April Fools Gone Wrong

"Mom,can you please come to the house? Janelle's Lexus has been stolen."

I sat straight up from my comfortable slouch on the couch. I was watching, Sunday Morning, and eating a bowl of, Honey Nut Cheerios. Charles Osgood was about to interview, Bob Seger. I had been waiting for this interview.

"What? Stolen?" I clutched my Blackberry to my ear. "How could that be? How did they get it out of the garage?"

"Mom! Could you just come!" My eldest daughter, Vanessa sounded close to tears.

"Sure! I'll be right there." I leaped to my feet and dashed to the bedroom, calling over my shoulder to my husband Will. "Gotta go to Vanessa's. Someone's stolen Janelle's vehicle."

I was sitting on the bed, hurriedly tying my sneakers when Will popped his head around the door.

"Carol. How could that happen? The Lexus is always in the garage. With the door down."

Sneakers tied, I brushed past him, into the living room, looking for my purse. Oh yes. I had hung it on the doorknob to the bedroom when I came home from Wal Mart last night.

I grabbed it and crossed the living room almost trotting.

Will followed me to the door, leaned against the door jam, and watched me cross the concrete driveway. "Besides, what can you do?" He called out.

I gave him a baleful glare. "Go see if I can help. Vanessa sounded terribly upset."

"Have they called the police?"

I crawled into my five year old suburban, gave him the palms to the sky gesture, and reversed out of the driveway.

Vanessa, my granddaughter Janelle, and my son in law, Tom, live just two miles from me, but I didn't waste any time. I put the pedal to the medal.

I raced up River Road toward where it intersects with Golden Road, that my daughter lives on. The convergence of the two roads form the shape of a Y, and in the middle of that Y is an out of business mom and pop country store simply called, The Store In the Y. As I came abreast of the store, I saw a black and white city police car parked toward the back of the shotgun style building.

I figured the pickings were slim on a Sunday morning. I slowed down, because i didn't want him to make me his one and only ticket for the day. I gaily waved as I made the turn across the parking lot of the store, then gasped at what I saw sitting between the building and gas pumps.

Pretty as you please, a beige Lexus SUV. I sat idling and staring at the vehicle. It was Janelle's no doubt about it. I jammed my car into park, jumped out, and jogged to the police car..

"Officer, that vehicle sitting under the awning belongs to my granddaughter, and it was stolen." I pointed in the direction of the store.

He instantly came alive. "Are you sure?"

"Yes! Yes sir." I led him around the building . "See, it's got the personalized tag with her name on it. Janelle."

He began circling the SUV, and talking on his radio. I raced back to my Suburban, and grabbed my cell phone from my purse.

Vanessa answered on the first ring. "Honey, you're not going to believe what I've found." I chortled. "It's Janelle's Lexus! It's sitting under the awning at, The Store In The Y."

"We'll be right there." Vanessa abruptly hung up.

Within minutes more black and whites began pouring in. Policeman surrounded the SUV.

I was so excited I was hopping from one foot to the other. I saw my daughter, granddaughter and son-in-law coming up Golden Road. I raced to meet them as they turned into the parking lot.

They didn't look happy. They didn't look excited or grateful that I had found the stolen vehicle. Vanessa hit the power window button, and stared open mouth at the tableau. Janelle, in the back seat, wore the same look of disbelief . Tom clutched the wheel and looked slightly sick.

"Mom....... where...... did.... you..... get.... those.... cops?" Vanessa asked.

"What? Why, he was sitting at the back of the building. Isn't that the luckiest thing? He couldn't see the Lexus from the angle he was parked at. When I saw It I thought I was dreaming, and there was a policeman already here." I clapped my hands in delight. "This was our lucky day."

"Mom, do you know what day this is?" Vanessa said through tight lips.

I scratched my head. "Sunday. I was watching, Sunday Morning when you called."

A young cop had broken from the group gathered around the Lexus and was making his way toward us.

"No, mother. What day? What day of the month?"

I looked at her blankly and shrugged.

"April Fools, Carol." Tom said. He didn't look at me. His eyes were trained on the policeman that was almost to his window.

"What?" I blinked.

"It was an April Fools joke. Tom and Janelle brought the Lexus up here and left it and we called you. We knew you would see it on your way to the house and call us. The plan was to meet you here and holler, April Fools."

" You might as well tell them the truth." She said to, Tom.

Tom opened his door and stepped out. He shook hands with the cop and together they walked to the Lexus.

I stood quietly, trying to digest what my daughter had just told me. I swept my hand outward. "This. This was an April Fools joke?"

"Yes. Kinda turned on us, didn't it?" Vanessa said. "You think they can charge us with anything?"

It had all soaked in, and I began laughing. "No. I don't think so. This was just a joke. A joke on me, but it back fired." I playfully slapped her on the hand. "The joke's on you, my dear."

Tom, sheepishly told the policeman about the April Fool's joke gone bad, and after a moment they were all laughing.

Janelle took her vehicle home, and I headed home to tell Will what had happened. I left with assurances from my children they wouldn't ever pull another joke on me again.