“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact”, read Sarah from a popular detective novel. 

Sarah’s mom Mary works part-time at the local supermarket. Sarah heads there after school and waits till she is done with work and then they drive back home. 

Most kids of Sara’s age might find it boring to hang out at a supermarket, but not Sarah. She enjoys watching people and giving them little backstories. She followed the man with the big mustache to see if he was a gangster in disguise. She followed little children to catch them red-handed if they stole candies. This sneakiness was the reason she figured out how a lady stole from the store! 

Earlier in the day, Mary had to step away from the register for a few minutes to deal with a milk spill by one of the customers. That’s when Sarah saw a lady grab $100 from the register. It all happened so quickly that it seemed like a dream! Sarah was always accused of having an overactive imagination in the past. So, she decided to adorn the ‘Sherlock Holmes’ hat and stealthily followed the lady.

The lady went shopping as if nothing happened and filled her buggy. Then, she headed straight to the cashier, where Mary was helping another customer out. The lady then placed everything from her cart and waited for the bill. The bill came to $96, and she handed over the very same $100 she had stolen from the register! 

Sarah watched as her mom was about to give back the change. She couldn’t help herself, jumped in, pulled her mom aside, and told her. Sarah’s mom checked the cash in hand and informed the store supervisor. When he started checking the CCTV, the lady broke down in shame, confessed to the crime, and was handed over to the authorities.

Can you figure out how much the store would have lost if not for Sarah?