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ПРИЯТНОГО ЧТЕНИЯ!
Carolyn Keene
Nancy Drew Mystery Stories: Volume Eighty-Nine
The Case of the Disappearing Deejay
Copyright © 1989 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
DANGER ON THE DIAL!
The hottest rock station in town has just gotten a little hotter—and somebody's going to get burned. Nancy, Bess, and George are listening to Dan "the Wild Man" Wildman's show when there is a loud crash on the air, a call for help, and then dead silence.
Nancy heads to KRCK to get the lowdown but finds the place is full of fast talkers. Station owner Neal Graham, deejay Rockin' Ray Ludlow, and engineer Tom Cottner are all singing a different tune. Nancy enlists the help of teen deejay Lenny Gribble to rock the rock-and-roll boat and get to the bottom of THE CASE OF THE DISAPPEARING DEEJAY.
Dinner with a Deejay
"Turn up the volume, Bess," Nancy Drew said, grinning. "I really like Dan Wildman."
"The Wild Man," Bess Marvin said. "What a name! He's the best deejay ever!" She held a ketchup bottle over her hamburger and slapped it across the bottom.
It was a warm, clear evening in early summer. Nancy Drew and her friends Bess Marvin and George Fayne were enjoying a cookout on the patio of the Drews' backyard. Nancy had told them to wear their jeans and come for a relaxing evening of hamburgers and croquet.
Bess was still trying to get some ketchup out of the bottle, so Nancy reached across the picnic table and turned a knob on top of her portable radio and cassette player. She tucked a strand of reddish blond hair behind her ear and winked at George sitting next to her.
"What's so great about Dan Wildman?" Nancy egged Bess on.
"Are you kidding?" Bess said, lowering the ketchup bottle and blinking wide blue eyes at Nancy. "He's the best thing that's ever happened to KRCK! He's funny, he's talented, he's hip, he's... he's..."
"Incredibly good-looking," her tall, slim, dark-haired cousin George prompted.
Bess looked surprised. "What?"
"Isn't that what you said when you showed me Dan Wildman's picture on that billboard last week? 'He's sooo incredibly good-looking?' Black hair, blue eyes, dimple—"
Bess blushed. "Well, yes, but—"
Nancy smiled. "I get it."
"But I'd still think he was talented even if he weren't... somewhat cute," Bess said, running fingers through her long, straw blond hair. "But the fact that he does happen to have a rather handsome face doesn't hurt."
George winked back at Nancy. "Just like I said— 'incredibly good-looking,' " she said, grinning.
"Shh!" Bess said, waving at her cousin to be quiet. "I want to hear what he's saying."
"—and that's it, kids!" Dan Wildman's husky voice was saying. "You're tuned in to Dan the Wild Man on KRCK, the River Heights radio station where things are jumpin', where rock is pumpin', where blues we're dumpin'!" The girls laughed at the crazy rhyme.
"Stay with me, now," Dan said. "We've got the hottest music right here on K-Rock from six till nine, so don't you go away."
A commercial for a local car dealership came on then, and Bess took a bite out of her hamburger. "He's always talking in rhymes," she said. "I love his energy. I wonder what he's like in person?"
"Probably all tired out," George teased. "I bet he goes home and turns into a sloppy puddle of Jell-O."
Nancy smiled. "I like Dan Wildman, too," she admitted. "But there's another deejay at KRCK who I like just as well."
George snapped her fingers. "Rockin' Ray Ludlow! He's my favorite."
"Yes," Nancy agreed. "He is good. Both Dan and Ray play great rock 'n' roll."
"Oh, but Ray's been at KRCK for ages, " protested Bess.
"Ray has a lot more experience than the Wild Man," said George. "And obviously the station owner agrees with me. Rockin' Ray has the top time slot on the air, from nine p.m. to midnight. That's when most of the kids listen in."
"He won't have it for long," Bess said. "Mark my words, Dan the Wild Man will take over that spot soon."
"You may be right," said Nancy. "He's the deejay all the kids talk about."
The backdoor opened. "Who's ready for strawberry pie?" a voice called out.
"I know I am, Hannah," Nancy called back. "What about you, Bess?" she added, her blue eyes twinkling.
