The Clue of the Gold Doubloons Read online

  that took them to the Marine Mammal Pavilion. She

  was glad she had been at the aquarium before and

  knew her way around.

  When they reached the Mammal Pavilion, Nancy

  spotted Lian and Janie in front of the theater doors.

  Janie was sipping a soda. Lian was showing her a

  stuffed seal she'd pulled from an aquarium shopping

  bag.

  Nancy frowned. The two looked totally innocent.

  Was she wrong to suspect them? she wondered.

  “Hey, Nan.” Janie waved. “How was the Tide Pool?”

  “How did you know I was there?” Nancy asked, her

  tone sharp.

  Janie arched one brow. “That's where George said

  she was going to meet you.”

  Lian put her stuffed seal back into the bag. “We'd

  better go in. The show's about to start.”

  “Lian just got here, too,” Janie said to Nancy as she

  opened the theater door for everyone.

  “There were so many cute animals to choose from,”

  Lian explained.

  As they went inside, Nancy glanced at Lian. She had

  obviously been to the gift shop, then hurried to meet

  them. But she could also have managed to follow

  Nancy. Nancy decided not to rule out anyone for the

  moment.

  The four girls made their way to an empty row of

  seats. Already the jumbo screen was showing scenes of

  sea mammals. Nancy settled back, her eyes on the

  screen. But she couldn't stop her mind from racing.

  Who had accosted her in the aquarium? Lian?

  Janie? Or was it someone who had followed them from

  the ship? And what had been his or her intent?

  An involuntary shiver raced up Nancy's arms. She

  knew what the person had wanted—to scare her, or

  worse. I must be getting close to blowing Chance's

  identity, she thought.

  Then a new possibility worked its way into Nancy's

  thoughts. Weller had said that Curran's pattern was to

  rob and run. That meant something was keeping him

  here. Something important enough to keep him from

  fleeing, even though he knew Nancy was getting close.

  Was he planning a bigger heist? Or if he was

  connected to the film, was he going to leave when they

  finished shooting?

  Nancy wasn't sure. But one thing she did know:

  from now on, she couldn't let down her guard for a

  second.

  “I'll have the pasta,” Nancy said to Scott. Frowning,

  he wrote her order below George's order of hamburger

  and fries.

  “No seafood tonight?” Scott asked them.

  George and Nancy laughed. “No way,” George said.

  “I'd keep thinking it was a cousin of some fish I'd met

  at the aquarium.”

  “Oh, right.” Scott nodded knowingly, then jerked his

  thumb to the right. “Think she'll give me an

  autograph?”

  Nancy looked in the direction he was referring to.

  Selena sat at a private, candlelit table by herself. “I

  thought you wanted an autograph for John,” she

  teased.

  He flushed pink. “Right. Uh, he got one already.

  He's their waiter.”

  “Their waiter?” George asked.

  Then Nancy saw a man walking toward the table.

  Since his back was to her, she wasn't sure who it was,

  but she figured it must be Joseph Mascelli. When he

  sat down, she realized it was Andrew. Leaning across

  the table, he said something to Selena that made her

  throw back her head and laugh.

  “Whoa,” George said. “Selena and Andrew? They

  look mighty friendly.”

  “Want me to find out what they're discussing?” Scott

  asked, giving the two girls a conspiratorial wink. “John

  will be glad to tell all.”

  “Go for it,” Nancy said.

  When Scott left, she sat back in her chair. George

  had dark circles under her eyes. She'd propped her

  head up with one hand as if too tired to hold it straight.

  Nancy knew how her friend felt.

  “As soon as dinner's over, we'll hit the sack,” Nancy

  promised.

  “I know it's only eight, but it feels like midnight,”

  George mumbled. “I can't believe Janie and Lian are

  off to meet a bunch of the cast and crew at Fells

  Point.”

  “At least that's where they said they were going.”

  For a second Nancy played with her fork, her thoughts

  drifting to Andrew and Selena. Their dinner was

  probably totally innocent, a chance to discuss script

  changes. Then again . . .

  “A bigger role,” Scott said when he brought their

  salads.

  “No thanks, this roll's big enough,” George said,

  pointing to the one on her side plate.

  Nancy and Scott laughed. “He means Selena wants a

  bigger role in the film,” Nancy explained.

  “Oh. How'd you know that's what he meant?”

  George asked Nancy.

  “Because Scott had that I'm-on-a-case look in his

  eyes when he brought our salad. And it made sense—

  Selena definitely would like to be the star.”

  “I'll keep pumping John to see if he digs up anything

  juicier,” Scott promised before leaving.

  Nancy speared a piece of lettuce with her fork. “Of

  course,” she said to George in a low voice, “they could

  be talking about committing crimes, and Selena meant

  she wants a bigger role in the burglaries.”

  “There's no way Selena's involved,” George said.

