Nancy Clue Mysteries 2 - The Case of the Good-for-Nothing Girlfriend (23 page)

Without waiting for an answer, she added, in a teasing tone, "Unless, of course, you two have a surprise announcement for us? The young man who marries Nancy Clue will be twiceblessed, indeed," she declared with glee. "Not only will he be getting a charming girl, he'll also be marrying River Depths' newest, and some say, richest heiress!"

Mrs. Meeks put a gloved hand against her powdered, rouged cheek and added, "Oh, I guess it's not nice to talk about money at a time like this, with the murder so fresh in everyone's mind and the jury selection for the trial beginning today." A devilish look came into her small, blue, beady eyes. "But a wedding might be just the thing to make everyone forget about that nasty crime."

Mrs. Meeks boldly helped herself to a warm biscuit. She daintily ate it, wiping crumbs from her thin lips with a monogrammed hankie from her purse. "These are quite good, Beth, dear. Not as good as Hannah's, mind you. Oops," she tittered. "I probably shouldn't be mentioning the poor dear's name in this house, should I?" She sighed. "Some people snap, just like that," she declared, illustrating her point by snapping her plump, little glove-encased fingers together.

She rustled through her purse and took out a compact and a tube of red lipstick. After reapplying fresh color, she added, "If I were you, Beth dear, I'd starting reducing now. You're sure to be a maid of honor, and those bridesmaid dresses, lovely as they are, are never very flattering to the, shall we say, fuller figure?"

Bess almost choked on her biscuit.

"And as for your friend George, well," Mrs. Meeks shuddered, rolled her eyes and sighed. "There's nothing anyone can do about her, is there?" Bess was too flabbergasted to say anything and for once Midge kept her mouth shut. She had a feeling it would be a good idea to keep her true identity a secret.

Mrs. Meeks snatched up another biscuit and raced out the door, leaving a trail of crumbs in her wake. "I must hurry off and tell everyone Nancy's back!" she cried.

For the first time since they had arrived in River Depths, Midge felt alarmed. There was something about Mrs. Meeks that made her shiver. "She's not nearly as flighty as she pretends," Midge thought, realizing that she reminded her of a cruel prison matron she had bumped heads with more than once during her stretch in the pen. "That Mrs. Meeks is one dangerous character," she said.

Bess wiped the tears from her eyes and blew her nose on the dish towel in her hands. "I'm a silly goose to let Mrs. Meeks get under my skin, but, golly, I'm awfully sensitive about my figure problem."

Midge looked at the attractively plump, feminine girl and said in a disgusted tone, "It's people like Mrs. Meeks who should be on trial, not Hannah." Midge was relieved to see Bess giggle a bit at this, but she knew by the look in her eyes that her feelings were still hurt.

"Everyone's always commenting about my weight," Bess sighed. "Why, you'd think it was a national disgrace that a girl carries a few extra pounds."

From what Midge could see, Bess was carrying those pounds in all the right places. She struggled to find a polite way to say so, but gave up and just blurted out, "Bess, as far as I'm concerned, you are one good-looking girl, and your girlfriend seems to thinks so, too."

At the mention of George, Bess's cloudy expression grew bright. She smiled, revealing darling dimples in each cheek. "Did Nancy ever tell you how George and I got together?" she asked. Midge shook her head.

"When I was nineteen, I uncovered a family secret," Bess began dramatically. "I was adopted! Mother was afraid I would be destroyed by the news, but I was elated," Bess revealed as she spooned sugar into her coffee and buttered a biscuit.

She blushed. "For a long time, I had known my feelings for George were more than cousinly, and I had the funniest feeling George felt the same way," Bess said, all starry-eyed. She stirred her coffee and continued her story. "One night we accompanied Nancy to a Happy Homemakers of America dance. When Ted Tickerson and his vivacious sister, Terry, joined us, I grabbed George and sneaked out the back way.

