GoldieBlox Chapter Book #2

  Copyright © 2017 GoldieBlox, Inc.

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 1745 Broadway, New York, NY 10019, and in Canada by Penguin Random House Canada Limited, Toronto. Random House and the colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC. GoldieBlox and all related titles, logos, and characters are trademarks of GoldieBlox, Inc.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 978-0-399-55636-4 (trade) — ISBN 978-0-399-55637-1 (lib. bdg.) — ISBN 978-0-399-55649-4 (ebook)

  Ebook ISBN 9780399556494

  randomhousekids.com

  This book has been officially leveled by using the F&P Text Level GradientTM Leveling System.

  Random House Children’s Books supports the First Amendment and celebrates the right to read.

  v4.1

  a

  For Abby and Alaina

  Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  1. Like Toxic Lava

  2. Property of Beatrix Blox

  3. A Picking Machine

  4. One Hundred Bottles of Superglue

  5. Sasquatch

  6. Tiny Goldie

  7. A Watch-Crocodile

  8. Excellent for All

  9. T-Minus Ten

  10. George Washington’s Nose

  11. I Dare You

  About the Author

  Goldie Blox loved a challenge. Any challenge.

  “I bet I could eat three of these,” she said, holding up a hot pepper by its stem.

  Goldie and her friends were at the Milky Way Diner. Every table in the restaurant was round and painted to look like a planet, the moon, or the sun. The Gearheads, as Goldie called her friends, sat at the sun table. It had room for twelve chairs, and it glowed.

  Li Zhang, Goldie’s BFFND (best friend from next door), had just bitten into one of the peppers. His face had turned red, then purple, then red again. He gulped down all the drinks on the table.

  “Why would you want to eat three hot peppers?” Ruby Rails asked.

  “Because I don’t want to eat four!” Goldie laughed.

  The waitress refilled their water glasses. Li drank all those, too.

  “You won’t be able to finish even one,” Li said. He panted like a dog.

  “Watch me,” Goldie said. She leaned her head back and opened her mouth.

  “I can’t look,” Val Voltz said. She pulled her hood up to cover her eyes.

  Goldie bit off the pepper at the stem. The juice dribbled on her lips. She chewed once.

  This isn’t so bad, she thought.

  She chewed again. Suddenly, it felt like toxic lava was flowing into her mouth.

  This is bad. This is really bad, she thought.

  Goldie quickly swallowed.

  “You don’t look so good, Goldie,” Ruby said.

  “Waitress,” Li called out. “We need more water. Please.”

  Val peeked out from under her hood. “And maybe a fire extinguisher.”

  The waitress hurried over. Goldie yanked the pitcher of water from her hands and drank. She spilled half of it down the front of her overalls. The Gearheads stared. So did the waitress.

  Goldie wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “One down. Two to go.”

  “No!” Ruby said. She handed the rest of the hot peppers to the waitress and ordered ice cream for everyone.

  “So, what are we going to do today?” Li asked.

  “Wrow roo woo,” Goldie said. She was holding an ice cube to her tongue.

  “What?” Ruby asked.

  Goldie dropped the ice cube into her glass. “Sorry. I have an idea.” She reached under the table and pulled out a souped-up skateboard. It had thick wheels, a mini jetpack, cables, and three buttons.

  “Epic,” Li said.

  “What do the buttons do?” Ruby asked.

  Goldie pointed to each button. “The green button is the brake. The yellow button is the turbo power. And the red button is a siren.”

  “Is it safe?” Val asked.

  “I won’t know until I try it,” Goldie said. “Let’s go to the skate park.”

  “Can I try it?” Li asked.

  “Sure! You can go second,” Goldie replied.

  Li’s face fell.

  “Fine,” Goldie said. “Whoever finishes their ice cream first can have the first ride.”

  The waitress set down four ice cream sundaes. Before Ruby or Val had even picked up their spoons, Goldie and Li had scarfed down their desserts. No spoon necessary. Li lifted his bowl. Goldie’s face was covered with whipped cream.

