As December approached, it was time for the annual toy drive at the community center. People generously donated their old toys to families in need, and the twins were busy rummaging through their rooms in search of items to contribute. Mason soon finished his selection and loaded his box into the car, ready to take it to the community center. Meanwhile, Mackenzie was struggling to decide which toys she wanted to part with. 

Just then, the phone rang, prompting Mackenzie to rush downstairs to answer it.

“Mystery Twins Detective Agency, this is Mackenzie speaking,” she said. 

“Uh huh, I see. Well, who is it?” Mason inquired.

“It’s the hospital; they need our help immediately,” Mackenzie replied.

Before they could leave, their mother called out to them. “Where do you think you’re going?” she asked. 

“We’re needed at the hospital,” Mackenzie explained. 

“If it’s a mystery, let your brother take the lead this time. You need to stay here and finish packing up your old toys,” their mother instructed.

“Mackenzie, it’s fine. I can handle it on my own. You stay here and finish packing. If I need help, I can text you or call Olivia. I’ll be okay,” Mason reassured her. 

“Just remember to keep me in the loop, okay?” Mackenzie replied.

“Sure thing,” Mason said, making his way to the hospital.

Upon arriving, he approached the front desk and introduced himself to the receptionist. “Hello, my name is Mason from the Mystery Twins. I received a call that you needed help,” he stated.

“Ah, yes, of course. Right this way, please. I believe our manager made the call. Please hold on a moment while I page him,” the receptionist said.

A brief moment later, the hospital manager, a clean-shaven man in a suit, arrived. “I called you here because we have a situation. I thought there were supposed to be two of you?” he asked.

“Unfortunately, my sister couldn’t be here today,” Mason replied.

"It's just me today," Mason said. "What seems to be the problem?"

"The annual toy drive," the manager replied. "You're aware of it, right?"

"Yes, that's the one where people donate their old toys to kids in need," Mason responded.

"Well, we had a truckload of toys delivered last night, but some of the kids woke up to find their presents already opened," the manager explained.

"It’s possible they might have been searching for something," Mason suggested. "I need to update my sister on this situation, and then I’ll get back to you."

Mason then called Mackenzie to inform her about the issue at the hospital. "Apparently, we received a shipment of toys last night, but when some of the kids woke up, their presents had already been unwrapped. I have a feeling that whoever did this might have been looking for something specific," he explained.

"I think you might be onto something. Get a list of the toys that were delivered. If you can identify a pattern, you might be able to determine who is responsible for this," Mackenzie advised.

"That’s good to know. I’ll talk to you soon," Mason replied before heading to find the manager.

"Excuse me, do you have a list of all the toys that were delivered?" Mason inquired.

"Of course! By the way, my name is Mitch," the manager said as he handed Mason the list of toys.

"Do you know which rooms were affected last night?" Mason continued.

"As far as I know, every room that had a delivery was impacted," Mitch replied.

"I'm going to need the names of all the kids who received toys," Mason requested.

"Sure thing, I have that information right here," Mitch said.

"Great," Mason said, taking a picture of the list to send to Mackenzie. "Hey sis, I’m sending you a list of the names of all the kids who had toys delivered to them," Mason said.

Thank you, Mason. I'll review it shortly and let you know if I come across anything, replied Mackenzie. By the way, before you start questioning the children who received toy deliveries, please ensure you have a complete list of all the toys that were meant to be delivered. That's a great idea; thanks, sis, Mason responded. 

Hey Mitch, could I borrow the list of toys that were supposed to be delivered last night? Absolutely, here you go, Mitch said. Alright, it’s time to start interviewing the patients, beginning with Room 1, Mason indicated, where a boy named Alex was located. 

"Hi Alex, my name is Mason. Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?" Mason inquired. 

"Sure," replied Alex. 

"I understand that you were supposed to receive a toy delivery last night. Is that correct?" Mason continued. 

"Yeah, but when I woke up, the presents were already opened," Alex said. 

"It appears that each child is expected to receive five presents," Mason noted. "Alex, did you notice anything missing when you woke up?" 

"No, I still had all my presents when I woke up," Alex stated. 

"That aligns with the list," Mason commented. "Was there anything you wanted but didn't receive?" 

"No, I got everything I wanted," Alex replied. 

"Okay, thank you, Alex. Moving on to the next room," Mason said, heading to Room 2 where a girl named Samantha was resting. 

