“No way,” Nancy said in a low, firm tone. “I have a client’s interests to protect, and I have absolutely no intention of getting off this case.”
“Miss Drew,” the chief said, leaning forward and fixing his eyes on hers, “do you know what a material witness is?”
Wordlessly, Nancy nodded.
“If you don’t swear that you’ll get off this case, I am going to lock you up. As a material witness to the death of Darla DeCamp.”
Nancy looked at him calmly. “I think my father might have something to say about—”
The phone rang. Ned reached for it, spoke into it briefly, and then handed it to Nancy. “It’s for you,” he said with a glance at Chief Saunders. “It’s Dirk Bowman.”
“Who’s that?” the chief snapped.
“Dirk Bowman is a Fort Lauderdale detective,” Nancy said coldly. “He’s assisting me on this case. If you don’t let me talk to him, he’s going to know that something very odd is going on here.”
The chief frowned, his ruddy forehead wrinkling. “Well, okay,” he growled. “I guess you can take the call. But I’m going down to the nurses’ station and listen in.”
“Suit yourself.” Nancy took the phone from Ned as the chief hurried out of the room.
“Nancy?” Dirk asked. His voice was worried. “You okay?”
Nancy laughed ruefully. “Just a little the worse for wear,” she said. “But I’m going to be out of here shortly. How’d you track me down?”
“Your housekeeper told me you’d been in an accident and that I could reach you at the Batesville hospital. Listen, detective, I’ve got a make on that print you sent me.”
Nancy sat up straighter. “Oh, yes? What did you find out, Dirk?”
“The print doesn’t belong to your boy, after all.”
“Too bad,” Nancy muttered. “Now we’ll never find out who—”
“Hang on a sec,” Dirk interrupted. “The print belongs to somebody named Felix Frankson.” His voice was grave. “Frankson is an escaped murderer, Nancy. He’s wanted by the FBI!”
Chapter
Fourteen
WOW!” NED WHISTLED shrilly when Nancy hung up the phone and told him what Dirk had said. “It sounds like this man Frankson has a lot on the line. No wonder he was willing to go after you!”
The door opened and Chief Saunders came in without knocking, his hat in his hand. He stood for a minute in the door, looking at Nancy, his blue eyes carefully guarded.
“All right,” he said finally, “I’ve decided to let you go. Whenever the doctor releases you, you can leave.”
Nancy nodded. “Did you hear what Dirk Bowman told me?”
“I heard,” the chief said. “I aim to get on this in a hurry.” He glared at Nancy. “And I don’t want you to try to pull any funny stuff. This is serious business—police business. I don’t need any kids messing things up.” He jammed his hat on his head. “You stay out, you hear? I won’t be responsible if you get yourself hurt again.”
“Listen, Ned,” Nancy said urgently as soon as the chief had left the room. “Mr. Carlton ought to know what’s going on. There’s no proof, but it looks as if Felix and Mike killed Darla. Brenda could be next. Let’s call him at home.” She picked up the phone and began to dial.
“Isn’t it risky calling the house?” Ned asked. “Brenda might answer.”
“You’re right,” Nancy said. “But it’s Saturday, so Mr. Carlton won’t be at the office. If Brenda answers, I’ll hang up.”
But it was the Carlton maid who answered the phone and told them that Mr. Carlton was still out of town. “He’s not expected back until later today,” she said. “Is there any message?”
Nancy bit her lip, frowning. “No, no message,” she said. She had to talk to Mr. Carlton himself.
“The next step,” she told Ned as she hung up the phone, “is getting out of this hospital.”
“You’re sure you’re okay?” Ned asked. Nancy could see the worry in his eyes, and she squeezed his hand. It was wonderful to know that Ned cared for her.
“I’m sure,” she said confidently. “All we have to do is to convince the doctor.”
That was harder than Nancy thought. The doctor came in with an X ray in his hand to tell her that she could go home the next day.
“Tomorrow!” Nancy exclaimed. “That’s just not possible. And anyway,” she fibbed, “once I get home I’ll go straight to bed.”
