The Case of the Disappearing Dinosaur Read online

  “When you slapped it against the table, it made a noise, even though the napkin was empty,” I noted.

  Danika reached under and, whap, whap, knocked against the bottom of the table. She said, “The third time, I just flattened the napkin.”

  “Got it,” I said. “So you’re saying the dinosaur should still be on your lap?”

  Lucy shook her head. “No, Danika is supposed to take it and stuff it into the box.”

  “I DID stuff it into the box,” Danika claimed. “That’s what’s so weird.”

  I looked down at Buster, still chewing at the table. I lifted my baseball cap and scratched the back of my neck. “Did you eat it, Buster?” I asked.

  Buster didn’t answer.

  “Great,” I mumbled. “What every detective loves. We’ve got one witness. But he isn’t talking.”

  Chapter

  11

  A Surprise Ending

  Mila joined us. “No one has much to say,” she told me. “And Bobby never left his seat. Some kids said they saw movement under the table. But that was probably just Larry. Remember, he was under there for a while.”

  “Larry?” I asked. “Or Harry?”

  “Same thing,” Mila replied. “Isn’t it?”

  I guessed she was right.

  “Jigsaw thinks maybe Buster ate it,” Danika told Mila.

  Mila looked at the ground. She frowned. “Buster is a chewer,” she said, “not a swallower. There would be bits of cloth and stuffing on the ground, don’t you think?”

  I did think.

  And Mila was probably right.

  We talked over the case. Mila again asked Danika, “You say you stuffed it into the box? Are you sure?”

  “I told you three times now,” Danika said. “I reached down, felt the cloth, and stuffed it in there.”

  “But you had to do it quickly,” I said. “That’s part of the trick, right?”

  Danika nodded. “Yeah, it’s not like I have all day.”

  Whoops! Crash! One of the babies, Harry or Larry, knocked over a lamp. The other one squatted in the doorway. He seemed sort of … uncomfortable. “Hey, Bigs,” I called. “Better get one of your parents. I think maybe your brother just did his business, if you know what I mean.”

  Bigs walked over to his little brother. He bent down and sniffed. “I don’t think so, Jigsaw. He doesn’t smell too funky.”

  “Wait a minute,” I said. “Is he the one who was playing under the table?”

  Bigs shrugged.

  Mila shrugged.

  Danika shrugged.

  Twins. Who can tell the difference?

  “What are you thinking, Jigsaw?” Mila asked.

  I felt the fabric in the box on the floor. It was denim. Like the kind used to make jeans and overalls.

  “How does he feel around the, er, behind area?” I asked Bigs.

  “Nuh-uh,” Bigs said, waving his hands. “Not my job. I’m not touching it.”

  I gulped. As a rule, I tried to stay far away from any baby’s bottom. It wasn’t a place I wanted to be. But I suddenly had a crazy hunch. And a mystery was a mystery. It was my job to get to the bottom of it. Even if the bottom of it was attached to a baby’s actual bottom.

  Sigh.

  “Come here, little guy,” I cooed. I noticed a freckle on the end of his nose. Must be Larry. “Anybody know how to get these overalls off?” I asked, tugging on the straps.

  “Um, I don’t think that’s such a good idea,” Bigs advised.

  “It’s a risk we’ll have to take,” I said.

  “Here, let me help you,” Mila said. She unsnapped a snap, unbuckled the buckles, undid the straps, and the top half of Larry’s overalls sagged to the ground. There in the back of his pants, right next to his tush, was Bigs Maloney’s missing dinosaur.

  “Spike!” Bigs exclaimed. “How’d you get in there?”

  Danika looked at me in surprise.

  Larry seemed pretty surprised himself, like he’d just discovered some kind of amazing new talent. Abracadabra! Dinosaurs appeared out of his behind!

  “Larry was under the table,” I explained. “You must have stuffed the dinosaur into his overalls by mistake.”

  We all got a good laugh out of that one.

