Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 A sign outside the fitness center said NO PETS, NO BARE FEET, NO SMOKING. Josh tied Pal to a tree, patted his head, and said, "Stay, boy." Pal sighed and flopped down. His big brown eyes watched Josh, Dink, and Ruth Rose enter the building.

The fitness center was one enormous room. One end was filled with exercise equipment. A bank of windows looked out at Wren Drive. A shimmery pool took up the other end of the room. A lifeguard watched three swimmers doing laps. Other people were using the weights and machines. The clang of metal hitting metal fought with the rock music blaring from hidden speakers. Dink wrinkled his nose. He smelled a combination of sweat and chlorine. A green awning was stretched over a counter where juice and health foods were being sold. "I need a milkshake!" Josh said, shouting above the music. "I feel weak." "They sell health shakes," Ruth Rose informed him. "They make 'em from seaweed and tofu." "What's tofu?" Ruth Rose giggled. "It's white and wiggly," she said. "You'd hate it, Josh." "There's Flip," Dink said, "behind the counter."

Flip Frances was wearing a T-shirt and blue shorts. He had long, muscular arms. "Can I help you kids?" he asked. "Hi, Mr. Frances," Dink said. "I'm writing a story about the pandas. Could we interview you?" "Call me Flip," the man said, smiling at Dink. "Who're you?" "Call him Dink," Josh said, eyeing the shake machine. Flip noticed and asked, "You guys thirsty? How about a shake on me?"

"Sure!" Josh said. "But no tofu, please. Or seaweed." Flip Frances laughed. "How about milk, yogurt, and strawberries?" "Now you're talking!" Josh said, hoisting himself onto a stool. Flip expertly tossed ingredients into a blender. He switched it on for a minute, then poured the frothy pink concoction into three tall glasses. "We were there this morning," Dink said. Flip slid the shakes and a jar of straws in front of the kids. "My granny Win would be brokenhearted if she knew," he said. The kids began drinking. Josh made loud slurping noises through his straw. Dink picked up his pencil. "Why do they call you Flip?" he asked. "I work out a lot on the floor mats," Flip said. He grinned. "I guess I'm famous for my back flips. Why do they call you Dink?" Josh started to laugh and choked on his shake.

"My real name is Donald David Duncan," Dink told him. "I guess Dink is easier." Flip looked at Dink's notebook. "So how much have you written?" he asked. "Not much," Dink said. "We're talking to people who know Winnie." "Did your grandmother like pandas?" Ruth Rose asked. "Is that why she left all that money?" Flip nodded. "Granny Win loved animals," he said. "She used to donate money to animal shelters all the time." Dink glanced at his notes about Irene Napper. "Do you know who has keys to the panda enclosure?" he asked. Flip nodded. "Yup. Irene has one. I don't know who else." "Have you seen anybody strange hanging around Panda Park?" Josh asked. Flip looked up at the ceiling. "Not strange, maybe, but that guy who writes The Panda Paper seems to be there a lot. Tom Steele." In his notebook, Dink wrote TOM STEELE in dark letters. "Anything else?" Flip asked. "It's almost my lunch break."

The kids finished their shakes. "Thanks a lot," Dink told Flip. "Glad to do it," he answered. Just then, a tall redheaded woman approached the counter. She was dressed like Flip, in a T-shirt and blue shorts. "Sorry I'm late," she said to Flip. "You can take off for lunch now." "No problem, Kate," he said. "Late lunch is better than no lunch." Flip placed both hands on the counter and vaulted over. "Good luck with your story," he said to the kids as he strode out the door. Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose followed Flip out. They saw him leap into a dusty jeep with a rack on top. He tooted and waved as he pulled onto Bridge Lane. "Well, what do you think?" Dink asked, watching the jeep turn right on Main Street. "He gets my vote," Josh said, untying Pal's leash from the tree. "That guy could climb an