The Dashing Dog Mystery (2 page)

Rex went up to the front counter and rang a loud bell. Several dogs began barking. “Attention, please!” Rex shouted.

The barking dogs were shushed by their owners. The room fell silent.

“I have an announcement to make,” Rex went on. “At four o'clock—”

But Rex didn't get a chance to finish. He was interrupted by a loud scream from the back of the room!

Who screamed?” Bess cried out. “What happened?”

Nancy whirled around. She saw a boy in the back of the room, inching away from a big Doberman. The Doberman was sniffing the boy's feet. All around the room, more dogs began to bark.

A middle-aged woman broke through the crowd and went rushing up to the boy. She was wearing a black dress with an expensive-looking diamond necklace. Nancy remembered seeing her the last time she
was at the Dashing Dog. Her name was Mrs. Vanderpool.

“Come on,” Nancy whispered to Bess and George. “Let's see what's going on.” The three friends followed Mrs. Vanderpool.

Mrs. Vanderpool stopped in front of the boy and put her hands on her hips. “Lucas!” she exclaimed. “Why did you disturb Mr. Rumford's speech like that?”

“I'm sorry, Grandma,” Lucas apologized. “But that mean dog tried to jump up on me.” He pointed to the Doberman.

“Lucas, that is what dogs do,” Mrs. Vanderpool said sharply. “They jump up on people. All you had to do was to tell the nice Doberman to get his paws off you and go play somewhere else. It's very simple.”

“But, Grandma—” Lucas protested.

Just then two tiny Yorkies ran up to Mrs. Vanderpool. They were wearing matching red sweaters, and they had little red bows on their heads.

“My babies!” Mrs. Vanderpool cried out. She scooped them up and clasped them to her chest. “Hello, Muffy. Hello, Buffy. Aren't
you the most precious babies in the world? Yes, you are! Does your mommy love you? Yes, she does!” The Yorkies began yipping and squirming in her arms.

“Is your grandson okay, Mrs. Vander-pool?” Rex called out.

“Yes, he's fine, thank you,” Mrs. Van-derpool said, waving one hand. She frowned at Lucas and added, “I'm going to personally apologize to Mr. Rumford for your behavior.” Then she turned and marched up to the front counter. The Yorkies were still yipping and squirming in her arms.

“Ankle biters,” George muttered.

Nancy glanced at Lucas. He had blond hair and big brown eyes. He seemed to be the same age as Nancy and her friends.

“Hi, Lucas, I'm Nancy. And these are my friends Bess and George,” Nancy said. “Hey, are you okay?”

Lucas stared down at the ground and kicked a doggie ball with his foot. “I guess so.”

“That mean Doberman!” Bess said sympathetically.
“I'd scream, too, if he jumped up on me.”

Lucas smiled shyly. “I don't like dogs,” he admitted. He stole a quick glance at his grandmother. She was across the room talking to Rex. “Don't tell
her
that, though,” he added. “I like cats. I have two of them back home.”

“Where do you live?” Nancy asked him.

“Chicago. I'm visiting Grandma for a week,” Lucas replied.

Rex rang the loud bell again. “Ahem. Excuse me, everyone. Now, as I was saying. At four o'clock, which is in just ten minutes, we will be raffling off a beautiful jeweled doggie collar. It's made by local artist Stella Sipowitz. Here's Stella now, with the collar!”

A tall, dark-haired woman dressed in a red velvet cape joined Rex. She held up a red leather collar that was studded with rhinestones shaped like bones.

“This collar is part of a new line of special things for today's dashing dog,” Stella announced. “More of my collars, coats, and
leashes are on sale here at the Dashing Dog Pet Salon. But this particular collar is one of a kind. So if
you're
the lucky raffle winner, your pooch will be the proud owner of a completely unique and original work of art!”

“Wow!” Nancy whispered excitedly to Bess and George. “That collar would look really great on Chip.”

