Ski School Sneak

  Snowy situation!

  Nancy, George, and Bess are on a ski trip! They are having tons of fun, and Bess proves a natural for the slopes. She even wins a special award! But when the ski supply room is suddenly trashed, all eyes turn to Bess. It looks like she’s a suspect this time around.

  Nancy is sure Bess is innocent, but how can she prove it? And just when it seems things can’t get any worse, a snowstorm closes the road home. The Clue Crew is trapped at the ski lodge! Can Nancy find a way to clear Bess’s name … and will they ever get home?

  TEST YOUR DETECTIVE SKILLS WITH THESE OTHER CLUE CREW CASES

  ADDIN PAPERBACKS

  Simon & Schuster, New York

  A Ready-for-Chapters Book

  Cover designed by Lisa Vega

  Cover illustration copyright © 2007 by Macky Pamintuan

  Ages 6-9

  kids.simonandschuster.com

  1107

  Avalanche! Road Closed!

  “All right, no need to panic.” Mr. Samuels said loudly. “Has anyone headed out to the lifts yet? No? Good. We’re not really in avalanche territory, but we’d better close down the south side trails just in case. Everyone stick to the trails marked in green.”

  Eddie raised his hand. “What about the bunny slope?”

  Mr. Samuels smiled. “That’s perfectly safe,” he said. “I can guarantee there won’t be an avalanche there.”

  “But how are we going to get out of here this afternoon?” an adult asked, sounding anxious.

  “You can’t,” Henry said. “That highway is the only way down the mountain. We’re all stranded until they dig it out. That might not be until tomorrow.”

  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

  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 © 2007 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  Illustrations copyright © 2007 by Macky Pamintuan

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

  NANCY DREW AND THE CLUE CREW is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

  NANCY DREW, 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 2007

  Library of Congress Control Number 2007927236

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4169-4936-7

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4391-1235-9(eBook)

  ISBN-10: 1-4169-4936-4

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE: FUN ON THE SLOPES

  CHAPTER TWO: CRASHERS AND COMPLAINERS

  CHAPTER THREE: LUNCH AND A SURPRISE

  CHAPTER FOUR: A VANDAL SCANDAL

  CHAPTER FIVE: ACCUSED!

  CHAPTER SIX: AVALANCHE!

  CHAPTER SEVEN: A NEW CLUE?

  CHAPTER EIGHT: LOST AND FOUND

  CHAPTER NINE: A LOST CAUSE?

  CHAPTER TEN: AHA!

  Ski School Sneak

  “Look out below!”

  Nancy Drew looked up just in time to see her friend George Fayne skidding down the snowy hill—straight at her. Unfortunately, she couldn’t get out of the way fast enough. It was hard to move quickly while wearing skis!

  “Aaaah!” Nancy cried as George crashed into her. Both girls fell and slid down the gentle slope. Nancy felt cold snow going into the collar of her red coat.

  They slid to a stop at the bottom of the hill. George sat up and brushed off her down jacket. She took off her ski helmet and shook snow out of her short, dark hair.

  “Sorry, Nancy,” she said breathlessly.

  “What happened this time?” Nancy asked with a smile. “Did the wind blow you off course again?”

  It was a warm but windy winter day at Mount Fun Ski Lodge. George, Nancy, and their other best friend, Bess Marvin, who was also George’s cousin, had come to Mount Fun with George’s parents. All three girls were eight years old and lived in River Heights, about two hours’ drive from Mount Fun.

  “It wasn’t the wind this time,” George said. “Two raccoons were playing in the woods near the top of the hill. They were really cute. I guess I got distracted by watching them and forgot to pay attention to my skiing.”

  A young woman in a green jacket skied over. Her name was Margie, and she was one of the ski instructors watching over the bunny slope. That was what they called the wide, gentle hill near the lodge. People could learn to ski there and practice until they were good enough to tackle the bigger, scarier trails farther up the mountain.

  “Are you girls okay?” Margie asked. “That was quite a spill.”

  “I’m fine,” George said. “Luckily, Nancy was there to break my fall.”

  Nancy laughed. “I’m fine too, Margie. Just a little snowy.”

  Margie gave them a thumbs-up, then skied off. Nancy noticed that a couple of other instructors were watching them. So were a bunch of other kids. When she and George untangled their skis and poles from each other and stood up, the kids laughed and cheered. George grinned and took a bow.

  “Oh well,” Nancy said. “I guess neither of us will win that award for Best New Skier that Mr. Samuels was talking about!”

  Mr. Samuels was the owner of Mount Fun. He’d announced that he would give out a few awards at lunchtime. One would go to the best first-time skier on the bunny slope.

  “Hey! Are you guys okay?” Bess skied down the hill toward her friends, her blond hair streaming out from under her pink helmet.

  Bess came to an expert stop by turning the toes of her skis in. Nancy was impressed. None of the three girls had ever skied before that morning, when they had all taken their very first beginner ski class. But Bess was definitely catching on fast.

  “We’re fine,” Nancy said. “George got distracted by some raccoons.”