  “Done!” they yelled at the same time.

  “Val, who won?” Goldie asked. “I was first, right?”

  “Don’t put me in the middle,” Val said.

  “I won,” Li said. “You didn’t finish.”

  “Yes, I did.” Goldie showed Li her empty bowl.

  “Um, Goldie,” Ruby said. “You have something on your nose.”

  Goldie reached up to touch her nose. There was a cherry on the end. She laughed. “I guess I didn’t finish.”

  “And I guess I’m riding first,” Li said.

  “After Val and I finish our ice cream,” Ruby corrected him.

  Ten minutes later, Goldie and the Gearheads left the Milky Way Diner and headed across the street to the skate park.

  “Val, will you record this?” Li asked. “I want it for my website.”

  “Can I record it without watching?” Val replied.

  “I’ll do it,” Ruby offered.

  Goldie handed over her new skateboard. She gave the wheels a spin for good luck.

  “What do the buttons do again?” Li asked.

  “Green for brake. Yellow for turbo. Red for siren,” Goldie said, wishing she was going first.

  Li strapped on the helmet and looked into his camera. “This is Li Gravity. Get ready for an epic physics phenom.”

  He took off for the skateboard course.

  “Tell me when it’s over,” Val said from beneath her hood.

  Li started his ride. He skated up and down the ramps, getting serious air at the top of each jump.

  “Hey, Goldie,” Ruby said. “Why didn’t you make the red button stop and the green button turbo? That would make more sense.”

  “I did. Red for stop. Green for GOOOOO!”

  “That’s not what you told Li,” Val said.

  “Oh no!” Goldie reached into her hair, searching for the remote control. She needed to turn off the buttons.

  “Li!” Ruby screamed. “Don’t press the buttons.”

  Val dropped her hood and waved frantically.

  Li smiled and waved back. He couldn’t hear her. Goldie still couldn’t find the remote.

  “I know it’s here somewhere.” She shook her head. A screwdriver, a pair of socks, and an unopened candy bar fell to the ground.

  Val, Ruby, and Goldie watched as Li pressed the green button at the end of his ride. Instead of stopping, the skateboard—and Li—shot into the air. They rose higher than the tallest building in Bloxtown!

  Val sighed. “We’ll never forget you, Li.”

  Goldie shoved her hand in her pocket. And there it was. The remote!

  “I got you, Li!” Goldie shouted. She flicked a switch and turned the knob. Two parachutes deployed, one from the skateboard and the other from Li’s helmet. “At least I remembered what these buttons were for.”

  Li and the skateboard floated across the sky.

  Goldie peered up at him. “I hope you’re still recording, Rubes. Li will be disappointed if you missed any of this.”

  “No worries,” Ruby replied. “I got it.”

  “Good,” Val said. “Now let’s go get Li.”

  Nacho, Goldie’s friendly basset hound, greeted the Gearheads with doggy kisses when they returned to the BloxShop.

  Goldie put the skateboard on a workbench in the middle of the room. This was her favorite place on earth. The BloxShop was an engineering workshop filled with tools and recycled materials. All her best ideas were born here. And most of her not-so-good-ideas, too.

  “I just need to rewire the skateboard,” she said.

  Val peered over Goldie’s shoulder. “It looks like you’re missing a few wheels.”

  Goldie frowned. They must have fallen off during the landing. Luckily, Li hadn’t broken anything. He’d already watched the video of his skateboarding rocket three times and had posted it to his website.

  “Well, if we’re fixing the wheels, we should do some other upgrades,” Goldie suggested.

  “I’d like to add a tracker,” Ruby said. “In case you send the skateboard flying to a different continent.” She pulled out her minicomputer and tapped on the keyboard.

  “G, I’ve done some quick calculations. I think you can add a bigger jetpack.” Li showed her the physics problem he had worked out on the back of a napkin.

  “Awesome! There should be one in there.” Goldie pointed him toward a pile of spare parts. “And you know what else this board needs?”

