08 The Magician's Secret Read Online Free PDF

crowd from the basement had moved to just outside the courthouse. Officer Fernandez continued to question Lonestar’s staff, while the rest of the police investigated the evidence locker. The sun was bright in the sky. Bess absentmindedly fanned herself with one of Lonestar’s programs.
    â€œWhew, it sure warmed up out here,” Hugo muttered, removing his jacket. As he swung his coat over his arm, a stack of small white cards fell out of the pocket.
    He leaped forward to pick them up, but Officer Fernandez stopped him.
    â€œCan that wait? I have a question for you,” she said, putting her hand on his chest.
    His eyes went to the cards. “Give me one minute. I need to—”
    â€œMr. LaBlanca, please. This is important,” she said firmly.
    My curiosity was piqued. What was on those cards? And why did he need to gather them so badly? I kneeled down to pick up the cards myself, but before I could find out what was on them, Bess dropped to her knees next to me.
    â€œNancy,” she whispered. “I’ve got something to tell you.”
    Bess picked up a few white cards. “While I was speaking to Ariana and Ayela, I suddenly remembered an article I read recently about Gritty Grand. If the report is accurate, she’s broke. According to a rival designer, her company is shutting down.”
    â€œDo you think it’s true?” I asked.
    â€œProbably. Bad news often is,” Bess said. “The thing is that Gritty Grand’s response to the report was that this rival designer ‘has kangaroos loose in the top paddock.’ I thought it was such a strange thing to say that I remembered it.”
    â€œI’m guessing it’s simply Australian slang,” I suggested. “It’s possible that it’s just one of those phrases everyone says, like ‘she’s got a screw loose.’ ”
    â€œI’m not sure.” Bess pinched her lips together. “I mean, we are looking for a jewel thief, and there’s the possibility that Gritty Grand, who we’ve now connected to Drake Lonestar through her boyfriend and nieces, might be broke.”
    The wheels started turning in my head. “I get what you’re saying,” I told Bess. “If she needed money to save her business, she might be interested in gems. That could be the connection we need to attach Lonestar to Smallwood.”
    â€œWhile you’re thinking about that,” Bess said, “I have something else for you to consider.”
    She handed me two of the cards we’d picked up fromthe floor. “They all say 5A on one side and 5B on the other,” Bess pointed out.
    They were the white cards from the barrel that Lonestar had used to choose his onstage guest! Me.
    So it wasn’t a coincidence that I was onstage for the performance. My dad had given me two tickets: seats 5A and 5B. Whichever seat I chose, I’d have been selected.
    The moment Hugo and Officer Fernandez ended their conversation, I leaped forward.
    â€œHugo,” I said, thrusting out my hands filled with the white cards. “Care to explain?”
    He laughed as he took them from my hands and tossed them into a nearby trash can. There was distinct humor in his eyes and a smile on his face.
    â€œIt was part of the marketing plan,” Hugo explained easily. “Drake heard about you, Nancy Drew. You’re famous around here.”
    I wrinkled my nose. Sure, I’d solved a few mysteries, but I would never consider myself famous. Not like Drake Lonestar. He had fans screaming his name, jumping fences for him, and begging for autographs. Ihad a couple of articles in the local paper. There was no comparison.
    â€œDrake decided he wanted you onstage. So he sent the tickets to your dad under the name of a past client that he’d read about in the news.”
    â€œHow did you know my father wouldn’t give them to our housekeeper, or take someone else