Chapter 18 The Clue of the Broken Locket by Carolyn Keene
Colleen’s Treachery
Colleen, her face white with fear, was pacing the floor, the children in her arms. The more she tried to soothe them, the louder they cried.
Nancy and Ruth Brown, reaching the nursery together, fairly snatched the twins from her. They winced at sight of the infants’ swollen and bruised faces. Jay was the more painfully injured; a big bump stood out upon his forehead, and a cut showed above his left eye.
With skillful hands the nurse examined the babies for broken bones. She was relieved to find none. Gradually, as she cuddled the little ones in her arms, their sobs died away.
“Are they seriously hurt?” Nancy questioned anxiously.
“Only bruised severely, I think.”
“Where is the doctor?” Nancy inquired, turning to Colleen. “You called him, didn’t you?”
Colleen avoided the girl’s eyes.
“Well, no, I didn’t. You see, I thought if the doctor came there’d be a bill, and then Mrs. Blair would make a fuss!”
“She’ll hear of this anyway,” Nancy said shortly.
Colleen looked startled.
“I don’t believe it will be necessary to call a doctor now,” Ruth Brown told Nancy, who was hastening toward the telephone. “I’ll soon have the babies asleep.”
Colleen relaxed.
“Those awful kids sure get me into lots of trouble.”
“You mean that you get them into plenty!” Nancy snapped. “Just what happened, Colleen? Tell us everything.”
“Well, to start with, today is Friday, the thirteenth——”
“What has that to do with it?” Nancy interrupted sternly.
“Things happen on Friday the thirteenth,” the maid insisted, her eyes wide open. “I told the cook this morning that I just felt the twins were fated——”
“Nonsense!” Nancy cut in impatiently. “Where were you when the babies fell?”
“I—I——”
Colleen seemed reluctant to answer this question.
“Let me see,” she hedged. “Why, I was upstairs the same as usual.”
“Weren’t you in the garden with Francis?” Nancy accused. “We saw him driving away as we came up.”
Colleen’s face flushed.
“Well, come to think of it, I guess I was. He just dropped in for a minute, and I ran down to tell him I couldn’t spare a second from the kids!”
“A likely story!” Nancy thought, completely disgusted with the girl.
“Where did you leave the twins while you were gone?” she demanded.
“Right in their cribs. The first thing I knew, I heard a thud and a loud scream. I ran up here and found the babies on the floor. They couldn’t have fallen out by themselves! It’s supernatural!”
Nancy bent down to examine the cribs. She saw at once that one side dropped down on a hinge. Unquestionably, the careless Colleen had neglected to fasten the lock which held it upright. She pointed this out to the maid.
“I’m sure I fastened the latch,” Colleen maintained, though without sufficient conviction. “You won’t tell Mrs. Blair, will you? She’ll discharge me if she finds out.”
“One glance at the babies will convince her that something has happened,” Nancy returned. “Colleen, I don’t believe you’ve paid the slightest attention to your duties all day!”
“Oh, I have! Except for just a minute or two—maybe it was five—when I ran down to talk with Francis, I haven’t left the nursery!”
Nancy did not believe this story. She rather suspected that Colleen had been arraying herself in Mrs. Blair’s fine clothes again, for the girl’s face was highly rouged and her own garments gave the appearance of having been donned hastily.
“When did you last give Jay and Janet something to eat?” Ruth Brown questioned, directing a hostile glance toward the maid. “They act hungry to me.”
“It couldn’t have been more than an hour or so ago.”
Rodney had been standing quietly by, marveling at the wonderful way in which his sister and Nancy had taken charge of the babies. Now he stepped forward.
“I’ll go down to the kitchen and ask the cook when she last heated their milk.”
Colleen shot him a look of hatred.
“Snoop!” she accused.
Rodney paid no attention to her. In a few minutes he returned with the milk and prepared baby food.
“The cook reports that the children haven’t had anything to eat all afternoon!”
“Oh, the poor little things!” Ruth exclaimed. “Give me the milk at once, Rodney.”
Colleen flashed an angry look at the efficient woman who was usurping her place.
“I don’t see what right you have to come here!” she said disdainfully. “A pedlar woman!”
“How dare you call my sister by such a name?” Rodney cried angrily.
Colleen looked dumbfounded.
“Your sister?”
“Yes, my sister. Furthermore, she is a real nurse and knows how to care for babies, which is more than you do!”
“I won’t stay here to be insulted!” Colleen said pettishly.
No one protested when she banged out of the nursery. They guessed that she was going to the kitchen to spread the news that Rodney had brought a mysterious sister into the house.
“You shouldn’t have spoken so harshly to her,” Ruth chided her brother.
“I couldn’t help it. She’s neglected the babies ever since they have been here. When she talked about you it got the best of me.”
Knowing that the twins would now be in safe hands, Nancy decided to take advantage of Colleen’s absence to do a little bit of investigating. Quietly she stole into Mrs. Blair’s bedroom.
“Just as I thought!” she observed.