"Are you kidding?" replied Bess. She grinned at the Drews' housekeeper, who was crossing the patio toward the girls. "I'll wreck my diet any day for one of your strawberry pies, Hannah."
Nancy and George smiled at each other. Bess was slightly plump, and she was always on a diet. But staying on a diet wasn't easy for Bess.
Hannah set the pink-and-white-swirled pie down in front of Bess.
"That's dangerous, Hannah," George teased. "If you put that pie down right in front of Bess, she'll probably inhale the entire thing before any of us get a piece."
Hannah laughed. "Now, I know she'll do no such thing." She smiled fondly at Nancy. "I just thought I'd make one of Nancy's favorite pies since she doesn't happen to be working on a mystery at the moment. I knew she'd have time to enjoy it. Sometimes when she's busy on a case, I hardly see her."
Hannah Gruen had been like a mother to Nancy since the death of Nancy's own mother fifteen years before. Nancy was only three at the time Hannah came to live with the Drews, and Nancy and her father couldn't imagine life without her. Hannah worried about Nancy's work as a detective but was proud of her ability to help people and solve difficult—and sometimes dangerous—cases.
Nancy laughed. "I guess you're right, Hannah," she said. "Sometimes I get so involved with a case that I forget to eat."
Bess's eyes got big. "You forget to eat? That would never happen to me!" She watched Hannah's hand as she made the first cut in the pie. "Make mine just a teeny bit bigger, okay?" she said.
Dan the Wild Man's voice rang out. "And now, here's one from the request line."
The girls turned their attention to the radio on the end of the picnic table. "Susan says she cares for Tim; in fact, she says she's right for him. So, listen, Tim, this song is new; and Susan's sending it out to you."
The girls laughed.
"Now he's got his radio audience making up those dumb rhymes," George said. "I have to hand it to him, he really does have a following."
"Oh, all that rock 'n' roll sounds the same to me," Hannah said, handing a piece of pie to Bess.
"That's what my grandmother says," Bess said. "But Mom and Dad kind of like rock music."
While the song played on the radio, the girls ate their dessert.
Hannah sat down at the picnic table and cut herself a piece of pie.
"Dan Wildman is the greatest deejay in the world," Bess said. She licked the tip of her fork with her tongue and stared dreamily into the distance. "I wish I could meet him."
George rolled her eyes. "Dream on," she said. "He probably has bodyguards to beat off all of the adoring fans who follow him around."
"No, he doesn't," Bess said. "I saw him at the movies yesterday. He was there alone."
"I can't believe you didn't try to get his autograph," Nancy said with a smile.
"Neither can I," said George. "Then you could have seen those blue eyes and that dimple up close and personal."
Bess sighed. "I know," she said. "I guess I was just feeling too shy."
The song ended, and there was a long silence over the air. Bess leaned closer to the radio. "What happened to the sound, Nancy?"
Nancy adjusted the knob. "Nothing."
Just then a loud crash came from the radio.
"Good grief!" Hannah said. "What was that?"
Bess laughed. "Hannah, you have to get used to Dan the Wild Man. He's always doing something crazy. Last week, he brought his neighbor's dog into the studio and put him on the air. He swore the dog could say Wild Man, and he tried to get him to talk all afternoon. It was a riot!"
The girls all leaned close to the radio now, waiting to hear more. They could hear grunts and groans and the sounds of objects falling to the floor.
"What's he doing this time?" Hannah said. "It sounds like a struggle."
Bess rolled her eyes. "It's just a gag, believe me, Hannah. I'm not falling for any more of Dan Wildman's put-ons."
More grunts were heard.
"It certainly sounds realistic," Hannah said, frowning.
"Yes, it does," Nancy agreed. "I don't get his joke."
"Neither do I," said George.
Nancy turned to face George. "Maybe it isn't a joke," she said.
"Of course it is!" Bess said. "Just wait, he'll explain it all in a minute."
The sounds of a struggle continued, and everyone gathered closer to the radio.
"This seems more serious than most of his jokes," Nancy said. "Usually you know right away that Dan is up to one of his tricks."
"It's weird, all right," Bess said.
Then as suddenly as it started, the sounds of the struggle stopped. There was a brief, tense silence as the women leaned closer to the radio.
