False Moves (4 page)

“You fool,” Colby growled. “You couldn't care less what happens to CBT as long as the dollars flow in. You know, you're obsessed with money, Ellsworth. In fact, I bet you're the one behind the diamond's disappearance!

“Yeah,” Colby continued as if the idea had just come to him. “You probably set up this whole publicity stunt just so you could get the Raja pin to Chicago to steal it!”

The managing director glared at the artistic director for a moment. Nancy could see James's rage gathering like a storm cloud. “How dare you accuse me!” he screamed. In the next instant James lunged at Colby, his hands reaching for the other man's neck.

Surprised by the sudden violence, Colby didn't have time to avoid the attack. James grasped his windpipe, his hands closing hard in a deadly squeeze.

C
OLBY GASPED FOR
air as James's hands tightened around his throat. He was younger and, because of his daily dance workouts, much stronger than the other man. But he had been surprised and now had had most of the air knocked from his lungs. Without oxygen, he was ready to faint. He could not break free of the stranglehold. As James squeezed harder, Colby finally fell to his knees on the marble floor, almost unconscious.

“Stop!” Nancy cried. I've got to do something, she thought, before James kills him. Nancy grabbed hold of the older man's shoulders and
shook them hard. “Let go of him,” she cried. “You don't know what you're doing.”

As the managing director turned toward Nancy in surprise, his grip on Colby loosened just a bit. That gave the artistic director the chance he needed. Thrusting his arms up with his last bit of energy, he knocked James's hands free and then lay back on the floor panting.

James was staring at Colby in amazement as if he couldn't believe what he had just attempted. “Good heavens,” he exclaimed. “I never meant—” He broke off, too shocked to finish. “Colby,” he finally got out, “are you hurt?”

Colby stood up, brushing off his sweatpants. The anger in his eyes still hadn't died. “You sure are strong for an old fool,” he spat. Then he turned and strode out of the lobby.

James peeked at Nancy from the corner of his eyes and coughed weakly. “If—if you'll excuse me, Ms. Drew,” he said, embarrassed, “we'll have to finish our conversation later.” Then he walked up the stairs, his head bowed, his step unsure.

Nancy stood and watched him climb. It looked as if it were going to be a tough case. Tempers were flaring already, and she'd been investigating for only a few minutes!

The burst of violence was unsettling to Nancy, but she was glad she had been there to see it—
and
stop it. And after that incredible display of temper, both men were high on her suspect list.

Nancy thought about what had been said. Colby could be right—James could very well have planned to borrow the diamond just to steal it. After all, it was worth millions. And with his violent streak, she wouldn't put anything past him.

On the other hand, Colby had a reason for stealing the diamond—to blame its theft on James. It was quite clear that the managing director was behind the move not to rehire him for the next year. Colby could frame James and get back at the man who'd ruined his career with Chicago's top ballet company. And then he could sell the pin and never have to worry about money again.

Nancy reminded herself that all her theories were pure speculation. Either of the men could have planned the theft, as well as a score of other people. What she needed were hard facts.

Nancy went over to one of the lobby's couches and sat down to do some serious thinking. How did the thief get the diamond off the stage and past the police without being detected?

Nancy's guess was that the thief had concealed it somehow in a costume and smuggled it past the police. And if the thief had managed to get it off the stage, it was quite possible he'd gotten it out of the concert hall, too!

Okay, Nancy told herself, you've got a place to
start searching for clues. The costume storage room! One of the costumes worn last night has to have a secret place for hiding the diamond. Plus, I can check out Katya's costume to see if there are any secret hiding places there. And once I find the costume I'll know who it belongs to, and I'll have my thief.

Nancy twirled a strand of hair around one finger. Somehow, I have the feeling it's not going to be quite so easy!

For one thing, there would be over a hundred costumes to check. A couple for each of the dancers. Well, I obviously can't search all of them by myself. I'm going to need some help.

The image of one face flashed through Nancy's mind. Ned. But could she get him away from Belinda's dance class to go poke around a costume storage room with her? There was only one way to find out—ask him. Nancy stood up and, slinging the strap of her purse over her shoulder, she hurried up the lobby staircase in search of the dance studios.

A few minutes later Nancy was peeking around the door into a ballet class, motioning for Ned to come out and talk to her. She could see Belinda throw her a dirty look as Ned got up to leave the class.

“What's up?” Ned asked as he closed the door to the studio behind him. He looked a little nervous but also glad to see her. Funny, that was
exactly how Nancy felt about being with him. “Even you couldn't have solved this case already,” he added.

“No way,” Nancy said. “In fact, I'm just going after my first clue and I need your help.” Quickly she told Ned about wanting to search the costume storage room and why it was important.

“That's going to be harder than you think,” Ned told her. “The police have put a padlock on the door to that room.”

“But James said I could go anywhere to search,” Nancy said.

“Anywhere but the storage room, I guess. But knowing you, Nancy, you'll find a way to get in there, anyway.”

“Then you'll help me?” she asked, staring into his dark eyes.

