The Clue Of The Velvet Mask Part 18

Nancy was deeply disappointed by his lack of interest. "I can't understand it," she told Bess. "He doesn't seem to care whether he has a thief working for him or not."

As they pa.s.sed the jewelry counter, Nancy caught sight of Alice Tompson, a former cla.s.s-mate, who had recently taken a job at Taylor's. The three girls chatted for a few minutes. Nancy asked Alice if she had turned in her charge plate as requested by the management.

"Why, no," Alice replied. "I was going to, but then a note came around changing the order."

"Changing it! Why?"

"I don't know. It just said we weren't to send the plates in after all."

"So that's why so few were returned," Nancy mused. "I wonder if Mr. Johnson himself sent out the order."

Curious to know the truth, she and Bess immediately returned to the credit manager's office. Mr. Johnson was elsewhere in the store, but his secretary a.s.sured the girls that the order had not come from him.

"If I were you, though, I wouldn't bother him about it," she advised. "He has an important conference today. The entire matter is annoying to him."

Nancy felt completely frustrated. It was such a good chance to catch the thief and it was being thrown away!

"I guess I'll have to give up the idea," she admitted to Bess.

"Oh, you'll think up some other scheme," her friend said loyally.

With time on their hands, the girls walked idly through the store. Bess looked at blouses and selected one. Finally they returned to the jewelry department to purchase a birthday gift for Mrs. Marvin.

"A new a.s.sortment of art objects just came in this morning. I've been arranging them in a showcase," Alice told Bess. "We have a lovely miniature painted on porcelain. I'll show it to you."

"I'm afraid that would be too expensive-"

"Not this one." Alice smiled. "The price, in my opinion, is ridiculously low. In fact, I was amazed when I saw the tag. Come and look at it."

She led the girls to a counter on which a number of small gifts were displayed. One of them was a miniature of Marie Antoinette.

Nancy drew in her breath, stunned. She could not believe the sight before her eyes. The lovely picture looked exactly like the one which had been stolen from Gloria Hendrick's home!

CHAPTER XII.

Clever Detection

"THIS must be the stolen miniature!" Nancy gasped.

"It might be a copy," Bess suggested.

"It doesn't look like a copy," Nancy insisted. "The gold frame has a number of tiny scratches on it as if it were old. Bess, I'm sure this was stolen from the Hendricks' collection."

The two girls examined the miniature in detail, and Nancy told of having seen it before the robbery.

"But, Nancy, Taylor's wouldn't accept stolen merchandise," Alice objected.

"Not knowingly. But this may have been sold to them without their realizing it was stolen. Perhaps they got it from an antique dealer."

All agreed that the miniature was greatly underpriced, even if it were only an excellent copy of the original. Nancy promptly bought the miniature. She would find out for certain if it had been stolen from the Hendricks.

"Have you others like these?" Nancy asked.

"I know a shipment came in, but all the merchandise isn't on the floor yet," Alice replied. "I'll ask Mr. Watkins about it. He's head of our department."

Mr. Watkins was a stubby, white-haired man with gla.s.ses. When he saw the miniature which was being wrapped for Nancy, he glanced quickly at the tag.

"This item must have been mismarked," he said. "Taylor's wouldn't ask you to pay more, of course, but I must check invoices before any other articles in the shipment are sold."

Nancy expressed a desire to see the other miniatures.

"We'll look into this," the elderly man said. "Come with me to the marking room."

He led Nancy and Bess to a rear exit and across an alleyway to a building used for receiving.

"Snecker!" he called loudly, switching on an overhead light. "Hey, Snecker!" As a young clerk emerged from an adjoining room, Mr. Watkins asked, "Where is he?"

"He's not here," the boy said. "Mr. Snecker's taken the day off."

"Again?" Mr. Watkins remarked irritably.

He explained to Nancy and Bess that Ralph Snecker was in charge of uncrating and marking all items to be put on sale, and shipping damaged goods back to factories.

"Then if a mistake were made in pricing the miniature, it would be Mr. Snecker's fault?" Nancy asked.

"That's right. This miniature is underpriced -no question about that. I'll examine the invoices."

Nancy and Bess waited patiently in a window-less stuffy room while he checked through records and bills. Crates and boxes were piled all about, many not yet opened.

"Strange," Mr. Watkins remarked presently. "I can't seem to find an invoice for the piece you have. I know a small shipment came in from abroad." He questioned the clerk, but the young man knew nothing about the miniature.

"I'll take it up with Mr. Snecker tomorrow," Mr. Watkins said.

"Is he an old and trusted employee?" Nancy asked casually.

"No, he hasn't been with Taylor's very long," Mr. Watkins admitted. "However, he's an efficient worker. Takes too many days off, though. Either he's ill or he has to go fishing. The minute he's through work, away he goes to the country."

Mr. Watkins was still checking through a stack of papers in search of the invoice.

"The fishing bug bit Snecker hard. Why, he goes out to the river summer and winter, clear, rainy, or snowy!"

This struck Nancy as odd. How did the man manage to keep up with his work? She thought she had better meet and question him soon, since it seemed probable he might be dismissed before long. She decided to return to the store the next day.

Meanwhile, she and Bess called at the Hendricks' home. When Gloria and her mother saw the miniature they instantly identified it as theirs.