March Mischief Read online

  “No!” Mrs. Wong said.

  “And Officer Fallon told us Mr. Paskey’s disappeared, too!” Nate said.

  “Goodness!” Mrs. Wong said. “Green Lawn has a leprechaun thief!”

  “Officer Fallon thinks it’s my brother Lucky,” Ben O’Leary said.

  Mrs. Wong laughed. “Lucky wouldn’t steal a penny!” she said. “He’s the most honest kid I know.”

  Bradley felt even more confused. “You mean you didn’t tell Officer Fallon you thought Lucky took your leprechaun?”

  “Heavens no,” Mrs. Wong said. “I simply told him someone had taken it. I didn’t name any names. I have no idea who took my leprechaun.”

  “Um, it was us, Mrs. Wong,” Ralphie admitted. “Ben and I took yours and two others to play a trick on Lucky. We’re really sorry.” Then they explained how they hid the statues in Lucky’s closet, only to find them missing later. “But we’ll get yours back before the contest, honest!”

  Mrs. Wong grinned. “I accept your apology,” she said. “But this whole thing is very strange. Let me know what happens.”

  “Thanks, Mrs. Wong,” Bradley said. “Now we’re going to talk to Mr. Paskey.”

  The bell tinkled again as the six kids left.

  They crossed Main Street and passed Howard’s Barbershop. They all waved to Howard. He was cutting the mayor’s hair.

  The kids walked up the steps to the Book Nook. Mr. Paskey was on a ladder, dusting a row of books. “Hello, young readers!” he said.

  “Hi, Mr. Paskey!” all six kids said.

  The bookseller stepped down from the ladder. “What can I do for you today?” he asked.

  “We heard that your leprechaun got stolen,” Nate said.

  “It did indeed!” Mr. Paskey said. “One moment it was on my sidewalk, and the next, it was gone!”

  “Mrs. Wong’s got swiped, too,” Bradley said.

  “And ours, too!” Brian said.

  “It’s a real-life mystery,” Mr. Paskey said. “Who would steal leprechauns right before the contest?”

  “We did. My brother and I took them all,” Ben said. He and Ralphie blushed as red as Mr. Paskey’s bow tie. They explained about the trick they were trying to play on Lucky. They told him how Lucky had gotten arrested.

  “Lucky arrested? What utter nonsense!” Mr. Paskey said. “I know Lucky. He worked here part-time a few summers ago. I saw him pick up a nickel off the floor one day. Instead of slipping it in his pocket, he gave it to me. Lucky would never steal leprechauns!”

  “You mean you didn’t tell Officer Fallon you thought it was Lucky?” Bradley asked.

  Mr. Paskey shook his head. “Never.”

  Bradley looked at the other kids. He knew they were all thinking the same thing he was thinking: none of them had told Officer Fallon that Lucky was the thief. Mrs. Wong hadn’t, either. Nor had Mr. Paskey.

  So if no one was blaming Lucky, why had Officer Fallon arrested him?

  The kids thanked Mr. Paskey. As they were leaving, he said, “Happy reading!”

  “This is a mess,” Ben said. “Nobody thinks Lucky stole those dumb leprechauns, but he’s still in jail.”

  Bradley could see the police station across Main Street. “Let’s go talk to Officer Fallon,” he said. “Tell him what you told us. Maybe he’ll believe you if we go with you.”

  The six kids crossed the street to the police station.

  Inside, they walked down a quiet hallway. They passed a room where two officers were dressing a leprechaun statue in a tiny police suit.

  Officer Fallon was at his desk sipping tea when the kids walked in. “Hello, gang,” he said. “What brings you here?”

  “We came to see Lucky,” Ben said. “Is he okay?”

  “Your brother is very comfortable,” Officer Fallon said.

  “We want to confess!” Ralphie said.

  Officer Fallon raised his bushy eyebrows. “What do you mean, Ralphie?”

  “We did it. Ben and me.” Ralphie and Ben told Officer Fallon how they had stolen all three leprechauns the night before.

  “We hid them in Lucky’s closet,” Ben said.

  “We were gonna return them, honest!” Ralphie cried.

  “We did it to get back at Lucky,” Ben went on. “We were mad at him, so we lied and told Bradley that it was Lucky. And we’re really sorry!”