“Hey, I'm the one who got you in on this case. I can't expect you to do all the dirty work yourself. Got any ideas about how to get past that padlock?”

Nancy patted her purse. “I came prepared—I've got my lock-picking kit with me.”

Ned grinned. “Come on, Sherlock Holmes, we've got a whole lot of costumes to search.”

For a moment their eyes met and all the old magic was back. Ned took hold of Nancy's elbow, and his touch made her knees go weak for a moment.

But as he steered her down a long,
cream-colored corridor, Nancy did her best to squash the feeling. I have to get over him, she told herself. He's going out with Belinda now.

The CBT building was small, but it was dissected with many hallways branching off in all directions. And all these hallways on the second floor were painted the same cream color. It was incredibly difficult to tell one from another. Every office or studio Nancy and Ned passed looked just like the one before it. I'll have to learn my way around here, Nancy thought as she and Ned turned another corner. A person could get lost for days in these hallways.

“The costume storage room is right down here,” Ned said, pointing ahead to still one more corridor, off which two other hallways ran.

“Ned, look!” Nancy cried as they turned the corner. “Someone is smashing the padlock on the costume room door.”

The figure, dressed in black pants, a black sweatshirt, and a full black mask, looked up when Nancy shouted.

It took no more than two seconds for the unknown person to turn and slip quickly down a connecting hallway.

“Ned! Come on!” Nancy cried. She grabbed his arm and pulled him along as she ran after the black-clad figure.

The two detectives sped down the hall, turning the corner just in time to catch a glimpse of the
mystery person slipping down yet another passageway. When Nancy and Ned turned down that passage they saw the figure hurry through a door that led to a stairwell.

Nancy and Ned lost sight of the intruder for just that instant. But it was one instant too long because when they opened the door and entered the stairwell themselves, the person was gone.

T
HERE WASN'T A
sign of the figure in black moving in either direction on the staircase.

“Ned,” Nancy cried, “we can't let that intruder get away. You head upstairs and I'll go down. If you don't find anything in fifteen minutes, meet me back at the costume storage room,” she said as she took the steps leading down to the first floor two at a time.

“Be careful, Nancy,” Ned said, calling back over his shoulder.

Once on the first floor, Nancy neither saw nor heard anything. She dashed quickly through the lobby and pushed the swinging doors open into
CBT's old theater. Nancy knew it well from the many times that she had seen the ballet company perform.

It was a beautiful but small theater with an oversize crystal chandelier and heavy purple curtains covering the stage. Row upon row of cushioned chairs stood before Nancy. And the intruder could be hiding behind any one of them—if the person was there at all.

There was nothing to do but start looking. Cautiously, Nancy made her way down the first aisle, checking each row for the figure in black. But the search took a long time. After five minutes, she had finished only half the theater, and she was beginning to worry that the person she was looking for had slipped away without her noticing.

“What are you doing here?” a voice rang out across the empty theater. “You're not supposed to be here.”

Startled, Nancy turned to find a tall, blond woman walking toward her.

“I'm Mr. Ellsworth's assistant,” the woman said sternly. “Who are you and why are you here?”

Great, Nancy thought. If the intruder's still here, this is the perfect chance to get out of here in a hurry. But there was nothing she could do about it. She had to deal with James Ellsworth's assistant right then.

As Nancy opened her mouth to explain who she
was, a second woman started down the aisle of the theater to join them. “I'm Nancy Drew,” she said to the assistant. “I'm investigating the disappearance of the Raja diamond. Mr. Ellsworth gave me permission to search all the facilities of the building.”

The assistant broke into a smile. “Oh, yes, he told me about you. My name's Liane.” She extended her hand. “Sorry I interrupted you, but we've got to be extremely careful about security after this robbery.”

The second woman had just joined them. “It seems rather late for that now!” she said. She sounded almost as if she were from England, but not quite. Nancy placed the accent immediately. The woman was from India.

Nancy turned her attention to her. The small, slim woman had dark skin, long shiny black hair, and large dark eyes.

Liane looked a little embarrassed. “Nancy, this is Ana Lokhar. She's representing the Raja family here in Chicago.”

Ana eyed Nancy with a sour expression. “James told me about you, too. Actually, I'd expected someone older. I'm amazed that he'd trust a teenager!”

Nancy smiled slightly. She was used to people underestimating her abilities as a detective, and she'd always been able to prove them wrong.

She studied Ana Lokhar. The other woman was
wearing a pair of finely tailored black slacks, flat black shoes, and a pale flower-printed silk shirt.

Nancy looked more carefully at the woman before her. Could she have been the intruder? It would have been a simple matter of pulling off a black sweatshirt and mask. She had on the black slacks and shoes already. Could the shadowy figure and Ana Lokhar be one and the same? Nancy wished she had gotten a better look at the figure in black but she had seen it so fleetingly that she hadn't even been able to tell if it was a woman or a man.

The words that James Ellsworth had said about Ana Lokhar that morning came ringing back to Nancy. “She's shrewd enough to have pulled off something like this.”