Wedding Day Disaster

  Piece of cake!

  Nancy’s cousin is getting married, and Nancy is the flower girl. She can’t wait to see the butter crème de le crème wedding cake! Bess and George have the special job of rolling out the cake. But a wedding day disaster strikes when Bess and George bring out the cake and Nancy notices that a slice is missing. Who would want to ruin it?

  The crew begins to wonder if the culprit is Kendall, the bride’s neighbor. But when the clues point to another guest, Nancy is worried. Will this culprit get to have his cake and eat it too?

  TEST YOUR DETECTIVE SKILLS WITH THESE OTHER CLUE CREW CASES!

  ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

  Simon & Schuster, New York

  A Ready-for-Chapters Book

  Cover designed by Lisa Vega

  Cover illustration copyright © 2008

  by Macky Pamintuan

  Ages 6–9

  www.KidsSimonandSchuster.com

  1108

  This case is no cake walk!

  “Remember how we practiced it, girls,” Mrs. Fayne said. “Hold the sides of the table and wheel the cake straight to Sara and Brett. And wait until the wedding singer introduces you.”

  The singer held up his mic and announced, “And now—to present the wedding cake, two of the cutest snow fairies you ever will meet!”

  “That’s us!” Bess said.

  Nancy smiled as her friends rolled the towering wedding cake out the door.

  “Cool!” whispered Nancy as she watched the cake. But her jaw dropped as she noticed something wrong. A huge chunk was missing from the back of the cake!

  Join the Clue Crew

  & solve these other cases!

  #1 Sleepover Sleuths

  #2 Scream for Ice Cream

  #3 Pony Problems

  #4 The Cinderella Ballet Mystery

  #5 Case of the Sneaky Snowman

  #6 The Fashion Disaster

  #7 The Circus Scare

  #8 Lights, Camera . . . Cats!

  #9 The Halloween Hoax

  #10 Ticket Trouble

  #11 Ski School Sneak

  #12 Valentine’s Day Secret

  #13 Chick-napped!

  #14 The Zoo Crew

  #15 Mall Madness

  #16 Thanksgiving Thief

  #17 Wedding Day Disaster

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  ALADDIN PAPERBACKS

  An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division

  1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020

  www.SimonandSchuster.com

  Text copyright © 2008 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Illustrations copyright © 2008 by Macky Pamintuan

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

  NANCY DREW, NANCY DREW AND THE CLUE CREW, ALADDIN PAPERBACKS, and related logo are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Designed by Lisa Vega

  The text of this book was set in ITC Stone Informal.

  First Aladdin Paperbacks edition November 2008

  Library of Congress Control Number 2007943607

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4169-6778-1

  ISBN-10: 1-4169-6778-8

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4424-5921-2 (eBook)

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE: FLOWER POWER

  CHAPTER TWO: BRAT ATTACK

  CHAPTER THREE: SWEET REVENGE

  CHAPTER FOUR: POPPED QUIZ

  CHAPTER FIVE: BUTTER SPUTTER

  CHAPTER SIX: CAUGHT IN THE ACT

  CHAPTER SEVEN: HIDE AND PEEK

  CHAPTER EIGHT: NOSE KNOWS

  CHAPTER NINE: ART SMART

  CHAPTER TEN: CASE CRACKED

  Chapter One

  Flower Power

  “Should I drop one petal at a time,” eight-year-old Nancy Drew asked, “or two at a time?”

  Nancy’s best friends, Bess Marvin and George Fayne, stood by her as she lifted her white basket of rose petals.

  “Here’s what you do,” George said. She put her arm around Nancy’s shoulder. “Grab yourself a fistful, swing your arm all the way back . . . and throw!”

  George’s cousin Bess Marvin rolled her blue eyes. “Nancy is a flower girl at a wedding, George,” she said. “Not a pitcher in a Little League game!”

  Nancy smiled. Being a flower girl at a wedding was just one of her dreams. And that Friday night it was about to come true!

  Her cousin Sara was marrying a fun guy named Brett. Because it was winter, Sara had planned a snowball wedding, where the whole wedding party would wear white. Nancy was wearing a pretty white flower girl dress.