Then one word came out over the air. It was muffled, but there was no mistaking what word Dan had cried.
"HELP!"
Where Is the Wild Man?
"Dan Wildman's in trouble!" cried Bess. "Nancy, what should we do?"
Nancy stood up quickly. "I think we should get over to the station right away. Maybe we can help him. But we've got to hurry!"
Moments later, Nancy, Bess, and George were flying down the road toward the radio station in Nancy's blue sports car.
Hannah had feebly protested their leaving with a comment about the pie going to waste, but she knew that there was no stopping Nancy when there was a mystery to investigate. Bess had managed to say, "Keep that piece for me, Hannah," before being dragged away by her friends.
The girls tuned in to KRCK on the car radio while they sped toward the station. The radio station continued to be quiet for a while, then a prerecorded sports report came on the air.
"That prerecorded report proves it's not one of Wildman's jokes," George said. "He'd never stay off the air this long."
Pulling into the station parking lot, Nancy counted four black-and-white police cars. Another was just arriving. The police officer who was driving it jumped out and ran into the station.
"Something awful must have happened," Bess said. "I've never seen so many police cars."
The station lot was filled. Nancy parked the car as close as she could to the one-story brick building. The girls hurried up the sidewalk and through the station's heavy wooden door.
They found themselves in the front lobby. It was buzzing with activity. Several uniformed police officers stood in front of a reception desk, talking to a short, attractive blond woman. She held a tissue in her hand and talked very quickly, gesturing in small, nervous movements. Another officer disappeared around the corner and down a hallway. Two men dressed in business suits entered the lobby from the hallway and pulled out small notebooks. They wore police badges on their lapels.
"Police detectives," said Nancy. "This is really serious."
One of the detectives spotted Nancy and her friends and strode over to them.
Nancy saw him coming and spoke first. "We're here to see Dan Wildman," she said confidently. Experience had taught her that it was necessary to speak up calmly but forcefully during her investigations. All too often, she had to deal with people in positions of authority who assumed she was nothing more than a curious teenager.
The detective, a tall, handsome man with gray hair, looked at her seriously. "Dan Wildman has been kidnapped," he said.
"Oh, no!" exclaimed Bess.
"What happened?" Nancy asked.
"No one saw it happen," he answered. "Apparently, Wildman was broadcasting as usual and someone barged in and took him by force." The detective nodded down the hall toward the broadcast booth. "The kidnapper—or kidnappers—left a note saying further instructions would follow."
Nancy nodded. "We heard a scuffle on the air." She met the man's gaze. "May I see the note from the kidnappers?"
The detective's eyes narrowed. "Why?" he asked. "What's your business here?" He took out a pencil and gazed at each of their faces, as if to memorize their features. "What are your names?"
"I'm Nancy Drew," Nancy said. "And these are my friends George Fayne and Bess Marvin."
The detective wrote their names into his notebook.
"Nancy's a famous detective," Bess piped up. "You mean you haven't heard of her?"
"If you'll call Chief McGinnis of the River Heights Police Department, he'll vouch for me," Nancy said, hurrying on. "Call him if you need to check me out. But he'll tell you I'm okay. Now if you don't mind..." Nancy started to walk around him, but the detective stepped forward to block her.
"This is police business, Ms. Drew," he said. "You can't go back there. I will check you out, believe me, but no matter who you turn out to be, I won't let you get in the way and mess up an investigation."
A woman's voice interrupted the detective. "Excuse me, did I hear you say that you're Nancy Drew?"
Nancy and the girls turned to see the short, blond woman they'd seen when they first arrived. She stood next to the detective. The worried look in the woman's eyes softened momentarily.
"Are you Nancy Drew, the young detective I've read so much about in the papers?"
Nancy modestly admitted that she was that person.
The woman extended her hand. "I'm a big admirer of yours, Nancy," she said. "I'm Helena Santos, the station manager."
Ms. Santos faced the detective. "I'd like Nancy and her friends to stay." She turned back to Nancy. "Would you join the investigation? I'd be so grateful for any help you could give us."
The detective shook his head and walked away.
"I'd be glad to help," Nancy said, smiling. "We were listening to Dan when it happened. He's one of our favorite deejays."
