Read The Secret of the Wooden Lady Online

Authors: Carolyn Keene

Tags: #Women Detectives, #Detective and Mystery Stories, #Girls & Women, #Mystery & Detective, #Boats and Boating, #Juvenile Fiction, #Adventure and Adventurers, #Girl Detectives, #Mysteries & Detective Stories, #Fiction, #Ghost Stories, #Mystery Fiction, #Mystery Stories, #Mystery and Detective Storeis, #Boston Harbor (Mass.), #Drew; Nancy (Fictitious Character), #Ghosts, #Clipper Ships, #Figureheads of Ships, #Mystery and Detective Stories

The Secret of the Wooden Lady (3 page)

BOOK: The Secret of the Wooden Lady
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Bess and George were cousins, but there any likeness ended. Bess, blond and pretty, had a penchant for second desserts and frilly dresses. She shared Nancy’s adventures out of deep loyalty to her but was constantly fearful of the dangers involved.
George was as boyish as her name. Her hair was dark, her face handsomely pert. George wore simple clothes and craved adventure.
After greeting the cousins, Carson Drew folded his napkin and pushed back his chair. “I’ll see you at the office at two-thirty, Nancy.”
He left the house and his daughter joined her friends in the living room.
“Hypers!” George exclaimed. “Why was I left out of all the excitement night before last?”
Bess shivered. “You mean you wish you’d been knocked out?” she asked, horrified.
George laughed. “Any news of the thief, Nancy?”
Nancy told the girls about Flip Fay. They remembered him and the short middle finger on his right hand. They hoped this slight deformity would make it easy for him to be identified and caught.
“And now, let’s talk about something pleasant,” Bess begged. “George, show Nancy your necklace.”
Bess’s cousin smiled ruefully. “My godmother is so fond of me, she just won’t believe I don’t like jewelry.”
George took a box from her pocket. In it on a fluff of cotton lay a dainty gold chain with a brillant red pendant.
“Of course it’s not a real ruby,” said Bess. “But it’s a wonderful imitation.”
“Why don’t you try it on, Bess?” suggested Nancy.
She undid the safety clasp and fastened the necklace around her friend’s plump, pretty neck. Bess admired the effect in a mirror.
“If it were a real ruby, it would be worth thousands of dollars,” she declared. “Rubies are among the most valuable jewels in existence.”
“More precious than diamonds?” her cousin asked.
Bess nodded. “I read a book once about gems. It said that rubies from Burma are the most valuable of all, especially the ones called ‘pigeon’s blood.’ That’s the color, of course.”
“If you don’t want it, you ought to give Bess the necklace,” Nancy told George. “Anyone who knows so much about rubies deserves to have one of her own. Even though it’s an imitation.”
George laughed. “Exactly what I had in mind. Bess, the necklace is yours.”
“You may be sorry you gave it to me, but thanks.”
Nancy told her friends of the proposed trip to Boston. After a brief visit, George and Bess helped her carry the suitcases to the convertible.
“I’ll drive you and your dad to the airport,” George volunteered, “and bring your car back.”
It was not long before the girls were saying good-by. Mr. Drew and Nancy stepped into the waiting plane, and in an hour were in Boston.
Nancy and her father registered at a comfortable hotel near Copley Square and taxied at once to the wharf where the three-masted Bonny Scot was tied up.
Captain Easterly, they were relieved to learn, was safe and in excellent health. He was delighted to see them, and proceeded at once to show them his unusual “home,” with its main deck, and quarters and mess for officers and crew.
Nancy marveled at the intricate passageways, the efficient galley, and the homelike atmosphere of the ship. The captain’s cabin was richly paneled in oak. Fastened on .the walls were carved figurines.
“I think your ship is fascinating,” Nancy told him as they seated themselves under an awning on the deck. “And it’s so large. I hadn’t any idea—”
The retired sea captain smiled proudly. “The
Bonny
Scot is not an unusually large clipper. But she’s sturdy enough to sail around the world!”
Mr. Drew told him about the mysterious telephone call they had received in River Heights. “Do you know of anyone who might have a reason for trying to dissuade me from coming here?”
Captain Easterly raised his shaggy eyebrows. “No,” he replied thoughtfully. “Mr. Farnsworth is the only person who knew that I had asked you to come. He’d have no reason to keep you away. In fact, he’d be the first one to welcome you. He’s just as eager as I am to have this matter of title cleared up.”
