Mystery of the Spider's Clue Read Online Free PDF

.?” Sam looked startled. For a moment, he just stared off into space as if in a trance.
    Henry and Jessie exchanged glances. Why was Sam surprised by the nursery rhyme?
    â€œIs anything wrong, Sam?” Violet asked.
    Sam didn’t answer.
    â€œSam?” Jessie asked.
    Suddenly Sam jerked his head around. “Oh!” He seemed to have forgotten for a moment that he had company. “I’m sorry. I . . . I was lost in thought.”
    â€œIs everything okay?” Henry wondered.
    Sam didn’t answer right away. He had a faraway look in his eye. “Everything’s fine,” he said at last. “I just couldn’t help remembering something. You see, that was my brother’s favorite nursery rhyme. When he was small, I mean. That’s how Simon got the nickname Blue.” Sam smoothed his droopy mustache. “We all had colors for nicknames back then. Everybody called me Red, and Thomas was Brown. And then of course there was Pinky.” Sam’s voice had dropped so low, the Aldens could hardly hear him.
    â€œWas Pinky your dog?” asked Benny.
    â€œI don’t let the past bother me anymore,” said Sam as if he hadn’t even heard Benny’s question. “No point in crying over spilled milk.”
    â€œOh,” said Benny, still not sure who Pinky was.
    Violet felt awful. It was plain that the past did bother Sam. Their visit was supposed to cheer him up. Instead, Sam’s eyes were suddenly filled with sadness.
    The children tried to change the subject. They asked Sam about washing windows instead, and he gave them some tips. By the time the Aldens were ready to leave, he was his usual cheery self again.
    â€œI’ve got a hunch,” he told them, “if you can figure out that Little Boy Blue clue, it’ll lead you right to the hollow tree.”
    Jessie nodded. “That’s what we thought, too.”
    But outside, Violet said, “It’s a very strange clue. How are we ever going to figure it out?”
    The other Aldens looked at one another. Nobody had an answer for that question.

CHAPTER 5
The Search Continues
    â€œThe millionaire sure left hard clues,” Benny said the next morning.
    The Aldens were standing on the front lawn of Mrs. Spencer’s house. They had arrived to wash the outside of her windows. Just moments before, the elderly owner had come out to greet the children before going back inside the house.
    â€œI wonder who he was,” Benny went on. “The mysterious millionaire, I mean.”
    Henry turned on the hose. “There’s no way of knowing,” he said as he filled the buckets with water.
    Jessie added cleaning solution to the water. “It’s funny that he wanted to keep his identity such a secret.”
    â€œWe know one thing for sure,” said Benny. “The millionaire was somebody who liked mysteries.”
    Violet nodded. “And he was good at making them up, too.”
    â€œBut we’re even better at solving them!” Benny was quick to remind them.
    Jessie laughed. “I wonder just how good we are at washing windows.”
    â€œThere’s only one way to find out,” said Henry.
    With that, everyone grabbed a rag and set to work. Henry leaned the ladder against the house and climbed up to reach the top windows. Jessie, Violet, and Benny tackled the lower windows. While they worked, the children were each lost in thought about the mysterious millionaire and his strange clues.
    â€œYou really ought to take a break, children,” a voice called out to them some time later. “If you’re interested, I have some cold apple cider.”
    Violet turned to see Mrs. Spencer poking her head out of an opened window. Wisps of snowy-white hair fluttered in the breeze.
    â€œApple cider sounds great, Mrs. Spencer,” Violet called back to her, while Benny let out a cheer. The four children had been working hard all morning and were ready for a