Mystery of Crocodile Island (5 page)

Read Mystery of Crocodile Island Online

Authors: Carolyn G. Keene

BOOK: Mystery of Crocodile Island
13.7Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
Nancy took the binoculars from Bess and trained them on the strange object. “Is the water deep enough for a submarine to get in?”
“Yes,” Danny replied. “Notice that the thing is sticking out of one of the channels where the water is green. That means it’s deep enough for a small sub. As a matter of fact, during World War II enemy subs got in here this way. The government had mined all the larger, more important channels to keep them out, but small enemy craft slipped in anyway.”
“Danny, can you go into the channel?” Nancy asked. “I’d like to see if that really is a periscope.”
“Sure,” Danny said and changed course.
But they soon realized that the men on
The Whisper
had no intention of letting them go through with their plan.
“They’re coming closer,” George said tensely. “Obviously they don’t want us to check that thing out there.”
“Which proves that they have something to do with it,” Bess added.
Again the other boat pulled alongside the
Pirate.
“You kids think I’m fooling!” the skipper shouted. “I’m not. If you don’t turn around instantly, your boat is gonna get rammed. And it’ll cost you a pretty penny to have it repaired!”
“But we’re leaving the island,” Danny pointed out. “Just as you told us to!”
“You’re going in the wrong direction. Turn back!”
Danny hesitated. He realized that this time their pursuers meant business. Before he had a chance to pull the wheel around,
The Whisper
came so close to their skiff that it scraped the bow.
“All right! All right!” Danny cried out. “We’re leaving. You don’t have to damage us.”
The skipper chuckled evilly. “And don’t ever come back. You hear!”
Bess had turned white and sat frozen in her chair, her hands clamped tightly around its edge. Nancy and George realized that the situation was critical and did not object to Danny’s pulling away in the direction the men had indicated.
The Whisper followed them for a while, then turned off. Obviously the men were satisfied that they had chased the intruders away.
“Wow!” Bess said finally. “I don’t want to see those people ever again!”
Nancy grinned. “I do. They’re up to no good, and I’m planning to find out what it is.”
As the
Pirate
headed toward Key Biscayne, George said, “I wonder who those guys are. Let’s stop at the Coast Guard office and see in whose name
The Whisper
is registered.”
“We don’t have to do that,” Danny said. “My dad has a book containing all the information. Unless it’s a brand-new entry, it should be in there.”
“I wish we could be sure that we saw a periscope,” Nancy said, still pondering their strange experience.
“How do periscopes work?” Bess asked.
“Oh, I know that because we just had it in school,” Danny volunteered. “You see, the periscope is the eye of the underwater craft. A submarine builder by the name of Simon Lake invented the first good periscope, which was way ahead of the technology and science of his time. He bought a lot of lenses and began to experiment.”
“Not too complicated!” George said.
“Maybe not, but one day he hit upon a lucky combination. He could look down the street and see people walking and wagons rolling through the harbor. He called it an omniscope. It offered enough magnification and clearness of optics even for night vision, so it was a big success.”
“How long ago was that?” George asked.
“Nineteen hundred two,” Danny told her. “Before that they just had makeshift equipment.”
As soon as they arrived at the Cosgrove house, Danny went to get the boat registry. It was large and heavy. He put it on the dining-room table. The girls peered over his shoulder as he checked “W” for
Whisper.
“Ah. Here it is,” he said triumphantly. “It belongs to two men, Matt Carmen and Breck Tobin. They live in Bridgeport, Connecticut.”
“Do you know who they are?” Nancy asked.
“No. Never heard of them. I wonder what they’re doing down here. They’re a long way from home.”
“I’m sure they’re in league with the men who run the Crocodile Ecology Company,” Nancy said.
“Maybe they’re supposed to guard the place,” George spoke up. “They got rid of us in a hurry!”
“I hope they don’t check up on who owns the
Pirate
and then come here and bother us!” Bess said, worried.
Danny insisted upon being cheerful about the whole affair. “We may be boxed in, but we’re not going to let those guys get the better of us!” he vowed.
Nancy smiled. “That’s the spirit! The question is, what are we going to do next?”
When Mr. Cosgrove returned home, the young people told him what had happened and asked his opinion on the case. He thought for a few moments, then said, “Frankly, I’m puzzled. We now have a list of suspicious people, but we still have no idea of what they’re up to.”
“Or how the periscope fits in,” Nancy added.
Mr. Cosgrove smiled. “Are you sure you weren’t looking at a marker for a buoy?”
“I don’t think so,” Nancy replied. “But the only way to find out for sure will be to go back and look again.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t use the
Pirate;”
Danny said. “Our enemies are familiar with it. Whenever they see us they’ll come after us.”
“What do you have in mind?” his father asked.
“Perhaps we could ask our friends the Piarullis if we can use their cabin cruiser.” He turned to the girls. “They dock right next to us, and if they’re not using the
Sampson,
I’m sure they’ll let us have it. It’s enclosed, too, which would help. Those men couldn’t identify us.”
“That’s a good idea,” Mr. Cosgrove agreed. “I’ll call them and ask.”
He went to the telephone and returned a few minutes later. “Mr. Piarulli said you can have his boat tomorrow. Unfortunately, their son and his wife are taking it up north the following day.”
Danny grinned. “One day is better than none!”
“True,” George agreed. “But what do we do after that?”
“Play it by ear,” Danny said with a grin. “We’ll take things as they come. Let’s leave early in the morning. The tide should be just right.”
“Do you think it’s necessary for all of us to go?” Bess asked. “Mrs. Cosgrove promised to show me how to make Lemon Nut Cake. I don’t want to pass up the opportunity to enlarge my knowledge of recipes.”
“If you’d rather cook than be a detective, you’re welcome to stay home,” George said.
Bess could not stand her cousin’s condescending tone. “On second thought, I’ll postpone my culinery education,” she decided.
Bess was relieved, however, when the plans changed abruptly later that evening. The Cosgroves and their guests were seated in the living room, discussing the mystery. The visitors were trying to figure out the connection between the men on Crocodile Island and the two from Connecticut when the telephone rang.
Mr. Cosgrove answered, then said, “Nancy, there’s a long-distance call for you!”
CHAPTER VI
The Impostor
 