  Everyone got quiet.

  Bradley could feel his heart beating too fast. “Officer Fallon, who told you that Lucky stole the leprechauns?” he asked. “We talked to Mrs. Wong and Mr. Paskey, and they said they didn’t tell you.”

  Officer Fallon looked at Bradley. He tugged on an earlobe. He smoothed his mustache. “I’m afraid I can’t tell you,” he finally answered. “Not while an investigation is going on.”

  Officer Fallon stood up. “Ben and Ralphie, you’re very brave to admit what you did,” he said. “Now just go get the statues and return them to their owners. Then I’ll let Lucky out of jail.”

  “But that’s the problem,” Ben said. “The leprechauns aren’t in the closet anymore.”

  “Well, where are they?” Officer Fallon asked.

  “We don’t know!” Ralphie wailed.

  Bradley thought the poor kid was going to burst into tears.

  Officer Fallon looked down at the O’Leary brothers. “You don’t know where the leprechauns are?”

  “No,” Ben mumbled.

  “Someone stole them from Lucky’s closet!” Ralphie said.

  “Oh, now I see,” Officer Fallon said. “First you stole them, then you hid them, then someone else stole them, right?”

  “Right!” Ben and Ralphie both said.

  “Some stranger walked into your house and took three leprechauns from Lucky’s closet?” Officer Fallon asked.

  Ben and Ralphie nodded.

  “Well, we have a problem,” Officer Fallon said. “I can’t let Lucky out of jail until the stolen goods are returned.”

  “But—but we don’t know where they are,” Ralphie stuttered.

  Officer Fallon sighed. “Sorry, kids, that’s the way it will have to be. We’ll make a trade. When you give me the leprechauns, I’ll give you Lucky.”

  The kids left the police station. No one knew what to say.

  Ben and Ralphie wanted their brother back.

  Bradley, Brian, Lucy, and Nate wanted their leprechaun back.

  At the fitness center window, they watched two women dressing a leprechaun statue in gym clothes.

  “We’d better get home,” Ralphie said.

  “Don’t worry, we’ll figure something out,” Bradley said.

  “See you guys,” Ben muttered. He and Ralphie trudged toward Robin Road.

  Bradley, Brian, Lucy, and Nate went to the twins’ house.

  Bradley found a note from his mother:

  Gone shopping. Josh is in charge.

  Pal seems lonely. Play with him!

  Lunch is in the fridge.

  —Mom

  “Where is Pal?” Lucy asked.

  Bradley whistled. Pal didn’t come.

  Brian clapped his hands. Pal still didn’t come. “Geez, don’t tell me somebody stole him, too!” Brian said.

  “Let’s go look,” Nate said.

  The four kids split up and searched the house.

  Bradley checked the bedrooms. Josh was on his bed reading and eating a sandwich.

  “Have you seen Pal?” Bradley asked.

  “He was in the kitchen when I made my sandwich,” Josh said.

  “He’s not there now,” Bradley said. Next, he went to the bedroom he shared with Brian. Pal’s tail was sticking out from under Brian’s bed.

  “There you are,” Bradley muttered. He flopped down on the floor next to the bed. “Hi, Pal. Come on out.”

  Pal didn’t move.

  “I’ll give you a cookie,” Bradley said.

  Pal wasn’t interested.

  “Are you mad at me?” Bradley asked.

  Pal didn’t make a sound.
/>   Bradley peeked under the bed. Pal’s big brown eyes looked back at him.

  “What have you got there?” Bradley asked. Pal was lying on something brown and fuzzy.

  Bradley pulled out the two sleeves he’d cut off his old sweater.

  “You miss your sweater?” Bradley asked. “Is that why you’re mad? I had to use the sweater for the leprechaun.”

  Just then the other kids walked in.

  “I found him,” Bradley said. He showed them the two sweater sleeves. “Pal’s mad because we took his old sweater.”

  Brian, Lucy, and Nate got down on the floor. They all looked under the bed. Pal looked back at them.

  “I have an idea,” Lucy said.

  “He’ll come out when he gets hungry,” Brian said.

  “No, I mean about finding the leprechaun,” Lucy said. “Maybe Pal can find it for us!”

  The other three just looked at her.

  “He loves that old sweater, right?” Lucy said.

  Bradley nodded.

