CONTENTS

  CHAPTER 1 TALK AND SQUAWK

  CHAPTER 2 GHOST TOWN

  CHAPTER 3 SHIVERY DELIVERY

  CHAPTER 4 THAR SHE GLOWS!

  CHAPTER 5 HOLE LOT OF CLUE!

  CHAPTER 6 FOLLOW THAT BEEP!

  CHAPTER 7 YO HO—OH NO!

  CHAPTER 8 GOLLY ROGER

  CHAPTER 9 ALL HANDS ON DECK!

  CHAPTER 10 PIRATES AHOY!

  Author the Author

  Chapter 1

  TALK AND SQUAWK

  “Arrgh, you bilge-sucking scalawags!” Chet Morton growled. He lowered his pirate eye patch to give a wink. “All hands on doughnuts!”

  Eight-year-old Joe was dressed like a pirate too in a puffy shirt. “How could pirates dig for buried treasure in itchy shirts like this?” he asked.

  “It’s Pirate Palooza Day in Bayport, Joe,” Frank said as he straightened his pirate bandanna. “Whoever comes to the festival after school dressed like a pirate—”

  “Gets a free doughnut!” Chet said. “Bring it!”

  It was Friday and the last day of school before spring break. Many kids dressed in pirate gear walked up and down Bay Street for the Pirate Palooza.

  “I wonder what life was like in the days of pirates,” Frank said. “Do you think there were detectives?”

  Frank and Joe loved solving mysteries more than anything else. Their dad, Fenton Hardy, had his own detective agency in Bayport. The boys had something just as good: their own clue book, which Joe carried everywhere.

  “If there were detectives back then,” Joe said, scratching his itchy arm, “I hope they didn’t dress like pirates!”

  The boys checked out the cool festivities. Kids lined up to take pictures in the Pirate Photo Booth. A stand sold Swashbuckling Smoothies.

  “I can’t wait to see the Talk Like a Pirate Contest,” Joe said. “I heard the prize is a map leading to a treasure chest buried right here in Bayport.”

  “A treas-arrrgh chest filled with doughnuts, I’ll bet!” Chet growled in his best pirate voice. “Arrrgh!”

  “Arrrk!” a nearby voice squawked.

  “I said arrrgh, not arrrk,” Chet pointed out.

  Frank, Joe, and Chet turned to see Jason Wang from school. Jason was dressed like a pirate too, with something extra: his bright red-and-green parrot on his shoulder!

  “Arrk!” the parrot squawked again. “Pirates ahoy, pirates ahoy—raaak!”

  “Hey!” Frank said with a smile. “It’s Crackers!”

  Jason’s pet parrot flapped his feathery wings. He not only talked—he could squawk a whole song after hearing it only once!

  “Hi, guys,” Jason greeted the others. “Crackers and I are here for the Talk Like a Pirate Contest.”

  “You mean ‘squawk’ like a pirate!” Joe laughed.

  “Can we get our freebies already? Please?” Chet said impatiently.

  “Onward, buccaneers,” Joe declared, “to Double Doughnuts!”

  But before the boys could head to the doughnut shop, four other kids walked over. Frank recognized Tobias Singh from another fourth-grade class.

  “What’s up, Tobias?” Frank said. He nodded at the red caps Tobias and his friends were wearing. “Those don’t look like pirate hats.”

  “Yeah,” Chet agreed. “Don’t you guys want free doughnuts?”

  Tobias pointed to the words on their matching red T-shirts: JUNIOR DIGGERS OF BAYPORT. “We’re not here for the Pirate Palooza,” he explained, his face serious. “We’re here on business.”

  “ ‘Junior Diggers,’ ” Chet read. “Isn’t that the new snarky-ology club?”

  “Archeology!” Tobias corrected.

  Third grader Ava Carter explained, “We meet every week in Tobias’s attic clubhouse. We then head out to dig up ancient relics in Bayport.”

  “Have you actually dug up old stuff in Bayport?” Joe asked. “Really, really old stuff?”

  “Are you kidding me?” Tobias exclaimed. “We have a treasure chest in our clubhouse full of coins!”

  “And an Egyptian mummy!” fourth grader Mikey Velasquez added.

  “A mummy?” Chet repeated. “How do you find these things?”

  “We know exactly where to dig,” Tobias said. “Which is why we want to dig in Jason’s backyard next.”

  “Wait a minute,” Jason said, blinking with surprise. “Why my backyard?”

