by Mabel Maney
Cherry shook her head. Obviously, Midge wasn't much of a Nancy Clue fan! "She works for free, out of the goodness of her heart. I'm sure she'll help us, she's just got to!"
But Midge wasn't won over. "We'll just have to see about this girl dick," was all she would say.
Cherry smiled. She just knew that despite the tragedy of her own circumstances, Nancy Clue would help them. Her heart raced at the thought of meeting her beloved heroine.
"How about some breakfast," Cherry suggested. She was secretly hoping that if Midge got some food in her stomach, she'd be more agreeable to the idea of contacting Nancy Clue.
"Okay, but first I need to get to a phone and check in with Betty," Midge said anxiously. "I wonder if she's made any progress on the case? I wish they could put telephones in cars. That would sure save us a lot of time."
"I don't know, Midge. I can't see how it would be safe for people to drive and talk on the telephone at the same time," Cherry said. "Midge must be awfully tired to have such a strange idea," Cherry thought. By this time they were in a part of the city with hills so steep it felt like they were on a carnival ride.
"This area is called Russian Hill. Look, Midge, a cable car! Did you know that by the turn of the century San Francisco had six hundred cable cars traveling over one hundred miles of track?"
Cherry's command of details astonished her passenger. "How on earth did you know that?" Midge asked.
"After I decided to visit my Aunt Gertrude, I wrote to the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and got pertinent information," Cherry replied. "In my glove box, I've got a notebook containing all kinds of information, like temperatures, average price of a meal, and things to see. And I know the safest parts of the city, just in case there's an earthquake."
If such an emergency did occur, Cherry was fully prepared, with fresh uniforms and a medical kit securely stowed in her trunk.
"Cherry, you're beginning to remind me of my favorite Girl Scout leader, Miss Mary Metz, a woman who could pull just about anything out of her purse," Midge chuckled.
That was high praise indeed, coming from Midge!
"In another few blocks, we'll be in the Castro area," Cherry said happily. "I stopped at a service station a few hours ago, filled the tank and purchased a map. You slept through the whole thing. Rather, you snored through the whole thing."
"No one's ever complained before," Midge said.
"Have a lot of girls had the opportunity to hear you snore?" Cherry teased.
Midge blushed, and changed the subject. "I think we're in the Castro," she announced. "Hey, look, there's the police station!"
They were lucky enough to find a parking spot right in front. "How convenient!" Cherry cried. "Maybe our luck is changing."
Midge slunk down in her seat and pulled her jacket collar high above her ears. "Cherry, why don't you go in and ask for Officer Jones? I'll stay out here with the car."
Cherry was frankly puzzled by Midge's strange behavior. She was just about to tease Midge about being shy, when she remembered her earlier reluctance to call the police. "There's something she's not telling me," Cherry decided. "I wonder what it is?"
She hopped out of the car, but not before taking a quick look in the rear view mirror to make sure she was presentable. "Golly, I look tired," she groaned when saw the dark circles under her eyes. She reached for her compact.
"Cherry, let's make this a quick visit," Midge said nervously. "Didn't you say something about breakfast? And you still haven't gotten in touch with your aunt. Besides, you look fine. Really great. Never looked better."
Cherry knew she didn't look her best, but she didn't want to upset Midge any further. "I'll hurry," she said, racing out of the car and up the stairs. Once inside, Cherry looked around in confusion. The noise was deafening. Everywhere, people were talking and telephones were ringing. "Where do I go?" she wondered. She had never been in that kind of place before. "It's kind of scary in here," she thought. "I wish Midge had come with me. What if I run into a real live criminal?"
She walked up to a big, tall girl outfitted in a peach chiffon cocktail dress with a matching bolero jacket. "Excuse me, where would I go to find a particular officer?" she asked, adding, "By the way, I love your gown."
"Thanks. I made it myself," the girl replied, in a startlingly deep voice. "The front desk is right over there," she said, waving her cream-colored elbow-length gloves towards the back of the room.
Cherry thanked the friendly girl. "My, that was an unusually dressy outfit for this early in the morning," she thought, as she made her way to the front desk. "And, although she was very attractive, I'd do something about that mustache."
