his native country, and the place where he still has black-market contacts.” She grabbed the yellow pages and thumbed through them. “All right! Roger, you did it! You hit the nail on the head! Here it is! Li’s Duck House in Chinatown!”She clapped triumphantly. “Bess and Barton, here we come!”
• • •
Nancy got out of the cab that had sped her to the restaurant. Ned, George, and Alan got out too. Another taxi behind them dropped off Roger, Linda, Jim, and Mark.
Across the street was a four-story building. The windows of the top two floors were boarded up. The two lower floors were bright with lighted windows, through which Nancy could see diners seated at tables laden with tureens and platters of food. A deep red facade decorated the lower level, with a sign above the entrance spelling out “Li’s Duck House.” Sure enough, the L of Li’s was formed from the tail of an ornate dragon.
“That cinches it!” Nancy announced, pointing to the sign. “That L on the dragon, it must be a sort of calling card for Li and everybody who works for him. I’m sure the limo Dave was in belongs to him, too.”
She strode toward the curb. But Ned followed and caught hold of her arm. “Nan, the people who have Bess and Barton aren’t playing games. Don’t you think we should wait for the police to get here? Sergeant Wald said—”
Nancy had telephoned the police just before leaving the club and arranged for them to meet her at Li’s Duck House. She could still hear Sergeant Wald’s words ringing in her ears. “The Li gang is involved in everything from gamblingto smuggling. Watch out, kid. They’re dangerous.”
“No,” Nancy answered firmly. “We have to get Bess and Barton out of there! The sergeant and his officers will be our backup.”
“But we can’t very well waltz into that restaurant and ask them to turn Bess and Barton over,” George said sensibly.
“That’s why the rest of you are going to wait here while I go scout out the building.”
“Nancy,” Ned said sternly, “remember what you said earlier. If it comes down to one of us against a whole gang of them, it won’t be much of a match.”
“It won’t come down to that.”
“At least let me come with you,” Alan spoke up. “I was the one who got us into this mess, at least in part, so let me help you get us out.”
“Well, okay. Maybe it would be safer for two of us to go in.”
Once inside the restaurant, Nancy breathed in the warm, spicy-smelling odor, then gave a quick but thorough look around. Most of the dozen tables were occupied by diners. In the rear, the kitchen was partially visible through the windows of swinging metal doors. To one side was a flight of stairs going up and another flight going down. A sign for the restrooms and telephones hung over an arrow pointing downstairs.
“Two for dinner?” A woman approached Nancy and Alan, holding out menus.
“Oh, ah, would you mind if I used your restroom?” Nancy asked politely.
The woman frowned. “Customers only,” she said coldly.
“My uncle eats here every week,” Nancy lied. Her blood was running cold, but she flashed her warmest smile. “A tall man, gray hair and a mustache. I was here with him just last Sunday.”
The woman stood aside. “All right,” she said grudgingly, “go ahead.”
Nancy glanced at the clock located over the metal swinging doors. It was already a quarter to ten, and she had only until ten-thirty to find Bess. That left only forty-five minutes—and time was running out fast!
Chapter
Thirteen
T HE HOSTESS TURNED away, and Nancy tugged at Alan’s sleeve. “We’ve got to hurry! When no one’s looking, go up to the next floor and see what you can find. Look for another staircase. I’m going to check out the downstairs, but so many people have access to it, I think the top floors are our best bet.”
Alan grabbed Nancy’s hand and squeezed it warmly. When the coast was clear, he headed for the stairs.
In the
• • •
Nancy got out of the cab that had sped her to the restaurant. Ned, George, and Alan got out too. Another taxi behind them dropped off Roger, Linda, Jim, and Mark.
Across the street was a four-story building. The windows of the top two floors were boarded up. The two lower floors were bright with lighted windows, through which Nancy could see diners seated at tables laden with tureens and platters of food. A deep red facade decorated the lower level, with a sign above the entrance spelling out “Li’s Duck House.” Sure enough, the L of Li’s was formed from the tail of an ornate dragon.
“That cinches it!” Nancy announced, pointing to the sign. “That L on the dragon, it must be a sort of calling card for Li and everybody who works for him. I’m sure the limo Dave was in belongs to him, too.”
She strode toward the curb. But Ned followed and caught hold of her arm. “Nan, the people who have Bess and Barton aren’t playing games. Don’t you think we should wait for the police to get here? Sergeant Wald said—”
Nancy had telephoned the police just before leaving the club and arranged for them to meet her at Li’s Duck House. She could still hear Sergeant Wald’s words ringing in her ears. “The Li gang is involved in everything from gamblingto smuggling. Watch out, kid. They’re dangerous.”
“No,” Nancy answered firmly. “We have to get Bess and Barton out of there! The sergeant and his officers will be our backup.”
“But we can’t very well waltz into that restaurant and ask them to turn Bess and Barton over,” George said sensibly.
“That’s why the rest of you are going to wait here while I go scout out the building.”
“Nancy,” Ned said sternly, “remember what you said earlier. If it comes down to one of us against a whole gang of them, it won’t be much of a match.”
“It won’t come down to that.”
“At least let me come with you,” Alan spoke up. “I was the one who got us into this mess, at least in part, so let me help you get us out.”
“Well, okay. Maybe it would be safer for two of us to go in.”
Once inside the restaurant, Nancy breathed in the warm, spicy-smelling odor, then gave a quick but thorough look around. Most of the dozen tables were occupied by diners. In the rear, the kitchen was partially visible through the windows of swinging metal doors. To one side was a flight of stairs going up and another flight going down. A sign for the restrooms and telephones hung over an arrow pointing downstairs.
“Two for dinner?” A woman approached Nancy and Alan, holding out menus.
“Oh, ah, would you mind if I used your restroom?” Nancy asked politely.
The woman frowned. “Customers only,” she said coldly.
“My uncle eats here every week,” Nancy lied. Her blood was running cold, but she flashed her warmest smile. “A tall man, gray hair and a mustache. I was here with him just last Sunday.”
The woman stood aside. “All right,” she said grudgingly, “go ahead.”
Nancy glanced at the clock located over the metal swinging doors. It was already a quarter to ten, and she had only until ten-thirty to find Bess. That left only forty-five minutes—and time was running out fast!
Chapter
Thirteen
T HE HOSTESS TURNED away, and Nancy tugged at Alan’s sleeve. “We’ve got to hurry! When no one’s looking, go up to the next floor and see what you can find. Look for another staircase. I’m going to check out the downstairs, but so many people have access to it, I think the top floors are our best bet.”
Alan grabbed Nancy’s hand and squeezed it warmly. When the coast was clear, he headed for the stairs.
In the
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