Danger on Parade (12 page)

N
ANCY SLOWLY OPENED
her eyes, wishing she could make the dull, throbbing pain in her head go away.

Everything was so fuzzy. It was as if a hazy fog had settled around her. She had trouble focusing on anything.

“Nancy, can you hear me?”

Nancy wasn't sure where the voice was coming from. She blinked rapidly, hoping the fog would disappear. As things became a little clearer, she realized that Jules was bending over her. He was with two security guards.

“Nancy, can you hear me?” Jules repeated.

She closed her eyes to concentrate and finally managed to speak. “Yes, I hear you. I just feel a little . . .dizzy.”

As Jules and the guard helped her to her feet,
Nancy's eyes lit on the cat balloon. Suddenly it all came rushing back to her—the cut rope and . . .

“Someone knocked me out,” she said. “The rope. Someone . . .” Her voice trailed off as she saw that the cut ropes had been knotted together.

“Someone cut it,” Jules finished for her. “I figured out what had happened when I came back with the guards,” he explained. “Luckily we managed to retie the broken ropes before the last one snapped.”

Nancy turned to look at the other balloons, then stopped as the throbbing in her head grew worse.

“Don't worry, we already checked the other balloons,” Jules said, following her gaze. “The ropes to three other balloons were also cut, but we got to them in time.”

Nancy started to ask another question but closed her eyes as her body began to sway. “I think I need some air,” she said in a weak voice.

With Jules's help, she grabbed her bag and made her way through one of the huge metal doors and sat down on a bench just outside the entrance. The cold, fresh air made her feel more clear-headed, and Nancy drew in several long breaths. It was still dark out, although the streetlights cut through the deep blackness of the night.

“How long was I out?” Nancy asked Jules, who sat down next to her.

“When I came back with the guards, you were
lying there. I'd say about ten minutes,” he answered. He had grabbed a couple of jackets from a pile near the door, and he draped one around her shoulders. “I don't think anyone will mind if we borrow these for a few minutes.”

Nancy rubbed her temples and stared down at the frozen patch of ground beneath her feet. She felt so helpless. She knew that the criminal was close by, but he always seemed to be just out of her reach. It was frustrating.

“Nancy, I hope you don't think my dad is responsible for this attack,” Jules said, his serious face illuminated by the streetlight above.

“I can't know anything for sure,” she said. “He could have cut the ropes before he left. But then, who knocked me out?”

They stopped talking as the Channel Seven news van pulled up next to the curb. A moment later, Aileen Nash hopped out with her camera crew.

“Hi!” Aileen said, her voice bright and cheery. She was wearing a beige suit with a silk blouse that had a fall-colored leaf print on it. “We need to get some early morning shots of everyone getting ready for the parade to show at the start of the telecast. Any great suggestions?”

Nancy looked at her blankly. “Sorry, but I guess getting knocked out has left me too muddled to come up with any creative camera shots,” she said.

“What!” Aileen listened as
Nancy and Jules told her about the latest attack on the parade. “Don't worry,” Aileen assured them when they were done. “I won't air anything without Jill's say-so. I just hope you find the culprit before something else happens.” With that, she headed into the museum with her camera crew.

“I'd better get back inside, too,” Jules told her. “Are you sure you're okay?”

“I'm fine. I just need a little more fresh air,” Nancy assured him. After he left, she pulled the jacket more tightly around her. It wasn't so much the cold that was getting to her—it was the eerie feeling she had in her bones.

Nancy leaned back on the bench, trying to formulate a plan to catch the saboteur once and for all.

She must have dozed off, because the next thing she knew the sky was growing lighter and her watch read five forty-five. She was shivering, and her feet felt numb, even though she was wearing boots. She stood up and started walking back and forth to warm up. As she did, she looked around. The area around the Museum of Natural History had grown much livelier.

A huge sign that read Clown Corner had been set up next to the museum, at the corner of Seventy-seventh Street and Columbus Avenue. Police barriers had been set up on the side street to block off any nonparade traffic, and dozens of volunteers were already gathering there. From what Nancy could see, they were picking up their
costumes in one area and sitting down to have their faces painted in another.

Most of the extras were laughing and squirting their fake flowers at one another. “If they knew what was really going on around here, they might not be so happy,” Nancy whispered to herself as she watched them.

The air vibrated with excitement and anticipation. Despite her concern, Nancy couldn't help feeling it, too. The night before, she had made arrangements with Bess to meet her there at six-thirty. Neither of them could stand the thought of Bess missing out on
all
the preparations, regardless of Jill's warning.

Nancy watched as workers began moving floats outside. They took great care in getting each one through the doorway. She was about to go inside and have another look around when Aileen came through the doorway and over to her.

“Feeling better?” Aileen asked. When Nancy nodded, the newswoman said, “We got all of our initial shots, so my crew is taking a short break. Care to join me for some coffee?”

Looking in the direction Aileen indicated, Nancy saw a twenty-four-hour coffee shop across the street. “That sounds perfect,” she agreed. “I need something to wake me up. And I'm freezing.”

They wove through the crowds to the coffee shop and ordered the hot drinks at the counter.

“So, you still haven't found out who's behind
the sabotage?” Aileen asked as they sat at a table across from a woman reading a fashion magazine.

Seeing Nancy hesitate, Aileen said, “Look, the parade is due to start in just a few hours. I'm not going to air any news of these attacks,” she promised. “Besides, at this point, I don't think anything could stop the crowds from showing up.

