“He didn’t have any identification on him,” the officer explained. “We had to match his fingerprints to the ones on file, and that took a while.”
“So what you’re saying . . .” Nancy began as the realization dawned on her.
Oscarson nodded. “Mrs. Morgan went to a lot of trouble for nothing. Her secret would have been safe if she’d just waited it out.”
Colleen’s whole body shook. “My life is over!” she sobbed as the three officers with Lieutenant Oscarson led her up the stairs. After making arrangements for Nancy and her friends to go to the station to make statements the following morning, Lieutenant Oscarson left.
“Well,” Nancy said, turning to her friends, “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m exhausted.”
“Let’s go,” Ned agreed, taking Nancy’s hand.
The group left the inn and headed for the parking lot. But before they could get in their cars, they heard the sound of blaring rock music.
“What’s that?” Bess asked as the bright headlights of a car appeared from around the bend. A string of headlights followed the first car, and soon the parking lot was nearly full.
“Blaster!” Nancy shouted as the deejay hopped out of the first car. “What are you doing here?”
Blaster grinned. “When people started leaving, we figured the party was moving, so we packed up our stuff and came, too!”
His eyes widened as he suddenly noticed Julie standing nearby, hand in hand with Andrew. “I guess you guys got back together,” he said gruffly. “I hope you’ll be happy.”
Then he turned quickly and said to the teens who were getting out of the other cars, “As long as the party’s here, there’s no reason why we can’t keep it going. Let’s dance!”
Despite the cold, the teens spread out over the parking lot, moving to the catchy beat.
“Do you want to stay for the party?” Ned asked, looking down at Nancy. “If you’re tired, maybe we should leave.”
Smiling up at her boyfriend, Nancy said, “You know, I think I’m getting my second wind.” Her blue eyes sparkled as she added, “This music’s a little fast, though. I was hoping for something more romantic.”
“That can be arranged,” Ned said. He wrapped his arms carefully around Nancy, and she let her head rest against his shoulder. Then, softly, the two of them swayed together in the parking lot to music that only they could hear.
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.
Simon Pulse
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
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Copyright © 1992 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
ISBN: 978-0-6717-3071-0 (pbk)
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