The Bunny-Hop Hoax

  “Out of our way! Out of our way!” a voice yelled out.

  The girls spun around. Lonny and Lenny were running down the block. Nancy could see them stuffing candy into their mouths. They were always eating candy. The girls jumped aside as the twins raced by. The boys knocked over the girls’ backpacks as they leaped over them.

  “Pests,” Katie muttered. “I’m never going to let them pet Bun Franklin.”

  Nancy’s eyes lit up. “What if the twins did pet Bun Franklin?” she asked. “What if they sneaked into our classroom while we were practicing?”

  “Write that down, Nancy,” Bess said, pointing to the notebook. “Suspect number two: Lonny and Lenny!”

  “Suspects two and three,” George said. “There are two of them, remember?”

  Nancy wrote the word SUSPECTS. Underneath she wrote BRENDA, LONNY, and LENNY. “Now, how do we find out who the real culprit is?” she asked. “Is it—”

  “Ew!” Bess cut in. “There’s a worm on your backpack, Nancy!”

  “A worm?” Nancy gasped. She looked down and sighed with relief. “It’s just a candy gummy worm one of the twins dropped.”

  “Brenda Carlton hates gummy worms more than anything,” Katie laughed. “Just seeing them makes her gag.”

  Nancy looked up from her notebook.

  “If Brenda hates gummy worms, and the twins love them . . . why don’t we set up a trap?”

  “A trap?” George asked.

  Nancy glanced around to make sure no one was listening. Then she explained.

  “Whoever messed up the classroom might try to do it again. So we can put a bag of gummy worms next to Bun’s crate. If the culprit returns to ruin our room again, the worms will be right there. Afterward we can look to see if any were eaten. If they were, the twins did it. If all the worms are still there, it was Brenda!”

  “I like it! I like it!” George said.

  “Good thinking, Nancy!” Katie said.

  “I can buy the gummy worms,” Bess offered excitedly. “The candy store is on my way home from school.”

  All four girls high-fived.

  “Let’s set up the trap tomorrow morning,” Nancy said, “before the school bell rings.”

  “Why so early?” Katie asked.

  “Because the early bird catches the worm,” Nancy said. She picked up the sticky, gooey gummy worm. “But in this case, the worm will catch the culprit!”

  4

  Hare-Raising Trouble!

  I haven’t done the Bunny Hop in years, Nancy,” Hannah said with a laugh.

  It was late that afternoon. Nancy had gotten home from school and was in the den teaching Hannah Gruen how to do the Bunny Hop. Hannah had been the Drews’ housekeeper since Nancy was three years old.

  “Speaking of bunnies,” Nancy said, “my class got a pet rabbit today.”

  “I had a pet rabbit when I was a girl,” Hannah said as she hopped. “But he kept escaping from his cage.”

  Nancy thought of Bun Franklin and gulped. “He . . . did?” she asked.

  “All the time,” Hannah said. She stopped hopping. “We called him Houdini. After the famous escape artist.”

  Hannah went into the kitchen to check on the casserole. Nancy sat on the couch as her Labrador puppy, Chocolate Chip, padded into the den. Chip nuzzled Nancy’s hand with her cool nose.

  “Bun Franklin is nothing like Houdini, Chip,” Nancy said. “At least I hope he’s not!”

  • • •

  “Did you do it, Bess?” Nancy asked.

  “Did you throw the gummy worms through the window?” Katie chimed in.

  It was Tuesday morning in the school yard. Nancy and her friends stood whispering in a huddle.

  “I tossed the bag right into the classroom,” Bess said. “And you know where it landed? Next to Bun’s crate!”

  “Great pitch, Bess!” George said. “Especially for someone who doesn’t play softball!”

  Nancy grinned and said, “Now all we have to do is wait.”

  The girls walked through the school yard. Mrs. Reynolds was in charge that week. She had to make sure that everyone was playing safely.

  As Nancy and her two friends passed Molly and Rebecca, they saw them reading copies of Brenda’s newspaper, the Carlton News.

  “Brenda’s right,” Molly said. “If Katie brought in a bad-news bunny, she shouldn’t get to lead the Bunny Hop.”

  “Katie can’t dance the Bunny Hop anyway,” Rebecca said. “At least that’s what Brenda wrote.”

  “Did you hear that?” Katie whispered. “Brenda is trying to get me fired!”