"Excuse me. I'm looking for Officer Jones," she said to the burly cop sitting behind the desk.
"Her shift doesn't begin for an hour. Come back then." He turned his back and began to type furiously.
"Do you know where I can find her now?" Cherry pressed. "It's really important," she added.
He stopped typing, and glared at Cherry. "I said, come back in an hour."
"Golly, he was uncooperative," she thought as she left, her face flushed with anger. "Why, if I weren't in such a hurry, I'd speak to his superior about his attitude!"
She spied a telephone booth in the corner of the lobby. "As long as I'm here, I might as well call Aunt Gert and tell her I'm in town," Cherry decided. She let the telephone ring for a very long time, thinking that her aunt might be out in her back yard, pruning her fruit trees.
But Aunt Gert never came to the phone. "That's odd!" she cried. "This is the third time I've called and gotten no answer. Aunt Gert knows I'm scheduled to arrive today. She hasn't been home for days. How odd!"
She raced outside and found Midge leaning against the car, looking around frantically. "I'm so relieved to see you!" Midge cried. "I was afraid something happened in there. Did you find Officer Jones?"
Cherry shook her head. "Her shift doesn't start for another forty-five minutes. We'll have to come back then."
"We can't wait any longer!" Midge cried. "Velma's already been missing for twelve hours. We're losing valuable time. We need to find Officer Jones now!"
Someone tapped Cherry on the shoulder. Why, it was the big-boned girl in the beautiful chiffon dress Cherry had met inside.
"I hope you don't think I'm nosy, but I couldn't help overhearing your friend," the stranger said. "I know Officer Jones. She usually has coffee at Flora's Cafe in the mornings. You could try there.
"It's right around the corner," she added helpfully. "It's the place with all the dogs waiting out front."
"Thank you!" Cherry cried gratefully. "You've been a big help."
"Oh, sure, honey," the girl said, waving good-bye.
Midge grabbed Cherry's hand, and they raced to the coffee shop. The place was packed with people drinking coffee and chatting in a leisurely fashion. "They look like they have all the time in the world," said Cherry, thinking about her hectic life as a nurse in a big-city hospital. "Don't these people work?"
Midge suggested that since San Francisco was a drop-off point for the military after the war, there were probably a lot of retired soldiers with time on their hands. "And lots of WACs," she said, elbowing Cherry. "How do you feel about girls in uniform?"
"All that's on my mind right now is finding Officer Jones," Cherry replied, blushing nonetheless. Secretly, she did think girls in uniform looked quite dashing!
"That darn Midge can practically read my mind," Cherry thought.
Midge looked around. "I don't see any police officers," she said.
Cherry pointed out a stocky girl clad in blue serge slacks and shirt and heavy leather boots. What really caught Cherry's eye were the handcuffs hanging from the girl's belt. "That must be Officer Jones!" she exclaimed triumphantly. Before Midge could stop her, Cherry rushed up to the girl.
"I'm a friend of Betty's!" she cried.
The girl grinned and raised one eyebrow. "My, my, my," she said, looking Cherry up and down and smiling. "I'm a friend of Be
tty's too. What's your name?"
Cherry felt a tug at her elbow. It was Midge. "Ixnay, Cherry. You've got the wrong girl," Midge whispered in her ear.
"But... but..." Cherry cried. Midge pulled her over to a table and deposited her in a chair.
"Don't talk to anyone. I'll be right back," she said.
A moment later, Midge returned carrying two cups of steaming coffee and a plate of breakfast rolls.
"I don't understand!" Cherry cried.
"I know, Cherry," Midge laughed.
A red-haired girl at the adjoining table shushed them. She went back to scribbling furiously in her notebook.
"Mind if we sit here?" Midge asked sarcastically.
The girl took a few seconds to answer. She did not appear to be in the best of moods, Cherry noticed.
"I don't care what you do, as long as you do it quietly," she hissed.
"Must be one of those nutty San Francisco writers you're always hearing about," Midge whispered to Cherry. "You know, they sit all day drinking coffee and writing. They don't work or anything. No one has any idea how they live."
