Bug-Napped Read online

  Before Frank could stop him, Joe hurried over to the fountain. Liquid chocolate flowed from the top to the bottom, but something was missing.

  “I don’t see any pretzels or marshmallows to dip in the chocolate,” Joe said. “Not even fruit!”

  “We’re not here to eat, Joe,” Frank whispered. “We’re here to look for—”

  “Grasshoppers? Crickets?” a voice said.

  The brothers turned to see a man dressed in a white jacket and holding a silver tray. Spread on the tray were dried insects—much like the crispy crunchy kind Leif had to feed his plants!

  “Bugs?” Frank gulped.

  “You want us to eat them?” asked Joe.

  “You can use a toothpick to dip them in the chocolate,” the server explained. “Insects are a great source of protein and quite tasty.”

  “No, thank you,” Frank said. “But if you know where we can find a giant beetle—”

  “No beetles are being served today,” the server cut in. “Instead, may I suggest the mealworm meatballs or buggy burritos? Phyllis should be out with them in a minute.”

  “I’ll pass, thanks,” Joe said. “I think I’m coming down with a… bug.”

  As the brothers walked away from the fountain, Frank asked, “Do you really feel sick, Joe?”

  “Only from imagining chocolate-covered bugs,” Joe admitted. “I’ll feel a lot better when we find Izumi.”

  The adult guests were too busy chatting and snacking to notice there were two kids in the room. While Frank and Joe looked for Izumi, they found bugs behind glass in their natural environments and interactive insect games.

  “Check it out, Joe,” Frank called, stopping at the entrance to a darkened room. “Here’s something called the Butterfly Cave, but I don’t think Izumi would be there.”

  “He may not be there,” Joe’s voice called. “But I think I found him here.”

  “Where?” asked Frank.

  He looked around until he saw something tall, completely covered with a white cloth. Underneath the cloth were two feet wearing Joe’s sneakers!

  Frank shot over to them and slipped underneath the cloth. He found Joe standing close up against a tall white pedestal. “What are you doing under here?” he whispered.

  “Don’t say a word,” Joe replied. “Just look!”

  He pointed his chin toward the top of the pedestal. On it was a clear plastic dome. Underneath the dome was a huge multi-legged beetle!

  “How do we know that’s Izumi?” Frank whispered. “I don’t see his samurai helmet.”

  “That’s because his head is under that little plant inside,” Joe pointed out. “If I could just turn him around so we can see…”

  Still under the cloth, Joe lifted the dome with one hand and picked up the beetle with his other. After turning the bug around, he said, “No helmet on this big guy. He may be a beetle, but he’s not Izumi.”

  “He’s not even the same color as Izumi,” said Frank. “Put him back and let’s get out of here before—”

  “Friends of insects and honored guests,” a voice boomed through the room. “Welcome to the gala opening of Carl the Critter Curator’s Insectarium. In case you haven’t guessed already… I am Carl!”

  Frank and Joe stood motionless underneath their tented hideaway.

  “I think we found Carl,” Frank whispered.

  “Yeah,” Joe whispered back. “And if he pulls this cloth off—he’s going to find us!”

  INSTANT MESSAGE

  Joe held the beetle in one hand, the dome in the other. He and Frank tried not to move underneath the cloth while Carl continued to speak.

  “Now I’d like to introduce the insectarium’s pride and joy,” Carl’s voice said. “Please give a swarm welcome to—”

  With a dramatic swoop, Carl yanked the cloth off the pedestal. Guests gasped when they saw Joe holding the beetle with Frank at his side.

  “Hi,” said Frank, forcing a smile.

  “We were just leaving,” Joe blurted. He was about to put the beetle back on the pedestal when—

  SQUIIIIIIRT!

  “Gross!” Joe yelled. He quickly put the beetle back on the pedestal and replaced the cover. Then he squeezed his nose. “What’s that smell?”

  “It’s coming from the bug!” Frank said, clapping his hand over his own nose. “Bleeech!”

  The stink cloud made its way from the beetle to the guests. Gagging and holding their noses, they headed for the exit.

  “Wait, everyone, please!” Carl called out. “What do you expect from a beetle in the genus Eleodes?”

  “Genus… what?” asked Joe.

