Free Deadly Doubles by Carolyn Keene

thinking out loud. “Every criminal makes a mistake sometime. And Roberto was no fool. He knew he was in danger, so he must have planted that list somewhere it could be found if he was . . . taken care of. If only we had a little more time.”
    But time, as the senator had said, was running out.
    They finished their lunch. Beyond the plastic wall Nancy saw George talking with some of the other players. From the glow on George’s face, Nancy guessed they were complimenting her on her game.
    “Let’s go join her,” Senator Kilpatrick said, following Nancy’s glance. They went out and followed George to the grandstand.
    Just as George reached the gate in the high wire fence, a man came through it, heading toward the stairs to the boxes. Nancy gasped.
    “What?” Senator Kilpatrick said instantly.
    “He’s one of the guys who abducted me. Call Security!” Nancy tore off, passing George as she did so.
    Immediately George came running after her. She and Nancy raced up the steps and into the narrow aisle that separated the front and back rows of boxes.
    At the far end, the man was sliding into a bleacher seat next to a man in a hat who was reading a newspaper. The newspaper was lowered briefly.
    “I don’t know him. But the first guy’s one of the ones who snatched me!” Nancy whispered to George.
    “Get down! He knows you by sight, remember?” George whispered back. “I can pass for just another player.” As Nancy ducked, George began sauntering along the aisle.
    She had almost reached the two men when the one in the hat folded his newspaper and looked sharply in George’s direction.
    Nancy’s heart lurched. He was one of the ones who had been leaning against the fence watching Teresa’s workout! He had seen George there with Nancy!
    George must have recognized him at that same moment. She half paused, then changed direction, heading up the rows of bleachers.
    As she did so, the two men also rose and began to run after her. So did Nancy. If she can just get to the exit stairs! Nancy thought. If Senator Kilpatrick just brings help in time!
    There was no time. Everything was suddenly happening at high speed. George was running. The men were running after her. And Nancy was pounding after them, kicking off her sandals as she did so. Barefoot, panting, she scrambled after her friend—who was by now on the top row of bleachers.
    George scrambled into the announcers’ booth. Seconds later one of her pursuers was there, too. Nancy stumbled and went down, hard, on one ankle. She jerked herself up in time to see George hurtling out the other side.
    All at once, the second pursuer stopped. Something glinted in his hand. There was a faint crack-pop.
    He was shooting with a silenced gun straight at George’s head!
    As Nancy stared in horror, George did the only thing possible. With a gymnast’s skill, she started climbing the pole that supported the electric scoreboard.
    Up and up—George’s only chance, Nancy knew, was to make a run for it along the top of the billboard. If she herself could distract the pursuers—
    Gritting her teeth against the throbbing in her ankle, Nancy pulled herself upright and began to make her way rapidly along the aisle.
    There were two more faint cracking sounds. But no bullets whizzed past Nancy. She whipped around—to see George, midway across the top edge of the scoreboard, lose her balance and topple helplessly toward the ground far below.
     

Chapter Eleven
    S OMEBODY SCREAMED. N ANCY didn’t wait to see who. She threw herself down and rolled under the bleacher seat, dropping to the ground. It was not a long drop. She looked around at once, expecting to see George’s crumpled figure.
    George was nowhere to be seen.
    Several sets of legs raced along behind the bleachers and then stopped abruptly. Nancy crawled out and looked up, as the other spectators were looking.
    High above, a figure clung to a slanting beam. The bleacher support had broken George’s fall. George was all