  “Because centuries ago pirates sailed into Bayport,” Tobias explained. “Once here, they would stay at the Peg-Leg Inn.”

  “Your house was built where the Peg-Leg Inn used to stand,” third grader Lily Boyd said excitedly. “Think of all the pirate treasure we can dig up in your yard, Jason!”

  Jason shook his head. “It’s never going to happen.”

  “Why not?” Tobias asked.

  “My parents are neat freaks when it comes to our lawns,” Jason explained. “My mom won’t even let me dig for worms for Crackers.”

  “Bummer, bummer,” Crackers screeched. “Raaak!”

  “Besides,” Jason said, “I never found any pirate stuff around my house anyway.”

  “How do we know for sure there even was a Peg-Leg Inn?” Joe asked.

  “Well, no one knows for sure, but that rumor has been around for a long time. Maybe the pirates stayed at the Bayport Motel instead,” Chet said. “At least the motel has a pool and Wi-Fi!”

  “So the answer is no?” Tobias asked Jason.

  “Sorry,” Jason said.

  “Yeah, sure, you are,” Tobias muttered before leading the other club members away. A few glanced over their shoulders to frown at Jason.

  “Definitely not happy campers,” Jason sighed.

  “You mean diggers,” Joe said.

  Suddenly—

  “Raaaak!” Crackers screeched. He spread his feathery wings and took off!

  “Crackers!” Jason cried as his parrot flapped away. “Get back here—now!”

  The boys ran in Crackers’s direction, but the parrot disappeared into the crowd.

  “Where’d he go?” Frank asked.

  “Back off, birdie!!” a girl’s angry voice shouted from the crowd. “I said vamoose, pellet breath!”

  Frank, Joe, Chet, and Jason followed the voice through the crowd until they saw Crackers. The parrot hovered in midair above a frantic girl.

  “That’s Reilly Voorhees from school!” Joe said.

  “She’s the star of all the class plays,” Frank added.

  Reilly dressed like a star too. Today she wore a sparkly silver-and-red pirate costume with glittery silver tap shoes.

  “Crackers!” Jason yelled. He held out his arm.

  “It’s okay, Reilly,” Joe said as Crackers landed on Jason’s arm. “Jason told us that parrots like shiny things.”

  “Crackers and I are in the Talk Like a Pirate Contest,” Jason added as Crackers preened on his arm. “Pretty cool, huh?”

  “Not cool!” Reilly snapped. “I’ll bet pets aren’t allowed in the contest because they would steal the show!”

  “I guess that’s up to the judge to decide,” Frank said with a shrug.

  “And that, laddie,” a deep, gravelly voice piped up, “would be your-rrrrrghs truly!”

  Who’d said that? The kids turned and gasped. Standing behind them was a stubbly-bearded pirate. On his head was a pirate hat. Over one eye was a black patch.

  “Pirates ahoy, pirates ahoy!” Crackers screeched. “Arrrk!”

  “The feathery flapper is correct, mateys,” the pirate said. “I’ve sailed around the coast of Florida-arrrrgh, the shores of Canada-arrrrrgh—even the seas of Africa-arrrgh for treasure-arrrgh!”

  The boys and Reilly stared at the pirate.

  “Um,” Frank said, “do we know you?”

  The pirate took a sweeping bow. “The name is Plunderin’ Pete,” he growled. “Teller of tall tales and judge of the Talk Like a Pirate Contest.”

  “A pirate is judging a pirate contest?” Joe asked. “Awesome.”

  “You’re going to love my song-and-dance number, Pirate Pete,” Reilly said as she began tapping her feet. “It’s not just good—it’s spectacul-arrrrgh!”

  Chet ignored Reilly as he asked, “Were there really pirates in Bayport, Pete?”

  “There were and still are-rrgh!” Plunderin’ Pete replied. “Haven’t you heard about the notorious Captain Scurvydog?”

  “Captain Scurvydog?” Jason asked.

  Reilly stopping tapping to ask, “Who’s he?”

  “About three hundred years ago Captain Scurvydog made Bayport his port of call,” Plunderin’ Pete explained. “He fancied the town and decided to come back . . . and back . . . and back . . . to this very day.”

  “To this very day?” Frank repeated.

  “You mean,” Joe asked slowly, “Captain Scurvydog is a ghost?”

  Chapter 2

  GHOST TOWN

  At the word “ghost,” Plunderin’ Pete’s one uncovered eye lit up. “Aye!” he said. “The ghost of Captain Scurvydog comes back to make sure buried treasure isn’t dug up by landlubbing scoundrels.”

