“Like tonight?”

“Like tonight.”

“What happened?”

“She got to us too late.” It was more than Amanda had ever heard her mom tell about a case.

Her dad came in and went to the bathroom to clean up. He told her he would rest for a while and get up when her mom came home. The phone rang as Amanda sat alone reading a book. The caller ID was out of the area. Ten PM was late for a call. She picked it up and said, “Hello.”

“Is either Mr. or Mrs. Sutter available?” It sounded somewhat stilted, almost like a telemarketing call.

“Mrs. Sutter is not here. Mr. Sutter is here but busy. Can I help you?”

“Oh, is this Amanda?”

“Why. Well. Yes it is.” Amanda was taken a little back. A person she didn’t know knew her name.

“Amanda, I’m Sandra Ball’s sister. She asked me to call your mom and dad.”

Amanda immediately became wary. “Come on. You’re playing a joke on me. One of my friends put you up to this. They know how much I like Sandra. They are playing the gullible dumb blond thing on me again.”

The woman laughed. “Actually, I understand your reason for feeling that way. I’m a blond too and the kids at school played tricks like this on me all the time. Actually they tried but I was smart enough to keep it from working. Just let me tell you why I called and then we figure out if I am legit.”

“OK.”

“Sandra wants to see your parents. Your dad found her, your mom took care of her in the ER and she thinks both are great. She’s still in the hospital but has a pass to get out for the weekend and she wants to thank a few friends. I can have a driver with an RV at your house at seven AM tomorrow.”

“Let me put my dad on the line. I’m just the kid around here. He and mom make the decisions.” Amanda and Jim had discussed a trip she wanted to take to the beach earlier in the evening. The answer was “no” and she was not happy with the ruling.

Three minutes later a sleepy Jim Sutter was listening to the same story. When she finished he simply asked. “How can I be sure this isn’t some trick?”

“Well.”

“I know. Answer this. Sandra gave me several articles to keep for her. I gave them to her fiancée. What was in the bag I gave him?”

“Easy. The radio she used to call you, her cell phone and the .22 pistol. And, oh, the two clips for the pistol.”

“And what was in the bag my wife gave her?”

“Two belts for Kotex and some real super sized pads.”

“OK. We’ll be ready at seven.”

“They will be there a little earlier than seven. Don’t bother with breakfast. It will be served on the way. And you can sleep on the way if you like. There is a bathroom with hair driers, the women can fix their hair on the way.”

When he hung up the phone he told Amanda, “Get clothes for the weekend packed. I’ll get ours. We’ll be leaving tomorrow at seven. They said they would have breakfast ready for us and we can dress and clean up on the way.”

Joan didn’t get home till after one AM. Amanda was so excited about the weekend that they didn’t get to sleep till two.