Perfect Plot by Carolyn Keene

Author:Carolyn Keene
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon Pulse

Chapter

Nine

GEORGE LOOKED flabbergasted. “Julian?” she said. “A safecracker?”

“An ex-safecracker, as far as we know,” Nancy corrected. “But he apparently has the skills to have broken into Dorothea’s safe and stolen the figurines.”

“I noticed that there was something between him and Kate,” George added. “I bet they planned the theft together, and that’s why Kate didn’t want to call the police last night.”

Nancy frowned. “I noticed the connection between them, too, but why would Kate need to use a safecracker? She’s the only one around who knows the combination to the safe.”

“Oh—I forgot,” George said. “Well, maybe they’re not in it together, but she figured out that he’s the thief. If she’s in love with him, she might try to shield him from the police.”

“Even after he murdered Maxine?” Nancy asked. “If the two crimes are connected, that is.”

Nancy got to her feet. “The only way we’re going to straighten this out is to confront him—or her.” She put the cordless phone back on its base and started for the door.

“Who do we talk to first?” George asked, as they headed down the hall.

“Whoever we find first,” Nancy said.

• • •

Kate was in the study, sitting behind Dorothea’s desk and making notes in the margin of a computer printout. The late-afternoon sun shone on her face, emphasizing the lines of tiredness and stress. She raised her head as Nancy and George came in.

“Can we talk for a minute or two?” Nancy asked.

Kate hesitated before answering. “I—will it take long? I’ve got a thousand details to take care of. Armand is coming down tonight with some important donors.”

“Just a minute or two,” Nancy repeated. She and George sat down in two chairs next to the desk. Taking a deep breath, Nancy got straight to the point. “How well do you know Julian?”

Kate stiffened. “Why do you ask?”

“Do you know about his personal history?” Nancy pressed.

“I know that he was once in trouble with the law, if that’s what you mean,” Kate said, her chin held high. “But he paid for his mistakes, and his past is nobody’s concern but his.”

Clearing her throat, George said, “You did ask Nancy to investigate the theft of those jeweled figures. If one of the suspects is a convicted safecracker, I think that his past becomes her business.”

Kate’s face was still, almost expressionless. Then unexpectedly she dropped her head into her hands and began to sob. Nancy and George sat in an uncomfortable silence and waited for the storm to pass.

Finally Kate took a deep breath, wiped her eyes, and said, “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’ve been dreading this moment since last night when we discovered the gold figurines weren’t in their case. I knew Julian’s record would come up sooner or later. And I knew that the moment it did, he’d be accused of the theft.”

“Are you and Julian, er, close?” asked George.

Kate sighed. “Not nearly as close as I’d like,” she replied. “I know he cares about me, but he’s always brooding about his past.

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