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trivial, and he and the twins continued talking back and forth about different ways the heist could have occurred.
    By the time they reached their station they had begun laying out ridiculous scenarios that would have been impossible in actuality. Ezra was happy now that he wouldn’t be doing this case alone, because it was becoming more complicated by the minute.
    That night Ezra’s parents grounded him and sent him to his room to “think about what he had put them through.” Ezra tried to make the argument that if he had a cell phone he would be able to call and tell them he would be late and they wouldn’t have to worry. While he wasn’t sure if his angle was working, it wouldn’t be for want of trying if he didn’t get a cell phone. By making his tardiness an argument about communication breakdown, Ezra had played a sympathy card he hoped would save him from getting into too much trouble.

7
    The case would have to be put on hold. Ezra’s schoolwork was falling behind and without careful attention his parents would suspect something was amiss. Being grounded wasn’t ideal for solving a museum heist, spurring Ezra to rack his brain for another way to find clues and sort out the information he and the twins had already gathered. It occurred to Ezra that something minute, something he had missed, would spread the case wide open.
    In class Ezra drew the layout of the Japanese Sword Exhibit in his notebook and listed the clues they had discovered in the margins. Drawing pictures often helped him to understand a situation or problem. Sometimes he could swear his brain worked differently than everyone else’s.
    Mason, who was sitting next to Ezra, tore his eyes away from a text he was writing to a girl across the room and glanced at Ezra’s crude drawing.
    Mason whispered, “Why would the thief replace the stolen sword with a fake?”
    â€œBecause,” Ezra explained, “it would buy the thief time to get away. How are they to know that Tanya would be able to identify the fake so fast?”
    â€œHmmm, unless Tanya planted it and identified it early the next day to clear her own name.”
    â€œWhy would she draw attention to a crime she committed?”
    â€œMaybe she wanted to frame somebody else?” Mason reasoned.
    Ezra narrowed his eyebrows deep in thought, and said, “Maybe. I don’t think we’ll know for sure until we find out what happened to the security system. The alarm didn’t go off, but the security station didn’t report anything either. Something big is going on. I think there’s more to this than we can understand with the information we have.”
    Their math teacher, Mrs. Mullins, gave a loud “ahem” for the boys to be quiet. Ezra and Mason apologized and took notes quietly for a few minutes, scrambling to catch up. Ezra actually quite liked geometry because he could play with shapes rather than pages of meaningless numbers. His mind was still trying to grasp the case, and after a moment of silence he had a thought that he couldn’t hold in.
    â€œSomeone switched the security tapes.”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œI saw it in a movie once. Before the heist, the thief switched the security tape with one that shows a normal, empty night at the museum.”
    â€œThat’s a nice theory, but, wouldn’t they have to get the guard away from their station?” Mason asked, then continued his thought, “I guess the guard could have been in on it too?”
    â€œI think we need to talk to the security guard and see what happened from his perspective. If I’m right, their tapes will be out of sequence.”
    â€œEZRA THORNE!” Mrs. Mullins shouted. “I’ve had enough of trying to talk over you. Detention. After school. Be here.”
    Ezra sank deep into his chair. How was he going to explain this to his parents? After class Mason suggested Ezra use his cell phone to tell his