Space Case (Nancy Drew Notebooks Book 61) Read online

  “We don’t have time to look for more clues, Bess,” George said. “Mr. McCormick said he’ll call off the contest this afternoon if the thief isn’t caught.”

  “Don’t remind me.” Nancy groaned.

  “Now Brenda will write that I let everyone down. And she’ll be right!”

  “Who cares what Miss Snooty Pants writes?” George asked. “Let’s find Mr. McCormick and ask him for more time.”

  “And let’s not forget to say ‘please,’” Bess added.

  The girls rode straight to Main Street. Nancy saw a crowd of kids outside the supermarket. They looked even more disappointed than yesterday.

  “What’s up?” George called as they parked their bicycles at the curb.

  Brenda narrowed her eyes at Nancy. She took one step to the side. Right behind her was a big sign that read:

  SORRY, KIDS. JELLY-BEAN CONTEST CANCELLED.

  Nancy gulped. Mr. McCormick had already called off the contest.

  “We thought you’d find the thief, Nancy!” Amara said.

  “Yeah, Nancy!” Orson said. “You even said you were close!”

  Bess stepped forward. “Nancy was close!” she said. “She thought she saw the thieves right through her own telescope!”

  Nancy froze.

  Bess clapped her hand over her mouth again. But it was too late.

  “Telescope?” Brenda asked. “Does that mean you were snooping, Detective Drew?”

  Everyone gasped.

  Nancy didn’t say a word. She knew Brenda would write about her telescope in the Carlton News no matter what she said.

  “Come on,” Nancy told Bess and George. “Let’s find Mr. McCormick.”

  The girls still wore their bicycle helmets as they walked into the supermarket. They found Mr. McCormick by the fruit section. He was helping a customer pick out a ripe cantaloupe.

  “Mr. McCormick?” Nancy asked. “We know you already cancelled the contest, but can you give us more time to find the thief? Please?”

  “Sorry,” Mr. McCormick said as he picked up a cantaloupe. “It wouldn’t be fair if the thief counted the jelly beans.”

  “But, Mr. McCormick,” Nancy started to say. “We think we can—”

  “Hello, Mr. McCormick,” a soft voice called out.

  Nancy spun around. It was Crafty Cathy again—wheeling her cart up the same aisle.

  “Today I’m making bookmarks out of dried banana peels,” Cathy said.

  Mr. McCormick pointed to the bananas. “Take as many bananas as you like, Cathy,” he said. “They’re on the house, as usual!”

  Crafty Cathy smiled as she wheeled her cart to the bananas.

  “On the house?” George asked. “You mean everything is free for Crafty Cathy?”

  Mr. McCormick nodded. “Cathy mentions our store on her show every day,” he said. “It’s very good for business.”

  Nancy looked past Mr. McCormick at Crafty Cathy. She was wearing colorful earrings. And a colorful bracelet, too.

  Nancy looked closer. The jewelry was not made out of gems. Or stones. Or even beads. The earrings and bracelet were made out of—

  “Jelly beans!” Nancy gasped.

  Nancy quietly pointed them out to Bess and George.

  “You don’t think Crafty Cathy stole the jelly beans, do you?” Bess whispered.

  Nancy quickly put the pieces together. “Cathy is always wheeling a cart,” she whispered. “And she can take anything out of the store without paying for it.”

  Crafty Cathy spun her cart around. She began wheeling it away from the fruit.

  “Let’s stop her,” Nancy told her friends. “We have to ask her questions!”

  Crafty Cathy picked up speed as she wheeled her cart toward the exit. The girls ran after her. But when they sped around a corner, they ran right into a tower of cereal boxes! WHAM!! The girls shrieked as the cardboard boxes tumbled to the floor.

  “Oh no!” Mr. McCormick wailed. “My Flakey Wakey Cereal tower is ruined!”

  The girls helped to rebuild the Flakey Wakey tower. When they were done, they ran outside. Crafty Cathy was gone!

  “We have to find Crafty Cathy right away,” Nancy declared. “I think she’s the jelly-bean thief!”

  7

  Crafty Confession

  Where do you think Crafty Cathy went?” Bess asked as they looked around.

