The Green Ring Conspiracy

Monty has made it to Whit's house after escaping from the hospital, but he passed out as soon as he entered. Lily Graham has secretly examined him, and he is awake when Whit arrives. Monty asks about Dirk and Agent Tanner, then insists that he has not betrayed the Secret Service. Someone within his own team has betrayed him and exposed his undercover identity aboard Dirk's plane.

At Whit's End, Katrina temporarily moves her tutoring sessions into an upstairs room while her house is being renovated. Connie tells her about the plane crash, the counterfeit money, and Monty's disappearance. Elsewhere, Tanner and Polehaus study the contents of the backpack. It contains exactly one hundred thousand dollars in exceptionally convincing counterfeit twenties. The bag bears prints from Monty and Dirk, along with an unidentified partial print, and the bills are made from a specialty paper called Fiber Touch 132.

Buck tells Skint that he intends to get a job at Whit's End and use it to recover Dirk's missing Appleberry. Skint considers steering the investigation toward Wally Haggler because Polehaus already suspects him. Although Wally and Skint are related, Skint has no intention of protecting him at the expense of their scheme.

Monty tells Whit what happened before the crash. Dirk had grown increasingly suspicious and abruptly ordered the flight to Odyssey, where his operation had apparently been active for years. At Trickle Lake's Dock C, Dirk and Monty met a rough-looking man with long hair and a beard. The man made them empty their pockets and surrender Monty's gun, then moved samples of the counterfeit money from a boathouse into Dirk's backpack.

Whit hides Monty in the trunk of his car and drives him to Trickle Lake. They force their way into the boathouse and search for evidence. Inside a supplier's backpack, they find a disc decorated with hearts and take it with them.

Katrina interviews Buck for the Whit's End job. He says that he is an orphan under Skint's guardianship, has traveled with carnivals, and has been educated on the road. His aptitude and quick thinking impress her, but he turns pale when she explains that his guardian must sign a work-permission form. She recommends hiring him once Whit and Skint give their approval, though she remains concerned about his circumstances.

Polehaus traces the counterfeit paper to a mill that received a large cash order from a company called Green Ring Publishing. The buyer called himself John Smith and was an older man with long hair and a beard, accompanied by a handsome boy of about fourteen or fifteen. Their vehicle carried a Trickle Lake parking sticker, while the address they supplied now stands vacant.

Polehaus catches Whit and Monty leaving the boathouse and demands the truth. Monty explains that Dirk received an unknown caller's message after the pickup and changed their destination from Chicago to Atlanta. Once the plane was in the air, Dirk pulled a gun and revealed that he knew Monty was an agent. Their struggle opened the door and sent the backpack falling out of the plane. A gunshot struck the dashboard, and the damaged aircraft crashed. Dirk's Appleberry contains the contacts and evidence that could expose the entire operation.

Polehaus accepts Monty's account and points out something troubling about Tanner. She reached Odyssey far too quickly after receiving the alert from Springfield, which suggests that she had already been on her way. She also arrived without the team such a case would normally require. Polehaus concludes that Tanner may have warned Dirk and exposed Monty. Rather than turn Monty over to her, Polehaus secretly joins Whit and Monty in their effort to stop the Green Ring.