Chapter 24 The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk by Carolyn Keene
Help from Carson Drew
Nancy slid from her bed. Awakening her chums, she warned them in a whisper to remain quiet.
“Two men are trying to steal Treldy’s trunk! We must capture them!”
The three girls tiptoed to the doorway of the empty room. As the intruders came out carrying the heavy piece of luggage between them, Nancy gave the signal. With one accord the chums hurled themselves upon the men.
“Help! Help!” screamed Bess as she was flung roughly aside. “Burglars!”
The girls had not thought the men were so strong. Bess and George were sent sprawling on the floor, but Nancy clung to her quarry. She was dragged several feet before her grip loosened. Then to her chagrin both men bolted. Scrambling from the floor, the girls ran after them, but no one was in sight when they reached the front door.
“Well, we’ve saved Treldy’s trunk at least,” Bess gasped, nursing a bruised arm.
“I wanted to catch those men!” Nancy cried. “Oh, I’ve made a mess of this!”
The entire household had been aroused by the commotion. Lights went on. Manuela could be heard screaming shrilly. In a moment Mrs. Purdy appeared, a robe wrapped about her frail figure.
Nancy was compelled to explain to her what had happened. She did not try to shield herself, but took all the blame for not having locked the doors.
“I did it on purpose,” she admitted regretfully. “I thought those men would come here tonight and I wanted to capture them.”
“Your plan was a very rash one, Nancy,” chided Mrs. Purdy. “You should have called the police. That is what we must do now.”
“I suppose so,” admitted the girl disconsolately.
Mrs. Purdy telephoned headquarters, receiving a promise that detectives would be sent out early in the morning.
“I almost wish those thieves had taken the trunk in the first place,” the woman declared to Nancy. “Since it was brought into this house we’ve had no peace.”
Nancy felt very downhearted, realizing that she had disturbed the tranquility of the household, and to no purpose. She had not even been able to establish the identity of the two intruders, although she had a feeling that the men were connected with the luggage firm of Halifax and Lopes.
“Dad was expecting me to gain definite evidence,” she told her chums. “What will he say when he learns I let the culprits get away?”
“That wasn’t your fault,” declared George staunchly. “You planned it well, but luck was against you.”
While the girls were at breakfast, Nancy was surprised to receive word that her father was calling her from the United States. She went to the telephone, wondering what she should tell him. Her gloom gave way to delight as he rapidly recounted his progress on the case.
“Mr. Joslin was arrested here last night,” Carson Drew reported tersely. “I’ve questioned him and he has admitted carrying on smuggling activities.”
“Did he implicate Mr. Trenton, or the firm of Halifax and Lopes?” Nancy queried eagerly.
“No, Joslin refuses to name any person associated with him. I want you to notify the authorities and work on the case from that end.”
“The police are coming here this morning.”
“Good! Tell them the entire story and demand the arrest of Halifax and Lopes.”
“I’ll do it,” promised Nancy instantly.
Before she could mention to him what had occurred during the night, Carson Drew had said good-bye and terminated the connection. Anxiously Nancy awaited the arrival of the police. Shortly after nine o’clock two detectives drove up in an official car. They inspected Nestrelda’s trunk, talked with Mrs. Purdy, made a routine inspection of the bedroom which had been entered, and listened attentively to Nancy’s story. They seemed so impressed that it came as a shock to her when one of the officers who could speak English said:
“This is all very interesting, but where is your proof, Senorita?”
“My proof?” Nancy was taken aback. “Why, I’ve just told you all I know.”
The policeman shook his head, smiling in an amused way.
“In Argentina a man is considered innocent until he is proven guilty. We cannot arrest a person just because you request it. The firm of Halifax and Lopes is an old, reliable one.”
“The men have traded on the firm’s reputation!” Nancy protested with spirit. “Actually they are smugglers of jewels!”
“We cannot arrest them without any proof.”
“I can show you a bracelet I am certain was stolen,” Nancy said in desperation. “Would that be sufficient proof?”
“It might be,” the policeman replied cautiously. “Where is the bracelet?”
“In a trunk at the Hotel Imperio.”
Bess and George feared that Nancy might involve herself in some trouble by revealing that the stolen bracelet had been hidden in her own luggage. As it developed, their fears were well founded. Upon taking the girls to the Hotel Imperio the detectives inspected the brass bound trunk from top to bottom. They took note of the initials N. D., as well as the tag bearing Nancy’s name.
“This is my trunk,” she acknowledged frankly, “but it was stolen from me.”
“What about the bracelet?”
“It must have been hidden in the trunk by a representative of the firm of Halifax and Lopes.”
The detectives already had learned from hotel officials that the suite was rented in the name of Mr. Lopes. Since Nancy’s visit there the man had not been back.
“Is that bracelet a stolen one?” inquired Bess as she saw the detectives inspecting it closely. “You must have a list of stolen jewelry.”
“It may be,” was the cautious reply. “This piece answers a description we have in our possession.”
“It seems to me, then, that your duty is perfectly clear,” said Nancy impatiently. “Those men ought to be arrested without delay.”
“We cannot be certain of your story, Miss Drew. After all, the bracelet was found in your trunk. We know nothing about you save the fact that you are an American tourist.”
“It’s ridiculous even to hint that Nancy would steal any jewelry!” cried George angrily.
“Would she be likely to bring you here if she had anything to do with the smuggling?” added George.
Nancy did not allow her emotions to overpower her. “It will be very easy to check up on me,” she said in a quiet voice. “I live in a place called River Heights where my father is a lawyer. Any number of persons there will vouch for my honesty.”
“And for her ability as a detective too!” interposed Bess. “Why, Nancy has solved no end of mystery cases. She could clear this one up if you’d give her a chance.”
The policemen were more than half convinced, yet they maintained a conservative attitude toward the affair. Though they seemed satisfied that Nancy had acted in good faith, they were reluctant somehow to make out warrants for the arrest of Halifax and Lopes.
“The firm is a very reliable one,” one of them kept repeating. “We must move carefully.”
“While you are doing that, the guilty persons will be moving swiftly,” retorted Nancy, finally losing her patience. “Even now those men may be trying to get out of the country.”
“We cannot act without more convincing evidence.”
Nancy was almost in despair, for she had told the detectives everything she knew about the case. She had nothing additional to offer them.
“We may as well go,” said George gloomily.
“Wait!”
Nancy turned again to the policemen. “If you were to find an entire cache of stolen jewels, would you believe my story?” she asked excitedly.
“Can you produce the jewels?”
“I think I can,” said the girl mysteriously.
“Where are they hidden?”
“In the trunk those men attempted to steal last night.”
“But we searched it ourselves and found nothing there,” objected Bess.
Nancy smiled triumphantly. “I have a new idea,” she declared. “Follow me, and I’ll show you where the jewels are secreted.”