Free Hotline to Danger by Carolyn Keene

happen,” Nancy assured her friend. “But if I don’t call you by eleven o’clock tonight, you have my permission to contact B.D. and tell him everything.”
    â€œHey, guys, what’s up?” a voice asked behind them.
    Nancy and George spun around to see Bess and Kyle entering the teen center. Bess’s eyes were red and puffy. Kyle had a sheepish expression on his face.
    â€œWe thought we might find you here,” Bess said. Reaching out, George gave Bess a hug. “Are you all right?”
    Bess looked over at Kyle, then back at her cousin. “Yeah. Kyle and I talked about his leaving and, well, I’m pretty upset, but I think we’ve worked it out. So where have you guys been?”
    Nancy smiled. “That’s a long story. Are you here for your self-defense class?”
    Kyle nodded. “We thought we’d see if you two wanted some dinner first.”
    â€œWe just ate,” George said. “But we’ll keep you company.”
    Nancy winked at George. “We know the perfect place—Ernie’s Grill. And, Kyle, they have your favorite dish just the way you like it—red-hot chili!”
    â€¢Â â€¢Â â€¢
    At ten o’clock sharp, Nancy pulled the Mustang up to the warehouse and parked. She turned off the car lights but hesitated before getting out.
    Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, she thought. She was alone at a deserted warehouse where someone had been killed. What if Kip was guilty? What if he figured Nancy knew too much and needed to be eliminated?
    Nancy shook her head, trying to drive away her thoughts. Kip wouldn’t be stupid enough to do anything to her, too. That would be too risky.
    Besides, this meeting was important. When she’d called B.D. after dinner, he told her they’d found Paul’s prints on the envelope, as well as some other prints they couldn’t identify, so they had no idea where the money had come from. Also, one of the officers had checked Mrs. Thackett’s alibi for Monday night. The ticket taker and two other patrons rememberedseeing her arrive at the theater just before eight o’clock.
    Taking a deep breath, Nancy opened the car door and swung her legs out. So if Mrs. Thackett had an alibi, that meant Nancy had to figure out if Kip was innocent or just a clever con artist.
    Nancy walked slowly down the long drive. Except for the crunching of gravel under her feet, the night was silent.
    Where was Kip hiding? she wondered. She remembered B.D. telling her that the gang sometimes met in the old railroad cars.
    When she reached the tracks, Nancy stopped and looked around. The moon peeped from behind billowing clouds. She shivered as the wind raced down the tracks. The old railroad cars loomed dark and empty to the right of her. Still, Nancy felt as if eyes were watching her from every shadow.
    One cautious step at a time, Nancy made her way down the tracks toward the cars. A noise made her freeze midstep. It was only a soft thud, but Nancy could tell it came from the boxcar nearest her.
    â€œBillie? Are you there?” Nancy called. When there was no answer, she huddled into her down jacket, trying to stop her shoulders from shaking as she walked toward the boxcar.
    Nancy peered around the side of the car, but it was so dark she couldn’t see anything. Sheopened her shoulder bag and pulled out her flashlight. But before she could flick it on, a hand clamped down over her mouth and another one grabbed her wrist.
    The flashlight clattered to the tracks as Nancy’s arm was twisted behind her back and she was pulled roughly backward against someone’s chest.

Chapter

Ten
    W ITH HER FREE ARM , Nancy struck out behind her, but the grip on her wrist tightened painfully, and the fingers over her mouth squeezed her cheeks.
    â€œIf you know what’s good for you,” a voice behind her whispered, “you’ll come quietly. All right?”
    Nancy nodded and dropped her