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FROG VAN

"Well, I never thought Dad’s frogs were in the bag anyway, " Wanda said the next"You did " "No I didn’t It was a stupid idea " Wanda and I were getting ready to go to the beach It was a really sunny day and usu- ally I would have been excited because I like the sea now I never used to go to the beach when I lived with just Aunt Tabby and Uncle Drac

Aunt Tabby thought the sea was danger- ous and Uncle Drac does not really like day- light, and he especially does not like being out in the sun But just then I did not want to go to the beach, as I was in a bad mood

I was in a bad mood because:

1 Yesterday, after her bicycle ambushed me, Nurse Watkins marched us back to Spookie House She found Uncle Drac knitting in the hedge and made him walk up and down the path twenty times

2 Which annoyed Uncle Drac

3 When Barry asked how come we had bro- ken Nurse Watkins’s bicycle, Wanda had told hi for his frogs

4 Which annoyed Barry

5 And Brenda

6 And Aunt Tabby

7 And me

Because it was not true, as I never got the chance In fact I had been savagely attacked by Nurse Watkins’s bag It was just not fair But no one cares what I think, so ere going to the beach whether I wanted to or not Ever since Brenda told Aunt Tabby about lifeboats and rescue helicopters, Aunt Tabby has changed her erous and now she really likes it In fact, I think she secretly wants to be rescued by a helicopter Actually, I wouldn’trescued by a helicopter either But not at the saet there, -48- Araminta, " said Aunt Tabby Huh Aunt Tabby always acts like she knows the future, but she doesn’t "How can you know that I will enjoy it?" I asked "I et eaten by a shark I wouldn’t enjoy that " Aunt Tabby raised her eyes up like she was looking for sohed "I don’t suppose the shark would either, " she replied Which I did not think was very nice I had been thinking about what Nurse Watkins had said to the little old lady and I realized I had another clue I was hoping that if I was gruo to the beach and leave me behind because I had a plan--I wanted to sneak off to the mushrooood, ere all going to the beach in Barry’s van Except for Uncle Drac, of course And Barry, as he was still looking for his frogs I told Barry that ere still looking for them too, and he said it was probably bet- ter that we didn’t look anys considered But what Barry did not under- stand was that a good detective never gives up In fact, froive up, the more deter- mined they are to continue As soon as the detective’s boss tells her that she is being taken off the case, you know that’s it--she will go right on and solve it But if I couldn’t go to the mushroom farm, I knew someone who could So while Brenda, Aunt Tabby, and Wanda werethe beach towels, I went to find Sir Horace

Sir Horace is one of the ghosts in Spookie House The other ghost is a weedy boy called Edood at finding frogs because he would be scared of them But I knew Sir Horace would help When you first see Sir Horace you do not realize he is a ghost at all; you think he is just an old suit of arhost of Sir Horace Cuthbert Shirley George Harbinger Sir Horace got to be a ghost after a fight with some nasty people called FitzMaurice who left hirotto and then took over his castle One of their descen- dants, Old Morris, still lives there, although the castle has almost disappeared, and now it is the mushroom farm

First of all I had to find Sir Horace Sos around the hall Sir Horace likes com- pany and you can usually find hioings But that day there was no sign of hio and find him in his secret roo to look forHe does this when he wants to go to sleep or if he is in a badthe landing, which is really wide and has banisters so thick that you can swing fro in too

I was very quiet; I did not want Sir Horace to hearfro because Aunt Tabby had closed all the curtains to stop the sun froht that was left I couldn’t see Sir Horace anywhere so I stopped and lis- tened, and sure enough, I soon heard a telltale squeak of so the dusty old carpet and soon sahat I was looking for--two pointy ar and suspiciously lu on the wall "Boo!" I said, and pulled back the tapestry Sir Horace jumped and his armor squeaked like a scared hamster

Well, like quite a lot of scared haot the i to pre- tend he was not there "Would you like to co voice, which always gives oose bumps when I first hear it "Please, " I said "I need your help " I thought I heard Sir Horace sigh You see, because he is a knight he cannot refuse to help any damsel in distress I e knight is concerned, that is what I am Also I was in distress Well, sort of On behalf of the frogs "What can I do to help you, Miss Spookie?" asked Sir Horace He did -55- not sound as keen as I would have liked but that did not matter "I want you to come to the mushroom farm You know--your old castle where Morris FitzMaurice lives " "Do not mention that name here, Miss Spookie, " Sir Horace boos and report back to ht Acrobatic frogs Five of the more but he didn’t "Come on then, Sir Horace " "What, now ?" "Yes In fact we’re late as it is "

"Can’t it wait?" "No " Sir Horace gave a really big sigh "Very well then I shall be with you in a moment, Miss Spookie But if I aet " He bowed, then lurched to one side, threw his left leg for- ward, and set off along the corridor doing the weirdest walk I had ever seen hi to pieces every now and then Wanda and I always have the job of putting hiet all the pieces in exactly the saets rebuilt, Sir Horace walks in a dif- ferent way I guessed his weird walkto do with the fact that we last put Sir Horace together at the sa Wanda’s bicycle I had a feeling that so for ot to the van just in ti up with the picnic bas- ket, rugs, beach umbrellas, windbreaks, air s that Brenda always takes to the beach Brenda was sitting nervously in the driver’s seat--because Aunt Tabby is teaching her to drive--and Wanda was already in the back of the van with all the stuff Sir Horace was on the doorstep staring at Barry’s van I was not surprised, as most peo- ple stare at Barry’s van It is very e, especially when you are in it Barry recently painted his van (which used to belong to Uncle Drac) with pictures of his frogs

They were leapfrogging all over it, they had big scary eyes, and since he had run out of green paint, they were all weird colors Also the paint had run It was s, which Barry thought would ht it would put people off "Hurry up, Sir Horace, " I said "Brenda’s driving and she is likely to take off at any ood clutch control, " which is a fancy way of saying that when Brenda drives, the van leapfrogs like a giant frog itself Sir Horace clattered down the steps and I was glad that Aunt Tabby was so busy telling Brenda to reo of the handbrake this time that she did not notice

Aunt Tabby has a policy of never letting you do anything that you want to, and I was pretty sure this would cover taking Sir Horace to the mush- room farm in the back of the van Wanda, however, did notice But luckily, just as she shouted, "No, Araminta, I will not move over for Sir Horace, " her voice was drowned out by the ears and Aunt Tabby yelling, "Clutch, Brenda! Clutch!" I pulled Sir Horace inside and slaaroo-hopped down the drive and out into the lane It was a lovely sunny day, and as we passed the dan- ger, unexploded n I smiled Chief Detective Spookie was on the case