"Shhh," Cherry whispered. "She might hear you. I'd feel more comfortable sitting outside. Besides, it's a lovely morning."
They took their coffee and rolls to the front stoop. Cherry settled near a gray and white Sheltie with sky-blue eyes. The dog put her head on Cherry's arm and sighed.
"What's wrong, sweetie?" asked Cherry, breaking off a piece of her roll for the dog. The dog daintily ate the offering and licked Cherry's hand in appreciation. Midge shared her roll with a Pekinese, who was doing tricks for her breakfast.
Midge sighed. "I miss my pets. I miss my girlfriend."
Suddenly someone appeared on the steps behind them. It was the crabby writer. "Too loud?" Midge asked, in a rude manner. Cherry hoped Midge wasn't going to start a fight! She held her breath.
The girl looked chagrined. "I'm a big grouch when I have a deadline," she said in an apologetic way.
Midge looked remorseful. The girl knelt and patted the little blue-eyed dog. "I see you've met Princess," she said.
"She's a beauty," chorused Midge and Cherry.
"Time to go home," the girl said, bending down to unleash her pet. The dog licked her on her nose and off they went.
"Well, there goes a happy couple," Midge said. "Too bad she was so grouchy. She was kind of cute, don't you think, Cherry?"
Cherry blushed and changed the subject quickly. "It must be time to go back to the police station," she said primly, making a big show of checking her watch. "In fact, we should have been there three whole minutes ago," she gasped.
"You go without me," Midge said. "I'll try to get in touch with Betty. Meet me back here."
Cherry raced to the police station and was sorely disappointed to learn that Officer Jones had already been sent out on assignment. "You're welcome to wait, lady," the sergeant said, pointing to a wooden bench already overflowing with impatient people. "But I don't know when she's going to be back."
"No, thanks," Cherry sighed. She persuaded the officer to let her leave a note and walked dejectedly back to the coffee shop. When she got there, Midge was sitting on the front steps, nursing her cup of coffee and looking pretty discouraged.
"Hey," Midge sighed upon spying Cherry. "I can tell you didn't find Officer Jones; it's written all over your face."
"I left a note telling her what we look like and where we're parked. Any luck getting in touch with Betty?" Cherry asked.
Midge shook her head. "I called, but she's out on a case. Our best chance of finding the men who have Velma is to find their car. To do that, we need a cop." Midge shuddered.
Cherry sat on the steps next to Midge. "I called my aunt, but she's not home either. What do we do next?" she asked, but stopped short when she realized she was talking to thin air.
For Midge was bounding up the block and yelling Velma's name!
Cherry panted as she raced up the steep hill behind her.
"I just saw a red convertible speed by," Midge yelled over her shoulder. "And Velma was in the back seat!"
Cherry was grateful she had selected flats as her travel shoes, otherwise she would have never been able to keep up with Midge as she raced up the steep Castro Street hill.
"Quick! Let's go back and get the car. If we hurry, we might be able to catch them!" Midge cried. She took off back down the hill with Cherry close behind her.
But when they reached Cherry's car, a police officer blocked their way. "What's going on?" Cherry cried.
"We're impounding a stolen car, miss," the officer replied in a peremptory manner.
"But that's my car," she asserted.
"Can you prove it?" asked the police officer.
Cherry went to the glove box and found it wide open. "That's odd," she said. "I distinctly remember having shut this." A closer inspection revealed that someone had tampered with it. Cherry's registration, title and pad of paper containing all her San Francisco information were gone!
Cherry looked under the floor mat and between the seats, but her search was futile. "Someone's stolen my registration!" she cried.
"Something's been stolen, all right, and I think I'm looking at the thieves!" said the police officer, glaring at Cherry and Midge. "Come with me, girls. You're under arrest!"
Midge, who was usually quick to fly off the handle, remained surprisingly calm. "But officer," she said, her voice as sweet as pie, "surely you don't think we're thieves." Was it Cherry's imagination, or did she just catch Midge batting her eyelashes?
"We're nurses ...er, Girl Scout nurses, in San Francisco to attend a Girl Scout Jamboree and teach first-aid techniques."
