Chapter 8

Chapter 8 "Sammi left a trail, Mom," Dink said. "He what?" Dink explained about the pieces of yellow glass.

"Oh, my goodness!" Dink's mother grabbed the phone, dialed quickly, and handed the phone to Dink. "Tell Officer Fallon," she said. Dink talked and Officer Fallon listened. "But when we got to Ron's Bait Shop, we didn't find any more glass," Dink said into the phone. He nodded, said, "Uh-huh," then hung up. "Officer Fallon wants all the glass we found," Dink said. He pulled the four little pieces out of his pocket. His mother picked up the phone. "I think I'll go visit Joan Klinker," she said. "She must be frantic, and she's all alone there at the hotel." She dialed another number. "Hello, Joan? This is Dink's mom, Mrs. Duncan," she said into the phone. "Would you like some company? May I come over?" Dink couldn't hear Joan's answer, but his mother smiled. "Okay, fine. I'll be there in five minutes," she said before hanging up. She glanced into the mirror, then headed for the door. "We're meeting for coffee at Ellie's," she said. "Oh, let me have the pieces of glass. I can take them to the police station after I meet Joan."

Dink dropped the yellow glass into his mother's hand. She smiled weakly at the kids, then hurried out the back door. Dink stared at the door, thinking. "Earth to Dink," Josh said, snapping his fingers in front of Dink's nose. Dink shook his head. "Something my mother said made me think of something else, but now I forgot!" "You forgot what your mother said, or you forgot what it made you think of?" Ruth Rose asked. "Both!" Dink said, giving Josh a look. "I was just getting it when you snapped your fingers!" "Sorry," Josh said. "Why don't we have a snack? Maybe your memory needs some ice cream." Ruth Rose laughed. "Better feed him, Dink. You know how he gets when his tummy is empty." Dink sighed. "We finished the ice cream last night," he said, heading for the kitchen. He pulled open the refrigerator. "But we've got Cool Whip and cherry Jell-O." He grabbed the bowl and handed it to Josh. "Here, are you…"

Then Dink stopped. He stared at the bowl of Jell-O. "That's it!" he yelled. "It's yellow!" Josh shook his head. "Dinkus, this is red Jell-O, not yellow Jell-O." "No—I mean, yes, I know. But Jell-O made me think of yellow!" Dink said. "Can I eat while you talk?" Josh asked. Dink got bowls and spoons and put them on the table. Then he continued. "After you guys left yesterday, Sammi's tutor came over and gave me and Sammi a French lesson," he said. Josh grinned. "Say something in French," he said. "Just eat, Josh, and let me finish!"

"Sorry," Josh said, plopping a gob of Cool Whip onto his Jell-O. He let Pal lick his spoon. "Remember a few minutes ago when my mom said she was going to see Sammi's tutor?" Dink asked. "She called her Joan, remember?" Josh and Ruth Rose nodded. "That made me think of the French lesson yesterday. She taught me to say yellow in French. The word for yellow is jaune, only I pronounced it 'Joan,' like her name." "Um, Dinkus?" Josh said. "What's this got to do with anything?" "Don't you guys see?" Dink said. "The French word for yellow sounds just like 'Joan.' That's Sammi's tutor's name. Sammi could have left a trail of red or blue, but he chose the yellow glass. I think Sammi was trying to say 'Joan'!"