Free The Powder Puff Puzzle by Blanche Sims

CHAPTER 1
    D AWN B OSCO WAS HOT.
    There was no shade in the yard. Not one bit.
    Then she remembered.
    Emily Arrow had a pool. A nice cool one.
    She looked around. “Come on, Powder Puff,” she yelled. “We’re going to Emily’s house.”
    She looked up at the fence.
    “Powder Puff?”
    Where was he? She dived under the bushes. “Where are you?”
    The cat jumped at her.
    “Whew,” Dawn said. “I thought you were lost.”
    She scooped him up.
    Powder Puff was the greatest cat in the world.
    He was all black. Almost all black.
    He had one white ear.
    He had a white tip on his tail.
    Noni, Dawn’s grandmother, looked up. She was weeding the yard.
    “We have more weeds than tomatoes,” she said. She rubbed her back.
    Dawn put Powder Puff over her shoulders.
    He curled his tail around her neck. “This cat’s perfect,” she said.
    She gave the white tip of his tail a tug.
    The cat began to purr. He sounded like the refrigerator.
    “This cat’s a pest,” said Noni. “Last night he jumped on my bed. I woke up. I saw those yellow eyes.”
    Noni shivered. “Whoosh. I thought he was a tiger.”
    “You should have called me,” Dawn said. “I’m not afraid of anything.”
    “Really?” said Noni.
    “It’s because I’m a detective,” Dawn said.
    Noni stood up. “Ouch, my knees. The ground is hard.”
    “I’ll rub them,” Dawn said. She smiled. Noni’s knees were ticklish.
    “No, thanks,” said Noni.
    “We’re going to Emily Arrow’s,” Dawn said. “Me and Powder Puff.”
    Noni shook her head. “Better not take the cat. He’ll get lost.”
    Dawn stuck out her lip. “He wants to come.”
    Noni slapped at a fly.
    Smack.
    The cat jumped at the noise.
    He jumped off Dawn’s shoulder.
    “Hey,” Dawn said.
    The cat raced out of the yard.
    Dawn ran after him.
    “See what I mean?” Noni called.
    “Powder Puff,” Dawn yelled.
    The cat kept going. He went up one block. He went down the next.
    Dawn kept going too.
    The cat dashed across the street.
    A horn sounded. The cat went faster. He raced for the next street.
    “Yeow,” Dawn yelled. “Watch out.”
    The light turned red. The cars stopped.
    Dawn started across the street.
    The cat was halfway down the block.
    His back was up. His tail was out.
    A red car was parked in front of the hardware store. A mess of a red car.
    One fender had dents.
    The paint was scratched.
    Powder Puff jumped up on the hood.
    He put his paws on the side mirror.
    He jumped in the open window.
    “Powder Puff,” Dawn yelled again.
    Just then a woman came down the street.
    She was carrying a box. It looked heavy.
    She had a pole over her shoulder.
    She was long and skinny like the pole.
    A jelly cookie was between her teeth.
    She had a gray ponytail. A long skinny one.
    It looked like a mousetail.
    She opened the car door. She shoved the pole in.
    “Lady,” Dawn yelled.
    The light turned green. The woman slammed the car door.
    All the cars started to move.
    The red one pulled out.
    Dawn started to run.
    Powder Puff must be on the backseat. The woman didn’t even know he was there.
    “Stop,” Dawn shouted.
    A horn blared in back of her.
    Dawn jumped out of the way.
    She raced to the curb. She kept watching the red car.
    It was moving slowly.
    She looked at the license plate. Detectives were supposed to do that.
    It began with a P.
    Dawn shaded her eyes. P . . . and then A . . . All letters.
    A name.
    She had to see it.
    The car started to turn the corner.
    Dawn took three steps.
    It was too late.
    The car was gone.
    So was Powder Puff.

CHAPTER 2
    D AWN WENT DOWN the street.
    She didn’t look where she was going.
    She fell over a ladder.
    “Ouch,” she said. She could feel tears in her eyes.
    She turned the corner.
    Jason Bazyk was standing in front of Emily’s house.
    So was Alex Walker.
    They were wearing bathing suits. Wet ones.
    Jason was jumping up and down. He turned his head to one side. “Water in my ears,” he said.
    “My cat,” Dawn said. “My