  A waitress dashed by the girls, balancing a platter on one hand. More waiters and waitresses were setting up plates of hors d’oeuvres on long, fancily decorated tables. In about fifteen minutes the guests would arrive at the Chapel of Love for the wedding. In about an hour the wedding ceremony would begin!

  “It’s cool your mom is catering Sara’s wedding, George,” Nancy said. “This way you and Bess can be at the wedding too!”

  George’s mom ran Fayne’s Catering Service in River Heights. Besides ordering and preparing the food, Mrs. Fayne liked to add special touches. Tonight she had Bess and George dress up like snow fairies. Together they would wheel out the wedding cake during the reception.

  Bess twirled in her white dress decorated with silver snowflakes. “I feel so pretty in this dress!” she exclaimed. “I want to be a snow fairy forever!”

  “Forever?” George groaned. She straightened the white tiara over her dark curls. “Can you picture solving mysteries in these frilly clothes?”

  Nancy giggled at the thought. She, Bess, and George had their own detective club called the Clue Crew. They loved solving mysteries more than anything!

  “Hi, girls,” Mrs. Fayne said as she walked over carrying a platter. She turned to two waiters standing around talking. “The spinach pies are ready to be set up, please.”

  “Did someone say spinach pies?” a voice boomed.

  Nancy turned around. Walking over was Bob Kernkraut, the owner of the Chapel of Love. He was wearing a white suit and a dark blue tie decorated with white snowmen.

  “Would you like a spinach pie, Bob?” asked Mrs. Fayne.

  Mr. Kernkraut stared at the platter. Then he quickly shook his head and said, “Oh, no thank you. My wife put me on the Waist Watchers Diet—so no more snacks for me!”

  Mr. Kernkraut walked away as a waiter grabbed the platter. Mrs. Fayne then smiled at the girls and asked, “Who wants to see the wedding cake?”

  Three hands shot up.

  “Follow me!” Mrs. Fayne said.

  On the way to the kitchen, George nodded toward Mr. Kernkraut. He was leaning against one of the tables with a deviled egg in one hand. His eyes darted around the room as he quickly stuffed it in his mouth.

  “Some diet,” George murmured.

  Mrs. Fayne stopped in front of the kitchen door before opening it. “Don’t go too near the cake, girls,” she warned. “Famous François is putting on the finishing touches.”

  “Who is Famous François?” Bess asked.

  “Are you kidding, Bess?” George said. “He’s the most famous baker in River Heights—maybe the world!”

  “And don’t say the word ‘baker’!” added Mrs. Fayne. “Famous François is a cake ‘artist’ with his own studio.”

  “Is it a cake or the Mona Lisa?” Bess sighed.

  Mrs. Fayne opened the door wide. The girls stepped inside the k
itchen and gasped. On a round table in front of them was the most beautiful wedding cake they had ever seen. Its seven layers were frosted snowy white. Sticking out from the cream were tiny silver twigs that looked like winter trees.

  “Awesome!” Nancy exclaimed.

  A man wearing a chef’s hat stood on a ladder as he hung what looked like icicles from the cake. Standing beside him was a teenage girl, holding more icicles in a pan.

  “It is my Matrimonial Mountain of Love!” François announced with a French accent. “It represents the heights to which a couple must climb to reach true happiness!”

  “To me it represents something yummy!” George said, licking her lips.

  Famous François sniffed as he grabbed the last icicle. The girl put down the empty pan and said to the three friends, “Speaking of yummy, how about a cookie?”

  She lifted a plate filled with white snowflake-shaped cookies. She was dressed in all white too—from her smock to her canvas sneakers.

  “My daughter Adele will be a famous pastry artist someday too,” François said. “Just like her famous papa!”

  “Dad!” said Adele, blushing.

  Mrs. Fayne gave the girls permission to take one cookie each. As they nibbled, the door flew open. Sara, in her beautiful bridal gown, stepped into the kitchen. Behind her was a girl who looked about seven years old.

