Circle of Evil (8 page)

Turning, Nancy was just in time to see a small yellow convertible peel out of the parking lot and head down the entrance drive. She was too far away to spot the license number,
but there was no question about who the driver was. Cindy's hair looked as if it were on fire.

Frustrated, Nancy watched the car disappear down the drive. Cindy was feeling very guilty, that was obvious. But about what? Rifling through Mrs. Ames's beach bag? Or stealing from people's houses? Or both?

Still thinking about it, Nancy went back into the clubhouse and down to the locker room.

After she opened her locker, Nancy pulled out her canvas bag and was going to sling it over her shoulder. But then she noticed a white envelope sticking halfway out of the side pocket. Curious, she took it out and opened it. Inside was a piece of paper with a typed message. The message read: “We know what you're up to. But does your father? Forget about finding us, or we'll arrange a meeting with him—by the diving pool. How long can he hold his breath?”

I
UNDERSTAND WHY
you're worried, Nancy,” Carson Drew said after she had called him at his law office and explained what had happened. “But I'm leaving for New York tonight, remember? I'm going straight from the office. Actually, I have to leave in ten minutes or I'll miss the plane.” He laughed lightly. “I think I'll be safe between here and the airport.”

“I'm not worried about right now, Dad,” Nancy said. She knew her father was leaving town—he was going to visit some friends and attend a lawyers' meeting in New York for a
day or two. So she had rushed straight home from the club to warn him before he went. “I'm worried about when you come back. After all, you'll be home soon, and these people are serious.”

“It certainly sounds like it,” her father said. “Which is why I'm more worried about you than about me. Don't you think you should go to the police on this one?”

“I want to give it a little more, time,” Nancy said with a sigh. “I told you about Detective Ryan, remember?”

“I take it you two still haven't hit it off.”

“No. He thinks I'm a giant pain in the neck.” Nancy shook her head. “Anyway, I'm being careful. Don't worry.”

“Well, I'm sure you think you know what you're doing, but just remember, you don't have eyes in the back of your head,” her father said, warning her. “Forget about me, and look out for yourself.”

Nancy agreed, but she knew she wouldn't be able to stop worrying. To have her father threatened was frightening. She was glad he was going to be out of town, but she couldn't stop thinking about what might happen when he came back.

As Nancy was pacing restlessly around the kitchen, going over everything she had discovered
so far and not coming up with anything new, Hannah Gruen, the Drews' housekeeper, came in.

“You look like a cat stalking a bird,” Hannah remarked.

Nancy laughed. Hannah had been with the Drews for fifteen years, and she knew Nancy's moods better than anyone. “I
am
stalking a bird,” Nancy said. “More than one, I think. The problem is, I can't decide which one to go after.”

“It's this new case, isn't it?” Hannah asked.

Nancy nodded, deciding not to mention the threat to her father. There was no sense in having Hannah lose sleep over it, too. Not yet, anyway. “I'm on the right track,” she said. “But I don't have any concrete theories or clues. It's beginning to get pretty frustrating.”

“Well, do you think wearing a path in the kitchen floor will help?” Hannah asked. Nancy glanced down sheepishly. “Why don't you play some music or do something to relax?”

“I guess I'll have to,” Nancy said. Then she realized that she was still wearing the same sweaty shorts and shirt she had worked out in, and her hair was tangled and matted. “But first, I think I'll shower and change. It might not help me solve the case, but at least I'll feel human again.”

“By the way,” Hannah said as Nancy started to leave, “I'm going to a meeting at the library in a little while, so I won't be here for dinner. And since your father won't be here, either, it's leftovers for you.”

“Fine,” Nancy said, knowing she wouldn't be hungry, anyway. “I'll see you when you get back.”

After a shower, Nancy dried her hair, put on a flowered cotton skirt and a white tank top, and pushed a rock tape into her tape deck. Bess and George might be home by then, she decided, and she wanted to find out if they had learned anything.

“Absolutely nothing,” Bess reported when Nancy called. “It was exactly the same as yesterday, except there weren't as many golfers because it was so hot. The only difference was that one of the caddies was even more friendly to me than he had been yesterday.” Bess giggled. “I was pretty friendly to him, too, which wasn't hard because he is
so
gorgeous!”

“Did you find out where any of them were last night?”

“Three of them talked about nothing but last night's baseball game, and they said they watched it at one of their houses,” Bess said. “Of course, I suppose they could have been lying, but they discussed every hit and strike as though they'd been sitting in the stands.”

“What about the other two?” Nancy asked.

“One said he was sick, and, believe me, he was croaking like a frog,” Bess told her. “And Tom—he's the gorgeous one—well, he and I were talking on the phone for almost an hour. And that was at the time you were out getting soaked.”

Nancy felt relieved. If Bess was right, then there were five people she didn't have to follow. “Okay, thanks,” she said. “I'm going to call George now and see if she's got any leads.”

“George has a date,” Bess told her. “With her handsome tennis teacher. But she told me to tell you that he didn't act any differently today, either. She didn't find out what he was up to last night, but she's going to try to find out tonight.”

