“If it isn’t Sarah, if it’s Mr. Tolchinsky or someone else we haven’t even considered yet, then we don’t know who or what we’re dealing with, do we?” Aunt Elizabeth replied.
Nancy and her friends murmured in agreement.
“I just don’t want to get Sarah into trouble if it’s just a prank,” Aunt Elizabeth finally said. “Is that foolish of me?”
“No,” Nancy said. “But if it isn’t just childish pranks, you could get hurt.”
Aunt Elizabeth thought for a moment. “Let’s wait,” she finally said. “It’s only been one day. If something else happens, we’ll talk to Gerri Spinetti. She’s an officer with the Fairport police, and I’ve known her for a long time. I’d feel comfortable talking to her.”
Nancy agreed with Aunt Elizabeth’s plan. She understood why she might want to protect Sarah. She only hoped the threats would end.
“And now let’s talk about what you three can do today,” Aunt Elizabeth suggested.
After considering several different options, the girls decided to return to the town green and stroll through the shopping district on Main Street.
“There’s a nice little coffee shop where you can have lunch,” Aunt Elizabeth suggested as they headed out. “And they have the most wonderful pies.”
Bess’s eyes lit up. “Do you think they have apple pie?” she asked. “And do you think they serve it with whipped cream?”
“Only if you ask,” George said dryly.
With that, the girls piled into the car and headed into town.
From the looks of things, Saturday morning was a major shopping day for the residents of Fairport. People crowded the sidewalks, and Nancy had to circle several times around the green before she could find a parking spot.
She pulled in next to a pickup truck in front of a hardware store. The store looked shabby. The windows held an assortment of old lawn mowers and power tools beneath a thick layer of dust. A note on the door said the owner would return after lunch.
“You’d think a hardware store would do better business than this,” Nancy remarked as she got out of the car. “I wonder if those big chain stores aren’t cutting into its business?”
They soon were in the middle of the flow of shoppers on Main Street. They strolled and window-shopped, admiring some hand-thrown pottery on display in the window of one store. A poster taped to the window announced that a crafts fair would be held on the green the next day.
“Maybe we should hold on to our spending money until tomorrow,” George suggested.
“That’s not a bad idea,” Nancy agreed. “I’d like to bring something back for Hannah. You know how much she enjoys little presents from my travels.”
Hannah Gruen was the Drews’ housekeeper back in River Heights. Since Nancy’s mother had died when she was young, Hannah had taken care of Nancy and her father, Carson Drew, a lawyer, and was considered a member of the family.
“Oh,” Bess sighed. “Look at that dress!”
Nancy and George looked where she pointed. In the window of an expensive boutique was a long and flowing flowered dress whose pastel colors would look perfect with Bess’s blond hair and blue eyes.
“Why don’t you try it on?” Nancy said. “We can wait for you out here.”
Bess eagerly entered the store. Nancy and George saw the shop owner take the dress out of the window for Bess.
“We’ll be here for a while,” George said.
Nancy laughed. For Bess, trying on clothing almost always turned into a situation fraught with decisions. Nancy liked clothing as much as Bess did and enjoyed being fashionable. She just had a clearer sense of her own style and what she liked. Bess was always willing to experiment.
As Nancy waited, she noticed a stack of newspapers in a rack next to the door of the store. A headline caught her eye: “Mild Winter Heralds Early Spring.”
Something about it tugged at her memory. Then she remembered. Hadn’t Mr. Stryker said the winter had been so harsh that it had depleted the town’s budget for snow removal?
Before she could think about it further, she saw a man entering the coffee shop several doors down. “Isn’t that Mr. Stryker?” she asked George.
“Yes,” George said, looking over. “He’s someone we should talk to. He might have some ideas about who could be threatening Aunt Elizabeth. After all, he knows everyone in town.”
“That’s a great idea,” Nancy replied. “When Bess is done, we’ll have lunch. Maybe we could talk to him then.”
In a shorter time than they thought possible, Nancy and George were rejoined by Bess, who shook her head as she left the store.
“I wish I’d seen the price tag before I tried it on,” she said. “It was even more expensive than it looked.” She sighed. “I guess I’ll drown my sorrows in a burger and some fries.”
“Let’s have lunch at the coffee shop,” Nancy said. “Is that close enough for you?” she added, teasing her friend.
The girls entered the shop and sat down in the last empty booth.
Mr. Stryker was in the booth behind theirs, his back to them. He was deep in conversation with a man across from him, whose clothing looked as if it had seen better days. The sleeves of his jacket were frayed at the cuffs, and it needed a good cleaning. His appearance was in stark contrast to Mr. Stryker’s, who was clad in an expensive-looking tweed sports jacket and brown corduroy slacks.
Nancy looked at the menu, but she was distracted by Mr. Stryker’s voice. Although she couldn’t hear all he said, she did hear Mr. Stryker mention something about a shining stream. And a cave. And the name of Hank Tolchinsky. His voice got angrier as he spoke.
Interesting, Nancy thought. Just as she put her menu down to listen more closely, Mr. Stryker stood up.
As he walked past Nancy’s booth he stared at her. Was she imagining it, or did he look alarmed to see her?
Nancy called out his name, but Mr. Stryker kept moving and was soon out the door. The man he’d been talking to remained in the booth, scowling as he finished his cup of coffee.
George, who had noticed Mr. Stryker’s abrupt departure, too, gave Nancy a puzzled look.
