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  Carson Drew nodded. “I see.”

  Nancy went on with her story. “By this time, Randy had gone to Europe, and Hector didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t a natural criminal, so rather than do what Randy might have done—that is, kill Ribeiro—Hector simply changed the hiding place of the emeralds, and then notified Randy by letter that they were in a new place.”

  “Hold on a minute,” Matt broke in, his face lined with confusion. “I’m lost. If Randy was in Europe, how could he be stealing emeralds in South America?”

  “That was something that really threw me at first, too,” Nancy confessed. “Until the very end, I assumed that Randy couldn’t have had anything to do with the emerald thefts, because he was in Europe around the time they happened. But he slipped up when he lied and told me he’d never worked aboard the Emerald Queen before. Then, when I found out that he had, I wondered why he’d lied about it.”

  “Obviously,” Ned put in, “Randy didn’t want you to think he had any connection with da Silva.”

  “Right,” Nancy said. “Actually, he left right after the emeralds were stolen—I’ll bet that the records would prove that he left the morning the theft was discovered. When he first came up with his plan, he gave himself an alibi in advance by asking to be transferred to Europe. He could wait to collect his share of the profits until after the investigation trail cooled off.”

  “I think I see where you’re going,” Ned said excitedly. “Hector couldn’t just tell Randy right out where the emeralds were hidden. You said that Hector was being investigated in connection with the theft, right? So his mail was probably under surveillance—he had to put everything in code.”

  “Smart boy!” Nancy squeezed Ned’s hand under the table. “You’re right again.

  “Hector was really into codes, according to Mrs. da Silva. He wrote this letter to Randy, letting him know about the change of plans in some subtle way, and tried to convey the key to decoding the drawing that he had made. That letter, by the way, caused me major confusion—Randy had given a copy to Ribeiro, and that night when I asked you to cover for me, Melissa, I found it in Ribeiro’s room. Since it was addressed to R, I assumed that Hector had written it to Ribeiro. It never occurred to me to wonder why Ribeiro would have a copy of the letter instead of the original.”

  “But why didn’t Hector just send Randy the spider drawing?” asked Melissa. “It sure would have made things a lot simpler.”

  Nancy nodded. “Right—but he didn’t want them to be simple. He didn’t trust Randy a hundred percent, and he wanted to be sure Nina got her fair share. So what he actually sent was a code of a code. It was the only way he could ensure Randy’s cooperation.

  “Anyway. Besides not having the drawing to tell him where to find the jewels, Randy Wolfe now had another problem on his hands. Ribeiro.

  “Antonio Ribeiro hadn’t forgotten about the emeralds, so when Randy came back, Ribeiro threatened to expose him unless Randy cut him in.”

  Ned interrupted. “Nancy, something doesn’t make sense here. Randy Wolfe is a natural-born killer. Why not just get rid of Ribeiro?”

  Nancy shook her head. “Randy is very smart. When he found out he had a new—and unwelcome—partner, he decided to let Ribeiro do all the dirty work. Ribeiro could take care of Mrs. da Silva once Randy got the map. And Randy made sure Ribeiro left a trail that would lead the police right to Ribeiro—but not to Randy himself. It was a perfect plan. Ribeiro would get the spider code from Mrs. da Silva, and Randy would get rid of him—after they got the jewels.”

  “Incredible. And because of various coincidences,” Carson Drew began, “like your overhearing Ribeiro’s conversation with Nina, and your finding that letter addressed to R in Ribeiro’s cabin, and Nina herself thinking that Ribeiro was the one who had planned it all—”

  “I never even thought of the possibility that the main brain in this case could have been anyone else,” Nancy finished up. She gave a rueful laugh. “It should have been obvious. Such a lot of strange little facts didn’t add up. But Ribeiro was so easy to spot that I didn’t bother to look any further than that.”

  “You still haven’t explained how you, Ned, and Randy ended up battling in a cable car thousands of feet up in the air,” Matt pointed out.

  Nancy grinned. “I’ll let Ned tell you about that,” she replied. “He was the hero!”

  “Well—” Ned looked a little embarrassed. “As I was telling Nancy, Ribeiro came back to the Emerald Queen with another guy after he’d chased us off. I was hiding nearby, and I managed to overhear a lot of their conversation.

  “Ribeiro wanted to grab as many of the emeralds as he could and take off before they got caught. But the other guy—who I later found out was Randy Wolfe—was much cooler. He was saying that all they had to do was take care of the two kids—meaning Nancy and me—and then lie low until the ship docked in Miami. Then they could just sell the gems, sit back, and enjoy being rich.

  “But by then Ribeiro was really rattled. He kept saying it was too risky, and he didn’t want to risk a murder rap in Rio. I gather the police here can be pretty tough. So finally Randy said that he knew where Nancy and I might be going, and that he’d take care of us himself.”

  Melissa gasped. “How cold-blooded! What did you do?”

  “The only thing I could,” Ned answered simply. “Nancy’s life was more important than the emeralds. So I waited until Ribeiro and Randy were gone, and then headed over to Sugarloaf as fast as I could go. And I was almost too late,” he added, his face grim. “Randy and Nancy were in the cable car already—it was taking off and I just barely managed to jump on the roof.”

  Nancy leaned over and gave Ned a huge hug. “As usual, Nickerson, you did exactly the right thing. If you hadn’t been there, I probably never would have made it to the top alive!” She shivered.

  “What a mind!” Melissa said. “To think Randy had that whole plan worked out so carefully.”

  “Yes,” Nancy agreed. “Randy is a brilliant criminal. If it hadn’t been for a couple of unforeseeable hitches, he would have pulled it all off.”

  “But he’s so young and—and handsome!” Melissa wailed. Matt gave her a shocked look and everybody laughed.

  “Melissa, you sound just like a friend of mine back in River Heights,” Nancy said. “Speaking of whom, I promised a lot of people I’d bring back some colorful pictures of life in fabulous Rio. Ned, do you have your camera with you?”

  “Right here,” Ned answered, holding it up.

  “Great. What do you say we start working on a photo essay—right now, on the beach?”

  “Let’s go. See you later, everyone!”

  As Ned and Nancy walked down the steps to the beach, Ned put his arm around Nancy’s shoulders. “Hey, Nan?” he asked.

  “Hmmmm?”

  “I didn’t think Randy was really that good-looking. Did you?”

  Nancy stared at Ned in astonishment. Then she began to laugh. “He’s not even in your league,” she said.

  “Positive?” Ned looked relieved.

  “Definitely. There’s no one in your league, Ned. Now, kiss me, you fool.”

  As Ned’s arms slid around her waist, Nancy melted against him with a happy sigh. Romantic Rio with the guy she loved. What more could she want?

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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