What happened in Part Five:
Great Grandfather Crow arrives at the Old Golden Glen Cemetery to inspect the home the Crows have chosen for their new home. Digger McDirt, Shag, and all of the critters are curious about this majestic Crow.

After everyone settles for the night, Rachel Raccoon and her two children, Rack and Ruin, arrive back to the cemetery after their vacation. They are returning to their home in the hollow of the tree in which the Crows now live.

They first visit the Caretaker's garbage can and have dinner, then climb the tree to spend the night in their hollow hole. However, Rack and Ruin have grown and gotten too fat to fit into the hole. Rack insists he can get into the hole, where upon, he gets in and becomes tightly stuck. Rachel and Ruin pull on his tail to get him out when, with a loud screeching noise, the complete side of the hollow hole breaks away and Rack comes flying out. Along with Rack, the gold coins, the necklace, and other shiny pieces that the Crows have hidden in the hole, come out, landing on the ground. The noise and commotion awaken the Crows and all the other critters.

The Crows argue with the Raccoons, accusing them of trying to rob them. The Raccoons accuse the Crows of stealing their home in the tree.

PART SIX

Boiling, black storm clouds hung over the horizon as the wind blew them toward the Old Golden Glen Cemetery. The mole colony, led by Detective Digger McDirt, began the difficult task of moving the gold coins and necklace into their underground home. They worked as quickly as they could, all the while keeping their eyes on the approaching storm. The precious, gold coins would be safe inside their tunnel until they could plan to again give them as gifts to the poor, young girl.

The wind whipped leaves and twigs around Digger and Sergeant Shagpoat Shrewman as they watched the storm from above the entrance to their tunnel. Digger peered intently toward the gate that led into the cemetery.

"Shag," he said. "Is that someone coming through the gate into the cemetery? Your eyes are better that mine. What do you see?"

Shag was always happy to be of service to his friend Digger. He stared through the darkening light. "Yes, sir," he replied. "In fact, the person coming down the path looks very scary." As usual, he began to tremble and shake. "I see a big, tall man in a long, black coat with a hood pulled over his head. He is carrying a rather large shovel. He..he..he looks very m. .m. .mysterious," Shag stuttered.

"Very strange," Digger said. "Very strange, indeed. Now why, I ask you, with a storm approaching as bad as this one appears to be, would someone be coming into the cemetery with a shovel?"

"W..w..well, shovels are used in a cemetery," Shag said. "He m..m..must be coming to d..d..dig something up."

"Or, perhaps, to bury something," Digger said.

The man walked swiftly down the path. He stopped in front of the headstone next to the grave the young girl always visited.

L..l..look, he's looking at the 'Marvin Y. Gems' headstone. Now w..w..why would he s..s..stop there?" Shag asked.

A huge blast of wind whipped through the cemetery. Digger and Shag were almost swept away.

"Quickly, Shag," Digger cried. "Into the tunnel, hurry! The storm is upon us!"

Rain sheeted down, stinging Digger and Shag. They rushed into the tunnel. Once inside, Digger stopped to look back at the man with the shovel. The man was already starting to dig in front of the headstone marked 'Marvin Y. Gems'.

An ear-shattering boom of thunder and a sharp crack of lightening sent Digger and Shag deeper into the safety of the tunnel.

As they shook the rain from their fur, Digger said, "We're alright now. The storm can't reach us down here."

Shag, still trembling with fear, said, "What a fool that man is, digging in this rain and lightening."

The earth above their heads sounded like stones were being dropped on the ground. "W..w..what's that sound?" Shag asked.

"I believe we are having a hail storm." Digger replied.

"H..h..hail? What causes hail? That stuff really hurts if it hits you," Shag said. Look! L..l...look. Something is rolling down the tunnel towards us!"

"It's the hail!" Digger cried. The hail is rolling in from the tunnel entrance. Hurry to the meeting room."

Digger and Shag raced down the tunnel, with the hail on their heels. They rushed into the meeting room where all the mole colony had gathered.

"What's going on out there?" Tom Tellitall asked. "It sounds as if the earth is falling apart."

"Not quite, Tom," Digger said. "But we are having a very bad storm. The rain has frozen and turned to hail. This is not a good sign."

"T..t..the hail is as big as golf balls and it's rolling into the tunnel from outside," Shag said.

"Well, it's not that big yet," Digger replied. "However, we must all remain here in the meeting room until this is over."

