Chapter 15 The Haunted Bridge by Carolyn Keene
Gathering Evidence
THE professor did not press Nancy for a further explanation. After they had conversed a few more minutes, he asked if he might see Mr. Haley now.
“Go right in.” Nancy nodded toward the man’s room.
Mr. Wardell found his uncle still asleep and returned to the living room.
Presently Ned, Burt, and Dave trudged in, eg hausted by their attempt to repair the bridge. They told Nancy that while they had it anchored, considerable work would have to be done to make the bridge safe.
“You won’t be able to cross the ravine to return to your hotel,” Ned told her. “I’ll drive you back.”
“Thanks, Ned, but that won’t be necessary. I want you to meet Professor Wardell.” She pointed toward a dark corner of the room. “He has offered to take me in his car, which is parked at the Judson estate.”
The stranger rose from a chair and came forward. As the boys were introduced, Ned glanced at the man with a puzzled look. He was wondering how Wardell had become acquainted with Nancy. Even her explanation that he was Mr. Haley’s nephew did not lessen Ned’s feeling of jealousy.
Nancy gave him a warm smile as if to reassure him. Then she asked Ned to take good care of the patient while she and the professor went to the hotel.
“I don’t seem to be of much use at anything else,” Ned muttered, turning away.
During the drive to Deer Mountain Hotel, Nancy told her companion more about her father. The professor said he was eager to meet the lawyer.
When they reached the lobby, Nancy said, “Will you, please, wait here while I go to Dad’s room?”
He nodded and she went to the elevator. Nancy stopped a moment at George and Bess’s room but the cousins were not there.
“Dad!” she cried, bursting in upon him. “I’m almost certain that the carved chest I found in the ravine is Miss Judson’s missing property! I’ve brought Professor Wardell here. He’s her former fiancé. I want you to talk to him.”
Mr. Drew smiled. “You work fast, Nancy. I’d like very much to meet him.” After hearing his daughter’s full story, including the rained-out golf match, he said, “Bring Professor Wardell up to my room where we can talk privately.”
Nancy hurried downstairs to get the professor. He and Mr. Drew immediately liked each other. Nancy listened tensely when her father broached the topic of his search for Miss Judson.
“I appreciate your opinion, sir,” Professor Wardell said respectfully after he had listened to a summary of the evidence against the young woman. “But I cannot believe that Margaret knows anything about the jewel thefts. She was always so honorable and comes from a fine family. She couldn’t possibly have any connection with a gang of thieves and smugglers.”
“Nevertheless,” said Mr. Drew, “there are a few clues which seem to connect her with the affair. For instance, one of the stolen items is a jeweled compact. We know that Miss Judson had one.”
“That is not proof of her guilt,” said the professor.
“Of course not,” agreed Mr. Drew. “It could easily be coincidence.”
Nancy spoke up. “Did you ever hear Miss Judson speak of Martin Bartescue?”
“Why yes. I believe she met him in Europe.”
Nancy and her father exchanged quick glances.
“Is Bartescue under suspicion?” Wardell asked.
“Yes,” Carson Drew answered gravely, “but so far the evidence against him is purely circumstantial. If only we could find Miss Judson, she might be able to clear up the mystery surrounding both of them.”
“I have no idea where Margaret is,” the professor replied. “She might be staying with a cousin in Rock City.”
“You’ve never inquired?” Nancy asked in surprise.
“No,” Wardell answered in a low tone. “I didn’t want to force my attentions on Margaret. I don’t feel I should seek her out deliberately without some indication on her part that she wants to see me again. I still believe, however, that if I could talk with her, everything might be explained and cleared up.”
Professor Wardell arose to leave, saying he was already late for an important meeting.
“I’ll be waiting eagerly to hear from you, Mr. Drew. Your daughter has my address at Andover. When I’m not there I usually can be reached at my office in the science building.”
After he had gone, Nancy and her father discussed the case for a few minutes.
“In spite of all the evidence against Margaret Judson,” said Nancy, “I have a hunch she is not involved with the jewel thieves. That’s Mr. Wardell’s opinion and it’s also yours, Dad, isn’t it?”
“I hope that she will be cleared of suspicion.” The lawyer smiled.
Presently Mr. Drew and his daughter gave up trying to figure out the puzzle. They turned their attention to another pressing matter. During Nancy’s brief stay at Mr. Haley’s cabin she had noticed that the food supply was low, and many articles were needed to make the patient and the boys more comfortable.
She suggested to her father that she, Bess, and George buy the necessary supplies and cook dinner for Ned and the others at the cabin.
“That’s very thoughtful, Nancy. It will cheer them up a little. The boys haven’t had much fun since they arrived.”
Bess and George were still not in their room. Nancy searched the lobby and other places in and around the hotel where the cousins might be but could not find them.
