002 Deadly Intent (13 page)

“Lucky, Miss Drew? I told you it was just a warning. Otherwise . . .” The look in James Li’s cold dark eyes more than finished the sentence. Nancy knew this man played for keeps. “Alas, it seems only the inevitable was delayed.” Li smiled. “Did you really think you could stop us? I knew something was wrong tonight as soon as I saw your budding rock-and-roll star standing at the entrance instead of my guard, Petey. When Vivian told me who the young man was, we realized you must have traced us here. But no matter. I let my boys out of the truck, they told us the police were on their way, and we simply waited inside the entrance for your friend Sergeant Wald and his brave men in blue.”

“But what did you do to Alan?” Bess demanded. “Not that I really care,” she added unconvincingly.

James Li frowned. “A minor setback. He managed to get away while we were attending to the officers. But some of my boys went after him. He won’t get far. As for the rest of you, I’ll give you a chance to say your goodbyes to each other.”

“How nice of you,” muttered George.

“Once the truck is loaded,” Li continued, “we’re going to send you on a one-way trip.”

Bess let out a choked cry.

“Don’t worry, he won’t get away with this,” Nancy said.

“I wouldn’t place any bets on that, Miss Drew. Dave, tie them up.”

One by one, Dave pushed the prisoners down into hard, straight-back chairs, bound their wrists and ankles, and secured them to the chairs with more rope. He saved Nancy for last, pulling the rope extra tight. A shooting pain seared through her injured arm.

“That’s for practicing your karate moves on me,” he said, sneering.

“It evens the score,” Nancy said through gritted teeth, “for that rap on the head at the concert. You were the one who hit me, weren’t you, Dave?” She tried to keep a hard look on her face in spite of the burning pain in her shoulder. Ned also eyed Dave angrily. If he got the chance, he’d pay Dave back for hurting Nancy.

Nancy could hear the sounds of boxes being carried down the stairs. It was as if the boxes were sand in an hourglass. When the boxes were gone, it would be all over.

Li fired off more orders. “Okay, Dave, you help the boys finish loading up. Vivian, you take this gun and keep it pointed at our guests. If they so much as breathe too loudly, let them have it.
I’m going down to the ship to tell them to start the motors.”

“The ship that’s going to carry the records?” Nancy asked.

“And Vivian and my boys and me.” James Li smiled. “There isn’t a thing you can do to stop us. I’m not thrilled about leaving the States, but once Mr. Novak here caught on to what we were doing, things got a little too hot to handle. I decided to make one more big shipment and then leave the country until things cooled off. It was unfortunate that I had to wait until tonight before doing away with him, but I couldn’t risk having his body found before I was safely aboard ship.”

“Then Alan found out about your plans right before the final shipment,” Nancy said. “But you were afraid the disappearance of a second Fender guitarist would attract too much attention right before the critical night.”

“Very perceptive of you, Miss Drew. We didn’t want the police alerted.”

“But we were able to coax the story out of Alan . . . and contact the police. You didn’t count on that.”

“No,” Li agreed. “But it didn’t pose much of a problem in the end, did it?” His mouth spread in a frightening smile. “And now, ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for me to say good night.” He tipped his hat. “Dave, you know what to do once
the truck is loaded.” He looked back at Nancy. “You see, there’s going to be a tragic fire in this warehouse. But then, I’m sure my brother won’t mind collecting insurance on the building while we’re out of the country, lying low. And the diners downstairs will certainly leave at the first sign of smoke. It’s just a shame you people on the upper floor will be trapped.” Li laughed cruelly. “All right, go ahead, Dave. I’ll meet you at the ship when you’re through.”

“You’re leaving
now
?” Confusion registered on Dave’s face. “But we had a deal. I’d take care of the records. You’d take care of the people.”

“Correct. That was our arrangement. But I’m changing the deal. I don’t like dirty work, and I want to be far away while it’s being done. Do you understand?”

