Since Zax couldn’t stop giggling every time he looked at my boots, Desmond and I decided to leave him at home. After all, we were on a serious mission. No giggling allowed!
Soon we were at Carter’s house across from Kersville Park.
Carter yawned big and loud. “Sorry. I couldn’t sleep last night.” He walked across the yard and stopped near a tree. Desmond and I followed him. The spot was completely empty. “This is where I built the snowman.”
Right away, Desmond opened his backpack and got to work. A few minutes later, he had set up some flags and tied yellow tape around that part of the yard. Desmond called it “the Ghost Patrol scene.” He really took his job seriously.
Finally, Desmond said, “Carter, tell me about your snowman.”
Carter pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket. “Here—I wrote down all the details.”
Desmond nodded. I could tell he liked this Carter kid.
After reading the notes, Desmond searched the Ghost Patrol scene, looking for clues. Then he dropped to his knees and pulled out a . . . ruler? Desmond Cole had a ton of gadgets in his backpack. Why would he need a ruler of all things?
“Do you see what I see?” Desmond asked, measuring the snow. “Look at these!”
I bent down. When I looked closely, I could see there were footprints. They were plain with no boot treads or anything. They looked kind of fluffy, too.
Whoever moved the snowman must have been lighter than air!
Suddenly something freezing cold hit my head. “Aargh!” I screamed. “What was that?”
THUD! It hit me again, but this time I knew what it was: a snowball.
“Hey!” I yelled, looking around. “That’s not cool.”
Another snowball hit me on the arm. I ducked down.
“Oh no!” Desmond hollered. “It’s Cindy Lee! Run for it!”
Across the street, I saw a little girl with an armful of snowballs pop out from behind a tree. And just like an automatic pitching machine, she threw those snowballs at us fast and hard!
No one had to tell me twice. I ran away. “Who is Cindy Lee?”
“She’s the neighborhood snowball bully,” said Desmond. “Nobody can win a snowball fight against her. She never misses, and you never see her coming.”
We reached the back of Carter’s house and everyone stopped to catch their breath.
“Just once,” Carter huffed, “I’d love to win a snowball fight against Cindy Lee.”
That wouldn’t be easy. She hit me with so many snowballs that I looked like a snowman. But thanks to my boots, my toes were still super toasty!
