The Mysterious Mannequin (11 page)

“I’ve never seen one like it,” Nancy remarked.

“They are fairly common in Istanbul,” the Turkish girl went on. “I cannot figure out why Farouk added this to the border. Nancy, can you guess?”

“Not right now. Surely a rug dealer wouldn’t be shining shoes!” she declared. “But there’s another angle I must investigate.”

In reply to Aisha’s puzzled frown, Nancy added that when it was possible she would try to trace Farouk through rug shops in Istanbul.

“Oh, you’re marvelous!” her friend exclaimed.

“Maybe there’s another symbol that will be more of a clue,” Nancy said.

The two girls searched diligently but found nothing more. They decided to rest and have a cool drink. While sipping cherry soda, Nancy told her visitor about the burglar’s intrusions and the scimitar and showed it to her.

The Turkish girl shivered a little. “That is horrible!” she cried out.

“One thing is certain,” Nancy said. “Arik didn’t leave it, and if the man who did is the one who was here before, then Arik is innocent. I was sure I had identified him as the burglar—I didn’t want to tell you this before—but during the time someone sneaked in here today he was at work and talking with Ned and me.

“The burglar that we suspect,” Nancy went on, “is a man who looks very much like Arik, is a super-duper locksmith, and wears a gold filigree bracelet with turquoise in it.”

Aisha said she knew no one like that and now she must leave. “I’ll take the bus home,” she said. “I want to stop off and do a little shopping. Nancy, I am so glad to be friends with you and truly I wish I could tell you where the mannequin is, but I cannot break a promise until I receive permission.”

“I understand,” said Nancy.

Aisha had been gone only a few minutes when two policemen arrived. Nancy showed them the scimitar and said they would find her fingerprints on it as well as those of the intruder.

One of the officers remarked, “This is a cheap, handmade scimitar. But that might make it easier to find the person who left it than if it were an imported expensive one.”

He took a cloth bag from his pocket and slipped the scimitar into it. Then he and his companion went off.

Nancy, her mind full of many things, began to open her mail which had been delivered earlier in the day. To her delight the travel brochure which Mr. Simpson had promised to send was among her letters. She glanced at the itinerary excitedly, then curled up in a living-room chair to open the rest of the mail. There was nothing interesting and she fell to daydreaming about the mystery.

The front doorbell rang twice but Nancy did not seem to hear it. Hannah answered and accepted two packages from deliverymen. The bell rang a third time and once more Mrs. Gruen came into the front hall. She glanced into the living room and looked at Nancy, thinking she had perhaps fallen asleep. But the young detective was staring up at the ceiling and counting on her fingers. Hannah shook her head and went on.

She opened the front door and Bess and George came in. Seeing their friend in the living room, they walked in. Nancy came out of her reverie.

“Hi!” she said, uncurling herself. “Oh, girls, I’ve been working and working on the mystery and now I think I’ve solved part of it!”

“You have!” the cousins said.

Nancy smiled and looked directly at the two of them. “Yes, but I’ll have to go to Istanbul to prove it. Could you two go with me?”

NANCY’S announcement about the trip to Turkey came as a complete surprise. Bess and George stared at her, speechless.

Nancy grinned at them. “I mean it. And it would be great if Ned and Burt and Dave could go too. And also Aisha. I have the itinerary.”

George was the first to recover from her surprise. She exclaimed, “Don’t tell me you’ve found the mannequin!”

“No, but I did learn this. There’s a big secret connected with the mannequin. Aisha knows where she is. But she says Farouk made her promise not to tell it.”

Bess frowned. “I’m all mixed up over this whole thing. Please somebody straighten me out.
Please!”

“I figured,” said Nancy, “that since we’re sure Farouk sent the rug and he’s in Istanbul and he has been declared innocent of the smuggling charge, and he and Aisha were in love, what we have to do now is to help the two of them get together.”

“But after we all get to Istanbul, how are we going to find Farouk? It’s a big city. Just walk the streets until he shows up?” George remarked.

Nancy revealed the latest clue in the border of the rug. “It’s a special, highly decorated shoeshine stand. I believe Farouk expects Dad to show up near one of them.”

