The Stolen Show
Page 10
After a few seconds, Angie seemed to snap out of her daze and began to scream and jump up and down, hugging the ribbon to her chest. Wanting to join in on the excitement, Marshmallow started jumping and barking and trying desperately to lick anyone who was close enough to her mouth. That included Angie, me, and the judge.
“Oh, Marshmallow! No! Off!” Angie cried.
Luckily, the judge seemed to have a sense of humor. She laughed and gave Marshmallow a rub behind the ears. “She’s just celebrating,” the judge said, chuckling.
“Thank you,” Angie said to the judge, her eyes glassy with tears. The judge nodded and went to greet the other finalists.
“Congratulations, Angie,” a small voice said. Angie and I looked to see Alice standing there, holding on to Pia as if the little dog would give her the courage to speak. “I just wanted to say again that I’m so sorry for all the trouble I caused. I’ll never do anything like that again . . . I just feel terrible.”
The young woman started to turn away, but Angie stopped her. “Alice,” she said, laying a hand on her arm. “I forgive you.”
Alice squeezed her eyes shut, and then sighed. “Thank you,” she whispered.
Marshmallow Fluff walked over and head-butted Alice’s leg affectionately. “It looks like Marshmallow forgives you too,” Angie added.
A little while later, all the finalists and their friends and family were gathered at Canard Mauve, a beautiful French bistro deep in Quebec City’s historic district. The restaurant was located in a lovely old building with all its original dark woodwork, the walls decorated with dozens of paintings by different local artists. Each painting, I realized, included a little purple duck—which was how the bistro got its name. The room was full of people and cheerful noise, and I was sitting with my two best friends at a table near the front window. Outside, the snow-covered city looked like a postcard, the sun setting spectacularly over the water in an explosion of purples and pinks.
Bess, who was thrilled to finally be able to leave her hotel room, had dressed in a flowy brown skirt and emerald-green blouse for the occasion, with a string of wooden beads around her neck. It made me feel good to see her this way—happy and looking like herself again. She was drinking hot apple cider with George, who had finally gotten her hands on another plate of poutine.
“Oh man,” George was saying, in between bites. “I never want to stop eating this stuff.”
Bess eyeballed the already half-empty plate and shook her head. “You keep going like that, we’re going to have to roll you out of this place.”
“I don’t care,” George replied. “More, I say, more! Poutine forever!”
I laughed and turned to Louise. She was nursing a ginger ale and petting Marge, who was almost as interested in George’s poutine as George was. “I’m really sorry Marge didn’t win, Louise,” I said.
“Oh, there’s always another show,” Louise said, waving away my apology. “Besides, Angie deserved this one. She’s been working hard for years—it was her moment to shine.”
I glanced over to the center of the room, where Angie was posing for pictures with Marshmallow Fluff, who was proudly wearing her Best in Show ribbon around her neck. Angie was positively glowing.
“Oh, and guess what?” Louise went on. “José Columbo says he’s going to adopt Daisy! She and Shirley apparently got on very well during the show, and he’s been wanting to get her a companion for a long time. Isn’t that nice?”
I nodded. “Good for Daisy. She’s a perfect dog for a pro wrestler. She already knows some of the moves!”
A moment later Charles stood up on a chair, a glass of wine in his hand. “Mesdemoiselles et messieurs!” he said loudly. “May I have your attention for a moment, s’il vous plaît?” The crowd quieted down, and Charles cleared his throat. “I have done quite a few exciting dog shows over the past couple of years,” he began, “but this one takes the cake!” Everyone laughed. “Alors, as many of you now know, there was a criminal in your midst, someone I had been unsuccessfully tracking with Interpol for a long time. If it had not been for the ingenious—and may I say, extremely ill-advised!—work of these three young women”—Charles gestured toward me and the girls—“that criminal may have gone free once again. And so I must ask you all to please give these gutsy Americans a round of applause!”
Everyone clapped, and Louise hooted loudly. Bess’s cheeks turned beet red, and she smiled shyly while George grinned happily. Charles waved me over to speak, bidding me to stand on a chair beside him. “Thank you,” I said as the applause ended. “Other than the kidnapping, the car chase, and the blizzard, this actually has been a very pleasant vacation,” I joked. “But before we all take a drink, I’d like to dedicate this toast to the real hero of this story, whose bravery and quick thinking ended up saving the day, and who really has a nose for detective work. Here’s to you, Marge!”
Upon hearing her name, the bull terrier sat up and barked, her tail wagging.
Everyone raised their glasses and shouted, “To Marge!”
Dear Diary,
* * *
* * *
WELL, IT SEEMS AS IF my plans for relaxing and getting away from it all went to the dogs! Who’d have thought that a petty little prank would lead me into the world of international crime? Luckily, despite everything that happened these past few days, the girls and I ended up having a great time. We even got a picture with Bonhomme in the ice palace! Before we had to get our flight home, Louise presented each of us with a gift. She gave George a Quebecois recipe book (homemade poutine, here she comes!) and Bess a canister of the region’s best cocoa mix. My present was a framed photo of Marge and me taken at the competition. I’ll cherish it forever. After all, that pup and I made a great team!
* * *
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Carolyn Keene is the bestselling author of the popular Nancy Drew series of books.
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NANCY DREW DIARIES
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A Nancy Drew Christmas
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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.
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First Aladdin paperback edition September 2019
Text copyright © 2019 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Cover illustration copyright © 2019 by Erin McGuire
Also available in an Aladdin hardcover edition.
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Series designed by Karin Paprocki
Cover designed by Heather Palisi
Interior designed by Mike Rosamilia
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Keene, Carolyn, author.
Title: The stolen show / by Carolyn Keene.
Description: First Aladdin hardcover/paperback edition. | New York : Aladdin, 2019. | Series: Nancy Drew diaries ; #18 | Summary: While investigating a case of sabotage at a dog show, Nancy and her friends are drawn into an undercover international operation in pursuit of a jewel smuggler.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018037376 (print) | LCCN 2018043894 (eBook) | ISBN 9781534405790 (eBook) | ISBN 9781534405776 (pbk) | ISBN 9781534405783 (hc)
Subjects: | CYAC: Dog shows—Fiction. | Sabotage—Fiction. | Robbers and outlaws—Fiction. | Mystery and detective stories.
Classification: LCC PZ7.K23 (eBook) | LCC PZ7.K23 Sto 2019 (print) | DDC [Fic]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018037376