Edgar Allan's Official Crime Investigation Notebook (3 page)

“Don't get any closer!” Patrick yelled. “I'm documenting some important evidence.”

Recess just went from bad to worse. Patrick was busy and official, aiming his camera at a shoe print in the mud. The girls were gathered around him.

“Do you think that's the shoe print of the thief?” Maia asked.

Patrick checked the picture in his viewfinder. “I'm going to present my evidence to the whole class after I have analyzed everything.”

“It's Taz, isn't it?” Maia said. “He thinks everything is one big joke.”

“Well, he might not be laughing when I'm done.” Patrick looked up at Edgar. “I've already done two interviews to verify the exact time of the crime and have come up with some important conclusions. What have you done?”

Edgar walked away.

“I'm going to crack this case!” Patrick called after him.

Patrick's voice pierced, but Edgar fought to keep
walking steadily on, as if nothing were wrong. At the bottom of the playground, he sat down in the grass.

I pretended I couldn't hear Patrick because of wax build-up in my ears. He has such good ideas, it makes my teeth hurt. But giving up would be like handing him a big bowl of victory with whipped cream on top.


Patrick seems to think it is Taz. I shall do an official interview right now and come up with some important conclusions of my own! I will ask Taz a series of brilliant questions and watch his eyeballs carefully. If he is guilty, his eyeballs will show it. Eyeballs never lie!


Edgar saw Taz crouched next to the tree stump on the other side of the basketball court. Trying to look nonchalant, Edgar sauntered over and stood next to him. Taz was looking at a butterfly that was resting on a blade of grass. The wings were blue with tiny dots of black and white and red along each edge.

Taz with pizazz
waz here.

IMPORTANT CONCLUSION:


Do not stand too close to Taz when you are interviewing or he will take your pencil and write in your notebook.


The bell rang, signaling the end of recess.

“Hey Edgar, does this wing look like it got a rip in it?” Taz asked.

Edgar crouched and looked. The butterfly was opening and closing its wings but not taking off.

“I hope you're okay, lil butterfly guy,” Taz said.

During recess today, Taz showed concern for a seriously wounded butterfly. Not what you'd expect from a criminal. Perhaps he is doing this to throw me off. I will superglue myself to Taz's side. If he is hiding something, I will find it out in the next hour or my name isn't Edgar Allan.


When the bell rang, announcing the end of recess, Taz raced inside. Edgar ran after him, staying just far enough away that Taz wouldn't see him. Where was he going in such a hurry? Perhaps he wanted to steal something from another teacher before the afternoon classes started, Edgar thought.

Taz turned down the hall toward the main office. With his short legs, Edgar had to walk extra fast to keep up. By the time he arrived in the office, Taz was behind the counter asking Mrs. Peabody a question.

“I understand. Certainly, Taz,” Mrs. Peabody was saying. “Here you go.” She handed the phone to Taz.

Who was Taz calling in the middle of the school day, Edgar wondered?

“It's like Grand Central Station in here!” Mrs. Peabody said. “Edgar, what do you need?”

“Um,” Edgar glanced at a student who was sitting in a chair with an ice pack on his head. “I was wondering if you have a tissue? My nose is running.”

Mrs. Peabody handed Edgar a tissue. “Go to class.”

“Hi Mom, it's me,” Taz said into the phone. “I was just wondering if you had any news . . . I know, it's just that I can't stop thinking about it. . . . Okay . . . okay . . . bye.”

When Taz handed the phone back to Mrs. Peabody, he looked upset. He rushed past Edgar, out the door.

“Mrs. Peabody, what was Taz talking about?” Edgar asked.

“I don't think that's any of your business,” she said.

At that moment, Patrick popped up from behind the counter. He smiled at Edgar and then turned to Mrs. Peabody. “Thank you for letting me look through the Lost and Found box,” he said. “My umbrella isn't here.”

“Go to class, both of you!” Mrs. Peabody shooed them out the door.

“You're spying on Taz, too,” Patrick said as they walked toward the fifth-grade hallway.

“How did you get here ahead of me? I thought I was the only one following him,” Edgar said.

“At the end of language arts, I heard Taz ask Mr. Crew if he could call his mom, and Mr. Crew told him to go to the office after recess. So before recess was over, I asked permission to go to the office.” He smiled. “Did you like the Lost and Found idea?”

Edgar didn't like any of it.

“I have a theory why Taz is upset. Do you?”

“Yes, I do,” Edgar said. “A big theory.” Actually he wasn't sure.

“What is the next phase of your investigation?” Patrick asked. “Do you even have one?”

“Yes, I do,” Edgar said.

“I have an interview to do,” Patrick said.

“I have an interview to do, too,” Edgar said.

“Interview with who?”

Patrick asked this question just as they were passing Ms. Herschel's room. Edgar stopped and stuck his head in the door. “Ms. Herschel. May I speak with you . . .” He glanced back at Patrick. “In private?”

“Very briefly,” Ms. Herschel said.

Edgar closed the door in Patrick's face.

IMPORTANT CONCLUSION:


For a cup of coffee, Ms. Herschel will risk the life of a helpless fish.


When Edgar arrived at Mr. Crew's for the afternoon social studies lesson, Patrick whispered. “What did you interview Ms. Herschel about?”

Edgar zipped his lips and sat down. Determined to keep his powers of observation as sharp as possible, he looked around the room, on the alert for suspicious behavior.

Mr. Crew was making a cup of tea with the electric teapot he kept on his counter. Perhaps if Ms. Herschel
switched to tea, he thought, there would be no more robberies.

Gabriela walked in next with a shoe box full of small wooden animals from Oaxaca, Mexico. Since they were studying Mexico, and since Gabriela had just moved from Mexico, she had mentioned her collection and Mr. Crew had asked her to bring it in.

“
¡Fantástico!
” Mr. Crew said. “Why don't you set them up on the shelf in the back.”

Most of the students gathered around the bookshelf to watch Gabriela unwrap and set out each colorful piece. Edgar joined them, and Patrick followed closely.

“I hope no one steals them,” Maia said. Gabriela looked worried.

“Don't worry, Gabriela,” Patrick said. “I'm on it.”

“These are cool,” Taz said, picking up a bright blue and orange dog.

“I'm on it, too,” Edgar said, but nobody heard him.

In art, which was Edgar's final class of the day, as everyone was busy painting the papier mâché masks they had made, Edgar watched Taz for signs of suspicious behavior. Taz painted a fake mustache on his own face and had to wash it off, but that was the only excitement.

While Taz was at the sink washing up, Edgar had a brainstorm. Maybe Slurpy was not the only victim. He knew for a fact that the kindergarten room had a whole tankful of goldfish! Had anyone thought to ask if another classroom was hit? Perhaps if he interviewed Ms. Barrett, the kindergarten teacher, he could come up with the evidence that would link Taz to that crime!

He glanced at Patrick who was concentrating on his mask project. Patrick probably hadn't thought of this! If Edgar acted quickly, he could be the one to solve the mystery before the school day ended.

Edgar set his paintbrush down and walked up to his art teacher's desk. “May I go to the bathroom, Ms. Cassatt?”

“It can't wait?”

“I'm afraid not,” Edgar said.

She handed him a pass, and he walked out.

IMPORTANT CONCLUSION:


Ms. Barrett should smile. She is kind of mean for a kindergarten teacher and her face is getting permanent frown wrinkles.