The Eskimo's Secret (9 page)

“You’re a part of this, too,” Nancy reminded him. “After all, the Tundra is your heritage.” “And the treasures could give my people a real chance,” Ben agreed. “If they had those carvings back, they could sell some and build the school and the other things they need in Seal Bay. The settlement never really recovered from what Cole did to it when he was trying to force the artists to sell him their works.”

“What do you mean?” Nancy asked, stopping for a moment to catch her breath on the long climb.

“There’s nothing there for the young people. I left as soon as I could and so do many of the others. It’s a town without a future, unless something is done. I think my grandfather was beginning to realize that and to feel guilty toward the end. I just wish he’d entrusted the secret to someone else—someone who could solve the riddle of the Tundra.”

“We’ll solve it,” Nancy assured him with more confidence than she truly felt. “Just as soon as we get it back.”

“That’s what I like,” Alana said. “Confidence!”

They waited while Nancy peeled the tape off the door, then followed her down the hall to her room. Nancy handed Ben the key she’d just gotten from the desk clerk. “Your room is right there,” she said, indicating the door next to hers, “but why don’t you come in with us first. Maybe we can come up with a plan.”

“I hope you have some ideas,” Alana said as Nancy unlocked the door. “I, for one, have just about run out. She stopped as Nancy grabbed her arm. “What is it?”

“I’m sure I turned off the lights when I left,” Nancy said, looking around. Then she saw it— a small tape player resting on the dresser, waiting for them.

“Let me check,” Ben said, moving past the two girls to look in the bath and closet. “There’s no

one here,” he told them. “Maybe you just forgot about the lights.”

Nancy shook her head. “They’ve been here,” she said. “They just made a delivery.”

“What do you mean?” Alana asked.

Nancy crossed to the dresser and looked down at the tape player. “They brought this,” she replied.

“A message?” Ben asked.

“Or instructions,” Nancy suggested.

“For what?” Alana looked pale. “Do you think they know you’ve found me?”

Nancy shrugged. “Your car was at the lodge,” she reminded her. “I’m sure they saw it after we left, even if they didn’t notice it before.”

“What are we going to do?” Ben inquired.

“I guess the only way we’ll know for sure what’s going on is to play this,” Nancy said. “We might as well sit down and relax.”

They settled themselves about the room, but no one was relaxed. Nancy pressed the button with a real feeling of fear—for her father and for her friends.

“Nancy.” The voice was her father’s and she felt a quick swelling of relief just hearing it. “I’ve explained to these . . . gentlemen that they must allow you to make some business calls for me. The various cases I was handling in Seattle all included appointments I either missed today or will miss tomorrow.

“These matters are crucial to the clients and if they cannot reach me by telephone for an ex-planation, several of them will be angry enough to call the police and institute a manhunt. My kidnappers have no desire for the spotlight at this time. I will give you a list of clients, phone numbers, and messages to be delivered.” “Clients?” Nancy whispered. “We were working on one case, and I’ve already talked to her.”

“It is imperative, Nancy, that you spread oil on the waters with these people and convince them that I am working on their cases. Just be sure you don’t tell one about the others. Let each one think I’m working exclusively for him or her.”

The tone and voice were smooth and businesslike, the instructions given as concisely as though her father were sitting at the desk before her. All that was wrong was that the instructions concentrated on clients and cases that didn’t exist.

The list of names, numbers, and messages went on for several minutes, then her father sighed, “That’s it, Nancy, if you can handle the ACB s of my clients, we can progress with what has to be done to win my freedom.” The tape ended.

“What’s wrong, Nancy?” Alana asked.

Nancy shook her head and laughed, rewinding the tape. “Nothing is wrong,” she said. “In fact something is very right, if I can just make sense of this.”

“What is there to mike sense of?” Ben asked. “It sounded pretty routine to me.”

“Oh, it is,” Nancy agreed. “Except that most of these clients and cases exist only in my father’s mind or in our history. We were in Seattle working on the Haggler case, period.”

Alana frowned, then her expression cleared and she laughed. “It’s a code, right?”