  “Buried treasure?” asked Reilly. “You mean like the prize for the Talk Like a Pirate Contest?”

  “Buried treasure is buried treas-arrrrgh, lass,” Pete replied.

  “Polish yer doubloons, matey!” Crackers screeched. “Arrrk!”

  “Doubloons?” Reilly asked. “What’s he squawking about?”

  “Doubloons were ancient Spanish gold coins,” Jason explained.

  “Gold coins t
o them,” Plunderin’ Pete cackled. “Pirate booty to me!”

  But Chet was interested in something else. He tilted his head as he studied Plunderin’ Pete. “This Captain Scurvydog,” he said. “Is he a good ghost or a bad ghost?”

  “Scurvydog is a good ghost,” Pete answered.

  “That’s a relief,” said Chet. “I was afraid he—”

  “Until someone digs up a pirate’s treasure,” Pete cut in. “Then pity the poor soul who faces Scurvydog’s wrath!”

  All the kids stared at Plunderin’ Pete.

  “And now, me hearties,” Pete growled with a smile, “it’s time for this pirate to claim his free doughnut.”

  Plunderin’ Pete adjusted his eye patch, then headed toward the doughnut shop.

  “Just great,” Chet complained. “I’ll bet he’ll get the last Bavarian cream.”

  “Who cares about doughnuts?” Jason exclaimed. “There’s a ghost named Captain Scurvydog around, and he’s a mean dude!”

  “Don’t worry, Jason,” Frank said. “The buried treasure in the contest can’t be cursed.”

  “Yeah, it’s not like the treasure chest will have pirate booty inside,” Joe told Jason. “Probably stretchy frogs and tubs of slime.”

  “You guys!” Reilly piped up. “Jason does not have to worry about the buried treasure.”

  “Why not?” Jason asked.

  “Because,” Reilly said, jutting her chin out, “I’m going to win the Talk Like a Pirate Contest—not you!”

  Reilly turned and walked away, her sparkly shoes tapping on the sidewalk as she went.

  “How do you say ‘diva’ in pirate talk?” Chet complained.

  “It’s okay,” Jason said with a small smile. “I don’t believe in ghosts. Not really.”

  The boys went to get their doughnuts. They also got to check out more Pirate Palooza activities, like a pirate stick-on tattoo booth, a sponge sword fight, pirate jewelry crafts, and more tall tales by Plunderin’ Pete.

  But soon came the event everyone was waiting for—the Talk Like a Pirate Contest!

  “Break a peg leg!” Joe called to Jason as he and Crackers hurried to join the other contestants.

  Frank, Joe, and Chet squeezed through the crowd near the stage that had been set up for the contest. Hector Alvarez, the owner of Double Doughnuts, was stepping up to the microphone.

  “Ahoy, Bayport Buccaneers!” Hector boomed. “Let’s raise the roof and a Jolly Roger flag for our first pirate-talking contestant—Phil Cohen!”

  The Hardys’ friend Phil ran onto the stage. Talking like a pirate, he described his latest pirate invention: a gadget for detecting metals and buried treasure.

  “Arrgh,” Phil growled as the gadget beeped over a coin dropped onto the stage floor. “Be the first on your galleon to own this dead-reckoning thingamajig!”

  “Woo-hoo!” Joe cheered for their friend.

  Next up was Chet’s sister, Iola Morton. Her imitation of a pirate principal got big laughs and applause.

  “There will be no substitute teachers walking the plank,” Iola declared. “And no stashing doubloons in your gym lock-arrrrghs!”

  “I kind of hope she wins,” Chet admitted to Frank and Joe as his sister left the stage. “I heard there’s candy in that treasure chest.”

  More pirate talkers took the stage. Finally it was Jason’s turn with his collection of pirate jokes. . . .

  “Hey, Crack-arrrghs. What did Captain Hook get on his report carrrrd?” asked Jason.

  “Raaak!” Crackers answered, rolling his feathery neck. “High Cs, high Cs!”

  “Crack-arrrghs?” Jason asked next. “Why can’t pirates play carrrrds?”

  “Arrk!” Crackers squawked. “Because they’re always standing on decks.”

  Joe could see Plunderin’ Pete laughing at Jason’s jokes. It was no surprise that Jason and Crackers got the biggest cheers as they left the stage.

  “Who can top that?” Joe asked.

  “Maybe her?” Frank said.