  Bess giggled. “We’re supposed to be skiing, not watching raccoons.” She looked up at the busy bunny slope. “This is fun, isn’t it?”

  The slope was filled with kids of all ages. It was Mount Fun’s first ever Half-Price Kids Weekend, and lots of families had come to take advantage of the bargain.

  “It’s awesome.” Nancy grinned as George tried to dump snow out of her mitten. “But what do you think, George? That was, like, the tenth time you came down the hill on your rear end!”

  “That’s okay,” George said. “I’d rather be here falling in the snow with you guys than stuck at some stupid car race with my brothers.”

  George’s two brothers were at a big car race with their grandparents. George’s parents didn’t like car racing, so they’d offered to take George and her friends skiing instead. Mr. and Mrs. Fayne were trying some of the harder trails while the girls stayed on the bunny slope under the watchful eye of the ski instructors.

  “I’m starving,” George said. “I think I’ll go get th
e rest of my breakfast bar. It’s in my backpack.”

  “Can’t you wait?” Bess asked her cousin. “Lunch starts in …” She pushed back the sleeve of her jacket. As always, she was wearing her special watch that told the time all over the world. “Fifty-seven minutes,” she finished.

  “That’s fifty-seven minutes too long. Especially when I have half a breakfast bar waiting for me.” George licked her lips and headed across the flat area at the bottom of the bunny slope.

  Nancy and Bess followed. Nancy was feeling a little hungry too. Skiing was hard work! But she didn’t mind waiting for lunch. Besides, she’d eaten her whole breakfast bar on the ride to Mount Fun that morning.

  Soon they reached the equipment shed. It was a small, brightly painted building where people could rent skis, boots, helmets, and other equipment. There was a long line of benches in front where skiers could sit to adjust their boots and put on their skis. Right now the benches were covered with backpacks, shoes, and other belongings. Off to one side, a covered walkway led to the cedar-shingled main lodge building.

  “Hey, who knocked my backpack on the ground?” George grumbled. She grabbed it and felt around inside. “And who took my breakfast bar?” she cried. “It’s not here!”

  “Uh-oh!” Bess said with a laugh. “Sounds like a mystery for the Clue Crew!”

  Nancy grinned. She and her friends loved solving mysteries, so they had started a club called the Clue Crew.

  “Don’t bother to start investigating,” Nancy said. “I’ve already solved the mystery.”

  She pointed to a large, shaggy dog a few yards away. He had something in his mouth, and his tail was wagging.

  “Blizzard!” George cried. “You stole my breakfast bar!”

  Nancy and her friends had met Blizzard soon after their arrival at Mount Fun. He was the lodge owner’s dog and the official mascot of the slopes. He was very friendly, and loved kids.

  “We should get it away from him before he eats the plastic wrapping,” Nancy said.

  “Here, Blizzard,” Bess cooed. “Good dog.”

  Blizzard was so excited to see her that he dropped what was in his mouth and licked her face. Bess reached down and grabbed the remains of George’s breakfast bar. She dumped it in a nearby trash can, then wrinkled her nose.

  “Ew, Blizzard slimed my new mitten.” Bess peeled off one blue mitten and shook it. Dog slobber and granola crumbs went flying.

  “At least your mitten will dry,” George said sadly. “What about my breakfast bar?”

  “Don’t worry.” Bess checked her watch again. “Now there’s only fifty minutes until lunch.”

  “Sounds like just enough time to do some more skiing!” Nancy said.

  Soon the three girls were waiting in line for the rope pull, a mechanized rope and pulley that towed skiers up to the top of the bunny slope. Nancy was behind a boy named Jack. He had been in their beginner ski class that morning.

  “Hi,” she greeted him as they both grabbed on to the rope. “How’s it going?”

  “Great,” Jack said. “I’m really good at skiing. I’ll win that new skier award for sure.”

  “Really?” Nancy said politely.

  “Yup.” Jack looked proud. “I’m great at most sports. Last summer, when my family rented a lake house, I learned to water ski in, like, ten minutes. I’m the best player on my soccer team too.”

  “That’s nice,” Nancy said. When Jack wasn’t looking, she rolled her eyes at Bess and George. She could tell they thought Jack’s bragging was obnoxious too.

  She forgot about Jack when they reached the top. Even though she’d skied down the bunny slope at least fifteen times that day, Nancy still felt nervous looking down the hill.

  “Ready?” Bess asked, lifting her poles. She didn’t sound nervous at all. “Let’s go!”

  She pushed off. George glanced at Nancy and shrugged. “Here goes nothing,” George said. “I’ll go first. That way at least I won’t run into you again.”

  “Thanks.” Nancy smiled and watched George push off. Then she took a deep breath and followed.

  The air whistled past her ears as she picked up speed. Thinking back to her morning ski class, she bent her knees and turned, slowing her speed a little. Soon she was swooping back and forth almost as expertly as Bess. By the time she reached the bottom, she was grinning from ear to ear. Skiing was fun!

