Throughout the summer, subscribers to our email list have been receiving a weekly mystery email, revealing clues to unveil the perpetrator who stole a beach ball from Aunt Susan, Grandma Myrtle, and the kids, in ‘The Case of the Missing Beach Ball.’
Today, we’ll be recapping the case for those who may have missed a week or want to get in on the mystery. We will be starting a new mystery series in September 2025 so sign up for our email list now to get ready for the next set of mysteries!
Once you finish reading through the mystery, do you have a guess ‘whodunit’?
We’re offering 15% off dinner theater tickets to the lucky few who can guess the culprit in this mystery correctly! Enter the name of the perpetrator in the promo code box at checkout and, if it’s correct, you’ll receive 15% off your tickets.
Week 1: “Something suspicious just happened at the beach…”
It was supposed to be a perfect beach day. The sun was shining. The seagulls were only mildly aggressive. And Grandma Myrtle brought really good potato salad. But then… it happened.
Right around 2:17 p.m., as Aunt Susan was applying her third layer of sunscreen and the kids were arguing over who got to lay on the Bluey towel, the beach ball — our beloved, slightly deflated, neon-striped friend — vanished.
No one saw who took it. No one heard a pop. But when it came time to pack up the beach toys at 4:53 p.m., it was nowhere to be found. Did someone steal it? Will Aunt Susan and the kids be beach ball-less for the rest of the summer?
Week 2: “Lifeguard Logan *may* have seen something.”
Last week, our beloved, slightly deflated beach ball disappeared from a family beach day sometime between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. No one saw who took it, but when it came time to pack up, it was nowhere to be found. The mystery had officially begun.
This week, we have our first eyewitness: Lifeguard Logan — local sunbather, whistle enthusiast, and part-time lookout.
Logan says he saw a figure darting across the beach around 2:34 p.m., heading toward the snack shack, but he only caught a glimpse. “I was kind of admiring my tan,” he said. “But I remember mismatched flip-flops. One red. One teal. Totally criminal.”
He also added the person was holding something round, “possibly a beach ball, possibly a very shiny cantaloupe.”
Helpful? Maybe.
Suspicious? Extremely.
Week 3: “The trail leads… somewhere sticky.”
Our neon-striped beach ball mysteriously vanished between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m.. Lifeguard Logan reported seeing a figure in mismatched flip-flops heading toward the snack shack at 2:34 p.m., possibly carrying something “round and suspicious.”
Now, a new witness steps forward — from just one towel over.
DeeDee, the beachgoer at the neighboring site, overheard Aunt Susan talking about the missing ball and mentioned something odd she’d seen earlier that day.
At 3:10 p.m., she spotted a single trail of sandy footprints leading away from Aunt Susan’s beach umbrella toward the snack shack. The prints were wide-set, like someone was sprinting… potentially while trying to conceal something large and inflatable.
At the end of the trail, near the snack shack deck, DeeDee found a flattened piece of watermelon bubblegum stuck in the sand. She didn’t think much of it at the time — until she remembered that same flavor is sold exclusively at the beach’s snack shack.
Week 4: “Guilty or just greasy?”
The ball disappeared sometime between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. Lifeguard Logan spotted a suspicious figure in mismatched flip-flops carrying something round. DeeDee, our neighboring beachgoer, later discovered a trail of sandy footprints leading away from the scene of the crime and a piece of watermelon bubblegum stuck in the sand. That gum? Sold exclusively at the snack shack.
This brings us to Snack Shack Steve, the eccentric man who mans the beach’s only convenience store.
Steve, as always, was behind the counter in his ketchup-stained visor, building a triple-decker nacho plate when Aunt Susan approached. When asked about the beach ball, he gave her a look like she’d just accused him of stealing the Declaration of Independence.
“I sell frozen lemonade and mild digestive regret,” he said. “I don’t perpetrate inflatable theft.”
Still, Steve did confirm that someone bought the last pack of watermelon bubblegum right around 3:00 p.m. When asked if he remembered who, he scratched his chin and said, “Could’ve been that tan kid in the chair over there… or the yoga group that came in for veggies straws. I don’t know, man—I’ve been kinda focused on these nachos.”
We can’t rule Steve out yet — especially not with that kind of attitude.
Week 5: “Did Aunt Susan catch the perpetrator?”
The ball vanished sometime between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. Lifeguard Logan saw a figure in mismatched flip-flops carrying something suspicious. DeeDee spotted a sandy trail and a piece of watermelon gum — the same kind sold exclusively at the snack shack. Snack Shack Steve claimed innocence, nacho cheese on his hands.
