A Vain Search

NANCY and the other girls stared at the brass-bound trunk. They struggled to turn it over to see if there were stickers on the bottom of it, or any clue as to the owner, but they found nothing.

“This is very odd, ” Nelda said as they set the trunk upright again.

Bess remarked, “I heard someone say that pieces of baggage had been badly handled. Probably the tags on this were pulled off or knocked off accidentally.”

“You could be right, ” Nancy said, but did not sound convinced. “Something tells me, however, that there is a mystery connected with this trunk. What I’m wondering right now is, could my trunk have been put in the hold instead of this one? After all, it has the same initials on it and looks identical.”

“Why don’t you go and find out? ” George suggested.

“I will, ” Nancy replied, and stepped into the corridor again. She decided to go to the purser’s office first. He might be able to tell her what to do about her lost luggage.

She hurried to the deck above and walked to the center of the ship. The assistant purser was on duty. According to a sign on the counter, his name was Mr. Rodman Havelock. He was about thirty years of age, sun-tanned, and good-looking. He smiled at Nancy. “May I help you? ”

The girl introduced herself, then said, “There seems to have been a mix-up of trunks. One that does not belong to me came to my cabin, but it has my initials on it.”

“Did you look at the number on the sticker? ” Mr. Havelock asked.

“There are no stickers, ” Nancy replied. “That’s just it. No identification whatsoever except the initials.” She told the man about the conversation she had overheard in the corridor, then added, “Perhaps my trunk was taken into the hold instead of his? ”

Mr. Havelock said he would look through the passenger list for someone else with the initials N.D. In a few moments he reported that the only two people aboard with those initials were Nancy Drew and her roommate Nelda Detweiler.

“But the trunk doesn’t belong to Nelda either, ” Nancy said.

“Well, I’m afraid I can’t help you on that score, ” Mr. Havelock said. “However, I will telephone the hold and ask if your trunk was delivered there by mistake.” He dialed a number and spoke to someone in Dutch. Then he turned to Nancy again.

“I’m sorry, but they don’t seem to have a record of it either.”

Nancy caught her breath. A fearful feeling came over her. Perhaps through some mistake her trunk was not loaded aboard the Winschoten at all! “That would be dreadful, ” she thought. “No clothes to wear on the trip! ”

The assistant purser spoke. “I’ll do everything in my power to locate your trunk if it’s on the ship, Miss Drew. There are mix-ups in the baggage sometimes. If yours went to the wrong cabin, the occupants will surely report it.”

“I appreciate that very much, Mr. Havelock, ” Nancy replied.

The young man smiled. “How about calling me Rod? I’m more used to that.”

“Okay—if you’ll call me Nancy. And now I have another question.”

“What’s that? ”

“Do you have a deaf person on board? ” the girl inquired.

“I don’t know, ” the assistant purser replied. “Why? ”

Nancy decided not to divulge her suspicions until she knew Rod Havelock better, but she had not forgotten the message -EWARE NANCY DREW AND NE—in the finger language.

She told Rod that before the ship sailed she had seen a person on the pier talking in the finger alphabet to someone on the Winschoten. “I was just curious to know if only one of the people was deaf, or both, ” she explained.

Rod smiled. “I’ll be glad to find out and let you know. The chief purser has a list of all persons aboard with any kind of physical disability. We try to give them special attention.”

“Thanks, ” Nancy said, and went back to her cabin. At once the girls asked her what luck she had had.

“No luck with this trunk, ” she replied, “and none with mine, either. I see it hasn’t arrived in the meantime.”

Nelda said, “If you’re worried about your clothes, I have tons with me. You look as though you’re about my size and height. I’ll be happy to lend you anything you want to borrow.”

Nancy looked at her new-found friend and smiled. “That’s wonderful of you, Nelda, ” she said. “Who knows? I might have to take your offer sooner than you think.”

Nelda rose from her bed and opened one of her bags. From it she took a South African native’s costume. It was made like a sheath, and gay red flowers and ferns had been embroidered on it. A wide sash of gold with a fringe on each end was intended to be the belt. Gold-colored sandals completed the outfit.

George giggled. “I can just see Nancy going to the dining room for breakfast in this getup. It’ll cause a stir! ”

The others laughed. Nelda slipped the gown over Nancy’s head, then adjusted the sash, which she wound around Nancy’s slender body twice. Nelda’s eyes were shining. “I understand there’s a costume party on board one night, ” she said with enthusiasm. “Nancy, you must wear this! ”

Nancy looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. “It is lovely, but I’m sure you brought it to wear yourself.”

“Oh, I have something else I can put on, ” the girl replied. “Please use this outfit, Nancy.”

Bess remarked, “Who in South Africa would wear a costume like this? All the pictures I’ve ever seen of the natives show dark-colored clothes.”

Nelda laughed gaily. “This is a dress-up outfit, ” she said. “Nancy, see if you can wear the sandals. They’re rather tight on me.”

Nancy easily slipped her feet into the gold heelless sandals. “Aren’t they pretty! ” she exclaimed.

Bess said, “You look positively ravishing.” She giggled. “You’d better watch your step. Don’t captivate some young man on board and get your poor friend Ned Nickerson at home all worried! ”

Nancy grinned. “Not a chance, ” she said. “Do you know who is the best-looking man I’ve seen on board so far? ”

As the others shook their heads, she said, “It’s the assistant purser, Rod Havelock.”

Bess asked, “Well, there’s no law on the high seas to prevent you from dancing with him, is there? ”

“Oh, I’m sure there isn’t, ” Nancy told her. “But sometimes officers are not allowed to mingle with passengers socially.” She shrugged. “Anyway, he’s probably married and has half-a-dozen children.”

The teasing went on for several minutes, then they were interrupted. Someone knocked on the door. Before anyone answered, Nancy quickly slipped out of the costume and put her dress on. Then George went to the door.

She opened it and looked. “No one is out here! ” she exclaimed, stepping into the corridor. Nobody was in sight!

“Somebody must be playing a joke on us, ” George said as she came back in and closed the door.

Nancy looked at her, then noticed a white envelope on the cabin floor just inside the door. “Wait a minute, George, ” she said. “Did you drop this? ”

“No, ” George replied. She picked it up and turned it over. On the front was printed the name NELDA DETWEILER.

“It’s for you, ” George said, and handed it to the South African girL

“Oh, it must be from my uncle, ” Nelda said. “He’s marvelous, you know. Wait until you meet him.” She ripped the envelope open and stared at the card inside. Suddenly she turned deathly pale and fell down on the nearest bed.

“What’s the matter? ” Nancy inquired.

“Bad news? ” George added kindly, and walked toward the girl.

Nelda held her hands over her face and began to weep. “I’ve been followed! ” she cried out. “Oh, dear, I’ve been followed! ”