, toots?”

He spoke with a thick Brooklyn accent, and was wearing a smart pinstripe suit over a crisp white shirt, a gold tiepin keeping the silk length securely in place.

“I... I’m fine,” Daphne finally said, “but I would appreciate some help in getting out of this.”

“No problem,” he said as he walked forward and opened a flick knife. Daphne gasped for a moment, before she watched him cutting away the rest of the ropes holding her in place.

“The name’s Clyde,” he finally said as Daphne stood up. “My family and Penelope’s go back a long, long way. I was employed by her to take some photographs of the event when I saw you had disappeared, so I came looking for you.”

“Clyde... You’re not a descendant of one of the Anthill Mob, are you?”

“My great great uncle, since you ask so nicely. Anyway, what’s a nice girl like you doing trussed up in a chair like that?”

“Long story - we need to find Penny, and fast!”



“What do you mean, they’ve gone missing?”

“I mean they’ve gone missing - both Velma and Daphne. Where did you last see her?”

Dee Dee was looking at Peter when she heard a rough cough behind her. “Me find friend,” she heard Captain Caveman say, and as she turned round she saw Velma standing there, brushing the splinters from her hair as the strands of rope fell off her body.

“Velma,” Penny said as she hugged her friend, “What happened to you?”

“Not what - who. You’re not going to believe this, but I was snatched by the Hooded Claw.”

The three of them looked at her, before Peter started to snigger. “The... The Hooded Claw? But he’s dead, dead for decades, and we don’t have anything to do with the Sneakly family now. I mean, you’ll be telling me next that he used the old sawmill as a death trap.”

“Actually,” Velma said as she stared at Peter, “he did - and it’s not there anymore.” Captain Caveman looked sheepish as he whispered “Sorry...”

“I’m sorry,” Peter said “but I refuse to believe it. What could he possibly be after?”

“The Star of Alamein.”

Now it was Velma’s turn to stare at Dee Dee. “I’ve heard of that - but I thought it had been stolen in Marrakesh a couple of months ago.”

“It was - someone very skilled was hired to retrieve it and send it down a well-established chain to a safe place. That jewel has a lot of history behind it, and the owner wanted to make sure it was where it could never be traced before she was able to retrieve it. I was the last person in the chain, and it’s secured somewhere around here.”

“The real owner - who’s that?”

“That would be me.”

The quartet turned to see a slim, olive-skinned girl standing there, dressed in a light pink crop top, silk bolero jacket and matching pants, her long black hair hanging down her back in a pigtail. Behind her stood a man mountain, his arms folded as he watched over her with an almost paternal eye.

“I am Nida Bin Turhan,” the girl said, “and this is my bodyguard, Hassan. Do I have the honour of addressing Miss Penelope Pitstop and Miss Dee Dee Sykes?”


“I don’t suppose by any chance you saw who took me?”

Daphne and Clyde were heading towards the front of the house as she spoke, looking from side to side the whole time.

“’fraid not, Daphne. All I saw was this cloaked guy walking out of the room, and then when I came in there you were, freeing your wrist. I waited until you had finished, and would have said something but you took that blindfold off.”

“Is that the camera you’ve been using,” Daphne said as she looked at the digital device hanging round Clyde’s neck. He nodded before saying “Want to have a look at the photos?” He handed the camera to her and watched as she quickly flicked through the shots, stopping and staring at one in particular.

“See something?”

“I think so - but we need to find the others.” As the pair walked out of the front door, they saw Penny, Velma and Dee Dee talking with three strangers to Daphne.

“Daphne,” Penny said as she ran over and hugged her friend, “What happened to you?”

“Long story - what happened to you, Velma?”

“Small case of a Hooded Claw - you?”

“Crazed kidnapper, I think. Want to introduce me to your friends?”

“In a minute - Clyde, when did you get here?”

“Been here all morning, Penelope,” the smaller man said. “Looks like I missed some fun. Who’s the tall broad - she saw me earlier.”

“Oh, Dee Dee, this is Clyde Wheelwright, an old family friend. Clyde, this is Dee Dee Sykes - security. You’ve met Daphne - this is Velma Dinkley, her friend, Captain Caveman and Miss Nida bin Turhan and - friend.”

Daphne looked at the small woman, who was staring at her brooch.

“The Star of Alamein - it arrived safely?”

“It did,” Dee Dee said, “but someone has been following the trail to here - someone who has decided to impersonate an old friend of Penelope’s.”

“Friend is putting it too politely,” Penny said. “Whoever it is is trying to scare me by pretending to be the family fiend. But I swear, we have nothing to do with the Sneakly family.”

Looking round, Daphne said “Hey - is Peter here?”

“He was a moment ago,” Dee Dee said as she too looked round, “but I guess he’s gone off somewhere. Why?”

“Oh, no reason - look, something bad is going down here, and we want to help. Penny, you and Nida go inside and stay there until we get a chance to find out what’s going on. Velma, you and I are going to go and have a look at the place you were held hostage - see if there are any clues there. Clyde, you and the others stay here and keep an eye on things.”

“Sure thing toots - but who’s going to keep an eye on you?”

“We’ll manage for now,” Daphne said as she removed her brooch and handed it to Dee Dee. “You’d better keep that safe here,” she said as she and Velma headed off through the people to the lake.

“We’d better go inside,” Penny said as she headed for the doorway, followed by Dee Dee, Nida and her man, as Clyde and Captain Caveman looked at each other.


“What are you looking at,” Clyde said with a snarl.

“Oogga Booga little man good friend?”

“To Penny - always. Why?”

“Oogga Booga me to Dee Dee - we help each other?” He extended a bare arm from the hair over his body and waited as Clyde shook his hand.

“All right - what do you think we should do?”

Captain Caveman waved at him as he walked towards the stalls. “Oogga Booga mingle and see what we find,” he said quietly as they walked into the crowds.





“He really did a number on this, didn’t he,” Daphne said as she and Velma look at the smoking ruins of what had been the sawmill.

“I get the feeling he’s like a force of nature - you let him loose and get out of the way,” Velma said as she picked over a broken plank. “Hang on a minute - Daphne, have a look at this.”

