Carolyn Keene - Hit and Run Holiday

Twenty minutes later, Nancy had grabbed a bite to eat and was back on Fort Lauderdale Beach, looking for Ricardo. She had a strong urge to use one of George’s most painful judo moves on him, but she knew that instead she would simply have to be patient. She would have to watch him, see where he went, whom he talked to. If she was careful, he just might lead her to Rosita.

The first place Nancy checked was Ricardo’s lifeguard chair, but he wasn’t in it. She strolled along the beach, keeping one eye out for Ricardo and the other out for stray men-of-war. Two of a kind, she thought with a grim smile.

Finally Nancy spotted the lifeguard standing ankle-deep in the surf. Beside him, holding his hand, was a blond girl in a red string bikini. It was Bess.

Nancy stopped, trying to figure out what to do. If Ricardo found out she and Bess were friends, he might decide that Bess should be the victim of a few accidents too. But if he thought that Bess was just another pretty girl out for a good time, he might relax with her. And Bess might learn something important about him. Nancy dropped back, trying to blend in with a group of sunbathers.

“Well, hi there, how’s your foot?” a voice shouted. “I see you survived your encounter with the deadly man-of-war!”

Wishing he’d keep his voice down, Nancy smiled at the boy who’d helped her up the day before. “Yes, I’m fine,” she said softly.

“Great! I gotta hand it to you, you said you’d be back and here you are!” The boy didn’t lower his voice a notch.

“Right,” Nancy replied, watching as Ricardo turned his head and looked straight at her. Without a word to Bess, he dropped her hand and trotted down the beach, through the mass of sunbathing bodies, and out of sight. Here I am and there he goes, Nancy thought.

Bess looked at Nancy, her expression puzzled. Nancy waved goodbye to the boy and went to join Bess.

“Gosh,” said Bess. “That was weird. That guy took one look at you and left.”

Nancy started to explain that his name was Ricardo, and that he was the one she’d seen snooping around Kim’s hotel room. But Bess was off on another subject.

“You’re back awfully soon,” she remarked. “Didn’t your date with Dirk work out?”

“As a matter of fact, it was a real washout,” Nancy admitted. “I shouldn’t have gone with him. He didn’t know a thing about the case.”

“So now I guess he’s through with you, right?” Bess said sarcastically. “Gee, maybe I still have a chance.”

“Come on, Bess.” Nancy sighed. “I’m sorry things got messed up for you, but you know I’m trying to find out what happened to Kim.”

“Oh, and speaking of Kim,” Bess said, “she still hasn’t come to. While you were off with Dirk I was at the hospital. George is there now, but she has to leave in about an hour.” Bess waded out of the water and onto the hard-packed sand. “Maybe you should go visit her. . . . So this Ricardo is really the same guy you saw in Kim’s hotel room?”

Nancy nodded. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Bess, but be careful around him, okay?”

“Okay,” replied Bess, wide-eyed.

“All right. I’ll see you around. I’ve got more investigating to do.”

For a while, Nancy wandered along the beach, hoping she’d see Ricardo. But after an hour had gone by, she realized she was wasting her time. He probably wasn’t on duty that day, and she knew he wouldn’t put in an appearance unless he had to, not if he thought she was hanging around.

Nancy gave up and decided to go to the hospital. Maybe Kim would be awake by then. That would solve everything, she thought hopefully.

When she got to the hospital, Nancy saw Mrs. Baylor standing outside Kim’s room, and for a moment, Nancy really was hopeful—Mrs. Baylor wasn’t crying.

Keeping her fingers crossed, Nancy rushed down the hall. But as she got closer to Kim’s mother she realized that if Mrs. Baylor wasn’t crying, it was only because she was too shocked and frightened for tears.

“Mrs. Baylor?” Nancy was breathless, afraid of what she might hear. “Is Kim . . . is she . . . ?”

“She’s worse,” Mrs. Baylor whispered. “She’s growing weaker, and the doctors are worried she might slip into a coma or . . .”

Or die, Nancy thought. And if that happens, then you’ll be trying to solve more than a hit and run. It will be murder!

Chapter Seven

It was early evening when Nancy let herself into her room at the Surfside Inn. She felt slightly guilty about leaving the hospital, but Mrs. Baylor had insisted. “You’ll help Kim more by finding out why this happened to her,” she’d said. And Nancy knew she was right; what she didn’t know yet was how to solve the case. She had two leads—Ricardo and Rosita—and so far, she hadn’t been able to follow either of them.

Maybe a shower will help clear your head, she thought, as she flicked on the lights. She stepped into the bathroom and was peeling off her clothes when she noticed the note stuck in the mirror.

Nan—I promised Bess I’d go with her on the party-to-nowhere boat, so that’s where we are—nowhere! Bess still likes Dirk, which is why she insisted on going. She’s also still ticked off at him for brushing her off and going out with you instead. But I know she understands that you have to do everything possible to solve the case.

George

Sighing, Nancy turned the shower on full blast and stepped into the warm spray. If all she had to worry about was Bess being mad at her, things would be great. Instead, things were about as rotten as they could be. She’d fallen for Dirk’s line and spent an entire morning following a phony lead. And she’d really goofed with Ricardo. She should never have even hinted to him that she knew who he was. She’d probably be a lot closer to solving the case if she’d just kept her eyes open and her mouth shut.

With another sigh, Nancy stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself. She left the bathroom and stood in front of the window, staring out at the beach. Already, campfires were blazing here and there as groups of kids gathered for the next round of all-night parties. Nancy couldn’t help thinking that she’d much rather be out there having fun than holed up alone in her hotel room. Then it hit her—if she’d rather be out somewhere, maybe Ricardo and Rosita would too. If not that night, then surely they’d been out on other nights.

She had Rosita’s picture. And of the hundreds of kids on the beach and in the discos, there had to be at least one who’d seen her. It’s worth a try, Nancy thought, as she put on a flashy sundress and her new sandals. After all, you said yesterday that if you had to, you’d walk up and down the beach asking anyone and everyone if they’d seen this girl. Well, now, it looks as if you have to.

It was eight o’clock by the time Nancy set out on her search. She was already on the beach when she realized she hadn’t eaten anything since noon. There were plenty of fast-food places around. She could grab some food and ask a few questions at the same time.

Asking questions turned out to be easier than she’d anticipated. Halfway through a slice of pepperoni pizza, Nancy noticed that a cute boy in the next booth was paying more attention to her than to his pizza, which was getting cold, fast.

Nancy swallowed a bite of cheese, wiped her mouth, and raised her can of soda. That was all it took. In two seconds, the boy was sitting next to her. “Hi there,” he said with a grin. “How you doing?”

“I’m not sure,” Nancy replied, trying to look confused.

“What’s the problem?”

“Oh, well, this is going to sound weird, but I was supposed to meet a friend of a friend when I got to Lauderdale,” Nancy explained, making it up as she went along. “But I get here and what happens? I can’t find her! She’s not at the hotel, she’s not on the beach, she’s not anywhere.”