This Side of Evil Read online

  “It happened,” Nancy said calmly, “because you loosened the oil drain plug and disconnected the warning light.” She smiled slightly. “I have to hand it to you, Ashley. You thought of everything. If the copter had gone down before we found George, we’d be out of the way and there’d be plenty of time to get rid of George. And if it went down with all of us aboard . . .” She shrugged. “Either way, you’d come out a winner.”

  “A winner?” Ms. Amberton pulled herself up. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Why, I was shocked to hear—”

  “It’s no use, Ashley,” Nancy said, raising her voice. “I know all about it. I know that you blackmailed the Cherbourg employees. It was so easy for you to find out their secrets, wasn’t it? You simply poked around in their personnel files, didn’t you? And you were also the one who poisoned Monique when you took flowers to her the day before she fell ill. You also stole the notepaper and the liquid nitrogen from Dr. Dandridge’s office when you took candy to his staff.”

  Ms. Amberton smiled. “You have a very lively imagination, my dear,” she said smoothly. “No wonder you’ve made such a name for yourself as a detective. Are you finished yet?”

  “No, there’s more,” Nancy told her. “Much more.” She pointed to the charred remains of the newspaper photo in the ashtray. “You made up the phony headline to scare me, and you arranged for the passes to get us into the stadium. And of course, it was you who phoned Jacques Olivier and told him to run us down.”

  Ms. Amberton frowned. “Me? What makes you think that?”

  Nancy smiled. “You knew we’d be at the plaza, watching Emile Dandridge drop the money into the trash can. Remember? I phoned you and told you we were going to be there.” She shook her head. “It was so obvious, I don’t know why I didn’t see it right away. You were the only one, besides the doctor, who knew we’d be there. In fact, you were the only person in Montreal who knew every move we made.”

  “So you’ve figured it all out,” Ms. Amberton asked archly. “What made you suspect me? It wasn’t just that I knew where you were or you’d have figured this out right away.”

  “True. Your question about the damage to the stove when I told you about the liquid nitrogen spill was the first thing. I didn’t think about it at the time, though. It was only this evening, when everything began to fall into place, that I remembered our conversation.”

  “Yes, that was rather an undisciplined remark,” Ms. Amberton admitted. “I realized immediately that you hadn’t told me where in the kitchen the spill had occurred. Was there anything else?”

  “Your bandaged hand,” Nancy replied. “The hand that George bit. And, of course, the keys. The kidnapper couldn’t have gotten into the locked warehouse to hide George—unless she had the key, too. Also the police never arrived to help us.”

  “Well, well, you are an amazing young lady,” Ms. Amberton said with a deep chuckle. “I do congratulate you on your stunning detective skills. It appears that you have won this round, doesn’t it?”

  Nancy stared at her. “So that’s it,” she said. “A game. The whole thing has been a game of wits all along. You’ve been laying out the clues for me to follow, haven’t you?”

  “Indeed, yes,” Ms. Amberton said, sitting easily on the corner of the desk. “In fact, I think a little boasting is in order, if you don’t object. I masterminded the whole thing—all of it. But I didn’t do it for the money, of course.”

  “Of course not,” Nancy said, going to the balcony door to look out. “You did it for the fun of it, didn’t you? It was a test of your abilities—your criminal abilities.”

  “Exactly.” Ashley Amberton beamed. “At first, of course, there was just the pleasure of finding out what I could do, practicing in a way. Why else would anyone want to bother with such insignificant blackmail victims as poor Monique and Jacques and that miserable Evans girl?”

  “But then, as you began to discover your real talents, it occurred to you that there was bigger game out there. So you went after Lake, and Annette and Emile Dandridge.”

  “I knew about their silly little mistakes, of course,” Miss Amberton said with a modest shrug. “It’s simply amazing how much you can find out if you have an inquiring mind and are determined to learn about people’s pasts. But after a while even that game lost its challenge. So—”

  “So you decided to test yourself against me,” Nancy said, looking out into the night. “Even at the risk of getting caught.”

  Ashley stood up. “Who else is worthy of my efforts? Your reputation, your skill.” She smiled a little. “Although I must admit that your friend George did tax my physical capabilities to their limit. It’s a good thing I’ve been working out at the gym for the past year. I could never have managed to carry her otherwise.”

  Her smile deepened into a laugh and she opened the top desk drawer. “As for getting caught, well—you may have won this round, Nancy Drew. But you haven’t won the game.” She reached into the drawer of her desk and pulled out a gun. Ms. Amberton stepped closer to Nancy, her eyes glittering. “And you’re not going to, either.”

  Nancy’s eyes widened at the sight of the gun. “You—you wouldn’t,” she said in a whisper.

  “It’s a miracle that you survived the helicopter crash,” Ms. Amberton said, her lips taut. “But no miracle can help you escape a fifteen-story fall.” She shoved the gun into Nancy’s stomach. “Our little game is over, Nancy Drew, and I’ve won. Now get out on that balcony!”

  A loud shout rang through the office as Ned burst in through the balcony doors. Ashley Amberton half turned, her attention distracted, and Nancy aimed a hard, quick karate chop at her extended forearm. With a moan, she dropped the gun and grabbed her arm. Nancy scooped up the gun and pointed it at her.

  “It’s broken,” Ms. Amberton groaned in agony. “You’ve broken my arm!”

  At the same moment, George rushed through the office door with Annette LeBeau, a cameraman, and two burly policemen right behind her.

  “You see, Ashley,” Nancy remarked pleasantly, “the game’s never over until the final move.”

  While the lights blazed and the camera whirred, the police arrested Ashley Amberton. Her eyes glazed with pain and defeat as they led her out the door. Annette followed close behind, holding a microphone over Ms. Amberton’s shoulder and firing rapid questions at her as they went down the hall.

  “Whew,” Nancy said, collapsing onto the plush sofa. “I’m glad that’s over!” She looked at Ned. “Thanks for being on time with your cue,” she said. “I would have hated to take a swan dive off that balcony.”

  Ned laughed. “I felt a little queasy at the idea of crawling out that window in the next office and onto a balcony fifteen stories up,” he admitted. “But it all worked out.”

  “And I was a little worried that Annette wouldn’t arrive with the police in time for Ms. Amberton’s confession,” George said. “But we heard every word of it. And Annette had the mike going, too, so I’m sure it’s on tape.” She laughed. “Annette has even thought of a title for her story,” she said.

  “Really?” Ned asked curiously. “What is it?”

  “She’s calling it The Other Side of Evil.’ ” George told him.

  Nancy stretched. “Hey, that’s a neat title. And I’m glad she got the story. Maybe it’ll help make up for some of the misery she’s been through.” She stretched and yawned. “Well, I guess we can wrap this one up, gang.”

  “Yeah,” George said. “Speaking of a wrap-up”—she hugged herself—“do you suppose we could go back to the apartment—now? These running shorts are a little drafty. Besides, I’m dying for something to eat. Something like a sixteen-ounce steak and a bushel of french fries.”

  “Tell you what,” Ned said, pulling Nancy off the sofa and putting his arm around her, “after George gets changed, I’ll treat both you girls to a midnight snack. How about it?”

  “Sounds super,” Nancy agreed. She looked at the pile of ash that was all that was left of
the picture Ashley Amberton had burned. “ ‘The Other Side of Evil,’ huh? Well, I think we can close this case, for good.”

  “Oui,” Ned and George said together and then laughed.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen