Candy Kingdom Chaos Read online

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE: SWEET SUCCESS

  CHAPTER TWO: SNIDE RIDE

  CHAPTER THREE: CANDY-STRIPE SWIPE

  CHAPTER FOUR: BRACELET CHASE-LET

  CHAPTER FIVE: GUEST PEST

  CHAPTER SIX: FERRIS SQUEAL

  CHAPTER SEVEN: TOWER OF SOUR

  CHAPTER EIGHT: ROBO-RIOT

  CHAPTER NINE: THE BIG PICTURE

  Clue Crew—and YOU!

  CHAPTER TEN: WRIST TWIST

  Nancy Drew Clue Book #8: ’World Record Mystery’ Excerpt

  ABOUT CAROLYN KEENE AND PETER FRANCIS

  SWEET SUCCESS

  “Spring break—here we come!” eight-year-old Nancy Drew cheered to her two best friends.

  George Fayne’s dark curls bounced as she nodded her head. “You mean Candy Kingdom here we come,” she pointed out. “If we’re lucky.”

  “I won’t be lucky.” Bess Marvin sighed. “I forgot to wear my lucky purple socks.”

  Nancy thought they were all lucky to be at the mall that Friday afternoon. It was the last day of school before spring break. It seemed like every kid in River Heights was there for the Candy Kingdom contest.

  Candy Kingdom was a new amusement park opening in River Heights the next day. It would have candy-style rides and candy games—even candy characters, like the superfamous Sour Power Pals!

  “Remind me what the rules of the contest are,” Bess said, twirling a lock of her blond hair. “Not that I’ll win.”

  “Anyone can win, Bess,” Nancy said with an assuring smile. “All you have to do is pick the chocolate bar with the gold crown inside.”

  “If you do,” George went on, “you win four passes to Candy Kingdom to use every day during spring break.”

  “And that means riding the Twisting Taffy Coaster every single day,” Nancy reminded them. “I heard that it flips upside down!”

  “The coaster or our stomachs?” George joked.

  The girls turned their faces toward the stage set up in the atrium that day.

  “I heard there’s going to be a dance show before the chocolate-bar contest,” Nancy said. “Nadine told me she’s one of the dancers.”

  Bess and George weren’t surprised. Nadine Nardo was the class actress, dancer, singer—and sometimes drama queen!

  As the mall filled up with more kids, Nancy felt someone tap her shoulder. Turning, she saw Andrea Wu, another classmate. If Nadine was the class actress, Andrea was the class candy lover—and proud of it.

  “Hi, Andrea,” Nancy said with a wave.

  Andrea said hi back. She then looked from Nancy to Bess to George and said, “If one of you wins, will you take the other two to Candy Kingdom?”

  “For sure,” Nancy confirmed. “We’re a team.”

  “Even when we’re not solving mysteries,” Bess added.

  Everyone at River Heights Elementary School knew that Nancy, Bess, and George were the Clue Crew, detectives who solved mysteries at school and all over town. Nancy was proud of all the mysteries they had solved so far. She was also proud of her Clue Book where she wrote down all their suspects, clues, and thoughts.

  “So if one of you wins . . . ,” Andrea said slowly. “Four minus three . . . equals one.”

  “So?” George asked.

  “So that leaves one more Candy Kingdom pass for another friend,” Andrea said with a grin. “Like me! And you know how much I love candy. See my earrings made out of real jelly beans?” Andrea tugged her earlobes.

  “Pretty!” Nancy told Andrea. “But we really haven’t figured out who we’d take yet.”

  “Take me!” Andrea stated. “I invited you to my birthday party at the Sugar Sweet Spa a few weeks ago. Remember the candy-scented manicures? And the hot-cocoa foot soaks?”

  “How could I forget?” George groaned. “I’ve been digging marshmallows out from between my toes ever since.”

  Nancy was about to ask Andrea who she would take to Candy Kingdom if she won, until—

  “Eek!” Andrea cried.

  Someone had dangled a wiggly spider in front of Andrea’s face. When Nancy, Bess, and George heard a familiar snicker, they knew who it was.

  “Antonio Elefano!” Bess snapped angrily as their grinning classmate stepped out from behind Andrea.

