by Mabel Maney
"Who wouldn't like Jackie, what with her keen mind, powerful build, good looks, and warm, winning ways?" Cherry thought. In fact, Cherry's boss, Head Nurse Margaret Marstad, had begun a romance with the dapper detective the very first night they'd met!
"Your timing couldn't be any better," Midge grinned, slapping Jackie on the back.
Cherry beamed. Somehow she always felt so secure when Jackie was around. She didn't know if it was her well-developed biceps or the gun strapped in its leather case, which Jackie wore slung low over one hip. She didn't exactly know what it was, but she knew, all of a sudden, she just felt better!
They introduced Jackie to Bess and George, who were impressed to meet a police detective from a big city like San Francisco!
"Is that a real gun?" Bess tittered.
Jackie grinned. "How about a cup of good, strong coffee, and then I'll let you touch it."
Midge set a pot of water to boil while Bess bustled about the kitchen, preparing a scrumptious meal. Soon the room was flooded with the most delicious smells.
"I flew all night in a cargo plane to get here," Jackie said wearily as she settled into a kitchen chair. "We stopped at every big city between San Francisco and Springfield. Then I had to take three buses to get to River Depths because no cab driver would pick me up. Why, the way people stared, you'd think they'd never seen anyone like me before in Illinois!"
Bess almost dropped an egg when she heard this. "How horrid," she cried. "I hope you don't think all Illinoisans are like that!"
"I don't understand," Cherry exclaimed in a puzzled tone. "Did you tell them you were a decorated police detective? Did you show them your gold badge?" Cherry smiled when she remembered that after Jackie's swearing-in ceremony the brand-new detective had let Cherry pin her muchcoveted shield on her dress for just a minute. She knew Jackie felt the same way about her badge that Cherry felt about her nurse's cap. They were symbols of the lifelong commitments they had made to serve the public.
"That's probably why I feel so close to Jackie," Cherry reasoned. "We have the same desire to help others."
"I imagine that out here the color of my skin counts more than the color of my badge," Jackie said in a disgusted tone. She waved her hand as if dismissing a pesky fly. "Tell me what's happened since I jumped ship," she commanded.
"First, you eat," Cherry said, putting a plate of just-perfect fried eggs, sizzling ham, and tasty toast in front of her chum. The others helped themselves to food from the stove, and soon they were sitting around the table, emptying cups of coffee as fast as Bess could refill them, and munching happily on the delicious food.
Jackie finally pushed away her plate and rolled up her shirt sleeves. "Now tell me what I've missed," she said in a calm, authoritative tone that sent shivers down Cherry's spine.
Cherry thrilled to the sight of the strong girl taking charge. She was frankly relieved to finally be getting some pro fessional help! "We're in a real pickle here," she proclaimed passionately.
"Tell me everything," Jackie said in a sympathetic tone. She took her detective's notebook and a pen from her inside jacket pocket.
In a trembling tone, Nancy brought Jackie up to date on the events of the last few days. "Surely you've read the scandalous things the newspapers are printing about Hannah," she said.
Jackie nodded.
"I couldn't take it any longer, so in Wyoming I called the Chief to confess to killing Father. He was so understanding and kind; he wasn't at all angry with me. Then when I told him I had evidence that would prove my father's crime, he got all excited and asked me where it was. He said he would take care of everything."
"And you told him where to find your evidence," Jackie quizzed her.
Nancy nodded. "But then someone broke in here and stole it! "
Jackie looked suspicious, but said nothing.
"I fully expected Hannah to be here when I got home, and when she wasn't, I went to the Chief's office to find out what was going on. He acted as though I had never spoken to him!" Nancy blurted out.
"My theory is that the person Nancy spoke to over the telephone was an impostor," Cherry added. "Midge speculated that the Chief was abducted by aliens."
Jackie shot Midge a swift grin. Midge just rolled her eyes.
Jackie grew grim again as she took a moment to review their statements. Then she slowly went back over the chain of events.
"On Saturday you called the Chief, confessed to murdering your father, and told him where you had hidden the evidence that would clear you."
"Or some impostor pretending to be the Chief," Cherry interjected.
