(#26) The Clue of the Leaning Chimney (2 page)

“Why, Nancy, you’re not even listening!” Bess’s voice broke in accusingly.

“I’m sorry, Bess,” she apologized. “I was thinking of that man and how suspiciously he acted.”

“I know what that means,” Bess declared. “You’re itching for a new mystery to solve!”

Nancy, the daughter of a prominent criminal lawyer, was well known for her ability as an amateur detective. People who were in trouble frequently came to her for assistance.

The rain had ceased and a few stars began to flicker as Nancy drove through River Heights. When she turned into Bedford Street, Bess noted their new direction with surprise.

“This is the way to Dick’s shop!”

“I know,” said Nancy. “I want to look at his window.”

Soon she eased the convertible to a stop under a street lamp in front of the pottery shop. The two girls got out and hurried to the plate-glass window.

Nancy frowned with anxiety as she peered at the clay dishes and bowls displayed on a black velvet background. There was no vase. Nancy tried the door. It was locked.

“The dragon vase has been stolen!” Bess whispered.

“Let’s not jump to conclusions,” said Nancy as she tried to quell her own fears. “Perhaps Dick put the vase somewhere else for the night. I’ll phone him to make sure.”

They walked quickly down the street to a corner drugstore. Nancy slipped into a telephone booth and dialed Dick’s number. A sleepy hello answered.

“Dick Milton?” asked Nancy. “This is Nancy Drew. I’m sorry to call you so late, but it’s urgent.”

“What’s the matter?” Dick asked excitedly.

“It’s about the dragon vase in your store window,” replied Nancy. “It isn’t there now. Did you remove it?”

“The dragon vase? No!” Dick Milton’s voice trembled with emotion. “It was there when I closed the shop. You say it isn’t there now? This is terrible!”

“I’ll get the police,” Nancy offered.

“Tell them,” Dick gasped, “the vase doesn’t belong to me—and it’s worth thousands of dollars!”

CHAPTER II

A Double Theft

DICK said he would come right down. He arrived as a police car pulled up to the curb and two officers stepped out. Nodding to the girls and the police, the young proprietor unlocked the shop door and entered. He switched on the light.

“You say a vase has been stolen?” queried Officer Murphy.

“What kind of vase?” his partner put in quickly.

“A Chinese vase,” Dick replied dejectedly. “A rare Ming piece over two thousand years old.”

“Whew!” exclaimed Murphy. “Let’s see where the thief entered. It’s evident it wasn’t by the front door.”

“Then we’d better check the back,” the other officer said.

The two policemen hurried to the rear of the building, followed by Dick, Nancy, and Bess.

“Look!” Murphy exclaimed, pointing to an open window in the back of the shop. Marks of a jimmy were visible on the sill.

“Don’t touch anything,” Officer Reilly said to Dick, who reached up to close the window. “We’ll take fingerprints.”

Quickly he opened his kit and dusted the sill and a nearby chair which the thief might have touched as he entered. But not a print was to be found.

“The thief must have worn gloves,” Nancy whispered to Dick.

“No doubt he left footprints outside,” declared Murphy.

Nancy hurried out the back door with the officers, who beamed their flashlights on the earth beneath the window. Big, oval prints indicated the thief’s feet had been covered with something to keep them from making shoe prints.

“What’s your guess, Miss Drew?” Murphy asked.

“The thief tied burlap bags over his shoes.”

“And I think you’re right.”

Suddenly they were startled by a cry from Dick, who had gone back to the shop. They ran inside.

“What’s the matter?” Nancy asked.

“The small, green jade elephant!” he exclaimed. “It’s gone, tool”

“Oh dear!” Bess cried out. “Was that loaned to you, too?”

“Yes,” moaned Dick. “It was another of Mr. Soong’s pieces. How can I ever repay him!”

“Who’s Mr. Soong?” asked Reilly.

“He’s a retired Chinese importer who lent me the vase and the elephant,” explained Dick. “Business hasn’t been so good, so Mr. Soong let me display his pieces, hoping they would attract customers to the shop.”

“They attracted more than customers,” put in Murphy. “And not a clue to the thief.”

“Maybe I have a clue,” Nancy spoke up.

Often she stumbled upon a mystery as she had this one. The first case the young sleuth had solved was
The Secret of the Old Clock.
Recently she had unraveled a mystery involving The
Ghost of Blackwood Hall.

Nancy told the police about the man and the green vase with the large red claw she had seen at Hunter’s Bridge.

