Free My Deadly Valentine by Carolyn Keene Page A

There was a jerking motion as the car slowed.
    â€œThat helped,” Kristin bit out the words as she tried to steer into the skid. The nose of the car stayed on the curving road. But the rear end fishtailed, propelling the car toward the narrow shoulder on the side of the hilltop.
    The car bounced out of the turn, and Kristin turned the wheel again, steering the car back ontothe right side of the road. Her hands were riveted to the wheel.
    The rest of the ride was rough, but there were no more hairpin turns to negotiate. At last they made it to the bottom of the hill, rolling to a stop a few blocks short of Main Street. Kristin pulled the car onto the shoulder and killed the engine.
    â€œThat was close!” Bess said.
    â€œI don’t understand it.” Kristin rested her head on the steering wheel, then looked over at Nancy. “This car is old, but I take good care of it. The brakes were replaced last year.”
    Nancy frowned. “Why don’t you open the hood and we’ll take a look?”
    Wind and snow whipped around them as the girls huddled at the front end of the car. Although Nancy wasn’t a mechanical expert, she had had enough experience to know that the car had been tampered with.
    â€œHere’s the problem,” she said, holding up a cable coated with plastic. “This cable was cut in half.”
    â€œSomeone cut the brake lines?” Kristin said, her mouth dropping open in surprise.
    â€œWe could have been killed,” Bess said, shaking her head. “That’s another strike against Theta Pi.”
    â€œYou’re right,” Nancy told Bess. “We’d better call the sorority house and warn the other girls to check their cars.”
    â€œAnd I’d better get this one to a mechanic,” Kristin said, shielding her eyes against the snow. “There’s a gas station a few blocks away. Maybe they can fix it.”
    Twenty minutes later the girls were sitting in the corner booth of a diner on Main Street. An attendant at the service station had sent over a tow truck to get Kristin’s car. Nancy had phoned the Theta Pi house to warn the sisters. Then the three girls had walked over to the diner, where they could stay warm and eat some lunch.
    â€œThe mechanic said that you were right about the brake lines being cut. But he won’t have my car fixed until tomorrow,” Kristin said as a short, round waitress placed bowls of steaming clam chowder on the table.
    â€œHow’re we going to get back to Emerson?” Bess asked. “Doesn’t the Theta Pi rush begin at three?”
    The waitress remained at the table. She was staring at Kristin. “I thought I recognized you,” she said. “You’re a Theta Pi, right?”
    â€œShe’s the president of the sorority,” Bess offered as she picked up her spoon. “And we’re her friends, Bess Marvin and Nancy Drew.”
    â€œYou look familiar, too,” Kristin said, eyeing the waitress. “You’re a student at Emerson, right?”
    â€œA sophomore,” the waitress said. “Did you guys get stuck in the snow?”
    â€œSomething like that,” Nancy said cautiously.With her square face and dark, curly hair the waitress seemed vaguely familiar to her, too, but she couldn’t figure out why.
    â€œMy shift ends at two, and I’m headed back to school,” the waitress said. “I’d be happy to give you a lift.”
    Kristin stared down at her soup, then smiled up at the girl. “We’ve got a few errands to take care of. It’ll be easier if we call a taxi. But thanks for the offer. What’s your name again?”
    â€œMarina,” the waitress said. “Marina Dombrowski.” She smiled. Just then someone called her name from the kitchen. “Whoops! I think the rest of your order is ready. I’ll be right back.” She turned and disappeared into the kitchen.
    â€œIs something