Chapter 3

Sherry said, "These pots are made of one hundred percent clay." Shirley said, "Let's get back to the bathrooms." Sherry said, "I can't help you there. I've never done art with markers; I only do clay." Shirley and Diane looked at each other and nodded their heads no. Diane said, "Second is William Dickerson. Color Artist" Shirley and Diane went outside and saw William drawing his dog with markers. William said, "Forget Money Grubber. Take a look at this. This is much better than his graffiti." Diane said, "Let's get back to Money Grubber." William said, "Why does he get all the attention? What about me and my art?" Shirley and Diane looked at each other and nodded their heads no. Diane said, "Third is Ryan Richmond. Expert Painter." Shirley and Diane went to the library and saw Ryan making a painting like the one he found in a book. Ryan said, "Did you know that using grids like I am can make any picture bigger?" Shirley said, "What about Money Grubber?" Ryan said, "No Way. I'm glad my club was thrown out. Now I have more time to make more paintings." Diane said, "Including Bathroom Graffiti?" Ryan said, "Nope. I only do paint and washable markers." Shirley and Diane looked at each other and nodded their heads no.

Diane said, "Next is Vicky Smith. Sculpture Maker." Shirley and Diane returned outside and saw Vicky making a race track with multiple obstacles. Vicky said, "Once people get their karts on here, they'll have a big race and avoid all the obstacles I set up." Diane said, "What about the bathrooms?" Vicky said, "What about my race? This took 12 hours to set up. So I can't be Money Grubber." Shirley said, "She's right; she's holding her hammer with her right hand, and Money Grubber is left-handed." Shirley and Diane looked at each other and nodded their heads no.

Diane said, "Last is Danny Swapper. President and expert sketcher." Shirley and Diane went to detention and saw Danny sketching a circus tent perfectly. Danny said, "I've wanted to become an artist since I was seven, and now I'm fifteen." Shirley said, "Let's talk about Money Grubber." Danny said, "Why him? Even though his art is perfect, we both do our art with our left hands. I only draw with pencils. My school records prove it." Shirley and Diane looked at each other and nodded their heads no. Shirley and Diane left detention and walked down the east hallway. Shirley said, "Last suspect, last lead, all gone down the drain." Diane said, "And we're no closer to finding out who Money Grubber is." Shirley and Diane walked across the school upset because they didn't know who Money Grubber was, they had no suspects, and their notepads were full of dead-end clues. Shirley and Diane sat on a snow bank outside and tried to connect their clues. Shirley said, "What do we have?" Diane said, "Money Grubber writes with his left hand." Shirley said, "He writes his tags backward." Diane said, "He uses Red, Green, and Blue permanent markers." Shirley said, "All five club members we interviewed could in no way be Money Grubber." Diane said, "And each club member we interviewed has a different skill." Shirley said, "It adds up to one thing, 0. We have nothing."

Shirley laid back on the snow bank when her cell phone started to ring. Shirley took her phone from her backpack and answered it. Shirley said, "Hello. Oh, Hi, Principal Bat." Shirly listened to Principal Bat until he was done talking. Shirley said, "OK, We'll be right there." Shirley hung up her phone and put it in her pocket. Shirley said, "That was Principal Bat, he wants an update on the case."' Shirley and Diane went to Principal Bat's office and spoke with him. Principal Bat said, "Listen, Holmes and Watson. I just had to sign for Cindy's release and was okay with ordering one hundred brand-new bathroom stalls. If you don't lock up Money Grubber by the end of the week, the next things being locked up are your badges."

Shirley said, "We're on the case but need help. We need someone who can take information and use it to get into this guy's head." Principal Bat said, "So you're saying you need a criminal's mind." Shirley said, "Not just any criminal. Cindy Buzzer." Principal Bat said, "I don't want that kid near this case. You know, as well as I do, Cindy Buzzer is bad news and doesn't care about good people." Shirley said, "Maybe she'll see it differently this time. We need her." Principal Bat said, "No, you need her. What I need is Money Grubber put away." Shirley and Diane left Principal Bat's office and thought about what he said. Shirley said, "Unless he was kidding, Bat will have our badges if we don't catch Money Grubber by the end of the week." Diane said, "Crime is getting more serious by the hour."

Shirley said, "This isn't about crime. It's about when a detective knows when to get rid of their badge and bring a bad guy down without it." Diane said, "I know what you mean." Shirley and Diane went to Cindy's house and knocked on the front door. Cindy answered it, and they showed her their badges. Cindy said, "What are you guys doing here?" Shirley said, "We came here for your help." Cindy let them in and brought them to her room. While in her room, they sat on pillows on the floor. Cindy said, "So what can I do for you?" Shirley said, "Money Grubber is a master criminal, and so are you. We figure you can find out what he's up to." Cindy said, "Sorry, no can do."

The librarian took the book and checked his computer for the name of the person who checked it out. The librarian said, "That's odd. The name of the person who last checked this book has been erased from the school's history. There's no way to tell who it was. I'm so sorry." The librarian returned the book to Shirley and Diane, and Diane put it in her backpack. Shirley and Diane sat outside one of the bathrooms that had already been tagged upset.