The Mystery of the Phantom Grashopper

fall without being smashed.”
    Trixie headed around the building. “We’d better go look,” she said.
    “Trixie, we don’t have enough time,” Honey warned. “Besides, what would we do with Hoppy if we found him? Town Hall doesn’t open until nine o’clock”
    Reluctantly, Trixie agreed. “Let’s report it to the police, then,” she said. “The station is right across the street—it’ll only take a minute.”
    When Trixie hurried into the small police station,
    Sergeant Molinson was just sitting down at his desk with a cup of coffee and a doughnut He looked at Trixie and scowled. “Are you skipping school today, Detective Belden?” he asked.
    “Of course not” Trixie replied. “Sergeant Molinson, something awful has happened! We were driving past Town Hall just now, and we noticed that Hoppy isn’t up on the roof. The storm must have knocked him down. We don’t have time to look for him, so we thought—”
    “Who is Hoppy?” Sergeant Molinson interrupted sharply.
    “The grasshopper weather vane,” Trixie said. “He’s been on top of Town Hall since—”
    The sergeant was annoyed. Leaning across his desk, he said, “Trixie, crime is my business. I don’t have time to go around looking for weather vanes that fall off roofs. Mr. Johnson takes care of Town Hall, so that’s his problem, not mine.”
    Trixie was not put off easily. “Hoppy belongs to everyone in Sleepyside,” she said. “That weather vane is part of Sleepyside history—and a valuable antique, too. It can’t be left just lying on the ground. Please, Sergeant Molinson?”
    Molinson sighed. “I’ll check into it,” he said.
    “Thanks!” Trixie said, rushing out of the police station. “Let’s go,” she urged Jim. “The bell rings in five minutes.”

    Morning classes seemed to drag on endlessly. Trixie tried to concentrate, but her thoughts kept returning to Hoppy. She wondered if he had been found, and whether he was badly damaged from the fall. Luckily, Trixie was not called on to answer questions in class. When the lunch bell finally sounded, she was the first one out the door.
    As she rushed down the hall to the lunchroom, Trixie spotted Miss Lawler coming out of her classroom.
    “Miss Lawler, wait a minute please,” Trixie called.
    The teacher’s aide looked especially attractive today, Trixie noticed. Her hair was cut in a new fluffy style, and her beige skirt and blouse were fashionable and expensive-looking.
    “Hello, Trixie,” she said with a smile.
    “Have you seen Sammy?” Trixie asked breathlessly.
    “Why, no, not today,” Miss Lawler answered. “Why?“
    Quickly, Trixie told her about Hoppy. “We think the storm knocked him loose from the base. He must have fallen behind the building, but we didn’t have time to look for him,” she said. Trixie pushed her curly hair back from her face and sighed, “Hoppy’s so old that I’m afraid he may be broken.”
    Miss Lawler bit her lower lip. “I—I’d better call Sammy at Town Hall,” she said. “Where’s the nearest pay telephone?”
    Trixie pointed to the far end of the corridor. “Right down there,” she said. “Please come over to our lunch table and tell us if you hear any news from Sammy.” The Bob-Whites were waiting for Trixie at their usual table in the lunchroom.
    “Has everyone heard the news?” Trixie asked as she sat down beside Di and began her lunch.
    “We all know,” Brian said. “Honey and Jim told us about Hoppy.”
    Trixie took a bite of her tuna fish sandwich. “I just told Miss Lawler about it, and she’s calling Sammy at Town Hall. If there’s any news, she’ll tell us.”
    “Here she comes now,” Dan said, seeing the teacher’s aide crossing the room.
    As soon as Miss Lawler reached their table, Trixie asked anxiously, “Did you talk to Sammy?”
    Miss Lawler shook her head from side to side. “I spoke with Mr. Johnson,” she answered. “He said Sammy hasn’t come to work today. He’s called in sick.” Miss Lawler looked worried. “I hope he—he’s all right.”
    “What about Hoppy?” Trixie asked. “Did they find him?”
    Nervously Miss Lawler fingered the golden chain around her neck. “There was no sign of the weather vane anywhere,” she said. “It’s disappeared.”
    Trixie drew a long breath. “Somebody has stolen Hoppy!” she exclaimed finally.

A Stranger in Town Hall • 8

    STOLEN HOPPY?” Di’s eyes widened. “Who would do a thing like that?”
    Honey was