Chapter 23 The Clue of the Tapping Heels by Carolyn Keene
Nancy’s Predicament
Left at the railroad station, Mrs. Miller, Bess and George immediately telephoned Detective Keely, telling him that Nancy and Mr. St. Will were trailing Fred Bunce and his two colored companions.
“I’ll stay here at my hotel until I hear from them,” the detective promised. “As soon as I have any news I’ll communicate with you at the apartment.”
“We may as well go back there at once,” Mrs. Miller declared. “The girls have missed their train and can’t possibly leave for River Heights until morning.”
Back at the apartment again, George and Bess waited anxiously for some word from Nancy and the actor. Two hours elapsed. They were beginning to wonder if the couple had returned to the railroad station when Detective Keely arrived to tell them all that had happened.
“Your friend has been kidnaped,” he reported. “I’d have come sooner only I’ve been helping Mr. St. Will and the police search for her. So far we’ve found no clue except that we know she was carried off by Fred Bunce in a stolen car.”
“Nancy kidnaped!” Bess cried. “Oh, I was afraid she’d get into serious trouble when she started out after that man.”
“We never should have allowed her to go,” Mrs. Miller added anxiously. “But I thought she would be safe with Mr. St. Will. Please tell us exactly what happened.”
Mr. Keely revealed how the girl had been spirited away while the man was trying to telephone for help.
“I must send a wire to Nancy’s father at once,” Mrs. Miller said. “How I dread to do it. He let his daughter come here believing that she would be safe. I’ve failed in my trust.”
“We’ll find Miss Drew,” Mr. Keely promised. “I’ll keep on this case night and day.”
It was not until after the detective had left that it occurred to George to wonder if the police were keeping watch of the Tasmania.
“There’s a chance that Nancy might have been smuggled aboard,” she told Bess.
Quickly she ran to the telephone and tried to reach Detective Keely, but he had not returned to his hotel yet. With Nancy missing, sleep was out of the question for the two girls. They persuaded Mrs. Miller to go to bed while they sat up and waited for news. As time dragged by and no encouraging word was received, Bess and George became increasingly uneasy.
“Bess, we simply must do something!” George declared at last. “Anything would be better than this inactivity.”
“What can we do?”
“Let’s go down to the wharf and talk with the captain of the Tasmania. I’m afraid the police may have overlooked that clue, which I feel is an important one.”
“All right,” Bess agreed promptly. “We’ll leave a note for Mrs. Miller.”
The girls stole quietly from the apartment building and hailed a taxi. The first streak of dawn was showing in the east as they rode toward the docks.
Distinguishing the Tasmania from the other vessels which were tied to the wharves, Bess and George stood for some minutes staring at the deserted decks. There was no activity aboard save that created by the men who were moving cargo into the hold.
“Let’s go on the ship,” Bess proposed. “We’ll learn nothing here.”
Watching until the coast was clear, they hurried up the gangplank unobserved by any officer of the ship. As no one was there to stop them, they made their way to the captain’s quarters, boldly rapping on the cabin door. It was opened by a white-haired man of fifty. He frowned as he saw the girls.
“How did you get aboard?” he asked. “No visitors are allowed at this hour.”
“We’re not visitors,” George said quickly. “A friend of ours has been kidnaped and we have reason to believe she’s been smuggled into this vessel.”
“What’s this?” inquired the captain, looking puzzled. “Someone smuggled aboard the Tasmania?”
George plunged into the story of Nancy’s kidnaping. The captain listened in amazement. From the expression on his face the girls knew that he thought they must have imagined most of the tale.
“I’m sure there’s no girl aboard the Tasmania,” he told them, “but if it will set your minds at ease I’ll have the vessel searched.”
“We’ll be very grateful,” Bess declared. “When does the ship sail?”
“At twelve o’clock. Not many passengers are on board yet. Wait a few minutes and I’ll turn you over to Chief Officer Murray.”
The captain disappeared into his cabin but reappeared in a few minutes. As he led the girls across the deck, a sailor came toward them followed by Detective Keely and two policemen.
“Captain Wallford, these men ask permission to search the boat,” the sailor reported.
Keely glanced in astonishment at Bess and George. Then, shifting his gaze to the captain, he said:
“We have reason to believe that a girl has been smuggled aboard by one of your passengers—a fellow named Bunce. May we look around?”
“Certainly,” agreed the captain courteously, “but you’ll find everything in order. We have no passenger aboard listed by the name of Bunce.”
“He may have used an assumed name.”
“You may examine the list if you wish. I’ll call Chief Officer Murray who will show you over the vessel.”
He summoned the man and ordered him to make a careful search of the steamer. Having other duties to perform, the captain went back to his cabin.
