Chillin’ with Villains

Dare to read: Нэнси Дрю и Братья Харди

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ПРИЯТНОГО ЧТЕНИЯ!

Carolyn Keene

The Nancy Drew Notebooks: Volume Fifty

The Scarytales Sleepover

Copyright, 2002, by Simon & Schuster, Inc

THRILLS AND CHILLS — THIS IS GOING TO BE THE COOLEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

Adventure is brewing at Scarytales, a creepy old house where story, book villains like the Big Bad Wolf, Captain Hook, and the mean stepsisters from " Cinderella" come to life. So when Nancy, Bess, George, Katie Zaleski, and her parrot, Lester, go to their friend Amara's Scarytales sleepover party, they're sure to have a great time.

But the fun really turns scary when strange things start to happen and Lester disappears from his cage. Even the villains of Scarytales are spooked! Could the troublemaker be Amara's pesky little cousin Ernest, the grouchy troll with a plan tip his sleeve, or the wicked witch who threatens to pop Lester into her bubbling brew? Can Nancy solve this creepy case before Amara's birthday is ruined?

Chillin’ with Villains

“Since when do parrots go to sleepovers? ” eight-year-old Nancy Drew asked her friend Katie Zaleski.

“My cousin is visiting and he’s allergic to feathers, ” Katie answered. “So Amara told me I could bring Lester to the party.”

Katie sat in the backseat of the Drews’ car. She held her pet parrot’s cage on her lap.

“Row, row, row your boat! ” Lester screeched. “Arrrk! ”

“He’s going to keep us up all night! ” Nancy’s best friend Bess Marvin groaned.

“It’s a sleepover! ” Nancy’s other best friend, George Fayne, said. “We’re supposed to stay up all night! ”

Nancy smiled. She sat in the front seat between her friend Mari Cheng and the Drews’ housekeeper, Hannah Gruen. Bess, George, and Katie sat in the backseat.

“All aboard the sleepover express! ” Hannah announced as she started the car.

Hannah had been the Drews’ housekeeper since Nancy was only three years old. Hannah cooked yummy meals for Nancy and made sure her clothes were neat and clean. But today Hannah was driving Nancy and her friends to Amara Shane’s first sleepover.

Nancy had been to sleepovers before, but this one would be special.

Amara was having her sleepover at Scarytales — a big old house where the villains from all different fairy tales — like the wolf from “Little Red Riding Hood” and Captain Hook from Peter Pan — came to life.

Amara’s aunt Ellen owned Scarytales. She lived there with her seven-year-old son, Ernest.

“I can’t believe we’re spending the night with fairy tale villains! ” Bess said. She tugged at her blond ponytail. “Those parts of the stories always gave me goose bumps! ”

“Amara told us it’s more fun than scary, ” Nancy said. “She’s been there so many times she knows exactly what will happen.”

“Villains are the best! ” George said, her dark eyes flashing. “What would Hansel and Gretel be without the witch? ”

“Safe! ” Bess shuddered.

Mari shook her head at Bess and George. “Are you two sure you’re cousins? ”

“Last we checked! ” George joked. George’s real name was Georgia. But hardly anyone called her that.

Hannah drove the car through River Heights. It was only six o’clock but the October night sky was already dark.

“What’s that around your neck, Mari? ” Hannah asked.

“A camera! ” Mari said proudly. “It develops pictures in just a few seconds! ”

“Great! ” Nancy said. “You can take pictures of all the villains! ”

“If they let you, ” Bess groaned.

Hannah slowed the car down. “Here it is, ” she announced. “Scarytales! ”

Nancy leaned over Mari to look out the side window. She saw a big old house and a yard filled with brown leaves. In front of the house was a narrow creek and a wooden bridge.

“This place is spooked, ” Mari said in a hushed voice.

“It just looks spooked! ” Nancy said.

“Check out the tower on the roof! ” Bess gasped. “Towers mean bats! ” she exclaimed.

“No bats, ” Katie said, shaking her head. “Just witches, pirates, and trolls.”

Hannah parked the car on the street. She helped the girls unload their sleeping bags and backpacks. Most of them wore jeans, sneakers, and long-sleeve T-shirts. Bess wore black pants and a bright orange sweater. Crunching through the leaves, they carried their gear toward the house. Hannah held Katie’s sleeping bag so she could carry Lester’s cage.

“I guess we have to cross that bridge to get to the house, ” Nancy said.

“Not so fast! ” came a gruff voice.

