Free (#30) The Clue of the Velvet Mask by Carolyn Keene

George’s hand. “I’ll be careful, really I will,” she promised. “Tomorrow I’m going to a perfectly safe highbrow lecture!”
    The next evening Nancy arrived at the Clayton home early. To her chagrin she found Tombar there.
    “It wasn’t necessary for him to be here,” Mr. Lightner told Nancy. “But he insisted I might run into difficulty handling some of the details I wasn’t used to.”
    Nancy smiled and made no comment. It was obvious to her that Tombar wanted to be there! Making a great show of directing the placement of chairs, he bustled about, growling orders at everyone.
    Mr. Lightner had posted himself at the front door to inspect each card that was presented. Nancy stood close by to scrutinize the arriving guests. Everyone seemed straightforward-looking and above suspicion.
    “So far so good,” Mr. Lightner presently whispered to Nancy. “At least two-thirds of the cards are in. All are authentic.”
    Nancy had observed a man loitering outdoors near the parking lot. She called Mr. Lightner’s attention to him.
    “Oh, don’t worry about him. He’s a private detective I employed. After the program starts, he’ll move inside and help keep an eye on everyone.”
    In a few minutes the lecture began. Not all the cards had been turned in, so Mr. Lightner remained at the front door to meet latecomers.
    “It looks as if the party thieves aren’t going to show up,” Nancy remarked. “Just to be sure no one is prowling about the garden, I’ll walk around outside.”
    She circled the house, noting that all the windows on the first floor were very high above the ground. It would be difficult to climb in and dangerous to drop from any of them!
    In her tour Nancy presently came to the parking area and wandered among the cars. Approaching a long black sedan, she was startled to see a man lying on the ground, almost under the front wheels.
    “Oh,” she thought, “he’s ill!”
    Kneeling, she realized that he was unconscious. As wild ideas raced through Nancy’s mind, she received a further shock. All the lights in the Clayton house suddenly went out!

CHAPTER XI
    Loot for Sale
     
     
     
    NANCY felt it would be cruel to leave the man who lay unconscious on the ground. Yet she wanted to return to the suddenly darkened house. She was sure another robbery was in progress!
    As Nancy leaned over the stranger, she noticed a peculiar sweet-smelling odor on his clothing. Instantly she thought of George’s experience on the train.
    “This man has been drugged just as she was!” Nancy decided. “And by the same people! They must be in the house!”
    Repeatedly she called for help but no one came. Probably the people in the house could not hear her. Minutes later the lights went on again.
    “If only someone would come here so I could leave!” Nancy thought unhappily. “The thieves are probably making a getaway this very minute.”
    She hoped that members of the Velvet Gang would try to escape through the parking area, giving her a chance to intercept them. But time passed and no one came that way.
    Nancy chafed the stranger’s wrists and presently he groaned. “Help!” he cried out feebly. Then he noticed Nancy and stared blankly into her face. “Where am I?” he mumbled.
    “You’re in the parking area at the Claytons’,” Nancy told him. “Can you sit up?”
    “I think so,” he said weakly. Carefully she helped him to a sitting position.
    “That’s better,” he muttered. “I’ll be all right.”
    “Can you recall what happened to you?” Nancy asked.
    “It’s coming back now,” he said, brushing a hand across his eyes. “As I got out of the car I was grabbed from behind. A handkerchief with a peculiar odor was pressed to my face.”
    “Your wallet. Do you still have it?”
    The guest fumbled in his pocket. “Gone,” he admitted ruefully. “I’ve been robbed.”
    “Did it contain anything besides money?” Nancy asked.
    “Yes—several cards, including the lecture