 
 
THE caller was Mr. Drew.
“I’ve had a long conversation with Roger Gonzales,” he told Nancy. “He’s eager to see you and has asked that you meet him at twelve o’clock tomorrow at his golf club. Mr. Cosgrove will give you directions. You’re to tell the man at the desk that you’re Miss Boonton.”
Nancy did not reply immediately.
“Is something wrong?” her father asked.
“I don’t know. Dad, have you any idea where Mr. Gonzales called from?”
“No. His house, I suppose. Why?”
“Because I think his phone is being tapped.”
“Why do you say that?”
“His enemies knew all about our arrival,” Nancy said, and told her father about the kidnapping attempt.
“I don’t like this!” he exclaimed. “The case is more dangerous than I expected.”
“One thing is sure,” Nancy said. “Our masquerade is known. When we visited Crocodile Island, someone took our pictures.”
“Great!” her father murmured. “Perhaps you should come home.”
“Oh, no!” Nancy cried out. “Please, Dad, we’ll manage. We have Danny to help us, and even though the crooks know who we are and why we’re here, we’ll figure out something to outsmart them. Besides, I have to keep my date with Mr. Gonzales tomorrow, so I can warn him.”
“True,” her father agreed. “If the Crocodile Ecology people overheard my conversation with Roger today, they’ll probably try to follow you and prevent you from reaching the club. Keep that in mind.”
“I will,” Nancy promised. “Don’t worry. I’ll think of something.”
“All right. And good luck!”
When Nancy told the others about the new developments, they agreed that she should meet Mr. Gonzales the following day.
“I suggest,” Mrs. Cosgrove said, “that when you leave here you go shopping. Then take a cab to the club from a store. This way you won’t be followed.”
“That’s a good idea,” Nancy agreed. The next day Mr. Cosgrove drove her to a department store, where she made a few purchases, then went out a side door and took a taxi. When Nancy arrived at the club, she went to the desk and asked for Mr. Gonzales. “I’m Miss Boonton,” she added.
The clerk looked at her searchingly. “There must be some mistake,” he said slowly. “Miss Boonton is already here.”
“What!” Nancy was stunned by the announcement. So that’s how her enemies had double-crossed her!
She asked the man for a piece of paper and a pencil, and quickly scribbled a note to Mr. Gonzales. Nancy explained the situation and asked if he would come to the lobby. Then she handed the note to the clerk.
“Would you please send this to Mr. Gonzales,” she requested.
The clerk summoned a boy and within a few minutes, Nancy saw a handsome, dark-haired man of about fifty, wearing a white suit, approach the desk. The clerk motioned to the girl.
“This is Mr. Gonzales,” he said.
Nancy nodded, then asked her father’s friend to move a little distance away so they would not be overheard.
“I’m Nancy Drew,” she whispered. “The Miss Boonton you’re entertaining is an impostor.”
Nancy opened her purse and showed Mr. Gonzales her driver’s license. He looked at it, then at her, in amazement.
“How do you do,” he said in a low voice. “I’m dreadfully sorry about this. Do you know who the other girl is?”
“No,” Nancy replied. “Let’s go inside and find out.”
Quickly the two went to the dining room, and Mr. Gonzales led the way toward a table at the window. Suddenly he stopped short. “She’s gone!” he exclaimed. “The other Miss Boonton is gone!”