"Nancy used to be head over heels about Terry," Bess confided. "They had a terrible quarrel and Terry left town. Nancy's heart has been broken ever since. Anyway, I asked George to walk to the gazebo with me. I told her I wanted to see the stars," Bess giggled. "While she was pointing out the Big Dipper, I blurted out the news that we weren't related at all, and then I kissed her smack on the lips. George was so shocked, she tumbled backward over the railing. When I tried to help her up, she pulled me on top of her. That's where we were a half hour later when Nancy and Terry stumbled upon us.

"How did you meet your girlfriend?" Bess asked.

"In prison," Midge said nonchalantly.

Bess gasped. "Really?" Her eyes lit up bright as new pennies. "I bet you were the head of a gang, and Velma was your girl," Bess guessed dreamily.

Midge laughed. "Nothing as exciting as that," she admitted. "It's a long story, but...what's that smell?" she wondered suddenly.

"My pancakes!" Bess shrieked. She had been so engrossed in swapping stories with Midge, she had forgotten all about breakfast! She ran to the stove.

"They were pancakes," Bess moaned as she scraped the now-blackened batter from the hot griddle. She mixed a fresh batch and soon perfect circles of luscious smelling hotcakes were bubbling away.

"You are some cook," Midge sniffed in appreciation.

"My job as the home economics instructor at River Depths High is to prepare girls for their future roles as homemakers," Bess said proudly. She laughed. "They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. I've found it works on girls, too. What's Velma's specialty?" Bess wondered as she expertly flipped the flapjacks onto a large platter. "Maybe we can trade recipes. I just found a new one for the most scrumptious Swedish meatballs."

Midge laughed. "I'll let you in on a little secret," she said. "But you've got to promise not to tell." She lowered her voice. "I'm the cook in the family," she revealed.

Bess laughed merrily at the thought of Midge in an apron. "Your secret's safe with me," she giggled.

"What secret?" Lauren wanted to know. She tripped into the kitchen, clad in a terrycloth bathrobe three times her size. Her dripping hair hung in a lank braid down her back. "While I was in the bathtub, someone stole my clothes," she announced, explaining her get-up. Her mouth dropped when she spied the platter of pancakes. "Pass the syrup," she said, hopping onto a chair and pulling the platter toward her. One pancake fell to the floor and was snapped up by Gogo. The terrier raced off with her treat.

"I'll make some more," Bess sighed as she watched Lauren pour half a container of maple syrup over her pancakes. "And I'd better go to the basement for another bottle of syrup."

Midge watched in amazement as Lauren threatened to polish off the platter of pancakes without once stopping for breath. "Come up for air, will you?" Midge gently scolded the girl.

Midge leaned back in her chair and lit a cigarette. "How'd you sleep?" she asked.

Lauren made a face. "Terrible. I heard a bunch of kissing noises right before I went to sleep. Jeez. Maybe I should stay in the living room tonight," she scowled.

"Be my guest," Midge replied dryly.

Velma dragged her sleepy self into the kitchen, her tousled black curls framing her face in the most haphazard, adorable way. She plopped down on the chair next to Midge and put her head on her shoulder. "When I woke up, there was a dog in bed with me, eating a pancake," she yawned. "Honey, it was just like home."

Midge gave her a long, lingering kiss on her full, pretty mouth.

Lauren threw down her fork and glared at the couple. She had lost her appetite.

"Goodness, Lauren, why the sourpuss? Morning, Midge. Morning, Velma." Cherry swept through the kitchen, sparkling with energy and attractively attired in a flowered, shortsleeved house dress that made her look even younger than her twenty five years. In her hands was a laundry hamper. "Velma, wait until you see Nancy's closets. Why, they're stuffed with all the latest fashions! I've never seen so many beautiful things. Nancy's locked in the bathroom, fussing over her hair," Cherry added. "I helped her pick out a nice sky blue linen suit and a simple white blouse with a Peter Pan collar. She wants to look her best when she goes to see Chief Chumley and straighten out this whole mix-up."

As a nurse, Cherry knew that often the confidence a girl got from knowing she looked her very best was better than any medicine.

"I wish she weren't so stubborn about doing this all by herself. I don't know why she won't let me go with her. I'm beginning to see a headstrong side to Nancy," Cherry admitted. "Although, she does know the Chief better than I do and is positive he's got a good explanation as to why Hannah's not out of jail yet."

