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there and she never told us Andrew was sick. She wouldn’t tell us anything!”
    “Except to go away,” Benny said.
    “He could be sick someplace besides the rooming house,” Henry put in. “But that doesn’t seem very likely.”
    “I think Melanie acted weird,” Violet said. “She seemed happy Andrew was out sick!”
    Jessie nodded her agreement. “We need to watch her. I think she might be the key to this mystery.”
    “Maybe the mystery is over,” said Grandfather. “I’ll call Andrew when we get back to our hotel. If he’s just been out sick, I’ll call his father and tell him so.”
    “And then we’ll go back home?” Benny asked. He wasn’t ready to leave Florida yet. He had gotten his first wish — to see alligators. But now he had a second, even better wish.
    “We’ll see.” Grandfather smiled. “Let’s head back to the hotel, okay?”
    On the drive back, Jessie was thinking about Melanie. Was it possible that Andrew had called in before and Melanie had taken the call? Maybe Melanie had pretended she hadn’t heard from him, so she could get his job.
    At the Flamingo Hotel, Mrs. Johnson waved a pink slip at Grandfather.
    Everything about the hotel was pink, thought Violet. Even the notepaper.
    “Message for you, Mr. Alden. A man called this morning right after you left. It sounded pretty urgent. He’d like you to call him back right away.” Mrs. Johnson left the hall.
    Grandfather looked at the paper. “It’s from Tom Beldon. He wants to know what I’ve learned about his son. I don’t want him to be upset, especially since we’ve been out of touch for several days. I’ll call him now, before I check on Andrew.”
    He went upstairs.
    Jessie looked at Henry. “You know what? While Grandfather is on the phone with Mr. Beldon, we could go to Andrew’s rooming house and see him in person!”
    “Great idea, Jessie,” said Violet. “Grandfather doesn’t mind if we walk around the block.”
    “Or two blocks.” Henry was already out the door.
    The others quickly caught up with him. A cool breeze stirred the royal palms. The sky was dark in the west. A storm was brewing.
    By the time they reached Old Lady Applegate’s boardinghouse, fat drops of rain had begun to fall.
    Gus wasn’t sitting on the screened-in porch, but the swing was moving slightly as if he had just gone inside.
    Jessie knocked on the front door.
    After a moment, the door opened a crack. An eye peered out. “What do you kids want?” The gruff voice undoubtedly belonged to the landlady, Old Lady Applegate.
    “To see Andrew Beldon,” Henry spoke up. “We heard he was sick.”
    “Yeah,” added Benny. “We came to cheer him up.”
    “He’s not here,” said the landlady.
    “That’s impossible,” said Violet. “We just heard that Andrew is sick. Where else would he be?”
    The door opened inward so fast, Jessie nearly fell over.
    “All right,” said Old Lady Applegate ungraciously. “You don’t believe me — see for yourself. Andrew Beldon’s room is the second door on the left. Don’t touch anything!”
    “We won’t,” Henry promised. “We just want to visit him.”
    The kids filed down the hall. Andrew’s door was closed. The landlady unlocked it with a ring of keys. She stood behind them to make sure they didn’t go inside.
    Benny noticed the panther poster on the wall right away. He’d like to have one like it. Andrew’s room was fairly neat. The bed was made. His books were stacked by size in a bookcase. No shoes or clothes littered the floor.
    “Now do you believe me?” Old Lady Applegate demanded. “If Andrew Beldon is sick, he’s obviously staying someplace else. He’s behind in his rent, too. If he doesn’t pay up by the end of the week, I’m renting his room to someone else.”
    “What will happen to Andrew’s things?” Violet asked. She had noticed the photographs on Andrew’s desk.
    The landlady shrugged. “I’ll box them up and store them. If Andrew doesn’t claim his