Read Online The Hunt for the Missing Spy by Penny Warner - Free Book Online

“That’s what real cryptanalysts do. I have a chart in my Code Busters notebook that tells how often certain letters are used in English.” He got out his notebook and opened it to the page that was headed, “Letter Frequency.”
    Quinn pointed to the next letter. “The next is
T
, then
A
, then
O
, then—”
    â€œAnd
that
could take forever, too!” M.E. complained again.
    â€œGot a better idea?” Quinn asked her.
    M.E. shrugged.
    Cody glanced over at her teacher, who was talking with both security guards.
    â€œGuys,” she said, holding up her hand. “If this code was written by Matt and left for the others to find, then I’m guessing it’s pretty simple. Think about it. He didn’t use any of the codes we’ve learned in class. He used drawings. The first one is a picture of a mouse.”
    â€œYeah,” Luke said, “and the second one is a monkey.”
    â€œAn ape, actually,” Mika offered. “Monkeys have tails and are smaller than apes.”
    â€œOkay, an ape,” Cody confirmed. “And the last two are tigers. I think I know what he was trying to do.”
    â€œWhat?” M.E. asked.
    â€œRemember that code we had earlier where the first letters spelled the answer to the puzzle?” Cody asked.
    The others nodded. “Yeah, ‘Father of The Country,’” Luke said.
    â€œSo what letters do each of these animals’ names start with?” Cody asked.
    â€œOh,” M.E. said, her face lighting up. Everyone grinned as they finally understood how to crack the code.
    Cody said each letter aloud, then Luke wrote them down. When he was done, he read the message to the group.
    â€œMatt the Brat thinks he’s James Bond!” M.E. said, rolling her eyes.
    Cody handed the brochure back to her teacher.“We solved the code,” she said, proudly, and told her what it said.
    Code Busters’ Solution found on p. 156.
    Ms. Stad nodded, but she didn’t look pleased. “But I’m afraid it doesn’t tell us where Matthew is. You kids need to get on the bus now. I don’t want to have to worry about you, too.”
    â€œHow about if we look for him?” Cody suggested. “You know the Code Busters are good at solving mysteries. This is a mystery. And besides, we sort of know how Matt thinks.”
    Ms. Stad gave a weak smile at Cody’s suggestion. “That’s very nice of you, kids, but I can’t take the chance that you’ll end up missing, too. Now, please, have your group get on the bus. It looks like the police are here and I need to speak with them.”
    A patrol car had pulled up in front of the museum. Two officers got out of the black and white police car. They would have looked intimidating to most kids, with their official uniforms and all that police gear hanging from their belts. But Cody’s mom was a police officer, so Cody was used to cops.
    While Ms. Stad was distracted, Cody sneaked over to the alcove where she’d seen the stranger lurking earlier. It was empty. Cody wondered if the stranger had something to do with Matt’s disappearance.
    â€œWhat if Matt’s causing all this trouble just so he can win the Spy Hunt by himself?” Luke suggested as Cody returned to the group. “After all, he thinks he’s some kind of kid James Bond.”
    â€œYeah,” M.E. agreed. “He’d do just about anything to beat the Code Busters at something like this. Except play fair and do the work.”
    â€œBut why would he care so much about beating you?” Mika asked.
    M.E. shrugged. “Who knows? From the minute we formed the Code Busters Club, he’s tried to break into our clubhouse, intercept our secret messages, find our drop zones, and steal our Code Buster notebooks.”
    â€œMaybe he just wants to be a part of the club,” Mika suggested.
    The four Code Busters stared at Mika, then looked at each