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “Because if that had been Selena in the surveillance

  videotape, she would have struck a pose so security

  taped her best angle.”

  Nancy laughed, glad the evening was ending on a

  light note. Before dinner she'd called Detective Weller

  from the hotel room. He'd been so concerned when

  she told him about the attacker in the aquarium, he'd

  suggested she do no further investigating.

  Nancy told him she was already in too deep. He also

  had said the prints should be processed by the next

  day. Nancy hoped so. If Chance Curran knew they

  were closing in, he could run any minute.

  After dinner Nancy and George swung by Andrew's

  and Selena's table before heading for their room. The

  two were still talking as they sipped coffee.

  “You two didn't go to Fells Point with the others?”

  Nancy asked.

  Selena rolled her eyes. “Some noisy, crowded

  restaurant that smells like fish? No thanks. This is more

  private.” She gave Andrew a meaningful look.

  “I'll probably join them later,” Andrew said, ignoring

  Selena's look. Nancy wondered if he deliberately did it

  to annoy the actress, or if he was one of the few men

  oblivious to her charms.

  “We're hitting the sack,” George said. “It's been a

  long crazy day.”

  Nancy waited, wondering if Andrew would

  comment on his brother's arrest. When he mentioned

  shooting the scene instead, she was once again

  surprised at his lack of interest.

  Finally, the two girls said goodbye. “
I wonder what it

  would be like to be as beautiful as Selena,” George

  mused as they took the elevator to their floor. “Men

  take one look at her and fall hard.”

  “I don't want men falling at my feet.” Nancy stepped

  out of the elevator. As she and George walked to their

  room, she glanced up and down the hallway,

  wondering if the burglars would strike again tonight.

  Nancy unlocked the door, and they went inside.

  “First dibs on the bathroom,” Nancy said, pulling a

  sleep shirt out of her suitcase.

  She went into the bathroom, flicked on the light,

  then gasped. Someone had drawn a crimson heart on

  the mirror. Beside it was a drawing of a red hourglass.

  A red liquid seemed to drip from both pictures.

  George came rushing in. “What's wro—” She

  clapped a hand over her mouth when she saw the

  drawings, their outlines crisscrossing Nancy and

  George's images in the mirror like bloody slashes.

  “Your time is running out,” Nancy murmured to

  herself.

  “What?” George gasped.

  “That's what the hourglass means.” Nancy pointed to

  it. “It was used on pirate flags to warn other ships.”

  “And what about the heart?” George asked, her

  voice cracking.

  Nancy inhaled shakily. “That was used on the flags,

  too. It means, A slow painful death awaits you!”

  11. A Narrow Miss

  “I don't like the sound of that message,” George said.

  “And I don't like the fact that someone keeps breaking

  into our room.”

  “Whoever it is must still have that master key card,”

  Nancy said. “Maybe we'd better move. I'll call the desk

  and ask them for a new room.”

  George shuddered. “Good idea. I don't think I could

  fall asleep thinking some pirate's going to sneak in here

  tonight and carry out his threat.”

  “I'm calling Detective Weller, too,” Nancy added.

  “Maybe the police can get some prints off the mirror.”

  “What is that red stuff anyway?” George asked.

  Leaning closer, Nancy studied the goop on the

  mirror. “It looks similar to the fake blood we used for

  the battle scene on the ship.”

  “Our mysterious prop room bandit again,” George

  observed. “Did you ever get fingerprints from Eli? He

  has the easiest access to the props.”

  “No. I wasn't able to get anything he touched

  without looking obvious. That was a mistake. When you

  look at the guy, you think there's no way he could be

  some clever burglar. But that's just the type of person I

  should be looking for. Chance Curran's gotten away

  with his crimes because no one's identified him.”

  Turning, Nancy left the bathroom, George on her

  heels. “Getting prints from Eli will be my top priority

  tomorrow,” she told George as she picked up the

  phone to call the lobby desk. “Wimpy Eli Wakefield

  just may be crafty Chance Curran.”

  “Do you have any meal receipts from the last couple

  of days?” Nancy asked Eli on Thursday, the next

  morning, before filming.

  “Don't tell me el cheapo Andrew is reimbursing us

  for our meals,” Eli scoffed as he dug in his pants

  pockets.

  Nancy smiled winningly. “We hope. Publicity has

  been so good, lots of different broadcasting companies

  are showing interest in the film.”

  That's true, Nancy thought as she watched Eli pull

  out his wallet. “I think I saved several charge receipts

  from dinners,” he said.

  Bingo. Nancy tried not to smile too happily. Not

  only would the police be able to get prints off the

  receipts, but the receipts should have the date and

  time on them. Nancy would be able to see if Eli had an

  alibi for the night she was attacked at the aquarium.

  He pulled several crumpled slips of paper from his

  wallet. “For lunch I grabbed something from a fast

  food place so I don't have any. I haven't been living too

  extravagantly.”