Daphne lowered herself down, her skirt flowing out under eh as she looked at the trail of breadcrumbs. “I don’t get it,” she finally said, “what has this to do with your snatching?”

“Only this,” Velma said with a smile, “These aren’t breadcrumbs, but gerbil food. Those idiots must have had a leak in the sack.”

“I still don’t get that - a bunch of gerbils to drive a dynamo? It’s like something out of...”

“An old movie serial - I know,” Velma said as the friends walked towards a boathouse by the lake. “Well, we always say follow the trail, and here we are, following the trail.”

“Do you think we should call the boys?”

“What, and have them take all the credit? Nah, come on.” Daphne walked quickly towards the boathouse, opening the door and walking in.

“That’s funny,” Velma said as she looked outside, “There’s at least four sets of footprints out here, and one of them is much fresher. Daphs, what can you see in there?”

“Daphne?”

Velma looked at the open door, and slowly pushed it into the darkened boathouse. “Daphne?” she said again as she walked in, before blackness descended on her as something hit the back of her head.





“This way, your highness,” Dee Dee said as she opened a door to the dining room, standing to one side as Nida and Penny walked in.

“Where Nida goes, I go,” the tall man said as she looked at Dee Dee.

“And where Penny goes, I go,” Dee Dee replied, as she allowed the man to enter first. As she came in, she saw him staring round the empty room, and then looked to the open bay windows. Running to them, she saw both Penny and Nida been carried away by two men - two men dressed in jackets and roll necked sweaters...


As Velma slowly opened her eyes, she realised very quickly that she was not exactly in Kansas anymore. Nor, for that matter, was she in the boathouse as she heard the soft lap of water against wood. She tried moving her arms, only to realise with a growing sense of inevitability that she was unable to move them at all.

“Hgdddd, ntgggn,” she heard herself say, which was a surprise as she had wanted to say “Oh god, not again.” She moved her lips, feeling the cotton that they seemed to be resting on again as well as pressing down on her tongue, and came to the conclusion that she had been gagged with cloth. From the feel of her fingers, she figured that her arms were been held together with some sort of rough hemp.

“Open your eyes, Velma - might as well see what’s going on,” she thought to herself, and with some effort she forced her eyelids apart, to be greeted by the sight of a wide-eyed Daphne staring back at her from the other side of the boat they were sitting in.

“Tssnnffrfnmssuvgtmnnttt,” she mumbled through the thick white scarf that had been forced between her teeth, her eyes looking at her friend. Daphne’s arms had been lashed to her side, while her wrists were tied tightly together in front of her. Velma followed the line of the rope as it went to the bottom of the boat, through an iron ring fixed to the bottom and then back up to where it was tied around her own wrists. As her eyes followed the rope, she saw the rope also tied round her ankles, half hidden by the skirt she was wearing.

“Whthppnd,” Velma said as she looked at Daphne. The redhead hunched her shoulders, but as she pulled accidentally on the rope she saw to her horror a small trickle of water appear round the wood that the ring was attached to.

“WHHDDDDDTSDDD -HLLPPPPPP!” both Daphne and Velma screamed as they looked frantically round, the boat bobbing lazily in the centre of the lake with no one in sight, and the water starting to slowly, slowly bubble up as their movements worked the plug looser....





“I am so sorry to keep you hanging around, ladies.”

Penny stared at the man standing in front of her, as she swung slowly from side to side. She was hanging from a hook in the ceiling, the rope that had been used to bind her gloved hands together looped over it and keeping her arms elevated above her head. Next to her was Nida, who was staring at the man with pure hatred.

“You,” she said in a voice that showed why she was a princess, “I should have taken care of you when I had the chance.” Her jacket was lying on the floor behind her, the rope cutting into the bare skin of her arms as she swung round.

“Ah, but then I would never have had the pleasure of renewing my acquaintance with the wonderful Pitstop family. We have a lot of history between our families, you and I.”

“I don’t believe it,” Penny finally said, “There really is another Hooded Claw running round?”

“At your service, my dear Miss Pitstop,” the man said as he took off his oversized Fedora and made a deep bow, his short brown hair visible over the purple eye mask. “Finally, I get my revenge as well as the Star of Alamein - a most precious item, your highness, and most foolish of you to send it this way.”

“It had to be kept out of your hands,” Nida said as she spat at the Claw, “and I will ensure you never get your hands on it.” As he replaced his hat, Penny tried to pull her legs up, only to realise the futility of it as her ankles were tightly bound and fastened to an iron ring set into the ground.

The two captives had been brought by the muscle men to a van that had been parked discretely in the grounds around Pitstop Manor, before they had been secured in place. Now Penny and Nida looked at each other, as the man who clearly was the Hooded Claw cackled gleefully.

“If you will observe,” he finally said, “at the other side of the van is a substantial quantity of dynamite, with a fuse running to the centre of the floor of the van. If you now glance up, you will see that large magnifying glass has been fixed to the roof, directly above the end of the fuse. In a few moments, I will pull the roof back from the top of the van, and the afternoon sun will shine down, allowing the glass to concentrate the rays on the fuse and light it. You get the chance to get a suntan and watch your last seconds tick away - unless, of course,” he said as he looked at Nida and Penny, “You tell me where the Star is.”

Penny looked at Nida, and then the two men, then at the Claw, before coming to a similar conclusion to that Velma had reached some hours before. As she was in a position to speak, however, she gave it full voice.

“You’re a loony!”

“I do not understand this word ‘Loony’, but you are most certainly not of sound mind,” Nida said as she stared into his masked eyes.

“Details, details, sticks and stones,” he said as he put on an opera cloak. “If you will not tell me, then I must go and search for myself. Goodbye, ladies - it has been a pleasure. Boys, ensure their last moments are silent, and then pull the roof back.”

“What do yummmfmfmff,” Penny said as one of the man mountains pushed a cloth into her mouth, and then covered it with grey tape, the second one affording the same to Nida. They stared on mutely as they turned a handle, retracting the roof of the van, and then left them there as the sun started to shine down through the space and onto the lens....



“You asked for us, doll?”