“I can imagine how many there must be.” Bess sighed, then asked, “Do you suppose Farouk will be awfully disappointed if you don’t bring the mannequin along?”

Nancy shrugged and George remarked, “If he’s not planning to come back to America, and wants the mannequin badly enough, he can tell us where it is and we’ll ship it to him.”

Bess and George were enthusiastic over the idea of going to Turkey. “Where’s the itinerary you mentioned?”

Nancy picked it up from the table near the wing chair, and handed it to the cousins.

“Hypers!” George exclaimed as she gazed at the colorful pictures of mosques and caiques.

Bess said, “George, let’s phone our parents right now for permission!”

“Wait!” Nancy cried as Bess started toward the phone.

She had heard her father’s car pulling into the driveway. As soon as the lawyer had greeted everyone, she put her proposal to him.

He looked startled, but after thinking over the matter, remarked, “It sounds like a good idea. But what about the expense? Where would all you young people find travel money?”

Nancy reminded her father about Mr. Simpson, the travel agent. “You recall he had arranged an inexpensive trip for a group to Turkey. Perhaps we could take advantage of the low plane fare without going on the rest of his tour.”

As she spoke, Nancy indicated the round-trip fare at the bottom of the brochure. “We could stay in Istanbul and search for Farouk.”

“Well,” said Mr. Drew, “phone Mr. Simpson and see if he has eight reservations left. But don’t get your hopes too high.”

Nancy invited Bess and George to stay to dinner, then hurried off to make the call. The travel agency’s line was busy. She sat waiting, tapping her fingers on the telephone table. She tried again. Still no luck.

“Somebody must be arranging a trip around the world,” she thought.

This time she waited a little longer and was successful in reaching him.

“Nancy Drew, how are you?” he asked. “All the Simpsons are fine, including little Tommy. He calls you his water wheel lady.”

Nancy chuckled. “I’m glad he hasn’t forgotten me. Mr. Simpson, thank you for the itinerary of your tour to Turkey. By any chance, do you have eight places left? If so, could my dad and I and six friends just make the trip to and from Istanbul without taking the whole tour of Turkey?”

“Let me take a look,” Mr. Simpson replied.

He left the phone to consult his chart, but soon returned. “I have good news for you, Nancy,” he said. “Two people have just canceled and that makes exactly eight seats available. You know, of course, we leave in two days. Do you all have passports and vaccinations?”

“Yes,” Nancy replied. “I haven’t asked all my friends yet, but I’m sure they’ll be able to make it. May I let you know tomorrow?”

“That will be fine.”

When Nancy came back into the living room with the good news, Bess and George each gave a “yea” and Bess hurried to call her parents. She returned in a moment, saying she had their consent to make the trip. Then George phoned the Fayne house and received her parents’ permission.

At that moment Hannah Gruen came into the living room and was told about the exciting plan. “I’m glad,” she said. “Now Nancy and Mr. Drew can get away from people who break into houses and leave scimitars and throw rocks at cars.”

“And don’t worry, Hannah,” put in Mr. Drew, “I’ll see that Chief McGinnis sends a patrol car out here regularly to make sure everything stays peaceful while we’re gone.”

“Now that’s not necessary,” she said, then went on, “I came to tell you that dinner is ready. And since we’re having steak, you’d better come to the table at once.”

Mr. Drew chuckled. “I’ll be with you in a jiffy.” He hurried off but was back in three minutes. Then they all went to the dining room.

As soon as dinner was over, Nancy went to the telephone. The first one she called was Aisha. When Nancy mentioned the trip, the Turkish girl gave a little cry of happiness. Then she said she was not quite sure.

“I’m thrilled, but I am a little fearful of meeting Farouk.”

“Once you see each other, I’m sure everything will be wonderful,” said Nancy. “Aisha, could you go for a drive with me tomorrow morning? There are several things I’d like to discuss with you. One of them concerns arrangements for us to stay in places that would not be expensive.”

“I’m sure my parents can find something,” Aisha replied. “And I’ll be very happy to meet you tomorrow morning. What time?”

“Ten o’lock. By then I should know how many of us can go.”

Sure that Ned would say yes, she put in a call to his home. She hoped he had made the insurance sale that afternoon. It would help pay for the trip!