  “Forget it, Katie,” George said. “Brenda is just being . . . Brenda-ish!”

  The bell rang. Mrs. Reynolds led Nancy and her classmates into the building. As they filed into their classroom, Nancy saw Bun Franklin in his crate. Then she saw Brenda at the windowsill, watering the class plants.

  “Brenda was in here again!” George hissed. “She could have let Bun out of his crate!”

  Nancy and her friends looked around the classroom. A plastic pencil cup had been knocked to the floor!

  “Let’s check out the gummy worms!” George ran to the bag of candy worms and opened it. “Eight worms in the bag. How many worms were there to start, Bess?”

  “Ten,” Bess said. “But—”

  “Someone ate two gummy worms!” Katie said. “And that means—”

  “Lonny and Lenny!” Nancy cut in.

  Still wearing their jackets, Nancy, George, and Katie hurried out of the classroom and down the hall to the kindergarten wing. Bess ran after them.

  “Wait!” Bess called. “I have to tell you something!”

  Nancy couldn’t wait. Lonny and Lenny were standing right outside their kindergarten class. They were stuffing their backpacks into their cubbies.

  “Okay, you two!” Nancy called. “Did you just let our bunny out of his crate?”

  “No!” Lenny said. “We still haven’t even gotten to pet the bunny.”

  “I don’t believe them!” Katie said.

  The girls stood in front of the twins. Nancy put her hands on her hips.

  “Where were you boys yesterday between eleven thirty and twelve?” Nancy asked.

  “How should we know?” Lonny said. “We can’t tell time!”

  The twins dashed into the classroom and slammed the door.

  “They’ll never talk!” George said.

  Just then Nancy saw a big piece of cardboard hanging over the cubbies. Written on it with glitter was CLASS TRIP TO THE FIREHOUSE, APRIL 4.

  Nancy looked at the pictures pasted on the cardboard. They showed the kindergarten kids at the River Heights Firehouse. One shot was of Lonny and Lenny sliding down a fire pole.

  “April fourth?” Nancy asked, thinking out loud. “That was yesterday.”

  Nancy studied the picture. “Wait a minute,” she said slowly. “The twins couldn’t have messed up our classroom.”

  “Why not?” Bess asked.

  “Because they were at the firehouse when it happened,” Nancy declared.

  She pointed to the picture. The girls leaned closer and saw that there was a clock next to the fire pole.

  “The clock says eleven thirty!” George exclaimed.

  “But what about the gummy worms?” Katie asked. “If the twins didn’t eat them, who did?”

  “I did!” Bess blurted.

  Nancy, Katie, and George whirled around. They stared at Bess.

  “What?” they asked together.

  “I ate two on the way to school!” Bess said. “And when I threw the bag into the classroom, I knocked over the pencil cup!”

  “Give me a break, Bess!” George wailed. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

  “I tried to!” Bess cried.

  Nancy took a deep breath. “It’s okay, Bess,” she said. “At least we proved that the twins are innocent.”

  “Girls!” Mrs. Reynolds called down the hall. “Come to class right now.”

  “Coming,
Mrs. Reynolds!” Nancy called back. She and her friends rushed back to the classroom. After sitting down at her desk, Nancy crossed the twins’ names out of her detective notebook.

  Now I have only one suspect, Nancy thought. And her name is Brenda Carlton!

  For the rest of the morning, Mrs. Reynolds’s class made paper bunny ears and flower petals to wear in the Spring Festival.

  After that, it was time to practice the Bunny Hop. Katie looked worried as she pulled on the bunny suit. Nancy was worried too. What if the culprit struck again during practice?

  “This time I’m locking the door,” Mrs. Reynolds told the class.

  When they were out in the school yard, Brenda turned to Mrs. Reynolds.

  “I can’t dance in these shoes, Mrs. Reynolds,” Brenda said. “May I clean the blackboard instead?”

  “But you just watered the class plants this morning,” Mrs. Reynolds said.

  “I know,” Brenda said with a huge smile. “I just love to be helpful!”

  “Okay, Brenda,” Mrs. Reynolds said. She handed her the classroom key. “But tomorrow wear comfortable shoes.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Reynolds!” Brenda turned and ran toward the building.

  “Some tight shoes,” George said. “She practically skipped all the way inside!”

  Nancy kept wondering—was Brenda up to something?

