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The Lion’s Message






 

Nancy and the cousins listened to the angry voices behind the closed door.

“Ted Henri can take care of himself, ” the man, apparently Chris, was saying to someone.

He must be talking about Jacqueline’s brother! Nancy thought, and knocked on the door.

Bess was apprehensive. “Shall we wait for you outside? ” she whispered to her friend, not wishing to get caught in the middle of the strangers’ argument.

To her chagrin, however, Nancy shook her head. “I might need your help.”

“But—” Bess mumbled as the voices subsided and the door opened, revealing an unexpected surprise. A young woman stood before them with Chris Chavez, who was looking over her shoulder.

“Jacqueline! ” Nancy exclaimed.

“Oh, so you know each other, ” Chris interposed.

“We met last evening, ” Nancy said, adding pointedly, “When you didn’t come back, Jackie, we were worried.”

“I’m terribly sorry, ” the model apologized. “I was so tired that I left the hotel after I took my message.” She paused, turning to Chris. “Nancy is a detective, you know.”

“Yes, I do, ” the photographer said. He kept his eyes evenly fixed on Nancy. “I imagine Jackie has told you about her brother.”

“Not really, ” Nancy said. “Who is your brother? ” the girl detective went on.

“Ted’s a journalist—an investigative reporter, ” Jacqueline said, then stopped as if wondering how much to reveal.

“Go ahead, ” Chris urged her. “Tell Nancy everything. She may be able to help you.”

The young woman’s cheeks flushed. “I don’t really know where to begin, ” she said. “As I told you last night, I believe my brother may have been kidnapped.”

“But you’re not sure, ” Nancy said.

“I’m almost sure. It’s not the first time he’s been threatened. In the course of his job, he has exposed numerous undercover schemes and stepped on lots of toes.”

“But what makes you think he was kidnapped? ” Nancy questioned.

“For one thing, he was supposed to arrive on a charter flight from Singapore yesterday evening. I got a cable to meet him at Kennedy Airport. That’s why I couldn’t be in the fashion show. Anyway, when I reached the airport, I couldn’t find him.”

“Was he on the passenger list? ” Nancy asked.

“As far as I know.”

“Then, are you suggesting he may have been abducted from the airport? ”

Jacqueline shook her head. “I don’t know what to think, ” she said. “When I went home, I found this in my mailbox.” She dug into her purse and produced a piece of paper.

On it was written a message with some scribbling at the bottom that resembled a lion’s crest. Nancy read the message aloud:

IF YOU DON’T HEAR FROM ME IN A FEW DAYS, CALL THE POLICE. DON’T TRY TO CONTACT ME BEFORE THEN. T.

The girl glanced at Jacqueline. “Is this your brother’s handwriting? ”

“I’m not sure. It may be a good imitation. That’s why I’m so afraid he might have been kidnapped.”

“Suppose he did write the note, ” Nancy said. “I assume the ‘T’ stands for Ted. But what’s this funny symbol next to it? It looks like the head of a lion.”

“I don’t know, ” Jackie said.

“You see, ” Chris spoke up, “Ted’s been working on an important expose about a fake operation at an auction house.”

“I don’t think we should talk about that, ” Jacqueline interrupted. “I’m sure Ted wouldn’t appreciate it.”

“Why not? If Nancy is to help you, she has to know what’s going on.” The young man paused a moment, then continued. “It seems that some auction house here in Manhattan has sold spurious reproductions of antique jewelry to a number of people, including dealers.”

“But surely they would know the real stuff from the fake, ” Nancy commented.

“That’s what makes the case so interesting, ” Chris remarked. “Obviously, there must be a very talented artisan involved in the scheme—”

“Or an agile assistant who substitutes the fake items for the real ones after the customers’ bids are in, ” Nancy concluded.

“Very astute, ” Chris complimented her. “Maybe you ought to work with Ted.”

“Except that he prefers to work alone, ” Jacqueline added.

“As it is, ” Nancy smiled pleasantly, “I already have my own mystery to solve.”

The curiosity in the faces of her listeners encouraged the young detective to explain.

“You see, Mr. Reese, the designer, has asked me to help him find a thief.”

“Really? ” Jacqueline asked, throwing a quick glance at Chris.

“In fact, ” Nancy continued, “several gowns, which you were to have modeled last night, Jackie, disappeared from the hotel.”

“How terrible! ” Chris exclaimed. “Do you have any leads yet? ”

“Nothing definite, ” Nancy said vaguely. She decided not to mention the stranger she had discovered in the dressing room.

“Forgive me for saying this, ” Chris went on, “but I think you ought to leave that sort of investigation up to someone with experience.”

“Like Ted Henri? ” Nancy replied, her mouth becoming a thin line.

“Nancy has had a lot of experience as a detective, ” Bess defended her friend.

“Oh, I’m sure she has, ” Chris answered. “It’s just that you never know how tough things might get, and I wouldn’t want anything to happen to her, or you, for that matter.”

“Well, nothing has so far, ” George spoke up.

“Even so, ” Jacqueline commented, “Chris is right.”

“And to think we were going to offer to look for your brother—undercover, of course, ” Nancy said quickly.

“We were? ” George raised her eyes with uncertainty.

Jacqueline looked at Chris with an urgent, almost pleading expression and fidgeted with the handle of her bag.

“What do you think? ” the model asked him.

“It’s up to you, ” he sighed.

“We wouldn’t do anything to mess up Ted’s investigation, ” Bess put in.

“I imagine he’s trying to gather as much evidence as he can against the auction house, ” Nancy said. “I’m sure he doesn’t want police interference, so we’d have to keep a low profile.”

“It’s a good idea, isn’t it, Chris? ” Jacqueline pressed.

“Yes, so long as these young ladies think they’re able to handle it, ” the photographer replied. “Tell me, Nancy, how do you plan to start your search for Ted? ”

Nancy was thoughtful for a moment, then smiled. “Well, first we have to find the lion’s crest! ”

 






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