Nancy was not surprised to hear it. She deduced that when Mr. Gonzales had received the note and gone to the desk, the girl realized that her trick had been discovered and she decided to disappear at once!
“She had a good head start!” the girl detective thought.
Nancy suggested that they give an alarm to the man at the main desk so he could ask the clubhouse guard and various workers on the grounds and golf course to look for the impostor.
Mr. Gonzales went to the headwaiter’s desk and picked up the phone. Nancy heard him tell the story to the man in charge of the club and ask that a search be made for a tall, slender young woman with a lot of blond hair.
“She was wearing a white skirt and blouse, with a red-and-white sleeveless vest,” he said.
The message was passed along at once. Nancy, impatient to find out where the girl had gone, told Mr. Gonzales she wanted to do a little hunting on her own account. He offered to go with her.
“Where do you want to look first?” he asked.
“How about inspecting all the cars parked on the grounds? She might be hiding in one.”
Mr. Gonzales led the way to the far side of the dining room and out a sliding glass door. A caddy came by, and Mr. Gonzales asked him if he had seen the girl. The answer was no, and the search went on. They checked every car in the area. All they found inside them was a sleeping dog in one with an open window, and a large teddy bear in another.
“Of course there’s a third possibility,” Nancy said. “The phony Miss Boonton could have been brought to the club by a friend, who could have waited for her.”
“True,” Mr. Gonzales agreed.
As they turned back to the clubhouse, Nancy stopped a couple who were driving in. She asked if they had seen a girl dressed in white except for a red-and-white vest. “We don’t know whether she was on foot or in a car.”
“No, we didn’t,” the man replied.
“Thank you,” Nancy said, disappointed.
Moments later a sports car came from the opposite direction. Mr. Gonzales asked the driver if he had noticed a girl on the road.
“A blond wearing a red-and-white vest?” the man asked.
“That’s right,” Nancy answered, excited. “Where did you see her?”
“I passed her about a mile down the road. She was riding in a brown car with a man.”
The information was sufficient for Nancy to conclude that the fraudulent Miss Boonton had made a quick getaway. “No use in looking for her any more,” she told Mr. Gonzales.
He nodded. “I owe you a lunch. You must be starved. Let’s return to the dining room.”
After they had ordered salads and iced tea, Nancy and her host talked about the mystery.
“I don’t understand how this could have happened,” he said, puzzled.
“I do,” Nancy said. “Your phone must be tapped. Do you remember where you were when you called my father on various occasions?”
Mr. Gonzales frowned. “The first call I made from home. The second one too—no, wait a minute. I made that one from the club. Yesterday I phoned from home again.”
Nancy nodded. “That proves my theory,” she said and told him about all that had happened, including the kidnapping attempt.
The man turned pale. “This means that not only am I in great danger, but you are, too!” he said. “I never would have asked you to come here if I had known!”

Other books

Heat by Michael Cadnum
Intermission by Ashley Pullo
Waiting for Wednesday by Nicci French
I'm With the Bears by Mark Martin
Los asesinatos de Horus by Paul Doherty
The Finding by Nicky Charles