  If Nadine was the class actress and Andrea was the class candy lover, Antonio was the class pest.

  “It’s just one of my Gummy Pests candies.” Antonio laughed as he bit a squiggly, wiggly leg off the spider. “My favorite candy.”

  “It takes a pest to eat one!” Andrea snapped as she huffed away.

  Nancy, Bess, and George wanted to move away from Antonio too, but an excited roar suddenly filled the mall. It was Mayor Strong being led onto the stage by two Sour Power Pals!

  Besides the candy, the Sour Power Pals had their own cartoon TV show. On it they acted as sour as they tasted.

  “I don’t think I like those Sour Power Pals,” Bess said with a frown. “They think they’re so smart.”

  “You mean tart,” George joked.

  The microphone screeched before Mayor Strong announced, “Welcome to the Candy Kingdom Contest. But before we bring out the king and queen of Candy Kingdom, let’s raise the roof for the Tippy-Toe Tappers of River Heights!”

  “There’s Nadine!” Nancy shouted as a half dozen kids in candy costumes tapped to the middle of the stage with their arms looped together.

  Nadine wore a green leotard with a matching giant gumdrop on her head. Smiling, she tapped her dancing feet to the tune “I Want Candy.”

  Nancy, Bess, and George danced to the beat—until something horrible happened. Nadine’s giant green gumdrop tipped forward and covered her eyes! With both of her arms still looped, her hands weren’t free to push the gumdrop back up.

  “Oh no!” Nancy gasped. “How will Nadine dance with a gumdrop over her face?”

  “Like a klutz!” George groaned.

  But to everyone’s surprise Nadine kept dancing in perfect step with the others. After the music ended, she even took the perfect bow!

  “Nadine nailed it!” George cheered.

  Nancy was proud of Nadine. She was so proud that she had an idea. “If one of us wins,” she told Bess and George, “let’s give Nadine our fourth pass to Candy Kingdom.”

  “Good idea,” George agreed. “After what she just went through, she deserves a break.”

  “And we deserve a break from Antonio Elefano!” Bess complained as she brushed another Gummy Pest from her face.

  The Tippy-Toe Tappers were replaced onstage by the king and queen of Candy Kingdom. Instead of jewels, their crowns and scepters were adorned with colorful candies.

  “Kids of the kingdom!” the king boomed. “The Sour Power Pals stand before you to hand out chocolate bars. You are to take one each.”

  “But do not open them until I give the royal thumbs-up,” the queen added.

  Carrying big bags of chocolate bars, the Sour Power Pals made their way through the crowd. Nancy, Bess, and George each took one bar.

  Antonio grabbed one too. When he read the label, he scowled and shouted, “This chocolate bar has coconut inside. I hate coconut!”

  But when Antonio reached to switch bars, the purple Sour Power Pal yanked away the bag. “No exchanges, kid,” he said. “Deal with it.”

  Antonio refused to deal with it. Antonio turned to Bess and said, “Swap with me. Give me your chocolate-peanut bar for my chocolate coconut.”

  “What difference does it make what flavor it is?” Bess asked. “What’s important is if it has a gold crown inside.”

  “I’m going to eat it whether I win or lose,” Antonio said. “Will you swap with me or not?”

  Bess narrowed her eyes at Antonio. “If we
swap, will you go away and leave us alone?” she asked.

  “Sure,” Antonio insisted.

  “Deal,” Bess said as she made the switch.

  “Bess, what were you thinking?” George asked as Antonio squeezed through the crowd away from the girls.

  “What if you gave Antonio the winning chocolate bar?” Nancy wanted to know.

  “It can’t be the winning bar,” Bess said. “I forgot to wear my lucky purple socks, remember?”

  After everyone had a chocolate bar, the queen called out, “Kids of the kingdom, I command you all to open your chocolate bars now!”

  Nancy scrambled to tear off the wrapping of her chocolate-marshmallow bar. She frowned when she found no gold crown inside. George’s chocolate-raisin bar was crown-free too. But when Bess tore open hers, she let out a gigantic squeal.

  “I got it! I got it!” Bess cried, waving a tiny crown-shaped paper high in the air. “I got the gold crown!”

  Nancy and George were about to cheer too. Until someone reached over Bess’s shoulder and snatched the gold crown right out of her hand!