  Suddenly, the lights dimmed. A glow came from the top of the stairs. Creak, creak. Heavy footfalls made the stairs groan. It was Mr. and Mrs. Maloney, carrying a cake with candles. The cake from Grandma’s Bakery, from a case we solved only yesterday.

  We sang to Bigs,

  “Happy Birthday to you,

  Happy Birthday to you,

  You look like a monkey,

  And you act like one, too!”

  And that was the end of that. Another case solved. It didn’t take magic. Just a spike-tailed dinosaur that didn’t feel too comfortable in somebody’s overalls. I guess it all started with a good guy named Joey Pignattano—an honest guy who found some money. All he wanted to do was the right thing.

  Mila suddenly burst out laughing. “What’s so funny?” I asked.

  “Oh, I was just thinking about the look on little Larry’s face when we found that dinosaur in his pants. He was stunned. It’s like he was sort of proud, you know. Like he did it all by himself!”

  “Well, I’ve heard of the goose that laid golden eggs,” I said. “Maybe Larry thinks he’s the baby who lays plush dinosaurs!”

  “Or was that Harry?” asked Danika.

  “Whatever!” Mila and I chimed back.

  Don’t miss this special sneak peek at a brand-new, never-before-published JIGSAW JONES MYSTERY:

  The Case from

  Outer Space

  “Highly recommended.”—School Library Journal

  When Joey and Danika find a mysterious note tucked inside a book, all signs point to a visitor from outer space. Yikes! Can Jigsaw solve this case, when the clues are out of this world?

  Chapter

  1

  A Knock on the Door

  Call me Jones.

  Jigsaw Jones, private eye.

  I solve mysteries. For a dollar a day, I make problems go away. I’ve found stolen bicycles, lost jewelry, and missing parakeets. I’ve even tangled with dancing ghosts and haunted scarecrows.

  Mysteries can happen anywhere, at any time. One thing I’ve learned in this business is that anyone is a suspect. That includes friends, family, and a little green man from outer space.

  Go figure.

  It was a lazy Sunday morning. Outside my window, it looked like a nice spring day. The sky was blue with wispy clouds that looked like they had been painted by an artist. A swell day for a ball game. Or a mystery. Maybe both if I got lucky.

  I was standing at my dining room table, staring at a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle. It was supposed to be a picture of our solar system. The sun and eight planets. But right now it was a mess. Scattered pieces lay everywhere. I scratched my head and munched on a blueberry Pop-Tart. Not too hot, not too cold. Just right. As a cook, I’m pretty good with a toaster. I began working on the border, grouping all the pieces that had a flat edge. Sooner or later, I’d work my way through the planets. The rust red of Mars. The rings of Saturn. And the green tint of Neptune. I’ve never met a puzzle I couldn’t solve. That’s because I know the secret. The simple trick? Don’t give up.

  Don’t ever give up.

  My dog, Rags, leaped at the door. He barked and barked. A minute later, the doorbell rang. Ding-a-ling, ding-dong. That’s the thing about Rags. He’s faster than a doorbell. People have been coming to our house all his life. But for my dog, it’s always the most exciting thing that ever happened.

  Every single time.

  “Get the door, Worm,” my brother Billy said. He was sprawled on the couch, reading a book. Teenagers, yeesh.

  “Why me?” I complained.

  “Because I’m not doing it.”

  Billy kept reading.

  Rags kept barking.

  And the doorbell kept ringing.

  Somebody was in a
hurry.

  I opened the door. Joey Pignattano and Danika Starling were standing on my stoop. We were in the same class together, room 201, with Ms. Gleason.

  “Hey, Jigsaw!” Danika waved. She bounced on her toes. The bright beads in her hair clicked and clacked.

  “Boy, am I glad to see you!” Joey exclaimed. He burst into the room. “Got any water?”

  “I would invite you inside, Joey,” I said, “but you beat me to it.”

  Danika smiled.

