Free Case of the School Ghost by Dori Hillestad Butler Page B

Michael have a lot to say to each other. But today they are both very quiet.
    Then I notice Michael’s backpack. There’s a flashlight sticking out of one of the pockets. Sniff … sniff … This flashlight has the same chocolate and bubblegum scent on it as the flashlight and papers that Connor found in the box outside our house!
    Connor notices Michael’s flashlight soon after I do. “Hey, I have a flashlight like that,” he says.
    “Yeah?” Michael says. “I, um, just got it. Today.”
    “Did you find it in a box on your front porch?” I ask Michael.
    Michael doesn’t answer me.
    “I … just got mine today, too,” Connor says.
    The boys look at each other. They both look like they want to say something more, but neither one does. Finally, they sit back and watch the rain fall outside their windows.
    Why don’t they say more about those flashlights? I wonder. I want to know where the flashlights came from.
    Who would ring a doorbell, leave a flashlight and some papers in a box by the door, and then run away? Even more important, why would someone do that?
    Hmm. I think I have a new case to solve.

    When we get to school, Connor and Michael help Mom carry things into the school. They move fast because it’s pouring outside.
    They bring everything to the library and Mrs. Warner shows them where to put it. Mom may be the boss of the school, but Mrs. Warner is the boss of the library.
    I greet all the kids as they arrive. Most of them give me a pat or a hug. They all come in soaking wet, but so, so, so excited. I’m excited, too!
    The kids unroll their sleeping bags, talk, laugh, and run around. It’s getting very, very loud in the library, but tonight Mrs. Warner doesn’t seem to mind.
    Then Mr. Poe comes. Mr. Poe always smells so interesting because he does a lot of different jobs at the school. Today he smells like PIZZA!
    “Pizza’s here!” Mr. Poe says. “It’s in the cafeteria.”
    “Yay, pizza!” several kids cry as they charge for the door.
    I know how they feel. I LOVE pizza. It’s my favorite food!
    I race down the hall with all the kids. When we get to the cafeteria, we crowd around a table that has about twelve or nine pizzas on it. Sniff … sniff … I smell tomatoes … cheese … crust … pepperoni … sausage … more cheese … onions … mushrooms. I LOVE all that stuff!
    “Not for you, Buddy,” Connor shoves my nose away from the table.
    Darn. The good stuff is never for me.
    Oh well. There are pizza crumbs on the floor. I clean them up as I follow Connor and Michael over to one of the long tables.
    Kids greet me along the way. “Hi, Buddy!” “Hey, Buddy!” “How are you doing, Buddy?” One even slips me his pizza crust.
    “Thank you!” I say, licking my lips.

    Rain pounds against the roof above the cafeteria. Lightning flashes. Thunder crashes. Several kids jump.
    Sniff … sniff … I smell scared kids.
    “It’s okay,” I say to all the kids. “It’s just a little thunderstorm.”
    “Aw!” A girl who smells like sausage and flowers turns around and hugs me. “Buddy’s scared of the storm.”
    What? No, I’m not. “You’re the one who’s scared. Not me,” I say, licking her cheek. Maybe if she pets me she won’t feel so scared.
    All of a sudden there is a strange banging sound above us. Like someone is up there pounding on the ceiling with a hammer.
    The cafeteria grows quiet and everyone looks up. But the noise stops almost as suddenly as it began. Everyone goes back to what they were doing. Eating … talking … or in my case, cleaning up pizza crumbs on the floor.
    There are A LOT of crumbs under the table. I squeeze in between all the legs and feet. It’s dark under here, but I don’t need light to find crumbs. Hey, there’s part of an actual piece of pizza. I pounce on it and gobble it up. YUM!!!!!
    My nose twitches. I smell something in the bag under that chair. It’s not pizza. In fact, it’s not food at all. But there’s something very