A few minutes later, as George maneuvered the car out of the parking spot, Bess spoke up.
“I guess we’ve heard from all sides now,” she said. “What a predicament!”
“You’re right, Bess,” Nancy said from the backseat. “But what bothers me is that nothing anyone said at that meeting gave me any solid clues as to who could be calling Aunt Elizabeth or leaving threatening notes. Sarah is the logical suspect, I suppose. And Mr. Tolchinsky might be mean enough to do it, too. But it’s still not clear in my mind.”
“Is it time to call in the police?” George asked.
“It might be,” Nancy said. “Let’s see what tomorrow brings.”
As they drove along Old Fairport Road, Nancy mulled the situation over. Sarah was open about her hostility toward Aunt Elizabeth, and Mr. Tolchinsky was certainly open about his hostility toward the townspeople. But their openness, in an ironic way, made them less suspect, unless they were devious and manipulative enough to use reverse psychology.
“It sure is dark on this road,” George said. She made a sharp turn, tires skidding on the loose gravel of the shoulder. Nancy heard the answering skid of another set of tires behind them. Looking back to see how close the car was, she saw the dim shape of a vehicle. The car did not have its headlights on.
“I think we’re being followed,” she said to George.
George looked in the rearview mirror. “I don’t see any lights,” she said.
“I know, but I made out the shape of a car,” Nancy said.
“Look!” Bess cried. She pointed out the window.
A car had pulled alongside and was keeping pace with them. Its headlights were still off. George pressed down on the accelerator, trying to go faster and lose the car, but it matched their speed.
Another bend in the road lay ahead, and the mysterious car was edging them toward the shoulder. They were almost at the grove of oaks where the bats lived.
“Watch out for the trees!” Bess said urgently.
Nancy looked through the windshield and saw the trees come rushing up, closer and closer, as they approached the sharp curve. George was still trying to get away from the car beside her. She again hit the gas pedal, but the car kept pace with her.
The grove of trees loomed up in front of them. Bess let out a cry of fear.
With only seconds to spare, Nancy shouted, “Hit the brakes, George!”
6
Secrets Overheard
George slammed on the brakes, bringing the car to a halt only inches before it hit the trees. The mystery car sped off into the night.
“What in the world was that?” George asked in a shaky voice, her hands still gripping the steering wheel.
“Somebody must be crazy to drive without headlights!” Bess exclaimed.
“Crazy, perhaps,” Nancy said. “But crazy or not, it must have been someone who knows this road like the back of his hand.”
“You’re right,” George said grimly. She pulled onto the road and continued to Aunt Elizabeth’s.
Aunt Elizabeth was waiting up for them in the parlor. She listened to what had happened and sighed.
“They must have thought you were me since you were driving my car,” she said. “Please be more careful from now on. I’m not sure what we’re dealing with here.”
It had been a long day. The girls went up to bed, saying their goodnights in the hallway.
The next day dawned cool and sunny. After a leisurely breakfast of scrambled eggs and English muffins, Nancy, Bess, and George sat with Aunt Elizabeth in the cheerful kitchen and went over the previous day’s events, ending with the near “accident” on Old Fairport Road.
“It was terrible,” Bess said with a shudder.
“What were they hoping to accomplish?” Aunt Elizabeth asked.
“To scare you,” George said. “As you said, since it was your car, they probably thought you were in it.”
“But anyone who knows me knows I can’t be budged once I take a stand on something,” Aunt Elizabeth pointed out. “So it’s rather silly.”
Nancy couldn’t help but think that it might be silly, but it was also dangerous. Was Aunt Elizabeth safe?
“And Mr. Tolchinsky is just about the most unpleasant man I’ve ever run into!” Aunt Elizabeth exclaimed. “Why bother coming to a town where people care about what goes on if all you want is to be left alone?”
“I wonder if he would threaten people who disturb his peace,” George said.
“That’s just what I’ve been thinking,” Nancy said. “He knows Aunt Elizabeth and he knows how she feels about the bats. If he thought she was standing in his way . . .”
“But what about Sarah?” Aunt Elizabeth asked. “She seems so unstable. I hate to think someone I’ve known and loved since she was a baby could do such a thing.”
“Should we call in the police?” Nancy asked Aunt Elizabeth. “After all, your life has been threatened.”
Aunt Elizabeth gave Nancy a long look. “If it’s Sarah making those threats, I don’t have to worry, do I? It’s childish revenge—nothing serious.”
“Perhaps,” Nancy admitted. “But as you said, she does appear to be unstable. Angry people can do angry things.”
