The Secret Santa Read online

  IT’S A HO! HO! HO-RRIBLE TRICK!

  Christmas is coming, and Nancy’s third-grade class is having a Secret Santa exchange. That means cards, candy, and a special gift for everyone. Everyone except Nancy Drew!

  Is it a mistake? Is somebody just being silly or mean? Or is someone hiding something and afraid to tell the truth? One thing’s for sure. Nancy’s presents are gone, and all she has to unwrap is one big mystery!

  Read all of the Nancy Drew Notebooks!

  ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

  A Ready-for-Chapters Book

  Simon & Schuster, New York

  Cover photography by Michel LeGrou

  Cover photo-illustration copyright © 1999

  by Joanie Schwarz

  Ages 6-9

  www.kids.SimonandSchuster.com

  The

  Secret Santa

  “Look!” Bess cried. “My card is in the shape of a Christmas tree. And there are M&M’s on the branches. They look like Christmas lights!”

  “That’s really cool,” Nancy said.

  “So where’s your card?” Bess asked. “What did you get?”

  Nancy’s desk was right next to Bess’s. She looked at her desktop. It was bare.

  “Nothing,” Nancy said. She got a big lump in her throat. “I guess I got nothing!”

  The Nancy Drew Notebooks

  # 1 The Slumber Party Secret

  # 2 The Lost Locket

  # 3 The Secret Santa

  # 4 Bad Day for Ballet

  # 5 The Soccer Shoe Clue

  # 6 The Ice Cream Scoop

  # 7 Trouble at Camp Treehouse

  # 8 The Best Detective

  # 9 The Thanksgiving Surprise

  #10 Not Nice on Ice

  #11 The Pen Pal Puzzle

  #12 The Puppy Problem

  #13 The Wedding Gift Goof

  #14 The Funny Face Fight

  #15 The Crazy Key Clue

  #16 The Ski Slope Mystery

  #17 Whose Pet Is Best?

  #18 The Stolen Unicorn

  #19 The Lemonade Raid

  #20 Hannah’s Secret

  #21 Princess on Parade

  #22 The Clue in the Glue

  #23 Alien in the Classroom

  #24 The Hidden Treasures

  #25 Dare at the Fair

  #26 The Lucky Horseshoes

  #27 Trouble Takes the Cake

  #28 Thrill on the Hill

  #29 Lights! Camera! Clues!

  #30 It’s No Joke!

  #31 The Fine-Feathered Mystery

  #32 The Black Velvet Mystery

  #33 The Gumdrop Ghost

  #34 Trash or Treasure?

  #35 Third-Grade Reporter

  #36 The Make-Believe Mystery

  #37 Dude Ranch Detective

  #38 Candy Is Dandy

  #39 The Chinese New Year Mystery

  #40 Dinosaur Alert!

  #41 Flower Power

  #42 Circus Act

  #43 The Walkie-talkie Mystery

  #44 The Purple Fingerprint

  #45 The Dashing Dog Mystery

  #46 The Snow Queen’s Surprise

  #47 The Crook Who Took the Book

  #48 The Crazy Carnival Case

  #49 The Sand Castle Mystery

  #50 The Scarytales Sleepover

  #51 The Old-Fashioned Mystery

  #52 Big Worry in Wonderland

  #53 Recipe for Trouble

  #54 The Stinky Cheese Surprise

  #55 The Day Camp Disaster

  #56 Turkey Trouble

  #57 The Carousel Mystery

  #58 The Dollhouse Mystery

  #59 The Bike Race Mystery

  #60 The Lighthouse Mystery

  #61 Space Case

  #62 The Secret in the Spooky Woods

  #63 Snowman Surprise

  #64 Bunny-Hop Hoax

  #65 Strike-Out Scare

  #66 Zoo Clue

  #67 The Singing Suspects

  Available from Simon & Schuster

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

  An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division

  1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

  www.SimonandSchuster.com

  Copyright © 1994 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or

  in part in any form.

