Movie Madness Read online

  SHOE CREW

  “What do you think happened to the boots?” George asked.

  “I think someone took them!” Nancy said.

  “Who would want to take Glam Girl’s boots?” Bess asked, waving her arms. “She’s the star of the movie!”

  Melanie called for everyone’s attention. This time she spoke through an electronic bullhorn so her voice echoed through the playground. “If Glam Girl’s boots are not returned by tomorrow afternoon, we’ll be leaving River Heights for our next location.”

  Gasps and groans filled the air.

  “Bummer,” George said.

  “Bummer is right!” Bess wailed as they went to pick up their backpacks. “Now we’ll never be in a Glam Girl movie!”

  Nancy didn’t like the word “never.” That’s why she tried never to use it.

  “Who says we won’t?” Nancy said. “Glam Girl may have power clothes, but I have something just as good.”

  “What?” Bess asked.

  “My power Clue Book!” Nancy said. She then reached into her backpack and pulled out her Clue Book with a smile. “Now, let’s get to work!”

  Tucked inside Nancy’s Clue Book was her favorite pencil with the cool cupcake eraser on the end. She turned to a fresh page and wrote: “Who Took Glam Girl’s Boots?” Then skipping two lines Nancy began their suspect list.

  “I saw Paloma right before the boots went missing,” Nancy said. “She was holding a phone and looking straight at the boots.”

  “Paloma wanted the boots more than anything,” Bess said. “She said they were the perfect blue for the fashion show tomorrow!”

  “Remember how mad Paloma was when she couldn’t borrow them?” George asked. “Maybe she was mad enough to take the boots!”

  Nancy wrote Paloma’s name in her Clue Book and then said, “Who could be suspect number two?”

  “Someone who’s mad at Shasta,” Bess suggested.

  Nancy’s eyes grew big as she remembered Rosie, Shasta’s secret stunt double.

  “Rosie was mad at Shasta for telling her to hide,” Nancy said.

  “And for calling her a Glam Girl wannabe!” Bess remembered. “Not cool!”

  But George shook her head. “I don’t think it was Rosie.”

  “How come?” Bess asked.

  “As Melanie said, no boots, no movie,” George explained. “Why would Rosie want to lose her job?”

  Nancy agreed. If Rosie was a stunt double, taking Shasta’s boots would be the dumbest stunt of all!

  “Why don’t we look for Paloma,” Nancy said as she closed her Clue Book, “and see if she pulled off the perfect crime?”

  The movie crew was taking a break as Nancy, Bess, and George headed out of Turtle Shell Playground. Just then they saw a woman with bright blue hair carrying a gym bag.

  “You guys, it’s Rosie,” Bess whispered, “Shasta’s stunt double!”

  “How do you know it’s not Shasta?” George asked. “They look totally alike.”

  “Rosie’s name is stitched on her gym bag,” Bess said, nodding at the big red bag. “See?”

  Nancy did see the name ROSIE ALVAREZ stitched on to the bag’s outside pocket. But as Nancy looked closer she saw something else. Through the pocket she could see the outline of what was stuffed inside. And it looked just like—

  “Boots!” Nancy gasped.

  BOOT CAMP

  To get a better look Nancy, Bess, and George inched a few feet behind Rosie. When Rosie stopped to talk to a cameraman, they ducked behind a tall production trunk and listened. . . .

  “We’re going to grab some pizza, Rosie,” the cameraman was saying. “Do you want to join us?”

  “Can’t, Dave,” Rosie replied. “I’m the guest stunt double at Camp Daredevil this afternoon. I’m demonstrating stunts and signing autographs.”

  Nancy peeked out from behind the trunk. She could see how surprised the cameraman looked.

  “You signing autographs instead of Shasta?” the cameraman snorted. “What would she say if she found out?”

  “I’m not telling the kids I’m Shasta’s stunt double,” Rosie insisted. “Besides, with those boots gone, I don’t think we’ll be seeing Shasta anytime soon.”

  Nancy, Bess, and George exchanged stunned looks.

  “Rosie just mentioned Shasta’s missing boots,” Nancy whispered. “The same boots that might be in her bag!”

  Peeking out again, the girls saw Rosie jump on a bike and pedal away.