"Or some impostor," Jackie smiled a little.
Nancy nodded.
"Then, that very same night, someone broke in here and stole your evidence," Jackie repeated. "Evidence that was in a secret hiding place that only you and the Chief-or the impostor-knew about."
"That's correct," Nancy said.
Jackie frowned and made a notation in her notebook. "What else has happened?"
"We just had a visit from some miffed matrons," Cherry remembered.
"They took back their casseroles," Bess added as she spread some of Hannah's heavenly homemade marmalade on a piece of toast and popped it into her mouth.
Jackie looked puzzled. "Miffed matrons? Casseroles?" she said.
Nancy explained. "Mrs. Meeks and Mrs. Tweeds; they're the ones who brought us food."
"Meat loaf A la king and tuna salad," Bess said wistfully.
"Well, they're peeved because somehow they found out I tried to get Hannah out of jail. Mrs. Meeks is one of the biggest gossips in town," Nancy said angrily. "And to think that not a year ago I risked my neck helping her rid her mansion of a ghost! "
"Who turned out to be her nefarious nephew determined to drive her mad," Bess added when she saw the alarmed expression on Cherry's face.
"Tell Jackie about the blackmailer," Cherry urged Nancy.
"Wait a minute! You're being blackmailed?" Jackie pricked up her ears. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Have you received letters asking for money? Threatening phone calls?"
Nancy quickly told Jackie about the ominous phone call she had received at the DoubleD Motor Lodge, warning her to stay away from River Depths lest a tragic fate befall her.
"And we were followed by jewel thieves, too," Cherry blurted out. Then, to Cherry's utter mortification, Midge explained in detail how the thieves had come to follow them across the plains states.
"It's not unusual for thieves to target travelers," Jackie when she saw how red Cherry had become. "Especially ones as wellgroomed and fashionably dressed as you girls," she nodded at Cherry, Nancy, and Velma. "I'll do my best to track down your mother's brooch," she tried to comfort Nancy.
Cherry smiled. She knew Jackie would be relentless in her pursuit of justice!
"Hypers," George cried. "I just remembered something. Milton Meeks is the judge that will try Hannah's case!"
"Wait a minute; there's something else," Nancy concen trated hard. So much of what had happened the day before was still a fog. Suddenly, the frightful words she had heard in the bar echoed in her ears. She repeated them for her friends.
" 'It's too bad Miss Gruel's been assigned Gerald Gloon to defend her. Why, everyone knows he's just about the worst lawyer this side of the Mississippi!' "
"Doesn't Gloon work for the district attorney?" Bess wondered aloud.
"He quit a week ago to take a job at the Public Defender's office," George said, adding, "I think his timing is highly suspicious."
"Hannah doesn't stand a ghost of a chance! " Nancy cried.
Jackie nodded her head. "It seems like a perfect frame-up," she said, "except for one thing."
"What?" the girls chorused.
"There's a signed confession and iron-clad evidence, right?"
The girls nodded.
"If they've got such great evidence, why are they going to such lengths to make sure Hannah is convicted?" Jackie wanted to know. "Why give her a lousy l
awyer to boot? What are they really worried about?"
Cherry looked to Midge for an answer.
"I'm not saying a word," Midge groaned.
"I think they're worried the truth about Mr. Clue will come out," Jackie finally suggested.
"But how could that be?" Cherry gasped. "That would mean there are people who would rather see an innocent woman go to jail than to acknowledge the truth!"
Jackie nodded. Her expression was grim. "Nancy, has it ever occurred to you that the Chief might be behind all this? Think of it. He's the only one with the opportunity and the knowledge to commit the theft of your evidence."
"There's got to be some other explanation for it!" Nancy cried. "I can't possibly believe the Chief is plotting to harm me."
"Okay," Jackie abruptly quit her line of questioning. She shot Midge a knowing wink.
"I'll investigate some other leads," she said. "But first, I think you should find a good lawyer and stall this trial a few days; long enough for us get your evidence back," Jackie declared.
"I tried that!" Nancy cried. "After I escaped from Deputy Drone, I went to every law office in town, and no one would even speak to me! That's why I didn't come home all day; I was so discouraged at having failed I couldn't face anyone."