  “I ate half a bag of Jolly Ranchers this morning,” Joey announced. “Now my tongue feels super weird!”

  “That’s not good for your teeth,” I said.

  Joey looked worried. “My tongue isn’t good for my teeth? Are you sure? They both live inside my mouth.”

  “Never mind,” I said.

  “Pipe down, guys!” Billy complained. “I’m reading here.”

  “Come into the kitchen,” I told Joey and Danika. “We’ll get fewer complaints. Besides, I’ve got grape juice. It’s on the house.”

  “On the house?” Joey asked. “Is it safe?”

  I blinked. “What?”

  “You keep grape juice on your roof?” Joey asked.

  Danika gave Joey a friendly shove. “Jigsaw said ‘on the house.’ He means it’s free, Joey,” she said, laughing.

  Joey pushed back his glasses with an index finger. “Free? In that case, I’ll take a big glass.”

  Chapter

  2

  One Small Problem

  I poured three glasses of grape juice.

  “Got any snacks?” Joey asked. “Cookies? Chips? Corn dogs? Crackers?”

  “Corn dogs?” I repeated. “Seriously?”

  “Oh, they are delicious,” Joey said. “I ate six yesterday. Or was that last week? I forget.”

  Danika shook her head and giggled. Joey always made her laugh.

  I set out a bowl of chips.

  Joey pounced like a football player on a fumble. He was a skinny guy, but he ate like a rhinoceros.

  “So what’s up?” I asked.

  “We found a note,” Danika began.

  “Aliens are coming,” Joey interrupted. He chomped on a fistful of potato chips.

  I waited for Joey to stop chewing. It took a while. Hum-dee-dum, dee-dum-dum. I finally asked, “What do you mean, aliens?”

  “Aliens, Jigsaw!” he exclaimed. “Little green men from Mars—from the stars—from outer space!”

  Thank you for reading this FEIWEL AND FRIENDS book.

  The Friends who made

  The Case of the

  Disappearing Dinosaur

  possible are:

  Jean Feiwel, Publisher

  Liz Szabla, Associate Publisher

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  Holly West, Editor

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  OUR BOOKS ARE FRIENDS FOR LIFE.

  Read more Jigsaw Jones Mysteries by James Preller

  The Case from Outer Space—New!

  The Case of the Smelly Sneaker

  The Case of the Bicycle Bandit

  The Case of the Glow-in-the-Dark Ghost

  The Case of the Mummy Mystery

  The Case of the Best Pet Ever

  The Case of the Buried Treasure

  The Case of the Disappearing Dinosaur

  The Case of the Million-Dollar Mystery

  About the Author

  James Preller is the author of numerous books, including the acclaimed novels The Fall, Bystander, and Six Innings, and the Scary Tales and Jigsaw Jones series. He travels throughout the country visiting classrooms and book festivals. He lives in Delmar, New York, with his wife and their children. Visit him online at jamespreller.com, or sign up for email updates here.

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  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright Notice

  Dedication

  Chapter 1     Danika the Great

  Chapter 2     Lost and Found

  Chapter 3     Lining Up the Clues

  Chapter 4     Something Fishy

  Chapter 5     How the Cookie Crumbles

  Chapter 6     Go, Rags, Go!

  Chapter 7     Meet Buster

  Chapter 8     The Magic Show

  Chapter 9     Gone!

  Chapter 10   The Scene of the Crime

  Chapter 11   A Surprise Ending

  Excerpt: The Case from Outer Space

  Other Books By James Preller

  About the Author

  Copyright

  Copyright © 2002 by James Preller

  Art used with permission from Scholastic

  A Feiwel and Friends Book

  An imprint of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC

  175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010

  mackids.com

  All rights reserved.

  Feiwel and Friends logo designed by Filomena Tuosto

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  First Feiwel and Friends edition, 2017

  eBook edition, November 2017

  eISBN 978-1-250-11087-9