Mystery of Crocodile Island - Carolyn Keene [6]
The girls had not gone far when they realized that the ground beyond the garden was marshy. The mud ruined their shoes and spattered their dresses, but the three friends hurried on until they were out of range of the house.
Bess stopped and put down her bag. “My arm is killing me,” she said. “Can’t we rest a minute?”
Nancy looked back. The house behind them seemed deserted. “I guess we’re safe enough,” she decided, so she and George dropped their heavy suitcases.
“Boy, what an experience!” George said. “Our kidnappers must have overheard Mr. Gonzales’s call to your father, Nancy, when he asked for help.”
Nancy nodded. “And the second call, when Mr. Gonzales canceled our reservations must have been made from another phone,” she said thoughtfully, “otherwise they wouldn’t have sent Steven to the airport to get us.”
“Who do you think our kidnappers are?” Bess asked.
“They must be connected with the Crocodile Ecology Company,” Nancy replied.
“I wonder if they own that house.” George said.
“I doubt it. They wouldn’t be foolish enough to imprison us in their own home. If we got away, it would be too easy to trace them.”
Bess giggled. “They were foolish to leave us alone.”
“I think we should hurry on,” George said. “If they come back and find we’re gone, they’re bound to look for us.”
The girls picked up their bags and trudged through the swamp until they reached the house they had seen ahead of them. As they went up to the front porch, Bess looked down at her dress and shoes. “We’re absolute sights,” she said. “What will the people think when they see us?”
“That we’re swamp ducks,” George quipped.
The girls rang the bell. There was no answer. Nancy knocked, but no one seemed to be home.
“What are we going to do?” Bess asked, worried. “We can’t go on like this! And there’s not another house in sight!”
They left their suitcases on the porch and walked around to the back. Luckily, there was a wall telephone on a rear patio. Nancy called the operator and asked to speak to the police department. When a sergeant answered, she explained the girls’ predicament and asked if someone could come and help them.
“Right away, miss,” he replied, and within ten minutes a squad car pulled up with two officers in it.
One jumped out and walked up to them. “You say you were kidnapped and escaped?” he said.
“That’s right,” Nancy told him and explained exactly what had happened. “We’re on our way to visit Mr. and Mrs. Henry Cosgrove, but we don’t know how to find the place.”
“I’ll order a cab for you,” the officer said, and asked his companion to make the call. “I know the Cosgroves,” he continued. “It’s a long ride from here.”
He took a notebook from his pocket and wrote down the circumstances of the kidnapping. First he requested the names and addresses of the girls. This time Nancy gave him the correct ones. She described Steven, the young man who had met them at the airport, as well as the couple who had locked them into the bedrooms.
“We’ll get to work on the case at once,” the officer promised.
He walked to the squad car and picked up his radio phone. First he asked that a taxi be sent out, then gave a full report on the case. When he returned to the girls, he said, “A cab will be here in a few minutes. Is this your first visit to Key Biscayne?”
When the three nodded yes, he shook his head. “I’m sorry your introduction to our town was so disastrous. Believe me, you’ll find that Key Biscayne is a mighty nice area. Well, I hope you’ll have an enjoyable time while you’re here.”
In a few minutes a taxi pulled up in front of the house. The driver looked at the girls curiously.
Bess explained they had walked through the swamp after coming from the wrong direction to the Cosgroves’ home. She gave the correct address and they set off.
Unlike the couple who tried to kidnap them, Helen and Henry Cosgrove were delightful. Nancy quickly explained why they were so unkempt.
“What a dreadful experience!” Mrs. Cosgrove exclaimed. “We must report it to the police at once!”
“I’ve already done that,” Nancy said, and told the