  “Maybe she went to the TV station,” Nancy said. “Her show is on every day.”

  The girls hopped on their bicycles. They rode quickly and carefully down Main Street to the WRIV TV station.

  After parking their bikes, they walked through the spinning doors. A guard was sitting behind a desk in the waiting room.

  “Sorry, kids,” he told them. “Mr. Lizard is on vacation this month.”

  Mr. Lizard’s Playhouse was the girls’ favorite television show. But they weren’t at the station to see Mr. Lizard today.

  “We’d like to speak to Crafty Cathy, please,” Nancy said.

  The guard looked surprised. “You kids watch Crafty Cathy?” he asked.

  “Only once,” Bess said. “When she stuffed pillows with cotton candy.”

  The guard picked up a telephone. “I’ll let Cathy’s producer know you’re here,” he said. “In the meantime you can watch the show on that monitor.”

  He pointed to a TV set at the side of the room. Crafty Cathy was on the screen.

  “Thank you,” Nancy said.

  The girls sat on the floor in front of the set. George pointed to the screen.

  “Look!” she said. “She’s wearing the jelly-bean jewelry in the show.”

  Nancy wiggled toward the set for a closer look. It was the same jewelry she’d worn in the supermarket.

  Crafty Cathy walked over to something that looked like an easel. A white cloth was draped over it.

  “Today we’re going to get jazzy with jelly beans,” Crafty Cathy said. “Look what I made with just a jar full of jelly beans and a little imagination.”

  Cathy yanked off the cloth.

  Underneath was a picture of Cathy. But it wasn’t made of paint or colored pencils. It was made out of—

  “Jelly beans!” Nancy cried.

  “Hundreds of them!” Bess gasped.

  “For my self-portrait I used tropical flavors,” Crafty Cathy said. “And you can buy them at McCormick’s Supermarket.”

  “Tropical flavors?” the girls shouted at the same time.

  Nancy, Bess, and George jumped up. They stared at the television screen.

  “That’s proof enough for me!” George said. She pointed to the TV. “Crafty Cathy is guilty as charged!”

  “Guilty of what?” a voice asked.

  Nancy spun around. Standing right behind them was Crafty Cathy!

  “W-w-we thought you were on TV!” Nancy stammered.

  Crafty Cathy smiled. “My show was taped this morning,” she said. “That’s why I’m out here and not in the studio. So just what is it that I’m guilty of?” she demanded.

  Nancy took a deep breath and asked, “Ms. Crafty? Did you take the big jelly-bean jar out of McCormick’s Supermarket on Monday?”

  “You can call me Cathy,” Crafty Cathy said. “And I did put the jar in my cart. And wheeled it out of the store.”

  The girls’ mouths dropped open. Not only did Crafty Cathy confess—she didn’t seem to care!

  “Why did you take the jelly-bean jar, Cathy?” Nancy asked.

  Crafty Cathy shrugged. “I asked a checkout girl where the jelly beans were,” she said. “The girl pointed toward the jar and told me to help myself.”

  Nancy waved Bess and George away from Crafty Cathy.

  “I don’t get it,” Nancy whispered.

  “Me neither,” George whisperd. “Why would the girl tell Cathy to take the jelly beans from the contest?”

  Nancy tried to picture the girl pointing to the jelly-bean jar.

  “Hmm,” Nancy said slowly. “What if the girl didn’t really point to the jar.”<
br />
  “What do you mean?” Bess asked.

  Nancy lifted her notebook out of her waist pack. She turned to the map she’d drawn and studied it carefully.

  “Look,” Nancy said. She ran her finger along the map. “The jelly-bean jar was right between the candy shelf and the check-out counters.”

  “So?” George asked.

  “What if the check-out girl meant to point to the candy shelf?” Nancy said.

  Bess gasped. “Cathy could have thought the girl pointed to the jelly-bean jar instead!” she said.

  Nancy explained everything to Crafty Cathy. She showed her the map, too.

  “It was a mistake!” Crafty Cathy said. “I would never have taken those jelly beans if I knew the contest was still going on. I thought it was over!”

  Nancy smiled. She believed Crafty Cathy. And was glad she wasn’t a thief!

