The Clue Of The Tapping Heels Part 20

As she and Hannah started off in the car, Nancy said, "Let's stop at Finch's Soda Shop for ice-cream sundaes."

Mrs. Gruen laughed. "I'm kind of hungry myself," she admitted. "But Finch's is a place for young people."

Nancy patted Hannah's hand. "There's always room for you with this young person." Mrs. Gruen beamed.

When they walked in, all the tables were taken, so the two seated themselves on stools at the counter.

"Hi, Roscoe!" Nancy said to the clerk. "Two vanillas with fudge sauce, please. We're starved. How about some of your good cookies, too?"

"Coming right up," Roscoe replied. Then he leaned across the counter and whispered to Nancy, "The police were here looking for you. They missed you at the school and thought you might stop here."

"Did the officers say what they wanted?" Nancy asked.

"Yes. The sergeant is expecting you at headquarters to identify a burglar."

CHAPTER XV.

The New Lead

ROSCOE had the sundaes ready in a jiffy. "Eat up," he said. "You'll need your strength to face that burglar!" A broad grin spread over the clerk's face.

Nancy smiled back. "I'd say I have the advantage because he's behind bars."

"You win," said Roscoe. "I might have known better than to try getting ahead of you. Working on a new mystery?"

"Yes. Got any clues?"

"What kind?" the clerk asked, his eyes twinkling. "I have all sorts of clues filed away."

The subject was not pursued, because new customers came in and Roscoe had to wait on them.

"We'd better hurry," Nancy told Hannah. "I wonder if the suspect the police are holding is Gus Woonton."

She and Mrs. Gruen ate quickly. Nancy paid the clerk and they left the soda shop.

When they reached headquarters, a sergeant, named Scott, whom Nancy had never seen before, was on duty. She introduced herself and Mrs. Gruen, and the officer said he would call a man to take them to the cell block.

"A pudgy man was brought in a short time ago," he explained. "He hasn't gone to bed yet. Tell me if you recognize him or have ever seen him around here or in Berryville."

The two visitors were led along the cell block. Most of the prisoners were asleep. The guard stopped in front of the cell in which the suspect sat. His light was still on.

Nancy got only a quick glimpse of his face because he instantly turned his back. The guard ordered the prisoner to come forward but he refused. The officer tried to make him talk, but got no response.

"Never mind," Nancy whispered to the guard. "I'm sure I haven't seen this man before, either here or in Berryville. How about you, Hannah?"

The Drews' housekeeper shook her head. She and Nancy were ushered back to the main room and told Sergeant Scott that they could not identify the suspect.

"What name did he give you?" Nancy asked.

"He refused to give any," the sergeant replied. "He was picked up tonight trying to rob a jewelry store. Chief McGinnis told us you're looking for a pudgy suspect, so I thought this man might be the one."

"I don't believe so," Nancy said, "but you might try a trick on him. The one we're looking for knows Morse code. If you could have someone casually tap out words on a telegrapher's key and make a mistake while the prisoner is listening, he might involuntarily speak up and give himself away."

"Thanks for the tip," the sergeant said. "We'll try it. If we have any luck, I'll let you know."

Nancy and Mrs. Gruen went home. Mr. Drew was still up, waiting to tell them what he had learned that day about the case. First, the lawyer listened eagerly to his daughter's story, then said he had some news of his own for her.

"Toby Simpson was a great help to me and came up with some good leads. He learned that Mr. and Mrs. Woonton, although they had lived in St. Louis, had pa.s.sed away in Chicago.

"After calling two of my lawyer friends there," Mr. Drew went on, "I found out that an administrator had been appointed for their son Gus. And guess what the administrator's name is?"

"I can't imagine," Nancy replied. "Who is it? Man or woman?"

"A man named W. F. Bunce."

Nancy was startled and leaned forward eagerly. "You mean he might be the Mr. Bunce who lives next door to Miss Carter?"

"He could be," the lawyer answered, "but let's not jump to conclusions. At the time he was appointed administrator W. F. Bunce lived in St. Louis.

"After I'd made several more phone calls, it seemed evident that he had moved away from there sometime ago. No W. F. Bunce was listed in the St. Louis telephone directory nor did he have an unlisted number. And the post office had no forwarding address."

"How did you find out he had been appointed administrator?" Nancy queried.

"William Woonton's will was probated in Chicago. W. F. Bunce was left in total charge of the estate. He was both executor and administrator. You know I don't like to be suspicious, but when I learned that payments to the Beverly stopped at the time of the Woontons' deaths-they were killed in an automobile accident-I began to wonder about this W. F. Bunce."

Nancy was excited by the latest clue and eager to pursue it. Her father said he must be at his office early the next morning and would leave the follow-up to her. First she looked in the phone book covering Berryville. No W. F. Bunce was listed; only Frederick Bunce.

The idea of a ruse to trap him popped into Nancy's mind. She said to Mrs. Gruen, "Will you do me a big favor, Hannah?" Nancy glanced at her wrist watch. "It's only eleven o'clock. Will you please telephone Fred Bunce's house and ask if it is the residence of W. F. Bunce."

"Suppose the person who answers says yes," Hannah remarked. "Then what do I do?"

"Say that someone will bring an important message to Mr. Bunce tomorrow morning."

Mrs. Gruen was a bit nervous about making the call, but she dialed the number and waited.

Mrs. Bunce answered the phone. "h.e.l.lo?"

Hannah Gruen spoke in as deep a voice as she could and asked, "Is this the residence of W. F. Bunce?"

There was a startled cry from the other end of the wire, then Mrs. Bunce said, "Uh-no. You have the wrong number." She hung up.

"Ah-ha!" said the housekeeper. "Nancy, I think you've hit upon something important. Do you suppose Fred Bunce really is the W. F. Bunce you're looking for?"

Nancy thought this quite possible. The question was, Why had he moved next door to the Woontons' former residence? Could he be the person who was entering mysteriously and hunting for some hidden treasures?

The housekeeper sighed. "This thing is getting so mixed up I can't make head nor tail of who's who or what's what. When is it ever going to be straightened out?"