The actress named several and added, "My greatest role was in The Dancer and the Fool. I played the part of the dancer. You know, I believe that with a few changes that play could be modernized and produced right now."
She asked Nancy, "Have you ever thought seriously of going on the stage? You"d be perfect in the role I played."
Nancy laughed. Before she had a chance to answer, Bess said, "Nancy wouldn"t give up her detective work for anything. Now and then she does other things, like this play, but she spends most of her time solving mysteries."
Miss Carter smiled. As she was about to make a comment, the telephone rang. Mrs. Bealing answered and said that the police wanted to speak to her patient. The actress was wheeled to the hall and picked up the phone.
She listened for a few minutes, then said, "Oh, the poor thing! That was wicked! ... Yes, I"ll send somebody to pick up the kitten. And how are we going to find the person who did this?" She went on to tell about the attempted intrusion the night before.
There was another long pause, then she said, "All right. I"ll sleep better if I know the police will stop here regularly on their rounds."
When Miss Carter came back to the table she reported that laboratory tests had shown that the "sleepy" kitten had indeed been drugged. There was no doubt now in anyone"s mind that the thief who had taken the five older cats had also drugged them.
"I"ll be glad to run over and get the kitten," Bess said.
"I"d certainly appreciate it if you would," Miss Carter said.
During Bess"s absence, Nancy and George went to the bas.e.m.e.nt hoping to find a clue that would explain the reason for the tapping sounds. Nancy carried a flashlight in her left hand, a small hammer in her right. The girls found the two small windows and outside door bolted shut.
"First, let"s look directly under that chair where I was sitting last night," she suggested.
George was carrying a small stepladder. She set it in place and Nancy climbed up. Seeing nothing suspicious, she tapped lightly with the hammer to detect any hollow spots.
"It all sounds the same to me," George commented. "Do you think the mysterious tapper was hunting for some secret hiding place in the ceiling of the bas.e.m.e.nt?"
Nancy shrugged. "I haven"t the faintest idea," she replied. "I have been wondering, though, whether or not he and the fellow who broke into the garage are the same man."
She explained that this possibility had occurred to her because there had been such a short interval between the two mysterious events.
"Frankly," Nancy went on, "I"m amazed that he would dare make so much noise with people in the house."
"Maybe," George speculated, "he wants to be thought of as a ghost and scare everyone away."
"He won"t succeed," Nancy declared. "Well, let"s get on with our investigation."
The two girls made a minute search of the ceiling, side walls, and floor. They found no indication of an opening in the paneled walls or in the cement floor.
"Perhaps," said George, "the tapper is a nut and just comes here to have fun scaring people."
"I"m sure there"s more to it than that," Nancy replied.
By the time she and George went upstairs, Bess had returned with the kitten. They all patted the little animal, which had recovered completely and was very frisky.
Miss Carter had been taken to her bedroom, so the pet was carried up there. She fondled the kitten lovingly, then asked Mrs. Bealing to put it out in the garage.
The nurse went off. As she descended the stairway, the front doorbell rang. The others heard her open the door but almost instantly close it again. Then she carried the kitten out the back door before returning to the second floor.
"Who rang the bell?" Miss Carter asked her.
Mrs. Bealing smiled. "A tall, handsome gray-haired man. Too bad he had the wrong house. He wanted to know if a Miss Violette lived here."
"What!" Miss Carter exclaimed. "Oh, find him! Find him! He wants me! I"m Miss Violette!"
The others stared at the actress and finally Mrs. Bealing said, "I"m sorry. You never told me your name was Miss Violette."
Tears came to Miss Carter"s eyes. She opened a bureau drawer and pulled out a picture.
"He"s the one," Mrs. Bealing said. "Only he"s older looking now."
Miss Carter cried out, "He was the man who played the part of the fool in the play I told you about. He and I were going to be married and through an odd circ.u.mstance we became separated and now I"ve lost him again!"
Instantly Nancy sprang into action. "We"ll try to find him for you, Miss Carter. Did he have a car, Mrs. Bealing?"
"Yes, a bright-red convertible."
As the three girls dashed down the steps, Bess said, "Oh, isn"t this romantic and exciting!"
Suddenly it occurred to Nancy that they did not know the man"s name and she hurried back upstairs to find out. "He"s Toby Simpson," Miss Carter told her.
"Which way did he go, Mrs. Bealing?" Nancy asked quickly.
"Toward Main Street."
By the time Nancy reached the car, Bess had it running. She slid over and Nancy got behind the wheel. The convertible sped down Amity Place. When it reached the intersection of Main Street, Nancy stopped and the girls looked in both directions.
"I see a bright-red convertible!" George said, pointing to the right.
Nancy drove as fast as she dared. The car she was chasing had the top down. The man at the wheel was threading his way expertly through the traffic.
"Oh, we mustn"t lose him!" Bess urged.
Nancy was doing her best to catch up with the gray-haired Toby Simpson, but as she came to a signal light, it turned red. The convertible had gone ahead and was making good speed.
The girls chafed under the delay and the instant the light became green Nancy shot ahead. By now the chase was hopeless. Toby Simpson and his car had disappeared, and though the girls rode up and down various streets, they could not find the red convertible.
Bess sighed. "What luck! Mr. Simpson has probably gone out of town, never to return. Poor Miss Carter!"
When the girls gave Miss Carter the disappointing news, the actress sighed deeply. Apparently she did not want to discuss the unfortunate happening and changed the subject.
"Did you detectives find anything in the bas.e.m.e.nt?" she asked.
"No," Nancy replied, "but this afternoon I want to look around the second floor and up in your attic."
Mrs. Bealing revealed that she had heard m.u.f.fled tapping sounds from the third floor.
"Then let"s go up there first," George proposed.
Miss Carter said with a smile, "Don"t be too surprised at what you find."