“But boss, I can’t. I’ve never . . . I mean, I know this guy.” Dave pointed to Ned, horrified as he realized what Li expected him to do. “He was my friend, kind of.”

“Dave, I am going down to the dock. We’ll be pulling anchor in twenty minutes, record albums or no record albums. The police will be looking for their men as soon as they discover they’re missing. If you want to stay around and visit the prison wards, fine. If you want passage on my ship for yourself and your girlfriend,” he looked at Vivian, “you’d better do as I say.” James Li turned on his heel. But heading out the door, he
was intercepted by Petey, the guard Nancy had asked for the light.

“Hey, boss?” Petey said. “We got a problem. It’s that kid. We looked everywhere for him. I don’t know how he got away so quick. It’s like he just vanished or something.”

Li tapped his pistol nervously against his palm. “Well then, you’d better hurry with those albums. He might get to the cops.”

Petey nodded.

“You too, Dave,” Li commanded. “Get to work.”

“But—”

“That’s the end of the discussion.” Li headed out.

Dave looked around at Nancy and the others. “Viv, what do you think?”

“You mean about them? I think we better do what Li says,” Vivian told him. “I don’t have any intention of winding up in jail.”

“I guess.” Dave handed her his gun (with some reluctance, Nancy thought), and went into the next room to move the crates of albums.

“Vivian, you’re not really going to listen to James Li, are you?” With her hands tied behind her back, Nancy had no option other than to try to talk Vivian out of the drastic plan. She suspected that Vivian was the person to convince. Dave was clearly shaken up at the thought of being responsible for so much bloodshed. If
Vivian changed her mind, Nancy was certain that Dave would go along with her. “You wouldn’t really set that fire,” Nancy said.

“A lot you know,” Vivian replied roughly. “Before Dave introduced me to Jimmy Li, every nickel I earned from my lousy job went toward the rent on a one-room dump. I never had fancy clothes or went to nice restaurants or owned real jewelry.”

“And now you have it all?”

“These aren’t rhinestones on my finger, sweetheart.” Vivian flashed a sparkling ring of gold and diamonds.

“But are all those luxuries worth having murder on your conscience for the rest of your life? Think about it. We’re talking about human lives.”

“I know what we’re talking about.” Vivian’s voice was deadly cold.

“Look, it’s no longer just a question of stealing masters or illegally copying albums or even knocking me out backstage at the Music Hall,” Nancy said desperately. “You must be pretty loyal to James Li to kill for him.”

“He takes good care of Dave and me.”

“Vivian, how long have you known him?”

“Dave introduced me to him a few months ago, when he needed to get on the inside at World Communications. But I don’t see what difference that makes.”

“And Dave hasn’t worked for him very long, either.”

“They started doing business when Dave worked at Emerson Record World.”

“That was less than a year ago,” Ned put in.

“And you’re ready to put yourself entirely in the hands of someone you’ve known for such a short time?” Nancy asked. “A man who makes deals and then ‘changes’ them as it suits him? Vivian, you and Dave are planning on escaping to a country where you don’t know a soul except Mr. Li. You don’t speak the language, you don’t know any of the customs. Without that man, you’re lost. And he’s ready to let you carry out murder, so that he isn’t responsible for it.”

Vivian seemed to be considering Nancy’s words. But then her face hardened. “You don’t really care what happens to Dave and me. You’re just pleading for your own lives. Well, you all deserve exactly what you get. We had a great thing going, and you came along and messed it up.

Dave poked his head into the room. “We’re about to bring the last load down.”

Nancy drew in a sharp, frightened breath. This was it.

“Good,” Vivian said. “The sooner we get this over with, the better.”

“Vivian, please,” Nancy begged as Dave headed down the stairs with the crate.
“Please . . .”

“Save it for the guy at the pearly gates.” Vivian waved her gun menacingly.

“I guess this is goodbye,” George managed to choke out. Nancy had never seen steely-nerved George shed a tear. She dropped her head, expecting the gunshot. But instead, she heard an ear-shattering scream!