Cherry was speechless at Midge's sudden fabrication.
"Well," said the cop, looking skeptical. "Can you prove it?"
"Er...ah..." Midge fudged for time. Cherry's mind raced. Suddenly, she had it.
"Our nurse's uniforms are in the trunk of our car-check for yourself!" she cried. Phew!
The police officer agreed to check the trunk. He first opened Midge's bag. Cherry puzzled over the pair of handcuffs he found.
"Oh, those are for a lifesaving technique," said Midge, pocketing the cuffs. "We keep our uniforms in there," she said, pointing to Cherry's white leather suitcase.
Indeed, inside the bag were two freshly-starched nurse's uniforms and two matching caps. Two pairs of freshly polished white shoes were tucked in a shoe bag in the bottom of the suitcase.
"Well, it certainly looks like you're nurses," said a cop, a grin breaking over his burly face. "Say, my daughter's a Girl Scout-where did you say your jamboree was?"
Cherry, who wasn't even sure what a jamboree was, kept her mouth shut. This time Midge groped for an answer.
"Uh...uh..."
"Causing more trouble, huh, girls?" It was the grouchy writer from the coffee shop, and her little dog, too.
"What's wrong, officer; what did these two do?" the girl asked.
"You know these girls?" he asked.
The writer grinned. "Sure I do; we're old pals."
"And they're Girl Scouts?"
"Absolutely."
Then the girl did a very queer thing. She put down her book bag and sang a song to the tune of "Fri re Jacques"; a little off-key but charming, nonetheless:
There was applause all around, even from passersby.
The police officer looked chagrined. "Well, girls, I guess the stolen auto report was a prank. Sorry to have bothered you." He tipped his hat and strolled away.
"But wait!" Cherry cried. "Someone has stolen my car papers." But she was too late, for the police officer had already ducked into a nearby donut shop.
"Velma's kidnappers have a lot of nerve reporting us to the police as car thieves," Midge snarled. She clenched her fists. "If I could just get my hands on them! By now, I'm sure they're miles away from here. I guess we're stuck here until Officer Jones arrives. When we do find her, we'll insist she immediately run a check on the license number of the c
ar!" Midge fumbled through her jacket pockets. "Jeez, I wish I had a cigarette."
She found a butt on the floor of the car and lit it. Cherry examined herself in the car window. "I'm so rumpled," she wailed. She look at her wrinkled outfit with dismay. "If only Aunt Gert were home, we could at least have a place to freshen up. I'd sure love to change my clothes," she wished aloud.
"Actually, Cherry, this would be a good time for you to change your clothes," Midge agreed. She crushed the cigarette under her black penny loafers. "Follow me!"
"What is she up to?" Cherry wondered. Midge didn't strike her as the type to worry about anyone's appearance, especially in the middle of a mystery!
"Where are we going?" Cherry asked as she walked behind Midge. "Does it involve running?" Cherry groaned. "It does, doesn't it?"
* * *
CHAPTER 12
* * *
A New Identity
"If I'm going to change my clothes, shouldn't I have my suitcase?" Cherry asked.
"Cherry, I had a terrible realization back there. If those thugs see you, they'll know they've got the wrong girl and then they might come after you. Why, they might even harm Velma if they think she's of no use to them!" Midge added.
Cherry gasped. "What a horrible thought!" she cried. "We've got to do something."
Midge nodded. "I think the best way to protect both you and Velma is to disguise you somehow."
"I could tie a scarf over my head and get some dark glasses," Cherry said.
Midge shook her head. "You'll just look like someone who's trying to hide," she said. "We need to make you look so different that even your own mother wouldn't recognize you."
Midge pushed Cherry through the doorway of Mr. Harold's House of Hair. Cherry had a funny feeling something very queer was about to happen.
"What can I do for you girls?" asked a man in a crisp babyblue smock.
"My friend needs a haircut," Midge said. "And we're in a bit of a hurry."
"I'll see if Mr. Harold is available," he said politely, disappearing through flowered curtains in the back of the room. He returned a moment later. "You're in luck," he smiled. "There's been a cancellation. Mr. Harold can see you right now."