The doctor held up the X ray and looked at it for a long time. Finally he said, “Well, I guess I don’t see any real damage. If you’ll promise to get plenty of rest, you can go.”
“I promise,” Nancy said. She would get some rest, she told herself, except that it probably wouldn’t be right away.
Ned and Nancy drove back to River Heights in Ned’s car, leaving Nancy’s Mustang in the Ford shop in Batesville for repairs to its front end. On the trip back, Nancy tried to puzzle out the complicated relationships in this case, but after a while she dozed a little, still feeling the effects of the bump on her head.
“Wake up, Nancy,” Ned said, shaking her gently. “We’re home.”
Nancy stretched and blinked, looking at her watch. “It’s five. Let’s call Mr. Carlton.”
But Mr. Carlton was calling her, as Nancy discovered the minute she came in the door.
“Nancy, are you okay?” Hannah demanded. She was in the hall, the phone in one hand.
“I’m fine,” Nancy said. She nodded at the phone. “Is that for me?”
“It’s Mr. Carlton. But shouldn’t I tell him that you can’t . . . ?”
Nancy shook her head. “This is important,” she said. “Mr. Carlton? We have to get together, right away. I’ve got something very important—”
“I do too,” Mr. Carlton said grimly. “Do you know the park on Allegheny Avenue? Meet me there in fifteen minutes—at five-thirty.”
“Actually, I’m not supposed to move around a lot,” said Nancy. “Can you possibly come here?”
“Are you all right?” Mr. Carlton asked anxiously.
“I had a little car accident,” Nancy told him. She decided not to get into the attempt on her life. Mr. Carlton was upset enough as it was.
“I’ll be right over,” Mr. Carlton promised.
Nancy hung up. “He’s on his way,” she said to Hannah and Ned. “Now I’d better call George and Bess. I may need them tonight.”
• • •
When Mr. Carlton arrived, he seemed nervous and preoccupied.
“Is Brenda okay?” Nancy asked.
“Brenda was fine when I left,” Mr. Carlton said. “But I think I’ve just blown everything.”
Nancy stared at him. “Blown it?”
“I just got back forty minutes ago. There was a call waiting for me when I walked in, from a man who said he was a friend of Mike McKeever’s.”
“It must have been Felix!” Nancy exclaimed.
Mr. Carlton shrugged. His eyebrows were drawn together in an angry line and his mouth was tight. “He didn’t say his name. But he did say that he knew about McKeever and my daughter, and he could fix it—for a price. A big price.” He looked down. “That’s when I blew it.”
“How? What did you say?”
“I lost my temper when the guy started talking money. I told him what he could do with his offer.” He swallowed, the worry beginning to displace the anger in his eyes. “What’s worse, I told him that I’d hired somebody to expose his fraud. I told him that we had enough to put him and his partner away for a long time.”
Nancy stared at him in consternation. After a minute, she said, “Well, it’s too late now to wish things had been done differently. But now that Mike and Felix have been spooked, we’re going to have to act fast.” She quickly sketched what she had found out about Mike’s relationship with Darla DeCamp and Felix’s criminal record.
“Their last victim wound up dead,” she concluded. “I think Brenda risks death every minute she spends with Mike.”
“I agr
ee,” Mr. Carlton said bleakly. “What are you recommending?”
Nancy thought fast. “It’s time that we got the River Heights police into the act. Sergeant Tom Robinson is a friend of Dad’s. He’s helped me out on a couple of other cases. And it’s time to confront Brenda with the truth, don’t you think?”
Mr. Carlton grimaced. “I suspect that’s going to be harder than collaring those crooks.”
“But just as necessary,” Nancy reminded him.
“Right,” he said. “When I left, she was just getting home. We can talk to Brenda, and then you can call your friend on the police force. Are you up to coming with me?”
“I think I can manage—with Ned’s help.”
Ned and Nancy followed Mr. Carlton as he wound through River Heights’ most posh neighborhood, enormous houses set well back from the street behind spacious sweeps of green lawn. The Carlton house itself was a mansion with white plantation-style columns.
“Brenda!” Mr. Carlton shouted as they came into the front hallway. “Brenda, where are you? I need to talk to you.”
