"Stop!" Ben called to the zombies.
The two monsters jumped at the sound of his voice.
Then they dashed across the lobby, racing toward the construction area.
They dodged into the construction with Ben following behind.
"Come back here!" Ben shouted.
It was dark, and the zombies were a good distance away from him.
But these zombies were taller than the zombies at Monster Academy, and—Brrpp! Brrpp!
Suddenly an alarm blared and lights flashed on. Brrpp! Brrpp!
"Don't move!" yelled a stern voice.
Ben froze in terror as two museum guards ran toward him.
"We caught a thief!" said one guard. His nametag read Bob.
"It's a ghost!" said the other one. Her name was Hazel.
"B-b-but . . . It wasn't me!"
Ben tried to explain everything, but the guards just stared at him.
"Don't try to escape, ghost!" Bob snapped.
"The director will be here in a minute."
The two guards each grabbed one of Ben's arms.
Ben moaned. He knew he could float away from them, but what good would it do?
He'd just wait for Mr. Freaky and Miss Bungle to arrive and explain everything.
Soon Dr. Bones stomped through the construction and into the lobby.
"What's going on here?" she demanded.
"This ghost was stealing Egyptian jewelry," Hazel said.
"But don't worry, Dr. Bones." She smiled proudly. "We caught him."
"I didn't steal anything!" Ben protested.
"Empty your pockets," Bob ordered.
Ben did, but all he had was a gum wrapper and a few coins.
"Where'd you put the jewels?" Bob demanded.
"I didn't steal the jewels," Ben repeated.
"But I saw who did. Like I said—it was two zombies!"
"Where's Mr. Freaky?" Dr. Bones demanded.
"I told Mayor Hubbletree that this monster visit would lead to trouble."
She sneered at Ben.
"But I didn't expect you monsters to steal museum treasures."
Ben shook his head, trying to explain to the museum director now.
"I saw some zombies. But they're not from Monster Academy!"
Dr. Bones stared at Ben.
"You're the only monsters here today. No monsters ever come to People Place."
"Except for Uncle Tut," Ben muttered under his breath.
But Dr. Bones had a good point. Where had the zombies come from?
"We'll get to the bottom of this situation."
Dr. Bones looked at the guards. "Bring this ghost to my office."
"Yes, Dr. Bones," Bob said. "Should we call the police?"
"No," Dr. Bones said quickly.
"The museum doesn't need bad publicity.
It's lucky I was working late.
Bring the rest of the monsters too."
The guards led Ben outside, taking the long way to Dr. Bones' office.
The museum director unlocked doors with her keys as they went, relocking everything behind them.
Soon Ben was sitting in a chair in Dr. Bones' office.
Mr. Freaky paced up and down the director's office nervously.
"Dr. Bones," the principal said.
"Ben insists that some strangers stole the jewels.
I'm sure he's telling the truth."
Dr. Bones glared at Ben.
"Where are these two zombies?" she demanded.
She pointed to the hallway, where the rest of the monsters were lined up, looking sleepy and scared.
"Do you see them out there?"
Ben peered through the glass and then shook his head.
"They're not there. At first I thought maybe the zombies were new students.
But they are definitely not from Monster Academy."
"There are exactly three zombies on this trip," Mr. Freaky said.
"And they are all standing in the line outside!"
The guards scowled. "That ghost is lying!" Hazel said.
"Dr. Bones, we need to search everyone!"
One by one, the guards made all the monsters come in and empty their sleeping bags, their backpacks, their lunchboxes, and their pockets.
The monsters' belongings piled up.
The guards found spell books, Mog's collection of comic books, Scary People Stories, and snacks—dried bat wings and crunchy spiders.
But there were no Egyptian jewels.
"Where did you stash the loot, ghost?" Bob demanded. "Confess!"
"I didn't steal anything!" Ben insisted.
"How many times do I have to tell you?"
Mr. Freaky's noses were wiggling like mad.
"Where's Mayor Hubbletree?
This situation is totally out of control!"
By now it was very late.
Dr. Bones turned to the guards.
She looked exhausted.
"It's time to bring the suspect to the police station," she murmured.
"I'll meet you there soon."
"Okay, Dr. Bones," the guards said.
Dr. Bones got her coat from a nearby rack.
As she put it on, something fell out of her pocket and clattered to the floor.
Everyone stared at the object—it was a glittering piece of golden jewelry!