Ned answered. “Hello.”

“Hi!” said Nancy. “Ned, do you still want to be my bodyguard?”

“Nancy. You mean in Istanbul?”

“Yes. Could you go in two days?”

“Wow! Let me get my breath. You mean it?” Upon hearing it was a bona fide trip, he laughed. “You bet I’ll go. Wouldn’t miss it for anything. I sold a big enough policy today to pay all my expenses.”

“Good for you,” said Nancy.

Bess was the next one to come to the phone and tried several places to find Dave. She finally left word at his home for him to call her at Nancy’s.

George had no better luck locating Burt. It was not until the following morning that both boys phoned Nancy’s house and heard of the exciting trip. Shortly before ten o’lock they called back to say they would be able to accompany the group.

“Sounds cool,” said Dave. “I think I’ll pretend to be a sultan and you girls are some of my slaves! ”

Nancy laughed and replied, “You just try it and I’ll cover your whole head with my Turkish veil!”

Quickly Nancy dialed Mr. Simpson’s travel agency to confirm the number of plane reservations, then she hurried off in her car to meet Aisha. The two girls spent a very pleasant hour together, and Aisha said she would arrange for the whole group to have good accommodations in Istanbul. “I will cable my parents as soon as I get home.” As the Turkish girl was about to step out of the convertible she impulsively gave Nancy a tight squeeze. “You’re the most wonderful detective in the world,” she said. Nancy smiled and kissed her new friend, then she drove off.

“I think I’ll stop at Mr. Anthony’s tailor shop and see if Haw-Haw is there. Maybe I can get him to answer a few questions. I’m sure that funny old fellow knows more than he’s telling!”

Fortunately he was there, perched as usual on a bench in the corner of the shop. As soon as he saw Nancy, Haw-Haw began to laugh on a crescendo note that resembled a shriek. It sent chills up and down the girl’s spine.

Finally he stopped laughing and said, “You keep coming back here, miss. You think that mannequin’s a-hidin’ somewhere around this place?”

“Maybe. If you see her, let me know,” Nancy replied. Then she walked over to the man and looked straight at him. On a sudden hunch she asked, “What I want to know is, who is the man you’re giving information to about me?”

For once Haw-Haw did not laugh. His eyes shifted nervously. The young detective was sure that she had hit upon the truth!

Finally he said, “How’d you find out? I didn’t think it would hurt.”

Nancy was thrilled that he had fallen into her trap! Still looking stern, she said, “It matters a great deal. Now tell me, who is he?”

The wizened old man wilted. He looked all around, then whispered, “He’s a cousin of Tunay Arik. Pretty near his double, I’d say. He’s from Istybull.”

Haw-Haw’s lighter side returned. He gave a low chuckle. “All this time you thought Tunay Arik was the burglar when really it was his cousin.”

“They’ve got an interesting grapevine,” Nancy said to herself. “Tunay told his cousin about our encounter at the carpet factory. The cousin in turn told Haw-Haw.”

Realizing the old man knew even more than she had suspected, Nancy asked him why Arik’s cousin wanted the rug.

“He found out Farouk sent the rug to your father and thought that valuable jewels were sewn into it. He went right over to your house and tried to steal it.”

Nancy was elated with the information. She said, “When the burglar found out there weren’t any jewels in the rug, he became furious. He left me a scimitar as a souvenir. Do you know why?”

Haw-Haw’s jaw sagged and his eyes bulged. He was the very picture of a terrified man. Finally he spoke, “I’ll show you something,” he said.

He put one hand inside his coat. Suddenly it occurred to Nancy that he might be reaching for a weapon!

HAW-HAW pulled a scimitar from his inside coat pocket. Before he might have a chance to use it, Nancy grabbed his arm and yanked it upward.

“Ga-ga-ga—” the man gurgled.

The scimitar fell to the floor. Then, to Nancy’s horror, Haw-Haw collapsed.

“What you do?” the tailor cried, getting up from his chair and rushing over.

Nancy tried to explain that she was afraid Haw-Haw was going to stab her, but Mr. Anthony did not seem to understand. By this time Nancy had laid Haw-Haw flat on his back.

Nancy tried to resuscitate him but realized that the victim probably needed oxygen.