There was no answer.
“Brenda!” Mr. Carlton shouted. He took the stairs two at a time, with Nancy and Ned right behind. Upstairs, Brenda’s room was to the left. It was a huge room, with French doors that opened onto a private balcony. The bed was heaped with clothes. Brenda’s dressing table, littered with makeup, stood in one corner.
Nancy went to the dressing table. There was a note taped to the mirror. She handed it to Mr. Carlton. As he read it, Nancy saw his face go white.
“What is it?” she asked.
“We’re too late,” Mr. Carlton said dully, thrusting the note at her. “Brenda has run away—with Mike McKeever!”
Nancy took the note out of Mr. Carlton’s hand. With Ned looking over her shoulder, she read it aloud.
Dear Daddy,
I am writing this so you won’t be worried. The most wonderful guy in the world has asked me to go away with him. Mike is a very talented entertainer, and I’m sure that with a little help from me, he’ll be a real star. I know that if I’d told you about this, you would have tried to stop me. I’m doing it this way to make it easier for all of us. I’ll let you know when we get where we’re going. Don’t worry—I know Mike will take good care of me.
Love,
Brenda
Chapter
Fifteen
MR. CARLTON BURIED his face in his hands. “Take good care of her,” he repeated hollowly. “Yes—the same way they took good care of Darla DeCamp!”
Nancy glanced around. “It looks as if she didn’t take her luggage,” she said, pointing to a suitcase still in the closet.
Mr. Carlton wasn’t paying attention. “I’d never have believed she’d do something like this without telling me first,” he said, almost in tears.
Nancy surveyed the room. A jewelry box lay open, exposing the empty velvet tray. Obviously, Brenda had grabbed all her jewelry hastily—one garnet earring lay forgotten beside the box.
Ned spoke up. “Maybe we can catch up with them before they get out of town.”
“There isn’t a moment to lose,” Nancy agreed. “We’ll cover more ground if we split up. Ned, would you pick up Bess and get over to the Ridgeview Motel? George and I will check out Charlie’s and see if they’ve been there. Mr. Carlton, could I borrow your car? Mine’s still in the shop in Batesville.”
Mr. Carlton nodded. “Should I come along?”
“No, you stay here. We need a command center. We’ll call here as soon as we have anything.”
A moment later Ned and Nancy were racing to separate cars. Nancy was glad she’d alerted George and Bess. Every minute counted if they were ever going to see Brenda alive again.
Ten minutes later, Nancy and George, in Mr. Carlton’s black Lincoln, pulled up outside Charlie’s. George went to check the parking lot in back as Nancy dashed inside.
Even though it was early, the place was crowded and the music was loud. A big sign that said BENEFIT TONIGHT hung over the door. But the stage was empty and Nancy realized that the music was coming from a PA system. There was no sign of Mike or Brenda, and she made her way quickly to the office, where the manager was just hanging up the phone.
“Have you seen Mike McKeever?” Nancy asked.
“Yeah, I’ve seen him,” the manager growled, running both hands over his bald head. “The jerk pulled out just a little while ago and left me holding the bag for tonight’s benefit. And now I’m being overrun by his fan club!”
“His fan club?”
“First that dark-haired girl he hangs out with, and now you,” the manager snapped disgustedly. “When he told me he was leaving, right out of the blue like that, I told him I wouldn’t pay him. He didn’t seem to care. He was more worried about me remembering to give his note to his girlfriend.” The manager’s irritation was growing. “She tore in here just a minute ago, grabbed the note, and took off.”
Nancy was beginning to feel alarmed. Unless they knew where Mike and Brenda were headed, they could search all night with no success. “Did you get a look at the note? What did it say?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care. I’m just glad they’re gone. You might check the motel.” The phone rang and he reached for it. “Now get out of here! I’ve got a business to run!”
Just inside the door, Nancy stopped at a pay phone and dialed the Carltons’ number. Mr. Carlton answered. He had just heard from Ned. Mike had already left the motel, Mr. Carlton reported. Ned had stationed Bess there in case Brenda showed up, and was headed over to the trailer park.
“We’ve drawn a blank at Charlie’s,” Nancy said.