  SNIDE RIDE

  “My crown!” Bess cried, glancing around in a panic. “Who took my winning crown?”

  Nancy wasn’t surprised to see Antonio standing behind Bess with the crown in his hand.

  “You mean my crown,” Antonio said. “The winning chocolate-coconut bar was mine and you know it.”

  “It was,” Nancy told Antonio, “until you swapped it with Bess!”

  “Blah, blah, blah.” Antonio sighed.

  “Nancy, George,” Bess wailed, “do something!”

  Mayor Strong shaded his eyes from the lights as he gazed into the audience. “Do we have a winner?” he called out. “Will the lucky winner with the gold crown please step up?”

  Antonio was about to run toward the stage when—

  “Wait, Antonio,” George said, pointing down at his feet. “Your sneaker lace is untied.”

  “Huh?” Antonio said.

  The moment Antonio glanced down, George grabbed the crown and handed it to Bess. The three friends then pushed their way through the crowd and to the stage.

  “Hey, no fair!” Antonio yelled after them. “You could at least give me your fourth pass to Candy Kingdom!”

  Antonio’s angry voice trailed off as Nancy, Bess, and George raced onto the stage. Polite cheers and disappointed groans erupted as Bess waved the gold crown.

  “We have our winner!” the king announced. He smiled at Nancy and George. “And these must be her lucky friends.”

  Mayor Strong held the mike as Nancy, Bess, and George introduced themselves. The queen then handed them three red-and-white candy-striped bracelets to snap around their wrists.

  Nancy brushed her reddish-blond bangs aside and admired her prize bracelet. It was made of rubber, but it was as precious as gold. With it, she, Bess, and George would get into Candy Kingdom for a whole week—for free!

  “Well done,” the queen declared, “but who will wear the fourth bracelet?”

  Bess stepped up to the mike and said, “She’s the gumdrop dancer with the wardrobe malfunction—meet Nadine Nardo!”

  A shrieking Nadine scurried across the stage, her shoes tapping and her gumdrop hat in place. “Thanks, you guys!” she said excitedly. “Thank yooooooou!!!”

  The queen handed Nadine the fourth bracelet. “Congratulations, Lady Gumdrop,” she praised heartily.

  As the four friends took a bow, they spotted Andrea at the foot of the stage. Andrea glared angrily at Nancy, Bess, and George before storming off.

  “Why is Andrea so mad?” Bess whispered. “It’s not like we promised her the fourth bracelet.”

  “Andrea is mad, all right,” George agreed. “But check out how happy Nadine is.”

  Nancy turned to see Nadine smiling from ear to ear. Other gumdrops had crowded around to congratulate her.

  “Nadine is superhappy,” Nancy agreed, “and this time she’s not acting!”

  “Who’s excited about Candy Kingdom?” Hannah Gruen asked as she drove the girls to the amusement park the next morning.

  Hannah had been the Drew’s housekeeper since Nancy was only three years old. Like a mother, Hannah gave Nancy lots of hugs. She also gave Nancy lots of advice, like to do her homework, keep her room clean, and not eat too much candy at Candy Kingdom!

  “We all are, Hannah!” Nancy declared.

  “Especially me,” Nadine said. She raised her wrist. “Getting this bracelet is as awesome as getting the lead in the class play.”

  “And you always do!” Bess praised.

  Hannah parked the car at Candy Kingdom. They then walked the short distance to the gate. All four girls wore light spring jackets for the first mild day of the season. Nadine’s jacket had three-quarter sleeves to show off her prize bracelet.

  At the gate a woman whose name tag read CHERYL checked the girls’ bracelets. She also made sure they were snapped on tightly.

  “Congratulations, winners,” Cheryl told them. “Remember not to take your bracelets off while you’re in the park.”

  “I’m not taking it off all week,” George declared.

  “Since when do you change your outfits anyway, George?” Bess teased.

  George rolled her eyes at Bess. The two were cousins but different in every way. Bess was fashion-forward, loving the latest styles and accessories. George was fashion-backward, but she didn’t care as long as her accessories included the latest electronics.

  While Hannah got her guest bracelet, the four friends looked through the candy-decorated gate. The park had opened an hour ago, but it was already packed with kids rushing to the rides and games.

