The Witch Tree Symbol Part 7

CHAPTER VI.

Witches

QUICKLY Nancy stopped the car. She and George got out and laid the unconscious girl on the front seat of the convertible.

As they leaned over Bess, worried, their friend raised her eyelids and blinked. Then she gingerly tried to sit up.

"Ow!" she moaned, sinking down again and putting a hand to her forehead. "I certainly gave my head a bang!"

"All of us might have been killed!" George cried indignantly. "Who could have been so careless?"

Nancy noticed an excavation for a building and a neat pile of the cinder blocks off to the side. She declared that the obstruction seemed to have been caused by more than carelessness. "I think it was done deliberately!"

"The hex is at fault," Bess muttered, sitting up cautiously.

Nancy and George carried the blocks out of the way so they could drive on. Bess sat and watched them through the open door of the car. Suddenly a piece of paper stuck between two of the blocks caught her eye.

Bess got out and picked up the paper. There was writing on it.

"Listen!" she cried, and read, "'Nancy Drew, witches are not wanted in Amish country.' "

Nancy and George rushed to Bess's side and read the note themselves.

"This explains a lot," Nancy said. "I bet that man who pa.s.sed us was Roger Hoelt in disguise! He knew these blocks were here and threw them into the road and left this note!"

The cousins gasped. "You're right," said George, "and we're after him. Come on!"

The girls quickly got into the car and started off. Bess remarked that the man had such a head start they would never be able to find him.

"We'll watch for his tire tracks in the dust," Nancy said. She thought it should be easy to trail the man, for the road was not well traveled and was extremely dusty.

As they rode along, Nancy said she had a new slant on the case. The couple for whom Manda might be working were Roger Hoelt and his wife.

"You mean they're posing as an Amish couple?" George asked.

"Yes. Since he once lived here, he'd know just how to do it."

"I agree. But how long are we going to follow these tracks?" Bess asked.

"If we don't catch him by the time we get to the highway, we're out of luck," Nancy replied. "This road leads into it, according to the map, and Hoelt's trail will disappear once he's on the pavement."

The girls sped along for nearly a mile in that direction, but did not overtake the suspect.

Finally Bess pleaded that they give up the chase. "I have a dreadful headache," she said.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" Nancy asked kindly. "We'll go right back to Kreutzes'."

At the farm, Manda's mother greeted the girls eagerly. "Did you find any trace of my daughter?"

Nancy alighted from the car and told the woman about the Amish couple for whom Manda might be working. "Tomorrow we'll try to locate them," she promised.

Mrs. Kreutz looked at Bess, who was being helped out of the car. "Why, look at your head!" she cried solicitously. "What happened?"

"We had to stop suddenly and I b.u.mped it," Bess replied.

Nancy told Mrs. Kreutz about the cinder blocks that had been thrown in the road, and said she had been unable to avoid hitting them. But she did not mention the note or her suspicions regarding the Hoelts.

They all went into the house and George asked, "Have you something we can put on Bess's head? It's aching badly."

"Yes, I have some homemade liniment," Mrs. Kreutz replied. "But I will do a little powwowing too. Come upstairs."

Bringing the bottle of liniment and a cloth to Bess's bedroom, she told the girl to lie down. She sprinkled the folded cloth with the liniment and placed it on Bess's forehead. Then she went for her GabrauchBuch.

In a low voice, Mrs. Kreutz began to read from the book in German. She gently stroked Bess's head, then her arms. Finally the woman closed her eyes and began to mumble to herself. Nancy and George wondered if she were praying. A few minutes later Bess sighed, closed her eyes, and went to sleep.

Mrs. Kreutz seemed to be unaware of anything but her powwow. But presently she stopped speaking, rose, and motioned to Nancy and George to follow her from the bedroom.

"Bess will feel better now," the woman said.

Downstairs, Mrs. Kreutz's mood changed abruptly. Smiling, she asked the two girls if they would like to help her prepare supper. "We will have moon pies tonight," she said.

"And I'll bet they'll taste out of this world," George said with a laugh.

"That is a good joke," Mrs. Kreutz said. "And I suppose you never heard of them. Come. We will prepare a dozen."

The woman rolled the piecrust dough out on a table and floured it. Then she told the girls to cut it into round sections six inches in diameter. This done, she asked George to go outside to the small stone house through which a stream of cold water flowed. Here crocks of milk, cream, cheeses, and meats were kept cool.

"Bring the roast of veal," the woman directed. "It stands behind on the top shelf over."

When George returned with the meat, Mrs. Kreutz cut a generous piece from it. She put this into a wooden chopping bowl and cut it up fine with an old-fashioned chopper.

The meat was now transferred to a skillet on the stove. b.u.t.ter, cream, salt, pepper, and pickled relish were added. After it had cooked a while, Mrs. Kreutz directed the girls to b.u.t.ter the rounds of dough. Into half of each she put generous spoonfuls of the meat mixture.

"Now pull the lids over and pinch the edges all around with your thumbs," she instructed.

"They look like half-moons!" George declared.

Mrs. Kreutz spread more b.u.t.ter on top of each, and said the moon pies were ready for the oven. "Papa likes these for supper," she said. "By the way, do not mention Manda to Papa. When he is ready to talk about her, he will ask you."

Within an hour, Bess came downstairs, saying she felt much better. "And doesn't something smell good! Mm-mm!"

George laughed. "Bess must be back to normal. She's hungry!" She told her cousin of Mrs. Kreutz's request not to mention Manda.

During the meal Mr. Kreutz did not bring up the subject of his missing daughter. But as soon as the dishes had been washed, he called Nancy aside and asked her what she had learned about Manda.

Nancy told him in detail, and added, "Mr. Kreutz, I think you should notify the police. They may be able to locate Manda easily."