"T..t..tell them about the man with the shovel," Shag said, excitedly.

"Someone is out there digging in this storm?" Tom asked.

"Yes, some fool is digging in front of the 'Marvin Y. Gems' headstone in all this rain. I'll never know why," Digger said.

Digger, Shag and Tom looked at one another with surprised expressions. Like a bolt from the blue, an idea struck them all at the same time. As one voice, the three of them spoke, "The treasure...the treasure...he's digging for the treasure!"

"I believe we're correct," Digger said, shaking his head. "The gold coins, the jewelry, the precious gems. He's digging for them, I'm sure."

"Tom Tellitall was quick to say, "But, we've sorted the treasure into separate rooms in the tunnel. The box he buried it in is now our speakers platform in the meeting room."

Shag said, "He can dig forever out there and he'll never find his treasure because we have it hidden away. It's ours, now!"

"Not so fast," Digger said. "We still don't know if the treasure is rightfully his, or if it belongs to someone else. This will take some serious thinking."

As the mole colony talked among themselves about who really owned the treasure, there was a boom of thunder that could be heard clear underground. A noise like a train running overhead shook the tunnel. The moles huddled together, afraid their tunnel was about to collapse on top of them. Even Detective Digger McDirt, the bravest of the brave, trembled with fright.

The terrible noise and the shaking of the ground stopped as suddenly as it started. Then, the silence was followed by an earth-shattering crash. Dirt began falling down around the mole colony, and the entrance to the meeting room was blocked by dirt and stones. The moles were trapped.

They clung together, frozen with fright. Never had they experienced anything as terrifying as this strange storm.

Digger McDirt stood up and shook off the dirt and dust. "Attention, please," He said. "Is anyone hurt? If there are any moles with injuries we must care for them first."

The colony began stirring and shaking off the dirt. Shag and Tom went through the crowded meeting room, talking to each mole. Fortunately, no one was hurt. No more noise came from outside and the shaking earth was quiet again.

Digger called for attention. He announced that, thankfully, no one had been injured. Then he said, "It is very important that we get out of the meeting room and find out what has happened outside." Turning to Shag, he said, "This is an emergency and calls for the use of the Rooter Roadster."

"Yes, sir!" Shag said. Running the Rooter Roadster was his favorite sport. "The Roadster is parked in the room beside this meeting room. It will be a problem getting through to it."

Spade McDirt, Digger's cousin, who was in charge of underground tunneling, said, "I remember when made the room for the Roadster. The dirt wall between these two rooms is not that thick. We can tunnel easily into the next room."

"Thank you, Spade," Digger said. "Can you please gather some of the younger colony members and begin digging into the next room? Let's hope the Roadster isn't buried in rocks and dirt."

The younger moles, led by Spade, began digging through the wall of the meeting room. In no time, they broke through and a shout of joy was heard from Tom and Shag. They found the Roadster in perfect condition, just a little dusty.

"Tune up the Roadster, Shag," Digger said. "We'll rotor our way through to the surface and see what damage was done by the storm."

With much skill, Shag had the Roadster up and running. He and Digger jumped in and were soon rooting their way through the collapsed tunnels.

Once outside, they lifted the overhead canopy on the Roadster, got out, and with shock and amazement looked out upon a scene of great destruction.

The old Oak tree, once the home of the Crows and Raccoons, was split in half. The top half of the tree was lying on the ground. Chain saws screeched as limbs were cut off of the downed tree. Red flashing lights and sirens from the arrival of rescue trucks added to the frightening chaos. Digger and Shag ran to a hill above the fallen tree, in order to see what had happened. Staying hidden from view, they saw the man in the black coat with the shovel lying pinned beneath one of the huge limbs of the Oak tree. The men with the chain saws were trying to free him from his trap by cutting away the limbs.

Hopping across the fallen limbs and through the leaves, came Giddy Ghost, their friend, the Squirrel.

"How about this?" he cried. "Did you ever see so much mess? I'm glad I wasn't around when wind came through. Are you and the colony okay?"

Digger described to Giddy the tunnel collapse caused by the ground shaking when the tree came down.

"We all survived and thanks to our trusty Rooter Roadster, we were able to break out," he said. "We saw the man, who is now pinned under the tree, come into the cemetery before the storm. He was carrying a shovel and we think we know what he was going to do."

