Hidden Meanings Read Online Free PDF

was carrot red. “Jane Sellery?” Nancy asked.
    The girl narrowed her eyes. “That’s me,” she answered. “What did you want?”
    â€œUm, I was just up in Gina Fiorella’s room,” Nancy said, improvising, “and I found this.” She held up the pen. “I thought it might belong to you.”
    Jane looked at the pen but didn’t take it. “My roommate, Karen, and I both have lots of Brookfield pens,” she said. “But this can’t be mine—I haven’t been in her room.” Her mouth twisted. “Everyone has those pens. Our school gives out tons of them.”
    â€œJust asking,” Nancy said brightly. “Are you coming back from the banquet?”
    â€œThe banquet ended half an hour ago,” Jane said. “I went to the pool. I always take a swim after dinner.”
    Nancy weighed this story. Jane’s hair wasn’t even wet, and she was fully dressed, with no towel or wet bathing suit in her hand. Had she really been swimming?
    â€œNice pool?” Nancy asked, hoping to sound friendly. Jane merely shrugged. Nancy pushed on. “Gina ought to check it out. She sure went swimming in the wrong pool this afternoon!”
    Jane smirked. “Served her right,” she muttered.
    â€œYou were there? You saw the accident?” Nancy asked in a gossipy-sounding voice. “I only heard about it later.”
    â€œI was just coming in the front door when I heard this splash,” Jane said. “Then I saw Gina climb out of the pool. She was soaked. I don’t know how it happened—maybe somebody had just had enough of her princessy ways.” Jane started to chuckle, then stopped. “Are you a friend of hers?”
    â€œNo way,” Nancy said heartily. “Say, did you hear her room got broken into?”
    Jane stifled a smug smile. “Yeah, I heard that. Did all her stuff get ripped off?”
    â€œNo, nothing was stolen,” Nancy said. “She has that big suite on the fifth floor, you know.” Nancy watched closely to see if Jane noticed she had given her the wrong information.
    Jane snorted. “Like I said, princess all the way,” she remarked. “She couldn’t stay in a regular room like the rest of us. Well, don’t look at me—I haven’t been on the fifth floor at all.”
    After saying good night, Nancy returned to the elevators. Back to square one, she thought while she waited. Jane clearly didn’t like Gina, but she didn’t seem to know anything about the break-in. When the elevator came, Nancy decided to return to the seventh floor to look around some more.
    After getting off on seven, Nancy walked down the hall, and noticed that Ned wasn’t outside Gina’s room. She bit her lip, thinking that Ned and Gina were probably still having dinner. Just then, Nancy saw a short, dark-haired girl in a gray cotton uniform poke her head out of a doorway. The girl, who was about Nancy’s age, looked upset.
    Nancy walked up. “Hi,” she said, reading the plastic name tag on her uniform, which said Rosita Ortiz. “Can I talk with you, Rosita?”
    Rosita quivered. “Are you the girl in Room 707?” she asked softly. “Because I’ve talked to Mr. Wasilick already. I told him I did not see anything. I was at the other end of the hall.”
    Nancy laid a hand gently on Rosita’s arm. “I’m a friend of the girl in 707,” she said. “And we just wondered how the thief got in.”
    Rosita’s dark eyes filled with tears. “I’ve had my key with me the whole time,” she said. “Please, I do not want to lose my job. I came to America six months ago from Peru and finally found a job. I’ve worked one week, and now this happens.”
    â€œYou won’t get fired,” Nancy said soothingly. “I just need help. You know the hotel better than I do. Can you show me