THE VOCABULARY DETECTIVE

CASE 01 · PAGE 6

The missing medal

Two teenage detectives examining clues with a magnifying glass and notebook.

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The story from your book · 51 seconds

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reluctant

scattered

intact

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At 3:20 p.m., debate coach Ms. Chen noticed that the debate team's gold medal was missing from the library display. A photograph from that morning showed it beside a blue ribbon. The ribbon was still there. The medal was not.

Three students helped her look. Nia was reluctant to open the storage cabinet. She hesitated, explaining that she did not want to disturb anything inside. Owen searched the reading tables, where index cards were scattered in no clear order. Priya inspected the display lock. It was intact, with no cracks, scratches, or broken pieces.

The display camera might show what had happened. Before trusting its timestamps, Ms. Chen decided to verify its time by comparing the reading with the library clock.