The Cinderella Ballet Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page A

Deirdre take a photo of the slippers outside?”
    Bess gasped. “She must have taken the slippers from the studio!” she exclaimed.
    George’s eyes widened. “Maybe Deirdre is the slipper thief!” she said.

    Nancy peered at the screen. “George, can you make this photo bigger?” she asked.
    â€œNo problem,” George said.
    George’s fingers flew over the keyboard as she zoomed the photo to 150 percent, then 200 percent. “Is that big enough for you?” she asked Nancy.
    Nancy nodded. “Perfect! Now, can you print it out?”
    George went into the print menu and hit several keys. Nancy’s printer whirred to life. A minute later it spit out a color copy of Deirdre’s photo. The copy was twice the original size of the photo.
    Nancy studied the printout. “None of the heart-shaped rhinestones are missing,” she said after a moment. “That means this photo was taken before the rhinestone got into Gregory’s bag somehow.”
    â€œMaybe Deirdre stole the slippers, then planted the rhinestone in Gregory’s bag to make him look guilty,” Bess suggested.
    â€œMaybe,” Nancy agreed.
    â€œDeirdre’s photo is an important clue,” George said. “I have a feeling the Clue Crew is getting close to solving the case!”
    â€œYes!” Bess said, giving George a high five.
    â€œI hope you guys are right,” Nancy told her friends.
    On Friday during recess, Nancy, George, and Bess found Deirdre on the swings. Madison waspushing her. The day was cool but sunny. A slight breeze stirred the leaves on the trees.
    â€œHigher, higher!” Deirdre shouted to Madison.
    Madison pushed Deirdre extra hard. Then she caught sight of Nancy and her friends and stopped.
    â€œMadison, push!” Deirdre shouted.
    â€œUh, Deirdre? We’ve got company,” Madison said.
    Deirdre glanced down. She frowned when she saw Nancy and the others.
    â€œOh,” Deirdre muttered. “ You guys.”
    â€œHello to you, too!” Bess called out cheerfully.
    Deirdre dug her shoes into the dirt to slow down the swing. Dust sprayed up into the air. The swing came to a stop.
    â€œDid you see the late-breaking story on my website?” Deirdre asked the girls with a sly smile.
    â€œWe sure did,” Bess replied.
    â€œIt was a really interesting read,” George added.
    â€œAnd you had a really interesting photo to go with it,” Nancy piped up.
    Deirdre beamed. “Thanks! I took it myself, of course.”
    Nancy smiled. “Of course. Right after you took the slippers from Mr. McGuire’s studio.”
    â€œMore like stole ,” Bess said meaningfully.
    â€œWhat made you do it, Deirdre?” George asked her.
    Deirdre’s cheeks flushed red. “What are you talking about? I’m not the slipper thief! I just took a photo, that’s all,” she insisted.
    â€œDeirdre’s totally innocent,” Madison defended her friend. Nancy noticed that Madison kept her eyes on the ground, though. Is she hiding something? Nancy wondered.
    â€œI think you guys are taking this Clue Crew stuff a little too seriously,” Deirdre said, her tone turning mean. “I mean, it’s not like you’re real detectives or anything.”
    Nancy dug into her pocket and pulled out the folded-up computer printout. She unfolded it and held it up for Deirdre to see.
    â€œWell, this is a real clue,” Nancy said coolly.“And according to this clue, you took this photo outside. Which means that you took the slippers from the studio.”
    Madison gasped. “Deirdre, we didn’t think of that,” she said, sounding panicked.
    â€œBe quiet, Madison,” Deirdre whispered.
    â€œSo you are the slipper thief,” Nancy said to Deirdre. “Maybe you stole the slippers just so you could write a killer story about it for your website!”
    Deirdre got up from the swing. She had a