Trade Wind Danger by Carolyn Keene

Author:Carolyn Keene
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aladdin

8

Whose Handwriting?

Let me see it!” Eliza said, grabbing the note and scanning it. She raised her eyes to mine triumphantly. “Nancy, I was right. Mildred was kidnapped by the Night Marchers. You asked for proof that they exist, and here it is!”

“But this note isn’t proof!” I said as she waved it in my face. “We don’t even know who wrote it.”

“Are you blind, Nancy? It has Mildred’s name on it.”

I studied Eliza’s expression. Her face yielded nothing except scorn for my comment. Then something else flickered in her eyes. Doubt about her theory? Guilt? My own eyes narrowed as I looked at her. Could she have taken Mildred, then planted the note to get me off track? Despite Eliza’s fear of the Night Marchers, she’d led me to this place. What if she’d been putting on an act, pretending to have spotted the Marchers earlier tonight when she’d really been planting the note?

I inspected the stones of the old foundation for more clues. Thanks to the midnight shower Eliza had spoken of earlier, the ground below them was muddy, and the mud was a deep red, like the dirt on her clothes. Maybe she’d been looking for a place to plant the note on the first trail, decided it was too remote and jungly, then came here instead. That would explain her scratches, and this place would explain the mud. One false step, and all those sharp leaves and vines on the first trail could really mess someone up.

“Hey, Eliza, can I have the note back?” I asked. “I need it for evidence.” I wanted to check the handwriting against her diary, but I didn’t tell Eliza that.

“Sure thing, Nancy,” Eliza said, thrusting it into my hand. “I’m just so thankful we finally have a clue.”

“Me too.”

We climbed back into the car, and Eliza’s triumphant mood quickly faded to gloom. After turning the ignition key, she bowed her head down onto the steering wheel. “Mildred must be dead,” she wailed. “I’m too upset to drive home.”

I gave Eliza a hug. Despite my suspicions, I had to give her the benefit of the doubt—at least until I uncovered more evidence against her. “I’ll drive if you can’t,” I offered. “And don’t worry, Eliza. I have a feeling Mildred is alive. And I plan to find her.”

Eliza appeared not to hear me. “Nancy, at first I was happy that you found the note, because it supports my belief in the Night Marchers and my theory that Mildred ran into them. But it also means I’m never going to see her again.”

“Of course you’ll see her. We just have to stay focused on our search.”

Eliza turned her tear-streaked face to mine. “Oh, Nancy, I was right. Poor Mildred has been killed by the Night Marchers. If only she’d chosen a different subject for her mystery novel, she’d be alive now.”

I took a deep breath. Okay, enough arguing for one night. As the eastern sky began to lighten, I drove us home, keeping my thoughts to myself.

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