Creepella Von Cacklefur #5: Fright Night Read online

  “Dad should be able to ace this one,”

  Creepella whispered to Shivereen.

  Boris closed his eyes, thinking, as the

  minute clicked away. Then Horatio gave him

  the signal to start.

  Oops!

  47

  stomach-turner

  The arrow on the Shivers

  Machine jumped nearly all the

  way to the top, to the “

  POSITIVELY

  PETRIFYING

  ” level. Creepella and

  Shivereen let out a cheer.

  The audience liked the poem,

  too.

  Boris smiled, pleased. Then it was Vera

  Versa’s turn. She chose number four, and

  Crystal shouted her word:

  “Phantom!”

  “I wandered past a ghastly grave,

  And saw the dirt had been moved about.

  Before I could run, or even scream,

  A bony skeleton jumped right out!”

  “Frightfully

  chilling!”

  48

  “

  A

  r

  e

  a

  l

  !

  ”

  After a minute, Vera began:

  The audience was silent at first.

  Then they began to

  laugh

  . Then the

  judges

  laughed

  . Crystal and Horatio

  laughed

  . The only rodents who weren’t

  laughing

  were Evelyn Dozer, who

  was still asleep, and Vera Versa, who knew

  that she had lost. The Shivers Machine arrow

  was moving — but from laughter, not from

  fright.

  Crystal delivered the verdict.

  “

  eliminated!

  ” she cried.

  “A phantom sat down to breakfast.

  It was the meal he liked the most.

  But he had no bread, so the phantom said,

  ‘I’m a ghost without any toast!’”

  49

  Poof!

  Vera Versa’s booth disappeared

  beneath the stage. Crystal dried her TEARS

  (from laughing so hard) and then announced,

  “The final two fright night contestants

  are Brad Balladeer and Boris von Cacklefur!”

  “Brad! Brad!”

  cheered half the crowd.

  “Boris! Boris!”

  cheered the other half.

  Crystal waved to the audience. “It’s time

  for intermission! We’ll be back in twenty

  minutes!”

  Boris left the stage and joined Creepella

  and Shivereen.

  “You’re doing

  GREAT, Father!”

  Creepella said, giving him a hug.

  51

  “Thank you,” Boris replied. “But Brad is

  going to be difficult to beat. And there’s

  something

  oddly

  familiar about him. . . .”

  He thoughtfully pulled his whiskers.

  “You’d better start practicing your final

  poem, Father,” Creepella reminded him.

  “Yes, of course!” Boris agreed. Then he

  walked off to his dressing room.

  Geronimo slowly untied the

  rope

  from

  his tail. Professor Dubloon was busy chatting

  with Professor Cleverpaws. Evelyn Dozer

  was snoring away next to him. It was the

  perfect time to ESCAPE!

  “They don’t really need me,” he reasoned.

  “I need to get back to my writing.”

  He slowly began to tiptoe away. Then

  he scurried backstage, where he hoped he

  wouldn’t be seen. To his surprise, he

  found Brad Balladeer talking with the

  Rattenbaum triplets. All four were clutching

  long bandages in their paws.

  three SuSpiCiouS

  thingS

  53

  “He’s the perfect mummy!" Brad told the

  triplets, laughing.

  Geronimo forgot all about his escape plan.

  There was something

  suspicious

  about this scene.

  “What mummyare you talking about?”

  he asked them. “And why do you need all

  these bandages?”

  mummy mood

  “

  Oh, look, it’s

  C

  reepella’s friend,

  ”

  said Lilly.

  “

  Why do you hang around with

  her?

  ” asked Milly.

  “

  We’re much more interesting,

  ”

  said Tilly.

  Before Geronimo could respond, Brad

  stepped up to him. “I asked these lovely

  ladies to help inspire me,” he said. “I

  need a rhyme for my poem, ‘Ode to the

  Mummy.’ The bandages help get me in a

  .”

  “Bandages? Really?” asked Geronimo.

  Brad rolled his eyes impatiently.

  Then he turned to the Rattenbaums.

  “Let us go, my muses. Poetry

  does not wait!”

  Geronimo watched them head toward

  Brad’s dressing room. He didn’t believe their

  story, but he had other things to think about.

  “I must go work on that encyclopedia!” he

  said. “The faster I finish, the faster I can get

  away from this

  bizarre

  valley!”

  He was only a few steps away from the

  back door when he heard Creepella’s

  voice behind him.

  “Here you are, Gerrykins!” she said.