Midge groaned. Why hadn't he already let Hannah go? "I still think we should consult an attorney," Midge worried.

"We'll just have to hope for the best," Cherry said cheerfully. "Now where's the door to the basement? I've got laundry to do."

Midge pointed the way. "Bess went down to get syrup," she said. "Come to think of it, she's been down there an awfully long time." A worried expression crossed Midge's handsome face. She ran to the basement door. "Bess, are you okay?" she called. But there was no answer.

"Bess!" she called louder. A low moaning sound reached their ears. Bess was in trouble!

"She might need medical assistance!" Cherry cried. Midge raced downstairs while Cherry ran to get her firstaid kit. Within minutes she had pinned on her nurse's cap and was heading for the basement stairs. Cherry threw caution to the wind and, putting aside her own safety, took the stairs two at a time. Awaiting her was a gruesome sight. Bess was sprawled motionless on the damp basement floor, surrounded by jars of canned fruit.

"I didn't know whether or not to move her," Midge said in a shaky voice as she watched Cherry take Bess's pulse. Cherry nodded her head. Midge had done the right thing, but there would be time later to let her know that! Cherry barked out orders. "Get all the warm blankets you can find. Wake up George. And bring me an ice bag!"

While the others raced about on their important missions, Cherry checked Bess for broken bones, all the time keeping an eye on her pulse. She was relieved to find that, outside of a badly twisted ankle, Bess had no major injuries. "If she's fainted, she should be coming to any minute," Cherry thought. But Bess's breathing grew more labored. Cherry checked her pulse again. She was shocked to find a large, sharp stinger buried deep in Bess's palm.

"Why, she's been bitten by a bee!" Cherry suddenly realized. She quickly injected Bess with the life-saving bee-sting serum she always carried in her firstaid kit. Within seconds, the color came back into Bess's face and her breathing steadied. After sterilizing her tweezers with a match, Cherry removed the barb from Bess's hand and cleansed the wound.

George arrived, her shaking arms loaded down with blankets. Right behind her was Midge, holding an ice bag. Velma and Lauren waited at the foot of the stairs, keeping out of Cherry's way.

"Is Bess going to be okay? What happened?" George frantically quizzed Cherry.

"She's fine," Cherry said. "She had an allergic reaction to a bee sting. Luckily, I had the right medication in my firstaid kit." She held up the stinger for George's inspection.

"Bess? Bees?" George gasped in surprise. "Why, she isn't allergic to bees. In fact, she was bitten several times while we were at Lake Merrimen, and she had no reaction at all!"

"That's odd," Cherry puzzled. She knew it was most unusual for someone to develop a bee allergy late in life. Cherry took a blanket from George, and, using some planks of wood she found nearby, fashioned an emergency stretcher. "Let's get her upstairs and comfortable, and then discuss her medical history," Cherry said. She tucked her patient into the stretcher, and George and Midge headed upstairs with their precious cargo.

"Ugh, what's that?" Cherry cried aloud as she stepped on something big and squishy. She examined the sole of her shoe. "It was a bee," she shuddered. "Here it is!"

Lauren whistled. "That's the biggest bee I've ever seen," she declared. Cherry had to agree. In all the bee-sting lectures she had attended, she'd never seen a specimen that size!

"Cherry, I've decided to wear my hair up, as you suggested," Nancy called out from upstairs. "Would you help me pin it into place?" But when she poked her head into the cellar and saw Bess being carried up the stairs, she gasped in horror, forgetting all about her hairdo dilemma. "What's going on down there?" she cried excitedly.

Cherry quickly filled her in on the shocking events, and Nancy hurried to make a comfy bed for Bess on the davenport. Bess quickly regained consciousness and within minutes, was her old, bubbly self. Cherry packed her twisted ankle in ice, and the swelling subsided. She showed Bess the bee, still stuck to the bottom of her shoe.

"I was standing in front of the cabinet, searching for syrup, and suddenly I felt a sharp pinch on my hand," Bess exclaimed. "Golly, that's the biggest bee I've ever seen!"