“It’s a message,” Nancy said, “but not in any kind of code that’s easy to decipher. He obviously had no time to work out any precise system. I’m going to have to take all this down and try to reason out his message with each name, number, and message.”

Ben whistled. “That sounds very difficult.” “It’s our best chance yet,” Nancy said. “If I can figure our what he means, I’ll bet it will tell us where he is, who is holding him, and how we can rescue him.” She got a small notebook and pen from her purse and started the tape again. “I have to take this down word for word.”

The telephone stopped her. Nancy shut off the tape player and, after a nervous look at Ben and Alana, picked up the receiver. Her hello sounded a great deal more confident than she felt.

“Nancy Drew?”

“Speaking.”

“It’s about time you got back.” It was the same voice as the first call.

“You told me to find Alana,” Nancy replied coldly. “I can’t do that sitting around a hotel room.”

“Did you find her?” The voice frightened her. “Not yet,” Nancy said. “I did manage to find out where she’s been hiding, but I arrived too late. She’d already made arrangements for a different car and some kind of disguise.” She had to bite her lip to keep from giggling at the expressions on Ben’s and Alana’s faces as they listened to her.

“There was someone else in the car with you when you left,” the voice said, making it clear the men had managed to escape from the Firebird Lodge.

“The man who helped her,” Nancy admitted. “He’s an old friend of Alana’s, and your men scared him pretty badly. I’m going to have to try to convince him to trust me, but it won’t be easy with your thugs following me around.”

Ben looked insulted, then amused by her words.

“Are you threatening me, Nancy Drew?” the voice asked.

“I’m just telling you that I can’t do what you want me to if you keep blocking me. You have my father and you know I’ll do anything to get him back safely. But I can’t locate Alana if you frighten her away before I can reach her.” There was a long silence from the other end. Nancy covered the mouthpiece and took a couple of deep breaths to steady herself. She could be in desperate trouble if they knew she wasn’t telling the truth. If they believed her, she could buy time. That was what she needed most, she realized. Time to think and to study what her father had tried to tell her on the tape. Everything had happened too fast so far; she’d had to rely on intuition and quick responses. Now she needed a plan.

“You do believe you can find her?”

“I have to,” Nancy answered quietly. “For my father’s sake.”

“I’m glad you’ve decided to be cooperative,” the voice said, warming slightly. “Did you find the tape?”

“Of course. I was just listening to it.”

“You will carry out your father’s instructions?”

“To keep him safe, naturally. However, I can’t do anything until tomorrow morning.”

“Why not?” The suspicion was back. “Because lawyers don’t call clients in the middle of the night unless it’s an emergency and I don’t think you want to make our clients suspicious about my father’s disappearance.” Again there was a moment of silence, then a sigh. “I suppose that’s correct, as long as they don’t report him missing before you call.”

“I’ll make sure that they don’t,” Nancy assured him.

“What about Alana Steele?”

“That will have to wait until tomorrow, too,” Nancy said. “When I talk to her friend again, I’ll try to find out where she might be hiding. But that could take a little time.”

“You don’t have much,” the voice snarled, “We can’t wait for long.”

“But I’m doing my best.” Nancy allowed her real feelings of desperation to show in her voice. “Please don’t hurt my father. I’ll find Alana somehow. Just don’t hurt him!”

“We’ll be in touch.” The phone clicked dead. Nancy replaced her own receiver and closed her eyes for a moment.

“You were wonderful, Nancy,” Alana said. “Did they believe you?” Ben asked.

“I think so,” Nancy said. “If they had known that Alana was with me, they would have come after her.”

“So what’s our next move?” Alana asked, yawning.

“Sleep, I think,” Nancy said. “I’ll write down everything from the tape, then sleep on it. Right now I don’t think I could decipher anything.” Ben nodded, getting to his feet. “Pound on the wall if you need me,” he said, then grinned, his black eyes dancing. “I’m really not afraid of those crooks.”

“Sorry,” Nancy apologized with a giggle. “I thought it was better if they didn’t see you as a threat.”

