A row of lights along the garden path flickered into life as it grew dark, causing Fiddler to wake. The mouse peered out from the hedge apprehensively, looking for signs of the cat. With his huge radar ears turning this way and that for sounds of danger, he looked over to the other end of the garden where the ceramic planter stood.

“Psst, Delta, wake up!”

The rat murmured something inaudible and turned over in his sleep. Fiddler strove to wake his friend by breaking a twig from the hedge and prodding Delta in the backside with it.

Delta opened one eye and snatched the twig from Fiddler’s paws. “Gerrof!”

“Wake up, lazy bones, do you want to get your camera back or not?”

Delta yawned and rubbed his eyes. “Is the cat around?”

“No sign, let’s get a move on!” Fiddler pulled himself from the hedge and stood sniffing the cool night air. He waited as Delta struggled out of the hedge and joined him. “We’ll make a run for it. Stay out of those lights. Go!”

Together mouse and rat made their way hastily across the garden until they were safely behind the planter once more. Marley and Dogwood had left hours ago and so too had all Delta’s camera equipment.

Delta looked desperately about for his beloved camera. “Why, that thieving . . . He’s stolen it! I can’t believe he’d stoop so low.”

Fiddler clenched his paws angrily. “You better believe it, mate. That camera of yours had all our footage of those human children on it!”

“What’ll we do now?” Delta shook his head in disbelief. “We’re stuck without a camera.”

“Don’t you worry, Delta,” said Fiddler resolutely. “We’ll get the camera back. Come on, let’s go.”

#

Fiddler and Delta slept in their office that night, ready to catch Marley early in the morning. They both had a restless sleep as neither could stop thinking about the stolen camera. And what was worse was the fact that neither had been asleep very long when they were rudely awaken by the sound of the early morning cleaners.

Fiddler glared at a female vole as she busily hovered outside his office. “You awake, mate?” he called to Delta.

“Aye,” said the rat gruffly. “How could anyone sleep through that din?”

The office door swung open and the vole trundled in, hovering round Fiddler’s footpaws and humming tunelessly to herself.

“Madam, I beg you to stop,” said Fiddler, holding the vacuum cleaner.

The vole switched the machine off and looked at the two weary creatures. “Just doing my job. You two look like you’ve had a rough ol’ night.”

Delta lay his head back down on the sofa as he replied, “We have. My camera was stolen.”

The vole shrugged. “That is terrible. Still what can you do?”

Fiddler clenched his paw. “Get it back, that’s what we can do. We know who took it. Marley.”

The vole didn’t seem to believe him. “Marley y’say? But he’s such a nice mouse! Are you sure you didn’t just, uh, misplace it?”

Fiddler was offended and he let the cleaner know it by going to the door and holding it open for her. “Misplace it, madam! Do we look like the sort of creatures who would ‘misplace’ an important thing like a camera? No! So if you’re not going to believe us, kindly return to your own frugal work!” He slammed the door shut behind the vole and glared at her frostily through the window as she continued her work as if nothing had happened.

“You know, maybe Marley didn’t actually steal it. Maybe he just took it back to the station for us,” said Delta as Fiddler returned to his chair. “Marley’s probably not as bad as we both think.”

Fiddler snorted. “Not as bad? Rubbish, I’ll believe it when I see it. Anyway, would you stop goin’ on about him? Marley, Marley, Marley. . . Hey, Delta, look, there he is!”

Fiddler ducked down beneath the window and cautioned the rat to do the same. He peered out and watched as Marley exited the lift and strode into the room. Dogwood followed on behind, carrying Delta’s camera.

“Watch what they do,” whispered Fiddler, creeping closer to the door.

Delta watched, feeling for his poor camera as Dogwood knocked it into things clumsily. The pair stopped in the middle of the room and Marley put the camera down on a table. Then the mouse grinned at Dogwood and started bashing the camera aggressively.

Delta was unable to stop himself and he stood in full view at the window and yelled madly at Marley.

Fiddler groaned as the camera-rat jumped up and down furiously, giving them away. Thinking quick, Fiddler ran out of the room and pointed accusingly at Marley and Dogwood, shouting aloud so all the cleaners stopped what they were doing to look. “Thieves! Camera wreckers! Saboteurs! Jealousy is rife, ladies and gentlemen! See how they destroy what they fear will beat them?”

It worked, the cleaners all turned to look angrily at the two shame-faced reporters caught in the act and took up Fiddler’s cry. “Robbers! Shame on you both! Camera-murderers!”

Fiddler held up a paw for silence and approached Marley. “Sir, our camera back, please.”

Marley sneered at Fiddler. “Your camera? This is an old camera we no longer need.”

Fiddler looked at the crushed wreckage that was Delta’s pride and joy and then back to Marley. “That's ours. Give it back!”

Delta made his way from the office and approached the table. Slowly, the big rat knelt down and took his camera gently, he sobbed and bit his lip emotionally, causing the watching cleaners to go ‘aww’ and turn on Marley and Dogwood once more.

“It is theirs, you bullies!”

“Aye, y’ big nasty camera thieves! Leave them alone!”

Marley glowered at Delta’s performance, then looked at Fiddler. The cocky young mouse stuck his tongue out before turning to the cleaners and bowing to their applause.

Marley and Dogwood quickly retreated to the safety of their own office before things got out of hand leaving a triumphant Fiddler to his own devices.

Back in their office Fiddler grinned at Delta. “What a great act, mate, you really had them cleaners going.”

Delta huddled over his broken camera miserably. “No act. I can’t believe he smashed it.”

“Come of it you, old softie,” said Fiddler, pushing his friend playfully. “We’ll get it fixed up. It’ll be like a brand new camera.”

Delta brightened up slightly. “Really?”

Fiddler nodded.

Delta grinned. “You’re the best, Fiddler!”

“We’ll need it up and running quick though, mate,” said Fiddler. “We start filming again at midday.”