“I need to know exactly when the jewels were brought to the school.” Nancy pulled a notebook and pen from her purse. “And how they were handled right up to the moment when Mr. Ray made his discovery.”
Garrison’s eyebrows shot up at Nancy’s superefficient attitude, but he began talking anyway. “Ellen brought the brooches in to show us several months ago, when she first decided to donate them to the school,” he said. “She took them home with her that day and didn’t bring them back until the morning of the Soccer Ball.”
He watched Nancy write this down in her notebook. Then he continued. “Mr. Ray made his official appraisal at about eleven o’clock on the morning of the auction. At two o’clock, a group of reporters arrived to ask questions and take photographs. Mrs. Sedgewick was here, and Mr. Ray, plus several other teachers and Coach Boggs.”
“Coach Boggs?”
“Certainly. The soccer team would have been given a large sum of money from the auction. We’re all proud of the team’s progress this year.”
“What happened after the photo session?”
“The jewels were placed in a safe in the admissions office. Mr. Ray and I took them out just before we brought them to the ball. And, as they say, you know the rest.”
“So the switch had to have been made between Mr. Ray’s appraisal at eleven in the morning and his next look at them at the ball itself.”
“It would seem so, unless . . .”
“Unless what, Mr. Garrison?”
The gray-haired man smiled. “Nothing. Mr. Ray has an excellent reputation. I’m sure his first appraisal was reliable.”
Nancy frowned and leaned back in her chair. “You don’t think Mrs. Sedgewick had anything to do with this, do you, Mr. Garrison?”
“Right now, Ms. Drew, I’m only concerned with the embarrassment, the scandal, this whole affair is causing Pineview. This school is my life. I’ll do anything to keep it from being hurt.”
“All right. Can you think of anyone besides Mrs. Sedgewick who might have a reason to take these jewels?”
Russell Garrison stood up and walked slowly to the window behind his desk. He gazed out over the Pineview campus. His back was to Nancy. He seemed to be trying to decide whether or not to tell her something.
“Ms. Drew,” he said finally. “This is very difficult for me to say. I trust that as a detective you will keep confidential whatever I tell you.”
“Of course.”
He cleared his throat nervously. “I’ve been having a rather serious problem with one of my teachers. This person borrowed money against her salary twice this year. Just recently this same teacher told me that she was leaving her job at the end of this year. Needless to say, I’m concerned about the money she owes the school. I understand she has other large debts as well. It may be nothing, but . . .”
“Who is the teacher, Mr. Garrison?”
“It’s not at all correct for me to tell you her name.”
“But it sounds as if you think she might have had a reason to steal the jewels. Mr. Garrison, you owe it to Mrs. Sedgewick to tell me.”
Garrison turned to face Nancy. Finally he said, “I’m afraid it’s Kate Boggs, the soccer coach, Ms. Drew.”
5
The Best Defense Is a Good Offense
Nancy decided to stay at the school until soccer practice began. George had said that the girls would start early today, since the Forsythe game was tomorrow.
She walked the grounds for a while, enjoying the peacefulness of the lovely campus. She wondered what it would have been like to go to school there.
Pineview was more than a rich-girls’ school. Most of the students were from wealthy families, but the academic standards were high as well. Pineview graduates had gone on to do well in many different fields. Nancy could understand why Russell Garrison was upset about the scandal caused by the jewel theft.
Feeling refreshed from her stroll, Nancy went to the library. A few girls were studying there. In an empty lounge Nancy noticed Kelly Lewis thumbing through a thick book. She went over to her.
“Hi, Kelly.” Nancy sat down facing the younger girl and smiled at her. “Hitting the books early, I see.”
Kelly looked up blankly.
“I’m Nancy Drew. A friend of George’s . . . uh, Coach Fayne.”
Kelly nodded. “Right. I saw you at practice with her.”
“Looks as if you girls are headed for Canada. You must be pretty excited about it.”
Kelly didn’t answer for a second. She looked as though she wasn’t sure how friendly she wanted to be. “Looks that way,” she said in a dull voice.
Nancy eyed the scowling girl carefully. “If I were on the team, I’d be more excited than you are.”
“Watching the game from the bench is nothing to be excited about.”
“I can understand that. But then, you never know when you’ll be needed. Isn’t that part of being on a team?”
Kelly frowned. “I’m ready,” she said. “I practice hard. But Coach Boggs seems to prefer the Golden Girl. Ask Coach Fayne. She’ll tell you how it is.” Kelly’s anger toward Janine seemed about to explode.
“I have asked her,” Nancy said. “She can’t understand why you and Janine don’t get along.”
“What are you? Some kind of spy for Coach Fayne or Coach Boggs? Everybody knows how Janine and I feel about each other. And I don’t like the way she and her mother ripped off the school, either.”