“I know,” he assured her. “I just hope I get a chance to show them how I really feel.”

“I hope we all do,” Nancy said.

Nancy worked on transcribing from the tape while Alana got ready for bed. A final check made her sure she had everything down exactly as he’d said it, but the words swam before her aching eyes and refused to make any sense to her.

“You look worse than I feel,” Alana told her.

“I just hate to give up,” Nancy admitted. “Every minute can be important to Dad. I have to figure out what he was trying to tell me.”

“Nancy, there is something.” Alana’s serious tone brought Nancy’s attention away from the words.

“What is it?” she asked.

“If it comes right down to it. If we can’t figure out a way to trick them, I want you to make the exchange. I’ll go to them. I can’t help them, but if they’ll set your father free, it’s worth it. It’s my fault that all of you are involved in this mess. If I hadn’t asked so many questions about the Tundra, maybe none of this would have happened.”

Nancy went over to hug her friend. “Thanks, Alana,” she said, “but I couldn’t do that.”

“I’m not asking you to, I’m just telling you what I’ll do,” Alana stated firmly.

“But it wouldn’t work,” Nancy told her gently. “Don’t you see, they can’t let my father go. He knows far too much about them already.

Alana’s face grew pale and her grey eyes widened in horror.

“We’re his only hope,” Nancy said.

In spite of the late hour when she went to bed, Nancy woke shortly after dawn. Alana was still sleeping soundly, so Nancy moved to the small table in front of the window and began to study the words she’d written down.

Some of it made perfect sense, but there were so many phrases that just didn’t sound like her father. She began underlining the things that sounded wrong.

Spotlight at this time. Oil on the waters. The whole portion about not telling one about the others. All the names, numbers, and messages except for Helen Haggler and, in his final words, his saying ACB’s.

These were not accidental words, she was sure of it, even though they were delivered without the slightest emphasis. Glaring at them, she knew she’d chosen the right phrases as clues, but she lacked the key that would make sense of them. She turned her attention to the names.

Ned Nickerson. Nancy smiled. Obviously not a client since he and Nancy were dating. Okay the Merritt case was the message.

“Merritt, Merritt.” Nancy murmured, then grinned. “Merritt Island,” she crowed, then put her hand over her mouth quickly, looking toward Alana. Her friend stirred, moaned, and was quiet again. Merritt Island was in Florida and Ned’s parents owned a home there, one that Nancy had visited.

Mr. DeFoe. Another familiar name, this time from a past case. The missing horse Polka Dot has been located and I have put in a claim. Nancy shook her head. The Polka Dot was a boat, not a horse.

“Boat. Island. Oil on water.” Nancy began to laugh softly. It had to be her father’s way of telling her that he was being held on an island. But what island. Her smile faded. Spotlight. A lighthouse? That made sense.

The next name referred to another case in which her father had to distribute an inheritance among three claimants. Three men. The number of men on the island with him?

The fourth name was Helen Haggler and the number was correct. The message, however, surprised her a little. Instincts correct. Case closed. A warning to Miss Haggler? Nancy decided that’s what it meant and to call Miss Haggler and relay it. With luck, it should buy them a little more time.

The fifth name referred to an art fraud case in which the masterpiece had been saved at the last minute by their surprise invasion of the old mansion where it was hidden. That could be interpreted to mean that the Tundra was being held at the same location he was.

Nancy leaned back in her chair, feeling much better. Only one more name to go and she had a whole selection of clues to work on. No answers yet, of course, but at least her father had given her some signposts to follow.

“What are you grinning about?’ Alana asked, snapping Nancy back to the present. “Have you solved the mystery tape?”

“Not all of it,” Nancy answered. “But it is be-ginning to make sense to me.”

“What do you have?” Alana came to the table at once.

Nancy showed her the notes she’d made, ex-plaining how each one gave her a possible clue.

Alana listened closely, nodding. “So what about the last name?” she asked.

“G. Reed, Cheyenne, Wyoming,” Nancy read. “That’s a real person. I think I wrote you about visiting there during the Frontier Days Rodeo, didn’t I?”