A short man with a long white beard crawled out from under the bridge. He wore blue overalls, a yellow shirt, and a pointed red hat. Three people dressed as goats ran out after him.

“You have to pay the toll first! ” the little man said, holding out his hand.

“Or go baaaaack! ” a goat said.

Nancy giggled. It was the mean troll from “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.”

“Well? ” the troll said. He was so small that he looked Nancy straight in the eye. “Are you going to cough it up? ”

“Sorry.” Hannah smiled. “These girls don’t get their allowances until Monday.”

Katie put Lester’s cage on the ground. She reached into her pocket. “But you can have some cinnamon gum, ” she said.

“Nan, ” the troll said. “Cinnamon makes me sneeze.”

“How about a baseball card? ” George asked. She pulled a card from her pocket.

“Baseball? ” the troll cried. He rubbed his hands. “Now you’re talking! ”

“If you’re such a fan, ” George said, tilting her curly head, “how come you’re not watching the play-offs tonight? ”

The troll didn’t answer as he snatched the baseball card. “You can cross now, ” he said.

“What a grouch! ” Bess whispered.

“He was just pretending, ” Hannah said as they walked over the bridge.

“Wait! ” Mari said. “I want to get a picture of the troll and the goats! ”

Nancy, Mari, and George ran back to the middle of the bridge. They leaned over the rail. Nancy couldn’t see the troll or the goats. But she could hear them.

“Who says I’m not watching the baseball game tonight? ” a voice asked.

Nancy looked at Mari and George. It was the troll’s gruff voice.

“I happen to have a little plan up my sleeve, ” the troll went on.

The goats began to laugh. “You are so baaaad! ” one goat said.

“I think I’ll pass on that picture, ” Mari said softly.

But Nancy was curious. “What plan do you think the troll was talking about? ” she whispered to her friends.

George shrugged and sighed. “Villains. You just can’t figure them out, ” she whispered back.

Nancy, George, and Mari ran back over the bridge to join the others. They walked across the yard toward the front door.

Suddenly a tall man dressed in a wolf costume jumped out from behind a tree. Over his costume was a flannel nightgown.

“Greetings! ” he said. He tipped his nightcap. “Are you on your way to Grandma’s house? ”

Nancy decided to play along. “My! ” She laughed. “What big teeth you have! ”

The wolf reached behind the tree and pulled out a pizza box. “The better to eat mushroom and pepperoni pizza with! ” he declared. “You will share some with me, won’t you? ”

“Pizza isn’t good for wolves, ” Hannah joked. “Especially if they wolf it down.”

Hannah borrowed Mari’s camera to take a picture of the wolf and the girls. They posed on the doorstep.

“Say cheese! ” Hannah called.

“Pepperoni! ” the wolf called back.

Hannah took the picture. The wolf gave a little wave. Then he disappeared behind the tree again.

“Amara was right, ” Nancy said excitedly. “This place is a blast! ”

The front door flew open. Amara stood in the doorway. “I hope you weren’t scared of the big bad wolf! ” She giggled.

Mari held up her instant picture. All of the girls were smiling and laughing. “Does this look like scared? ” she asked.

Amara waved everyone through the door. “My first sleepover! ” she said. “This is going to be soooo cool! ”

“Have a good time, ” Hannah said. “I’ll pick you all up in the morning.”

After Hannah left, Amara turned to her guests. “You can leave your stuff in the hall, ” she said. “I’ll take you up to the tower to meet my aunt.”

The girls propped their bags against the wall. Katie took Lester out of his cage and perched him on her shoulder.

Then Amara led everyone up a long staircase. The stairs took them straight to the tower.

“Ta-daa! ” Amara sang. “Check out my aunt’s office! ”

“Wow! ” Nancy exclaimed. The room looked like something out of a fairy tale. The dark blue wallpaper was covered with gold stars. Wind chimes hung over a large desk. Wands, colorful bottles, and magic books lined rows of shelves.

“Now where did that go? ” a woman’s voice piped up.

Nancy saw a tall pointed hat rise up from behind a desk. Slowly a woman dressed in a star-covered robe stood up.

“Oh, hi! ” she said, surprised. “I’m Aunt Ellen. Welcome to Scarytales! ”

“Did you lose something? ” Bess asked.

“My crystal ball.” Aunt Ellen sighed. “I can’t seem to find it anywhere.”

“Are you a real wizard? ” Mari asked.

“No! ” Aunt Ellen laughed. “But I like to think I have the magic touch.”

Just then Nancy heard Bess scream. She turned and saw why....

Fluttering over Bess’s shoulder was a brown bat!