  Carl turned to the boys. “Better known as a stink beetle,” he explained. “Quigley doesn’t bite, but he sprays when provoked.”

  Joe let go of his nose. “I guess I provoked Quigley,” he sighed. “Sorry.”

  “What were you boys doing under there anyway?” Carl asked.

  “We were looking to see if Quigley was Izumi,” Frank explained. “We heard you say you wanted a beetle for the insectarium.”

  “Izumi?” Carl asked. “You mean the Belly Bump boy’s bug?”

  Joe nodded and said, “After Aki’s beetle disappeared from our doorstep, we found this.”

  Joe pulled out the purple antenna. Carl smiled.

  “So that’s what happened to the missing one,” he said. “I wore my bug antennas to my book club meeting last night.”

  “Book club meeting?” Frank asked.

  “Trudy Hardy’s book club meeting,” Carl confirmed. “The other members thought my bug antennas on Earth Day were a hoot.”

  “Wait,” Joe said. “Did you say Trudy Hardy?”

  Carl nodded, then left to coax guests back into the room. Frank and Joe immediately discussed what they’d heard.

  “Aunt Trudy did have a book club meeting last night,” Frank said. “Carl could have come to our house for that.”

  “Unless he just told us he went to the meeting,” Joe said, “but came to our house to get Izumi instead.”

  Frank had an idea how to know for sure. After getting Carl’s attention, he asked, “Could you tell us what book you talked about at the meeting, and what snacks you ate?”

  “We’re reading The Great Gnatsby,” Carl replied. “And we ate the most delicious cookies shaped like flowers and bugs.”

  He cracked a smile and said, “If anyone knows how to celebrate Earth Day, it’s Trudy!”

  The brothers were satisfied with Carl’s answer. The book and the cookies checked out. But Joe had one more question.…

  “If you wanted a beetle like Izumi, Carl,” Joe asked, “why did you settle for Mr. Stink over there?”

  “There wasn’t enough time to order a stag beetle from the bug farm,” Carl explained. “So when I found Quigley crawling under my sink, the rest was history. Or should I say… hssss-tory!”

  Frank and Joe laughed.

  “Why don’t you boys stay for some crispy critters?” Carl asked, “The servers will be rolling out caramel cricket cheesecake any minute!”

  “Caramel cricket cheesecake?” Joe gulped.

  “Um… no thanks, Carl,” Frank said. “We still have to look for Izumi.”

  The brothers dashed out of the insectarium. Time was running out! But Joe made sure to cross Carl the Critter Curator’s name from their suspect list before climbing onto his bike.

  “Now Phil is our only suspect,” Joe said with a frown.

  “Hopefully Phil didn’t take Izumi,” Frank said. “All we have to do is rule him out.”

  “Then we’ll have no more suspects,” Joe said as he pocketed their clue book. “Zero. Zip. Zilch.”

  The brothers rode their bikes home. After parking them in the garage, they entered the house through the kitchen door. Their mother was by the fridge, unpacking bags of groceries. Joe noticed a red light flashing on the phone.

  “Mom, someone’s got a message,” he pointed out.

  “Thanks, Joe, I hadn’t noticed,” Mrs.
Hardy said. “Who called?”

  Joe leaned over the counter to check out the ID. “There’s a number but no name,” he said. “Whoever it was called at seven thirty this morning.”

  “Your dad likes to turn down the ringer on weekends so the phone doesn’t wake us up,” Mrs. Hardy explained. “Go ahead and play the message.”

  “Okay, Mom,” Frank said, teasing Joe by pressing the play button first. Joe was about to complain when Phil’s voice said, “Hi, guys. I’m on my way to the inventors contest. And I even found a new good luck charm. Woo-hoo!”

  The message ended. Frank and Joe stared at the phone, then at each other. Had Phil said “good luck charm”?

  “I know we don’t like to suspect friends,” Frank said. “But I am so suspecting Phil right now!”

  MATINEE DISMAY

  “We’ve got to go to Phil’s house, Frank,” Joe said. “Right now.”

  “Not so fast, guys,” Mrs. Hardy said. “We have tickets to see Space Dudes later. After the movie we’re going out to dinner, remember?”

  The brothers stared at their mother. How could they have forgotten? They had wanted to see Space Dudes for weeks!

