Read Online Stop the Clock (Nancy Drew (All New) Girl Detective Book 12) by Carolyn Keene - Free Book Online Page A

said. He opened my car door, retrieved my keys, and handed them to me. “The Smalley family has moved back to River Heights. I saw Merrie and Carrie at the grocery store last night. They’re just as—” His mouth suddenly dropped open. “There they are!”
    I turned and looked. I felt my stomach drop. Merrie and Carrie Smalley were just going into Greene’s Department Store across the street.
    “I have to go, Charlie,” I said. “I want to see what those two are up to.”
    “Okay, Nancy, I understand,” Charlie said. “You’ve got a mystery to solve, right?”
    “That’s right!” I shouted over my shoulder. “Thanks again for opening my door.”
    If you’re wondering why I didn’t give Charlie any money for his work, it’s because he wouldn’t take it anyway. For years I would argue with him about it, but he insisted that it was up to him to decide if he needed to charge a customer for the work he did.
    My mind turned back to Carrie and Merrie. Why in the world had the Smalleys moved back to River Heights? If there were two girls I disliked more than Deirdre Shannon, it was Merrie and Carrie. We also went to school together, and they tried to make my life miserable. Of course, they never succeeded—but I always felt as though I had to watch my back. Things had been bad between us forever, it seemed, because it was quite obvious they were jealous of me and my friends. But things went from bad to worse after I discovered that the bona fide will of a man named Albert Washington left the Smalley family nothing—after they thought they were getting all of his money!
    What really concerned me now, though, was that the lawyer for the other Smalley relatives, the peoplewho were contesting the will, was Henry Mead. This couldn’t just be a coincidence. Right after the Smalleys were disinherited, they moved away from River Heights. Hearing that they were back in town now really bothered me. I knew they would not have forgotten my role in their legal troubles. And what I wanted to know is what they were up to now—and if it had anything to do with a missing clock.

8
     
    The Smalley Sisters Return
    A fter making a quick call to Ned, letting him know I’d be late—he was used to this—I headed toward the front entrance to Greene’s Department Store. My brain kept trying out reasons why the Smalleys had moved back to River Heights. It was just so unusual. When I pulled open the door, I immediately saw Merrie and Carrie. They were halfway down the wide main aisle of the store. They were laughing about something. Suddenly Merrie gestured dramatically, and her arm struck a large ceramic vase, knocking it to the floor.
    A salesclerk on the other side of the display hurried over to them and surveyed the damage.
    I was close enough to hear her say, “Oh, ma’am, this is terrible. That vase cost five hundred dollars!You’ll need to talk to the manager about what happened.”
    “What for?” Merrie said. “I’m certainly not going to pay for it, if that’s what you’re getting at!”
    “Do you work in this department?” Carrie demanded.
    “Why, yes, I do,” the salesclerk said.
    “Are you responsible for how the vases are arranged in this display?” Carrie asked.
    “Yes, I unpack them and put them on the table,” the salesclerk said. “Why do you ask?”
    “Well, isn’t it obvious?” Merrie said.
    “You’re the reason the vase fell off the table!” Carrie shouted at her.
    I saw the salesclerk’s face drop. “What do you mean?” she said. “There’s no way that it’s my—”
    Just then another woman, who I knew was the manager of this department, walked up to the three of them.
    “What’s the problem, Mary?” the woman asked the salesclerk.
    Before the salesclerk could reply, Carrie said, “Your employee accused my sister of breaking this vase. It is obvious to us that she put it too close to the table edge. You should take the cost of the vase out of her salary.”
    The salesclerk