  “Wheels?” Val repeated.

  “Yeah, they’re in that pile, too. But also neon lights. That’ll make it easier to spot in the sky next time.” Goldie knew just where to find some. “I’ll be right back.”

  She slipped through the trapdoor that led to the house. She climbed the rock wall past her bedr
oom and into the attic. She swung from the rafters to cross the cluttered space.

  “There it is.” Goldie spotted the box marked NECK PILLOWS AND NEON LIGHTS. Her mom liked to sort things alphabetically.

  Goldie flipped open the lid. She chose strings of orange and green, then closed the box back up.

  When she turned to leave, a smaller box caught her attention. It was labeled PROPERTY OF BEATRIX BLOX. Goldie didn’t remember seeing that box before.

  Gran’s stuff? she wondered. I thought all her things had been donated to the Bloxtown Museum or to charity.

  She laid down the neon lights and lifted Gran’s sealed box. I probably shouldn’t open this. At least not without asking.

  Goldie’s hesitation lasted only two seconds. She peeled back the tape and carefully lifted the flaps. From what she knew about her grandmother, there was a small chance the box could explode.

  It didn’t.

  Inside was a long red-and-white-striped silk scarf. Goldie recognized it immediately. It was the same scarf Gran was wearing in the picture that hung in their hallway. In the photograph, Gran stood next to an old-fashioned propeller plane. The scarf was wrapped around her neck. She’d just received her pilot’s license.

  Goldie wrapped the scarf around her own neck. She looked back in the box. The only other item inside was a locked journal. Goldie ran her hand across the cover.

  “The Big Book of Blox Dares,” she read. The words had been burned into the leather cover. She tried to open it, but the lock held firm. She looked in the box for a key. It was empty.

  Luckily, Goldie had a whole shop full of tools. She knew she could pop the lock. She opened a trapdoor in the attic floor and rode the steep slide to the BloxShop and her friends.

  “Oh, Goldie, I love the scarf,” Ruby said. “Is it vintage?”

  Goldie nodded. “If that means old, yes.”

  “Did you find the lights?” Li asked.

  “What?” Goldie had forgotten why she’d gone to the attic in the first place. “Never mind the lights. Or the skateboard. Gearheads, you gotta see this.” She held the book out.

  “What is it?” Ruby asked. “Looks like a diary.”

  Val read the cover: The Big Book of Blox Dares. She shook her head. “This sounds like trouble. I’d better find the first-aid kit.”

  “G, what’s inside?” Li asked.

  “I don’t know. I gotta get it open. I need a file…maybe some pliers. If that doesn’t work, I’ve got the saw and the blowtorch.”

  “A blowtorch near paper pages? Not a good idea, Goldie.” Ruby put a hand on Goldie’s shoulder.

  Before Goldie could touch any tools, her mom appeared.

  “Hey, gang, who can stay for dinner?” Junie Blox asked. “Goldie’s dad is making bacon waffle enchiladas.”

  “Yum! Count me in, Mrs. B,” Li said.

  But Goldie’s mom wasn’t listening. She had spotted Grandma Beatrix’s book. “Where did you find that?” she asked Goldie.

  “The attic,” Goldie replied.

  “I haven’t seen this in years.” She held out her hands, and Goldie gave her the book. “Your grandmother began this list when she was just a kid. It started simple and small. Like eating a super-hot pepper.”

  Goldie gasped.

  “She kept checking items off the list, and she kept adding to it. I think she almost got all the way to one hundred.” Her mom ran a finger over the lock. “Have you opened it?”

  “No, I don’t have the key,” Goldie said. “But I can engineer that.”

  “And we have this.” Li held up a power drill.

  “How did I not know about this?” Goldie asked.

  Her mom sighed. “Your dad and I hid it. For safety reasons. You’ve never met a challenge you didn’t love.”

  “That’s true,” Val said. “I once saw you try to stay underwater longer than a fish.”

  “I would have won if I had gills,” Goldie said. After losing to the guppy, she had invented a mini breathing tank that was perfect to use in the lake.