"My uncle in nearby Lakeview is a lawyer," Bess cried out. "George and I will drive to his office and beg him to defend Hannah." She and George raced out the door. "We'll be back soon-and with good news," they declared.
"Surely Bess's uncle will defend Hannah," Cherry said. "Things are looking up already!" A sudden crash from upstairs made her jump. "It's the jewel thieves, back for more!" Cherry cried as she gripped Jackie's arm.
"Help, I'm stuck," a faint voice called out from somewhere above their heads.
"Lauren?" they cried in unison. Midge raced up the stairs with the others right behind her. They made a quick search of the two second-floor bedrooms, but Lauren was nowhere to be found. Gogo, who had last been seen hours earlier, basking in a sunny spot in the living room, suddenly appeared at Midge's side. "Where did you come from, girl?" Midge asked, giving the terrier a pat on the head. The dog playfully nipped at Midge's ankle, raced out of the room and down the hall. She stopped short, faced the wall, and gave a fierce little bark.
"That's the entryway to our secret attic room; Lauren must be up there!" Nancy exclaimed, running to Gogo's side. "Good girl," she murmured, before opening the panel leading to the third floor. The door was easy to overlook as it was fashioned of the same white wainscoting that lined the rest of the second-floor hallway.
"Lauren must be awfully sneaky to have found this secret passage at all," Nancy mused.
"She does have her good points," Midge admitted.
"No one is supposed to know this room exists," Nancy added. "Father caught me and George up here once, and, boy, was he angry!" She led the way up the rickety wooden stairs and into a dark, dusty room. A small bit of light streamed in through the dormer window at the one end of the room. It was just enough to make out the figure of their young friend, who was sprawled on the floor face down, pinned under a large painting!
Jackie and Midge hastily lifted the ornately framed painting off Lauren, and Cherry efficiently checked their young chum for broken bones.
"Lie still," Cherry ordered in a firm, professional tone that surprised Lauren so much that for once she didn't argue.
"I'm okay," Lauren grumbled as Cherry gently rolled her over on her back. The minute Lauren spied Jackie, she cried, "Yikes, I confess! I was snooping around where I don't belong! " She held out her hands, wrist up. "You can cuff me and take me to jail now," Lauren said dramatically.
They laughed at the sight of the young girl's serious expression. "What am I going to arrest you for, being dusty and disorderly?" Jackie chuckled.
Lauren was indeed a sight, covered from head to toe in cobwebs. Cherry helped the trembling girl to her feet.
"You could have really injured yourself, Lauren," she scolded her young friend. "You're just lucky we found you."
"What are you doing up here, anyway?" Jackie asked.
"What are you doing here?" Lauren asked Jackie.
Jackie looked troubled and quickly changed the subject. "You first," she ordered.
"Oh, I was just goofing around," Lauren replied, adding hastily, "I didn't hurt anything. I thought I saw a bat or something," she explained, looking up into the dark rafters. "When I jumped, I knocked over that picture and it fell on me."
Cherry was frightened. There could very well be bats in the attic! She took a step closer to Jackie. Jackie, sensing her alarm, put a reassuring arm around her chum.
The girls turned their attention to the ornate, gilt-framed painting that had almost crushed their young friend. "It's almost impossible to make it out in this dim light, but it appears to be a portrait," Cherry remarked. "From the looks of it, it's been hidden up here for many years."
"Ah-chooo!" Lauren sneezed suddenly. Cherry was searching her pockets for a clean handkerchief when she heard Midge cry, "Look! It's a portrait of you, Nancy!" Lauren's sneeze had blown away just enough dust from the painting so they could make out a face. Midge lit a match, and they took a closer look.
The girl in the portrait had the same sparkling blue eyes, infectious grin, and lovely titian hair as Nancy. It was Nancy, but at the same time, it wasn't.
"That's not me, that's Mother!" Nancy cried.
"You look just like her," Cherry gasped.
The shrill ringing of the phone startled them. "I wonder who that could be?" Nancy mused as she raced down the stairs.