  “I’ll bring the jar back to the supermarket later today,” Cathy promised. “And explain everything to Mr. McCormick.”

  “Yes!” Bess cheered.

  “Maybe Mr. McCormick will start the space-camp contest again!” George said.

  “And,” Crafty Cathy added, “since you are such good detectives, I’d like to give you each a little present.”

  Crafty Cathy reached into her pocket and pulled out three jelly-bean bracelets. She handed one to each of the girls!

  “Wow!” Bess exclaimed. “We’ll be the best-dressed girls at space camp!”

  “If we win the contest,” Nancy pointed out.

  The girls dangled their colorful bracelets on their wrists. After thanking Crafty Cathy, they left the TV studio.

  “These bracelets are way cool!” George said outside.

  “I thought you didn’t like bracelets, George,” Bess said.

  “I don’t,” George said. She licked her lips. “But I love jelly beans!”

  Nancy, Bess, and George walked back to their bicycles.

  “Aren’t you happy, Nancy?” Bess asked. “You solved the case. And you saved the space-camp contest, too!”

  Nancy was happy. But she still had one question . . . .

  “If the boys didn’t steal the jelly-bean jar,” Nancy wondered, “then what were they doing with all those jelly beans?”

  8

  The Winner Is . . .

  It’s a party on Main Street!” Nancy said happily “A space party!”

  It was a whole week after Nancy solved the case. Almost all the kids in River Heights were on Main Street to find out the winner of the Guess-the-Jelly-Beans contest.

  When Crafty Cathy brought back the empty jar, Mr. McCormick had filled it again with the same secret amount of jelly beans. And the contest was on!

  “Wow!” George said. She gave a low whistle. “Look how many kids showed up!”

  Nancy glanced around. Most of the kids in the crowd were dressed up as astronauts, aliens, and even rocket ships. Katie was there with Lester on her shoulder. She was wearing a T-shirt that read: LESTER, FIRST PARROT IN SPACE!

  Nancy, Bess, and George wore pins shaped like stars and planets—and their jelly-bean bracelets, of course!

  “Out of my way, out of my way!” a voice commanded.

  Nancy turned to see Orson Wong spinning around in circles. His arms and legs were wrapped in silver foil. The cap on his head was made of silver foil too.

  “What are you supposed to be?” George joked. “A baked potato?”

  “Duh!” Orson said, spinning. “I’m a super satellite. And I’m orbiting Earth!”

  Orson suddenly stopped. He grabbed his tummy and groaned.

  “I think the super-satellite just got super-dizzy!” Bess whispered.

  “Attention, kids!” Mr. McCormick called out. He stood on a stage built in front of the supermarket. On a small table was the jelly-bean jar. Standing next to him was a woman wearing a blue pantsuit.

  “That’s Janet Weston, a real-live astronaut!” Nancy said excitedly. “I once saw her picture in a kids magazine!”

  “An astronaut?” Bess asked. “I wonder if she’s afraid of heights or aliens.”

  “Speaking of aliens,” George whispered, “here come the boys.”

  Jason, David, and Mike were wearing their Moleheads from Mars costumes as they pushed their way through the crowd.

  “And now,” Mr. McCormick called out, “it’s time to find out who is the winner!”

  Nancy stared at the jelly-bean jar. Was her guess close? Close enough to win?

  “The winner of the Guess-the-Jelly-Beans contest is . . .” Mr. McCormick began to say.

  Janet handed him a card. Nancy’s heart beat faster as Mr. McCormick read the card to himself. Then he looked up and announced, “Mike Minelli.”

  Nancy’s heart sank. She could hear Bess and George groan. Not only did they lose, they lost to one of the boys!

  “We’re going to space camp!” Mike yelled. “We’re going to space camp!”

  The three boys ran up onstage.

  “Congratulations, Mike,” Janet said. “Your guess was exactly right!”

  “Exactly right?” Nancy gasped. If the boys didn’t steal the jar, how did they know the exact number of jelly beans?”

  “We didn’t guess!” Mike told Janet. “We had the whole thing planned out!”

  “What do you mean?” Janet asked.

