The Secret of the Old Clock Read Online Free PDF Page A

headlights to see the road. She was already thoroughly drenched and her thought of shelter at this point was one of safety rather than of keeping dry.
    Nancy turned on the windshield wipers, but the rain was so blinding in its intensity, it was impossible to see more than a few feet ahead. Almost in an instant the road had dissolved into a sea of mud.
    Nancy had been caught in a number of storms, but never one as violent as this. She feared a bad skid might land her in a ditch before she could reach the shelter of the barn.
    "How much farther is it?" she worried. "It didn't seem this far away."
    The next instant, to Nancy's right, a ball of fire rocketed down from the sky.
    "Oh! That was close!" she thought fearfully. Her skin tingled from the electrical vibrations in the air.
    A moment later a surge of relief swept over Nancy. "At last!" she breathed.
    At the side of the road the barn loomed up. Its large double doors were wide open. Without hesitation, Nancy headed straight for the building and drove in.
    The next moment she heard a piercing scream!
CHAPTER V
A Surprising Story
    NANCY froze behind the wheel. Had she inadvertently hit someone? Her heart pounding in fright, she opened the car door to step out.
    At the same instant a shadowy figure arose from a pile of hay near her. "I guess I must have scared you silly when I screamed," said a girl of Nancy's age, stepping forward.
    "You— You're all right?" Nancy gasped.
    "Yes. And I'm sorry I yelled. I came out here to check on our supply of feed for the chickens. I didn't think it was going to be a bad storm, so I didn't bother to go back to the house."
    "It's pretty bad," said Nancy.
    "Well, the storm terrified me," the girl continued. "I didn't hear your car coming, and when it rushed in here, I panicked."
    Nancy began to breathe normally again, then told the stranger her name and the fact that the mechanism for raising the top of the convertible was not working.
    "That's a shame," said the girl. "And you must get your clothes dried. The storm is letting up. Let's dash over to the house. Grace will help you too. She's my sister. My name's Allison Hoover."
    Hoover! Nancy was tempted to tell Allison that she had been planning to call, but she decided not to mention it at the moment. It might be better to do her sleuthing more subtly.
    Nancy smiled at Allison. "Thanks a million. But first I'd like to wipe out the car. Are there any rags around the barn?"
    Allison produced several and together the two girls mopped the water from the cushions and floor. By this time the rain had stopped. As Nancy and Allison sloshed through a series of puddles to the farmhouse, Nancy had a better chance to study her companion. She was tall, with reddish-blond hair and very fair skin. Her voice was musical and she had an attractive, lilting laugh.
    The girls reached the run-down farmhouse and stamped the mud from their shoes on the back porch. Then Allison flung open the door, and they entered a cheerful kitchen.
    As the door shut behind them, another girl who was just closing the oven of an old-fashioned range turned toward them in surprise.
    "Grace, I've brought a visitor," Allison said quickly. "Nancy, I want you to meet my sister. She's the mainstay of our family of two."
    Grace Hoover cordially acknowledged the introduction and greeted Nancy with a warm smile. Nancy judged her to be at least four years older than Allison. Her face was rather serious, and it was evident from her manner that responsibility had fallen on her shoulders at an early age.
    Nancy was attracted to both girls and responded to their friendly welcome. She put on a robe which Allison brought her and Grace hung her wet clothes near the range. Presently Grace pulled an ironing board from a closet with the intention of pressing Nancy's garments. But Nancy would not hear of this and began to iron them herself.
    "This is fun," she said to the sisters. "I don't know what I would have done without you girls."
    "It's great for