  “Dad and I were going to share it with you eventually. I was thinking around your fiftieth birthday.” Goldie’s mom winked.

  A horn blew, and her dad’s voice echoed over the BloxShop intercom. “Chow’s on. Come and get it!”

  The Gearheads stayed for dinner. They squished around the kitchen table. Goldie’s dad had made enough bacon waffle enchiladas for the entire town.

  Goldie set the book on the corner of the table.

  “Did you see what your daughter found?” Goldie’s mom elbowed her husband.

  “Isn’t that my mother’s book? The Big Book of Blox Dares?” Goldie’s dad had a funny look. Like he couldn’t decide whether to laugh or cry.

  “I found it in the attic.” Goldie gave it to her dad. He held it to his nose and took a giant whiff.

  “I have fond memories of this book. My mom—your grandmother—and I finished numbers seventy-one to eighty-four together.”

  “Mrs. B told us there are one hundred dares in there,” Li said between bites.

  “Only fourteen dares for me. But still, those are some of my favorite memories with my mother. I remember rafting down the Rocky River. Walking a tightrope. Building a model of the great pyramids out of breakfast cereal and eating it all in one morning. Good times.”

  “Do you have the key, Dad?”

  “No. I haven’t seen it since your Gran was alive. That was before you were born.”

  I wish I could have met her, Goldie thought. She ran her hand over the red-and-white silk scarf.

  “May I see the book, please?” Ruby asked. She used her minicomputer to search for a matching lock and key online.

  “Did Grandma B finish all the dares?” Li asked. “She sounds like a woman who got stuff done. I mean, she did start this town, right?”

  Goldie’s mom laughed. “You guys would have loved her. She did get stuff done. She founded Bloxtown. She built this house with her own two hands.”

  “With the help of some power tools,” Goldie’s dad added.

  “I can’t find a matching key,” Ruby said. She closed her minicomputer and handed the book to Val.

  Val tried to pry open the lock with a fork. Then Li tried with a butter knife.

  “But to answer your question, Li, Beatrix did not finish all the dares. I believe she had three left,” Goldie’s mom said.

  “She always said she’d finish them by her seventy-seventh birthday,” her dad said. “She thought seven was a lucky number. She even knew how she was going to celebrate.”

  “How?” asked Goldie.

  “With a stack of lime-chocolate-fig waffles,” her dad answered. “She even made the waffles and put them in the freezer. They’re still there.”

  Goldie shot out of her chair. “Wait, you mean there are waffles in our freezer and I’ve never seen them before?”

  “That’s because I hid them in a box and labeled it STEAMED BROCCOLI,” her mom explained.

  Goldie had wondered why they’d never eaten the steamed broccoli. But she’d been too afraid to ask.

  Ruby held a napkin to her mouth and gagged. “Twenty-year-old waffles? Ugh.”

  “Fourteen years,” Goldie’s dad corrected her. “And they’ve been vacuum sealed, wrapped in plastic, and kept frozen. Mostly.”

  Goldie had been hearing about how delicious Gran’s lime-chocolate-fig waffles were since she started eating solid food.

  After Li gave up on the lock, he handed the book back to Goldie. “I’m going to finish these dares,” Goldie announced.

  “Don’t you want to see what they are first?” Val asked.

  “And I’m going to do them before what would have been Gran’s seventy-seventh birthday.”

  “Do you even know when that is?” Val asked.

  “Actually, it’s in three days,” her dad said.

  Her mom raised an eyebrow. “That’s convenient. The book of dares shows up just days before the deadline.”

  “You’ve got her determination,” Goldie’s dad told her. “I know you can do it.”

  “As long as they’re not too dangerous,” her mom said, wringing her napkin.

  “I’m going to finish them,” Goldie insisted. “And then I’m going to eat Gran’s waffles.” She raised her arms triumphantly over her head.

  “Eating fourteen-year-old waffles sounds like dare number one hundred and one.” Ruby shuddered. “And the grossest dare ever.”