Rex raised his hands and clapped. “Thank you, Stella. Ladies and gentlemen, if you haven't already filled out your entry slips, please do so right now. The slips are right here on the counter. Fill out your name and phone number. Then put the slip in the jar. And remember—one slip per person, please. No exceptions!”

Everyone began rushing up to the front counter. “Did you fill out your entry slip yet?” Bess asked Nancy.

Nancy shook her head. “Not yet. Let's do that now.”

Nancy, Bess, and George walked over to the front counter. Nancy filled out her entry slip with a black pen that was lying
next to the raffle jar. When she was done, Bess took the pen from her. She started filling out an entry slip, too.

“But you don't have a dog, Bess,” Nancy said, surprised.

Bess shrugged. “I know. But if I win, I could always give the collar to Chip as a Christmas present.”

“Oh, that is so sweet!” Nancy exclaimed. “Chip would love that.”

“I'll do that, too,” George said. “Wouldn't it be cool if one of us won the collar for Chip?”

Hearing her name, Chip came bounding up to the girls. “Hi, Chip! Are you having fun?” Nancy asked her.

Chip jumped up on Nancy's leg and wagged her tail happily. “I think the answer is yes,” Nancy said, giggling.

“Excuse me, are you done yet or what?”

Nancy turned around at the sound of the familiar voice. Petra Wylie was standing behind her. She looked annoyed.

“Other people need to fill out their entry slips, too,” Petra snapped. She nodded at
the black pen, which George was holding. “And there's only one pen.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.” George finished up her entry slip and put it in the raffle jar.

Nancy glanced down. Standing at Petra's feet was a small white dog with brown spots.

“Is that your dog, Petra?” Nancy asked her.

“Yes,” Petra said.

Nancy reached her hand down to let the dog sniff it. “Wow, she's so cute. What kind is she?”

The dog growled at Nancy. Nancy quickly pulled her hand back.

“It's a
he,”
Petra replied. “And he's a Jack Russell terrier. His name is Prince Fabian. I'm going to win the collar for him.”

Bess crossed her arms over her chest. “No, I don't think so, because
we're
going to win the collar for Chocolate Chip!”

Nancy glanced at the raffle jar. “There are lots and lots of entry slips in there. Maybe
none
of us will win.”

“We'll see!” Petra bent down and began
filling out an entry slip with big, loopy letters.

Chip bounded off in the direction of Café Bone Appétit. “I think Chip's trying to tell us something,” Nancy said.

“I agree with Chip.” Bess grinned. “It's snack time. Wait up, Chip!”

The three girls squeezed through the crowd. At the café they ordered muffins and hot chocolate for themselves. Nancy ordered a bowl of doggie treats for Chip.

As they ate, Nancy glanced across the room at the raffle jar. She saw that Mrs. Vanderpool was filling out an entry slip. The “Pet Corner” columnist, Alice Cahill, was standing next to her. She was filling out an entry slip, too.

Just as Nancy and her friends were finishing up their snacks, Rex rang the bell again.

“It's four o'clock, time for the raffle!” he announced. He reached into the jar and stirred the entry slips with his fingers. Then he covered his eyes with one hand and grabbed one of the slips.

Bess was bouncing up and down with excitement. “I have my fingers
double
crossed for good luck,” she told Nancy and George.

“Mine are
triple
crossed,” George said.

Slowly Rex removed the slip from the jar. He unfolded it. “And the winner is . . .”

Nancy, Bess, and George held their breath.

“Nancy Drew!” Rex announced. “Come on up here, Nancy!”

“Ohmigosh!” Nancy exclaimed.

Bess grabbed her hand and began jumping up and down. “You won, Nancy! You won!” she cried out.

Everyone in the room clapped. Dogs yipped and ran around in circles.

Nancy walked across the room to the front counter. Rex had set the collar on a black velvet cushion. Up close, it was even more beautiful. The bone-shaped rhinestones sparkled brightly against the red leather of the collar.

“Congratulations, Nancy,” Rex said. “I hope your dog will enjoy this very special collar.”

“Thank you,” Nancy said, smiling. “She will.”