"He's certainly popular with our listening audience," Helena said. Her eyes filled again with worry. "I can't imagine who would do such a thing. Poor Dan. I just hope that he's not hurt."
Nancy touched the woman's arm. "We'll find him," she said. "Don't worry."
"Thank you," Ms. Santos said. "Dan's not only an asset to the station, but we like him very much. Most of us, anyway." She smiled faintly. "I'm not quite old enough to be his mother, but sometimes I feel like mothering Dan. He's so... well, young and enthusiastic. Sometimes I have to rein him in a little. His ideas for his show can get a little too crazy, so I asked him to consult me about his program ideas."
Nancy spoke up. "You said, 'most of us' like him. Does he have any enemies that you know about?"
Helena Santos thought a moment before answering. "Well, Dan is a real professional and very ambitious. There are some people at the station who don't care for him and think he's pretty stuck on himself. But I think those people are jealous of him. He's a really nice guy and just wonderful on the air."
"You can say that again!" Bess said. "He obviously enjoys being a deejay. I don't think he could fake that enthusiasm."
Nancy spoke up. "Ms. Santos—"
"Please call me Helena," she said and smiled.
"Thank you," Nancy said. "Helena, you mentioned that some people are envious of Dan."
"Yes," she said. "But I can't imagine that anyone here could've had anything to do with his kidnapping, if that's what you're thinking."
"And no one saw what happened tonight?"
"No. I was in Neal Graham's office—"
"Who is Neal Graham?" Nancy asked.
"Oh, of course you wouldn't know that," Helena said, and smiled apologetically. "Neal is the owner of KRCK." Nancy nodded. "I was in his office filing my daily report. I always do that just before I leave for the day. And no one else was in or near the broadcast booth, either. We just suddenly realized that no one was on the air."
"How did you find out?" Nancy asked her.
"Our engineer, Tom Cottner, came running in here to tell me," she said.
"May I talk to him?" Nancy asked.
"Of course," Helena said. "Come with me."
She led the girls out of the lobby and down the hallway. She pointed to a window along the wall.
"That's the announcer's booth," she said. "Dan was on the air in there when he was kidnapped."
The girls peered through the glass into a small, crowded room. It didn't look big enough to hold more than five or six people comfortably. Right now, the booth was filled with police officers and detectives.
"I'd like to stop back here later," Nancy said.
"We will," Helena said.
She stopped at a closed door at the end of the hall.
"I think Tom's in the lounge," she said, nodding at the door. She pushed the door open and they entered.
The lounge was small. It held five small, round chrome-and-plastic tables and three vending machines that dispensed soft drinks and a variety of junk food. A sink and counter took up one short wall.
A small, heavyset, dark-haired man sat at a table next to the soda machine. He held a cigarette in one hand and a diet soda in the other. He looked up as the women approached.
"Ladies, I'd like you to meet Tom Cottner, our engineer. Tom, this is Nancy Drew, George Fayne, and Bess Marvin."
Tom stood up and nodded to the girls. He addressed Nancy with the faintest hint of a sneer. "Oh, right, the famous girl detective." He took a drag on his cigarette.
Helena spoke up, her voice firm. "Tom, I've asked Nancy to help in the investigation. Please give her any help you can."
Cottner shrugged. "Sure."
Nancy smiled politely. "Mind if I ask a few questions?"
He looked at her directly and folded his arms. "Why not? But I already told the police everything I know. Which isn't much."
Helena said, "Let's all sit down. It isn't very fancy in here, but I think we'll be more comfortable sitting."
They sat down at Tom's table, and Nancy asked, "Where were you just before you realized that Dan wasn't on the air?"
Tom pointed to a spot on the table in front of him. "I was sitting right here taking my break," he said. "That is allowed, you know, taking a break after four hours of work."
Helena shot him a warning glance. "Careful, Tom," she said.
Nancy wasn't fazed by Tom's rudeness. She'd seen it before in people who didn't feel comfortable with a young woman still in her teens who was joining an important criminal investigation.
Nancy continued her questioning. "What happened after your break?"
Tom squashed his cigarette in the ashtray in front of him. "I went back to the announcer's booth," he said, "and it was empty. Except that there were signs of a struggle: a pair of earphones, the program log, papers, and carts, scattered all over the floor."
