As Samantha walked back to her house, she wrestled with a decision. She could head up to her room and write a gloomy poem in her journal or…she could flop onto the couch and power mope.

“Poem,” she said grimly.

As she opened the front door, she had already started composing in her head:

Where, oh where did my uncle go?

And why did he say “Watch out for the—

“So!” Nipper called cheerfully the moment she stepped through the front door. “You want to figure out the plaid pattern, do you?”

Samantha ignored him. She wasn’t interested in whatever ridiculous thing he was going to say. She headed to the stairs.

“I said…,” Nipper continued, “you’d like to see Uncle Paul’s plaid. Right?”

“Is that really a question?” she replied.

“Well, today is a lucky day,” said Nipper.

“Ugh,” said Samantha. “Not another one of your lucky days. Don’t you remember what happened last time you—”

“Not my lucky day,” said Nipper. “Today is your lucky day.”

Her brother bounced up and down on his toes. He seemed really excited.

“Don’t you want to know the pattern in the plaid?” he asked.

“Okay,” she said. “Right. I do.”

“Perfect,” he said, “because I’ve discovered the secret.”

“Secret?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said. “The secret to Uncle Paul’s perplexing pants!”

Nipper stopped bouncing suddenly.

“Of course, before I share it with you,” he said, pointing a finger at her, “you are going to help me do something…about this!”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a shiny object.

“A coin?” asked Samantha.

Nipper looked at his hand. He was holding out a silver-colored object.

“Whoops,” he said. “That’s an old penny from Uncle Paul. Wrong pocket.”

He tucked the silver-colored penny away, reached into a different pocket, and took out the green plastic scorpion ring.

Samantha sighed.

“And why exactly am I going to help you now?” she asked.

“Because,” said Nipper, “I have the answer to your plaid puzzle.”

He crossed his arms and flashed a big smile.

Samantha thought about it for a moment. Her brother seemed really excited and very certain that he knew something useful. He could be completely wrong, of course.

But she had reached a dead end.

“Okay,” she told him. “What do I have to do?”

He handed her the fake plastic ring.

“You’re going to help me steal the real scorpion ring from Missy Snoddgrass,” he said.

“I don’t really approve of stealing things,” Samantha said.

“Are you kidding!” Nipper said. “Missy steals everything from me!”

He started marching around the room.

“She took my Yankees! She took my big blue diamond!” he shouted, waving his hands in the air. “Do you remember that gold, gem-covered egg sculpture that Uncle Paul gave me?”

Samantha nodded.

“She took that, too!” Nipper shouted. “And I used to have a trombone, and some cool round glasses, and a really old baseball card.”

“I’m pretty sure you lost some of those all by yourself,” Samantha said.

“It doesn’t matter. And we’re really trading, more than stealing,” Nipper said.

He pointed out through the side window of the living room.

“If you can get us to Missy’s back porch and help me get that ring, then I’ll show you the pattern in the plaid.”

Samantha looked out the window to their neighbor’s house.

“All right,” she said.

“Yes!” Nipper said, punching a fist happily at the air.

“Hold on,” Samantha said.

She stuffed the plastic ring into her pocket.

“How exactly am I supposed to help get you the ring?” she asked.

“That’s your job,” said Nipper. “Do I have to figure out everything?”