“He just might be our thief,” said Murphy. “Come on, Reilly. Let’s try to track him down. Thanks for the tip, Miss Drew.”

After the officers had gone, Bess asked Dick when he was going to tell Mr. Soong about the locs.

Dick groaned. “That, Bess, will be the hardest part. And after all Mr. Soong has done for me!”

With leaden feet he walked to the telephone and dialed. The shop was strangely quiet as the three waited for someone to answer at the other end of the line.

“I guess Mr. Soong is either out or asleep,” said Dick. “I’ll phone him first thing tomorrow morning. Well, it’s late,” he added. “You girls had better go home.”

“If the police don’t catch the thief,” said Nancy as Dick locked the pottery shop, “I’d like to help you solve the mystery. I’ll drop in to see you tomorrow.”

The next morning, when Nancy went down to breakfast, her head was still full of the stolen vase mystery. Hannah Gruen, the Drews’ middle-aged housekeeper, noticed Nancy’s preoccupation as she came from the kitchen carrying a breakfast tray. Mrs. Gruen put the food in front of Nancy, but the girl didn’t seem to see it. She sat as if in a trance.

“Wake up, Nancy,” the housekeeper said, laughing.

“Oh, Hannah,” Nancy said with a smile. “I was just thinking about dragons.” She went on to relate the previous night’s adventure.

“How strange!” Mrs. Gruen remarked. “But please eat, dear.”

Nancy’s mother had died many years ago, and the housekeeper had run the Drew household for so long she was regarded as one of the family. Mrs. Gruen was proud of the young detective’s accomplishments, but she always worried when Nancy was working on a case.

Nancy ate quickly and rose from the table. “I must go to Dick Milton’s right away,” she announced.

On the way, Nancy deposited the rummage-sale money at the bank. When she arrived at the pottery shop, she found the young man in better spirits.

“I told Mr. Soong about the theft first thing this morning,” he said. “He was very calm about it all and said that unfortunately the loss was only partly covered by insurance. Of course money can’t replace such a rare, old piece. I must somehow repay the part not covered by insurance.”

“Any report from the police?” Nancy asked.

“No trace of the thief,” Dick answered. “I guess you’d better join in the hunt. But first, will you please do me a favor, Nancy?”

“Surely.”

“I want you to take this piece of jewelry back to Mr. Soong. I’ve explained to him who you are.”

Nancy inspected the sea-green jade pendant that Dick held in his palm.

“It’s lovely,” said Nancy. “May I hold it?”

Dick placed the pendant in her hand. “It’s the last piece from Mr. Soong in the shop,” Dick explained. “I don’t want this to be stolen, too!”

“Oh, I’d be thrilled to take it to Mr. Soong. I’ve heard his home is like a museum,” replied Nancy. “I’d love to meet Mr. Soong, too, and have him tell me about the vase and the elephant. Then, if I ever see his prize possessions, I’ll be able to recognize them.”

Dick placed the jade on top of a fluff of cotton in a tiny white box, wrapped it, and gave the package to Nancy. Ten minutes later she arrived at the address Dick had given her and parked her car in front of the attractive Colonial house.

She went up the walk, and lifting the brass knocker, rapped on the door. It was opened by a short, inscrutable-looking Chinese servant wearing a black alpaca jacket. He regarded Nancy silently.

“Is Mr. Soong at home?” she inquired.

He bowed slightly and stepped back to let her pass. Nancy waited in the foyer while he closed the door, then he showed her into a study and motioned for her to be seated.

Nancy sat down on a nearby couch and turned to thank the servant, but he had silently disappeared. Her eyes wandered over the study.

As she gazed at the fireplace, her attention became fixed on a square piece of tapestry hung over the mantel. Nancy rose and studied the tapestry more closely. It was richly woven, with a Chinese dragon embroidered in black and red against a background of jade green.

“Do you like it?” a soft voice behind her inquired.

Nancy whirled sharply. Standing in the doorway was a short, gentle-faced Chinese with spectacles and a tiny goatee. He wore a richly brocaded mandarin coat and beautifully embroidered Chinese slippers. His eyes twinkled, and his slippers shuflied softly as he advanced into the study.

“I hope I did not frighten you.”

Nancy smiled. “I’m afraid you did, just for a moment! You’re Mr. Soong?”

“Yes.”

“I’m Nancy Drew, a friend of Dick Milton’s.”

“Oh yes, the illustrious Drew family. I’ve heard of you and your father. Please sit down.”