But now, we have video.
Aunt Susan, unknowingly capturing a moment of mystery while filming the kids stalking seagulls, caught a clip at 2:25 p.m. showing the beach ball… and someone crouching behind a cooler just before it disappeared from frame.
The footage is grainy, the angle is tilted, and someone’s muttering about tanning lotion — but you can just make out a hand grabbing the ball.
The clip ends with the beach ball gone, a crab scuttling by, and a child in the background saying, “Wait, come back, Mr. Seagull!”
The plot thickens.
Week 6: “Grandma Myrtle says she saw everything… but did she?”
The ball vanished sometime between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. Lifeguard Logan saw a figure in mismatched flip-flops carrying something suspicious. DeeDee spotted a sandy trail and a piece of watermelon gum — the same kind sold exclusively at the snack shack. Snack Shack Steve claimed innocence, nacho cheese on his hands. Aunt Susan captured a shaky video at 2:25 p.m. showing a hand grabbing the ball just before it disappeared.
Now, Grandma Myrtle is ready to speak. And boy, does she have theories.
“I saw the whole thing,” she announced from her reclining beach chair, adjusting her oversized sun visor and pulling out a pair of binoculars she claims to always travel with. “It was around 4:00 p.m. A tall man—or maybe a child with excellent posture—snuck by with something under his striped towel.”
She also claimed the culprit was “wearing a suspicious lack of sunscreen” and may have “winked at a pelican.” When pressed for further detail, Myrtle said, “My eyesight is 20/20”… then proceeded to say, “Susan, will you be a dear and bring me my lemonade?” while looking at DeeDee.
Is her vision crystal clear? No.
But could she be onto something? Also, probably no.
But we’re still logging her statement for the file.
Week 7: “Something’s melting away… and it’s not just this mystery.”
The ball vanished sometime between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. Lifeguard Logan saw a figure in mismatched flip-flops carrying something suspicious. DeeDee found sandy footprints and a piece of watermelon gum near the snack shack. Snack Shack Steve denied everything. Aunt Susan’s video showed a hand grabbing the ball at 2:25 p.m., and last week, Grandma Myrtle claimed she saw someone sneaking by with something under a striped towel.
Grandma Myrtle might have been onto something… because that’s exactly what we found this week.
While building a sand fort behind the dunes, the kids discovered a striped towel — matching Myrtle’s description (surprisingly) — carefully laid over a small stash of beach-day oddities.
Hidden underneath the towel:
• An orange creamsicle (still cold)
• A receipt for watermelon bubblegum timestamped 3:02 p.m.
• And a pair of flippers, size XXL
It wasn’t trash. It looked like someone hid it there — and left in a hurry.
Did they panic after taking the beach ball? Did they realize they had been seen and needed to ditch their goods? Either way, they abandoned their snack, their gear… and maybe their alibi.
Week 8: “One last clue before the truth comes out.”
The ball disappeared between 2:17 p.m. and 4:53 p.m. Lifeguard Logan reported seeing a suspicious figure near the snack shack. DeeDee found sandy footprints and a piece of watermelon gum — the same flavor sold exclusively at the snack shack. Steve confirmed someone bought the last pack at 3:02 p.m. Aunt Susan’s video caught a hand grabbing the ball at 2:25 p.m., and Grandma Myrtle saw someone sneaking off with a striped towel. Last week, that very towel was found behind the dunes — covering a creamsicle, a set of flippers, and a snack shack receipt.
We’ve interviewed everyone. We’ve gathered the clues.
And now—we parse together ‘who did it’ (+ a special treat for you at the end of this email!)
The sun was setting. The kids were getting hungry for dinner. It felt like the mystery might stay unsolved forever.
But then, on the slow walk back to the car, Aunt Susan noticed something strange:
A canvas tote bag, leaning against the side of the lifeguard station.
Inside:
• An empty box labeled “Flippers – XXL”
• A self-help book titled “Surfing the Soul: A Mindful Guide to Sand Meditation”
• And a popsicle wrapper… still dripping with orange liquid
Coincidence? Maybe.
Or maybe one last clue left behind by someone who thought they got away with it.
Next week: we reveal the culprit, the motive, and the truth behind The Case of the Missing Beach Ball.
The conclusion of our Summer Mystery Series comes out Tuesday, August 26.
Sign up for our email list to receive the conclusion of this mystery and don’t forget to try your hand at getting 15% off tickets to one of our dinner theater shows by putting the name of the perpetrator in the promo code box. The code expires August 31, 2025 at 11:45 P.M ET.
Good luck, detectives!