  She skied over to Bess and George, who were standing by Margie. “Good job, Nancy,” the ski instructor said. “That looked a lot better than your last trip!” She winked at George. “Both of you stayed upright this time.”

  Nancy and George laughed. “It felt a lot better too,” George said. “Skiing on your backside isn’t that much fun.”

  Margie chuckled. “You’ll get the hang of it. Just watch how your friend here does it.” She patted Bess on the shoulder. “Before long, she’ll be ready to try the regular slopes!”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Nancy saw Jack sliding to a stop nearby. He was staring at Bess with a frown. Nancy guessed he’d heard what Margie had said to Bess and was upset that she hadn’t said it about him instead.

  Serves him right for all that bragging, Nancy thought.

  “Heads up!” someone screamed suddenly.

  Nancy spun around. A skier was careening down the slope at breakneck speed—heading straight toward them!

  “Look out!” Margie cried. She pushed the girls out of the way. A second later the runaway skier flew past them. He fell on the flat ground at the bottom of the hill and skidded along on his side. He finally crashed to a stop in a pile of snow.

  “Whew! That was close,” George said.

  “Everyone okay here?” Margie asked. The girls nodded, and the instructor hurried off toward the runaway skier.

  “Who was that?” Nancy wondered.

  Jack skied over. “I think it’s that kid Eddie from our ski class,” he said. “Remember? He tried to put his skis on backward, then tripped over his poles, like, three times in the first five minutes.”

  Nancy remembered Eddie. He was a tall, gangly kid around her age. He did seem kind of clumsy. But he also seemed nice—a lot nicer than Jack, anyway.

  She saw Margie helping Eddie to his feet. Blizzard went trotting toward them, and Eddie leaned over to pat the dog. But he forgot he was wearing skis, and managed to fall down again.

  Jack snorted as he watched. “That kid should be banned from the slopes,” he said. “He’s a safety hazard. Especially to himself!”

  “That’s not very nice,” Bess told Jack with a frown.

  Jack smirked. “Maybe not. But it’s true.”

  By now Eddie was on his feet again. He came toward the girls and Jack with Margie helping him along. “Sorry about that,” he called breathlessly. “I didn’t mean to scare you guys. I guess I’m not too great at skiing yet.”

  “No duh,” Jack muttered.

  Margie shot Jack a stern look. “That’s okay,” she told Eddie. “I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it sooner or later.”

  “Later,” Jack said. “Definitely later.” He dug his poles into the snow and skied off toward the rope pull.

  “What a jerk,” George said, watching him go.

  Eddie sighed. “No, he’s right,” he said. “Maybe this just isn’t for me.”

  He waved one arm to help make his point. But he forgot he was holding his ski pole, and it almost bonked Nancy in the head. She ducked just in time.

  “Oops!” Eddie’s cheeks turned red. “Sorry about that.”

  Margie chuckled. “Hey, at least she was wearing a helmet!”

  Nancy smiled and nodded. She could tell Margie was trying to make Eddie feel better.

  “I’d better go find my friend Steve,” Eddie said. “He’s skiing on the regular slopes with his dad. We’re supposed to meet before lunch.” He moved off, sliding his skis very carefully along the snowy ground.

  Nancy noticed that George was fiddling with her ski boots. “I think I busted a buckle when Margie pu
shed us out of the way,” George said. “I can’t get it to close.”

  Margie bent over to see. “Looks like you’re right. Just go into the equipment shed and tell Mr. Samuels what happened. He’ll get you fixed up with new boots.”

  The girls headed for the equipment shed. Inside they found the lodge owner sitting on a stool drinking a cup of coffee. Mr. Samuels was a cheerful-looking man with a big mustache.

  “What can I do for you ladies?” he asked in his booming voice. “Here to trade in your skis for a different color?”

  Bess giggled. “No, thanks,” she said. “I love my blue and white skis. They match my coat and mittens.”

  “I aim to please.” Mr. Samuels smiled. “So are you girls having fun?”

  “Definitely!” Nancy said.

  George nodded. “I don’t know why we never tried skiing before. It’s great.”

  “Well, I don’t know why I never tried a Half-Price Kids Weekend before,” Mr. Samuels said. “It’s terrific having all you kids around yelling and laughing and having fun. Much more interesting than boring old grown-ups.”

  All three girls giggled. Then George showed Mr. Samuels the problem with her ski boot. He found her a new pair.

  “There you go,” he said. “Better hurry and get out there. You should have time for a couple more runs before lunch.”

  The girls headed outside to put their skis back on. Blizzard was sniffing around hopefully at the backpacks, and Nancy gave him a pat. She stepped back into her skis, then sat down to wait for George to finish putting on her new boots.

  A girl was sitting farther down the row of benches talking to a pair of worried-looking adults. She was a few years older than Nancy, with bright red hair and a sour expression on her face.

  “Can’t we go home early?” she whined. “I’m tired of hanging out in the freezing cold.”

  Her parents exchanged a glance. “It’s not that cold, Gina,” her mother said. “The radio said it’s one of the warmest winter days in years.”