Detective in Disguise

HAD the kidnappers dared to abduct Trixie Chatham a second time? Nancy could not believe they would be so foolish.

“Maybe Trixie has only wandered away, ” she suggested.

“Oh, I hope so, ” Ellen said. “Mrs. Chatham isn’t here and I’m very worried.”

“Did Trixie talk about going anywhere today? ” Nancy asked.

“Why, yes, she did. She spoke of going to see you. Of course I didn’t pay much attention. I told her you would be coming over but—”

“Suppose she tried to walk to River Heights? She’d definitely get lost! ” Nancy exclaimed. “Come on. Hop in my car.”

The two girls had expected a long search, but to their surprise they spotted Trixie a few minutes later walking along the road. Beside her was a middle-aged man in a sea captain’s uniform.

“I hope that isn’t Spike Doty! ” Ellen exclaimed nervously.

“I think not, ” Nancy replied, easing on the brakes. “I can’t imagine who he is.”

At a closer look Trixie’s companion seemed to be quite pleasant. The child herself explained the situation and introduced the man as Captain Stryver. She had seen him walking past the estate and noticed that his uniform looked like those she had seen in pictures of men on ships. Trixie had followed him to talk about boats.

“I didn’t mean to take the child away from her home, ” the man apologized, his weather-beaten face creasing into kindly wrinkles. “We’ve been gabbing a little about ships.”

“He has one called the Primrose! ” Trixie exclaimed, seizing Nancy’s hand.

“I don’t own her, ” the captain hastened to correct. “Mr. Heppel, my employer, is her master.”

“Is the Primrose for rent? ” Nancy asked.

“Mr. Heppel has had a lot of bad luck the past year. I’m sure he’d be glad to rent the Primrose. Not a prettier yacht afloat. She’s tied up in New York now. I’m just here visiting my daughter.”

Nancy and Ellen asked many questions, and soon were convinced that the ship was well worth an investigation. They liked Captain Stryver, and tactfully inquired if his services could be obtained for a voyage to an island in the South Atlantic.

“I know that area like a book, ” he said. “Nothing would suit me better than a cruise in those waters.”

After talking with Captain Stryver for nearly half an hour, Nancy learned that Mr. Heppel was coming to Wayland the following morning to talk to the captain. She asked to meet him.

“Come to my daughter’s house at ten o’clock.” He gave Nancy the address.

Since Trixie had been responsible for calling the Primrose to their attention, neither Ellen nor Nancy felt like scolding her for wandering off. The girls brought Trixie home.

Carson Drew was pleased to learn of the Prim-rose and Captain Stryver. He went with Nancy to call on Mr. Heppel the next day. The man was willing to rent his yacht for a fair sum. Pictures of it and a maritime commendation convinced the Drews of its seaworthiness.

“You’ll have no problem with Captain Stryver at the wheel, ” said Mr. Heppel. “He’s honest and dependable, ” the owner declared, and the deal was concluded. The captain was promptly engaged and given the task of selecting a crew. Happy about the assignment, he left for New York.

Nancy’s preparations for the trip were at their height later that morning when she received a telephone call from Chief McGinnis of the River Heights police force.

“We have a lead, Nancy, ” he said. The chief was a long-time friend of the Drews. “Spike Doty’s address.” He rattled off the number and name of the street. “It’s a rooming house.”

“That’s in the worst district of town, ” Nancy commented.

“A couple of our men are down there now, ” the chief said. “Dressed like town hoods. They’re waiting for Doty to appear.”

“Are you sure he still lives in that apartment house? ” Nancy asked.

“The landlady verified it but said he hasn’t been to his room since night before last.”

“I’d like to take a look around myself.”

“If you want a police escort—”

“Oh, no. I don’t want to scare Doty off or be too conspicuous. As a matter of fact—” She stopped speaking. “I’ll be okay. Thanks just the same.”

Not wishing to reveal over the phone a plan she had suddenly thought of, Nancy assured him she would take no chances and said good-by. She went to her room and from the rear of her closet pulled out a dark-colored dress that was out of style, a pair of old brown shoes, and a bottle of gray dusting powder for the hair.

“I hope this’ll work, ” she said to herself. “Too bad Hannah and Dad aren’t here so I could tell them my plan.”

Quickly she changed clothes and brushed some of the powder into her hair, giving it a gray tinge. She combed it to give a scraggly appearance. Fully disguised, Nancy posed in front of the full-length mirror in the hall.

“Well, Mrs. Frisby, are you ready to do some housecleanin’? ” Nancy asked her reflection. Could she trap the thief in this disguise? A broad grin spread across her face as she answered, “Give me a broom and I’ll sweep Doty into jail! ”