  The kids lined up behind Katie. The music started, and Katie hopped too fast and fell on the ground!

  “Yeah, I know.” Katie groaned as she stood up. “Practice makes perfect.”

  Suddenly Brenda ran out of the building. “Mrs. Reynolds, Mrs. Reynolds! Something happened inside. Come quick!”

  The class raced into the classroom. Nancy stared at the paper bunny ears and flower petals on the floor. Some were crumpled, and Mrs. Reynolds’s water bottle had spilled all over the floor.

  “It was like this when I came in, Mrs. Reynolds!” Brenda said. She picked up another chewed-up celery stalk. “I guess the bunny went bonkers again.”

  Nancy looked at Bun Franklin. He was sitting quietly in his upside-down crate. But the bowl of celery was knocked over.

  “Or maybe,” Nancy said, “somebody let the bunny out of his crate!”

  5

  Chew Clue

  Or maybe,” Kyle said with a grin, “Bun Franklin lifted the crate all by himself. Maybe he’s Super Bunny!”

  The boys and girls laughed nervously. But Nancy didn’t. If only she could tell Mrs. Reynolds what she thought about Brenda. But she still had no proof!

  “Don’t send Bun Franklin home yet, Mrs. Reynolds,” Katie pleaded. “I’ll bring in a brand-new rabbit cage tomorrow. With a door and a latch and everything!”

  Mrs. Reynolds thought a new cage was a good idea. So she gave Bun Franklin one final chance.

  While the kids picked up the paper bunny ears and flower petals, Bess found something else on the floor. It was her favorite pencil. The one with the white eraser shaped like a unicorn.

  “Phooey!” Bess said. “Bun Franklin chewed up my pencil when he was running around. It’s got teeth marks all over it.”

  “Sorry,” Katie said.

  “It’s not Bun Franklin’s fault,” Nancy said. “He was just being a bunny.”

  Nancy searched for clues around Bun Franklin’s crate. The only thing she noticed was that one celery stalk was gone.

  “I wish you could talk, Bun Franklin,” Nancy whispered. “Then you could tell me if Brenda really did it!”

  • • •

  “How many bunnies are at the Cottontail Bunny Ranch?” Nancy asked.

  “I think there are seventy-five of them,” Katie answered.

  “Why so many?” Bess asked.

  Mrs. Zaleski smiled as she drove the blue minivan. “Because they multiply!” she called over her shoulder.

  “Cool!” George said. “Maybe they can help me with my math homework!”

  It was four o’clock in the afternoon. Katie had invited Nancy, Bess, and George to the Cottontail Bunny Ranch. That was where Mrs. Zaleski was going to buy Bun Franklin’s brand-new cage!

  “Here we are, girls,” Mrs. Zaleski said as she drove through the ranch gate. “The Cottontail Bunny Ranch!”

  A man dressed in blue jeans and a matching jacket came to greet them.

  “Girls, this is Mr. Harewood,” Mrs. Zaleski said as they climbed out of the minivan. “He owns the ranch.”

  Mr. Harewood grinned with big white teeth—just like a bunny’s!

  “If I’d known you were coming,” Mr. Harewood said, “I would have given you a Twenty-One-Bun-Salute!”

  “Bunny jokes,” George whispered. “I’ll bet he’s got a million of them.”

  “We’re here to buy a new cage for Katie’s rabbit,” Mrs. Zaleski explained.

  “You mean a new hutch,” Mr. Harewood explained. “That’s where rabbits live.”

  “Hutch,” Nancy repeated.

  “A good hutch is big enough for a rabbit to hop around in,” Mr. Harewood explained. “It has a built-in water bottle, litter tray, and food dish.”

  “Does it have a door with a lock on it?” Nancy asked. “A good strong lock?”

  “How about an alarm?” George asked. “In case somebody sneaky opens the door?”

  “And a built-in camera?” Katie added. “So we can catch that sneak in the act?”

  Mr. Harewood blinked a few times. “Are you sure you girls want a rabbit hutch?” he asked.

  “A simple hutch will do,” Mrs. Zaleski said, smiling. “May I see a few?”

  “And can we see the bunnies?” Bess asked, jumping up and down. “Please?”

  “Bunnies?” Mr. Harewood boomed. “What are we waiting for? Let’s get hoppin’!”