"I overheard someone say it was a tornado that touched down, for just a moment, here in the cemetery. There is some damage to the caretakers cottage, too," Giddy said.

"L..l..look," Shag said. "They're getting the man out from under the tree."

The man was howling in pain as the men from the rescue squad placed him on the stretcher. One man called to tell a policeman that both of the man's legs were broken and they were taking him to the nearest hospital.

"Did you hear that?" Digger said. "He really is hurt. But, look who's coming down the path. It's the young girl. Why would she be here on such a stormy day?"

"She's going over to talk to the cemetery caretaker," Giddy said. "I'll hop on over there and try to hear what she's saying to him."

Giddy leaped across the ground and hid in the grass near the girl and the caretaker. With ears perked, he listened carefully.

"I had to come," the girl said. "I heard a tornado had touched down in the old cemetery and I was worried about the headstone on my father's grave."

"Don't worry. The tree just missed the headstone," the caretaker said.

"What happened to the man they are taking away in the rescue vehicle?" she asked.

"His legs were both broken when the tree blew down on him," the caretaker said. "But, very strangely, it appears he was digging in the grave next to where your father is buried. Something odd is happening here. Do you know the person Marvin Y. Gems who's headstone is next to your father? The records I have in my files, of people buried in the cemetery, show that your father owns that grave plot. He bought two cemetery lots, side by side, for your mother and himself. I wonder why Marvin Gem's name is on that headstone?"

"This is all new to me," the girl said. "I didn't know my father owned two cemetery lots. I don't know anyone by the name of Marvin Y. Gems. Who was the man digging there? He must know Marvin Gems. He was digging in his grave. We could ask the police or the hospital where they are taking him. They would know his name."

The caretaker thought for a second then said, "I'm going to make a phone call. I'll be right back."

"I'll wait for you here," the girl said. "I want to look into the hole he was digging."

Giddy hopped back to where Digger and the moles were waiting. He told them all he had overheard about the graves belonging to the young girl's father and the mystery of the unknown injured man.

Digger, Shag and the moles listened to Giddy's news. Digger asked Giddy to return, and stay near the girl. He told him to listen to everything the caretaker said to her in hopes of finding a clue as to who really owns the treasure.

Giddy, again, hid behind a headstone and waited, with the young girl, for the return of the caretaker. Before long, he came trotting across the cemetery.

"I've had some good luck," he said to the girl. "The police told me the injured man's name is Wayne Gibbs. Do you know anyone by that name?"

"Yes...yes!" the young girl cried. "Wayne Gibbs worked for my father, who owned a jewelry store. One night the store was robbed and Wayne Gibbs disappeared. The police were sure he was the thief. They never found him. Not long after the robbery, my father suffered a heart attack and died. The jewelry store went out of business, and there was very little left for my mother and me to live on. Do you think Wayne Gibbs buried what he stole from the store in this grave?"

The caretaker thought for a moment and said, "Look at the name of the person on the headstone, 'M.Y. Gems'. Doesn't that tell us something? The police said they have been looking for Mr. Gibbs for a long time. He must have come back for the things he buried here."

"I looked into the hole he dug and it's not very deep. It's also empty. I believe the tree fell on him before he could finish digging." the girl said, pointing into the hole.

Suddenly, raindrops began falling. The caretaker and the girl agreed to meet the next day. He said he would bring his shovel and begin digging in the hole started by Wayne Gibbs.

Giddy rushed through the rain, back to Digger and Shag. He passed along the latest word about Wayne Gibbs and the robbery.

Digger said, "I'm not surprised by your story, Giddy. The treasure was once buried there, but no longer. We have it buried in our tunnels."

"Then it really belongs to the girl," Shag said.

"And, we must somehow get it back to her by tomorrow," Tomtelit all said.

"This calls for a meeting of the colony," Digger said. "We must think of a way to deliver the treasure to her. It may be very difficult. Shag, alert the colony. We're having a meeting."

Digger turned to Giddy Squirrel. "Thank you, Giddy, for all your assistance. We will need you to help us find a way to move the treasure. If you see the Crows and Raccoons, you might ask them if they have any ideas."

"I'll do the best I can for you. Good luck, Digger," Giddy replied.

The moles gathered for their meeting, and discussed many ways to move the treasure from their tunnels to a place where the girl would be sure to find it.

