The Scarlet Slipper Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Nancy, I had no idea that you would get into trouble. We cannot permit it to continue. Our enemies are more dangerous than I thought.”
    Nancy had grown very fond of the dancing couple. Besides, she was determined not to give up so easily. Smiling, she insisted that her accident was of little consequence.
    Before the Fontaines had a chance to comment further, Nancy asked them if they knew Mrs. Judson or had ever heard of her. They said no. Thinking the woman might be using an assumed name, Nancy described her carefully. The dancers said they knew no such person.
    Nancy showed the couple the piece of envelope with the French stamp and asked if the Fontaines recognized the handwriting. They did not.
    As Nancy ran her fingernail over the strange stamp, something on the envelope caught her eye. “Hannah,” she said to the housekeeper, “will you please steam the stamp off this envelope for me?”
    The housekeeper went to the kitchen and returned quickly. Wide-eyed she exclaimed, “It beats me how Nancy figures things out!”
    “I had a clue,” Nancy admitted. “I noticed a dot of ink extending beyond the edge of the stamp.”
    “Well, it was a good idea,” said Hannah. “There was a number under the stamp.”
    “What is it?” the three asked eagerly.
    Dramatically, Hannah read, “10561-B-24!”
    It was the same number that Nancy had found inside the bisque figurine!
    Astonished, Nancy told them about the statuette and the impostor who had sold it to the local jeweler. “Does the number mean anything to either of you?” she asked Henri and Helene.
    They shook their heads. “Could it be some sort of a code?” Henri asked.
    “Perhaps,” Nancy admitted. “And it may be in French. Let’s see if we can figure it out. Have you ever tried solving a cryptogram?”
    “A few times,” Helene answered.
    “Good. Now, if Hannah will bring us a pad of paper and some pencils, we’ll all work on it. I’ll work in English and you two can experiment in French.”
    They tried simple substitutions, using the series of numbers for letters of the alphabet, but nothing came of this. Next they tried transposition, numbering the alphabet with z for 1 and a for 26.
    “I believe we’ve been following the wrong trail,” Nancy said finally, after several leads had failed to produce a message. “This may even be a serial number of some sort.”
    Hannah Gruen, who had been listening, declared she thought enough decoding had been done that day. “Nancy, I suggest that you go to bed and let me serve supper to you in your room.”
    Helene and Henri backed Hannah up, urging Nancy to rest her ankle. She finally consented.
    The young detective went to sleep early that night. She woke the next morning eager to continue work.
    When she hopped down to breakfast, being careful to put no pressure on her swollen ankle, Nancy found Helene and Henri looking very serious.
    Helene confessed that they were embarrassed about staying at the Drew home without being permitted to reimburse the lawyer.
    “Oh, please stop thinking of that,” said Nancy. “We just love having you here, and you can help me on the case as no one else could.”
    Henri brightened a little. “Nancy, I could do one thing that might help repay your kindness, but I’ll need your cooperation.”
    He explained that he was a portrait painter as well as a dancer. His art was not well known, but he had done some acceptable work. He offered to paint Nancy’s portrait as a reward for her help.
    “Why, that would be wonderful!” said Nancy. “Dad has been trying for a long time to get me to have my portrait painted. He’ll be thrilled.”
    “Then it’s settled. As soon as we finish breakfast, we’ll pick the right spot and I’ll begin work.”
    Half an hour later they set up a studio in Hannah’s second-floor sewing room. Nancy, wearing a dainty ice-blue blouse, sat quietly while Henri made several rough pencil sketches.
    Finally he selected one that Helene declared