Easy English Mysteries: The Wrong Key and Other Short Stories (A1–A2)

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Easy English Mysteries: The Wrong Key and Other Short Stories (A1–A2)

Story 1: The Wrong Key

It is Friday evening. It is cold and rainy. Mr Thomas is tired after a long week at work. He usually comes home at 8:00 PM, but today he finishes early. It is only 7:30 PM when he arrives at his house.

He walks to the front door and takes a long silver key from his coat pocket. He puts it into the lock and tries to turn it. Nothing happens. He tries again, but the key does not turn.

"How strange!" he thinks. "This is my key. I use it every day!"

Then he hears a noise inside the house. It sounds like someone is walking upstairs. Mr Thomas freezes and listens. Someone is inside! He takes out his mobile phone and calls the police.

"Please come quickly," he whispers. "Someone is inside my house, and my front door is jammed!"

Ten minutes later, a police car arrives. Two police officers, Brown and Green, get out.

"Are you all right, Mr Thomas?" Officer Brown asks.

"Yes, but someone is inside my house. I heard a noise, and my key doesn't work!"

Officer Green tries the front door, but it does not open. He looks into the keyhole. "Someone has left a key in the lock on the other side," he says. "With this type of lock, we cannot open the door from the outside while another key is inside."

"Is there another door?" Officer Brown asks.

"Yes," Mr Thomas says. "There is a back door near the kitchen. It has a code lock."

They walk around the house. To their surprise, the back door is wide open.

"That's strange," Mr Thomas says. "It should be locked."

The officers take out their torches and enter the house. Mr Thomas follows them. They walk through the dark kitchen and into the living room. They turn on the lights.

A young man is standing near the table. He has a big black bag in his hands. Inside the bag are Mr Thomas's valuable diamonds.

"Put the bag down!" Officer Brown shouts.

The young man drops the bag. He looks terrified.

Suddenly, Martha, Mr Thomas's helper, runs into the room from the kitchen.

"Leo!" she cries, hugging the young man. "Stop! Please!"

"Martha?" Mr Thomas is shocked. "What are you doing here? Who is this?"

Martha looks at Mr Thomas, her eyes full of tears. "This is my son, Leo. I came back to the house because I forgot my handbag. But when I entered through the back door, I saw Leo stealing your diamonds! I was so shocked that I forgot to close the back door. I tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen to me. Then I heard you and the police."

"Why did you do this, Leo?" Mr Thomas asks angrily.

Leo looks at the floor. "I am sorry. I did not want to hurt anyone. But my mother is very ill. She needs an expensive operation, or she will die. We have no money."

Martha covers her face with her hands. "Leo, no! You cannot steal!"

"I know," Leo says, crying. "But I was afraid of losing you, Mum. I didn't know what else to do. I took your key to Mr Thomas's house this afternoon to get inside."

Mr Thomas turns to Martha. "Why didn't you tell me you were ill?"

"I was ashamed," Martha whispers. "You are very kind, but I wanted to solve my problems myself."

Officer Green looks at the front door, putting the pieces together. "Now I understand. Leo entered through the front door and left Martha's key to Mr Thomas's house in the lock so nobody could surprise him. But he didn't know about the back door's code lock. That is how Martha got in."

Mr Thomas looks at the bag of diamonds on the floor. Then he looks at Martha, who has worked for him loyally for many years, and her desperate son.

"You did a terrible thing, Leo," Mr Thomas says quietly. "But I understand your fear."

He takes a deep breath. "Officers, please wait outside for a moment. I need some time to think."

Nobody knows what he will decide.

The Mystery and the Dilemma

The Mystery: Why could Mr Thomas not open his front door? Because Leo left the key inside the lock. This blocked Mr Thomas's key from the outside. Martha could enter only because she knew the secret code for the back door.

The Dilemma: Leo wanted to save his mother's life, but he became a thief. Should Mr Thomas forgive him and help Martha, or should Leo go to prison?

Vocabulary

● keyhole — замочная скважина

● noise — шум, звук

● torch — фонарик

● helper — помощник / помощница по дому

● handbag — дамская сумка

● operation — операция (медицинская)

● fear — страх

● freeze — замереть, застыть

● whisper — шептать

● jam — заклинить (о замке, двери)

● shout — кричать

● hug — обнимать

● steal — воровать, красть

● to be ashamed — стыдиться, стесняться

● strange — странный

● terrified — очень сильно испуганный

● ill/sick — больной

● valuable — ценный, дорогой

Comprehension Questions

● Where and when does the story take place?

● Why can't Mr Thomas open his front door when he arrives home early?

● What does Officer Green discover when he looks into the keyhole?

● How did Martha get into the house, and why did she leave the door wide open?

● What does Leo have inside his big black bag when the police catch him?

● Who is Leo, and what is his relationship to Martha?

● Why did Leo decide to steal Mr Thomas's valuable diamonds?

● Why didn't Martha ask Mr Thomas for financial help before this happened?

Discussion Questions

● What do you think Mr Thomas will do? Will he tell the police that Leo stole from him, or will he forgive Leo and help Martha?

● Do you think Leo did the right thing? Is it ever okay to steal to save someone you love?

● What kind of person is Martha? How do you think she felt when she saw her son stealing?

● Why was Martha ashamed to ask Mr Thomas for help, even though she had worked for him for many years?

● If you were Mr Thomas, what would you do? What would be fair for everyone?

Story 2: A Table for Two

Tony manages a small Italian restaurant in London called Bella Vista. He loves his job because he enjoys good food and meeting new people.

For the past three Fridays, an older man named Mr Harris has come to the restaurant at exactly seven o' clock. Every time, he asks for a table for two by the window. Every time, he orders two plates of pasta, two glasses of red wine, and two pieces of chocolate cake.

But every time, he sits alone. He puts one plate of pasta in front of himself and the other plate across the table. He puts a glass of wine beside each plate, but he never touches the second glass.

On the first Friday, Tony thinks the man is waiting for a guest who is late. The second Friday, Tony thinks the same thing. But on the third Friday, Tony begins to wonder.

“Who is he waiting for?” he asks Maria, the waitress.

“I don't know,” Maria says. “Maybe someone who never comes.”

That evening, Mr Harris does something else that catches Tony's attention. He takes a small piece of tomato from his plate and carefully puts it on the other, empty plate.