Shag had the best idea. They could gather the biggest Oak leaves from the fallen tree, load the gems, coins and jewelry on the leaves, and then drag the leaves out of the tunnel. However, that is where the action stopped. Where would they go from there?

Digger said, after much thought, "We need some object to move the treasure to from the Oak leaves. Something we can use to haul all of it to the headstone of 'M.Y. Gems'.

Digger and Shag decided to go out and find something to use for transporting the treasure. Digger said to the colony, "You may all go out and gather the largest leaves you can find and bring them back into the tunnel for loading. I believe we have a good plan."

Giddy Ghost met Digger and Shag as they came out of the tunnel. He was very excited. "The Raccoons are on their way over here. I told them you wanted to move the treasure, and they have something they think you can use."

From across the cemetery Rachel, Rack and Ruin came dragging something behind them. Digger and Shag were very surprised to see it was a garbage can lid.

"Wherever did you find that lid?" Digger asked Rachel.

"It happen to blow off the caretaker's garbage can during the storm. Since the can was blown over, we decided to check it out for garbage. Giddy came by and told us you might be able to use the lid."

A swishing of wings followed by a loud 'Caws', announced the arrival of the Crows, Joe, Moe, and Chloe. They landed and hopped over to the garbage can lid.

"This is a nice, shiny lid," Joe said.

"What are you going to do with it?" Moe asked.

"It's rather dirty inside," Chloe remarked.

Digger explained they were using it to transport the treasure to a place where the young girl would find it tomorrow.

"Well, put some pretty leaves in it to cover up all that grubby dirt. That's no way to give a gift to someone," Chloe said.

"Can we help you load up the lid," Joe asked.

"We like working with shiny stuff," Moe said.

"Good, you can help load the coins and jewelry from the leaves into the lid," Shag said.

"We'll gather some leaves to put in the lid," Rachel said.

"I'll keep an eye on everything. We wouldn't want anything to get lost," Giddy said.

Hoppin Robin joined the group and also began gathering leaves.

The moles were already pulling leaves, loaded with the treasure from the tunnel. The Crows carefully placed the precious items on the nicely lined garbage can lid. Everyone worked, without stopping until all of the treasure was loaded. The sun went down, and darkness settled over the Old Golden Glen Cemetery as the last piece was added.

Owl, who had been sitting on his high perch in a tree, offered to watch over the treasure during the night. He was always awake during those hours and wanted to help out like all the rest.

Next morning, the sun rose to a clear, blue sky. This was a big day for all the critters. They were finally going to see the treasure returned to its rightful owner.

Rachel Raccoon told Digger she would be responsible for dragging the lid, very carefully, to the headstone of 'M.Y.Gems'.

Hoppin Robin offered to watch for the young girl to arrive at the cemetery gate.

Everyone waited.

"This waiting is terrible," said the always impatient Shag.

"My friend," said Digger. "All things come to those who wait."

Hoppin Robin came flying over, chirping loudly, "She's on her way. She's almost to the gate of the cemetery."

"Let's go team!" Digger shouted.

Rachel finished dragging the garbage can lid to the headstone of 'M.Y.Gems'.

The moles, the Crows, the Raccoons, Giddy Ghost and even the Owl, were hidden out of sight. They waited for the girl and the caretaker to arrive.

The caretaker carried his shovel, as he had promised. The young girl, you could tell, was very nervous. After all, what would they find in the hole that was dug by a thief in a cemetery?

They arrived at the grave and stopped in astonishment when they gazed upon the gleaming treasure in the garbage can lid. The girl knelt beside the lid and picked through the coins and jewelry.

"These gold coins are from my father's collection that was stolen, " she said. "All of these jewelry pieces and the gem stones, too, were stolen. How did they get here? They weren't here yesterday." Tears began streaming down her cheeks. She looked up at the caretaker.

A big smile spread across his face. "That's my missing garbage can lid. I wondered what happened to it."

"This is a miracle, a true miracle," the girl said. "Wayne Gibbs was after the items he stole from my father's jewelry store. He buried them here in the cemetery."

"My garbage can lid is holding a small fortune," the caretaker said. "It is a miracle."

From their hiding place, Digger and everyone watched.

Digger said, "We have surely done a good deed this day."

Shag said, "It's better than living on the golf course."

Tom Tell-it-all said, "We have a very good home here."

To which Digger added, "And, we are blessed with good friends."

THE END

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