Ghost and Max Monroe, Case #2: The Missing Zucchini
Max left the frog hunting to his grandpa and Uncle Larry He grabbed a bowl of cereal walked out the back door and waded through the waist-high grass toward the run-down coach house where the Monroe Detective Agency office was Instead of entering through the door he climbed in through the window The door key had been lost long ago ANSWER IT ANSWER IT Max was just coming to the end of a Starchy comic when the phone rang The phone The phone shouted Larry rushing into the office through the wall and waving his arms Answer it Answer it Max picked up the receiver of the old rotary phone Hello Larry shifted excitedly from one foot to the other like a kid who needed to pee
Max Monroe said the voice on the other end of the line Yes said Max a little surprised that someone would be asking for him on the detective agency phone This is Zeeta and Zelda Zamboni We need your help Our most prized possession has been stolen Larry leaned in to listen As he did he caught sight of the Starchy comic on the desk Oh oh I love that Starchy he gushed It’s the one where he has to save Chihuahuas that have landed on Pluto the planet not the dog Then he gets Max frowned at him putting his finger to his lips to try to shush him Larry nodded then leaned back in to listen FOR CRYING OUT LOUD We’re friends of Marty the magician said Zelda and he told us how you got him out of a sticky situation by finding Daisy Dee He said you’re a great detective Will you help us Please Larry’s eyes almost popped out of his head Say YES YES Max didn’t look too sure so Larry grabbed the phone Would you hold the line for one moment please he said sweetly then threw the phone into the desk drawer and slammed it shut Max don’t you realize what a great opportunity this is It’s another chance to redeem the Monroe name and another chance
for you to be a detective Kids your age have paper routes for crying out loud You’ve got to do it For both of us Larry had a point about the paper route anyway Max was enjoying being a detective The summer was turning out way better than expected He opened the drawer and pulled out the phone I’d be glad to help Max told Zeeta and Zelda What’s the prized possession that was stolen Our zucchini Max’s face dropped Your zucchini Yes said Zelda The one we’re entering in this year’s Harvest Fair This is the tenth year of the competition and we’ve won nine years in a row We’re determined to make it ten Zeeta piped in Max slumped in his chair All right he said Give me your address Looking for a zucchini was sure to be duller than dirt but he’d given his word and he never went back on his word After Max hung up the phone he turned to his uncle They want me to find their zucchini Uncle Larry So Sherlock Holmes had lots of unusual cases Max shook his head I seriously doubt anyone ever asked him to find a missing vegetable
CHAPTER 2 HOME OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST ZUCCHINI Larry rushed to the garage to get the motorcycle When he honked Max slipped on his coat and met him in the driveway Whenever Larry drove the motorcycle he wore an aviator’s cap goggles and a long coat Without them he’d be invisible and that would be a weird sight a motorcycle with no driver Grandpa Harry and Max were the only ones Uncle Larry let see and hear him Max put on his helmet and stepped into the sidecar Larry revved the engine a couple of times then they took off like a flash When they reached the end of the block Larry shouted Where are we going Max looked at the crumpled paper in his hand and shouted back To 77 Hoodwinked Lane In Harrow The motorcycle roared down the road Half an hour later Max and Larry passed a sign that said Welcome to Harrow Home of the World’s Largest Zucchini