After giving him the package, Nancy mentioned last night’s robbery. She told Mr. Soong about the strange man on the road. Mr. Soong showed intense interest when she mentioned the dragon’s-foot design on the vase.

“This tapestry you found so fascinating,” he said, indicating the cloth over the mantel, “bears the identical design that is glazed on the vase.”

He rose and went to the fireplace. “The dragon you see here was an emperor’s emblem. It has five claws. Only the emperor and his sons and Chinese princes of the first and second rank were allowed to have emblems showing dragons with five claws. Lesser princes had to be content with four-clawed dragons.”

“How interesting!” Nancy murmured.

Soong fixed his gentle eyes on Nancy. “Did you notice the number of claws on the vase?”

“No, I didn’t,” Nancy admitted. She stood up. “I must go now. I’ll let you know if I find another clue.”

Mr. Soong nodded and smiled. “It was good of you to come,” he said in his soft, musical voice. “I have heard much about your detective abilities and I am flattered that one so charming and capable should wish to help me recover the vase.” He paused. “Perhaps you can aid me in still another matter, Miss Drew—you and your father.”

“What sort of matter is it, Mr. Soong? I’d like to be of service in any way I can, but if it’s a legal problem Dad will know how to solve it better than I.”

Mr. Soong hesitated. “To tell the truth, I am not certain at this moment what kind of problem it is, although it has legal aspects. Suppose I call on Mr. Drew and tell him about it.” His eyes twinkled. “With the condition, of course, that he repeat the story to you.”

Nancy laughed. “That’s the kind of condition I like!”

Mr. Soong tinkled a tiny Chinese bell and the servant silently appeared.

“Ching will show you out,” the elderly Chinese gentleman said. “Good-by.”

Nancy returned to Dick’s shop and told him of her visit. “Mr. Soong’s a fine person,” she added.

“He certainly is,” Dick replied, stroking his chin thoughtfully. “That’s why I want to repay him as soon as possible. It probably will take a long time,” he commented forlornly. “The vase and elephant were worth an awful lot of money.”

“I’m going to hunt for them,” Nancy said with determination.

“But if you don’t find them, I’ll pay Mr. Soong back somehow,” Dick declared. “I must! And I’m sure I could do it if only—”

His fist hit the top of the counter so hard that the little clay dishes jumped. “If only I could find the leaning chimney!” he exclaimed.

“The leaning chimney?” Nancy asked quizzically. “What’s that?”

“I wish I knew.” Dick frowned. “It’s a clue to some valuable clay. The leaning chimney may be part of a house, part of a factory—or it may exist only in someone’s imagination.

“I learned of it by accident. I was in a phone booth one day when I overheard a man talking in the adjoining booth. I didn’t pay any attention until I heard ‘unusual China clay,’ then ‘Masonville’ and ‘leaning chimney.’ I tried to hurry my call so I could ask him about the clay, but when I hung up he had disappeared.”

Dick sighed. “I’ve hunted for such a chimney in what little time I could take away from the shop, but all the chimneys I’ve seen are as straight as a flagpole!”

Nancy laughed, then grew serious once more. “China clay is the main ingredient for making fine pottery, isn’t it, Dick?”

“It’s the best there is!” he replied. “Why, if I could locate a valuable deposit of China clay nearby, I might buy it cheap, and make the finest of porcelains like the ancient Chinese! Then I could repay Mr. Soong!”

Dick’s eyes glowed at the prospect and the worried frown vanished from his face. Seeing the change in him, Nancy determined to do everything in her power to locate the valuable pit.

“Maybe I can help you find the clay, Dick,” she said. “I’ll try, anyway.”

He stared at her in surprise for a moment, then his mouth broke into a wide grin. “Would you?” he exclaimed. “That’s mighty swell of you!”

“If what you overheard the man say is true,” said Nancy, “the chimney must be somewhere in or around Masonville.”

“If it only were!” There was a dreamlike look in Dick’s eyes. “I’d enlarge my place, install extra kilns, and do a thriving business. I can just visualize it all—Dick Milton, Inc., Fine Potteries.”

Then he smiled. “Please forgive me for such silly daydreaming. But, you see, I would like my wife and baby daughter to be proud of me.”

“A little girl? How nice,” Nancy said with a smile. “How old is she?”

With a fatherly air of authority he said, beaming, “Susan’s her name and she’s fifteen months. I’d like you to see her, and meet my wife Connie, too, sometime.”