Garments were scattered about everywhere. Two elaborate green evening gowns had been dropped carelessly upon the bed. A picture hat lay upon a chair. Shoes were strewn over the floor.
“Colleen has been dressing up again,” Nancy thought grimly. “I might have known she’d never keep her promise to me.”
Nancy was by nature orderly in her habits. She began to pick up the clothes, returning them to the hooks in the closet. When she realized what she was doing, she laughed shortly.
“Here I go, helping that girl again when I should really tell Mrs. Blair about her. Oh, well, there will be trouble enough when she sees Jay and Janet. I may as well finish this job.”
After putting things in order she returned to the nursery where she found Colleen. The girl eyed her suspiciously.
“Didn’t I hear you walking around in Mrs. Blair’s bedroom?” she asked maliciously.
“If you did, you may be sure I wasn’t trying on any of her gowns!” Nancy retorted pointedly.
Colleen pretended not to understand. But when Nancy’s back was turned, the nursemaid glared upon her bitterly.
“I’ll fix her for spying!” she thought. “She can’t take away my job and not pay for it!”
Nancy had no intention of taking away the girl’s position. In talking with Mrs. Blair about a new nurse, she had thoughtfully suggested that Ruth Brown be engaged in addition to Colleen. That the two could never work together was evident, however.
Unaware that Colleen was plotting to involve her in trouble, Nancy chatted pleasantly with Miss Brown.
“I never saw anyone so skillful at handling babies as you are,” she praised. “If you were to stay here, I’d feel that the children would be in safe hands.”
“I’ve been thinking the matter over,” the nurse said slowly. “Perhaps I might consider coming after all.”
“Oh, I wish you would!”
“My brother works here and I should like to be near him. Since I have seen the twins, I can’t bear to leave them again. They have lost too much weight since they were taken from the Home.”
“If you’ll promise to accept the position, I am sure I can arrange matters satisfactorily with the Blairs,” Nancy eagerly assured Ruth Brown.
The two had forgotten Colleen completely. But the malicious girl was taking in every word of their conversation.
“So she thinks Miss Brown will get my job, does she?” the girl said sneeringly to herself. “We’ll see about that!”
Colleen slipped quietly from the room. Her absence passed unnoticed.
A few minutes later the front doorbell rang several times. It was not answered. Then the ringing began again.
“The servants never seem to be of much use in this house,” Nancy remarked to Miss Brown. “I’ll see who it is.”
The staccato of the bell told her that the caller was becoming very impatient. Nancy quickened her steps. Flinging open the door, she stood face to face with Edwin McNeery. He doffed his hat politely.
“The Blairs in?”
“Not yet,” Nancy told him. “I’m expecting them at any moment. Would you care to wait?”
The producer passed before her into the library.
“Will I wait?” he laughed unpleasantly. “That’s all I ever do. The Blairs were supposed to be at rehearsal at three today and they didn’t show up!”
“Then I presume they signed the contract,” Nancy said, for she had not heard of their action in the matter.
“Sure they signed it! I knew they would.”
“What decision did you reach regarding the babies?” Nancy asked mischievously.
“We’re letting the matter hang fire for a few days,” McNeery admitted reluctantly. “I don’t care if the Blairs keep their brats, so long as they don’t let them interfere with our business.”
Nancy concealed a smile. She inferred that the signing of the contract had ended in a draw. McNeery had won his point about the salary; Kitty Blair had won hers regarding the babies.
“If rehearsals don’t go off any better than they did today, my revue will be a flop!” the producer told her, biting savagely at a cigar. “Where did they go today?”
“I’m sure I don’t know,” Nancy returned. She moved to the window. “A car is coming now. I think it must be the Blairs.”
Her guess was correct. The actor and actress came storming into the house, quarreling about some trivial matter. Finding McNeery in the library, they instantly quieted down.
The producer did not mince words.
“Where were you this afternoon?” he fairly shouted. “Why weren’t you at rehearsal?” Kitty struck a haughty pose.
“How dare you speak to me in such a tone? I’ll attend rehearsals when I choose.”
“Then you’ll break your contract! I’ve had just about enough of your temperament and your babies! Either you attend to business after this or you quit! Get me?”
The argument went on. Nancy was forced to listen, for Kitty stood with her back to the door. The girl could not leave the room without asking the actress to move.
The commotion carried to the floor above. Colleen stole down the stairs to learn what was going on. Unknown to those in the library, she stood in the living room, quietly listening.
Her eye suddenly fell upon Mrs. Blair’s pocketbook which had carelessly been dropped upon the table. With a low cry Colleen snatched it up and opened it, unobserved by anyone.
She drew from it the actress’s diamond locket and chain. For a moment the malicious girl held the jewelry in her hand as if reluctant to part with it. Then, with a triumphant chuckle, she ran out to the place where Nancy’s car was parked. Hastily she looked about her to see if anyone was within sight. The coast was clear.
“I guess this will fix Nancy Drew!” she chortled wickedly.
Deliberately she dropped the valuable diamond locket into the side pocket of the Drew girl’s machine.