George spoke up. "Carts?"
"A lot of music we play is on cartridges— 'carts' for short. The deejay lines them up on the table next to him in the order in which he plans to play them." He paused. "They were all over the floor."
"Were you the one who found the kidnapper's note?" Nancy asked.
"Yeah," Tom said, shifting uneasily in his chair. "It was propped up on the console."
"Is that the panel with all the switches and dials?" Bess asked. "We saw it through the window in the hall. Is that where the deejays sit?"
Tom sneered. "Yeah."
Nancy turned to Helena. "May I see that note?"
"Surely," Helena said. She rose from her seat. "I left it in my office. I have to give it back to the police, though. They'll need it as evidence." She glanced at Tom a moment and said, "Nancy, girls, come with me."
When they were out of the lounge, Helena apologized for the engineer's rudeness. "I don't know why he acted that way," she said. "I know that he likes Dan very much. I'd think he would want to help you."
Nancy smiled. "He's probably just upset about the kidnapping," she said. But she wondered if there was any other reason why Tom Cottner was so hostile.
Helena led them to her office at the end of the hall. She handed the kidnapper's note to Nancy.
Nancy turned the paper over in her hand. "Just standard white typing paper."
Nancy read the typed note aloud. '"We've got the Wild Man. Instructions later. Follow them carefully if you want to see him again.'"
She looked at the note closely. "Look at this," she said. Everyone gathered around her. Nancy pointed to each of the typed n's on the paper. There were five of them. "Look at how the letter n slants just slightly to the right."
Bess groaned. "A clue if I ever saw one. And what do you bet that some poor soul will have to run around typing on every typewriter in River Heights in order to find the one whose type matches this note?"
George grinned. "Sounds like a good job for you, Bess."
"Terrific," Bess said, rolling her eyes. "I can't wait."
"Can you make a copy of this note for me?" Nancy asked Helena.
The older woman nodded. "I'll do it right now. There's a copier just down the hall."
A few moments later, Helena was back with a copy of the kidnapper's note. She handed it to Nancy and said, "I think the police are out of the announcer's booth now. Would you like to see it?"
"Yes," all three girls replied.
"I want to see where my favorite deejays play all that great rock 'n' roll!" Bess said.
"Right now, we're just playing nonstop music and the advertisements and sports reports that were scheduled for this evening," she explained, as they headed back down the hall. "I tried to get in touch with Ray Ludlow soon after the kidnapping, but he wasn't home. I wanted him to take over the rest of Dan's show." Helena glanced at her watch. "It's nearly eight o'clock. If Ray didn't get my message, he'll probably show up at two minutes to nine. That's his usual style."
They came to the door with the window next to it. Helena pushed the door open and they walked in.
The room was crammed with electronic equipment, the broadcast console taking up most of the room. Just as Bess had described, it was loaded with dials and levers.
"It looks like the front panel of an airplane!" Bess said. "What are all these knobs and switches for?"
Helena smiled. "They're used for a lot of different things," she said. "Some control the volume of the different tape players, some are for recording or playing back phone calls or the news feed that comes in every hour."
Suddenly her face brightened. "Hey, I just realized something." She pointed to a large tape deck standing in the corner of the room. "We may have another clue, Nancy. This tape deck runs constantly every day, taping everything that goes out over the air. That means we have a recording of the kidnapping!"
Helena ran the tape back, found the spot, she was looking for, and hit the play button.
Once again, the girls heard the sounds of the struggle that they'd listened to from Nancy's backyard. And at the end came Dan's muffled plea for help.
Bess shivered. "It was bad enough the first time."
"May I have a copy of that tape, Helena?" Nancy asked. "I may need to hear it again later."
"Certainly," she said. "I'll make one for you and another copy for the police."
Just then, several people ran past the window that looked out over the hall.
"What's going on?" George asked.
"Let's find out," Helena said, reaching for the door handle.
It didn't take long to pinpoint the source of the commotion. A loud, angry voice bellowed from the lobby. "What's going on here? I was just pulled away from a very important meeting with our advertisers! Give me the whole story, and I want it now!"
"Uh-oh," Helena said. "That's Neal Graham, the station owner. He's... well, he's not known for his gentle manner."