  While Mrs. Zaleski looked at hutches, Mr. Harewood led the girls through the bunny ranch. Most of the bunnies were hopping around inside big wired pens. Mr. Harewood opened a gate so the girls could step inside.

  “Be very gentle,” Mr. Harewood said as he handed each girl a bunny.

  Nancy giggled as her little white bunny wiggled in her arms. “This one looks just like Bun Franklin!” she said.

  “How do you like your new pet rabbit?” Mr. Harewood asked.

  “We like him!” Bess said. “Except that today he chewed up my favorite pencil.”

  Bess placed her bunny on the ground. She pulled the pencil out of her jacket pocket and showed it to Mr. Harewood.

  “Hmm,” Mr. Harewood said. “Are you sure a bunny did this?”

  “Pretty sure,” Bess said. “Why?”

  “Well,” Mr. Harewood said. “Because—”

  “Oh, Mr. Harewood!” Mrs. Zaleski called. “I think I found my hutch.”

  “Bun-tastic!” Mr. Harewood called back. He tossed the pencil to Bess. “Excuse me, girls. Got to get hoppin’.”

  The girls all stared at Mr. Harewood as he walked away.

  “Maybe he doesn’t think they’re bunny teeth marks,” Bess said.

  “And if anyone knows bunnies,” Katie said, “it’s Mr. Harewood.”

  But Nancy wanted to see for herself. She placed her bunny on the ground and looked around the pen. A small brown rabbit was chewing on a piece of wood.

  “Let’s compare teeth marks,” Nancy said.

  The brown bunny hopped away as the girls walked over. Bess, George, and Katie watched as Nancy held the two sets of teeth marks side by side.

  “Hmm,” Nancy said. “The teeth marks on the pencil are a lot smaller than the ones on the wood.”

  “So Bun Franklin couldn’t have chewed up the pencil!” Katie said.

  “Then who did?” George asked.

  Nancy studied the pencil. “These teeth marks are even too tiny to be human,” she said. “Way too tiny.”

  The girls became very quiet. Until Bess exclaimed, “Well, somebody chewed up my unicorn pencil!”

  “Somebody,” Nancy said slowly, “or something!”

  6

  Bye-Bye, Bunny

&nbs
p; Are you sleepy, Pudding Pie?” Mr. Drew asked Nancy.

  “Sleepy?” Nancy asked with a yawn. “What makes you say that, Daddy?”

  “Because you just poured orange juice over your cereal,” Mr. Drew answered.

  Nancy gulped. Her father was right. It was Wednesday morning and she had hardly slept the night before.

  “I guess I am sleepy, Daddy,” Nancy said. “I was reading late last night.”

  Hannah leaned over Nancy’s shoulder to pour her a new bowl of cereal. “Your schoolbook?” she asked.

  “No,” Nancy said, shaking her head. “My detective notebook!”

  Nancy told her father all about Bun Franklin. Mr. Drew was a lawyer, and he liked helping Nancy with her cases. He had even given Nancy her blue detective notebook.

  “So far my only suspect is Brenda,” Nancy said. “But I have no proof that she did it. And my only clues are those weird teeth marks on Bess’s pencil.”

  Nancy showed her father a page in her notebook. She had drawn little dashes the same size as the teeth marks.

  Mr. Drew tapped the tip of Nancy’s nose and smiled. “Sometimes no clues can be a clue too,” he said. “Think about it.”

  Nancy tried to. But it didn’t make sense. How could no clues be a clue?

  “I hope you’re right,” Nancy sighed. “Because right now, I’m totally clueless!”

  Nancy finished her cereal. She brushed her reddish-blond hair, put on her denim jacket, and hurried off to school.

  • • •

  As soon as Nancy walked into the classroom with her friends, she saw Bun Franklin. He was already inside his brand-new hutch.

  “My mom brought it in before school started,” Katie said. “Doesn’t Bun look happy?”

  “You mean hoppy!” George joked.

  “Now you sound like Mr. Harewood!” Katie groaned.

  Nancy glanced at Brenda. She was over by the closet, admiring Katie’s bunny suit.

  “Do the Bunny Hop,” Brenda was singing softly. “Hop, hop, hop.”

  Nancy kept a close eye on Brenda during math, current events, and science. When she watched Brenda during recess, she didn’t like what she saw.

  “This is called a petition,” Brenda said, waving a piece of paper. “If enough of you sign it, the lead bunny job will be taken away from Katie.”