Free The Ringmaster's Secret by Carolyn G. Keene Page B

daughter so cruelly.
    “All he’s interested in is the money her performances bring,” the clown said angrily. “We could easily get jobs in another circus. Nancy, you are the one to solve the mystery. We know nothing about such things. Couldn’t you find out just as much about Mr. Kroon if we weren’t here?”
    Nancy smiled. “I’m afraid,” she said, “that if you two should leave, Kroon would become very suspicious. He might even blame me for your going away.
    “I have a strong hunch that I may not fool him much longer. If he finds out I’m meddling in his affairs, he’ll dismiss me at once. If that happens, I’ll certainly need you here, Lolita, to help me.”
    Pietro threw up his hands in a gesture of resignation. “You’ve convinced me, Nancy,” he said. Turning to Lolita, he added, “In that case, sweetheart, I’m afraid our wedding will have to be postponed.”
    “I guess it is the wise thing to do,” the dainty aerialist said. “I’d much rather wait and have a happy wedding.”
    She thanked Nancy for persuading them to delay their plans. Then she suggested that they all eat the delicious food Rancoco’s wife had supplied and enjoy the party anyway.
    Early the next morning Nancy was surprised by a visit from her father. As Mr. Drew seated himself in her tent, the lawyer said he had had a hard time getting past the guard at the gate, but after he had shown the guard a permit from the local police chief, the man had let him in.
    “I have a lot of news for you,” he told Nancy. “I thought it best not to give you such confidential information over the telephone.”
    Nancy listened intently as her father spoke. That morning River Heights Police Chief McGinnis had called and asked Mr. Drew to come down to the jail at once.
    “Hitch finally made a confession,” the lawyer stated. “This is the story in brief: One time while he was working with Sims’ Circus, Hitch overheard Kroon accuse his wife of a kidnapping. For nearly a year the groom had blackmailed the ringmaster because of what he had heard. Then, apparently Kroon would not stand for the extortion any longer, and Hitch was thrown out.
    “I’m inclined to think,” Mr. Drew summarized, “that Kroon also had something on Hitch and this was the reason why the stableman never told the story before. Well, when Hitch heard that Sims’ Circus was coming to River Heights, he decided to try to get back into Kroon’s good graces.”
    As the lawyer paused, Nancy remarked, “But he wasn’t able to do it?”
    Her father smiled. “This will be a surprise to you. Kroon wouldn’t let Hitch back into the circus, but he did carry on an intrigue with him—against you!”
    “Me?” Nancy cried.
    Mr. Drew nodded. He said that Hitch knew about the bracelet with the horse charms, although he had not admitted it to Nancy. Hitch had understood that it once belonged to Lolita’s mother. When he found out Nancy had it, Hitch had a good talking point with Kroon.
    “He told the ringmaster what he knew and received a tidy little sum for his information. Apparently Hitch was also given the job of trying to discourage you from proceeding with your investigation. So he figured out that he would strangle you enough to give you a good scare!”
    “But why did he harm poor Rosa?” Nancy asked.
    Her father said that Hitch had done it in a fit of jealous rage. The stableman hated all equestrian performers because he had never succeeded in becoming a good one himself.
    “And what about Senor Roberto?” Nancy questioned her father.
    “Hitch insists that he had nothing to do with Roberto’s injuries,” Mr. Drew explained. “I believe he’s telling the truth. But this only complicates matters. It’s certain that Kroon didn’t do it, since he was at the circus during the incident. But it does mean that there is some unknown enemy mixed up in this whole thing. I’m inclined to think he’s not a member of the circus.”
    “But a friend of Kroon’s who