067 The Sinister Omen by Carolyn Keene

Author:Carolyn Keene [Keene, Carolyn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Editing Done
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

13

Trapped!

Nancy stopped, letting the other girls get ahead of her. Her mind raced. Who could the intruder be, and where did he retreat to? Perhaps he was climbing out of the window!

She was just about to rush toward the spot where she had seen the shoes, when Errol stepped out from behind the heavy drapes. He held a dust cloth in one hand and a hammer in the other.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said, “but these old windows jam badly. I had to give them a little rap with the hammer.”

“Oh, that’s all right, Errol,” Nancy said, feeling a bit foolish.

Just then George called from the vestibule. “Come on, Nancy!”

“I’m coming,” the young detective called back and joined her two friends in the hallway.

They said good-bye to Susan McAfee, then left the old Victorian house. Andre was standing next to the light blue limousine, waiting for them.

On the way back to the Segovia mansion, Nancy told the girls about seeing Errol behind the drapes. ”He had a perfectly good explanation of what he was doing there. Yet, the way his feet were sticking out really gave me a scare.”

“Maybe he was eavesdropping!” George said. ”And he just used the story about the windows as an excuse!”

“I don’t think so,” Bess objected. “He’s a perfectly sweet man.”

“That’s the impression I had,” Nancy agreed. “But, you never know.”

“And now,” Bess said, “can we stop being detectives for a little while and become tourists? I’d like to swim and water ski and live it up in the sun!”

“I’d go for that,” George agreed.

“That makes three of us,” Nancy said. “Let’s do it as soon as we get back.”

“I hope the boys haven’t splashed all the water out of the pool,” Bess said.

”They couldn’t,” George reminded her. “Remember, they went off on that gorgeous yacht!”

In late afternoon, Nancy and the other girls were sitting by the pool when the yacht returned. As it hove to around a bend in the canal, the girls broke out in a laugh. Ned, Burt, and Dave were lying flat on their backs on deck chairs, dropping grapes into their mouths like so many Roman emperors.

”This is the only way to live!” Dave cried.

There was a lot of teasing and small talk, then the boys had a swim before they all heeded the warning cry, “Dinner in half an hour!” and hurried to their rooms to get dressed.

After dinner, Nancy said, “Anyone ready for Fort Lauderdale Beach?”

“Yes!” Bess exclaimed. “I thought you’d never mention it.”

After calling good-bye to Señor Segovia and Carson Drew, the group started for Las Olas Boulevard that led directly to the beach. Andre was about to help them into the light blue limousine again, when Nancy stopped short.

“No,” she said. “It’s not far and we’re getting spoiled. I’d rather walk.”

“Oh, really?” Ned said. “I should think you’d have some pity for us poor people. I’ve never ridden in a light blue limousine before.”

“But the walk will be good for us,” George declared. ”Honestly, you boys are so lazy.

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