Chapter 3

Shirley checked the time on the library's grandfather clock and saw it was almost dinner time, so she took a break from the case. Shirley then met up with her parents at the dinner table and hardly touched her food because the mystery was bugging her. Shirley said, "Dad. Do you know anything about Mr. Paws?" Mr. Hudson said, "Besides the fact that he's dead. No." Shirley said, "Mom?" Mrs. Hudson said, "Sorry, hon." Shirley was puzzled that her parents didn't know anything, so she thought about it and finished her dinner. After dinner, Shirley took the phonebook and looked up Elizabeth's last name. Maid, Maker, here we go, Malice. Jennifer Malice. 214 Bollaert Street in Brunswick, Missouri. That's close to here."

Shirley drove to Brunswick, Missouri, without telling her parents the next day. She followed the address she had written down from the phone book to an old house that looked creepy. Shirley walked up the front steps to the porch and knocked on the door. Then Jennifer answered the door. Shirley said, "Jennifer Malice?" Jennifer said, "Yes. Who are you?" Shirley said, "I'm Shirley Jones. I live at your old house in Illinois." Jennifer said, "Oh, that place." Shirley said, "Yes, and I was hoping you could tell me more about the true owner, Elizabeth Malice." Jennifer said, "Oh, that's my great-grandmother." Shirley said, "May I come in so you can answer my questions?" Jennifer welcomed Shirley in, and Shirley sat on the sofa while Jennifer sat down in a chair.

Shirley brought out her notebook and started to ask Jennifer questions. Shirley said, "So if you're a descendant of Elizabeth. That means she must have kids who gave birth to other descendants who gave birth to you." Jennifer said, "That's correct." Shirley said, "Your great-grandmother knew Mr. Paws, who disappeared. Can you tell me anything about that?" Jennifer said, "Well, they were best friends back in the day. Mr. Paws was her favorite student. He got an A+ in every class, including hers. He was so advanced that they had nothing to teach him, so he got moved to college. At the same time, my great-grandmother was a prime suspect in a big case. She liked being a reporter as much as a teacher." Shirley said, "What happened?"

Jennifer brought out her photo album and showed it to Shirley. Jennifer said, "Well, Mr. Paws graduated alone." Shirley saw his graduation picture in the photo album. Jennifer turned the page and said, "But then the bank he always went to went out of business because, for some reason, $10,000,000 went missing." Shirley saw a picture of the bank going out of business and a photo of one of the bankers. Shirley said, "Who's this?" Jennifer said, "Oh, that's the bank president, Knab Relgrub. And since my great-grandmother was the last to go there, Officer Buck Test assumed she was the robber."

Shirley asked, "Would you mind if I kept this for a while?" Jennifer said, "Not at all." Shirley took Jennifer's photo album and put it in her backpack. Shirley thought about it and said, "Wait. If nobody ever proved she did it. There's still a chance she didn't, and the money is still out there." Jennifer said, "Well, yes. But what does it matter? No one knows where the money is, and everyone thinks Mr. Paws is dead." Shirley said, "Who said that? They only found Mr. Paws' car in the river; they never found his body. He could have been kidnapped, or he's just missing. I'll let you know what I find. So, thank you for answering my questions; I'll be in touch."

Shirley remembered that she didn't question Kellie Yang yet, so she drove to her house. Shirley knocked on the door, and Kellie answered it. Shirley said, "Kellie Yang?" Kellie said, "That's me." Shirley said, "I'm Shirley Hudson. I'm investigating Mr. Paws's case. So, I would like to ask you a few questions." Kellie welcomed Shirley in, and they started to talk in her living room. Shirley said, "So, I heard Mr. Paws was a classmate of yours back when you guys were teenagers, and Elizabeth Malice was your teacher. What happened to Miss. Malice?" Kellie said, "Nobody knows. The last people heard of her, she was accused of a crime, and her reputation was ruined." Shirley said, "And that crime was stealing $10,000,000." Kellie said, "That's correct. How'd you know?" Shirley said, "Her great-granddaughter, Jennifer Malice told me. Do you know what happened to the stolen money?" Kellie said, "Not really. Everyone thinks Elizabeth stole it. And because of that, she lost her job and her friends. It ruined her life." Shirley said, "How does $10,000,000 just disappear?"

After answering her questions, Shirley said goodbye to Kellie. Shirley said, "Well, thanks for answering my questions, but I must go now. Good-bye." Shirley left, and Kellie watched her leave through the window. Kellie then wondered what Shirley was up to and had her suspicion about her. Shirley then returned to her house and looked closer at the photo album Jennifer had let her borrow. Shirley kept turning pages and looking at the photos, but only some were helpful. Shirley saw Mr. Paws' graduation picture. She also saw a picture of the bank that got robbed, but she looked closer and saw somebody on the bank's roof, but she couldn't see who. Shirley said, "I don't know who that is, but maybe if I can figure it out, it might solve the mystery.

While Shirley was investigating the case, her father knocked on the door and said, "Shirley? Are you home?" Shirley said, "Yes, daddy. Just a minute." Shirley hid her clues and research from her dad and let him in. Mr. Hudson said, "Shirley. You do know you still have chores to do." Shirley said, "Yes, Dad." Mr. Hudson said, "Well, get downstairs and start washing the dishes now." Shirley left her room and closed the door. While she was washing the dishes, the mysterious figure spotted her through the window.