Clyde and Captain Caveman walked into the front room, where Dee Dee and Hassan were standing with a worried expression on their faces.

“Boys, Penny and Nida have been snatched,” she said as soon as they arrived, “by two big burly men.”

“Wearing turtleneck sweaters and tweed jackets?”

Dee Dee stared at the diminutive man as he replied. “Yeah, exactly right - do you know them?”

“Know of them - they’re a couple of strong arms for hire, work for the highest wage, that sort of thing. Had a couple of brushes with them a few years back, but I thought they were in the pen.”

“Well, they are not, little man,” Hassan said as he slammed his fist down on the table, “and they have my princess. Hassan does not take kindly to been fooled this way - and he wishes to find them.”

“Oogga Booga you want Cavey to fly over, see if he can see them?”

“If you would, Cavey that would be...” They group looked up as the door opened and two women walked in.

“Taffy! Brenda! Thank God you’re both all right.”

“Thank Cavey Wavey here,” Taffy said as she hugged her old friend. “Listen, did the package arrive safely?”

“It arrived safely - but Daphne is wearing it right now.”

“Daphne? Daphne Blake? Is she here - and more to the point, is that dreamy hunk Fred Jones with her?”

“Calm down Taffy - she and Velma are here on their own, but they seem to have disappeared as well. If I tell you where they went, can you go and see if you can find them? Cavey, you take off and see if you can find Penny and Nida.”

He snapped a salute, waved his club, screamed “Captain...CAAAVEEEEMMAAAANNNNN” and took off, taking the French doors with him as he crashed out of the building.

“He always do that?” Clyde said, watching as all three of the Teen Angels nodded.

“A man of hidden talents,” Hassan said as he smiled and nodded. “What can we do in the meantime?”

“Taffy, Brenda, here’s where you go. You two, come with me - I think we need to find Peter Pitstop and ask him a few questions...”





Velma looked over at Daphne, her toes splashing in the water as it slowly seeped into the boat, and tried to make herself as understood as possible.

“Hwrrwgttngtftsss,” she mumbled as she looked around the lake, the waters calm and peaceful. Daphne shook her head from side to side as she tried to wriggle her hands free, praying that she would somehow manage to free herself without causing the leak to grow in speed. As she did so, she tried to remember what had happened previously.

She had gone into the boat house, while Velma had been looking round the ground outside. It had been dim, but not dark, with the open doors, but even then she had not seen who it was who had grabbed her and pulled the burlap sack over her head before binding her. She had been pushed into a boat, that much she remembered, and then she had heard the thud as someone - Velma, obviously - had been put in with her.

After that it was a blur - she had been secured, and she presumed Velma had a swell, before they had been towed out into the centre of the lake. The sack had been pulled off from behind her, and then the gag applied, but she had seen a glimpse of a tall man with broad shoulders heading off in a small power boat before they had been left alone. Something about the man had seemed familiar, but she could not quite place what it was as...

To her horror, she realised that the water was now flowing faster into the boat, and Velma actually seemed to be trying to pull the cork out.

“Whhtttuurrddnnggg,” she called out as Velma tugged as hard as she could, causing the plug to finally come out of the bottom of the boat and the water to start flowing in....





Dee Dee looked up into the sky as she looked at the tiny speck floating in the air. “Any sign of them yet, Cavey?”

The speck seemed to look down and shake, as it suddenly turned and flew off in a different direction.

“Hey - I heard you were looking for me?”

She turned suddenly as she heard Peter behind her, glancing down at the sawdust on his boots and trying to avoid his smile.

“Where on earth have you been - Penny has been kidnapped with a guest, Daphne and Velma have gone missing, and the whole place seems to be going to heck in a hand basket. Where have you been?”

“I went for a walk - look, I need to go and get changed. I have to catch a late flight.” As he walked off, Dee Dee looked at him, her eyes narrowing as she turned.

“Want me to follow him, toots?”

She nodded and watched as Clyde went in the same direction as Peter, keeping a safe distance behind.




“HLLOOO SMBDDYYHLPPPPP!!!!”

Penny screamed through her tape gag as she saw smoke starting to rise from the end of the fuse, and a red glow slowly start to form in the cord. She twisted her body round like mad, Nida joining her as the sun’s rays seemed to be about to start the fuse that would end all things.

As the cord suddenly sparked and started to fizzle, a black cloud passed fleetingly overhead - a cloud that started to race down as the cord burned quickly towards the dynamite....




In his room, Peter took the small cloth out of his pocket and looked at the glittering jewel inside. “It could have been so different, Daphne,” he said as he pushed it into a pair of socks, and started to pack his case, not noticing the pair of eyes that was watching him.





“PHWWWWORRRRR!!!” Daphne opened her mouth, taking great gulps of air as she and Velma finally managed to break the surface of the lake. “Next time, tell me the only way to get free was to pull the plug and help each other!”

“Hey, I tried to - thick cloth in my mouth,” Velma replied as they both shook the cords from their wrists. “At any rate, at least we broke free - but these clothes are getting heavier. What we need now is a boat.”

“Zowie - we made it just in time,” she heard a voice say, and turning round she saw Brenda and Taffy approaching in a power boat.

“Need a lift,” Brenda said as they helped the two soaked women into the boat. “Thanks,” Daphne said, “I don’t know what would have happened if...”

Her words were cut off by a massive explosion on the grounds of the Manor.

“What the...” Velma said as they saw the plume of smoke rising a short distance away. “Did something just explode over there?”



The four girls reacted by instinct, and ran in the direction of the smoke column, the path taking them through the woods to a small clearing, in the centre of which stood the burning husk of a large van.



“What happened here?” Daphne whispered as a large man mountain ran from the other direction, followed by Dee Dee. “PRINCESS!! PRINCESS NIDA!!” he called out as Dee Dee said “Have you seen Penny? She was grabbed and taken hostage, then...”



“We’re over here,” Penny said as she stood up, the adhesive from the tape gag still around her mouth. Beside her was Nida, her face smudged with soot but otherwise unharmed, but it was the man standing behind them that caught Daphne’s eye.



