Shadow of a Doubt (4 page)

Nancy tried to be as kind as possible. “Actually, I might be able to help you. My name is Nancy Drew, and I'm a private detective.”

The girl came rushing at Nancy, screaming. “Nancy Drew! As far as I'm concerned, your father is responsible for everything that's happened. Carson Drew has my father's blood on his hands, and he's going to pay!”

H
OLD IT
, K
ATE
!” The boy moved between Nancy and Kate.

“Why should I?” Kate shouted. “What right does she have to be here, talking to us?”

Nancy found herself reeling from what Kate Gleason had said. The girl actually thought her father was to blame for Robert Gleason's death!

“You should think about what you're doing,” the boy told her. Nancy heard the hint of anger in his voice.

“Don't worry, Chris,” Kate said, gritting her teeth. “I wouldn't give her the satisfaction of hurting her! But she's got a lot of nerve, just
the same.” The girl's green eyes were half shut with fury.

“I honestly don't know what you're talking about!” Nancy said emphatically. “Don't you think you'd better explain what you mean?” she asked simply.

Kate Gleason had made a heavy accusation against her father, but Nancy knew she wouldn't find out anything if she lost her cool.

“My sister's pretty upset,” Chris Gleason said. He shot Kate a serious look. “She doesn't know what she's saying.”

“Thanks a lot, Chris,” Kate said sarcastically. “You know as well as I do what's been going on.”

As Nancy watched, Chris responded to his sister's words only with silence and a sharp look. What is it with these two? Nancy wondered.

Chris turned from his sister. “By the way, my name's Chris Gleason,” the boy said, forcing a smile. “And this is my sister, Kate.” Chris stuck out his right hand. Nancy shook it and turned to Kate. The girl gave Nancy a scowl and walked away.

Chris took Nancy aside. “I'm sorry about my sister,” he said with a sigh. “She's taking this pretty hard.”

“It's perfectly understandable,” Nancy said. “It's tough losing a parent.”

“Yes, it is. We didn't really know our dad all
that well because he was sent away eight years ago. But our lives have been a little rough, what with the conviction, and then my parents' divorce. And now this.” He pointed to the police who were streaming out of the building now. They started to pack up and move off.

Nancy easily understood why Kate Gleason was so upset. But why, she wondered, was Chris being so nice and direct with her? Maybe the shock of his father's death hadn't sunk in yet, Nancy thought.

Kate Gleason came back over to where they were standing. “I'm glad to see you're getting along so well,” she said, her upper lip curled up in a sneer. “I'd hate to have Carson Drew's daughter think we disliked her or anything.”

Nancy checked her anger. Kate Gleason was being difficult, but she had just had a terrible shock. Nancy knew she had to be understanding. Besides, the Gleason kids were her only connection to Robert Gleason, and she still had a strong suspicion that he was behind that photograph and the phone call.

“I don't necessarily want you to like me,” Nancy said to Kate. “And I'm really sorry about what's happened. But I think I have a right to know why you think my father's directly responsible for all of this. And,” she added, “if you really think your father's death wasn't an accident, I might be able to help.”

“She's right, Kate,” Chris said.

Kate folded her arms. She wasn't convinced at all. Chris took her aside for a minute. Nancy heard him whispering to Kate and saw Kate looking over at her. Finally, they both came back.

“Kate's agreed to talk,” Chris told Nancy. “But only because you offered to help us find out what really happened to my father.”

“You're still going to have to prove to me that your father isn't actually responsible, though,” Kate added.

Nancy was about to lose her temper. What right did Kate Gleason have to accuse her father of being involved in Robert Gleason's death? But Nancy knew that if she was going to get to the bottom of her father's problem, she'd also have to find a way of getting along with Kate Gleason.

“I hope that when we finish talking, you'll see you have a reason to trust me. And you'll realize we need to cooperate,” Nancy said, drilling in her point.

“Maybe,” Kate said grudgingly.

• • •

Nancy and Chris and Kate Gleason were sitting around a table at the Pizza Palace. They had almost finished their sodas when Nancy felt the time was right to start talking about Robert Gleason.

“Why don't you tell me what you know?” Nancy said, and took a sip of her soda. “What
makes you think that your dad didn't kill himself?”

“You put it so gracefully,” Kate said in a harsh voice. “Besides the fact that he was happier than ever before—nothing.” Tears welled up in her eyes. “When I last talked to him he was telling me that he had a big surprise planned for my birthday. Does that sound like a man who's thinking of killing himself?”

“Not exactly,” Nancy answered. “But—and I hate to say this—a lot can happen. Maybe your dad wasn't adjusting to his new life too well.”

“Nancy,” Chris said. “There's something Kate isn't telling you—the reason why my dad was in a better mood.”

“Which was?”

“It's kind of hard to talk about, because we really don't know enough.” Chris paused. “It looks like my father had new evidence about the case. Evidence he said that would ‘put Dennis Allard away this time.' ”

“And you think someone may have killed him because of it?” Nancy concluded gently.

“You bet we do!” Kate said, banging her fist on the table.

“But you don't know what the evidence was?” Nancy asked.

“I don't have any idea,” Chris said sadly.
“Kate and I tried to get him to let us help, but he said he had to do it alone.”

“But he told us that Dennis Allard framed him,” Kate said. “And that your father had helped. He wouldn't let us do anything, so I—” Kate stopped.

