004 Smile and Say Murder by Carolyn Keene Page A

wish on your worst enemy!”
    “Speaking of enemies,” Nancy said casually, “do you have any, Mick?”
    Mick adjusted himself uncomfortably in the bed. “Hey, what kind of a question is that? And what happened to the present you brought me?”
    “Okay,” Nancy said, laughing. “Present first. Questions later. Deal?”
    “Deal.”
    Nancy took a silver-wrapped box from her shoulder bag and handed it to Mick. “Get well soon,” she said. “Your cameras miss you.”
    “Uh, do you think you could open that for me? I’m kind of incapacitated here.”
    “Of course.” Nancy tore away the silver foil and took the top off the box. Inside was a remote control dune buggy, perfect for Mick since it was painted with zebra stripes. “It reminded me of those shoes you have,” Nancy told him, “so I just had to buy it.”
    “I love it,” Mick said. “It’s going to be the prize of my collection when I get back to the office. Put it on the floor.”
    Nancy set the dune buggy down beside Mick and handed him the remote control. Mick had a great time making it do tricks for a few minutes. Pressing the buttons was about the only activity he could do easily, because of his bandages and casts.
    “So, Nancy, why the question about enemies?” he asked finally, dropping the remote control onto the bed.
    Nancy sighed. “I hate to tell you this, but the police found out that the light didn’t fall by accident. The wire holding it in place had been cut—and by a very ingenious device. An ax had been rigged up to a remote control—”
    “Oh, no,” Mick groaned. “Another murder attempt against Yvonne! You don’t still suspect me, do you?”
    “No. That photo of the newsstand clears you. Besides, half the Flash staff saw the stunt you pulled on me and the other half heard about it. Anyone could have used the same trick at the Maggies.”
    “Whew,” Mick said. “I’m glad the killer didn’t get Yvonne. She’s not as bad as I sometimes make her out to be.”
    “Yes, the killer messed up again,” Nancy told Mick, “but maybe the murderer wasn’t as far off the mark as we think! You see, everyone assumes the ‘accident’ was meant for Yvonne and not you because there have already been two other attempts on her life. But what if that light was meant to get you both?”
    “But, Nancy,” said Mick with a gasp, “why?”
    Nancy leaned forward and rested her hand on Mick’s good arm. “Here’s what I think. Those other attempts were meant to kill Yvonne and discredit you at the same time. So our killer is out to get you, too.”
    “That’s true,” Mick said slowly.
    “Well,” Nancy continued, “once I cleared you, the creep could no longer do that. So now he has to kill you and Yvonne in order to get you both out of the way!”
    Mick was silent for a moment. “That’s really frightening,” he said at last. “But who’s doing it, Nancy? And why?”
    “I’m not sure,” Nancy said thoughtfully, “but I have a few good ideas. It’s highly possible that MediaCorp’s behind the whole thing. By getting rid of Flash’s owners, they’d be able to buy the magazine cheaply and without any trouble.”
    “Incredible!” Mick cried.
    “If it is MediaCorp, I’d lay bets that David’s doing the dirty work. He’s on their payroll, you know. I found the evidence in his office. At this point, it’s all just speculation,” Nancy said more realistically, “but it’s a theory I want to investigate further.”
    “It’s a great theory!” Mick exclaimed. “Because other than MediaCorp, I don’t think I have any enemies. At least none who hates me enough to try to kill me!”
    “Then you think MediaCorp would actually go as far as murder to get something they want?”
    “I’m not sure, but it’s possible. I told Yvonne that MediaCorp would never give her the price she was asking for Flash. Even if I agreed to sell.”
    “But, Mick,” Nancy said, “Yvonne told me she’s not planning to sell at any