"This seems to pinpoint the fact that the mail thief, who is probably Edgar Nixon, was after the letter to my client which had a large sum of money in it. Whether or not he knew about the message for Nancy Smith Drew is something still to be cleared up."
By eight o"clock the following morning Nancy was ready to leave the house. She had all the letters for Edgar Nixon in a large envelope of her father"s and went with them directly to the postal inspector, Mr. Wernick, who was already at work. He was delighted to hear that most of the mail taken from Ira Nixon had been returned.
"But we have no lead to the guilty person," he told her. "Even that shoe your little friend Tommy gave you must belong to someone else. Shoe prints of Edgar Nixon at Ira"s house don"t match."
"Too bad," said Nancy.
She told about the letters coming to Edgar Nixon and her suspicions regarding them. When she showed Mr. Wernick the two she had read, he stared in amazement.
"This is very serious," the postal inspector said. "I"ll run the rest through our X-ray machine and see if there"s money in them."
CHAPTER XIII.
Locked In
"How long will it take to X-ray the letters?" Nancy asked the postal inspector.
Mr. Wernick smiled at her. "You"re thinking you won"t have time to wait? You"d better. I have a hunch there are going to be some surprises in those letters and I"m sure you"ll want to know what they are. It won"t take long."
He summoned one of the technicians on duty and gave him the a.s.signment. "We suspect there"s money inside each of these," he said.
The man was gone only a few minutes. He came back with the X rays as well as the letters. "I"d say there are bills in every envelope. Probably twenty-five dollars in each," he reported.
Nancy was elated and waited for the postal inspector to comment. He said, "I think your idea of a Lonely Hearts Club and money coming in installments is a good one. We"ll work on the case from this new angle. And, of course," he added with a twinkle in his eye, "we"ll expect all the help we can get from you."
Nancy promised it and said she hoped that before the weekend was over she might have startling news for him. She did not divulge what it was and soon said good-by.
"Oh, the evidence is closing in on Edgar Nixon," she thought. "Now if I can only keep Nancy Smith Drew from marrying him, everything will be wonderful."
She picked up Bess and George, and as they rode toward Emerson, she told about the information she had received at the post office.
The cousins were excited to hear this, but presently Bess said, "Between now and the time that you see Nancy Smith Drew at the play, let"s talk about something besides the mysteries. I"d hate to meet Dave with my mind full of clues and crooks."
George could not resist a gibe at her cousin. "That"s better than nothing."
Bess made a face and changed the subject. "There"s a quaint-looking tearoom ahead. Let"s stop there for lunch. It"s been a long time since breakfast."
The others agreed, but Nancy said they must not spend too much time. They ate quickly and two hours later the towers of Emerson College came into view. Nancy drove directly to the Omega Chi Epsilon House, where the girls" dates were on hand to give them a warm welcome.
Ned was tall, handsome, and athletic-looking, with wavy dark hair, a ready smile, and brown eyes.
"I"m glad you made good time," he said, "because I want you to tell us all about this mystery business."
Dave Evans was blond, green-eyed, and of rangy build. He gazed at Bess fondly. "You look stunning in that new suit," he remarked. "I like that fur collar. What is it-squirrel?"
George spoke up. "Yep. She shot it on the way up here."
Bess withered her cousin with a look. "As a matter of fact it"s mink."
"How"s the play coming?" Nancy asked Burt Eddleton, a short, blond, husky young man.
He shook his head sadly. "Miss Drew hasn"t returned yet. I don"t know any more about coaching a Shakespearean play than I do about guiding a rocket to the moon. The whole thing"s going to be a complete flop."
Nancy was sorry to hear that the actress had not returned yet. She said she had hoped to see Miss Drew for a short time before the afternoon was over.
A short time later Burt announced that he and Dave would have to leave for a rehearsal.
"See you after the show," Dave called as the two boys hurried off.
That evening Ned escorted Nancy, Bess, and George to the college theater, which was attached to the large gymnasium. After the audience was seated, one of the students in the drama group stepped in front of the curtain and said he wished to make an announcement.
"I know all of you are expecting to see a performance of a Shakespearean play. As you have read, the club engaged the services of Miss Smith Drew, a drama coach. Unfortunately she had a sudden errand out of town and has not returned."
Nancy"s heart sank. The heiress must have married Edgar Nixon!
The announcer went on, "Late this afternoon, we fellows decided that it would be impossible to put on the play we had planned, so we have subst.i.tuted a comedy. It is called the The Mix-up. We have been rehearsing this for some time, planning to present it in the spring. You won"t find it so polished as we had hoped, but we trust you"ll enjoy it."
The good-natured audience clapped enthusiastically. The announcer stepped into the wings and the curtain opened. The play was well named and the audience laughed uproariously. The star of the show proved to be Dave. He was so extremely funny, alternately playing a girl and her twin brother, that the audience broke into repeated applause.
The Mix-up was such a success that Nancy temporarily forgot her mysteries. But she was soon to be reminded of them. As she was walking out of the auditorium, one of Ned"s friends spotted her. He called out gaily, "Hi, Nancy Drew!"
At once an attractive young woman, walking just ahead of Nancy, turned around and stopped. She smiled at the girl.
"You"re Nancy Drew?"
When Nancy nodded, she went on, "For a moment I thought you might be another Nancy Drew whom I know. As a matter of fact, I thought I saw her here tonight but she left before I could speak to her."
Nancy was excited about this news. "What is this other Nancy Drew"s full name?"
"Nancy Smith Drew."
"Did she ever work for your family?" Nancy queried.
"Yes, she did. She was a governess for my brother and me for a few years. She left to become an actress."
Nancy looked at the young woman. "Are you, by any chance, Miss Wilson?"
"Yes, I am."
Nancy explained how she had telephoned to the Wilson home and left a message that if her mother ever heard from Nancy Smith Drew, she was to tell her that an inheritance awaited her in England.
"Oh, how marvelous!" Miss Wilson exclaimed. "I"ve been away at school and my parents didn"t pa.s.s along the message."
"You said you thought Miss Drew was here tonight?" Nancy asked.
"Yes. I"m sure I saw her in the back of the auditorium when I happened to turn around, just before the show started. I left my seat and tried to find her but couldn"t. She went out of the building."