"Hi Samantha, my name is Mason. Would you mind if I asked you a few questions?" Mason asked. 

"I understand you were supposed to receive a toy delivery last night, is that correct? And when you awoke, were they already opened?" 

"Yeah, how did you know that?" Samantha asked. 

"I'm a detective; it's part of my job to know these things," Mason answered. 

"Were all five presents still there when you awoke, or did you notice anything missing?" he continued. 

"All five presents were still there when I woke up," Samantha responded. "Do you understand what's happening yet?" 

"I suspect that whoever is behind this may have been searching for something, but I'm not quite sure what it is yet," Mason replied. 

"Just one more question: was there anything you wished for but didn't receive?" 

"I'm pretty sure I got everything I wanted," Samantha said.

"Everything seems to check out on the list," Mason remarked as he sent a photo of the evidence to Mackenzie, along with the toy inventory provided by Mitch. "This would be so much simpler if I knew exactly what I was searching for," he continued, "but so far, everything looks the same. Everyone woke up to find their presents unwrapped, yet nothing appears to be missing."

"Perhaps checking the security cameras will help you pinpoint when this all occurred and identify who you're looking for," suggested Mackenzie.

"Got it," Mason replied. "Hey Mitch, is there any chance I could access the security room to review the cameras?" 

"Of course," Mitch answered, leading Mason to the security room.

As they entered, Mason observed, "It looks like everything happened between midnight and 1:00 AM. Unfortunately, it's too dark to see who's in the room. I suppose they didn't want to risk waking the kids by turning on the lights, but you would think the sound of their presents being opened would be enough to stir them awake. Something feels off here," Mason said, growing frustrated with the lack of progress in the case. 

He decided to review the list once more and noticed something peculiar that he had overlooked during his initial examination. Each child was supposed to receive five presents; however, several children had ended up with six or more. "But why go into each room and unwrap the presents instead of simply collecting the extras? That part doesn't make sense," Mason pondered aloud.

"Maybe I should go back and interview the kids again; someone must have woken up to the noise of their presents being opened. I should also talk to the staff; they might have observed something," he concluded. With renewed determination, Mason made the decision to return and see if anyone had witnessed anything unusual on the night the presents were mysteriously unwrapped.

Before Mason could leave, he heard the door shut and lock behind him. Desperately, he searched for another way out, but there were no windows and the vents were too small for him to squeeze through. He realized he was trapped and needed to call for help. 

“Mackenzie, I’m stuck in the security room with no way out. How quickly can you get here?” Mason asked, panic rising in his voice.

“What?! How did that happen?” Mackenzie responded, startled.

“I have no idea. I think someone closed the door on me,” Mason replied urgently. “Can you get me out or not?”

“Hold on, I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Mackenzie quickly decided to sneak out of her bedroom window and rush over to the hospital. 

Not long after, Mackenzie’s mother, Melissa, came in to check on her and noticed she was missing. 

“Hi honey, just checking in to see how you’re doing and if you need any help, Mackenzie?” Melissa called out. She then spotted a note on the bed. 

“Mom, please don’t be mad at me for sneaking out, but Mason needs my help. I’ll be back as soon as I can to finish my homework. Love, Mackenzie.”

Concerned, Melissa headed downstairs to inform David. 

“How are things going up there?” he asked. “Is she almost done?”

“No, she snuck out to help Mason,” Melissa replied, worry etched on her face. “I don’t know what to do. She’s never done this before. We can’t punish her for technically doing the right thing, can we?”

“Remember what we taught them," David replied firmly. "Doing the right thing doesn’t excuse breaking the rules. Remember when Mason snuck out to help Mackenzie? We didn’t hesitate to enforce his punishment then, and we’re not going to start making exceptions now. Once she gets home, she’s grounded—no excuses, no exceptions.”

“You’re right,” Melissa conceded, her disappointment evident. “Regardless of her intentions, there’s no justification for sneaking out. Do you think she might have done it because she was afraid we’d say no to her helping her brother?”

“It’s possible,” David said thoughtfully. “But that still doesn’t excuse her actions.”

Mackenzie hurried to the hospital to rescue Mason from the security room. Upon her arrival, her first attempt was to open the door from the outside, but when it wouldn’t budge, she had no choice but to approach the front desk. 

"Excuse me, could I borrow the key to the security room? I need to get in," Mackenzie requested.

"May I ask why?" the receptionist inquired.

"My brother is trapped in there. He was working on a case when someone closed and locked the door," Mackenzie explained. 