Aileen was right, Nancy decided. It couldn't hurt to discuss the case with her. Besides, Nancy really needed someone to bounce her thoughts off.

She briefly recapped her suspicions of Louis Clark. “Louis himself couldn't have shown up here, though,” Nancy said. “And if he's working with a Mitchell's employee, I still don't have a clue who it is.”

Aileen took a sip of her coffee, then asked, “And what's this about Howard Langley? I just saw Jill inside, and she told me
he
might be responsible.”

Nancy nodded. “He was here last night. The problem is, we still don't have any proof.” She let out a sigh. “I can't help feeling that I'm missing something important.”

She reached into her bag and pulled out the thick computer printout. Her eyes scanned the list as she explained to Aileen what it was.

“Hmm, that's funny,” Nancy murmured.

“What?” Aileen asked, leaning forward to look at the printout.

For the first time, Nancy had noticed someone whose name never appeared, even though he had been at the warehouse often during the past few days. “It's Neil Steem,” Nancy said slowly. “His name should be on this list, but it's not.”

“That
is
strange,” Aileen agreed.

Nancy blinked as a familiar, sweet scent wafted through the air. She looked to see where it was coming from, and her gaze landed on the woman at the next table. Her magazine was opened to an advertisement announcing the launch of Mitchell's exclusive men's cologne. The woman had unsealed the flap containing a sample of the cologne.

“That's it!” Nancy exclaimed.

Seeing Jill's puzzled gaze, she explained, “The other night Neil was wearing Mitchell's new exclusive cologne. He told me that it's not due to hit the stores until next month, and that he's one of the few people to be wearing it already.”

“And?” Jill prompted her.

“And the person who knocked me out this morning was wearing the same cologne. I remember smelling it just before I blacked out.” Nancy grabbed the reporter's arm. “Aileen, I think it was Neil Steem!”

N
ANCY, ARE YOU
absolutely sure?” Aileen asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

Nancy nodded. “I remember that smell. And it's definitely the one Neil was wearing when we were at the party at Inverted.”

She frowned for a moment before adding, “I suppose it's possible that Howard Langley could have an advance sample of the cologne, too. It's just that I haven't smelled it on him the few times we've met.”

A huge smile spread across Aileen's face. “I think I can help you out there,” she said. “When Mitchell's first announced the launch of their exclusive perfume and cologne, I covered the story. At the press conference, Howard Langley admitted that he's allergic to cologne and that he could never wear the Mitchell's scent!”

Nancy's mind was racing. “The saboteur
has
to be Neil, then—it all makes sense,” she said excitedly. “Neil was with Bess when she bought her scarf. He could have given her the receipt for the clown costumes to sign then. He saw me rush out of the club after her last night, too. He must have guessed that we'd be going to my aunt's, and he made sure to call there before we arrived, knowing that we wouldn't be in the apartment to answer and recognize his voice. Then he went to the warehouse and knocked out the guard and slashed the balloons right before we got there.”

Aileen listened in amazement as Nancy pieced the different attacks together. “Neil must have been here last night for the final preparations,” she guessed. “He always is. That must be when he cut the balloons. And since he
is
working with the parade, no one would question his presence.

“He even stole a stockboy's ID card so that he couldn't be connected to any of the sabotage attacks,” Nancy concluded.

Aileen's expression darkened. “I always knew Neil was bad news,” she said. “I guess he thought that if he made Jill look bad, the store's executives would return the parade's top responsibilities to him next year.”

“Come on!” Nancy cried, jumping up from the table. “We've got to warn Jill right away. Neil doesn't know we're onto him. For all we know, he could be planning another attack right now!”

By now the floats and balloons were crowding the streets. Nancy and Aileen scanned the crowds for Neil or Jill as they hurried past a balloon of a superhero, his huge cape flapping with the wind. They wound around a float depicting extraterrestrial life, complete with robots that said, “Greetings, Earthlings. Happy Thanksgiving!”

It wasn't going to be easy to tell Jill about Neil, Nancy realized as she hurried toward the Museum of Natural History with Aileen. Jill had believed that he was her friend.

“Where are they?” Nancy said, gazing around. She caught sight of Dan standing by a table of coffee and doughnuts that had been set up.

“Dan, do you know where Jill is?” Nancy asked, after she and Aileen rushed over. “Or Neil?”

“I don't know where Neil is, but last time I saw Jill she was over there.” He pointed toward Clown Corner. “Yes, she's still there.”

Nancy and Aileen rushed over to find Jill yelling into a portable phone. “What do you mean? Check again!” Jill screamed into the phone. “He
has
to be there!”

Jill looked more distraught than Nancy had ever seen her. But this was too urgent to wait. Glancing down at her watch, Nancy saw that it was already after six-thirty.

“Nancy, I have to get over to my crew,” Aileen whispered. “I'll try and get back over here as
soon as I can.” The newswoman disappeared into the crowd.

Finally, Jill pushed a button and disconnected the portable phone. She began to ask a question, but Nancy interrupted her.

“Do you know where Neil is?” Nancy blurted out.

Jill shook her head. “He was around before,” she answered.

“Where is he now?” Nancy persisted.

Jill looked irritated. “If you must know, he had to get more duct tape for one of the floats that's already falling apart. And Austie, the Frisbee-throwing dog, was left behind in the kennel at the hotel, so Neil had to go over and pick him up, too.”

Nancy knew not to get offended by Jill's tone. Jill was just overwhelmed with last-minute details. Nancy felt even worse about what she had to tell her. After taking a deep breath, Nancy said, “Jill, I have to tell you something about Neil—”