He was at least six foot four, and broad shouldered, with white hair cut in a close crew cut. The red shirt he was wearing was old fashioned, almost sixties in the styling, but hung open at the top two fastenings. Brushing some flecks of ash from his shoulders, he said “It’s a good thing I was on my way here and saw what was happening - I managed to land the Helijet and get the two women free just in time.



“Bannon? Race Bannon?” Daphne said, before she ran over and hugged the new arrival. “Is Jonny here as well?”



“Not today, Daphne,” Race said as he put his large hands on her shoulders. “I came on a personal matter, but it appears a lot more has been going on. Why are you so wet anyway?”



“Long story - but it seems we’ve only heard the half of it.” As they talked, Dee Dee was in conversation with Brenda and Taffy, when her cell phone started ringing.



“Yeah?



“You don’t say.



“You don’t say.



“You don’t say. We’ll be right back.”



“Who was that,” Velma said as Dee Dee put her phone away.



“I can’t say - not yet anyway,” was all the young woman said before she turned to Race. “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure...”



“Roger Bannon, OSI - call me Race,” he said as he showed Dee Dee a card. “look, I understand a lot has happened, but I would appreciate been told some of it - and I think you all need showers for various different reasons. Is there somewhere we can go, change and talk?”



“Back to the manor,” Penny said as he looked at the way Hassan was apologising to Nida, “The fair can cope without us for an hour or so. The bands are due to start playing soon anyway.”







Thirty minutes later, Daphne and Velma came into the dining room, having showered and changed into a more usual form of clothing. They found Bannon and Hassan deep in conversation, while Penny and Nida were sitting down. Penny had changed into a light grey jacket and joggers, her feet in a pair of black suede boots, while Nida was wearing a green smock top with dark leggings and sandals.



“Now do you believe there is another Hooded Claw,” Velma said as they sat down.



“I do - and I’m sorry I doubted you,” Penny said with a smile, “Nida has been telling me something of him.”



“He first appeared in my country six months ago - he caused much panic and fear in his attempts to find a large hidden treasure, legend says as great as that found by Ali Baba.”



“Ali Baba? I thought he was a fictional character?”



“Oh no, my dear Daphne - he was very real, and very great. I know, for I am the custodian of the treasure, as have been my family for generation upon generation, since my ancestor Queen Nida and her husband King Turhan. Hassan here is my bodyguard, as his ancestors have been for mine.”



“What I cannot understand,” Penny said as she saw the Teen Angels walk in, “is who this new Hooded Claw is. After Sylvester Sneakley was incarcerated, there are no records of any children - he wasn’t married and died in prison.”



“Can you remember what he looked like,” Dee Dee said as they all sat round the table.



“Not that tall - only a little more than Velma - but dressed in the ludicrous purple suit and big hat the stories Grandma used to tell me had in them. What I don’t understand is why he ended up here - unless...”



“It is partly my fault,” Nida said quietly. “The Star of Alamein is more than a jewel - it is the key to the location of the treasure, if you know how to use it. When he came too close with an attempt to steal it, I consulted with my advisors, and they suggested it was sent to a place for safe keeping - here, in fact. It is known far and wide that the Teen Angels Detective Agency can help a young girl in need, and I did not think he would look here. So we engaged an agent to facilitate the transport - it appears, however, that he got wind of this and tracked her down.”



“To Morocco,” Race said. “The agent is a - friend of mine, by the name of Jezebel Jade. She managed to send it through a secure courier to New York, from which it was to be forwarded to your ladies, before he caught up with her. I found her, and she asked me to come and ensure there were no problems - it seems I arrived a little too late to prevent them.”



“I went to New York, and spoke to the courier there. She had sent it on to you, but when I arrived you had already come here. Did you meet this man?” He looked at Brenda and Taffy as he said this, and both girls nodded.



“He threatened us, but we had already sent on the parcel to Dee Dee,” Taffy said. “In fact, he seemed genuinely surprised when we said it was here - almost as if he had not expected to come here. Is there history between you two?”



“History is the right word,” Penny said quietly. “His ancestor tried to kill my great-grandmother - it was only through luck, and the help of some fine young men, that she survived. Talking of which - where is Clyde?”



“Oh yes,” Dee Dee said quietly, “I asked them to do something for me. Hang on.” She stood up and left the room, as Nida noticed Velma lost in thought.



“What is it, Velma,” she said quietly.



“If this man who called himself the Hooded Claw only knew to come here the day we arrived,” she mused, “then who sent that card? The envelope was franked three days before.”













“Clyde? Clyde, are you in here?”



Dee Dee opened the door to the garage, only to find Peter putting a bag in the trunk of his car.



“Have you seen Clyde anywhere, Peter,” she said, as he slammed the lid down.



“Nope, sorry, haven’t seen the little guy - well, must dash, have a lot to...”



“Going somewhere, Little Peter Pitstop?” Clyde appeared from behind a stack of boxes, looking at Peter as he said “You should took a look inside the bag in the trunk, Dee Dee - you might find something interesting in the sock section.”



“Really,” Dee Dee said as Peter stood by the car. “Would you like to show me, Peter? After all, it would look very suspicious if you were to leave with so much going on.”



“Well, you know how it is,” Peter said quietly as Dee Dee and Clyde walked towards him, “Business to do, people to meet, and the fair is going well enough without me, so...”



“Open the trunk, Peter.”



“Well, if you insist....” Peter walked to the rear of the car, but as the other two approached he grabbed Dee Dee, his arm going round her neck and his hand over her mouth.



“Hands off the lady,” Clyde said as he charged forward, only to stumble as Peter kicked a box in his way and fall in, fidnign himself head down in the plastic padding inside.



“I'm truly sorry it has to be this way,” he said as he grabbed a roll of silver tape and dragged Dee Dee off, “but I need to make sure I can make a clean getaway, and I need to stash you somewhere quiet.”









“This is getting to be a very worrying habit - now Dee Dee has disappeared?”



“Oh come on Velma,” Daphne said, “she’s only been gone thirty minutes. What could have happened in that time?”



“Oogga Booga Look what I find,” Captain Caveman said as he flew in, surprising both Hassan and Race as they stood up.



“My god,” Race said quietly, “so the rumours were true. Doctor Bannon always wondered if it was possible, but this...”



