Nobody's Business (15 page)

Authors: Carolyn Keene

“What?” Ned asked.

Julie's gray eyes filled with tears. “I'm the reason you fell off the balcony,” she said softly.

“You
pushed him?” Andrew asked, taking a step back to look at Julie.

“No, of course not,” Julie said quickly. “But I was hiding up in the balcony that day, spying on you, and you started walking right toward me. I was so afraid you'd see me, I turned out all the lights!”

“So I
did
slip,” Ned said, shaking his head. “I didn't think I'd felt anybody push me.”

“Can you ever forgive me?” Julie begged. “If I'd known you were going to fall, I would have left the lights on, even if Andrew had found me. I never meant for you to get hurt.”

Ned smiled at Julie. “I can't say I'm happy I fell, but I won't hold a grudge. I know you didn't do it on purpose.”

For the second time that day Nancy heard the sound of sirens approaching the inn.

“The police are on their way,” Bess said with a relieved smile.

“UhhhhÂ .Â .Â .” Colleen groaned. As everyone turned to look at her, Colleen's eyelids fluttered open.

“Perfect timing,” Andrew said, as Colleen groggily tried to prop herself up on one elbow.

Colleen's eyes focused on the group of people towering over her, and she let her head drop back to the ground. “Tell me this isn't happening.Â .Â .Â .”

“It's happening,” Nancy assured her. “You made it happen.”

The tread of heavy footsteps on the stairs announced the arrival of the police. Nancy saw that Lieutenant Oscarson was the first to reach the bottom. Three other officers were behind her. As Andrew handed Oscarson the gun, Nancy stepped over to the police officer and gave her the newspaper articles, briefly explaining the situation.

“I just wish we knew what happened to Guy Lewis,” Nancy finished. “Why hasn't he come forward to get the blackmail money?”

As the other officers helped Colleen to her feet, Lieutenant Oscarson asked Nancy, “Are you Nancy Drew?” When Nancy nodded, the officer said, “I got a call from a Chief McGinnis in River Heights. He seems to be a fan of yours.”

Bess and Ned both grinned at Nancy.

“He was asking about this same person,” Lieutenant Oscarson went on. Then she announced solemnly, “We've just gotten word that Guy Lewis is dead. He was attempting to burglarize a house the other night, and he fell from a second-floor window. Broke his neck.”

Colleen let out a gasp. “ButÂ .Â .Â . why didn't I hear about that?” she demanded. “Why wasn't it in the papers?”

“He didn't have any identification on him,” the officer explained. “We had to match his fingerprints to the ones on file, and that took a while.”

“So what you're sayingÂ .Â .Â .” Nancy began as the realization dawned on her.

Oscarson nodded. “Mrs. Morgan went to a lot of trouble for nothing. Her secret would have been safe if she'd just waited it out.”

Colleen's whole body shook. “My life is over!” she sobbed as the three officers with Lieutenant Oscarson led her up the stairs. After making arrangements for Nancy and her friends to go to the station to make statements the following morning, Lieutenant Oscarson left.

“Well,” Nancy said, turning to her friends, “I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm exhausted.”

“Let's go,” Ned agreed, taking Nancy's hand.

The group left the inn and headed for the parking lot. But before they could get in their cars, they heard the sound of blaring rock music.

“What's that?” Bess asked as the bright headlights of a car appeared from around the bend. A string of headlights followed the first car, and soon the parking lot was nearly full.

“Blaster!” Nancy shouted as the deejay
hopped out of the first car. “What are you doing here?”

Blaster grinned. “When people started leaving, we figured the party was moving, so we packed up our stuff and came, too!”

His eyes widened as he suddenly noticed Julie standing nearby, hand in hand with Andrew. “I guess you guys got back together,” he said gruffly. “I hope you'll be happy.”

Then he turned quickly and said to the teens who were getting out of the other cars, “As long as the party's here, there's no reason why we can't keep it going. Let's dance!”

Despite the cold, the teens spread out over the parking lot, moving to the catchy beat.

“Do you want to stay for the party?” Ned asked, looking down at Nancy. “If you're tired, maybe we should leave.”

Smiling up at her boyfriend, Nancy said, “You know, I think I'm getting my second wind.” Her blue eyes sparkled as she added, “This music's a little fast, though. I was hoping for something more romantic.”

“That can be arranged,” Ned said. He wrapped his arms carefully around Nancy, and she let her head rest against his shoulder. Then, softly, the two of them swayed together in the parking lot to music that only they could hear.

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