  ALADDIN PAPERBACKS and colophon are trademarks of

  Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  NANCY DREW and THE NANCY DREW NOTEBOOKS are

  registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Produced by Mega-Books of New York, Inc.

  The text of this book was set in Excelsior.

  First Aladdin Paperbacks edition March 2002

  First Minstrel Books edition November 1994

  ISBN-13: 978-0-671-87947-1

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4424-6759-0 (eBook)

  ISBN-10: 0-671-87947-2

  Contents

  Chapter 1: Nothing for Nancy

  Chapter 2: A Note from Santa

  Chapter 3: Three Suspects, No Clues

  Chapter 4: Bad Luck Lunch

  Chapter 5: The Chocolate Clues

  Chapter 6: The Glitter Clues

  Chapter 7: Christmas Joy

  Chapter 8: Nancy’s Secret

  THE SECRET SANTA

  1

  Nothing for Nancy

  Ouch!” Nancy Drew cried. “Who pinched me?” She grabbed at the arm of her red-and-white snowflake sweater and whirled around.

  Brenda Carlton was right behind her in the school lunch line.

  “Just testing,” Brenda said.

  “Testing what?” Nancy asked.

  “To see if you’re awake,” Brenda answered.

  “Of course I’m awake,” eight-year-old Nancy said.

  “Really?” Brenda said in a snooty voice. “Well, I just read your story in our class newspaper. It sounds like you sleep in school all the time.”

  Brenda held up a copy of the newspaper. Nancy’s story was on the front page. It was called “My Winter Dream.”

  “You know why I wrote that,” Nancy said. “Ms. Spencer told us to close our eyes and think about anything we wanted. Then she said to write about our daydream. So that’s what I did.”

  “I did that, too,” Brenda said. “But I don’t see what’s so great about your daydream. My story should have been in the paper instead.”

  Nancy rolled her eyes. “Maybe Ms. Spencer will pick one of your stories next time,” she told Brenda. “Just don’t pinch me again.”

  Then Nancy turned around to talk to her best friend Bess Marvin.

  “She thinks she knows everything because her father owns a newspaper,” Bess whispered.

  “I know,” Nancy said.

  “I wish she weren’t standing behind us,” Bess whispered even more softly. “She’s trying to listen to everything I say.”

  Just then George Fayne came up to Nancy and Bess. She was Bess’s cousin and Nancy’s other best friend. All three girls were in the same third-grade class.

  “Hi!” Nancy said in a cheerful voice. “Where have you been?”

  “I left my lunch in the classroom,” George explained. “I had to go back to get it. And then Ms. Spencer wouldn’t let me in the room.”

  Bess’s blue eyes sparkled with excitement. “Because of the Secret Santa gifts?” she asked her cousin.

  George nodded. “Ms. Spencer is putting them out now.”r />
  Nancy clapped her hands. Everyone was excited about Secret Santa. It was a special three-day gift exchange. It always took place right before Christmas vacation. This was the first day.

  The fun had really started on Monday. That was when Ms. Spencer had put everyone’s name in a bowl. Then each student drew a name. Nancy got Jason Hutchings.

  Now Nancy was Jason’s Secret Santa. That meant she was supposed to bring him a gift on three different days.

  Today the gift was supposed to be a homemade card.

  Tomorrow she was supposed to bring Jason’s favorite lunch. Nancy knew what to bring because Ms. Spencer had put a chart on the bulletin board. It listed each student’s favorite foods and desserts.

  On Friday Nancy was supposed to bring a small gift. It couldn’t cost more than a few dollars.

  All the treats had to be hidden in paper bags. That way no one could see what anyone else brought to school. And no one would know which present came from which person.

  “I wonder who my Secret Santa is,” George said.

  “I just hope my Secret Santa isn’t a boy,” Bess said.

  “I hope mine isn’t Brenda Carlton!” Nancy said under her breath.

  Nancy and Bess went through the lunch line quickly. Then they ate with George. After lunch all three girls hurried outside to play in the snow.

  A few minutes later Emily Reeves came dashing across the playground. She was in Nancy’s third-grade class, too.

