Gold Medal Murder

GOLD MEDAL MURDER

 

NANCY DREW

girl detective
^®

#1 Without a Trace

#2 A Race Against Time

#3 False Notes

#4 High Risk

#5 Lights, Camera…

#6 Action!

#7 The Stolen Relic

#8 The Scarlet Macaw Scandal

#9 Secret of the Spa

#10 Uncivil Acts

#11 Riverboat Ruse

#12 Stop the Clock

#13 Trade Wind Danger

#14 Bad Times, Big Crimes

#15 Framed

#16 Dangerous Plays

#17 En Garde

#18 Pit of Vipers

#19 The Orchid Thief

#20 Getting Burned

#21 Close Encounters

#22 Dressed to Steal

#23 Troubled Waters

#24 Murder on the Set

#25 Trails of Treachery

#26 Fishing for Clues

#27 Intruder

#28 Mardi Gras Masquerade

#29 The Stolen Bones

#30 Pagent Perfect Crime

#31 Perfect Cover

#32 Perfect Escape

#33 Secret Identity

#34 Identity Theft

#35 Identity Revealed

#36 Model Crime

#37 Model Menace

#38 Model Suspect

#39 Green-Eyed Monster

#40 Green with Envy

#41 Seeing Green

#42 Secret Sabotage

THE HARDY BOYS

UNDERCOVER BROTHERS
^®

#1 Extreme Danger

#2 Running on Fumes

#3 Boardwalk Bust

#4 Thrill Ride

#5 Rocky Road

#6 Burned

#7 Operation: Survival

#8 Top Ten Ways to Die

#9 Martial Law

#10 Blown Away

#11 Hurricane Joe

#12 Trouble in Paradise

#13 The Mummy's Curse

#14 Hazed

#15 Death and Diamonds

#16 Bayport Buccaneers

#17 Murder at the Mall

#18 Pushed

#19 Foul Play

#20 Feeding Frenzy

#21 Comic Con Artist

Super Mystery #1: Wanted

Super Mystery #2: Kidnapped at the Casino

#22 Deprivation House

#23 House Arrest

Haunted: Special Ghost Stories Edition

#24 Murder House

#25 Double Trouble

#26 Double Down

#27 Double Deception

Super Mystery #3: Club Dread

#28 Galaxy X

#29 X-plosion!

#30 The X-Factor

#31 Killer Mission

#32 Private Killer

#33 Killer Connections

#34 The Children of the Lost

Available from Aladdin

 

CAROLYN KEENE
AND
FRANKLIN W. DIXON

 

If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

ALADDIN
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com

First Aladdin paperback edition July 2010

Copyright © 2010 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

ALADDIN is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc., and related logo is
a registered trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

NANCY DREW and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

NANCY DREW: GIRL DETECTIVE is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

THE HARDY BOYS MYSTERY STORIES is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

HARDY BOYS UNDERCOVER BROTHERS and related logo are registered
trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster
Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or [email protected].

The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. 
For more information or to book an event contact the
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.

Designed by Sammy Yuen Jr.

The text of this book was set in Meriden.

Manufactured in the United States of America/0510 OFF

2  4   6   8   10   9   7   5   3   1

Library of Congress Control Number 2010921709

ISBN 978-1-4424-0326-0

ISBN 978-1-4424-0327-7 (eBook)

  
1   En Garde!

  
2   Big Hair, Bigger Weapons

  
3   LA Bites

  
4   Road Trip!

  
5   Sound Effects

  
6   Fake Out

  
7   Interviewing the Enemy

  
8   Making the Cut

  
9   Two Killers for the Price of One?

10   Shock to the System

11   Things That Go Boom in the Night

12   Restraining Order

13   A Secret Rendezvous

14   Let's Go to the Videotape

15   Blowing My Cover

16   Road Rage

17   Blindsided

18   Going for Gold

The school gym was quiet and empty. The late afternoon sunlight drifted in through the windows high overhead. I stood still in a sunbeam, waiting. I was breathing hard. I held my sword defensively in front of me.