  “So your signature's on the receipts,” Nancy

  observed. She needed to make sure they were

  identified for the police.

  “Right.” He gave them to Nancy.

  “Thanks,” she said brightly. When she moved away,

  she tucked the receipts into a paper bag along with

  several others. Hopefully, she'd get a chance to get

  some good prints from them. They would also help

  determine where the suspects were the last couple of

  nights. If they were eating during the time of the

  robberies or when she was attacked at the aquarium,

  she could cross them off her list.

  Karl Kidd was Nancy's next target. She hadn't talked

  to him since he'd thrown the dagger at her. Now the

  big guy was with Janie, who was adjusting his blue

  uniform jacket. For today's scene Karl was playing the

  part of Captain Barnet, the man who'd attacked and

  captured Calico Jack's ship.

  Janie had tied Karl's unruly hair back into a ponytail,

  trimmed his brows and beard, then sprayed them gray.

  He almost looked distinguished, Nancy thought.

  Nancy approached him when Janie left. He had his

  knife out and was whittling a small piece of wood.

  “Any meal receipts, Karl?” she asked, holding up the

  paper bag.

  Without looking at her, he shook his head no.

  “Really? You're missing out on free cash.”

  He gave her a cold look. “I said I don't have any,” he

  repeated, pointing the knife at her before striding

  away.

  As Nancy watched him go, she wondered about his

  curious response. Janie came over, a tricornered hat in

  her hand. “What did you do, scare the captain away?”

  “I only asked him if he had receipts,” Nancy said.

  “And he went off in a huff.”

  “That's odd. Karl should have jumped at the chance

  for some money. But then the guy's been acting pretty

  strange since we came to Baltimore.”

  Nancy turned to face her. “Really?”

  “Yeah. When we were doing the Shakespeare

  production together, Karl was the life of the party. On

  this film, he's made himself scarce every night.”

  Nancy tried not to look too interested. “So he wasn't

  with you guys last night at Fells Point?”

  Janie shook her head. “And no one knew where he

  was, either.”

  “Strange.” Nancy shrugged nonchalantly, though

  inside her mind was tucking away the interesting

  information. “Weren't you two together the other

  night? After you and I had dinner?”

  Janie gave her a guarded look. “You must have been

  mistaken,” she said. “Anyway, he's probably been

  scarce because he has friends in the area that he's been

  visiting.”

  “Maybe.” Nancy said, backing off when she realized

  Janie wasn't going to tell her what had really happened.

  Janie looked past Nancy, her eyes narrowing. “Oh,

  goody. Here comes Selena and her puppy dog.” />
  Nancy glanced over her shoulder. Selena was

  walking across the quarterdeck, Joseph Mascelli

  tagging behind her.

  “At least she's dressed for rehearsal,” Janie said with

  a sigh. “I had to convince her that Mary Read would

  not be wearing spike heels for the big fight scene.”

  Nancy burst out laughing. Harold came over

  carrying the reflective shield. “I'm going to need you to

  hold this during filming,” he told Nancy. “I'll show you

  where to position it.”

  “Okay.” Nancy tucked the shield under one arm.

  Folding the bag of receipts, she slid it carefully in the

  back pocket of her jeans. She would love to rush Eli's

  prints to the police department, but already actors and

  crew were gathering for the first take.

  George and Daniel came on deck dressed in their

  new costumes. “What do you think?” George asked,

  twirling. The sleeves of her rough cotton shirt were

  ripped, and her baggy pants were held up with a cord.

  Her teeth had been blackened, her hair tangled, and a

  red gash ran the length of her cheek.

  “I think you should enter the next Miss America

  contest,” Nancy joked.

  “Your talent could be fencing,” Daniel added,

  feinting at her with a pretend sword.

  “Places!” Janie called. Nancy hurried over to Harold,

  who showed her where to stand by the railing and how

  to hold the shield.

  “Mary Read and Anne Bonny will be fighting off

  Barnet's men,” he told her. “Keep the shield on Mary's

  face. Eli will get Anne's face. When Barnet climbs

  aboard and Mary shoots him with her pistol, Eli will

  focus his shield on him.”

  Nancy nodded, concentrating hard. She saw Andrew

  signal to Janie, who yelled, “Quiet!”

  Standing on a short stepladder, Harold held the

  boom mike between Anne and Mary. Behind and to

  the left of Nancy, out of sight of the camera, Karl had

  straddled the stern railing. When the camera was on

  him, it would look as if he was boarding the ship.

  Darting over to Selena, Janie pulled a strand of hair

  from her scarf, letting it fall across her face. Selena had

  also been made up to look grimy and weary, but

  somehow she still managed to look gorgeous, Nancy

  noticed.

  “Roll sound!” Janie called when she was finished.

  “Roll camera!” she called a second later, and the

  camera's red light went on.

  “Mark it,” Andrew said, and Janie snapped the slate