Rex excused himself to welcome some guests who had just arrived. Just then Petra came marching up to Nancy. “I should have won that collar, and you know it!” she snapped. “It would look a lot better on Prince Fabian than on your . . . your . . . little brown mutt.”

“That is a really mean thing to say,” Nancy shot back.

“Humph!” Petra stuck her nose in the air and marched away. Prince Fabian followed obediently.

“Ignore her,” George whispered to Nancy. “She's a spoiled brat.”

Nancy nodded. “She sure is.”

“Excuse me!”

Nancy turned around. Mrs. Vanderpool was standing there, smiling sweetly.

“Excuse me,” Mrs. Vanderpool repeated in a low voice. “Nancy, is it? How much do you want for that collar? I
must
have it for one of my Yorkies.”

Nancy was surprised by Mrs. Vanderpool's
request. “Thank you, but it's not for sale,” she said.

Mrs. Vanderpool stopped smiling. “Well!”

After she had gone, Bess said,
“Everyone
seems to want the collar.”

“Yes, but it's Chip's,” Nancy stated firmly. “We won it fair and square.”

“That's right!” George agreed.

Nancy glanced at her watch. “Hannah will be picking us up in about twenty minutes,” she said to her friends. “Let's check out the rest of the salon.”

“Good idea,” Bess said. George nodded.

Leaving Chip to play with a couple of other Labs, the girls began walking around the salon.

They saw the Shampooch Room. Rex was demonstrating his new line of bathing products on a really wet golden retriever.

They saw the Doggie Den, where a bunch of dogs were sitting on an overstuffed couch. They were watching cartoons about dogs chasing cats.

The Dashing Dog also had an outside
area. In it were a covered run, kennels, and a big patch of dirt. Petra's dog, Prince Fabian, was chasing a couple of other terriers up and down the run.

After a while the girls went back inside. The crowd had thinned somewhat. Nancy headed over to the counter so she could pick up the collar. Hannah would be arriving in just a few minutes.

Nancy got to the counter—and gasped. The black velvet cushion was there. But the collar was gone!

Nancy glanced around the salon. The collar was nowhere to be seen.

Bess and George were standing nearby, checking out a display of doggie sweaters. “Bess! George!” she cried out.

“What's the matter?” George asked her.

Nancy pointed to the velvet cushion. “The collar is gone!” she announced.

“What!” Bess gasped.

Rex Rumford happened to pass by at that moment. His sleeves were rolled up, and his hands were still wet with shampoo and dog
fur. “Hi, ladies. Are you enjoying yourselves?” he called out cheerfully.

“Mr. Rumford, have you seen my Stella Sipowitz collar?” Nancy asked him. “I left it here, and now it's gone.”

Rex stopped in his tracks and frowned. “There must be some mistake.”

“No, it's definitely gone,” Nancy insisted.

“Hmm, well, maybe someone picked it up by mistake and set it down somewhere,” Rex said.

The four of them searched the area around the counter. There was no sign of the collar. Then they searched every inch of the salon. Chip trailed along, sniffing like a bloodhound.

But the four of them—plus Chip—had no luck finding the collar. It was definitely gone.

Nancy glanced around the salon, trying to figure out who might have seen the collar. But a lot of the guests had left, including Petra, Mrs. Vanderpool, and Lucas.

Alice Cahill stopped Nancy near the
doorway of the Doggie Lounge. Her green pen was poised over her notepad.

“Excuse me, but did I hear you say that your collar is missing?” she said eagerly. “I'm Alice Cahill. I write the 'Pet Corner' column for the
River Heights Gazette.
I'd
love
to have a quote from you for my column.”

“A quote?” Nancy asked her.

Alice nodded. “Yes. As in, what do you think happened to your collar? Do you think there's a thief on the loose? Is River Heights being hit by a wave of doggie-collar crime? Do tell!” She glanced at her poodle, who was gnawing on a black leather backpack. “Pierre, you leave that nice backpack alone!”