I'm in trouble
, I thought.
Big trouble
.

Suddenly, my opponent rushed at me out of the dark! I blocked a vicious swipe at my head and stepped back to avoid a lunge at my torso. I was able to keep from getting hit, but just barely, and I was rapidly being pushed back across the gym. My opponent was breathing strong and steady, almost as though she hadn't even worked up a sweat.

On the other hand, my ragged breathing and the
clang
of sword-on-sword echoed through the cavernous empty gym. School was long over. There was no one around. My attacker forced me backward, step by step. Soon I would be pinned against the wall of the gymnasium.

It was time to try something daring. I leaned forward, making an easy target of my head. She'd be stupid to pass up this opportunity.

Sure enough, I heard the
whip
of her blade swinging through the air, on a collision course with my face. At the last possible second, I ducked low and scooted forward, lunging at her unprotected stomach. For a moment, I thought I had her. But she was impossibly fast. Her sword was down and parrying mine before I'd even gotten close to her.

We strained against each other, our swords connected at the hilt. I grunted, pushing with all my might. Then my opponent twisted her wrist too fast for my eyes to follow, and my sword went flying through the air. A half second later, I felt the point of her blade at my neck.

“Yield!” she said.

Applause drifted in from the open gymnasium door, where the figures of George Fayne and Bess Marvin—my two best friends—had appeared.

“Well done, Lexi!” Bess yelled.

I grabbed my throat and made thick choking noises.
I fell to the ground, shuddered a few times, and then lay still, pretending to be dead.

My opponent lowered her blade and executed a short bow.

“You're as good an actor as you are a fencer, Nance!” yelled George.

Lexi Adams, my opponent, classmate, and one of the world's best female fencers, removed her mask. Her curly red hair tumbled free, wildly framing her heart-shaped face.

“Hey now,” she said. “She's getting a lot better.”

She reached a hand down to help me up. It was hard to feel bad about losing to Lexi. She wasn't just the star of the River Heights High Fencing Team—she was the youngest woman on the American Olympic Fencing Team. She was a world record holder at the age of nine. I'd been getting lessons from her all year. I didn't think I'd be joining her on the Olympic team anytime soon, but you never knew what sort of skill would come in handy when working on a case. Plus, it was a pretty good workout.

“That was great!” Bess came running over. With her love of fashion—and her model-gorgeous good looks—Bess was the last girl you'd expect to find hanging out in the school gym. But she and her cousin George were both avid exercisers, although George preferred hiking outside to being in the gym. But they could agree on
one thing: rock climbing. Which is where the pair had just been before wandering in at the end of our fencing match. I could tell by the chalk dust on their hands and the special climbing shoes they both carried. River Heights High had an indoor climbing wall, and they both made good use of it.

Of course, Bess worked out while wearing a matching pink headband, wristbands, and sweat socks, which coordinated perfectly with her lemon yellow terry cloth short-shorts. She looked like a model from one of those chic athletic-wear catalogs. George, on the other hand, was favoring her usual many-pocketed cargo shorts. I never knew what kind of gadgets she had on her, but they often came in handy when I was working on a case. George's tech savvy was unparalleled.

“So are you nervous about the Olympics?” George asked Lexi. “The LA blogosphere is really blowing up about it.” From one of her pockets, George pulled out her cell phone. In terms of abilities, it was somewhere between a supercomputer and a video editing studio. It made me feel like I was still tapping out Morse code.

“Look!” she said. “Someone posted your River City High yearbook photo today!”

“What?” said Lexi. “Ugh. My hair was terrible in that photo.”

“The price of stardom,” said Bess. “Besides, you always look cute, you know it.”

“Even though I've never been to LA, I'm excited the Olympics are happening there this year,” said Lexi. “Makes me feel like I've got a hometown advantage. Plus, it means I can keep practicing here right up until the games start, which makes my dad happier.”