The Clue In The Old Stagecoach Part 21

Burglars!

AT A desk in the corner of Art Warner's reception room sat an attractive, middle-aged woman. Hearing Judd Hillary's outburst, she looked up quickly and frowned at the man. She smiled at Nancy and gave her a look as if to notify the girl she had come to a sudden decision.

"Miss Drew," she said, "Mr. Warner will see you at once."

Judd Hillary fell back in his chair as if he had been struck. A dark, angry flush spread over his face as the secretary opened the door to the lawyer's private office and ushered Nancy in. As the door dosed behind the young sleuth, she could hear loud complaints from Hillary.

"h.e.l.lo," said a young man who had arisen from his desk to greet her. He was tall, wore horn-rimmed gla.s.ses, and had an infectious smile.

"I'm Nancy Drew," his caller whispered. "You probably heard what happened outside. Your secretary was a dear to let me come in."

Art Warner gave Nancy a big wink, then said in a low voice, "I told Miss Blake you might drop in sometime. She played her part well." The young lawyer laughed. "Apparently you and Mr. Hillary are acquainted but are not the best of friends."

"Far from it," Nancy replied.

Art Warner pulled a chair close to his own, so that the conversation to follow would not be heard in the outside room.

"My dad probably told you something about the mystery," the young sleuth began, "but I doubt that he told you of certain suspicions of mine regarding Judd Hillary. Since he's a client of yours, perhaps I shouldn't say any more."

Art Warner smiled. "He hasn't become a client yet, so feel free to tell me anything you wish to. The more I know, the better position I'll be in to help you."

"All right," said Nancy. "I'll start at the beginning."

She told about the Monteiths' strange actions, of their presence at the cave-in, and of the date they had made and failed to keep just before the second explosion. Nancy went on to reveal the story about the hijackers of the stagecoach and her feeling that Judd Hillary was the man in the woods who had whistled to warn them.

Art Warner frowned. "I had no idea this was such a complicated mystery," he remarked.

The lawyer stared out the window a full minute before speaking again. "I'm glad you've told me all this," he said finally. "I'm eager to learn whether or not what Judd Hillary is waiting to say will have anything to do with your 'mystery."

Nancy nodded and now asked Art Warner if he had had a chance yet to find out if AbnerLangstreet had ever married.

"I was telephoning all morning about the case," the lawyer answered. "Of course I haven't covered every possibility. But it looks as if Langstreet remained a bachelor. At least this much is certain: If he ever married, he went some distance away from Francisville to have the ceremony performed. And if he did have a wife who died before he did, she's not buried in any cemetery in this locale."

The lawyer added that he had investigated church registers and town-hall records where a few vital statistics were kept at that time. "None of them reveal his having married anyone, and from what Mrs. Strook was told by her family, it's pretty certain he never did."

"If this is true," said Nancy, "then it makes Ross Monteith, or Frank Templer, an impostor."

"It sure does," Art Warner agreed.

Nancy next queried him on what he knew about the explosion. Mr. Warner said it was thought to have taken place under the Francisville end of one of the housing developments.

"That's not far from where we girls were," Nancy told him. "It seems almost certain that the Monteiths got me there on purpose."

Art Warner asked Nancy if she thought there was any connection between Judd Hillary and the Monteiths.

"There might be," she said. "The three of them have acted strangely toward me, and shown a lot of curiosity about what I've been doing. I could almost believe the Monteiths told Hillary I was looking for the old stagecoach."

"I'll try adroitly to find out what I can for you," the young lawyer promised.

Nancy knew that he was eager to have the interview with Judd Hillary, so she arose and said good-by.

"I'll keep you informed," Mr. Warner promised.

When Nancy reached the reception room, she gave Miss Blake a big smile. The young sleuth merely nodded to Judd Hillary, then went downstairs and joined Bess and George.

When she told them about her unpleasant experience in the outer office, Bess asked, "What do you suppose Judd Hillary came there for?"

Nancy shrugged. "I can't guess, but unless it's something very confidential, I think Art Warner will let me know about it."

The girls returned to the lodge for a late lunch. No telephone message had been received from the Monteiths and Nancy was sure now that she had been tricked into going to the dilapidated farmhouse for one of two reasons: either to be deliberately harmed, or else to be kept from doing any sleuthing on the stagecoach mystery at that particular time.

"Does this mean," Nancy asked herself, "that the Monteiths are afraid I'm getting too near the truth and might have trailed the dynamiters?"

Just as the girls finished eating, Nancy received a phone call from Art Warner. He said that Judd Hillary's reason for coming to him was that he wanted to sell a certain piece of property. It did not have a clear t.i.tle and he was asking the law yer to make a new search.

"You didn't learn anything about a possible connection of his with the mystery?" Nancy asked eagerly.

"I'm afraid not," Art Warner replied. "As a matter of fact, Judd Hillary seemed very ill at ease and anxious to get away as quickly as possible. If he's guilty of anything underhanded, I believe he thinks you might have told me of your suspicions."

Nancy was disappointed, but she made no comment. She thanked Mr. Warner for calling her and asked him to let her know any further developments.

As Nancy rejoined her friends, they told her a practice period was scheduled for the water ballet in one hour. "We're to be at the pool for a work-out," said Bess.

When the three girls arrived there, the swimming instructor and the social director asked them if they would perform their comedy act for the final show the same way they had done it in the tryouts. Nancy and her friends agreed, but said they felt they should vary it a little, since a good many people had seen it before.

There were few onlookers at the pool now and the girls decided it would be an ideal time to practice. Bess asked what kind of costumes they should wear for the event.

George grinned. "We act like three clowns, so I think clown-type bathing suits would be appropriate."

Bess demurred. "I don't mind the suit," she said, "but what about our hair and faces? I don't want to wear a frizzy wig and one of those great big red noses like clowns do."

George's grin widened as she said teasingly, "Of course you wouldn't, especially in front of a certain boy named Dave."

Bess noticed that George was looking past her toward the lodge. The next moment she waved. Bess turned quickly to see Ned Nickerson, Burt Eddleton, and Dave Evans! The three boys, all with deep suntans and crew cuts, hurried over.

"Hi, everybody!" said the boys and girls almost simultaneously.

Ned grinned. "I guess we're just in time to see three beautiful mermaids. Go ahead and do your stuff."

"Mermaids?" Nancy answered with a twinkle in her eyes. "We're just a trio of clowns."

"What do you mean?" Dave demanded, mystified.

Nancy refused to explain and none of the boys could learn the answer from either Bess or George. "You'll know in a few days," George said.

Nancy told them about the water ballet and that the girls must practice for it. "But by the time you fellows unpack and get into your bathing trunks, we'll be ready to take a swim with you."