She returned to Mr. Drew’s room and told him that she could not locate Bess and George. “Would you like to go shopping with me?” she asked.
“Be glad to,” the lawyer agreed. “I’ll give you two minutes to change your clothes.”
Ned was alone with Mr. Haley when she and her father reached the cabin. He explained that Burt and Dave were down at the ravine working on the footbridge. A short time later they returned, tired and hungry, but pleased to report that they had finished the repairs.
“Bess and George came down and watched for a while,” Burt said. “They had planned to visit us at the cabin but couldn’t get across the ravine. Nancy, they were concerned about you until we told them you were here during the storm. They went back to the hotel to find you and have dinner.”
“And I came here to cook dinner for you!” Nancy chuckled. “I was so preoccupied with my shopping list I didn’t even think to leave a note for Bess and George. They’ll be disappointed when they find out.”
Nancy began preparing a warm meal. Later the boys declared that it was the first really good cooking they had tasted since they had arrived.
After the dishes had been washed and put away, Mr. Drew said, “How would you fellows like to have the evening off? I’ll be glad to stay here with Mr. Haley.”
“That would be great!” Ned exclaimed. “Is there a dance at the hotel tonight, Nancy?”
“Yes. I imagine Bess and George would like some dates for it, too.” She grinned.
“Then let’s go!” Ned exclaimed. “Come on, fellows. We’ll change our clothes right away.”
While they were getting ready, Nancy and her father sat with Mr. Haley in the adjoining room.
“How are you feeling?” Mr. Drew asked him gently when he saw that the patient’s eyes were open.
“Better,” he replied. “Only weak.”
“That’s to be expected,” Nancy said soothingly. “You have been very ill. Later Dad will bring you some broth and toast.”
She did not wish to excite Mr. Haley by further conversation, but he seemed to want her to talk. Finally Nancy went to the kitchen and took Miss Judson’s photograph from the cupboard drawer, then returned to the sick man.
“Would you like me to place this picture near you where you can see it?” she inquired.
“Yes, please do,” Mr. Haley answered. “Is Miss Margaret here now?”
“She does not know you’ve been ill.”
“Then it was a dream-I thought she was seated beside me, holding my hand.”
“Perhaps you confused me with Miss Judson,” Nancy said quietly. “Tell me, did you work for her at the mansion?”
“Oh, yes. I took care of the trees and the garden and the flowers about the place. After Miss Margaret’s parents died she didn’t have much money but kept me on anyway.”
Tears glistened in Mr. Haley’s eyes and several moments elapsed before he spoke again.
“Miss Margaret was good and kind,” he told his listeners. “She never once spoke a harsh word to me in all the years I knew her. That’s why it hurt me to see her so unhappy.”
“She was unhappy?” Nancy prompted as he fell silent again.
“Yes. After her parents died Miss Margaret was very lonely. She was to have been married, but the awful fire happened and all her plans were changed.”
“In what way do you mean?” Carson Drew inquired.
“I don’t know—” Mr. Haley murmured wearily.
“And you haven’t seen her since the fire?” Nancy questioned softly.
“She came to my cabin twice—once to ask me to search for something she had lost. But I couldn’t find it. I hunted everywhere. I told her that later and she never came here again.”
Mr. Haley closed his eyes and turned his face toward the wall. Nancy and her father longed to ask him other questions but refrained. It was dear that the man was exhausted from talking.
Before Carson Drew and Nancy had a chance to discuss what Mr. Haley had told them, Ned, Burt, and Dave came into the bedroom.
“We’re ready to leave, Nancy,” Ned announced in a whisper.
“You all look handsome in your new outfits,” she commented. The boys wore different colored striped sports jackets and dark-brown pants. “It’s hard to tell who is the handsomest,” she added.
“You’d better say Ned,” Dave teased.
As the young people were driving away from the cabin in Ned’s car he observed that Nancy was strangely silent.
“Is your hand bothering you?” he inquired anxiously.
“Not much,” Nancy replied. “There’s really nothing wrong with me, Ned. I was just thinking about Margaret Judson again. Ned, I
must
find her!”
“That’s easier said than done.”
“Yes, but I believe she’s near here.”
Ned glanced curiously at Nancy. Her next words astonished him even more, as with a quiet intensity in her voice, she added:
“It may sound silly to you, Ned, but I have a strange feeling—call it intuition if you will—that tonight I’ll find Margaret Judson!”
“You seem very positive,” Ned commented. “I certainly hope your hunch is right.”
“Can you help me?” Nancy asked.
“I thought you didn’t need my assistance,” he replied impulsively.
“Oh, Ned, it was just that I couldn’t explain everything to you about Mr. Wardell, and I’m afraid I can’t even now. But sometime I’ll be able to.”
“That doesn’t matter, Nancy. Just tell me what to do and I’ll try to carry out orders.”
“Ned, are you willing to substitute sleuthing for dancing tonight?”