“Hand off Cavey Wavey,” Brenda said as she hugged the latest arrival, “He’s my hero. What have you found, Lil Cavey?”





He blushed bright red before saying “Me fly overhead when me see and find this.” He dug into his hirsute covering, and brought forth a baloney and pickle sandwich.



“Oh sorry, that me lunch,” he said as he dug in again, only to bring out this time a hat and cape, both made of purple cloth.



“That - that is the hat and cloak the man who called himself the Hooded Claw wore,” Nida said as she stood up. “Where did you find this, strange man?”



“Oogga Booga hello pretty lady,” Captain Caveman said as he produced a bird from his club, who then offered a bunch of flowers to Nida. “me find these things near car in parking area - what you call jalopy.”



“Cavey,” Velma said quietly, “Have you seen Peter anywhere?”



“Little man Clyde looking at him - he very suspicious.”



“Peter,” Penny finally said, “What does he have to do with this - you don’t think he’s the Hooded Claw?”



“No - but I think he knows something. Come on.”



“Where are we going?” Penny looked at her watch. “I have to make a speech to close the fair in ten minutes.”



“You go with Nida, Hassan and the girls to do that,” Velma said. “Daphne, Cavey, and Race, you come with me - I think we need to find Peter.”

















“I don’t believe it - she survived, and so did the princess!”



The Hooded Claw put down the binoculars as he watched Penny walk onto the stage, where a trio of musicians were waiting.



“Still no matter - she has kept to the timetable, and she cannot avoid this trap. Once that bass guitarist hits the pedal for the guitar, it will complete the circuit that will start the timer, and then everyone will have an explosive end to their day. We can then grab the Star in the confusion - our patsy said they already had it.”









Under the stage, a wire through a hole in the wood down to a timing device, around which was strapped a considerable amount of explosive. Next to that explosive was a dividing support - and on the other side of the support was Dee Dee, twisting madly to try and free herself from the tape bands that held her legs tightly together at the ankles, knees and thighs, as well as her arms tightly to her side. Her wrists were secured behind her back, and her mouth covered with several strips of the tape.



She knew nothing of the bomb - her eyes were fixed solely on the snake that was making its way slowly towards her, the diamond backed head expanding as it looked at her.





From above, she heard Penny say “Ladies and Gentlemen, it has been a fantastic day today, but we are only just starting. We hope you will stay for the firework display, but for now, pleas enjoy the music of - The Impossbiles!”







As the quartet walked towards the garage, Captain Caveman flew ahead, before calling back “OOGGA BOOGA COME QUICK - LITTLE MAN IN TROUBLE!!”



They ran in to see a pair of legs sticking out of the top of a box. Race ran forward, and pulling the man out said “Clyde Wheelwright - I see you still end up in the more obscure places.”



“I go where I’m needed Bannon - now put me down, we have to stop Peter Pitstop.”



“Why?” Daphne said as she stood in the doorway.



“Because,” Clyde said as he opened the trunk of Peter’s car and took his bag out, “He had The Star of Alamein in his possession, and because he’s the one who nabbed you earlier, toots.” He dug around in the bag before producing the jewel, and turning round.



“See - hey, where did she go?”



Velma and Race turned round, but where Daphne had been was now empty space.



“Oh great,” Velma said with a shrug of the shoulders, “It always happens to her.”



“So I hear,” Clyde said “but I think I know where she is. Where’s Dee Dee though - he took her off earlier.”







There’s a new dance that just hit town,

Everyone’s coming from miles around.



As the music started Dee Dee watched, wide eyed as the snake moved from side to side, not knowing of the timer that had just flickered into life next to her...





Dee Dee could not take her eyes off the snake, but instead of moving to strike her, it simply moved from side to side, as if it was entranced. She wasn’t sure exactly what was happening, and then realised that the sound of the bass guitar was causing the stage itself to vibrate - and it was those vibrations that seemed to be keeping the snake enthralled.



Slowly, carefully, Dee Dee started to move back from the snake, her eyes fixed on the flat head as she backed up against the support, still unaware of the timer that was slowly counting down behind her...









“PETER!! Why are you doing this to me?”



Daphne kicked her legs up and down as Peter Pitstop finished taping her arms tightly together behind her back, her elbows resting in the palms of her hands as a silver sheath covered her forearms.



“Why else, Danger Prone Daphne? For love,” he said as he turned her round and sat her on the sill of the car trunk. “I have always loved you, but never had the courage to say it - until today.”



“Funny way you’ve got of saying it - words speak much more potently than rope and tape, you know?”



“You’ve spent too long with Brainbox Velma,” Peter said as he knelt and taped her ankles together. “Anyway, now that I have lost the Star, I only have one prize that I can leave with - you.”



“I don’t understand though - why did you steal the Star? It’s not as if you need the money.”



Peter tore the tape off, smoothed it onto Daphne’s ankles, then looked her in the eye and said “To protect Penny - he said if I did not steal it, he would kill her, and I love her more than almost anything.”



“So to save her, you were going to steal from her?”



“It was not hers to begin with - and it looked so wonderful on your chest, that I had to take both it and you earlier.”



“So it was YOU who tied me to that chair?”



“I regret that,” Peter said as he moved Daphne’s legs and she slid gracefully into the trunk, “but now we can go from this place, and I can save your life and mine.”



“Our lives? Peter, what’s going to happen?”



“There’s going to be an unscheduled fireworks display,” Peter said, and Daphne could see the sadness in his eyes. “That’s all I know - now be a good girl and purse your lips.”



“Why, do you want to kiss me?”



“No,” Peter said as he smoothed the tape over her mouth, “I need to keep you quiet.” Closing the trunk lid, Peter walked quickly round and started the car engine, pressing the button to open the garage door.









From the large garden doors, Captain Caveman looked over the crowds gathered round the stage, but he could see no sign of Dee Dee.



“Is there anything you can do, Cavey,” Brenda said as she stood behind him.



“Me send scout to look in hidden places,” the hirsute hero said, and as he pointed his club the top opened and a small bird with large eyes came out.