“Good.” For George's sake, Nancy hoped that the tennis instructor had a perfect alibi.

After she hung up, Nancy felt hungry and looked for something to eat. She found half a roast chicken and salad makings in the refrigerator, but it wasn't what she wanted. Remembering the cheeseburger and fries she hadn't eaten the night before, she called Ned and suggested they go out. Half an hour later, the two of them were sitting in a booth at the Burger Barn.

Nancy bit into a crisp fry and smiled. “If I
didn't have this case on my back, I'd be perfectly happy right now.”

“Nothing new to report?” Ned asked.

“A little,” Nancy said, telling him about her chase after Cindy. “I'd really like to talk to that girl. She's the only one I've seen who even acts suspiciously. She could have put the note in my locker. But that doesn't mean there aren't others in on it, too. Oh, Ned, I don't know. I really can't rule anyone out yet.”

Ned smiled. “So what's your next step, Detective?”

“I guess I'm going to have to put their names into a hat, pick one, and follow that person after he or she leaves the club.” Nancy laughed. “Maybe I'll get lucky.”

“I don't think another stakeout would work, not at the Winslows' anyway,” Ned said. “I have a feeling Detective Ryan has that covered. And I'm not so sure following these people is such a good idea.”

“But I don't know what else to do,” Nancy said, arguing. “I can't keep hanging out at the club—watching. They don't even do their dirty work there.”

“They do part of it there,” Ned reminded her. “They get all their information at the club. Plus, I just thought of something. The
club would make a great place to hide stuff. It's got hundreds of lockers. And who knows? One of them might be filled with stolen goods instead of soggy towels.”

“I didn't think of that.” Nancy swallowed the last bite of her cheeseburger and grinned. “Did you ever consider becoming a detective?”

“Why bother?” Ned said with a laugh. “I've got you, remember?”

• • •

As Ned drove Nancy home, the two of them joked and laughed and talked about everything but the case. It felt good, Nancy thought, to forget about it for a little while. She decided to try not to think about it the whole night. Maybe all the clues would fall into place in the morning.

“Did I tell you how great you look tonight?” Ned asked as they got out of the car and walked to Nancy's house.

Nancy shook her head, smiling. “If you did, I didn't hear it. Go ahead, tell me again.”

“You do look great,” Ned said softly, reaching out and pulling her closer.

They were on the front porch then, and just as Ned was about to kiss her, Nancy pulled away, staring over his shoulder.

“What is it?” Ned asked.

“The door,” Nancy said, pointing. “It's
partly open. And I remember locking it when I left.”

“Maybe Hannah's home,” Ned suggested, “and she just didn't shut it all the way.”

Checking her watch, Nancy shook her head. “It's too early. And, anyway, if she were home, she'd have turned on the porch light.”

Slowly, Nancy pushed the door open and stepped inside. She was sure Hannah wasn't there, but just in case, she called her name, three times. There was no answer.

Behind her, Ned said quietly, “I'll check the kitchen.” Nancy heard his footsteps as he cautiously made his way into that room. She continued walking slowly through the house, peering into one room after the other. They were all empty, and nothing even looked disturbed.

Maybe I just didn't pull the front door closed tightly enough, she thought, trying to remember. It had never happened before, but there was always a first time.

Nancy was just starting to relax when she reached her father's room. One look, and her heart started pounding again. The door was closed. Carson Drew never shut it except when he was changing his clothes.

Her mouth dry, Nancy quietly put her hand on the doorknob, counted to three, and threw the door wide open.

A curtain billowed as the door opened, but nothing else moved. Slowly scanning the room, Nancy saw that the bed was made, the closet door was closed, the drawers were shut. Then her eyes moved up to the ceiling. There, dangling from the light fixture, was one of her father's neckties—made into a noose! Attached to it was a note scrawled in greasy bloodred lipstick:

Your dad might be gone now, but he has to return sometime. We'll be waiting. Get off the case, Nancy Drew!

S
TARING AT THE
ugly message, Ned whistled softly. “Don't you think it's about time to call the police, Nancy?”

Nancy shook her head. “If it was anybody but Detective Ryan, I'd say yes. But he'd tell me it was all my own fault for messing around in police business.”

“But if you tell him why it happened—because you're getting too close to the robbers—then he'd have to listen,” Ned said.

“Maybe,” she said. “But if he brings the police in and lets them swarm all over the
country club, I guarantee there won't be another robbery in River Heights—at least not by these people. I haven't scared them off because they know I'm working alone and they think they can scare
me
off. But they wouldn't bother to threaten a whole police force. They'd just lie low until the whole thing blew over.

“Let's get this picked up before Hannah comes home,” Nancy said. “If she sees this, she'll freak. I don't want her worrying about it until she has to. This just fries me,” she said. “I know they're trying to scare me, and they have. But they're also making me very angry.”

After Ned had left, Nancy forced herself to calm down so Hannah wouldn't notice that anything was wrong and ask questions. In her room, she turned on the TV, then snapped it off, put a tape in the deck, then immediately took it out. When Hannah came home, Nancy told her that she wanted some fresh air. She got in her car and went for a drive.