  “Aki isn’t coming until tomorrow afternoon,” Frank told Joe. “We can get Izumi back from Phil in the morning.”

  At four o’clock that afternoon, the Hardys piled into the family car. Once they were at the Bayport Cineplex, Frank and Joe stood in line for popcorn while their parents waited for them at their seats.

  “Does Dad like caramel or cheese?” asked Joe. “Or the spicy kind?”

  “None of those,” Frank said as the line moved slowly toward the counter. “He likes buttered—”

  “Hi, guys!” a voice said.

  Frank and Joe froze. They’d know that voice anywhere. It was—

  “A-Aki?” Joe stammered as he and Frank turned.

  Aki stood on the side of the line, a big smile on his face. “Are you going to see Ninja Rabbit?” he asked.

  “Space Dudes,” both brothers chorused flatly.

  Please don’t ask about Izumi, Joe thought.

  Please don’t ask about Izumi, Frank thought.

  “I’m glad I ran into you!” Aki said. “I miss Izumi too much. I want to come to your house after the movie and pick him up.”

  “No!” Joe cried a bit too loudly. “I mean—after the movie we’re going for burgers.”

  “We’re going to dinner too,” said Aki. “I’ll ask my dad to drive me to your house after we eat—”

  “No!” Frank cut in. “I mean, after dinner we’re going for dessert!”

  “It’s a place where you bake your own pies!” Joe added. “We’ll be home crazy-late!”

  Aki raised an eyebrow. “If Izumi is home alone all that time,” he said, “then I really want him back tonight.”

  Frank and Joe traded desperate looks. Their excuses weren’t working. They would have to go with the direct approach.…

  “Aki, can we please keep Izumi until tomorrow afternoon?” Frank asked.

  “You kind of promised,” said Joe.

  The brothers held their breath while Aki thought for a moment. He then nodded and said, “Promises are important. I’ll be at your house tomorrow at three thirty sharp. Izumi should be in his tank and ready to go.”

  “You got it!” Joe blurted.

  The brothers heaved sighs of relief as Aki walked across the lobby to join his family.

  “A place where you bake your own pies?” Frank asked Joe. “Seriously?”

  “I had to come up with something,” Joe said as they finally reached the counter. “Now what kind of popcorn does Dad like?”

  Space Dudes was awesome. So was dinner at the new veggie burger place that Joe had won a gift card to. He even admitted that kale burgers were pretty good!

  But the next morning all Frank and Joe wanted to do was head straight to Phil’s house. Was Izumi the lucky charm he’d brought to the Junior Inventors Challenge? They had to find out!

  “I know I said I hope Phil doesn’t have Izumi,” Joe said as they headed over to Phil’s house. “But after seeing Aki yesterday, I sure hope he does.”

  As they turned the corner onto Phil’s block, Joe said, “There’s one thing I don’t get. How would Phil know that I put Izumi outside on our doorstep?”

  “He wouldn’t have to know,” Frank said. “He could have come over Saturday morning to say hi and seen Izumi.”

  “Before seven thirty in the morning?” asked Joe. “That was the time of his message.”

  “The early bird catches the worm,” Frank said with a shrug. “Or in this case, the stag beetle.”

  The brothers reached Phil’s house and saw Mr. Cohen working on his car. “Phil isn’t home now, guys,” he said. “His mom enrolled him in Pretzel Kids on Sundays. Some yoga class.”

  “Oh,” Frank said, disappointed.

  “We can come back a little later,” said Joe.

  “Or wait in Phil’s inventor’s workshop,” Mr. Cohen suggested. “If you do, you’ll meet his unusual new pet!”

  Unusual new pet?

  Could Phil’s unusual new pet be a lucky stag beetle? There was only one way to find out.…

  “Thanks, Mr. Cohen,” Frank said. “We would like to wait for Phil in his workshop!”

  SPEW CLUE

  Phil’s workshop was set up inside a toolshed in the Cohens’ backyard. A homemade sign on the door read GENIUS AT WORK!

  The door was half-open, so the brothers slipped inside. The workshop was filled with all kinds of gadgets and gizmos that he’d invented and built himself.

  “Where are we going to find Izumi’s tank in all this stuff?” Joe asked.

  “I found something already,” said Frank. “Look.”

