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An Encounter
Though Nancy Drew had learned little which shed light on the mystery at Lilac Inn, she had no intention of admitting defeat. On the following day she again set out in her blue roadster, visiting a number of the guests who had been dining at the inn at the time of the strange jewelry robbery. Few of the persons were able to furnish information which she did not already have, so on the whole the day was wasted.
The next morning Nancy telephoned the hospital and through the officials learned the names of the two men who had brought in the victims of the automobile accident. Calling upon them, she found nothing to arouse her suspicions. They told a straightforward story, relating that at the time of the crash they had driven to the scene of the accident in their automobile, and when no one seemed to know what to do, had taken it upon themselves to rush the victims to the hospital.
“Oh, dear,” Nancy thought, “I seem farther than ever from the real solution. I don’t know what to do next. Unless I find a genuine clue I’m afraid I’ll have to turn the case back to Dad after all.”
It was no wonder that when Helen Corning, Nancy’s particular chum, dropped in that afternoon to ask her to go shopping she found her a trifle depressed.
“You look terribly thoughtful, Nancy,” she bantered. “What’s on your mind?”
“Nothing,” Nancy returned gloomily, “and that’s the whole trouble.”
“I suppose by that you mean you’re head over heels in another mystery. I know the symptoms by this time. You always get thoughtful and crawl into your old clam shell.”
“Why my clam shell?” Nancy laughed good-naturedly.
“Because when you’re working on a mystery a fellow can’t get a word out of you.”
“Well, I don’t mind telling you this time what I’m working on.”
“What?” Helen demanded eagerly.
“The Crandall jewelry mystery.”
“Oh, I read all about it in the newspapers! Poor Emily! I felt so sorry for her. If a thing like that happened to me I never would stop talking about my hard luck.”
“Emily doesn’t do very much talking.”
“No, she always was the quiet sort. Then, I suppose she’s trying to shield her guardian. She was devoted to Mrs. Willoughby. Tell me, Nancy, do you think Mrs. Willoughby took the jewels herself?”
“I wish I knew, Helen. I never attempted to solve a more baffling case.”
“Haven’t you any clues at all?”
“On the contrary, I have too many of them. Everyone accuses everyone else and anyone might be guilty. However, I don’t intend to give up until I’ve recovered the jewels.”
“I certainly admire your pluck,” Helen said enviously. “I wish I had your brains, too.”
“I wish I had the brains you give me credit for. If I did, I could see my way through the terrible maze I’m in now.”
“You’ll uncover something one of these days.”
“I hope so.” Nancy frowned. “But the time is so short. Dad told me this morning that the police are getting impatient.”
“They haven’t learned a thing themselves, have they?”
“Well, they’ve questioned Mrs. Willoughby closely and have succeeded in frightening her so that she couldn’t tell them a straight story to save her life. Dad thinks they will arrest her in a few days if something new doesn’t come to light.”
“How terrible all of this must be for Emily! She’s so sensitive.”
“Yes, and I think she trusts Mrs. Willoughby implicitly. She’s sort of depending upon me to straighten everything out.”
“You’ll do it too,” Helen returned confidently.
“Oh, Helen, I’m up against it! To tell you the truth, I haven’t the slightest idea who took that jewelry. I’ve investigated every clue and I’m just as far from the solution now as I was at the start.”
“You’ll find a way out of the tangle,” Helen observed.
“I wonder if I shall.”
“You’re letting this thing get the best of you, Nancy. Why not forget it all for the afternoon and go shopping with me? Your mind may work more clearly after a little recreation.”
“Perhaps you’re right. At all events, my mind isn’t functioning at all now, so I’ll go.”
“Fine! My runabout is outside. Get your hat and come on.”
Nancy Drew jumped up from the window seat and quickly found her hat. A few minutes later the two girls were driving down the boulevard toward the main part of the city. Helen drove skillfully, and to her elation found a parking place just in front of her favorite department store.
“I have a long list of things I want to buy,” Helen informed Nancy, as the two girls entered the store. “I’m invited to a weekend party and I simply haven’t a thing to wear.”
“The old story,” Nancy laughed. “Well, I’ll just tag along and watch you shop.”
“Aren’t you going to buy anything?”
“I’m not in particular need of a thing right now, but I may see something I want as we go along. You lead the way.”
“To the glove department then.”
Nancy stood quietly by while Helen made her purchase and then accompanied her to the shoe department. After that they went to the ready-made section and then to the millinery department.
“Are you going to buy out the whole store?” Nancy demanded at last.
“It does begin to look that way, doesn’t it? I don’t usually go on such an orgy, but this is a special occasion. I’m almost through now. There’s only one more place I must go.”
“Where is that?” and Nancy gave a mock groan.
“To Hidelberg’s for a party dress.”
Nancy lifted her eyebrows.
“My goodness, but you’re getting extravagant, aren’t you? How do your parents manage to keep you?”
“I know Hidelberg’s is the most expensive place in town,” Helen admitted; “but I told you that for this once I’m splurging. It will never happen again, probably.”
