It is a strange night,  a chill in the air. Janet looks up at the night skies, there is a full moon and she hears the sound of  coyotes with their far away cries from the mountains. 

She walks home along the dark lit path about eight-thirty in the evening after  the science fair at McArthur High. It is the highlight of the year! Janet is 15 years old, but she does like a good science fair! Her entry is video footage of a solar eclipse! She spends months doing research on solar eclipses and  her best effort even rents some expensive photography equipment to make sure the photos are perfection!
A perfectionist even Hercule Poirot would be proud of! That's Janet!

**********

She is very excited because she receives a telegram this week announcing that she is the first prize winner of the essay contest to convince famous Hercule Poirot would  attend her science fair. It was to be over  two thousand words and be very persuasive, enthusiastic and
stand out from the crowd. Well, Janet's entry was outstanding as it
is the top choice from over ten thousand entries and now the famous
Hercule Poirot is attending her Science Fair!  Janet is very excited!!

She doesn't see him yet, but he always knows how to make an entrance. She is sure that there will be a crowd of people when he shows up.

There always is!

  Hercule Poirot has a way of making an entrance quite unlike anyone else...

************

The auditorium at McArthur High is all lit up and the Science Fair exhibits are all on display. The doors open at 6:30 pm and a line all the way out to the parking lot waiting to get inside to see the
science fair exhibits!  Of course, the fact that

Hercule is attending has the whole town curious!

Hercule Poirot is usually early and on time, but this time
he is curiously late...

 Janet is at her science fair station, setting up her solar eclipse exhibit
at this time. She practices her presentation as she has some time
before Hercule Poirot arrives and the judging begins. Then something
terribly happens...

Jimmy, the science teachers son, pushes Janet down to the floor, snatches her video footage and rushes up  to present it himself!

She gets  back on her feet, rushes up to the podium and reclaims her own science project, Janet protests this injustice in a loud
voice!

When suddenly, out of nowhere, a singular voice, stands up 

for Janet!

A familiar voice....

"Give her back that video footage! It's not yours!"

"I am Hercule Poirot!"

 "Janet is the winner of my contest. It would have been an honor

for me to be here ,  I fly all the way from London to attend Janet's 

Science Fair!! I walk in to find such bad sportsmanship from the son of

  the science teacher, no less! For shame, Jimmy! Sorry but this is a 

despicable young man who most likely thought he could skate through

this science fair since his father is the science teacher and one of the

judges!  A young man who knock this young lady down and tried to steal

Janet's solar eclipse exhibit !   This is wrong!  I, Hercule Poirot cannot

understand why this man is so rotten that he would stoop

to such a foul deed!! I came all the way here from London to award

Janet with her outstanding essay!! Her essay is amazing and her

tenacity in the field of science and the solar system is a credit

to your McArthur High School Now if you will all please standup and give

this fine young lady a hand of applause! This project is indeed Janet's

and not Jimmy's! Janet is the rightful designer of this project!!"

The whole auditorium stands up for Janet and applauds her
solar eclipse exhbit and Janet walks over to the microphone to
say a few words...

"We all live in this wonderful world, you and everyone here. It's really

easy to take the sun for granted. The sun is the center of our

existence and that is what fascinates me and all the research

and footage I have discovered about the sun and our solar system. I

feel honored to have the famous Hercule Poirot choose our high

school and attend our science fair!  Thank you Monsieur Poirot!

Monsieur Poirot stands up and takes a bow to the applause of the
audience.
   

Hercule then walks up to the judges and shows the video footage of the solar eclipse. He then asked Janet to come up and he asks her several
pointed questions about her science project.

Janet wins hands down at the science fair also with her solar eclipse
photography with the help of the famous Hercule Poirot!!

*****************

Jimmy exits the auditorium in shame, followed by his father

and shouting is  overheard in the hallway.

********************

"Thank you, Monsieur Poirot! I do not know if I would have won
without your help! You saved the day!!"

Non, non! It  isyou Janet! You deserve the bows! I salute you, Janet!

Go on ahead. I will be okay!", Janet says.

"Are you sure?", Hercule Poirot asks her. My driver would be happy

to take you home Janet!"

"No, go ahead."

*******************

It’s eerily quiet outside. Janet can hear her own heart beating.

She walks cautiously along these familiar streets with only a distant streetlight and the full moon as a guide.  She focuses on just getting home,  when suddenly a  black dog jumps from the bushes a few feet away.

 She screams!

The dog rushes past  and cuts through a few parked cars on the side of the road when she sees a black van with the license plate covered with mud.

Janet turns around slowly. The voice sounds hauntingly familiar. Then a hand reached over and covered her mouth.

 ” Be quiet or I will turn you into the police! You realize there was a robbery at the museum. A priceless jewel stolen. See, Here it is. A ruby from the royal collection of the princess of Madrid!"

"Come with me, or there will be hell to pay, dearie!"

 “Turn me in for what?  Almost winning first prize in the science fair? Are

you related to that creep who stole my idea for my science fair project?

How could he do that to me! I work for months on that solar

eclipse project and video footage! I  get the timing right and

so many details. It is perfection as Hercule Poirot would say!

“Keep quiet and you won’t get hurt. This is a lot more than just a dumb

science fair project!”, the voice says as she feels a hand over her mouth.

She thinks quickly and stomps down hard. A foot! Good. She twists and fights her way out.

Run!!

 Janet scans the street for any signs of life. Nothing.

She is both frightened and angry. She knows if these thugs get her in that black van she is toast. She has to get away any way she can.

The two hooded men try to grab her from behind. She twist, kicks claws and bites them any way she can.  She can see them swear at the pain.

Bitch!

Then she screams like she  never screamed before!!

Janet look around once again for any signs of light even flickering porch lights.

Nothing.

She manages to slip out of their clutches and run like no tomorrow. She slips and falls, but regains her footing. She feels something heavy in her pocket but keeps running until she gets to the hotel where she knows Poirot is staying. The Whitemanor Hotel. It is always the one he chooses. The cleanest of course! And the best room service! But of course...

Hercule Poirot is very famous detective and only the best for him. Even in this little  town. Besides anyone in town finds out Hercule Poirot is staying at the Whitemanor Hotel, they will rush over there to get a glimpse of this famous detective! Or maybe an autograph...

She still  can hear those idiots screaming at her and footsteps running.

You’re going to jail!

She runs as fast as she can to the Whitemanor Hotel. Monsieur Poirot just has to be there by now.

Poirot will know what to do...

To be continued…