The elderly man leaned back in his chair. “Mr. Farnsworth inherited the ship from an uncle who bought it without a clear title. He has no papers telling about the early owners. And Farnsworth’s not the man to spend money to prove anything. So he’s about decided to drop the whole idea of selling me the ship. Wants me to keep on renting her.”
“And you don’t want to do that,” Mr. Drew put in.
The captain’s blue eyes blazed. “I’ve decided to buy her, and I mean to buy her!”
“And I don’t blame you a bit!” Nancy declared. “I love the
Bonny Scot
already.”
Captain Easterly was obviously delighted to have such an enthusiastic audience. While the setting sun played warmly on the ship’s deck, he pointed out the ways in which his clipper differed from the fishing schooners that were moored nearby.
“A clipper is square-rigged,” he said. “The way I figure, she’s got prettier lines than a schooner. I reckon you’d say she’s more streamlined. Notice her long prow.”
“Didn’t most clipper ships have figureheads on their prows?” Nancy asked.
The captain smiled. “That’s a good question. The
Bonny Scot
used to have a figurehead. You can see where it was fastened, right here under the bowsprit.”
“What became of it?”
“That’s one of the mysteries about this ship. The figurehead must have been lost or destroyed a long time ago. I’d certainly like to have it, or at least a duplicate. But nobody seems to know what it was—a man, or a—a wooden lady.” He smiled.
Carson Drew turned to his daughter. “Now there’s a project for you, Nancy. Find out what the clipper’s figurehead looked like. After you’ve cleared up the mystery of the ghostly visitor, that is. Has he bothered you lately, Captain?”
“I’m away from the ship a good bit,” Captain Easterly explained. “A couple of times, on my way home at night, I’ve seen a light moving aboard her. Saw it last night, as a matter of fact. But so far neither I nor the dockhands have been able to catch sight of anyone.”
He looked quizzically at Nancy. “Young eyes are keener than old ones. If you care to spend some time on board, young lady, perhaps you’ll be able to see the intruder.”
Nancy’s pulses quickened. “May I really? I’ll be here tomorrow!”
“If I’m not around when you arrive, don’t be alarmed. I’ll likely be out buying provisions. Just amuse yourself till I get back. It won’t be later’n eleven.”
Carson Drew and his daughter left. On their way to the hotel, Nancy talked enthusiastically about the clipper ship.
“I’m sure the
Bonny Scot
has a wonderful history. If we only knew more about it. And Captain Easterly is a dear! He’s so hospitable.”
Carson Drew’s eyes were sober. “The man doesn’t seem to realize that there may be danger aboard. We must get to the bottom of this quickly, Nancy, but with caution.”
The next day, Mr. Drew left their hotel soon after breakfast to start his search for legal data relating to the ship’s title. He planned to meet his daughter aboard the
Bonny Scot
at eleven o’clock.
As Nancy hurried toward the waterfront, she kept turning the mystery over in her mind. Why did the unknown visitor return again and again? Was he hunting for money or jewelry? Were there valuable papers hidden aboard?
The
Bonny Scot
rocked rhythmically alongside the wharf, majestic and peaceful. Nancy nodded to a dockhand and went aboard. Captain Easterly was not at home.
Nancy began to explore various parts of the ship. It was an eerie experience to be there alone in the stillness of the old vessel.
“Whoever comes here wants something desperately. He’ll keep coming back until he finds it. If I could only think of some way to trap him!” she thought.
Suddenly Nancy stopped at the foot of the main companionway. Someone was not far off—someone moving very softly.
CHAPTER IV
A Ghostly Prowler
HER heart pounding, Nancy slipped into the shadows and waited for the footsteps to come nearer.
She thought the intruder might come along the main companionway. In that case she would have a chance to see his face!
The young detective held her breath. The footsteps ceased abruptly. Although she waited for half a minute, there was no further sound.
Nancy’s better judgment told her not to allow herself to be trapped. She rushed up the companionway to the deck. There was the sudden squeak of oarlocks. Peering over the rail, she was in time to see a man in a rowboat pulling steadily away from the far side of the
Bonny Scot.
Was he the one who had been aboard, or an accomplice?
He wore soiled dungarees and a faded blue shirt. His lined, weather-beaten face and his grizzled beard told Nancy that he was not young, but he rowed with deep, powerful strokes and his little boat moved quickly away from the clipper.
The man must have felt her eyes following him, for he suddenly looked up and caught sight of her. With an angry scowl he redoubled his efforts. He would soon be out of sight among the small craft in the water.