“Find Dee Dee,” Captain said, and as the bird flew off he watched the way he zoomed over the crowd. Suddenly he stopped, and seemed to stiffen, like an arrow pointing to the stage.



“Under stage - I go find her,” he said as he swung his club and threw himself into the air, diving under the canopy and almost hitting the bound and gagged girl as she backed to the edge.



“Cvvee-lkt,” she called through her gag, and as Captain Caveman looked round he saw the snake turn and hiss at him.



“Oogga Booga me no scared of no snake,” he said quietly as he grabbed the snake and looked into the small eyes. The snake stared back, then yelped as it jumped out of his hand and slid under the divider.



“Me get it,” Captain Caveman said as he ran after it, but as he pulled the canvas curtain back he saw the timer, the red numbers at 00:15. Dee Dee could see it as well, and screamed into her tape as the Captain said “Uh oh...”











The last thing Peter expected to see was a very tall man with white hair, and a very small man with black hair, standing in front of the garage door.



“Turn the engine off, Peter,” Clyde growled, “We need to talk to you.”



“Oh,” Peter said lightly, “and who is your over sized friend?”



“The name’s Bannon,” Race said quietly, “and you really do not want to make me angry. Kill the engine, and step out of the car.”



“Make me,” Peter said, and both men had to jump out of the way as he roared past them, dust kicking up from the rear wheels as the car sped out of the garage and down the road.



“We need to get after him,” Race said as he looked at Clyde.



“Cool your heels Bannon, he won’t get far. I made a phone call and called in a favour - Mr Pitstop should be meeting that favour right about - now.”



The two men listened as there was the sound of screeching breaks, and then the car driving back towards the garage, followed by a black sedan.



“Please,” Peter said as he jumped out of the car and grabbed Race’s legs, “I don’t want to face - that!”



“What,” Race said as he watched the car door open and a tall man step out. He was dressed in a dark suit, black brogues on his feet, a sensible shirt and tie - but with a cowl on his head and a large pair of wings protruding from his back.



“Mr Pitstop - Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law. I have a cease and desist order here in the name of a Mr Clyde Wheelwright, ordering you to give all goods and chattels to him in payment of...”



Race turned to Clyde and smiled. “Even I have to admit, that is cruel and unusual - well done.” His praise was halted by the sound of banging on the inside of the trunk of the car, and as he opened it he saw Daphne staring out at him.



“Quick,” she said as he peeled the tape from her mouth, “There’s a bomb somewhere, he said as much...”









From his vantage point on the hill, The Hooded Claw was getting a little impatient.



“Where’s the kaboom,” he said as he stamped his foot, “I was expecting an earth rending kaboom, and it hasn’t happened. Did the timer break down?”



“Don’t know Boss,” his goons said behind him, “but the girls are still there.”



“So they are, so they are, my fine men,” the Claw said with a smile on his lips. “Prepare the Windmill of Doom - I think it is time we took our final revenge on Miss Pitstop and avenged the family name.”



At the stage, Penny was surprised when she glanced back to see Dee Dee crawl out from under the stage, a length of tape hanging from her cheek.



“What were you doing down there,” she said as she and Nida came off and helped her to stand up.



“Peter - he put me under there with a snake for company, but Cavey found me - and something else as well.”



“What else?”



“Oogga Booga Boom Box,” Captain Caveman said as he dragged out a block of ice, in the centre of which was a bomb with an electronic timer, the display stuck at 00:02. “Me lucky I had cold drinks in club.”



“A bomb,” Taffy said as she and Brenda came up. “Who put that there?”



“Not Peter,” Dee Dee said, “he may be a villain, but he’s not that stupid. Nor would he risk the lives of innocents. No, this is the work of the Hooded Claw.”





“But I don’t understand,” Penny said as she looked at the group, “If he wanted the Star, why threaten to blow me up as well. Is this just some sort of twisted revenge - and who the hell is he anyway?”



“I think I know.”



The group turned to see Daphne walking back with Clyde, Peter been held firmly in Race’s grip.



“You do? Then who is he?”



“For once, Velma, you’re going to have to wait for me to explain things - we need to trap him, and the only way to trap a madman is with bait.”



“Bait?”



“Live bait,” Daphne said as he looked at Penny, Nida and Velma. “Here’s what we’re going to do...”













The crowds had slowly cleared from the grounds of Pitstop Manor, and as the sun began to set over the woods the servant carried the tray of iced teas out to the patio, where Penny was sitting with Nida, Daphne and Velma. Daphne had finally ditched the driving outfit for a ducky pink trouser suit with white boots, while Nida was wearing a traditional pair of pantaloons and a long smock top.



Penny had on her purple trousers and jacket over a lighter purple top, while Velma was wearing a mustard coloured top and shorts.



“A beautiful end to a beautiful day,” Penny finally said as she took a glass from the butler, and waited for the others to accept theirs. As Daphne took a slip, she looked at the tall, thin young man who was holding the tray.



“I don’t think I’ve seen you around,” she said as she smiled at him.



“No, Miss,” he said in a strangely familiar voice, “I have been working behind the scenes all day, but I offered to bring the drinks as a favour to the butler.”



“Where is Bentley?” Penny said as she looked at him.



“Resting with the others,” he said with a smile. He watched as they finished their drinks, then looked out into the setting sun.



“So peaceful,” Nida said as she started to yawn, “It almost makes me want to... To...” Her words trailed off as she closed her eyes, her head slumping to one side as the others followed suit.



“Vain little madame,” the waiter said as he put the tray down, and whistled three times. From the room, the two goons came out and picked the four sleeping women up, one over each shoulder.



“Let’s go boys,” the man said as he walked down the yard, the two hulks following behind him. From an upstairs window, Hassan and Race watched, their eyes narrowed as they fixed on him.



“Go, Cavey,” Dee Dee said, and Captain Caveman soared into the air, following the group as they disappeared into the woods....









Daphne’s head was spinning. She had suggested drawing them out into the open, but she had not figured on the idea that he would drug and take them... take them...



She wasn’t exactly sure where she was, only that she could feel a cool breeze on her face, and her head was spinning - no, wait a minute, it wasn’t her head was spinning, it felt as if she was immobile and spinning at the same time...