  “Rosie’s on her way to Camp Daredevil,” Nancy said as they stepped out from behind the trunk.

  “What is Camp Daredevil, anyway?” Bess asked.

  “It’s a brand-new stunt day camp here in River Heights,” George explained, “where kids learn to do things that look dangerous in the movies!”

  “Dangerous?” Bess said, making a face. “I’d rather roast marshmallows and sing goofy camp songs.”

  “I think we should follow Rosie to Camp Daredevil,” Nancy suggested. “It’s right up the hill from here.”

  “Let’s do it!” George said with a nod.

  All three girls had the same rules. They could walk anywhere as long as it was five blocks or less away from their houses. And as long as they walked together.

  “Okay, but what will we do when we get there?” Bess asked as they began walking up the hill.

  “We will look for Rosie’s gym bag,” Nancy said. “Then we’ll take a peek inside for the missing boots!”

  Nancy, Bess, and George climbed the hill to Camp Daredevil. As they walked through the gate, they didn’t see Rosie. Instead, they saw Peter Patino and Andrea Wu, two kids from their class at school. Both were wearing green-and-white Camp Daredevil T-shirts.

  “Hi, Peter! Hi, Andrea,” Nancy said. “I didn’t know you went to Camp Daredevil.”

  “Sure we do!” Peter said with a grin. “Where else would we learn how to do this?”

  The girls watched as Peter and Andrea performed some awesome forward rolls.

  “Ta-da!” Andrea sang as the two sprang to their feet.

  “Pretty cool,” George admitted. “Now tell us where we can find the movie stunt pro, Rosie Alvarez.”

  Andrea pointed in the distance and said, “We heard Rosie’s going to be at the Extreme Team Obstacle Course.”

  “Whoever runs through the course gets Rosie’s autograph at the other end,” Peter explained.

  “How come you’re not at the obstacle course?” Nancy asked.

  “Can’t,” Peter said. “We’ve got our walking-over-poisonous-rattlesnakes workshop in five minutes.”

  “You’re kidding me, right?” George asked.

  “Maybe,” Peter replied with a grin as he and Andrea walked away.

  “Walking over rattlesnakes!” Bess shuddered. “I’ll bet they drink bug juice made with real bugs too!”

  “Forget about it,” Nancy said. “Let’s find that obstacle course and Rosie.”

  Nancy, Bess, and George made their way through Camp Daredevil, which looked like many day camps. There was a swimming pool, a tennis court, and a long log cabin with cooking smells drifting from the windows.

  “I’ll bet that’s the mess hall,” Nancy guessed, “where the campers eat lunch.”

  “And drink real bug juice!” Bess blurted.

  “Let it go, Bess!” George said with a sigh.

  The girls found a wooden sign shaped like an arrow, which read EXTREME TEAM OBSTACLE COURSE. They walked in that direction until the obstacle course came into view.

  “Cool!” George exclaimed.

  The course was in a big grassy field and surrounded by a chain-link fence. It started with a five-foot climbing wall. Behind it was a skinny plastic tunnel to crawl through. Next up was a rope to swing over a wading pool. The pool was filled with plastic blow-up sharks and alligators.

  Last but not least was a playhouse. Kids, all wearing Camp Daredevil T-shirts, laughed and cheered as they jumped off the roof onto a cushy air bag.

  “We
found the obstacle course,” George said. “But where’s Rosie?”

  Nancy looked beyond the course to see Rosie at the other side. As campers finished the course, Rosie autographed pictures of herself with a smile.

  “There’s Rosie,” Nancy pointed out.

  “And there’s her gym bag!” Bess said.

  Nancy looked to see where Bess was pointing. A few feet behind Rosie was her bike propped against a tree. Hanging from the handlebars was the suspicious gym bag!

  “How will we look inside the bag?” George asked. “The only way there is—through the obstacle course.”

  “And we’re not going to do that!” Bess insisted. “No way am I swinging on a rope over alligators and jumping off a roof!”

  “They’re toy alligators, Bess!” Nancy said, “And you’ll be jumping off a playhouse onto a giant pillow.”

  Bess folded her arms across her chest and said, “I don’t wanna!”