"Who has access to that room?" she asked.

"Generally, only the manager, the janitor, and the security guards have access," the receptionist replied.

"I need someone to let my brother out," Mackenzie insisted.

"Follow me, and I’ll show you where the keys are," the receptionist said. After a brief search, she frowned. "Hmm, it looks like someone must have borrowed them. Let me call the manager down for you." She paged Mitch to come to the front desk. 

"Mitch, do you know what happened to the keys to the security room? Apparently, her brother got himself locked inside," the receptionist informed him.

"Wow, that’s unfortunate," Mitch remarked. 

"You seem unusually calm about the situation," Mackenzie said suspiciously. "How can I be sure you weren’t the one who locked him in?"

"Unfortunately, I don’t have the key. You’ll need to speak with one of the security guards," Mitch replied.

"Hold on a moment," Mackenzie said, then turned toward the security room. “Mason, I’m here! I’m going to try to get you out. Can you tell me who let you into the security room in the first place?”

"It was Mitch. I think he might be the one who locked me in here," Mason responded.

"I think you’re right," Mackenzie said determinedly. "I’ll be right back."

"My brother mentioned that you were the one who initially let him into the security room. How convenient is it that he ended up getting trapped in there, while you just so happen not to have the keys to let him out?" Mackenzie said, her tone questioning.

"I understand how this looks, but I assure you I'm telling the truth. I didn’t lock your brother in; I only allowed him to enter," Mitch replied defensively.

"Then what happened to the keys to the security room?" Mackenzie pressed.

"I lent them to someone who needed to borrow them," Mitch explained.

"Who did you give them to?" Mackenzie inquired further.

"I believe it was one of the security guards," Mitch said, uncertainty creeping into his voice.

"Do you remember which guard it was?" Mackenzie asked, her frustration mounting.

"Unfortunately, no," Mitch admitted. 

“While you’re asking around, I’m going to try to pick the lock,” Mackenzie declared, pulling out a bobby pin. “There, it should open now.”

“Why didn’t you just do that in the first place?” Mitch questioned.

“I needed to explore all the options," Mackenzie replied, slightly exasperated.

“About time you arrived. What took you so long?” Mason chimed in as he joined them.

“You could at least say thank you," Mackenzie shot back. "I didn't have to come all the way out here, especially since I snuck out and now I risk getting grounded because of you.”

“Wait, YOU snuck out?!” Mason exclaimed, his eyes wide.

“Yes, so maybe you should be a little more appreciative,” Mackenzie said pointedly.

“Appreciative for your sneaking out or for the fact that you could be grounded soon?” Mason retorted.

“Either way, it doesn’t matter. Let’s just solve this mystery so we can head home, and I can deal with our parents,” Mackenzie said, determined to move forward.

“How far did you get before I arrived?” asked Mackenzie. 

“Just before I got trapped, I was planning to question a few of the patients again. I noticed on the delivery list that some kids received six or more gifts instead of the usual five,” Mason explained. 

“Then we should speak to those kids who received extra gifts and also find out who locked you in the security room. I have a feeling it’s the same person who has been opening all these presents,” Mackenzie suggested. 

“Let me take a look at that list,” she continued. “It appears that five kids received additional gifts. Let’s talk to them individually; it'll be quicker that way.” 

The twins then split up to interview the children who received more than five presents, starting with a boy named Cooper. 

“Hi, Cooper. My name is Mackenzie. May I ask you a few questions?” 

“Sure,” Cooper replied. 

“You were supposed to receive five gifts last night, correct?” Mackenzie asked. 

“Yeah, but I ended up with seven instead. The strange thing is that they were already opened when I woke up this morning,” Cooper responded. 

“Did you notice if any were missing?” Mackenzie inquired. 

“Yes, I noticed that three of them were missing,” Cooper said. 

“Did you see who was opening your presents?” Mackenzie pressed. 

“I woke up briefly, but it was difficult to tell who was in my room. It seemed like it might have been someone in their thirties or forties with a bit of facial hair, but I couldn't be certain,” Cooper answered. 

“Do you think it could have been this man?” Mackenzie asked, showing him a photo of one of the doctors. 

“I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that’s him. I can’t say for certain though,” Cooper admitted. 

“Thank you for your time, Cooper.” 

As soon as Mackenzie stepped out of the room, she spotted a man matching Malcolm’s description exiting another room, holding a toy. 

