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upsetting.”
    Patrick grinned at her. “Actually, there isn’t one. Never was. Aunt Dotty made do with a cook-housekeeper, who retired after she died.”
    â€œWhat about her?” Nancy asked, nodding towarda young woman in a maid’s uniform who was serving the soup.
    â€œWe hired her and three others, along with a cook, just for this conference,” Patrick replied.
    â€œI’m sure the museum will be a huge success,” Nancy said. “Was your aunt planning it for a long time?”
    Patrick chuckled. “If she was, she didn’t tell anyone,” he replied. “We were all surprised to hear about it when her will was read.”
    â€œAll?” Nancy repeated. “Do you have a lot of relatives?”
    â€œNo, just me. I meant Kate and Mrs. Margolis—Aunt Dotty’s housekeeper. And, of course, Maxine and Bill. My aunt had hinted that they’d be in her will. But she must have been worried about leaving enough money for the museum, so she made the gifts to her friends quite small. They must have thought they’d be remembered a little more generously than they were.”
    â€œYou must have been disappointed, too,” Nancy said. As the words left her mouth, she realized she was prying into personal territory. “Sorry— you don’t have to answer that,” she added quickly.
    Patrick didn’t seem to mind. He smiled and said, “I was surprised. We never talked about it, but I thought the estate would come to me. Still, turning Mystery Mansion into a museum was obviously close to my aunt’s heart, so for hersake, I’m doing whatever I can to help bring it about. Besides, the foundation is giving me a decent salary and letting me live here for free while we get the place set up.”
    Smiling, Patrick smoothly changed the subject. “I’ve heard about some of the cases you’ve solved,” he said. “How does George figure into your detective work?”
    Nancy suppressed a grin. It was obviously George, not the cases, that Patrick was interested in.
    She and Patrick turned as Erika spoke from the other side of Patrick. The editor didn’t appear to be very happy about the attention Patrick was giving Nancy and George. Touching his arm, Erika said something in a sultry voice, too low for Nancy to hear. Patrick gave Nancy an apologetic smile and turned his attention back to Erika.
    As the maid served their second course, roast beef with scalloped potatoes and string beans, Nancy turned to Bill Denton. For the rest of the meal, she listened to him brag about the great deals he’d negotiated for Dorothea’s books.
    Nancy was relieved when dinner was over and Kate announced, “Friends, this is an important moment for the Mystery Mansion Museum. In a few minutes we will install Dorothea Burden’s unique collection of gold figurines in their newhome. Will you all come with us to the display room?”
    Nancy, George, and the others followed her back through the living room and into a long hallway. At the far end of the hall was a set of double doors, which Kate unlocked and pushed open.
    â€œPlease go in,” she said. “We’ll be right back.” She beckoned to Patrick, and the two of them left the room.
    â€œNancy, look at this place!” George whispered. “Is all this stuff real?”
    Good question, thought Nancy. A wooden gallows, complete with hangman’s noose, stood in one corner, stretching almost to the high ceiling. Arranged on the walls were daggers and pistols of every sort, some of them obviously very old. A mannequin in the center of the room was dressed in an antique lace-trimmed costume. Sinister brown stains surrounded a small hole in the breast of the dress. Nancy couldn’t suppress a small shiver.
    Near the door was an empty glass display case that was lit by two small spotlights. Nancy and George joined the others in a semicircle around the case. When