“Where do you think he’s taking her?” Mr. Carlton asked worriedly.
“I don’t know yet,” Nancy said, trying to keep her voice light. “But we’re on our way to check out a couple of possibilities.”
“What possibilities?” George asked as they climbed into Mr. Carlton’s car.
Nancy threw up her hands. “I don’t know,” she confessed. “Where would you go if you wanted to meet somebody without being seen?”
George thought for a minute. “How about the camping area down by the river?”
“Good idea,” Nancy said, turning the key in the ignition. “Let’s take a look.”
But the camping area was deserted except for a couple of tent campers. It was beginning to get dark, and the fireflies were dancing through the dusky shadows along the river.
Nancy sat quietly, considering their options. “Well, we can’t stay here on the off chance they might show up.” She shook her head, frustrated. Where could they have gone? For a minute she watched the fireflies flickering in and out of the trees. Suddenly something clicked.
“Of course! That’s it!” she exclaimed.
“What’s it?” George asked, staring at her.
“Flannagan’s Farm!” Nancy said, starting the car. She pulled out of the park, scattering gravel. “That deserted farm would be a perfect place for Mike and Felix to deal with Brenda.”
George’s face was pale. “What do you think they’ll do to her? Just dump her?”
“No,” Nancy said grimly. “She knows too much. They’ll have to do something to—shut her up.” She pressed the accelerator to the floor.
Ten minutes later they were driving down the lane that led to the abandoned farm. Nancy cut the lights and headed toward the knoll that overlooked the barn lot. Below them everything looked just the way it had when Nancy and Ned had walked in on Brenda the last time.
Carefully, Nancy scanned the barn lot again. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something looked different. There was a dark, boxy shadow behind the barn. As the moon came out, Nancy could see the shape of wheels.
“Look! Over there!” Nancy said excitedly, pointing to the shadow. “That’s Felix’s travel trailer! It looks like it’s hidden under a tarp or something. But there aren’t any other cars—that must mean they’ll all be along soon.” She thought quickly. “George,
take the car and get Ned at the trailer park. Pick up Mr. Carlton, too. And bring them back here, fast!”
George nodded. “What are you going to do?”
“Check things out down there,” Nancy told her. “If our gang shows up, I’ll keep them busy until you get back with reinforcements.” She slipped out of the car and into the darkness.
Nancy made her way quietly toward the dark, boxy shadow she’d seen from the knoll. It was Felix’s trailer.
She looked around. No one in sight. She took a deep breath and headed for the barn.
Inside, the light was dim as the moon shone through the window. When her eyes adjusted, Nancy noticed a wooden ladder leading up into the shadowy heights of the loft.
Well, the loft is as good a place to wait as any, Nancy thought to herself, climbing the shaky ladder. Above, a section of the roof shingles had blown away, and the loft was flooded with pale moonlight.
The loft—or at least that part of it that still had a roof—was being used to store hay. It rustled as Nancy walked on it. In the center of the loft, there was a large trapdoor. The door was closed now, and fastened shut with a hasp and a wooden peg, a thick cord tied to one end. It wasn’t high-tech, Nancy thought, but it obviously worked. You’d tug on the cord to pull the peg, the trap would swing open, and you could pitch the hay down onto the floor below. Suddenly inspired, she scooped up armfuls of loose, dusty hay and piled them onto the trapdoor. If she needed a diversion, she could open the door and drop hay onto someone standing below.
But Nancy’s work was interrupted by the sound of motors. Headlights were crossing the meadow. Quickly, she lay down on her stomach and found an opening in the loft floor that gave her a good view of the barn below.
After a moment, she could hear Brenda’s petulant voice. “I don’t understand why we’re coming back here,” she was demanding, over the noise of Mike’s motorcycle. A car door slammed. Brenda must be getting out of her car.
“Come on inside and I’ll explain it to you.” It was Mike’s voice. “And bring the money.”
Brenda came through the main double doors of the barn. She was wearing dark slacks and carrying a small quilted cosmetics case. She sat down on an overturned bucket and opened the case. In the moonlight, Nancy saw the glint of gold.