Read Online Carolyn Keene_Nancy Drew Mysteries 050 by The Double Jinx Mystery - Free Book Online Page B

standing beside him. He put out a hand as if to grasp hers. It was all she could do to restrain herself from taking his. She pretended not to see it and he dropped his hand listlessly back on the bed.
    “Ned,” she said soothingly, “everything’s going to be all right. Do you want to tell me what’s troubling you?”
    “Yes,” he mumbled. “Slick Fingers probably has this. Find him, Nancy.” Ned closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
    Nancy stood pondering Ned’s startling statement. What had he meant? After a few moments’ thought, she decided that he figured Slick Fingers had contracted ornithosis from the diseased birds at the Thurston aviary.
    “Ned thinks he must be lying ill somewhere and probably had a doctor. If I can only locate Slick Fingers through a hospital or a doctor, the authorities can arrest him.”
    The question was how far away from River Heights the parolee might be. Was he still in the area of Harper? Nancy concluded that this was likely since Slick Fingers was working against the Thurstons.
    Nancy glanced at her watch. It was still early afternoon.
    “I’ll drive over to Harper and inquire at the hospitals there if a Clyde O’Mayley is a patient.”
    She told Hannah Gruen her plan and said she would return as soon as possible.
    “It seems to me,” the housekeeper remarked, “that your errand is like hunting for a needle in a haystack.”
    Nancy smiled. “Why, Hannah dear, you’ve always told me that if you have the right magnet you can find even a needle in a haystack.”
    Mrs. Gruen laughed heartily. “I’m glad you remembered some of my teaching.”
    Nancy hugged her. “You have no idea how much you’ve really helped me in my detective work. Well, let’s hope I find the needle which, in this case, is Slick Fingers.”
    “Watch your step!” Hannah warned.
    Nancy nodded and began to check a telephone directory for the Harper hospitals. There were two: General and Mercy.
    In a few minutes Nancy was rolling along the highway in her convertible. After entering Harper, she drove directly to General Hospital. To her disappointment, she learned that Clyde O’Mayley was not a patient nor had he visited the clinic for medical assistance.
    “But I’ve just started my search,” the young detective consoled herself. “I’m not going to let one disappointment discourage me.”
    A short time later she came to Mercy Hospital. A sweet-looking young woman sat at the visitors’ desk.
    “Do you wish to visit someone?” she asked, smiling.
    “Yes, if he’s a patient here,” Nancy replied, and gave the name Clyde O’Mayley.
    The young woman consulted her roster, then shook her head. “No one by that name is here now.”
    Nancy asked, “Would it be possible for you to find out if he stopped in your clinic during the past three or four days?”
    The young woman nodded and dialed an extension. After a brief conversation, she told Nancy that the man she was trying to locate had not come to the Mercy clinic.
    Nancy thanked her for being so helpful and left the hospital. Across the street she noticed a sign indicating a doctor’s office.
    “I’ll start with him and then go on to other doctors in town asking them if Clyde O’Mayley has been to them for treatment.”
    The young detective approached the building, pressed the doorbell, and then walked in as a small sign over the bell directed. She was surprised to find no patients waiting. A nurse, who came from an inner room, announced that the doctor would not be in for another hour.
    “I just stopped here,” said Nancy, “to ask a question. I’m sure you can answer it.”
    She told about her search for Clyde O’Mayley, whom she suspected might have ornithosis. “I’m trying to locate him. Has he been here recently?”
    “I think not,” the nurse replied, “but I’ll check and make sure.”
    She disappeared into the inner office and returned in a few moments. “No, he hasn’t consulted the doctor.”
    Nancy asked if