  “I know the real reason why!” George snapped. “You don’t want to mess up your new summer clothes—”

  “Hey!” someone cut in. “You’re holding up the others.”

  Huh? Nancy, Bess, and George turned to see a line of campers had formed behind them.

  “You think we can do this before Christmas?” one girl quipped.

  Nancy turned to her friends and whispered, “We have to see what’s in Rosie’s bag—so let’s do it.”

  The three friends ran to the wall and climbed it together.

  “I already got my blouse dirty!” Bess wailed. “This isn’t an obstacle course—it’s a slob-stacle course!”

  When all three girls were over the wall, they crawled one by one through the tunnel.

  “Woo-hoo!” Nancy cheered as she swung on the rope over the wading pool. “This is neat!”

  While Bess and George took turns swinging on the rope, Nancy scrambled up the playhouse ladder. Up on the roof she made her way to the edge. But when she looked down she froze. The playhouse was higher than she had thought!

  “Nancy, jump on the air bag!” Bess called as she and George climbed the ladder too.

  “I can’t!” Nancy squeaked.

  Before Nancy could explain, a boy below pointed up and shouted, “That girl’s not wearing a Camp Daredevil shirt. I bet she’s not a camper here!”

  Nancy gulped. They couldn’t get thrown out of Camp Daredevil. Not before they checked out Rosie’s bag!

  “Sure I am!” Nancy shouted back. “Where else would I learn to do this?”

  Throwing back her shoulders, Nancy gathered her Glam Girl courage. She then sucked in her breath, shut her eyes, and jumped!

  SPRING THING

  “Whoooooaaaa!” Nancy shouted before landing on the air bag with a—PLOOF!

  The bag gave a hissing sound as Nancy sank safely into it with a smile. She did it!

  “I’m next!” George called.

  Nancy rolled off the air bag in time for George to land. Next came Bess, this time smiling all the way.

  “That was awesome!” Bess said. “Even if I did get my clothes dirty!”

  “Speaking of clothes,” George said. “Let’s look in Rosie’s bag for those boots!”

  Nancy, Bess, and George left the obstacle course. Instead of going straight to Rosie, they slipped past the others toward her bike. The gym bag was still hanging from the handlebars.

  “We can’t let Rosie see us,” Nancy whispered as she dragged the gym bag behind the tree.

  Nancy unzipped the side pocket. She reached inside. What she pulled out made all three girls gasp: two blue boots!

  “It’s them! It’s them!” Nancy said excitedly. “It’s Glam Girl’s power boots from the movie!”

  “I’ll stuff them underneath my shirt,” George decided. “Then we’ll sneak them past Rosie and bring them straight to Melanie—”

  “Wait!” Bess cut in. She kicked off her own shoes and grabbed the boots. “I want to try these awesome boots on first!”

  Before Nancy or George could stop her, Bess was slipping her feet into Glam Girl’s boots. When they were on, Bess said, “They feel a little . . . bouncy.”

  “Bouncy?” George asked.

  Bess bounced up and down lightly in the boots until—BOING—she jumped high into the air!

  “Bess!” George said, “What are you doing?”

  “I’m jumping!” Bess cried as she bounced and bounced. “And I can’t stop!”

  Thinking fast, Bess gripped an overhead tree branch. It stopped her bouncing. And her dangling feet gave Nancy and George a good look at the boots!

  “There are tiny springs on the soles,” Nancy pointed out. “No wonder Bess jumped so high!”

  “That’s weird,” George said. “I held Shasta’s blue boots before—and they didn’t have springs.”

  “They do now!” Bess complained. “Will somebody please help me down—?”

  “Having fun, girls?” someone interrupted.

  Nancy, Bess, and George turned their heads. Standing a few feet away was—

  “Rosie!” Nancy gasped.

  “What are you doing here?” George asked.

  “I needed to get more pictures to sign from my gym bag,” Rosie said, before nodding at Bess’s feet. “Instead, I find three girls with my boots.”

  Nancy decided to tell Rosie the truth. “We’re looking for Glam Girl’s missing boots,” Nancy said bravely. She pointed to Bess’s feet. “These look just like them.”

  “Except for the springs,” Bess murmured.

  “What’s up with that, Rosie?” George asked.

  Rosie helped Bess to the ground and then said, “I brought my boots here to show the campers later.”

