“Of course,” Laura said. “That’s why I’m able to carry several millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds into Canada without anyone ever guessing how I’m doing it.”
15
Sweet, Sweet Diamonds
Laura had tied Nancy’s hands behind her, so she couldn’t see her watch. She wasn’t sure how long they had been in the bathroom when she suddenly heard a loud noise coming from somewhere near Amber’s cabin.
With duct tape over their mouths, it was impossible to communicate with one another—and Nancy hadn’t really tried, thinking that her father would eventually insist on a thorough search of the ship. Of course, the more time that elapsed before that happened, Nancy knew, the less likely it was that Laura and Amber would be caught.
All of a sudden, Nancy heard a crashing sound, as though … Yes! It had to be the door to the cabin falling onto the floor. The crew had done exactly what Laura said they would: remove the door.
Nancy tried to send a message to Bess and George with her eyes: Start kicking the walls of the bathroom. She looked at their legs and then quickly looked at the door.
Bess and George understood. The three of them began kicking as hard as they could.
A voice near the bathroom door called out, “Nancy!”
Nancy’s hopes soared. Her father had found them!
Within seconds, the bathroom door opened. Sure enough, Carson Drew was standing next to a member of the ship’s crew. There was also a third person with her father whom Nancy hadn’t expected to see: Craig Oliver.
The three men quickly took the duct tape off the girls’ mouths and untied them.
“What are you doing here?” Nancy asked Craig as she massaged her wrists to restore the circulation.
“It’s a long story, Nancy,” Craig said. “Where’s Amber?”
“She left the ship with her mother,” Nancy said.
Craig blinked. “Her mother? What are you talking about?”
“Laura Houston is Amber’s mother. She is the one who’s responsible for all those jewelry store robberies in Mexico and the United States,” Nancy explained. “Amber knew all about it.”
“Well, I knew Amber was in on it,” Craig said, “but I never suspected that it was her mother. I thought it might be a father or a brother—or a boyfriend.” He let out a big sigh. “I wouldn’t have been looking for a woman leaving the ship—and Amber probably had on a disguise.”
“I thought you were her boyfriend, Craig,” Bess said.
“It’s all very complicated, and Craig can explain it to you later,” Mr. Drew said. “What we need to do now is find those two. Nancy, do you have any idea where they went?”
“I think I do,” Nancy said. “The CN Tower?”
“Well, we’re in luck,” Craig said. “It’s right on Lake Ontario, just a few blocks from here. Come on.”
“What about our things?” Bess said. “I have a lot of new clothes!”
“That’s all taken care of,” Mr. Drew said. “The cruise company is making sure that all of your things are taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hotel.”
The five of them hurried down the gangway as fast as Bess could maneuver on her bad ankle and headed to the car that Mr. Drew had driven to the dock.
“How did you know the CN Tower was where they were going?” Mr. Drew asked as they got into the car.
“It was something Amber and Laura said to each other, Dad,” Nancy said. “I’ll explain when we get there.”
On the way to the CN Tower, Craig said, “I’m sure you’re wondering about me.”
“I certainly am,” Nancy said.
“Well, I couldn’t tell you everything, Nancy—but I did tell you as much as I could,” Craig began.
It turned out that Craig knew all about Amber’s plan from the start. “In fact, I set myself up,” he said. “I purposely played the naive investigator.”
“You certainly did a great job,” Nancy said. “I couldn’t believe that Interpol would really have someone as naive as you working for them.”
Craig laughed. “I was wrong about the fugitive, though. She didn’t fit the profile.”
“Well, maybe profiling doesn’t always work,” George said.
“Touché!” Craig said. “Amber put something in my iced tea at the restaurant, and the next thing I knew, I woke up in that abandoned house in Port Huron.”
“How did you get out?” Nancy asked.
Craig pointed to his watch. “It has a transmitter in it. Interpol always knows where I am. When I didn’t call in at my normal time, they located me. I decided that the best strategy from there would be to meet Amber and whomever she was with when the ship docked in Toronto. I thought they’d think that it was still safe to carry out their planned operation. When I arrived at the dock, I saw your father. I recognized him from television interviews and pictures I’ve seen in newspapers. I introduced myself, and he told me you had called him about the investigation. As I said, Amber must have been disguised or she saw me talking to your father … or something. In any case, she slipped past me. When the three of you didn’t disembark, we both knew that something was wrong. After we looked in your suite, I decided that you might be in Amber’s. We had to take the door off the hinges to get it open—and that’s when we knew you’d be inside.”
“Right—Amber and her mother disabled the lock,” Nancy said. “They had this all planned out.”
They soon arrived at the CN Tower on Front Street. Mr. Drew parked the car.
