Nancy Drew and The Mystery Of The Ghost Maiden

Chapter Twenty-eight

Bess and George made sure to quickly change into some loose jeans and cute tops before leaving to search for the art gallery. The two girls had learned that when working on a case with Nancy anything could happen, so they found it best to be dressed prepared. Flashlights we not needed because the halls were lite with the early morning sun that shone through the many large windows.

"This place must have been a ball for Miss Betty's son to play in when he was alive," Bess added as they wandered down the halls.

"Are you sure you know the way, Bess? I get disoriented easily in a large building such as this." George asked feeling worried.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE LEADING THE WAY YOU'RE THE SMART ONE!" Bess responded as she began to chew on the ends of her hair from the stress.

"Be quiet! There are people trying to sleep in here. Let's just keep walking along, this hall looks promising" George said while taking the lead. She always seemed to have to be the one to keep a cool head in most situations. Bess, on the other hand, had always been fickle and quick to stress. George often wondered how the "Blonde" would do without her around.

The two girls wondered to halls for a half an hour longer before they heard a feminine giggling sound. Looking around the teens could see no one else in sight. So they just wrote it off as nothing. Then they began the walk back down the hall only to hear the giggle again.

"That can't be my imagination." George said scratching her head." Who else would be up at the ungodly hour?" she asked while they attempted to follow the source of the sound. It led them for about more ten minutes before they stopped just outside a door. George reached out slowly to open it, however, Bess grabbed her arm, "No, George do not open it. Someone must be in there! We should go back and get Ned to be safe."

"There is no time to waste! Whoever it is behind this door, could be gone by the time we get back. Keep in mind, it could just be someone playing a prank on us." Both girls gulped hard as George tried to turn the doorknob again. Inside they found the painting gallery, however, it was a huge mess. Half of the many paintings lay on the floor and the chairs had been knocked over, the girls let out a gasp of surprise.

A sound from the other side of the room quickly swayed their attention. There they found a grown man putting the painting of Heather in a bag. He was of average height, looked to be in his forty's, had a small frame, and wore a hat pulled down partly hinging his face. "Wait who are you? What are you doing with that painting" The girls demanded, suddenly seeing that all the years of being Nancy's friends must have rubbed off of them.

In response, the man dashed towards them with the bag still in hand. The girls tried to hold their ground but saw that he was not backing down. So they moved out of the way just as he tried to push through them. "Let's chase him down!" George commented when she realized what had just happened.

"HELP! SOMEONE, PLEASE WAKE UP! WE ARE BEING ROBBED! HELP!" Bess yelled while pounding on the doors.

George noticed that the man walked with a slight limp which slowed him down slightly. Just when it seemed she was about to overtake him, he grabbed the edge of the rug that lay at the top of the stairway. Then the man waited until she reached it and then pulled it making George fall down the stairs. She laid in a heap at the bottom of the stairwell.

"What a dirty trick!" George exclaimed while trying to get back on her unsteady feet, she noted that strangely enough a cowbell could be heard off in the distance. She had taken a step forward to head back upstairs when Ned, Bess, and Nancy showed up and asked what had happened. After George gave a quick explanation, Nancy said that they had just seen an old junky car take off from here just a moment ago.

"It sounds like the same man we chased yesterday. Good to know that the cow belle I hid in the secret passage works to lets us know when it is being used. "Nancy explained to her friends.

"Bess please make sure that George is not hurt badly. Also, try to explain to the staff what has happened. Nancy and I are going to look at the art gallery." Ned said while helping George to a sofa to rest. Meanwhile, Nancy called the police before going to investigate the crime scene to look for clues. Nancy had a gift for finding obscure details and could quite often find clues that even the cops overlooked.

Back in the art gallery, everything was just as Bess described. To Nancy, It looked as if the place was hit by a tornado. Then out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that something on the floor was shining. Nancy walked over and picked it up. The item looked to be a fancy cigar case with the banker's name engraved on it.This was the clue Nancy was waiting for! Now she just needed to figure out how he was involved in this and why!

Nancy had guessed that the crooks were after Heather's long-lost necklace but wondered if there more treasure hidden in the house. She recalled her father once telling her that "in year past, many families did not trust banks, and would hide valuables on their own property." She glanced up as a shadow appeared and felt relieved to see Officer Jones walk in the door. The officer had brought notes written by her peers, with contact information on the stalker from earlier.

"We did find out a lot about the man that attacked you, like his full name and history, however, what I can share is very limited," Jones said as she handed Nancy the papers. "I only wish we could do more to help you but there are rules and regulations that must be followed," Jones added. When Nancy's gaze meet Jones's, a look of sympathy could be seen in the officer's eyes.

"Every bit helps, thank you," Nancy responded as she skimmed through the papers. "I only wish we catch this man soon. I hate to think what he is truly capable of." The officer quietly nodded in agreement.

Ned walked up and asked, "Is there anything else we can do to help with this case?"

"Only help clean up this mess but I have your number if anything comes up. I will try to keep you posted." The cop said before turning to leave.

Bess reached out to put her hand on Nancy's shoulder, "I just wish there was more we could do for your sweet old aunt. She has been so good to us."

Nancy turned to look Bess directly in the eye. "I agree with you. I will try to think of something."

"We will be helping her when we stop these crooks and restive the treasure," Ned replied.

After breakfast, Nancy pulled her aunt aside. "Aunt Betty there is a locked room on the third floor I need to ask about."

"Oh yes, Heather's old bedroom no one has been in there for many years."

"Do you have any idea how long that room has been left undisturbed?"

"I am pretty sure, the last time was when my husband was dared by his best friend over fifty year's ago." said the old lady as she fixed herself a cup of hot earl gray tea.

"Is there any way I can get in the room? I would like to see what is in there." Nancy asked as she fidgeted back in forth in front of her aunt. She was quite anxious to get in there and see what was going on but did not want to tell her aunt all the details. The last thing her aunt needed was more to worry about.

"The key is in my safe but I must tell that it is best to leave the past alone or it might haunt you." Aunt Betty said while she gave Nancy a questioning look.

Bonus Files:

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