  “Your boots?” George asked. “I thought they were made for Shasta’s feet!”

  “These boots were made for my feet,” Rosie explained. “The springs help me jump high when I’m performing stunts.”

  “You mean they’re not Shasta’s?” Bess asked as she pulled off the boots one by one.

  “Did you think I took Shasta’s boots?” Rosie asked, wrinkling her nose. “Why would I do that?”

  “You were mad at Shasta for calling you a Glam Girl wannabe,” Nancy explained.

  “Shasta wanted you to hide, too,” George added. “I’d say that’s a motive.”

  “A motive is a reason for doing something,” Bess explained. “When we’re not movie extras, we’re detectives.”

  “Good for you!” Rosie said with a smile as she picked up the boots. “But Shasta says mean stuff like that to me all the time.”

  “That’s not cool!” Nancy insisted.

  “I know.” Rosie sighed. “I do a lot of stunts—but my best one is ignoring Shasta when she’s mean.”

  Nancy saw George tilt her head as if she was looking inside one boot. What was she looking for?

  “Now that I have my gym bag back,” Rosie said cheerily. “Would you like my autograph too?”

  “Yes, please!” Nancy, Bess, and George chorused.

  Rosie gave each girl an autographed picture of herself performing a stunt. She wasn’t dressed like Glam Girl in the picture, and Nancy wasn’t surprised. Being Shasta’s stunt double was Rosie’s biggest secret!

  Nancy, Bess, and George thanked Rosie and then headed out of Camp Daredevil.

  “What were you looking for inside those boots, George?” Nancy asked.

  “The size!” George explained. “Those boots were size eight and a half. Matt told us that Shasta’s boots are size six.”

  “That’s a big difference,” Nancy agreed.

  “Are we looking for Glam Girl’s boots?” Bess teased. “Or Cinderella’s glass slipper?”

  The Clue Crew had ruled out Rosie. But they still had another important suspect to consider: Paloma Garva.

  “If Paloma has Glam Girl’s boots, she’ll be wearing them to the fashion show tomorrow,” Nancy said as they walked home. “We have to go too!”

  “To a real-live fashion show?” Bess said excitedly.


  “I’d rather go to the dentist,” George muttered.

  Nancy smiled at her friends. She knew they would find some clues tomorrow at the fashion show. But time was running out!

  “Don’t forget, Daddy and Hannah,” Nancy said that evening. “I want extra cheese and pepperoni on my slice and no anchovies!”

  Nancy smiled at the thought of her favorite pizza toppings. After a full day of moviemaking and detective work, she was glad when her dad surprised her and Hannah with a trip to the pizza parlor.

  “No anchovies?” Hannah teased. “You mean you don’t like hairy little fish on your pizza?”

  “I don’t think so, Hannah.” Nancy giggled.

  Hannah Gruen was the Drews’ housekeeper, and she was great at making Nancy giggle. She was also almost a mother to Nancy since Nancy was only three years old!

  “No anchovies!” Mr. Drew promised Nancy. “Why don’t you grab a booth while Hannah and I order the pizzas and drinks?”

  “On it, Daddy!” Nancy said.

  Right away she found an empty booth and slipped inside. Sitting on the high-backed leather seat, Nancy took a whiff of the yummy-smelling pizzas in the ovens.

  Maybe when I’m older, I’ll try anchovies, Nancy thought. But right now, I’ll have to shut my eyes and squeeze my nose.

  Nancy’s thoughts were interrupted by laughter coming from the next booth. The voices sounded like kids.

  “This is the most awesome pizza celebration we’ve ever had!” a girl was saying.

  “We deserve it!” a boy boomed. “The Popcorn Peeps have lots to celebrate!”

  Nancy recognized the voice. It was Sidney Schacter, but what were they celebrating? Leaning back further, Nancy listened in.

  “It’s about time we got something from a real-live movie set for our museum!” Sidney declared.

  “Yeah!” another boy said. “Something big and blue!”

  Nancy’s eyes popped wide open. Did she just hear what she thought she heard? Did the Popcorn Peeps get something from a movie set?

  Something blue?

  CLUE-SEUM!

  Nancy tried not to make a sound as she listened to Sidney and his friends.