The girls hurried along behind Helena into the lobby. A short, balding man with a mustache was surrounded by a half dozen people, all of them talking at once.
"Where's Helena?" he yelled over their heads. "You people get out of my way! I can't hear myself think with all of you jabbering at me."
Helena approached the man quickly and put her hand gently on his arm.
"Neal," she said. "I'm glad you're here."
"What's going on?" he thundered. "Did I hear right? Dan Wildman was kidnapped on the air?"
"Yes," Helena said. "The police arrived right away, and we're conducting an investigation."
It was only then that Neal Graham noticed Nancy, Bess, and George. His eyes widened. "We're conducting an investigation? Who are these kids?" he growled.
Helena turned to the girls. "This is George Fayne, Bess Marvin, and this," she said importantly, "is Nancy Drew. I'm sure you've read about her success in solving mysteries. Ladies, this is Mr. Neal Graham, the owner of KRCK."
The girls nodded and Neal Graham frowned at Helena. "This is serious business, Helena," he said. "We don't need an amateur detective getting in the way. We'll let the police handle it."
Helena started to protest. "But, Neal, Nancy is—"
"I don't want to hear about teenage detectives! I want to hear about Dan Wildman!" he interrupted angrily. "How did it happen? Where was everybody?"
Helena quickly filled him in with all the information she knew about the kidnapping and showed him the note from the kidnappers.
"The uniformed officers have left, but the two plainclothes detectives are still here questioning people," she added.
Nancy had been watching Graham closely ever since they'd found him in the lobby. Surely, she thought, he would be concerned about the well-being of his employee. But if Graham were concerned about Dan Wildman, he certainly wasn't showing it.
Graham angrily faced Helena. "I should've known. Wildman is unprofessional—I knew he'd get the station in hot water. I never should have hired him in the first place." Graham began pacing back and forth. He ran the palm of his hand over the top of his head. "At least he's out of my way for a while, anyway." He stopped, turned to Helena, and jabbed the air with an index finger. "But when this thing is over, I'm going to fire him!"
Nancy glanced at George and Bess. They looked as shocked as she was.
"But, Neal, Dan is an excellent deejay! Except for Ray Ludlow, he has more fans than all of the others combined," Helena said.
Just then, over the public address system, a voice boomed out.
"And now, we're going to play some really special music here on KRCK," the voice said.
Helena looked over her shoulder toward the announcer's booth. "Who's on the air?" she said. "That's not Ray's voice."
"This music is a tribute to a terrific deejay here at KRCK, Dan the Wild Man," the voice said. "We love him here at the station. So, folks, sit back and listen. This is coming at you from DBF, Dan's Biggest Fan!"
Neal was so angry that his face turned deep red and a vein on his temple stood out, snaking around the side of his head.
"Who in thunder is that?" he roared. "Who is Dan's Biggest Fan?"
Lenny Gribble
Nancy and her friends raced down the hall after Neal Graham and Helena Santos and stopped at the window of the announcer's booth.
A skinny young man who looked to be in his late teens sat at the broadcast console. He slid a cartridge into the panel in front of him and pushed the button to start it playing. He turned to the window, grinned, and waved at the five faces staring in at him.
Helena gasped. "Lenny Gribble!"
Neal Graham glanced angrily over his shoulder at Helena. "Did you tell this kid to go on the air?"
"Of course not," she said. "We just hired him a few months ago. He's still learning—"
That was all Neal Graham needed to hear. He burst into the announcer's booth, grabbed the surprised young man by his shirt collar, and dragged him out into the hall.
"Who told you to take over here?" Graham yelled.
"Uh, no one," Lenny said, squirming. "I just thought—"
"Well, you're through," Graham roared. "You're fired! Get out!" He released Lenny's shirt and turned to see Tom Cottner strolling up the hall from the lounge. "Cottner, get on the phone to Ray Ludlow. Get him in here. We need someone on the air. NOW!"
Tom Cottner nodded and hurried into the nearest office. Lenny started to leave.
"Please stay for a moment," Helena said to the young man. Then she faced Neal Graham and said softly, "Neal, I understand why you're so angry with Lenny. He had no right to put himself on the air. But he auditioned and I hired him to substitute and eventually have a regular show. He's good. He really is. Why not give him a chance to do what I hired him to do?"