  “First we bought a jar the same size as the one in the contest,” Jason said. “Then we filled it with as many Smelly Jellies as would fit inside.”

  “Next we counted all the jelly beans in the jar,” David said.

  “Then we ate them,” Mike added. “The toe-jam flavor rocked!”

  “Ewwww!” Bess cried.

  Nancy stared at Bess and George. So that’s what the boys were doing with all those jelly beans!

  “What do you say, Ms. Weston?” Mike asked. “When do we blast off?”

  “Not so fast, guys,” Janet said. “This was supposed to be a guessing contest.”

  “So?” Mike asked.

  “You didn’t guess,” Janet said firmly. “So you can’t win.”

  “You mean we can’t go to space camp?” David cried.

  Mike pointed at his cousin Eddie in the crowd. “This was all your idea!” he shouted. “Thanks a lot, cement-head!”

  Suddenly Nancy had a horrible thought. What if Mr. McCormick called off the contest again?

  “Luckily we have a runner-up,” Mr. McCormick said to the crowd. “The kid with the next closest guess is . . .”

  He looked at a card. Then he looked at the crowd and said, “Nancy Drew!”

  Bess and George shrieked. Nancy was too surprised to say anything. But she jumped up and down with her friends.

  “You won, Nancy!” Bess cheered.

  “You’re going to space camp!” George cheered.

  “We’re going to space camp!” Nancy said. “And we’re going to have a blast!”

  Orson and Katie hurried over.

  “Don’t forget to pack astronaut food,” Orson said. “The freeze-dried tacos are pretty good.”

  “And if you do go to space,” Katie said, “don’t forget to take Lester!”

  Nancy saw Brenda squeeze through the crowd. She wore a junior astronaut suit and matching space helmet. In her hand was a copy of the Carlton News.

  “Here.” Brenda shoved the newspaper in Nancy’s hand. “I wrote a whole article about you. It’s on the first page.”

  Nancy’s stomach did a triple-flip. Did Brenda write about her telescope? Did she call Nancy a snoop? But when Nancy looked at the front page she smiled. The headline read: NANCY DREW SAVES SPACE CAMP CONTEST!

  “Thanks, Brenda!” Nancy said.

  “A deal’s a deal,” Brenda said with a sigh.

  “Now you have to write a new headline, Brenda,” George said. “One that reads ‘Nancy wins the space-camp contest’!”

  Next came the most exiting part of all. The girls filed up onstage to meet Janet Weston.

  “How did you do it, Nancy?” Janet as
ked. “Was it a lucky guess?”

  Nancy thought so. Until she remembered a wish she made a few nights ago. “I think it was a lucky star, Ms. Weston,” she said. “A very lucky star!”

  • • •

  That night Mr. Drew took Nancy, Bess, and George to a restaurant to celebrate. It was called Mission Control. The waiters were dressed like aliens and served dishes with names like Planetary Pizza and Galaxy Guacamole.

  Nancy ordered Space-age Spaghetti with Meteor Meatballs. For dessert she had Astro Apple Pie.

  “Do you think there are aliens in outer space?” Bess asked as she sipped her Martian Milkshake.

  George ate a spoonful of her Stardust Sundae. “I don’t know,” she said. “But they sure can cook!”

  Nancy felt great.

  It was the perfect ending to a perfect day. But it wasn’t over yet. . . .

  When she got home, Nancy went up to her room. This time she didn’t go to her telescope. She went straight to her detective notebook and began to write . . . .

  Daddy was right when he said snooping isn’t a good idea. What you see isn’t always true. But I am going to space camp, and that’s the truth!

  Maybe I’ll even go to space someday. There must be mysteries up there, too. In the meantime I have the next best things: Cosmic Kids Space Camp and my telescope!

  Case closed!

  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.

  First Aladdin Paperbacks edition August 2004

  Copyright © 2004 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  ALADDIN

  An imprint of Simon & Schuster

  Children’s Publishing Division

  1230 Avenue of the Americas

  New York, NY 10020

  www.SimonandSchuster.com

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

  NANCY DREW, THE NANCY DREW NOTEBOOKS, and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Library of Congress Control Number 2003114515

  ISBN 978-0-689-86536-7