  “I’ve been looking for you!”

  Geronimo turned and saw

  Creepella holding a pot of

  steaming

  stew.

  “Isn’t it wonderful? Chef

  Stewrat and the whole von Cacklefur family

  are here,” she said. “A pot of Chef’s stew is

  just the thing to give Father the

  ENERGY

  he needs to win. Would you like some?”

  56

  Geronimo sniffed at the stinky stew and

  then shook his head.

  “Well, come anyway,” she said. “I’m sure

  Father can use some encouragement.”

  “B-but the encyclopedia . . .” Geronimo

  stammered.

  Then he felt a paw on his back.

  It was Professor Dubloon. Geromino was

  very CONFUSED.

  “By the strings of my eyepatch, it was

  you!” the angry professor went on. “You

  thief!”

  “What happened?” Creepella asked gently.

  “Somebody STOLE my ship!” Dubloon

  roared. “It was parked right outside the

  arena. And now it’s GONE!”

  “Your ship?” asked Geronimo.

  57

  “YoU

  d

  id it!

  I

  know you did

  !

  confess!”

  “The professor has a

  pirate ship on wheels,”

  Creepella explained. “I

  wonder who would want

  to steal it?”

  Dubloon pointed at

  Geronimo.

  “Don’t be

  silly

  ,

  Professor!” Creepella

  said with a laugh.

  “Geronimo is the

  most

  honest


  rodent I know.

  We’ll help you later.

  We need to go see

  my father!”

  Creepella

  grabbed

  “

  he stole it!

  ”

  58

  Geronimo by the elbow and led him to Boris’s

  dressing room. But when she opened the

  door, she was

  SURPRISED

  to find that

  her father wasn’t there.

  “Where could he be?” Creepella asked.

  “Hmm,” muttered Geronimo to himself.

  “A mysterious mummy. A missing vehicle.

  And now this. It’s all very suspicious.”

  Just then the Rattenbaum triplets walked

  past the door, snickering.

  When they saw Creepella, the triplets stopped

  laughing.

  “Look who’s here!” said Milly.

  “It’s boring old Creepella,” added Tilly.

  “I bet she’s looking for her daddy,” sneered

  Lilly.

  Creepella marched up to them.

  “How do you know that?” she asked. “Have

  you seen my father?”

  “Your father is a SCAREDY-RAT,” Milly

  said.

  “He knew that Brad is going to win,”

  said Tilly.

  “So he RAN away!” Lilly finished.

  60

  where’S

  BoriS?

  never

  “He would

  do that!” Creepella insisted.

  “Oh, no? That’s what he did in fourth

  grade,” the triplets said together.

  Creepella’s

  green

  eyes flashed with

  anger. “How did you know that?”

  But the triplets

  HURRIED

  away without

  answering. Creepella started to go after

  them, but Geronimo held her back.

  “Calm down,” he said. “I have something

  to tell you.”

  “Not now, Geronimo,” Creepella said

  impatiently. “We must find Father!”

  Creepella ran so fast that Geronimo could

  not keep up. She found her family in the

  stands. They were enjoying Chef Stewrat’s

  smelly stew.

  “Father is

  missing

  !” Creepella

  announced. “The Rattenbaum triplets said

  he ran away, but I don’t believe them!”

  62

  “Well, he was nervous about the

  contest,” Shivereen pointed out.

  “True, but he is very proud of that

  poem he wrote,” Creepella said. “I know he

  wants to recite it in the final round.”

  “Maybe that Brad Balladeer fellow knows

  something,” muttered Grandma Crypt. “That

  young rat looks quite familiar. . . .”

  Geronimo finally caught up to Creepella.

  “I have something to tell you,” he told her,

  huffing and puffing. “It’s important!”

  “Father is missing,” Creepella said. “That’s

  more important!”

  “But I think something suspicious

  is going on,” Geronimo insisted. “Before

  Boris went missing, I saw Brad with the

  Rattenbaum triplets and a bunch of bandages.

  They were acting very STRANGE.”

  “That is suspicious,” Creepella said. “I

  think you’re onto something, Gerrykins.

  Let’s go solve this

  mystery

  !”

  They headed back to Boris’s dressing room

  to look for

  CLUES

  . Shivereen, who

  always loved a good mystery, joined them. So

  did Bitewing, but he went along for the

  mosquito treats

  in Creepella’s

  pockets.

  As they walked down the hall, they saw

  Professor Cleverpaws examining the floor

  with a huge magnifying glass.

