A Secret in Time Read Online Free PDF

seen a tall young woman dressed in a 1920s-style flapper dress. The beaded blue dress was short, and the woman wore a small hat with a blue feather sticking out. She was in the doorway of an empty store, talking with a man in a business suit. It had happened so fast that Nancy wasn’t sure whom she’d seen. But if she was correct, that flapper was Lydia Newkirk.

4
Round-the-Clock Protection
    At the next corner Nancy made a sharp right and stepped on the accelerator.
    â€œNancy!” cried Bess, alarmed. “Will you please tell me what’s going on? This isn’t the way to the police station.”
    Nancy made another right turn. “I think I just saw Lydia,” she said.
    â€œLydia?” asked Bess, looking surprised. “But she has the flu.”
    â€œWell, she must have made a pretty speedy recovery,” Nancy said.
    Nancy made a last right back onto Center Street and slowed down as she passed the row of stores where she’d just seen the woman in the blue flapper dress. There was no sign of Lydia or anyone else.
    â€œI’m going to park,” Nancy said, swallowing herdisappointment, “so we can get a better look.” She found a parking spot two blocks farther up the street, and the two girls got out.
    â€œWhat makes you think it was Lydia you saw?” Bess asked as they walked back down Center Street. “We were going pretty fast.”
    â€œI’m not sure it was,” Nancy said. “But how many girls do you know in River Heights who’d wear a flapper dress when she’s not at a costume party?”
    â€œMaybe it just looked like a flapper dress,” Bess suggested.
    The girls reached the block where Nancy had spotted the young woman, but the only person on the street was an old lady walking a dachshund.
    â€œIt looked as if she was in front of an empty store,” Nancy said as they passed a deli, a stationer’s, and a dry cleaner. “Wait! There it is.”
    She slowed her pace as they reached a storefront window where a posted sign read, For Rent: Megan Krasnoff Realty, 965 Vernon Road, Call 555-1966.
    â€œI’m sure this was where I saw her,” Nancy said excitedly. She peered in through the glass door. There were no lights on inside, but it was easy to see that the store was vacant.
    Bess stood next to Nancy and looked through the glass. “You see, Lydia’s not there,” she said, feeling relieved that her neighbor had not been spotted.
    â€œOr not there anymore ,” Nancy said. Taking her notebook out of her purse, she jotted down the name and number of the real estate company. “I’ll follow upon this later,” she said. “I don’t want to keep Chief McGinnis waiting.”
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    Russell Brown was already sitting in the lobby of the police station when Nancy and Bess arrived. The girls told the desk sergeant that Chief McGinnis was expecting them, then sat down on a bench opposite Brown. Mr. Brown glanced at the girls but didn’t seem to recognize them from the day before. He just continued to stare off into space, one foot nervously tapping the floor.
    After a moment Chief McGinnis came out to greet them. “Nancy Drew and Bess Marvin,” he said, extending his hand. “It’s always a mixed blessing to see you. Good, of course, because you make my job easier, but bad because it usually means something’s gone wrong in this town.”
    â€œHi, Chief,” Nancy said, shaking his hand. Bess did the same.
    â€œAnd you must be Russell Brown,” McGinnis said, turning to the man on the other bench. “These are the girls who found your brooch.”
    Mr. Brown stood up quickly. “Where is it?” he asked anxiously. “Has it been damaged?”
    â€œLet’s go to my office first,” Chief McGinnis said. “Come with me.”
    Russell Brown followed Chief McGinnis and the girls to the police chief’s office.