Nancy ran ashore and approached two men who were pushing off in a small motorboat.
“Please take me,” she begged. “I want to follow that old sailor in the rowboat. I think he’s been trespassing on the
Bonny Scot.”
“Sorry, lady.” One of them shrugged.
“But he may be a criminal,” Nancy pleaded.
“If he’s a criminal, it’s none of our business,” the other man told her. “Go tell the police.”
They started their motor and put-putted out into the choppy water.
Nancy looked quickly about her. There was no one else going out. Disappointed, she walked back toward the clipper.
She glanced at her watch. It was almost eleven o’clock. Her father would be along in a few minutes. As she stood on the pier, a taxi drew up and Mr. Drew stepped from it.
He smiled as his daughter hurried to meet him. “Is the captain on board?”
“No,” Nancy said. “I suppose he’ll be along soon.... Dad,” she whispered, “I think I’ve seen Captain Easterly’s mysterious visitor!”
“You work fast. Where is he?”
Nancy told him of her suspicions. “But maybe it wasn’t the old man after all. The ‘ghost’ may still be on board.”
Cautiously father and daughter searched but found no one on the clipper.
“It must have been that man in the rowboat,” Nancy declared. “But how did he get off the ship? There’s no rope ladder hanging down, and he didn’t use the gangplank.”
Mr. Drew looked thoughtful. “You’ve got a real mystery to solve, Nancy,” he said. “At least we know that the captain isn’t seeing ghosts.”
“What luck did you have, Dad?” Nancy asked. “Anything new on the ship’s title?”
The lawyer shook his head. “It’s going to be more difficult to trace than I had expected, I’m afraid. But I have a lead.”
“What is it?” Nancy asked eagerly.
“I’m going to New Bedford. There’s a very old shipbuilding firm there. I’ve been told that this company is a gold mine of information.”
“Then maybe you’ll find out something about the former owners of the
Bonny Scot,”
Nancy said hopefully. “Dad, you might even find a drawing of her figurehead for Captain Easterly.”
“Hope so.” Mr. Drew took a steel tape measure from his pocket. “I’ll need measurements of the ship if I’m going to describe her to the gentlemen in New Bedford.”
Nancy helped him, running back and forth across the deck, calling out feet and inches, while he made notes of the ship’s dimensions. They had almost finished when Carson Drew clapped his hand to his coat pocket. “I almost forgot a telegram that came for you, Nancy. I picked it up at the hotel.”
Nancy ripped open the yellow envelope. “Why, Dad,” she said, “Bess and George are coming to Boston to stay with met They’ll be here today—on the one-thirty plane. That’s wonderful. But what in the world—”
Suddenly Nancy caught the twinkle in her father’s eyes. “Dad, you sent for them!”
Mr. Drew nodded. “The minute I knew I had to go out of town, I phoned the Marvin home. I wouldn’t want to leave you alone while I’m in New Bedford.”
“You think of everything, Dad.” Then Nancy smiled. “I wonder how Bess will like our ghost. I can’t wait to show the girls the
Bonny Scot.”
“Keep your eyes open, Nancy,” her father advised. “Learn all you can, but be careful.” He pocketed the tape measure and looked at his watch. “I’m afraid I can’t wait for the captain. I must hurry to make the New Bedford train. And promise me you won’t go down into the hold alone.”
“Promise.”
Expecting Captain Easterly any minute, Nancy wandered around for a while, in sight of the workers on the wharf. Still the captain did not come.
“I think I’ll look over his books,” she told herself. “Maybe I can learn something about figureheads.”
She went below to the captain’s cabin, and almost immediately discovered a worn volume dealing with early American sailing ships. She dropped into one of the armchairs and began to read.
“Ancient shipbuilders,” the author stated, “looked upon the figurehead as a protector. The bow of the early fighting ship was very high and extended beyond the hull so that it could be run over the deck of another vessel. This allowed the sailors to jump off onto the decks of the enemy’s ships.
“Even when the figurehead was no longer supposed to be a guardian in battle, the sailors thought of it as a great protection in storms. If the figurehead was removed from a vessel, often the men refused to sail.”
Nancy wondered if Captain Easterly felt that way about his lost figurehead—as if the ship were without a protector. She put the book back on the shelf. “Anyway,” she told herself, “I’ll help the captain find out what the figurehead looked like.”
BOOK: The Secret of the Wooden Lady
2.02Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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