Chapter 10

Chapter 10 Officer Fallon drove Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose to Hartford. He had called Officers Peters and Washington. The two cruisers met down the street from the museum.

"Officer Washington will nab the young woman in the restaurant," Officer Peters told Officer Fallon. "You and I will take the museum. Kids, you come with us." Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose—flanked by the two officers—crossed Main Street and entered the quiet museum. They followed the hallway until they came to Dr. Tweed's office door. With the kids standing behind him, Officer Peters knocked. When there was no answer, he turned the knob and opened the door. "Not here," he said. Officer Fallon and the kids peered into the office. They saw the little mummy lying on a table.

Officer Peters looked at Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose. "Let's check that tomb," he said. The kids and the two officers walked back through the lobby. They stopped in front of the closed tomb door. "How do we get in?" Officer Fallon asked. "I know!" said Josh. He pressed the secret stone, and the door slid open. Dr. Tweed was standing in front of the small sarcophagus. He whipped around, clasping a lumpy gym bag to his chest. In the sarcophagus, Dink saw a pile of gold objects. Dr. Tweed's eyes were blinking and twitching at the same time. "Hello there," Officer Fallon said. "Taking a trip?" Dr. Tweed lunged toward the plywood-covered hole in the wall. Swinging both hands, he smashed the gym bag into the wood. The wood crunched and fell outward, and Dr. Tweed leaped through the opening. Outside, he tripped over a bag of cement and plunged into the goldfish pond. The gym bag sank to the bottom.

Dr. Tweed flopped around in the shallow pond, then sat up, spitting out water. Lily pads hung from his ears and slimy algae dripped from his eyebrows. "I need to call my lawyer," he sputtered. Just then Officer Washington walked into the park. She was leading the woman from the restaurant, who wore handcuffs. "So she talked?" Officer Peters asked his partner. "Yep. These two were supposed to take a taxi to the airport in a few minutes," Officer Washington said. "Their next stop was Europe, where they hoped to sell the treasures."

"Take her away," Officer Peters said. "I'll bring our wet friend along in a few minutes." Officer Washington led her prisoner out of the park. Officer Peters stepped into the pond and helped Dr. Tweed to his feet. He leaned the wet thief against a tree and snapped handcuffs onto his dripping wrists. Officer Fallon pulled off his shoes and socks and waded into the pond. He lugged out the gym bag, filled with Egyptian treasure and pond water. "Thanks for your help," Officer Peters told Officer Fallon. "I'll call you later." Officer Peters picked up the heavy gym bag with a grunt. He nudged Dr. Tweed forward, and the two left the park. Their sopping shoes made squishing noises as they walked. Officer Fallon sat on a bench next to Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose. He wrung pond water from his dripping pant legs. "Good job, kids," he told them. Then he pulled out his pad, opened to a fresh page, and began writing. He paused. "In all the excitement," Officer Fallon said, "I've forgotten what day this is."

The kids grinned at each other. "It's Wet Wednesday!" Josh told him.