“I was only teasing,” Nancy laughed.
Arm in arm the two girls left the department store. Just outside the door they met Emily Crandall. The girl was pale and deep circles were under her blue eyes and her face was drawn.
“Oh, Nancy Drew, I’m glad to run into you!” she cried when she saw the two girls emerge from the store door. “Oh, it’s just awful! On top of the loss of my jewels and all that means to me, the police are trying to fasten theft on Mrs. Willoughby! It’s too terrible! You will do something, won’t you, Nancy?”
Nancy promised again to do what she could. She tried to be encouraging, but she felt that her words hardly rang true. Then Emily said goodbye and Nancy and Helen made their way down the street to the exclusive Hidelberg shop.
They entered, and were at once taken in charge by a salesgirl. They were given chairs and after Helen had made her wants known, were treated to a mannequin parade.
“Maybe this place is going to be too expensive, after all,” Helen said to her chum when they were not being observed by the salesgirl. “I’d much rather dash in where the dresses are all on a rack and labeled ‘nothing over sixteen ninety-eight.’ ”
At last Helen Corning found a dress of pale blue chiffon which entirely pleased her. She inquired the price in a timid little voice and was delighted to find that it was not out of reach.
“You wait here while I try it on,” she told Nancy. “It won’t take me a minute.”
After Helen had left, Nancy amused herself by watching the customers who came into the shop. From experience, she had learned that Helen’s minutes were usually long ones. Now, as the time passed and her chum did not return, she became a trifle restless and after a few minutes got up from her chair. As she moved toward the window she chanced to glance toward the door and saw a girl enter. Before she could turn aside, they met face to face. To Nancy Drew’s surprise, the girl was Mary Mason.
For a moment Nancy was so taken aback that she could only stare, but, recovering quickly, she smiled pleasantly.
“I didn’t expect to meet you here,” she said graciously.
Mary Mason regarded Nancy with a cold stare. Then, without responding, she gave an impudent toss of her head and turned aside.
“Such insolence!” Nancy thought a trifle angrily. “One would think she was an heiress instead of a kitchen girl! It was lucky I didn’t engage her.” Nancy Drew’s curiosity had been aroused, and as she waited for Helen her eyes followed Mary Mason. “I suppose she works here,” she told herself.
To her surprise, she saw the girl address herself to one of the saleswomen, and it was evident by her actions that she intended to purchase a gown.
“There’s something queer about that,” Nancy thought. “Surely, a girl in her circumstance can’t afford to buy dresses at such a place as this!”
She continued to watch, but Mary Mason, becoming aware that Nancy’s eyes were upon her, seemed to grow nervous. After a few minutes she left the store without having made a purchase.
“I’m sure she intended to buy a dress, but she knew I was watching her,” Nancy reasoned.
Just at that moment Helen emerged from the dressing room and came over to where Nancy was standing.
“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting so long, but—”
Nancy cut her short by clutching her by the arm.
“Come to the window!” she commanded.
Wonderingly, Helen obeyed.
“See that girl,” Nancy pointed toward Mary Mason who was crossing the street. “Did you ever see her before?”
“Why, her face does look familiar. Let me see—oh, now I remember! She applied at our house for work in the kitchen.”
“You didn’t hire her?”
“No. We didn’t like her looks and the position had already been filled.”
“She must have called at your house after she left mine,” Nancy said. “I’d like to know if she finally found a place.”
“I shouldn’t be surprised, Nancy. She asked me if I knew of a place and I suggested that she might find work at Lilac Inn. They’re nearly always looking for help there.”
“Lilac Inn?” Nancy demanded thoughtfully.
“Yes. I don’t know whether she went or not.”
“I’ll make it my business to find out.”
“Why, what’s it all about, anyway?”
Nancy Drew ignored the question, asking one of her own.
“Tell me, do you remember what day it was this girl called at your home?”
“Oh, dear, it was several days ago. I don’t believe I can remember.”
“It wasn’t the day of the robbery, was it?”
“Why, I believe it was, Nancy. I recall now that I read the account in the paper that evening.” She studied Nancy curiously. “Gracious, you surely don’t believe this girl had any connection with the robbery, do you? It doesn’t seem to me she would have the brains to get away with it.”
“Probably not,” Nancy agreed. “But the clue is worth investigating.”
“I don’t see that you have a thing to go on.”
“I haven’t,” Nancy admitted.
“What makes you suspicious?”
Nancy Drew glanced quickly about to see that there was no one standing near by and lowered her voice.
“Doesn’t it strike you as odd that a girl in Mary Mason’s position can afford to buy gowns at Hidelberg’s?”
“Yes, it does,” Helen agreed promptly. “Where do you suppose she got the money?”
“That’s just what I intend to find out!”
With that, Nancy Drew dropped the subject and no amount of coaxing would induce her to bring it up again, though to herself she said:
“Oh, dear, one more vague clue to clutter up my mind and to make more difficult the following of any trail.”