Nancy got the distinct feeling she was about to say something important but stopped herself when she realized what she was doing.

“So you did what, Kate?” she asked pointedly.

“Nothing!” Kate shook her head and blinked back the tears that had pooled in her eyes. “All I can say is that if it hadn't been for your father, my father would never have had to prove that he was innocent. And he wouldn't be dead right now!”

Kate broke down. Before Chris could reach out to comfort her, she ran off to the bathroom.

Nancy looked at Chris. He was staring not at his sister, but at Nancy.

“Sorry,” he said. “She doesn't really mean what she's saying.”

“Do you think my father was responsible?” Nancy asked.

Chris sighed. “I don't know.” He studied Nancy intently. Nancy returned his stare, but couldn't read him. She couldn't understand why he'd be so willing to talk to her if he thought her father had helped frame his dad.

Then, as if in answer to her question, Chris started to speak. “I think we need to trust each other,” he said finally. “I want to find out who wanted my father dead, and I think you can help.”

“You're right,” Nancy said slowly. “I need to clear my father's name, too.”

Kate Gleason came back to the table. Her eyes were red still, but she had stopped crying. “I'd like to go now,” she said to her brother, making no move to sit.

“There's just one more thing I need to ask you,” Nancy said. “Before you ran off, you were about to tell me something. What was it?” She focused on Kate's eyes and wouldn't look away.

“Nothing,” Kate answered, finally breaking the contact.

“I don't believe you.” Nancy paused. She looked across the table at Chris. “You two haven't been making phone calls to my house lately, have you?” It was only a hunch but worth a try.

Chris shook his head. Nancy looked up at Kate. Kate's eyes grew bright, and she swallowed a few times. Nancy was right!

“Kate?” Chris had seen his sister's reaction. “What's all this about?” he asked as she sat down beside him.

Nancy quickly explained about the phone calls and the photograph.

“I didn't really think about what I was doing,” Kate confessed. “I wanted to help my father. I thought maybe I could scare your dad into—”

“Into what?” Nancy asked.

“I don't know.” Kate rested her head in her hands, then looked up, brushing away her long auburn hair. “I thought that maybe he'd be worried enough to come clean about what he'd done,” she said in a rush.

“Kate,” Chris groaned. “How could you? You could have gotten into a lot of trouble. Sometimes I wonder about you.”

“Look,” Nancy said. “I'm not going to pretend I'm happy about what you did, but I'm glad I found out who was doing it.” At least now she knew the threats weren't serious. “Still, what I don't understand—” she began.

“Then, will you help us?” Chris interrupted eagerly. “Find out who might have killed our father? And why?”

Nancy sighed. She didn't really trust Chris and Kate Gleason, but they were also too important a link to drop. “I'll help,” she said finally.

For the first time since Nancy had met her, Kate Gleason acted almost kind to her.

“What's our first step?” Chris asked.

Nancy thought for a moment. “We need to find out what the evidence was that your father had. And it seems to me that the person we
have to talk to is Dennis Allard. He knows more about this case than anyone.”

“Allard!” Kate exclaimed. “He's the one who framed my dad in the first place! Why would he help us?”

“I don't know that Allard was guilty,” Nancy said calmly. “Assuming he wasn't, he might be able to help us.”

Chris nodded and silenced Kate with a stare. “I think she's right, Kate.”

“Okay,” Kate said with a grimace. “But I think Nancy should talk to him. I wouldn't trust myself alone with the man.”

Nancy found herself smiling. “That's an excellent idea. I'll try to see him today, and I'll let you know what I find out.”

The three paid their checks and left the restaurant. Outside, Nancy called information for the address of River Heights Bank and Trust, where her father had mentioned Dennis Allard now worked. Then she made sure she got the Gleasons' address and phone number before she headed downtown.

Nancy was halfway between the restaurant and the center of River Heights when she noticed that a late-model silver sports car seemed to be following her. Every time she made a turn, the car was right behind her.

Whoever was in the car had to have followed her from her house that morning. Or the driver could have seen her at Gleason's apartment
building and wondered what she was up to. Either way, she wanted to lose the tail, and fast.

After making a couple of quick maneuvers in the light traffic, Nancy checked her rearview mirror again. The silver sports car was gone. She had lost it!

One quick glance in her sideview mirror told her she had decided too quickly. The car was still tailing her but was now behind two other cars.

Nancy drove for several miles more. The silver car hung back, keeping the two cars between them.

Then Nancy saw her chance. She was right by the entrance to the highway that ran along the river. Maybe once she got on the highway and picked up speed, she could lose the car and make a quick exit.

Nancy roared up the entrance ramp, with the silver car following close behind. She pushed her foot down on the accelerator. Easing ahead of the slower-moving traffic, Nancy kept her eye out for the sports car. It was still there.

An exit was coming up in the next quarter mile. Nancy planned her maneuver. An eighth of a mile to go. A sixteenth. She was almost there.

When Nancy was only twenty-five feet from the exit ramp, the sports car charged forward.
The driver had obviously been waiting for the right moment. Now the silver car was within a few feet of Nancy's Mustang.

Nancy floored the accelerator, and the sports car matched her speed and then some. The little silver car rammed into Nancy's bumper. She tried to gain control of her car, but the momentum was too much.

With one last surge, the sports car slammed into Nancy's car again. The force sent the car and Nancy flying off the road!