  64

  “Professor, are you looking for my father,

  too?” Creepella asked.

  “Your father? I didn’t know he was

  missing,” the professor replied. “No, I’m

  trying to help Professor Dubloon find his

  missing pirate ship.”

  “That’s another

  suspicious

  disappearance,” Geronimo remarked.

  Creepella nodded. “Exactly! And I have a

  hunch that those two disappearances are

  connected. If we find the pirate ship, we’ll

  find Father!”

  Professor Cleverpaws

  pointed to the floor.

  “See these? These are

  tracks made by the

  boat’s wheels. If we

  follow them, we may

  find the boat.”

  Everyone eagerly followed Professor

  Cleverpaws as she moved along the

  tracks, but then she stopped at the

  entrance to the

  Horrorwood Studios

  gate.

  Beyond the gate were the sets for the movies

  made at the studio.

  “There are too many tracks beyond

  the gate,” the professor said, shaking her

  head. “I’ll have to STOP following them.”

  “Don’t worry, we’ll take it from here!”

  Creepella promised.

  “But we don’t even know where to look,”

  Geronimo protested. “This could take

  forever.”

  Creepella ignored him and

  PUSHED

  open the gate. Shivereen and Bitewing

  followed her, and Geronimo reluctantly

  joined them.

  Next to the gate, three blonde heads poked

  66

  out of three large fake rocks.

  “She’s getting too close,” said Milly

  “We have to follow her!” added Lilly.

  “She can’t

  find out

  what happened,”

  warned Tilly.

  The studio lot was

  crowded

  with rodents

  scurrying between the

  BUSY

  movie sets.

  As they began their search, Geronimo turned

  to Creepella.

  “What did those

  triplets

  mean before?”

  he asked. “About your father in fourth

  grade?”

  Creepella told him the story of how Chester

  Cheater

  stole

  young Boris’s poem. “He

  never entered a contest again,” she explained.

  “But that was a long time ago. I’m sure he

  hasn’t run away!”

  Then the Rattenbaum triplets strolled by,

  carrying

  suitcases

  .

  triplets

  68

  a BuSy

  movie Set

  “We’re carrying our costumes,” said

  Milly.

  “We’re going to be stars!” added

  Lilly.

  “Beauties of the big screen!” bragged

  Tilly.

  Then they

  HURRIED

  off.

  Creepella’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t trust

  those three.”

  “What should we do now, Auntie?”

  Shivereen asked.

  “Let’s talk to my friend, the movie director

  Sylvia Cinemouse,” Creepella

  suggested. “Maybe she’s seen something.”

  They found Sylvia on
the set of her new

  film, forest of fur.

  “Creepella, how good to see you!” she

  cried. “Can I convince you to star

  in my next film? I’ve got the

  PERFECT part

  for you.”

  Creepella

  shook her head.

  “Thanks, but being

  an

  actress

  isn’t

  in my plans.”

  70

  “That’s too bad,” said Sylvia. “You’ve got a

  GREAT

  look, and a

  GREAT

  name,

  too.”

  “Name?” asked Shivereen.

  “Sure,” said Sylvia. “Every

  movie star

  needs a great name. Take Johnny Depprat,

  the FAMOUSE actor. His name used

  to be Henry Squishyface. He never got any

  work. Then he changed it, and now he’s a

  star!”

  While Creepella and her friend talked,

  Geronimo looked around the set for clues.

  He tripped over three bushes that

  seemed to come out of nowhere.

  “How dare you, you

  clumsy

  rodent!” said the bushes. Then they shuffled

  away.

  “

  Quiet

  , everyone!” Sylvia shouted through

  her megaphone. “This is a movie set.”

  71

  “Sorry,” Geronimo said. “But we’re trying

  to solve a

  mystery

  here. Creepella’s

  father is missing.”

  “Oh, dear,” said Sylvia. “How can I help?”

  “We were wondering if you’ve seen a

  pirate ship on wheels roll through here,”

  Creepella said.

  Sylvia shook her head. “Sorry, no. It’s been

  crazy

  around here all morning. But if

  I see one, I’ll let you know.”

  Then Shivereen cried out in a loud

  voice.

  “Auntie, come here! I think I’ve found

  something!”

  73

  Creepella ran to Shivereen, who was holding

  up a torn scrap of paper.

  “I found it on the ground, and there are

  some weird

  tracks

  right

  next to it,” Shivereen reported. “It has one

  word on it: ‘Once.’”

  “Hmm. Once,” repeated Creepella.