  “And we put the sweater on the leprechaun, right?” Lucy said.

  “Yup,” Bradley said.

  “Well, Pal is a hound dog. Detectives use hound dogs to find missing people. So maybe Pal’s nose can lead us to the sweater. And then we’ll have the leprechaun!”

  “Great idea, Lucy!” Bradley said. “And if we find our leprechaun, the other two will probably be with it!”

  Bradley put his face under the bed again. “Pal, want to go for a walk?”

  Pal wriggled out from under the bed. “Woof!” he said.

  Bradley snapped on Pal’s leash. He held the sweater sleeves under the dog’s nose. “Find the sweater, Pal!” Bradley said.

  The basset hound led the four kids down the stairs and onto the porch. He sniffed the porch floor.

  “That’s where we left the leprechaun,” Brian said.

  Pal tugged on his leash and the kids followed. They all cut through the school grounds to Main Street. Soon they were headed down Bridge Lane.

  “He must be taking us back to the O’Learys’ house,” Nate said.

  At the big blue house, Pal went straight to the red wagon. He sniffed it all over.

  Just then the front door opened. Ben and Ralphie came out. “What’s going on?” Ben asked.

  “Pal is helping us find our leprechaun,” Bradley said. “He led us here.”

  “He knows you put it in your wagon,” Lucy said.

  “He’s right,” Ralphie said.

  “Can you let Pal sniff Lucky’s gym clothes?” Bradley asked.

  Ralphie giggled. “Sure, but they’re pretty stinky,” he said. “Come on in.”

  Pal and the four kids followed Ben and Ralphie inside. A bunch of redheaded kids were playing hide-and-seek. The fairy-princess leprechaun stood in a corner.

  “Lucky’s room is down the hall,” Ben said, leading the way. The bedroom was messy, but the bed was made.

  Pal went right to a closet door. He sniffed and barked and scratched at the door.

  Ben opened the closet door. The floor was covered with gym clothes. “This is where we hid them,” Ralphie said.

  “So somebody snuck in here and stole them,” Nate said. “I wonder who.”

  “Do you keep your front door locked?” Bradley asked the two brothers.

  Ben and Ralphie shrugged. “Mom takes care of that,” Ben answered. “I guess she locks it at night. But during the day, she leaves it unlocked.”

  Pal left the closet and headed through the bedroom door. His leash trailed behind him.

  The six kids followed.

  Outside, Pal bolted for an old car sitting in the driveway. He put his front paws on the car door and started barking.

  “Maybe the leprechauns are in the car!” Nate said.

  “That’s Lucky’s car, and we already looked,” Ben said. He opened the car door. Pal jumped inside. He sniffed all the seats. He found a French fry and gobbled it up. Then he barked.

  “Maybe Pal thinks we’re looking for Lucky,” Lucy said.

  Bradley pulled Pal away from the car. He let him sniff the sweater sleeves again. “Find the sweater,” he told his dog. “We already know where Lucky is.”

  “Yeah, he’s in jail,” Ben said. “And it’s our fault!”

  Pal sat on the driveway. He looked at the kids. He looked at the car. Then he went to sleep.

  Bradley checked his watch. “Let’s go home and eat,” he said. “Then we can decide what to do next.”

  The kids woke up Pal. They all hiked back along Bridge Lane. When they got home, there was no car in the driveway. “Mom’s still not home,” Brian said.

  “She left sandwiches,” Bradley said.

  Inside, the kids lined up at the sink and washed their hands. Pal crawled under the table to wait for crumbs.

  Bradley pulled a plate of sandwiches from the fridge. Brian got out milk and glasses for everyone.

  “We have tuna, peanut butter and jelly, and egg salad,” Bradley said.

  “Tuna!” Brian yelled.

  “Egg salad!” Lucy said.

  Bradley and Nate both had PB&J.

  Bradley thought about Lucky and Officer Fallon. He still wondered who had told Officer Fallon that Lucky was the thief.

  “We have to talk to Lucky,” Bradley said.

  “Why?” his brother asked.

  “He might know who told Officer Fallon to arrest him,” Bradley answered.

  “But Lucky’s in jail,” Brian said.

  “So we can ask Officer Fallon to let us see him,” Nate said. “They let prisoners have visitors.”

  “How do you know?” Lucy asked.