  Joe saw Frank holding a badge from the Junior Inventors Challenge. Phil’s name was on the badge as well as the location and time.

  “The contest was held yesterday in Cedarville,” Frank pointed out. “At nine o’clock in the morning.”

  “Cedarville is a long way from here,” Joe said. “Phil would have had to have left super early to get there on time.”

  “Phil called us super early yesterday,” Frank said, still studying the badge. “At seven thirty, remember?”

  Joe didn’t answer. Frank looked up from the badge to see his brother standing next to a familiar robot.

  “Frank, it’s Munchy!” said Joe. “I wonder how Phil got him to eat my pizza the other day.”

  “Don’t press any buttons, Joe,” Frank warned. But it was already too late. Joe had pressed what he thought was the start button and—

  PHOO—PHOO—SPLAT!

  The brothers yelped as green and brown mush spewed from Munchy’s mouth!

  “Joe, turn it off!” Frank shouted.

  “I would if I knew how!” Joe shouted back.

  The projectile mush hit the walls and landed in glops on the floor. Frank and Joe frantically searched for the off button until they heard a high squealing noise. It came from a small pink pig scurrying into the shed!

  Munchy still spewed mush-rockets. But all the brothers could do was gawk at the pig as it feasted on a gloppy puddle.

  “I think we found Phil’s unusual new pet,” Frank said.

  “Yeah,” said Joe. “And it’s not a stag beetle.”

  Phil raced in next, shouting, “Hey! What’s happening? What are you doing?”

  “Trying to stop your robot,” Frank said. “Can you give us a hand?”

  Phil groaned, dropping his rolled-up yoga mat. He raced over to Munchy and snapped open a compartment to reveal three more buttons. He pressed one and Munchy’s mouth clamped shut.

  “So… what did I do wrong?” asked Joe.

  “You pressed the eject button, that’s what,” Phil said. “It made Munchy spit out the compost.”

  “Sorry, Phil,” said Joe.

  “We were looking for Aki’s beetle, Izumi,” Frank said. “We had him for the weekend until he disappeared.”

&n
bsp; “You mean the lucky bug?” Phil asked. “Why would he be in here?”

  “You wanted good luck for the contest,” Frank explained. “You also left a message saying you had a lucky charm.”

  Phil nodded and said, “I called you from my dad’s phone on the way to the contest. But my lucky charm wasn’t the beetle.”

  Joe pointed to the pig and said, “You mean it was the oinkster?”

  “You bet!” said Phil with a grin. “Meet Pinky, a miniature potbellied pig.”

  “Since when are pigs good luck?” Joe asked.

  “To some they are,” Phil explained. “I borrowed Pinky from my cousin’s farm. He said I could keep him as long as I wanted.”

  Phil looked down at Pinky and sighed. “I think I’ll return him, though.”

  “Because he wasn’t good luck?” asked Frank.

  “No,” Phil replied, “Because he’s a total mess!”

  Joe wrinkled his nose as Pinky smeared compost across the floor with his snout. “How did you take him all the way to Cedarville?” he asked.

  “My parents wouldn’t let me take Pinky to the contest,” Phil replied, “but I won third prize anyway!”

  “Awesome, Phil!” Frank exclaimed.

  “What did you win?” asked Joe.

  “Two weeks at Camp Galileo,” Phil said. “It’s not the whole summer, but I’ll take it.”

  With a loud snort, Pinky scampered out of the workshop. Frank and Joe helped wipe up the mess with wads of paper towels. When they got most of it off the walls and floor, the brothers said goodbye to Phil.

  “I’m glad Phil didn’t take Izumi,” Frank said as they walked away from the Cohen house.

  “I’m glad he’s not our who too,” Joe said, before taking out their clue book. “But now we have no more suspects. And Aki will be by in a few hours!”

  “I know, I know,” Frank groaned. “What are we going to tell him?”

  Glumly the brothers walked home. Halfway there, Joe stopped to point at a truck parked on the street. “Frank,” he said. “Check it out.”

  Frank stopped to see where Joe was pointing. The truck belonged to Stan’s Pest Control. On the side of the truck was a picture of a floppy-eared beagle. Under the dog were the words LET MR. SNIFF SNIFF OUT YOUR BEDBUGS!