  “Why can’t I be the flower girl, Sara?” the girl asked in a whiny voice. “I’m Brett’s next-door neighbor!”

  “We told you, Kendall,” Sara said. “My cousin Nancy is the flower girl.”

  “Hi, Kendall!” Nancy said with a smile and a wave.

  Kendall didn’t smile back. She marched over to the cake and dragged her finger across the frosting. The cake shook as the table shifted on its wheels.

  “No touching the masterpiece!” François cried.

  Kendall’s nose wrinkled as she licked her finger. “Buttercream!” She gagged. “I hate butter! Now I won’t be able to eat the cake!”

  But Sara was not paying attention to Kendall. Her eyes were fixed on the top of the wedding cake.

  “Isn’t there supposed to be a bride and groom on top of my cake?” Sara asked. “Instead there are two dogs!”

  Nancy looked up too. Sure enough, two gray dogs topped François’s Mountain of Love.

  “They are not dogs!” François snapped with a wave of his hand. “They are the ice wolves of Patagonia.”

  “Okay,” said Sara slowly. “But I asked you for a bride and groom.”

  “Yeah, Dad,” Adele said. “It’s Sara’s wedding cake. And a bride’s wedding should always be perfect.”

  Famous François stuck his chin in the air. “No ice wolves—no Famous François!” he declared.

  Sara seemed to blink back tears. “It’s fine,” she said. “Keep the ice wolves where they are.”

  She then picked up her hem, turned around, and left the kitchen.

  It’s not fine, Nancy thought sadly. Sara hates it.

  “Hey, you guys,” said Adele, trying to smile. “Look what else my dad and I baked.”

  The teenager pointed to more pastries on the butcher-block table. On it sat a cheesecake, a fluffy lemon meringue pie, and some white frosted cupcakes.

  “The cupcakes will circle the bottom of the cake,” Adele explained. “To look like fallen snow.”

  “Everything looks delicious,” Nancy said. “Right, Kendall?”

  But when Nancy turned around, Kendall was gone.

  “That’s funny,” said Mrs. Fayne, looking around the kitchen. “What happened to that onion I was about to cut?”

  The girls left the kitchen. Guests were starting to arrive for the wedding. Nancy’s father had come with his brand-new camcorder. Mr. Drew was a lawyer, but tonight he was pretending to be a big-shot movie director!

  “Sara and Brett’s wedding—take one!” Mr. Drew boomed. He pointed the camera straight at Nancy. “The prettiest little flower girl in the whole wide world!”

  “Thank you!” Nancy said with a little curtsy.

  Mr. Drew turned his camera toward some other relatives. Just then a bridesmaid named Natalie ran over. “Nancy, the ceremony is starting in a few minutes,” she said. “Sara wants the wedding party to line up.”

  Nancy’s tummy fluttered with butterflies. “This is it!” she told her friends. “Where did I put my basket of rose petals?”

  Bess pointed to Nancy’s basket, sitting on a nearby chair. “There!” she said.

  Nancy grabbed her basket, then raced to join the others. The bridesmaids and ushers were excitedly whispering to one another. Nancy thought she was the luckiest of them all. She got to stand in front of Sara and her father, Nancy’s Uncle Bob.

  “Good luck, Nancy,” Sara whispered.

  “You too!” Nancy whispered back. But as the organ music began to play in the chapel, her nose began to itch.

  As Nancy sniffed, Uncle Bob whispered, “It’s okay to cry at weddings, Nancy.”

  Nancy nodded, but she knew she wasn’t crying. So why were her eyes watering?

  The bridesmaids and ushers walked side-by-side down the long white carpet. Finally it was Nancy’s turn. She gave a big sniff, flashed a smile, and began her walk.

  “Oh, look, it’s the flower girl!” someone pointed out.

  “She has reddish blond hair, just like Sara!” another voice murmured.

  Nancy’s watery eyes burned as she sprinkled petals on the carpet, just like she had in the rehearsal. But as she dropped the petals, she no longer smelled roses. Instead she smelled something not flowery at all!