  Music blared as Reilly tap-tapped onstage. She was followed by more dancing kids dressed in sparkly pirate costumes too.

  “Cheese and crackers!” Chet exclaimed. “It’s like she brought her whole dance class!”

  Reilly’s feet were a blur as she tapped across the linoleum dance floor laid out just for her. Spreading her arms, she began to sing, “Why walk the plank? Kick up your heels and dance instead!”

  The chorus of dancing pirates tapped behind Reilly as she belted out her song. After the big finish, Reilly took a bow. She then pretended to be surprised when her little brother Sam walked onstage with a bouquet of roses.

  “Thank you, Reilly Voorhees,” Hector said as the dancers tapped offstage. “It won’t be easy, but it’s time for Plunderin’ Pete to pick the winner.”

  Plunderin’ Pete grabbed the mike. Gazing at the audience with one eye, he growled, “And the win-arrrgh is . . . Jason and his first mate, Crackers!”

  Frank, Joe, and Chet let out a cheer as Jason ran to Pete with Crackers on his shoulder.

  “Congratulations, me hearties,” Pete said. “For talking like a pirate, here’s the map to buried treas-arrrgh in Bayport!”

  Gratefully Jason took the scroll. Crackers stretched his neck to peck the shiny gold ribbon wrapped around it.

  “And here’s something from me,” Plunderin’ Pete told Jason. “A treas-arrrgh bag filled with more pirate booty!”

  Pete handed Jason a red bag, a skull-and-crossbones design splashed on the front. “And rememb-arrrgh. Watch out for the notorious Captain Scurvydog!”

  Jason shot Frank and Joe a grin. He then looked at Plunderin’ Pete and said, “Thanks, but I don’t believe in ghosts.”

  “Don’t believe in ghosts?” Plunderin’ Pete declared, his smile turning into a frown. “Well . . . shiver me timbers!”

  “Uh-oh,” Crackers squawked. “Arrrk!”

  Holding his prizes, Jason ran off the stage. “I won, I won!” he shouted happily as he raced toward Frank and Joe. Chet had already left to say hi to his sister.

  “Congrats, dude!” Frank said.

  “You and Crackers rocked the contest!” Joe exclaimed.

  “You mean stole the show!” Reilly snapped as she stormed over. “Pets should not have been in the contest!”

  “Jason and Crackers won fair and square, Reilly,” Frank said.

  Reilly narrowed her eyes directly at Jason. “Who wants a haunted treasure map anyway?” she demanded. “Say hello to the ghost of Captain Scurvydog, Jason!”

  Jason’s eyes popped wide open as Reilly huffed off.

  “Don’t listen to what Reilly said, Jason,” Frank said.

  “Yeah,” Joe said, “You don’t believe in ghosts anyway, right?”

  “Right,” Jason said slowly. He then turned to the brothers and said, “Tomorrow’s Saturday. Why don’t you come to my house then and help me dig up the treasure chest?”

  “We’re there!” Joe exclaimed.

  “Thanks, Jason,” Frank said.

  Joe wanted to peek inside the pirate treasure bag, but Jason spotted his parents and ran off.

  “Dude, we’re digging for buried treasure tomorrow,” Frank told Joe excitedly. “What do you say about that?”

  “Two words,” Joe declared. “Pirates ahoy!”

  “Sounds like the Pirate Palooza was a real lollapalooza,” Fenton Hardy said, placing a pile of dirty dinner dishes on the kitchen counter.

  Frank rinsed the dishes while Joe loaded the dishwasher. They’d spent most of dinner talking about the Pirate Palooza and the Talk Like a Pirate Contest.

  “It was awesome, Dad,” Frank said, scraping pasta sauce off a dish. “You should have seen Jason and Crackers’s comedy act. It brought down the house!”

  “Speaking of house,” Joe said, looking up from the dish he was about to load. “Mom, do you know anything about the house you sold to Jason’s family?”

  Laura Hardy was a real estate agent. She knew about most of the houses in Bayport. “Only that it has three bedrooms, an eat-in kitchen,” she said, “plus a huge backyard perfect for gardening.”

  “Was it also built where an old pirate inn stood hundreds of years ago?” Frank asked. “That’s what the Junior Diggers told Jason.”

  “Why don’t I research the house when I’m back at work?” Mrs. Hardy said. “I’ll let you guys know.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” Joe said.

  “So what time is your big buried-treasure dig tomorrow?” Mr. Hardy asked.