"Let's cover this portrait with those old draperies in the corner and leave this spooky place," Cherry proposed. She was still a little worried about those bats!
"Jackie?" It was Nancy, calling from downstairs. "The telephone's for you. It's Head Nurse Margaret Marstad calling from Seattle!"
"Nurse Marstad's calling you all the way from Seattle? How romantic!" Cherry cried in delight. It was so exciting the way those two had fallen in love. But she changed her mind when she saw the angry expression that flashed across Jackie's handsome face.
Could it be that their romance was on the rocks?
* * *
CHAPTER 38
* * *
A Scandalous Story
The girls sat in the kitchen, holding their breath as they waited for Jackie to emerge from the den where she had been talking furiously on the telephone for twenty minutes. Midge, Velma, Cherry, and Nancy strained to overhear Jackie's end of the conversation.
"What's she saying now?" Velma whispered.
"All I hear is, `yes, no, yes, no,' " Midge whispered back. "But, boy, from the sound of it, Jackie sure seems angry."
"It isn't nice to eavesdrop," Cherry thought guiltily. But, after all, they were only concerned about their friend.
As soon they heard the slam of the telephone receiver, they pretended to be engrossed in other things. Midge lit a cigarette, Nancy ran to the sink and filled a glass with water, Velma jumped behind the ironing board, and Cherry ran to the refrigerator and peered intently inside. "How about a gelatin dessert tonight?" she asked brightly as Jackie strode into the kitchen and dropped into a chair.
"Cigarette?" Midge asked. Jackie nodded, lit one, and took a few short puffs before dashing it out in the nearest saucer.
"I forgot-I quit," she said ruefully. She put her face in her hands and sighed.
"Everything okay?" Midge asked.
Jackie groaned. "That nurse is driving me crazy," she said.
Cherry gasped. Was Jackie talking about Head Nurse Margaret Marstad, the most efficient and professional head nurse it had ever been Cherry's privilege to work under?
The girls stopped pretending they were otherwise engaged and sat down. "What's happened?" they gasped.
"We've broken up," Jackie admitted.
Tears came to Cherry's emerald-green eyes. Could it be true? She didn't know what to say. Why, Nurse Marstad and Jackie seemed so right fo
r each other! "Don't you love her anymore?"
Cherry cried, her bottom lip all aquiver. "Golly, Nurse Marstad must be heartbroken!" she cried. She was tempted to dash to the telephone and call Seattle, but the look on Jackie's face stopped her. Why, Jackie was struggling mightily to hold back tears!
"It's not that," Jackie said in a shaky voice. "It's just that-" Jackie shook her head.
"I must know!" Cherry cried. Had Nurse Marstad done something to tarnish her shiny image?
"Let me say first that I believe Peg is one fine nurse," Jackie said.
Cherry nodded. Why, Nurse Marstad was practically her nurse hero!
"But as a girlfriend, she leaves a lot to be desired," Jackie added in an unmistakably bitter tone.
Cherry gasped in alarm. What could Jackie possibly mean? "What do you mean?" Cherry asked anxiously.
Lauren picked that moment to arrive in the kitchen, fresh and shiny from her bath. She had, however, neglected to brush the dust from her long auburn hair, usually worn in a single braid but now falling freely over her shoulders and in need of a good scrubbing. Cherry sent her back to the bathroom with orders "to do something about that rat's nest on your head." With Lauren safely out of earshot, Cherry demanded an answer. "Tell me what's happened," she urged her chum, adding, "People are so hesitant to let me in on anything unpleasant. After all, I am a nurse in a big-city hospital. I see lots of not-so-nice things. Honest!"
"Give us the scoop, Jack," Midge said. She put a fresh cup of coffee in front of Jackie.
"Peg already has a girlfriend," Jackie blurted out, adding, "It's a fact she neglected to mention during any of our dates."
"Are you sure?" Cherry cried. "Maybe there's just been some awful mistake. Yes, that's it. A case of mistaken identity or a terrible rumor. There must be some explanation."
"I know for a fact that she has a girl because she walked in on us one afternoon in the head nurse's dormitory."
"Someone at the wrong door, perhaps," Cherry said, searching for a logical explanation. Anything but that one!