Trail of Lies by Carolyn Keene

Amanda, I saw your salary when I was going through the books. There’s no way you can afford all those furs and that huge gold ring.” Nancy’s eyes dropped to Amanda’s right hand. It was bare. “Where is your ring?”
    Tears welled in Amanda’s eyes. “Oh, Nancy,I’ve been so dumb,” she said, her voice cracking. “You’re right. I can’t afford those furs. The payments are way over my head. I tried to return them to the store, but the furrier just laughed at me. He said no one wants used furs.”
    Amanda held out the hand that no longer sported the gold nugget ring. “I’d already sold Craig my share of the cabin that he and I inherited from our grandfathers. And I took a couple of advances on my paycheck—that was why I got so nervous when you wanted to see the books. It’s not illegal or anything, but I should have asked Mr. Wilcox.” She paused, gulping back tears.
    â€œGo on,” Nancy prodded.
    â€œThe only thing I had left of any value was my ring. I didn’t have any choice. I had to sell it. I needed the money to pay for the furs.” Tears began to trickle down her face. “That ring was a gift from my grandfather, too. He had it made from the first nugget he panned and gave it to me for my sixteenth birthday. Now I’ve lost it, all because I was so silly.”
    â€œI still don’t see why you’ve been avoiding me,” Nancy said.
    Amanda turned her tearstained face toward Nancy. “The day you came to look at the books was the day I had to see the jeweler. I was nervous because I didn’t want to go. Andwhen you asked to see the books, I got scared that you’d tell Mr. Wilcox I’d been borrowing on my salary.”
    Nancy nodded. So far, Amanda’s story had the sound of truth.
    â€œLater on,” Amanda continued, “I saw you and Lindsay across the street and heard you calling me, but I had just sold the ring, and I was so upset I didn’t want to talk to anyone. That’s why I walked the other way and went into the lobby of that building. There was a bunch of people going in, so I got into the middle of the group to avoid the doorman and went up in the elevator.” She looked at Nancy again. “I waited there until I thought you’d probably given up looking for me. Then I went home.”
    â€œI tried to call you at home,” Nancy told her.
    Amanda shrugged. “I heard the phone, but I didn’t feel like talking to anyone.” She looked at her hand again. “To someone else it may have been just a ring, but it was my last link to my grandfather. The furs aren’t worth losing that. I’ve been an idiot.”
    Nancy touched Amanda’s shoulder to comfort her. She felt a sense of relief after hearing her story. Amanda wasn’t involved in the smuggling. She was a girl who’d made a foolish mistake and was now paying for it.
    Amanda pulled out a tissue and blew her nose. “What did you mean about Steve?” she asked in a muffled voice. “You know, when you asked if I’d gotten involved through him. You don’t think he’d use his own father as a cover for criminal activities, do you? Because I have to tell you, Steve would never do anything like that. I know I don’t say many nice things about him, but he’s not a criminal.”
    Steve’s not a criminal. George had said the same thing, Nancy reflected.
    George! Suddenly Nancy remembered that her friend was still unaccounted for. “I don’t know anything for sure yet,” she told Amanda. “But I’ll find out, don’t worry. I’ve got to get back to the Wilcoxes’ now.” She smiled at the other girl as Amanda got out of the car. “Thanks for being honest with me.”
    Nancy drove back to the Wilcox house and hurried inside. She checked the foyer closet, but George’s parka was not there.
    Going back outside, Nancy