  Emily had just started taking gymnastics lessons. At recess she liked to practice the moves she had learned.

  Emily held out her arms as she spun toward Nancy. Then she lost her balance on the new layer of snow. She skidded and slid into Nancy. She almost knocked her down.

  “Oooh! Sorry!” Emily said.

  “That’s okay,” Nancy told her.

  “Uh-oh, I hope you’re not my Secret Santa,” Emily said. “Because now you’ll be mad at me and you won’t bring me anything nice tomorrow.”

  “Take it easy, Emily,” George said. “No one’s mad at you.”

  But Emily wasn’t listening. “Can we go inside yet?” she asked. “I can’t wait to see my present.”

  Nancy, George, and Bess laughed. Emily could never wait for anything. They watched as Emily practiced some more moves.

  Then Emily said, “I can’t wait anymore. I’m going back to the classroom.” She headed for the door.

  Nancy shook her head. “The bell will ring soon,” she said. “She should have waited.”

  “I know,” Bess agreed.

  The three friends hopped up and down, waiting for the bell to ring. They were cold—and Nancy was excited, too.

  She could hardly wait to find out what her Secret Santa had given her. And she wanted to see Jason’s face when he opened the card she had made.

  Finally the bell rang. All the kids ran to the door. Some of them pushed and shoved to get inside, including Brenda Carlton.

  “Come on,” Bess said. “Everyone else is getting there first. I want to see the cards!”

  The assistant principal, Mrs. Oshida, had been waiting in the doorway. She walked the class back to their room.

  Nancy, Bess, and George hurried to their cubbies outside the room. They took off their mittens, hats, scarves, coats, and boots. Nancy’s boots were hard to get off, so she was the last one done.

  Finally Nancy walked into the class. Ms. Spencer closed the door behind Nancy.

  “Look!” Bess cried as Nancy passed her desk. “My card is in the shape of a Christmas tree. And there are M&M’s on the branches. They look like Christmas lights!”

  “Neat,” Nancy said.

  “On the front it says, ‘To Bess.’ And inside it says, ‘Happy Holidays from Your Secret Santa.’ “

  “That’s really cool,” Nancy said.

  “So where’s your card?” Bess asked. “What did you get?”

  Nancy’s desk was right next to Bess’s. She looked at her desktop. It was bare.

  “Nothing,” Nancy said with a lump in her throat. “I guess I got nothing!”

  2

  A Note from Santa

  You’re kidding!” Bess said to Nancy. “You didn’t get anything from your Secret Santa?”

  Nancy stared at her desk and shook her head. But she didn’t say anything. She didn’t want Bess to hear that she was almost ready to cry.

  “That’s terrible,” Bess said.

  Nancy nodded and swallowed hard.

  Then she thought, Maybe the card fell off my desk.

  She looked on the floor. She looked on her chair. She looked inside her desk. She even looked on the desk behind hers.

  But she saw nothing except a few tiny sparkles of red glitter on the floor.

  “Tell Ms. Spencer,” Bess said. “Maybe she forgot to put your card on your desk.”

  Nancy nodded, but she didn’t say anything. She still had a gigantic lump in her throat.

  She walked up to Ms. Spencer and stood beside the teacher’s desk. She swallowed hard again.

  “Yes, Nancy?” Ms. Spencer said, smiling. “What is it?”

  “I didn’t get a card,” Nancy said.

  “Really?” Ms. Spencer said. The big smile faded from her face. “Are you sure?”

  Without waiting for an answer, Ms. Spencer got up. She walked to Nancy’s desk and looked around.

  “That can’t be right,” Ms. Spencer said. “I had a paper bag for each student. Twenty-five bags. I’m sure I put a card on your desk at lunchtime.”

  “Well, it’s gone now,” Bess said, joining in.

  “Yes, Bess, I see that,” Ms. Spencer said. “Nancy, are you sure you didn’t find anything on your desk?”

  Nancy shook her head.

  “All right,” the teacher said. “Let me think.” She walked back to the front of the room.

