Nicholas asked, leaning forward from the back seat.
“I don’t know. My crew is very efficient. Once they start, it won’t take them long to level the place.”
Ten minutes later the Mercedes screeched to a halt in the theater parking lot. As the grouppiled out of the car, Nancy reached down to Anderson’s tape deck and grabbed a cassette tape out of it.
“What’s that for?” Nicholas asked when he saw her shove it into her pocket.
Nancy didn’t have time to explain that she would need it to bluff Joseph. She was already running toward the building. She followed Anderson as he raced toward his crew, who were assembled at the side of the building.
“Hey! Stop! Hold it, you guys,” Bart shouted.
But they couldn’t hear him above the noise of the machinery and the pickets’ cries of protests. To add to the bedlam, Brady, Deirdre, and Simon chose that moment to arrive. Seemingly from out of nowhere twenty screaming girls appeared and surrounded the stars, waving bits of paper and pens.
Bart ran up to the man operating the wrecking ball. “Hold it, Charlie!” he shouted.
But he was too late. Nancy watched in horror as the huge steel ball crashed into the side of the theater and its wall collapsed in a cloud of dust.
Chapter
Fifteen
Y OU CAN’T GO IN THERE!” Bart Anderson shouted to Nancy, Nicholas, and George as they ran through the front door of the theater. “The building’s unstable now, and it might-—”
They didn’t hear the rest of what he said. Their only thought was of their friend and her safety.
They paused for a moment in the lobby. Plaster dust swirled around them and drifted down, covering the white-and-black marble floor at their feet.
“We have to find Joseph,” Nancy told them as she anxiously searched the empty lobby. “My guess is he’s in here, going down with the ship, so to speak.”
“I’ll check downstairs,” Nicholas said as he headed for the staircase. He ran up the steps, taking them two at a time.
“I’ll search the office,” George said, taking off in that direction.
Nancy ran into the auditorium. The deserted room was half-lit by the stream of light that poured in through the gaping hole in the side wall.
This was the heart of the theater. Something told her that he would be there.
He was.
Nancy hurried to the back of the dark auditorium where he sat huddled in a seat. His head was down between his knees, his arms wrapped over his head.
“They’re going to do it,” he said tearfully. “They’re going to pull it down and kill us all.”
Nancy sat down in the seat beside him and put her arm around his shoulders.
“No one’s going to die, Joseph,” she said as gently as she could. “They’ve stopped the demolition.”
She looked over at the gaping hole in theside wall. Through the space she could see Bart Anderson and his crew milling around outside.
Slowly Joseph lifted his head and looked around. He could see for himself that they had halted the destruction.
“How did you get them to stop?” he asked.
“We found out for sure that Bess is here in the theater, Joseph. And we know that you’re the one who took her.”
He looked at her in disbelief for a long moment. Then, suddenly his dazed look dissolved. He jumped to his feet, and before Nancy had a chance to grab him, he ran to the back door of the auditorium.
“Oh, no, you don’t!” she cried out as she ran after him. “You got away from me once today, and that’s enough.”
She burst through the doors that were still swinging from his escape. As she ran into the lobby, Nancy caught a glimpse of Joseph as he disappeared down the steps leading to the lower level.
Oh, no, Nancy thought. If he gets down there into that maze of practice rooms, I’ll never find him.
Instead, Joseph turned to the left and down the hall. Nancy chased him down the hallway.It was a dead end with some dressing rooms and a costume room at one end.
I’ve got him now, she thought. She saw him jerk
“I don’t know. My crew is very efficient. Once they start, it won’t take them long to level the place.”
Ten minutes later the Mercedes screeched to a halt in the theater parking lot. As the grouppiled out of the car, Nancy reached down to Anderson’s tape deck and grabbed a cassette tape out of it.
“What’s that for?” Nicholas asked when he saw her shove it into her pocket.
Nancy didn’t have time to explain that she would need it to bluff Joseph. She was already running toward the building. She followed Anderson as he raced toward his crew, who were assembled at the side of the building.
“Hey! Stop! Hold it, you guys,” Bart shouted.
But they couldn’t hear him above the noise of the machinery and the pickets’ cries of protests. To add to the bedlam, Brady, Deirdre, and Simon chose that moment to arrive. Seemingly from out of nowhere twenty screaming girls appeared and surrounded the stars, waving bits of paper and pens.
Bart ran up to the man operating the wrecking ball. “Hold it, Charlie!” he shouted.
But he was too late. Nancy watched in horror as the huge steel ball crashed into the side of the theater and its wall collapsed in a cloud of dust.
Chapter
Fifteen
Y OU CAN’T GO IN THERE!” Bart Anderson shouted to Nancy, Nicholas, and George as they ran through the front door of the theater. “The building’s unstable now, and it might-—”
They didn’t hear the rest of what he said. Their only thought was of their friend and her safety.
They paused for a moment in the lobby. Plaster dust swirled around them and drifted down, covering the white-and-black marble floor at their feet.
“We have to find Joseph,” Nancy told them as she anxiously searched the empty lobby. “My guess is he’s in here, going down with the ship, so to speak.”
“I’ll check downstairs,” Nicholas said as he headed for the staircase. He ran up the steps, taking them two at a time.
“I’ll search the office,” George said, taking off in that direction.
Nancy ran into the auditorium. The deserted room was half-lit by the stream of light that poured in through the gaping hole in the side wall.
This was the heart of the theater. Something told her that he would be there.
He was.
Nancy hurried to the back of the dark auditorium where he sat huddled in a seat. His head was down between his knees, his arms wrapped over his head.
“They’re going to do it,” he said tearfully. “They’re going to pull it down and kill us all.”
Nancy sat down in the seat beside him and put her arm around his shoulders.
“No one’s going to die, Joseph,” she said as gently as she could. “They’ve stopped the demolition.”
She looked over at the gaping hole in theside wall. Through the space she could see Bart Anderson and his crew milling around outside.
Slowly Joseph lifted his head and looked around. He could see for himself that they had halted the destruction.
“How did you get them to stop?” he asked.
“We found out for sure that Bess is here in the theater, Joseph. And we know that you’re the one who took her.”
He looked at her in disbelief for a long moment. Then, suddenly his dazed look dissolved. He jumped to his feet, and before Nancy had a chance to grab him, he ran to the back door of the auditorium.
“Oh, no, you don’t!” she cried out as she ran after him. “You got away from me once today, and that’s enough.”
She burst through the doors that were still swinging from his escape. As she ran into the lobby, Nancy caught a glimpse of Joseph as he disappeared down the steps leading to the lower level.
Oh, no, Nancy thought. If he gets down there into that maze of practice rooms, I’ll never find him.
Instead, Joseph turned to the left and down the hall. Nancy chased him down the hallway.It was a dead end with some dressing rooms and a costume room at one end.
I’ve got him now, she thought. She saw him jerk
Similar Books