  Nate grinned. He had a milk mustache. “I saw it on TV,” he said.

  Ten minutes later, the kids walked up the steps of the police station. Pal pulled on his leash.

  The police station was warm and quiet. A radiator hissed. A clock ticked.

  “It’s creepy in here,” Nate whispered.

  “Just be glad you’re not Lucky,” Lucy said. “He’s in a jail cell!”

  “Yuck,” Brian said. “I heard they sleep on cement beds! With spiders and rats!”

  “And all they feed you is bread and water!” Nate said.

  “You guys watch too much TV,” Lucy said.

  Just then the door opened. Ben and Ralphie walked in.

  “Hey, what’re you guys doing here?” Ben asked.

  “We came to see your brother,” Bradley said.

  “We did, too,” Ralphie said. “We brought him some cookies.” He held up a lumpy bag.

  Ben looked around. “Where’s his cell?” he asked.

  “I think it’s downstairs,” Brian said.

  “There’s Officer Fallon’s office,” Bradley said. “Come on.”

  A small sign hung from Officer Fallon’s doorknob.

  It said: GONE TO LUNCH.

  “It’s almost one o’clock,” Bradley said. “He should be back soon. Let’s wait.”

  The six kids sat on a long bench under the clock. Ralphie held the lumpy bag on his lap. Bradley could smell the cookies. He wondered what kind they were.

  Pal was sniffing the floor. Suddenly he raced to a closed door. He began whimpering.

  Bradley followed Pal. “What’s the matter, boy?” he asked.

  Pal’s tail was going crazy. He let out a low growl. He put his front paws on the door.

  Bradley opened the door. The room was dark. He found a wall switch, and a light came on.

  Bradley saw mops and pails and other cleaning supplies. Against the back wall stood a huge old desk. It was partly covered with a sheet. A dusty computer sat on the desk. Spiderwebs made it look creepy. In a corner stood a tall trash barrel.

  Then Bradley saw something else.

  “Guys,” he whispered. “Guess what Pal found?”

  The five other kids hurried over to Bradley and Pal.

  “Look,” Bradley said. He pointed inside the room.

  On a table stood three leprechauns. One h
ad floppy ears and a doggy nose and wore part of an old sweater.

  Pal leaped into the room and licked his sweater.

  “You’re awesome, Pal!” Nate said.

  “Let’s give these to Officer Fallon!” Ben said.

  “And get Lucky out of jail!” Ralphie added.

  “Wait a second,” Bradley said. “Let me think.”

  A minute passed.

  “He’s thinking,” Brian said.

  Nate giggled.

  “Something is wrong here,” Bradley said finally. “Don’t you guys wonder how the leprechauns got from Lucky’s closet to this storage room?”

  “Maybe one of the cops found them and stuck them in here,” Ben said.

  “Found them where?” Ralphie said. “They never came inside to look in Lucky’s closet.”

  “Besides, if a cop found the leprechauns, he’d have told Officer Fallon,” Bradley said. “And he would have returned our leprechaun to us.”

  “And he wouldn’t keep Lucky locked up,” Ralphie said.

  “You’re right, Bradley,” Lucy said. “Something weird is going on.”

  Just then they heard someone laugh.

  Bradley turned around. “That came from Officer Fallon’s office,” he said.

  Bradley thought for another minute. He tiptoed over to Officer Fallon’s door. The others followed.

  Six pairs of ears listened at the door.

  “Your move, Officer Fallon,” someone said on the other side of the door.

  “That’s Lucky’s voice!” Ben whispered.

  Very gently, Bradley turned the knob. He opened the door a few inches.

  Officer Fallon was sitting at his desk. Lucky sat opposite him. They were eating burgers and playing chess.

  Both had big smiles on their faces.

  I thought Lucky was in jail, Bradley said to himself. He heard Ralphie and Ben take in deep breaths.

  “How’d you happen to find the three leprechauns in your closet?” Officer Fallon asked Lucky.

  “My mom saw Ben and Ralphie come in with the leprechauns,” Lucky said. “She heard them say they were going to blame me for it. So Mom and I decided to teach those two a lesson. That’s why we brought the leprechauns here to you.”

  Officer Fallon laughed. “Those poor kids,” he said. “They think I really arrested you. When do you want to go back home?”