  “Check it out!” George said, pointing through the gate. “There’s the Twisting Taffy Coaster.”

  “Twisting Taffy Coaster?” Nadine repeated as they gazed at the extreme coaster with the twisting loops. “Does it go upside down?”

  “That’s the best part!” someone with a familiar voice said.

  Andrea was standing right behind them. Nancy was surprised to see her smiling.

  “My mom bought me a ticket for Candy Kingdom,” Andrea told the girls excitedly. “I can’t go all week, but I can be here all day.”

  Then using both of her hands, Andrea shook Nadine’s hand. “Congratulations, Nadine. You deserve the fourth bracelet.” Still smiling, Andrea walked away.

  “I guess she’s not mad anymore,” Nancy decided.

  When Hannah returned, it was all systems go! “Okay, girls,” Hannah said as they walked through the gate, “what would you like to do first?”

  “That!” Bess said, pointing to a candy-striped game booth. The game was called Ring the Peppermint Sticks. Red-and-white-striped peppermint sticks stood straight up in a row as kids aimed to toss rings over them.

  “The peppermints match our bracelets!” Bess said.

  “Is that the only reason you want to play?” George groaned. “Let’s ride the Twisting Taffy Coaster first.”

  “George is right,” Nancy told Bess. “We wanted to ride the Twisting Taffy Coaster—”

  “No!” Nadine cut in. “Let’s ride that first!”

  Nancy, Bess, and George looked to see where Nadine was pointing. A few feet away was a boat ride called the World of the Sour Power Pals.

  “The Sour Power Pals ride?” Nancy asked.

  “But the line for the Twisting Taffy Coaster is getting long, Nadine,” George said.

  “I don’t care!” Nadine exclaimed. “I want to ride the Sour Power Pals ride—and I want to ride it now!” Nadine spun dramatically on her heel. She then began running straight for the boats.

  “Great,” George groaned. “We had to give our fourth bracelet to a drama queen.”

  Hannah promised to meet the girls at the same spot after the ride. Nancy, Bess, and George joined Nadine where Sour Power Pals were helping kids into boats.

  When the blue pal saw the girls and their candy-striped bracelets, he sneered, “Well! It lo
oks like we’ve got the contest winners!”

  “Oh yeah?” the yellow pal said. “Even winners enter our ride at their own risk.”

  “Risk?” Bess gasped.

  “That’s right,” the red pal sneered. “Anything can happen in there—anything rotten!”

  As they approached the boat, Nancy told Bess, “They’re just pretending to be sour—just like their candy.”

  “Well, I prefer sweet!” Bess insisted.

  Nancy was the last to climb into the boat. As she waited her turn, she overheard one Sour Power Pal ask another: “Are those prize bracelets valuable or what?”

  “For sure,” another pal replied. “Any one of my friends would want that bracelet for a free week at Candy Kingdom.”

  Nancy was about to glance back at the pals when George shouted, “Hurry up, Nancy. Before you miss the boat!”

  “Coming!” Nancy called as she quickly embarked.

  Bess and George sat in the first seat, and Nancy and Nadine sat in the second. The boat rocked as more kids climbed into the third seat, but none of the girls turned around to look to see who they were. All eyes were on the tunnel leading into the ride.

  Was it as scary as the Sour Power Pals said it would be? They would soon find out!

  A bell clanged and the boat floated down a green syrupy stream. Nancy drew in her breath as it slipped beneath a candy-decorated arch into a dark world smelling like sour candies!

  “Cool!” George gasped.

  As the boat sloshed downstream the girls were surprised by Sour Power Pals all around, jumping out to sing the theme song of their show: “Who needs sweet when you can be sour? And we’re more sour by the hour!”

  The ride was more fun than scary. All four girls shrieked happily as the boat came within inches of being blasted with powdered sugar. They shrieked even louder when the boat dipped into a pink-and-blue cotton-candy vat whirling around and around!

  Further down the stream, two more Sour Power Pals perched on a rock-candy mountain bounced marshmallows off their boat.

  The boat approached another arch. This one had the words BON-BON VOYAGE painted over it. Sitting on top of the arch was another pal aiming a camera down at the boat.