Chapter 4 The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Carolyn Keene
Address Unknown
Nancy felt she must be dreaming. Not only had the thief charged two thousand dollars to her account, but the store manager seemed to believe that Nancy herself had made the purchases.
“I must have a double!” she thought. “Doris Drake’s friend Phyl was right in thinking she was talking to me. Someone is impersonating me! It’s possible this person or a friend of hers broke into our house, took the charge plate, and some of my clothes for her to wear!”
Outwardly, Nancy tried to appear calm. “I couldn’t have bought those things, Mr. Goldsmith,” she insisted. “This is the first time today I’ve been in Burk’s.”
For answer, the manager pressed a buzzer. Three women entered. He introduced them as Mrs. Reilly, Miss Coogan, and Mrs. Watson.
“Mrs. Reilly sold you the watch,” said Mr. Goldsmith. “From Miss Coogan you bought an expensive mink stole. Next, you purchased two high-priced dresses in Mrs. Watson’s department. Ladies, do you identify this girl?”
The saleswomen nodded. Each one identified her as Nancy Drew, the young woman she had waited on, and who had signed sales slips for each purchase.
“This is preposterous!” Nancy cried, her blue eyes flashing. “Someone is impersonating me. She stole my charge plate. I want to see those sales slips.”
Just then, to Nancy’s relief, Chief McGinnis entered the office. He and the Drews were old friends, and he greeted Nancy cordially.
Mr. Goldsmith spoke up. “Glad you’re here, Chief. I was just going to call you.” He explained what had happened.
The police officer replied calmly, “If Nancy Drew says she didn’t buy anything, she didn’t. Let’s get down to facts, Mr. Goldsmith. I’m here to help Miss Drew, and Burk’s also.”
The chief quizzed the salesclerks briefly. After hearing their stories, he said gravely, “Nancy, I’m afraid this young woman who resembles you so closely—and forged your signature on the sales slips—may continue to take advantage of it.”
Nancy smiled ruefully. “I realize that.” She was more convinced of this than ever when the sales slips were brought to the office. The forgery was excellent. Nancy’s impersonator must have carefully practiced the signature on the charge plate.
Mr. Goldsmith sighed wearily. “I’m sorry, Miss Drew, about this whole matter, and that I suspected you of dishonesty.”
“That’s all right,” she replied. “The main thing is to track down the culprit and get back your stolen property.”
She asked the clerks what her “twin” had been wearing. “It was a lovely light-blue dress,” replied Mrs. Reilly. “Printed silk, with white flowers.”
Nancy gasped. “I have a dress like that. And I don’t remember seeing it in my closet today.”
“The woman no doubt took it,” the police chief said, frowning. “Nancy, be very careful. This impersonation may mean not only annoyance, but possible danger for you.”
Mr. Goldsmith promised that Burk’s private detective and all the store’s sales personnel would be on the lookout for Nancy’s unknown double.
As the young sleuth left the store with Chief McGinnis, she said to him, “I wonder if this person actually is my double or is only cleverly made up to resemble me.”
The officer frowned. “If it’s the latter, the thief will be harder to catch. She may not pose as Nancy Drew again for some time. But I’ll have my men start working on the case from every possible angle.” He admitted that no clues to the thief at the Drew home had been found. “I’ll post a twenty-four-hour guard at your home.”
“Good,” Nancy said. “Hannah will feel much better, since I have to return to Lilac Inn this afternoon, and Dad’s away.”
Nancy said good-by to the chief and hurried across the street to the employment agency. She wondered if by chance Maud Potter might still be there. But when Nancy entered the office, the only person there was the woman manager, seated at a desk.
“Can I help you?” she asked Nancy.
“I’m here at the request of the new owners of Lilac Inn,” Nancy replied. “Has anyone else been in to ask about a waitress to work out there?”
“No.”
As Nancy asked her next question, she was thinking, “Why was Maud in here?” Aloud she said, “Have you any waitresses on your list?”
“Not at present. We’ll call you if any apply.”
On impulse, Nancy asked her, “Could you tell me if you’ve ever had a Miss Mary Mason on your waitress list?”
The woman opened a nearby file and flipped through a folder. “No, we haven’t.”
Nancy thanked the manager and left the agency. When she arrived home and told Hannah the latest developments, the housekeeper was more upset than ever.
“I feel in my bones that this impersonator is up to something sinister,” she declared. “I wish your dad were home.”
“You’ll be safe here, Hannah,” Nancy said assuringly, and told Mrs. Gruen that a policeman would be assigned to guard the house. “And speaking of Dad, I’m going to call him right now and ask him if he took that picture of me with him.”
“While you do that, I’ll fix some lunch for us,” Mrs. Gruen offered. “You must be starved. It’s two o’clock.”
Nancy went to the hall telephone and a minute later was requesting the switchboard operator at the Cleveland hotel to ring Mr. Drew’s room.
“Hello?” came the lawyer’s deep, resonant voice.
“Hi, Dad! How good to hear you!” Nancy said happily.
She gave him an account of the burglary and succeeding events. Carson Drew was greatly concerned. “Nancy,” he added in a troubled voice, “I didn’t bring your photograph with me. Your double must have taken it. She has already fooled four persons who don’t know you well. With the help of the picture, she may try something bolder,” he stated.
“You think this girl has some ulterior motive other than faking my charge account, don’t you, Dad?”
“I’m afraid so. Be on your guard, Nancy. Try to stay with a group as much as possible, particularly after you return to Lilac Inn.”
The lawyer added that he would be home the next day. “I’ll look into the whole affair then.”
Nancy promised to be careful and said good-by. She and Hannah sat down and ate lunch. Finally Nancy said she had to pack and leave.
“But first I’m going to try locating that waitress Mary Mason.” Nancy picked up the telephone directory and thumbed through it until she reached the M’s. She called two families named Mason, but each denied having a relative Mary.
“Probably,” Nancy surmised, “Mary did not live in this area.”
Deep in thought she went upstairs and took a suitcase from her closet. Nancy quickly placed additional garments in it, then gathered up her skin-diving equipment: green rubber fins, a diving mask, and an aqualung. Finally, Nancy packed a rubber suit which would insulate her body against the cold river water, and an underwater camera her father had given her.
Nancy kissed Hannah good-by and got into her convertible. She drove to the Cornings’ home and picked up Helen’s suitcase, then set out for Lilac Inn.
Her thoughts revolved around the mystery out there and also on the problem of her impersonator. “No one could look enough like me to be absolutely identical. Why, even identical twins have distinguishing characteristics,” she told herself with a smile, “such as the shape of fingernails, voice tones, and facial expressions.”
The late-afternoon traffic on the highway to Benton was becoming heavy. Nancy turned from the main road onto a very narrow, less-used one. Presently, in her mirror, she saw a red panel truck behind her coming along at an alarming speed. Nancy, at the same time, noted an arrow indicating a sharp curve ahead. She braked and motioned the truck driver to slow down.
Either he did not see her signal, or was ignoring it. Instead of slowing down, the truck’s speed increased, as if to pass her. The curve was not wide enough for two cars to go side by side. On Nancy’s right was a deep ditch, filled with water.
She had no choice but to start around the curve. To her horror, the other vehicle was already edging around her left fender. Nancy glimpsed a chrome eagle ornament on the truck’s hood.
A split second later her convertible was forced over into the ditch!