  Nancy glanced down at her basket and gulped. Under all the beautiful white rose petals . . . was a big peeled raw onion!

  Chapter Two

  Brat Attack

  Omigosh! Nancy thought. She gritted her teeth as she tried to keep smiling. How did this get in here?

  Nancy made her way up the aisle. Through her watery eyes she could see Kendall sitting at the edge of the aisle. She was smiling meanly straight at her!

  The revenge of the wannabe flower girl! Nancy thought grimly. She finally reached the end the long white carpet, where she stood next to the bridesmaids.

  “What’s that smell?” one bridesmaid whispered.

  “Were you eating onion dip?” another murmured.

  “Here Comes the Bride” began to play. Sara looked stunning as she walked down the aisle with her father. But Nancy felt awful. What should have been a dream come true had become a true nightmare!

  Nancy tried not to sniff or wipe her tears during the ceremony. She tried not to look at Kendall, either.

  “I now pronounce you husband and wife!” said the minister.

  Brett tenderly kissed Sara. The organ played and the wedding party began filing back down the white carpet.

  “Gotcha!” Kendall snickered as Nancy walked by.

  Once outside the chapel, Nancy hugged her dad. “Do you think you’re allergic to roses, honey?” he asked.

  “No, Daddy,” Nancy said. She didn’t want to tell her father about Kendall. She didn’t want anyone to make a fuss and spoil Sara’s wedding.

  Instead Nancy ran to throw away the onion. Then she went straight to Bess and George to tell them what happened.

  “She ruined it!” Nancy wailed. “Kendall stuck an onion in my basket and ruined my big flower-girl moment!”

  Bess pointed to Kendall, plucking flowers out of a fancy flower arrangement. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she ruins the whole wedding!” she said.

  “Should we tell someone?” asked George.

  “No,” Nancy said, still not wanting to spoil the wedding. “All I want to do is wash my stinky hands!”

  The girls rushed to the ladies’ room. Nancy washed her hands three times. But when she turned off the faucet, she heard someone crying. Bess and George whispered that they heard it too.

  “It can’t be the onion,” Nancy said softly. “I threw it away before I came in!”

  The door to one of the
stalls opened. A woman stepped out, dabbing her eyes. Nancy recognized her at once.

  “Aren’t you Patsy?” Nancy asked. “From Patsy’s Pastries on River Street?”

  “Wow!” said Bess. “You once baked pink and white cupcakes for my birthday party!”

  “Your cupcakes rock!” George added.

  “Thank you,” Patsy said. “I’m also Brett’s aunt.”

  “He’s lucky he has an aunt who can bake!” said Nancy.

  “Tell him that,” Patsy sniffled. “I wanted to bake the wedding cake. But instead he asked the Famous François!”

  Nancy, Bess, and George exchanged surprised glances.

  “Um,” George said slowly, “maybe it’s because François bakes wedding cakes and you bake cupcakes—”

  “What’s a wedding cake, anyway?” Patsy cut in. “A supersize cupcake with a bride and groom stuck on top?”

  “Ice wolves,” Bess told her. “Famous François put ice wolves on top of the cake.”

  “Wolves?” Aunt Patsy sobbed.

  Nancy didn’t know what else to do. So she and her friends quietly left the ladies’ room.

  “I don’t get it.” Bess sighed. “If I had an aunt like Patsy, I’d have a cupcake wedding dress!”

  Nancy looked around the reception hall. It was decorated with white balloons and flowers. The band was playing their first song, and guests had begun to dance. As the girls watched a couple twirling across the dance floor, Nancy saw Famous François and Adele wheeling the wedding cake out of the kitchen on a rolling cart. Adele held open the door to another room as François pushed it inside.

  “Where are they putting the cake?” Nancy asked.

  “François wants to keep the cake in a special room instead of the kitchen,” said George. “That’s what my mom told me before the wedding.”

  “At least it will be safe from Kendall!” Bess snorted.

  Nancy forgot all about Kendall and the onion as she enjoyed the reception. She watched Sara and Brett dance their first dance as husband and wife. Then Nancy stood on her dad’s shoes as they danced together too.