She opened her eyes, to see the sky spinning slowly in front of her. She tried to move he r hands to stop it, but as she glanced to her side she could see she was secured with heavy leather straps to a white wooden board, and it was this that seemed to be moving. As the platform slowly turned, she looked to one side, and a short distance away she could see Velma, strapped to a similar board with a thick leather pad covering her mouth.



“Which would explain the taste of rubber in my own,” Daphne thought to herself as she tried moving her own lips, and feeling the bung that sat in her mouth with her tongue. Turning her head to the other side, she could see Penny staring back at her, and looking down her body she saw the head of Nadi at the far side, looking round as well.



“Welcome, ladies, welcome to my little party,” a weedy voice said, and Penny mumbled out “ubstrd” as The Hooded Claw passed by Daphne’s head.



“Whtduwntwffsss,” Nida said as she passed round in front of him, Velma tugging at the leather straps that held her legs firmly down.



“Well, I want the Star, but that can wait - my little patsy seems to have got himself arrested, but I will find it at leisure once you are out of the way - and my other little surprise takes care of the rest of the Dynamic Dodos at Pitstop Manor.”



“Frsrprsse?” Velma looked at the others, wondering what was going on, as a speck covered the dark sky, and then flew off.











“Where has he got to - I am getting impatient!”



Hassan banged on the table with his fists, while Race looked on.



“Patience, big man - he’ll be back soon enough,” he said quietly as Dee Dee, Brenda and Taffy talked outside.



“Yeah, give the squirt a break,” Clyde said as he sat with his feet on the table. “We have Peter locked up safely at the hoosegaw, and the Star is safe in our possession.”



“Who has it now?”



“Dee does - out...” Clyde stopped as he looked out on the now empty patio. Jumping up, he looked out to see two men carrying the three girls off, kicking and screaming, towards the lake.



“That’s the Claw’s goons,” he roared as he ran out after them. “You two wait for the flying man - I’ll take care of this.” Race and Hassan looked at each other, only to be diverted by Captain Caveman landing.



“Oogga Booga found them - follow me,” he said as he took off again. The two men looked at each other and then ran off, following the light that was shining from his club...







“What are you doing to us,” Brenda screamed as the three girls were lying on the ground. Dee Dee was wearing her more normal outfit as a Teen Angel - a tight red sweater, blue denim skirt and knee length red leather boots. Brenda and Taffy were also in their normal work outfits, but the concern of all three was the fact that they had their wrists tied behind their backs, and their bound ankles were now been secured to them by the two goons.

“None of your business,” the thickset man binding Dee Dee said, “Boss says bring you here, tie you up, gag you, and then leave you with a little present from him.”



“Oh goodie,” Brenda said, “I like presents, what is it?”



“This,” the other man said as he placed a candy striped box on the ground in front of all three of them, and lifted the lid to show them the bomb that was inside.



“Nice present,” Taffy said - and it was the last thing she said as a white bandana was pulled between her lips, the knot tied in the band filling her mouth. A blue and white striped one was used on Brenda, and a red one on Dee Dee.





“Bye bye,” they said as they walked off, only to find themselves hoisted into the air in a net that had been hidden under the leaves.



“Guess you were right about what they’d do DD,” Clyde said as he stepped out, “Given they left that van trap in the next clearing, and the boathouse is just down there.”



Dee Dee nodded and screamed “Tsabmmm” as she looked at the candy striped box.



“Something wrong Toots,” Clyde said as he walked over, and took a look inside. “Oh god, not the hat box bomb trick, I can’t believe how old that one is. ZIPPY!!!”



“Yeah Clyde, yeah Clyde,” a similarly statured man said as he ran forward.



“Take this and throw it in the lake,” Clyde said as he handed the bomb over.



“Sure thing, Clyde,” the new arrival said, and there was a rush of wind as he and the box disappeared, followed by a rather watery explosion.



“Now then,” Clyde said as he started to build a pile of sticks under the hanging net, “Why don’t we start a fire, and then we can have a nice warm chat about your boss, right?”



Taffy started laughing under her gag, as Dee Dee found a knife on the ground and grabbed it, moving it so that she could start to cut through her bonds...









“Let me explain what’s going to happen,” The Hooded Claw said as he watched the four trapped and gagged girls slowly rotating in front of him. “You are all strapped to a windmill, which even now is turning slowly, keeping you all in a state of motion as the cool wind rushes through your hair - well it would if I hadn’t strapped it down under your heads. But you, Miss Dinkley, you have no such problem, do you?”



“Tlduhsslnee,” Velma said as she looked at Penny.



“Icnsstht,” she mumbled in reply.



“Now pay attention,” the Claw continued, “as the speed of the windmill increases, you will become more and more dizzy, more and more disorientated, and you will experience a slight feeling of nausea. I urge you to fight it - the gag may make it an unpleasant experience.”



“Thntktggst.”



He looked at Nida, then slowed down and stopped the wheel. Unbuckling the gag, he eased the bung out of her mouth and said “Why should I ungag you?”



“So that we can talk - and so that you can prolong the agony of our demise, as carefully planned as I am sure it is. After all, choking would be too simple a death, wouldn’t it?”



He stood for a moment, and then nodded, saying “I see there is a little of the fierce desert monarch still in you, your highness,” as he walked round and ungagged the other three.”



“Who are you,” Penny said as the leather pad was taken from her face, “I know Sylvester Sneakley had no family, so who are you and why do you hate me?”



“Oh I don’t hate you, Ms Pitstop - in fact, I hardly know you, but you paid my predecessor a great disservice. I merely wish to redress the balance in his way - talking of which...”



He stepped back and pressed a lever, allowing the wheel to speed up again.



“As the wheel rotates, it will pick up speed and momentum, and you may feel a passing nausea. As this happens, the wheel will be raised inot a vertical position, giving you a beter thrill ride than anything Disneyland or Six Flags can offer.



“When it reaches the critical speed, a release lever will be automatically depressed, and the wheel will set off, rolling at some velocity down the hill and towards the brick wall that resides there. If you are lucky, you will hit the wall - if not, the wood you are strapped to will sail over the side and plummet down the cliff face to the rocks below.”



