Judy Moody, Girl Detective - Megan Mcdonald [11]
Jessica Finch raised her hand. “Mayday! Mayday! I have to go, too.” Jessica Finch was just being a big fat copycat. What a Fink-Face.
“Tell you what,” said Mr. Todd. “Let’s all take a quick bathroom break.”
Eagle-Eye Moody was back on the case.
Judy, Rocky, and Frank rushed out the door and down the hall. They did not head for the bathroom by the library. They headed straight for the girls’ room with the busted toilet. On their way, they ran smack-dab into Agent Stink.
“Stink, the girls’ bathroom is broken and the bad-guy plumbers are here fixing it. No lie!” Judy told him.
“Judy saw the van parked outside,” said Frank. “It’s green, just like the one at Speedy Market.”
“Mr. Chips could be right here right now!” said Rocky.
“This is big, Stink. And we only have five minutes. Be our lookout while we check out the bathroom.”
“What? You can’t go in there. There might be exploding toilets! Or bad guys! They could tie you up. Or give you a major flushie or something.”
“A flushie?” asked Judy.
“That’s when they stick your head in the toilet . . . and flush!” Frank whispered.
“Rule Number One, Stink: Don’t be afraid of flushies.” Judy reached in her pocket and pulled out her SOS lipstick. “If anything happens, I’ll write SOS on the mirror. Besides, I’ve got backup. Agent Rock and Agent Pearl are going in with me.”
“I’m not going in the girls’ room,” Rocky and Frank said at the same time.
“We’ve got to,” said Judy. “For Mr. Chips!”
“Hurry up,” said Stink, glancing up and down the hall. “Just yell ‘Toilet paper’ if you get in trouble.”
Judy ducked under the yellow DO NOT CROSS tape. Her heart beat in her throat as she tiptoed inside. Rocky and Frank followed close behind.
“Hey, it’s pink!” Rocky whispered.
“And the girls have soap,” said Frank.
“Shh!” said Judy. The place was quiet. Too quiet. A door from one of the stalls leaned against the sink. “Who’s there?” she asked, holding her breath. She held out her Grouchy pencil for protection. She inched closer to the far end of the bathroom and poked her head around the corner of the last stall.
“AAAGH!” screamed Judy. Rocky and Frank jumped back.
“What! Nobody’s in here,” said Rocky.
“I know. But I had a scream in me, all ready to come out.”
“Toilet paper! Toilet paper!” Stink yelled, rushing into the girls’ room.
“False alarm, Stink,” said Frank. “They’re not even here.”
“No, but they were here,” said Judy, pointing to tools left on the floor.
“Maybe they flushed themselves down the toilet!” said Stink.
“Stink, you have flushies on the brain.”
Frank picked up a piece of old pipe. “The plumber did it, with the pipe, in the pink room. It’s like that game, Clue.”
“Maybe they’re phantom plumbers,” said Stink. “Like that phantom horse in Nancy Drew #5, The Secret of Shadow Ranch.”
Judy blinked. “Nice work, Agent Stinkbug. How’d you know that?”
“Um, you told me.” Judy shook her head. “I, um, might have seen it on Sophie of the Elves’s desk, and I might have just happened to take a peek.”
“Phantom or not, they were here,” said Rocky. “And where there are fake plumbers with a green van, Mr. Chips can’t be far behind.”
“For sure and absolute positive,” said Judy.
“Check this out,” said Frank. He held up a piece of old rope. One end was tied in a knot, and the other was frayed. “Evidence!”
Stink sniffed the rope. “It smells doggy, all right. The Nose knows.”
“Poor Mr. Chips,” said Frank.
“We’re getting warmer. I can feel it,” said Judy. “I’d bet my mood ring they keep Mr. Chips tied up with this rope while they fake like they’re fixing toilets.”
“But where are they now?” Rocky asked.
Judy twisted the SOS lipstick, her detective brain spinning round and round. “I’ve got it.” She snapped her fingers. “They left in a big fat hurry because they know we know.”
“How do you know they know we know?” asked Frank.
“I don’t know. Call it a Nancy