The Sign of the Twisted Candles by Carolyn Keene Page A

yes.”
    “I think,” the lawyer went on, “that we should look for a good boarding school for you. Of course the orphanage and your new foster parents will have to decide which one.”
    Carol was silent for several seconds. Then she said, “I suppose so. But I’ll hate leaving the nice new friends I’ve made.” She looked wistfully at Nancy, who smiled encouragingly.
    “You can visit us.”
    The telephone rang. Nancy answered it. “Oh hi, Ned!”
    He asked if she would be free for lunch. “I’d like to take you out and maybe you could show me that mysterious old inn. How’s the case progressing?”
    “It’s a long story. I’ll tell you when I see you,” she replied.
    “See you at twelve.”
    Nancy explained to Carol that Ned was a student at Emerson College and they had been dating for some time. “Maybe I’ll ask Bess and George to come over and keep you company.”
    Carol shook her head. “Nancy, I’d just like to be quiet, and—and bake a surprise for your dinner tonight.”
    “That would be great,” Nancy said. “May I guess what it’ll be?”
    The other girl smiled. “I’ll tell you the name but you’ll never guess what it is. Ever hear of Butterfly Pie?”
    “No.” Nancy laughed. “Sounds alive. I’ll look forward to it.”
    Ned arrived promptly and drove Nancy to a country restaurant. Tables surrounded a pool.
    “How about a swim first?” he suggested. “We can rent some gear.”
    She agreed and they spent half an hour in the water. While they ate, Nancy brought Ned up to date on the mystery.
    “Let’s go to the inn and do some searching,” he proposed.
    “All right. Any place except the tower room. It has been sealed by the sheriff’s office. The watchman has keys to the house.”
    When they arrived at the mansion the guard greeted Nancy. She introduced Ned and said they would like to go in and look around.
    “I’ll let you in, but I sure had a bad time with those two other guys and that couple when I told ’em No.”
    “Who were they?” Nancy asked.
    “I don’t know.” His description of them fitted Jacob Sidney, Peter Boonton, and the Jemitts. “They all wanted to look in the tower room.”
    “Is the other guard still at the tenant house?” Nancy asked.
    “Why no. Didn’t you hear that your father dismissed him?”
    Nancy was astounded. She had a strong hunch this was not true. As soon as the front door was opened, she dashed to the telephone to call Mr. Drew. To her dismay she found that the cord had been cut in half!
    “Ned, come here!” she called.
    He gazed at the severed cord critically. “Vandalism all right. Whom do you suspect?”
    Nancy said she was sure Jemitt was responsible. “When the guard was around the corner, Jemitt let himself into the house. To avoid arrest if detected, he made it impossible for anyone to phone.”
    “What about the other guard?” Ned asked. “Do you think Jemitt faked a note to get rid of him?”
    “Yes.”
    Ned suggested that they report the damage to the telephone company at once. “Let’s drive to the nearest phone right now.”
    “You go,” Nancy said. “I’d like to look around here.”
    Left alone, Nancy went from room to room. Nothing on the first floor seemed to have been disturbed. She figured that probably the Jemitts had already removed any visible expensive objects. She hurried to the second floor and peered into one room after another. When Nancy reached the room she had occupied, the young sleuth stopped short.
    On the bed lay a man bound and gagged! His eyes were closed. Apparently he was asleep, because he did not move.
    Nancy tiptoed over. He was Jacob Sidney! Quickly she pulled off the gag. The motion aroused the man, who seemed to be dazed. But finally his eyes fastened on the young detective.
    “You!” he said in a hoarse whisper. “How did I get here?”
    “I don’t know. I just found you. What happened?”
    “Untie me and I’ll tell you.”
    Nancy did not trust Jacob Sidney. Why was