“So, basically, your conventional death trap,” Velma said as her glasses fell off. “I said it before, and I’ll say it again - you’re a loony.”



“Now now, Velma,” Daphne said as she tutted. “This man is more than just a loony, he’s a grade A-1 fruitcake.”



“Do you think he’s up there with Old Man Johnson?”



Velma thought for a moment. “Hmmm - nah, but he is the same league as the Swamp Croc and his wife.”



“Oh yeah, good one - he really stank didn’t he?”



“Yeah - and what about the Phantom Diver?”



“Oh yeah - but he sank without trace. Unlike the Claw here, who I am sure will rise to the very top.”



“Oh,” he said with a smirk, “like the cream of the crop?”



“No - like the slag in the melting furnace.”



“ENOUGH!” the Claw screamed as he depressed the lever, and the windmill blades started to spin faster. “Enjoy your last fairground ride, ladies. I have to go and retrieve the Star now - have fun.”



The four women watched as the cloaked figure walked to the edge of the clearing, as they realised they were slowly being raised from a flat position into the air, the blades spinning in the air as Daphne felt the rush of blood while her head was down to the ground.



“Talk aboooout being taken foooooor a spiiiiiin,” Penny called out as the windmill seemed to increase in speed.



“I’m goonnnnaaaaa.....” Daphne called out, but any further talk seemed to be silenced as the Hooded Claw walked towards a waiting car, chuckling to himself as he removed the cloak, hat and jacket, and threw them into the open trunk.



“Got a light?”



The thin young man slowly turned, only to be lifted bodily off the ground by the man mountain called Hassan.



“Where is the princess?” he growled, is hot breath steaming up the glasses on the man’s face.



“Princess? What Princess? I was just taking a stroll in the woods, minding my own business..."



“Wearing the latest in purple fashion accessories,” Race said as he held the hat and cloak up. “Wise up, kid - your one chance is to tell us where the girls are.”



“HHHHEWEEELLLOPPPPPPPUUUSSSSSS!!!”



The two men ran in the direction of the screams, leaving the Claw to try crawling to his car.



“Oogga Booga going somewhere?”



He looked up at the small, very hairy man, and said “It’s just not my day,” as the club came down on his head.



“Your Highness!” Hassan and Race stopped as the windmill continued to pick up speed, the girls becoming a coloured blur as they whizzed past.



“How do you turn this thing off,” Race said as he ran to the back of the giant wheel. “It’s times like these I wish I had Benton with me.”



Hassan ran to the wheel and grabbed hold of one of the blades, groaning as he managed to stop it for a moment. The sweat built on his face as he saw Nida staring back at him, and heard the groaning of the mechanics as they tried to continue their death spin.



“I... I can’t....” Hassan groaned as the blade slipped from his grasp, throwing him to the side as it sped up again, and then broke loose, rolling down the slope towards the wall at the edge of the cliff.



“My god,” Race whispered as he ran to Hassan, helping him up as they stood, helpless watching the windmill as it careered down the hill and over the wall.



“We lost them...” Hassan said, his face white as he stared at the empty space. The colour soon returned, however, as the four women rose in the sky, still strapped to the blades as Captain Caveman lowered them to the ground in front of the two men.



“Thanks, Cavey,” Velma said as the straps were pulled off her, and she shakily stood up. Looking at her rescuer, she grabbed and hugged him in her arms, making him go red with embarrassment.



“Leave the little mook be, Miss Dinkley,” Race said as he helped Penny and Daphne to stand. “Next time you come up with a plan, Daphne, try to remember the first rule of these guys.”



“Yeah, I forgot - the bigger the trap, the more likely it is to go wrong,” she said as she rubbed her head. “It is over, though - you got him?”





“We got him,” Hassan said after he had put Princess Nida back down, “He is safely secured in the car he intended to escape in. He will not hurt you or the others again.”



“Good,” Nida said, but not in her soft usual voice. Daphne looked at her, and said “Dee Dee?”



Reaching up, the Eastern girl pulled off her mask to reveal the dark skinned security expert. “Sorry, Penny,” Dee Dee said with a smile, “Nida insisted we swapped places. The girl is a marvel with disguises and prosthetics.”



“But if you’re here,” Penny said, then where is Nida?”



“She took my place - why?” Dee Dee looked at the three men, as Race said “Well, we may have a slight problem then...”



“Say,” Velma said as she sniffed, “Can anyone else smell burning wood?” The others looked round, then walked quickly towards where they could see a column of smoke rising in the air.





“Oh hi guys,” Clyde said as he saw the party coming out of the woods, “We’re having a Weiner roast - and the Weiners are over there.” He pointed to the side of the clearing, where Brenda and Taffy were standing over the two goons, while Nida was wiping the last of the dark makeup from the skin of her face.



“Princess,” Hassan said as he walked over and knelt in front of her, “Forgive me for not protecting you...”



“There is nothing to forgive, old friend,” Nida said as she touched his head. “Come - let us return to the manor - it is time to celebrate and rest.”









“So he had no connection to the Pitstop family at all.”



“None at all,” Daphne said as she rested her head on Fred’s shoulder. “It was pure coincidence that the parcel ended up here.”



“But he was a loony,” Velma said as she watched Shaggy and Scooby clearing their fifth pizza. “He just decided to exact revenge for his predecessor.”



“What about Peter,” Fred said as he looked at the others.



“In prison - he told the whole story eventually. I guess he regrets what he did, but he felt he was always under Penny’s shadow.”



Shaggy watched as Velma stood up and went to the door. “Gng smwhr,” Scooby mumbled through a mouthful of pepperoni pizza.



“To see Penny - she’s asked me to be in her pit crew at Daytona.”



“I need to go too,” Daphne said as she stood up, and picked up her coat, “I’m meeting Nida and Dee Dee at the strip for pizza and girl chat.” The two girls waved as they left the room, leaving the other three staring at the door.



“So,” Shaggy said as he wiped his mouth, “What are we going to do?”



Before Fred could answer, the door opened and a young Indian boy came in.



“Fred,” he said quietly, “I need your help - Jonny has gone missing...”