“Hey, you! Stop right there!” Mackenzie shouted, and the man began to run. 

“Mason, I think I found our culprit! Quick, let’s catch him before he gets away!” 

Mason emerged from the room he was in and tackled the man to the ground. “I bet he’s the one who locked you in the security room,” he said as they subdued the suspect. 

Mackenzie remarked, "Not only that, but he's the one who has been sneaking around opening all the presents." 

Mason replied, "What I can't understand is why he would do that." 

"I'll tell you why," the man said. "I went to the toy drive hoping to find a gift for my son because all the toy stores were out of stock. They informed me that those toys were meant for donation, and that I couldn't take any. Then I saw one being wrapped up to be donated to the hospital, so I decided to follow it. Once I arrived, I disguised myself as a doctor and snuck into every room to open the presents that had been given, hoping to find the one I was looking for. To be fair, I also made sure that some rooms received extra gifts, just in case I couldn't determine which one contained the toy for my son."

"But why did you lock me in the security room?" Mason asked. 

"I needed to ensure you stayed out of my way," the man replied. 

"That's a flawed plan, but I suppose it makes some sense," Mackenzie said.

"Security, take this man away," Mason ordered. 

"What about the kids? We can't just leave them without presents," Mason continued. 

"Don't worry; we already have replacements on the way, and they should arrive shortly," Mitch reassured them.

"I can't thank you kids enough for what you've done today. We have some extra presents, so please take whatever you’d like," Mitch added.

Mason decided to choose one of the toys to give to a security guard escorting the man away. "Here, make sure his son receives this," Mason said. 

"Don’t worry, we will," the guard replied.

"Thank you. I know you didn’t have to do this for me," the man expressed gratefully. 

"Of course I did. It's Christmas," Mason said with a smile. 

"Well, I know my son will be very happy," the man replied.

"Now, are you ready to go home and explain to Mom and Dad about sneaking out?" Mason asked his sister. 

"Come on, let’s get this over with," Mackenzie said as the twins headed home to face their parents.

As soon as they arrived home, their parents stood by the door, arms crossed. 

“Mom, Dad, I know you're upset, but please let me explain,” Mackenzie pleaded.

“Save it, young lady. Go upstairs and finish packing your toys for donation. After that, you’re grounded for a week, understood?” Melissa replied firmly.

“What? That’s not fair! Mason needed my help; he was trapped in the hospital security room,” Mackenzie retorted, frustration seeping into her voice.

“Mason, is that true?” Melissa asked, her brows furrowing.

“Yes, it is. I would probably still be stuck there if it weren't for Mackenzie,” Mason admitted. “So please don’t be angry with her.”

“Honey, we’re not angry with her,” David interjected.

“Oh really? You could have fooled me,” Mackenzie snapped back.

“What did you just say? You need to watch that attitude, young lady,” David warned. “You’re on the verge of being grounded for two weeks.” Mackenzie stormed upstairs to her room.

“Let me talk to her,” Mason suggested.

“I don’t think she’s in the mood to listen to either of us,” Melissa replied. Nonetheless, Mason went upstairs to confront his sister.

“What are you so angry about?” he asked. “It’s not like I asked you to sneak out to rescue me. You could have finished your chores first and then come to the hospital. It’s your own fault you got grounded. Did you really think Mom and Dad wouldn’t find out that you sneaked out?” he continued. “You even admitted that you knew you’d get grounded, so where is all this anger coming from?”

“Remember when you snuck out to the movie theater while you were grounded to help me?” Mackenzie countered. “Even though your punishment was extended, Mom and Dad still said they were proud of you for coming to my aid. Why can’t they feel the same way about me for helping you? It’s unfair that you get praised for doing the right thing, while I get yelled at for it.”

“Oh, I see,” Mason replied thoughtfully. “Hold on a minute.” He headed downstairs to speak with their parents.

“I think I understand what the issue is,” Mason said. “Mackenzie feels like you aren’t proud of her for doing the right thing by coming to help me when I needed it. When you told me you were proud of me for helping her at the movie theater, she felt she should receive the same recognition. Honestly, I can understand where she’s coming from.”

"I believe it would be best to give her some time before approaching her," Mason suggested. "She just needs a moment to cool off." With that, he decided to head to bed, feeling the weight of a long day behind him. "Good night," he called out. 

"Good night, Mason," his parents replied as he ascended the stairs, hoping that tomorrow would bring better circumstances.