  While Ms. Spencer was thinking, George came running over.

  “Where’s your card?” she asked Nancy.

  “I didn’t get one,” Nancy said.

  George looked surprised. “That’s terrible!” she said. “I can’t believe it!”

  “Me, either,” Nancy said.

  Nancy looked around the room. Almost everyone else was talking and laughing. Everyone except Brenda Carlton. She was whispering to another girl. They both had mean smiles on their faces.

  “All right. Quiet, everyone,” Ms. Spencer said. “George, please go back to your seat. Class, we have a mystery to solve.”

  A mystery? Nancy thought. Hmmm. Maybe this was a mystery! Suddenly she felt a little better. Nancy loved to solve mysteries—and she was good at it, too. But this was the first time she had to solve one for herself.

  “I want your attention,” Ms. Spencer said. It took a while for the class to quiet down. Finally everyone was listening.

  “Nancy Drew didn’t get a Secret Santa card today,” Ms. Spencer began. “But I’m sure I put one on her desk. So I think someone must have taken it by mistake. Does anyone know anything about it?”

  The class was silent.

  “Well,” Ms. Spencer said, “I’m very unhappy about this. If anyone in this class took Nancy’s card, I expect that person to give it back right away. Put it in her cubby before the end of the day, and we won’t say any more about it. Is that clear?”

  No one answered.

  “And if Nancy’s Secret Santa forgot to bring a card for her, I hope you’ll find a way to apologize. Any questions?” Ms. Spencer said.

  Jason Hutchings raised his hand. “I have a question,” he said.

  “Yes, Jason?”

  “Do you think her card could have been stolen by aliens from outer space?” he asked.

  Everyone laughed. Jason was good at making people laugh.

  “No, Jason,” Ms. Spencer said. “I don’t.”

  Then Ms. Spencer walked down the aisle to Nancy’s desk. “I’m sorry about this, Nancy,” she said softly.

  “That’s okay,” Nancy said. But she didn’t really mean it.

  “I
’m proud of you for being such a good sport,” Ms. Spencer said. “Some people would be very upset if they didn t get a card today.”

  That was true, Nancy thought. She looked over at Emily Reeves. Emily had been so excited about the gift exchange. But now Emily wasn’t excited at all. She was just sitting at her desk, staring out the window at the snow.

  Nancy could see Emily’s card lying on her desk. It wasn’t very pretty, Nancy thought. It was just a plain folded piece of white paper. Emily’s Secret Santa had written “To Emily” on the front in pencil.

  Then Nancy sneaked a look at Jason. She wanted to see if he liked the card she had made for him. But he had folded it into a paper airplane and was zooming it around in the air.

  That’s okay, Nancy thought. The card was made out of silver paper. Perfect for paper airplanes!

  Nancy had taped a set of wax teeth inside the card. She saw that Jason was wearing the wax teeth and growling at all his friends.

  “Nancy,” Ms. Spencer called. “Would you run to the office for me? I need to send this note.”

  Nancy jumped up. It was fun to go on errands! She was glad the teacher had picked her. It made her feel better.

  Nancy walked down the hall to the office with the note in her hand. Then she walked slowly back to class. By the time she reached the room, everyone was doing silent reading.

  Nancy picked out a book from the bookshelf. It was a story about a girl who forgot her best friend’s birthday.

  That’s probably what happened to me, Nancy thought as she walked back to her seat. My Secret Santa probably forgot to bring me a card.

  Then Nancy saw the note lying on her chair. It was folded into a very small square.

  She opened the note. Inside she read:

  To Nancy,

  I didn’t forget about Secret Santa. I made you a beautiful card. It had candy taped to the front. And it had red glitter decorations, too! Someone must have stolen it! Sorry!!

  Your Secret Santa

  3

  Three Suspects, No Clues

  Without saying a word, Nancy slipped into her seat. She took out her special blue notebook—the one her father had given her. It had a pocket inside.

  Nancy opened the notebook to a fresh page. At the top she wrote: “The Secret Santa Mystery.” She drew a line under the words.