“Bess and I wouldn’t have come here,” George explained to Detective Keely, “only we were unable to reach you by telephone. We remembered that Mr. Bunce had bought tickets for this vessel and we thought he might have tried to smuggle Nancy aboard.”
“A very good hunch,” Detective Keely nodded. “We found the stolen automobile abandoned only a few blocks from here.”
Murray, cleverly concealing his uneasiness, stepped forward.
“Come with me, gentlemen,” he invited politely. “I’ll show you over the vessel, but I can assure you that it will be a waste of time.”
He led them down a companionway, opening doors of vacant rooms, but taking care that the policemen were not taken near the stateroom where Nancy had been hidden. The vessel was a large one and the searchers were soon confused, having no idea where they were being escorted.
“Well, are you quite satisfied?” Officer Murray asked at last. “We’ve been everywhere.”
“It seems Miss Drew isn’t here,” the detective admitted reluctantly. “Thank you for your trouble.”
Bess and George were bitterly disappointed, for it seemed to them that their last hope of finding Nancy was gone. In company with Mr. Keely and the policemen they left the ship. As they stepped from the gangplank, Bess noticed that Officer Murray seemed to relax from a certain tension he had been under. She was positive she saw him smile.
“Perhaps you imagined it, Bess,” George said later as they were discussing the matter alone. “Why should he be so eager to get rid of us?”
“That’s just what I was wondering, George. When you stop to think of it, Officer Murray was almost too obliging. He insisted upon taking the policemen everywhere himself, never once giving them a chance to look around independently.”
“That’s true.”
“I’m not satisfied that Nancy isn’t aboard the vessel. I’d like to go back there and look around when I’m not being escorted.”
“Then let’s do it,” George proposed. “Time is getting short but we still have half an hour before the boat sails.”
The girls hastened to the Tasmania. Watching their chance, they succeeded in boarding the vessel without being recognized either by the captain or Officer Murray. In fact, at the moment they walked up the gangplank the latter was being severely lectured by an old lady whose cabin was located not far from the room where Nancy was imprisoned.
“I am very dissatisfied with my quarters,” she told him sternly. “All morning I’ve been annoyed by a strange tapping sound. It’s enough to drive a person crazy, and I’ll not tolerate it. I’ve paid my money and——”
“I’ll see that you have other quarters just as soon as the ship sails,” the man promised impatiently. “Talk with me later.”
He walked away, but the old lady, not at all satisfied, hailed a stewardess who chanced to be passing, and told her troubles again.
“I’m sure I don’t know what the noise can be,” the attendant said in perplexity. “Did it seem to come from one of the cabins?”
“Yes, from the one at the end of the hall,” the old lady declared. “I think the passenger who occupies it must be a tap dancer.”
“The room at the end of the hall is used mostly for storage,” replied the stewardess. “It is unoccupied.”
“Then some mechanical device is making the noise. I insist that something be done about it.”
The stewardess hesitated, for she had important duties and felt that the old lady was being unnecessarily troublesome. However, Bess and George had overheard part of the conversation and the reference to “tapping noises” had aroused their interest.
Could it be possible that Nancy, imprisoned somewhere on the ship, had been tapping out code in an attempt to attract attention to her plight? Stepping forward, they introduced themselves, urging the stewardess to make an immediate investigation.
“I’ll show you the cabin,” said the old lady eagerly, leading the group down the hall.
As they reached the end of the corridor, the mysterious noises could be heard plainly.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
“That’s odd,” declared the attendant. “I didn’t notice anything like that before.”
Bess and George were listening intently to the sounds. No longer could there be the slightest doubt as to who was making them. The tapping heels were spelling out the message “HELP.” Over and over it was being repeated.
“Nancy is in that room!” cried George.
“She’s signaling for help! Open the door quickly!”
The stewardess inserted her skeleton key into the lock. The door pushed hard because Nancy’s feet had been against it. The girl rolled aside and the group came into the room.
“A stowaway!” gasped the woman.
“This girl is not a stowaway!” George exclaimed indignantly. “She’s tied up and gagged!”
Quickly the girls set Nancy free and assisted their chum to her feet.
“I thought help would never come,” the girl gasped. “I’ve been tapping on that door for hours.”
“I don’t know how you came to be here,” said the stewardess, “but you’ll have to explain everything to Chief Officer Murray.”
“He’s the one who must do the explaining!” Nancy cried. “That man helped Mr. and Mrs. Bunce smuggle me aboard.”
“You are making a dangerous accusation,” said the stewardess quietly.
The girl gazed steadily at the woman.
“That’s exactly what I mean to do——” Nancy began, and then her voice trailed off.
In the doorway of the cabin stood Chief Officer Murray.