N
ANCY JERKED HER
head up to see Vivian drenched in a steaming liquid. And wrestling the gun from her hand was . . .

“Alan!” Nancy cried out. “How on earth?”

Alan stood behind Vivian, holding her gun in one hand and a huge bowl in the other. “Hot egg drop soup,” he grinned. Working swiftly, he untied his friends. “I figured the last place those muscle-brains would look for me was in their own building. I sneaked back in through the restaurant side and came up the dumbwaiter. You were right, Nancy. It was
not
the most comfortable ride.” Alan unknotted the last bonds.

“Alan,” Nancy said gratefully, “without you, we’d—”

“—never have gotten into this mess in the first place. The least I could do was save your skin.”

Before Nancy could reply, footsteps on the stairs signaled Dave’s return. “Okay, guys,” she whispered. “You’re going to have to take Li’s henchmen on your own. I’m afraid my shoulder’s given out on me.”

“I thought you said it was fine,” George scolded her.

“So I lied. I don’t think I’m up for any fancy karate moves.”

“It’s all right, Nancy,” said Roger Gold. “Even without you, it’s nine of us against four of them.”

Suddenly, Dave appeared in the room along with Li’s other bullies. “Hey, what’s going on? Viv, what are you doing on the fl—”

Dave caught a right to his jaw before the word was out of his mouth. The small room reverberated with sounds of punches, kicks, and heated exclamations.

It didn’t take long for Nancy’s friends to overpower Li’s cohorts. “Good job,” Nancy said breathlessly. “Alan, go down and see about those policemen. Take Vivian’s gun, just in case.”

Alan left the room and a few seconds later reappeared with four men in blue uniforms.

“Sergeant Wald,” Nancy said, pointing to Dave, Vivian, and the other three men, “we have a little present for you. But there’s one more. The
boss, James Li. He’s trying to escape on a ship that’s about to pull anchor. Li told his boys he’d leave without the merchandise if he had to. Do you think we can stop him?”

“That should be easy.” Sergeant Wald stepped forward. “Just tell us what dock he’s leaving from, and we can radio headquarters. They’ll have cars and a special navy unit over there in no time.”

Nancy turned toward Li’s little gang, now securely tied with the ropes that had held her and her friends just moments earlier. “Okay, which one of you wants to tell me where your boss is leaving from?”

Dave and the others remained silent.

“Do you think he’d do the same for you?” Nancy asked. “No way. He wouldn’t stick his neck out one fraction of an inch. In fact, he’s getting ready to leave without you right this second.”

No answer.

“Dave, think about what James Li left you to do. He didn’t want to do it himself, so who did he stick with it?”

Dave scowled. “Yeah, that bum.”

“Come on, tell us,” Nancy urged. She’d learned in karate class that a chain was most easily broken at its weakest link. “Maybe if you cooperate, they’ll let you off with a lighter sentence.”

“Don’t listen to her,” Vivian commanded.

Dave looked from his girlfriend to Nancy, and back to his girlfriend.

“You know, your mother would be heartbroken to see her son locked away forever,” Nancy said, trying a different tack.

“How do you know what my mother would think?” Dave shouted.

“Ned had a little chat with her,” Nancy replied calmly. “We were trying to track you down.”

Dave’s face went from furious to panicked. The chain snapped. “All right, you win. I’ll tell you where he is.”

Nancy allowed herself a long overdue sigh of relief.

She was safe. Bess and Barton were fine. And Li’s gang was about to be put away. It was true that her shoulder ached, that her wrists and ankles were sore where Dave had tied them, and that her head was still bruised from where he had hit her the first night. But she had never in her life felt happier or more alive!

• • •

That happy feeling was still with Nancy the next morning as she flounced down on the edge of Bess’s bed. She steadied herself with her left arm, since her right one was still sore from the previous night. “Come on, lazybones! Do you want to sleep through your last day in New York?”

Bess groaned and pulled the covers over her head.