"Absolutely not," Graham said. The deep red had faded from his face. Helena had succeeded in calming him down somewhat, but he was still obviously angry about Dan's kidnapping and Lenny's impromptu tribute.
"That's all I need," Graham continued. "Another employee making decisions and acting on them without consulting anyone. No wonder there's chaos around here. No, Tom Cottner will get hold of Ray and he can take over."
"But I already tried to get Ray on the phone," Helena said. "He's not at home."
"Helena," Nancy said, glancing at her meaningfully. "Will you play the tape of the kidnapping for me again? I'm sure Mr. Graham would like to hear it, and maybe it will give us some new information."
Helena quickly agreed, realizing that Nancy's request was a play to distract Neal Graham from firing Lenny. She and the girls returned to the announcer's booth with Graham. The station owner waited impatiently while Helena rewound the tape of Dan Wildman's kidnapping.
Nancy had another reason for having Helena play the tape. She wanted to watch Neal Graham's face as he listened. Could he possibly have been the kidnapper? He certainly didn't seem to care what happened to Dan Wildman, his own employee!
But the tape played, and Graham's face gave nothing away. Then, halfway through the playing of the tape, he turned toward Nancy and happened to catch her watching him.
Once again, his face turned red. "What is this!" he said, his voice rising in anger again. "You were watching my reaction, weren't you, young lady? Is that why you wanted to hear the tape? Is that how you amateurs find out who's guilty when a crime is committed?" Sarcastically, he raised the pitch of his voice to sound like a young woman's. "Forget about evidence and proof, let's just watch his face. Then we'll know who kidnapped Dan the Wild Man."
Nancy was speechless. Graham snorted angrily and stormed out of the announcer's booth and down the hall.
As they moved into the hall, Nancy noticed that the color had drained from Helena's face. The woman turned to Lenny. "I'd like you to continue your broadcast for the time being," Helena said. Lenny started to protest, but she interrupted him. "I'll take full responsibility," she said. "Stay until Ray Ludlow gets here." Lenny nodded and, smiling faintly, disappeared back into the announcer's booth.
Helena turned to the girls. "Nancy, I don't know what to say," she said. "If I had known how rudely you would be treated here, I'd never have asked you to stay and help. I'm really sorry."
Nancy squeezed her arm. "It's all right, Helena."
Bess spoke up. "Is Mr. Graham always this cheerful?" she asked. "It must be delightful to see that guy every day."
Helena forced a smile. "He's not easy to get along with normally," she said. "But lately, he's had some pretty serious financial problems that have made him—well, pretty bad-tempered, as you can see."
"That's a shame," Nancy said.
They moved along the hallway.
"Don't feel sorry for him, Nancy," Bess said. "He acted like a total jerk."
"I don't think you should have to put up with that kind of treatment," George agreed.
"We're here to help Helena," Nancy reminded her friends. "And Dan Wildman."
"The poor guy," Bess said with a sigh.
"How do Dan and Ray Ludlow get along?" Nancy asked Helena. "It seems that they're each other's toughest competition."
"That's true," Helena said as they moved into the lobby. "More so lately. Dan is really developing a strong following with the young people in River Heights. I'm afraid that Ray is feeling more and more threatened by Dan. Those kids who are tuning Dan in used to be Ray's biggest fans."
Nancy frowned. "You know, with Dan having such a large listening audience, I would think that Neal Graham would be pleased to have him working at KRCK. Dan is definitely an asset to the radio station. But it was pretty obvious that Neal Graham wasn't very worried about him."
Helena nodded. "I know." She sighed deeply. "Neal realizes how talented Dan is. And he knows that Dan is good for business. Lately, we've gotten more advertising during Dan's show, because his audience has been growing. But, you see, Ray Ludlow is an old friend of Neal's. I think it bothers him to see Dan moving in on Ray. As I said before, Dan is very ambitious and would love to take over Ray's top night spot. But Neal won't ever give it to Dan. Not while Ray is working here."
"Do you hire the employees at the station?" Nancy asked.
"Yes, I do, but Neal has the final say. Oh, that reminds me," Helena said nearly under her breath. She took several quick steps to the reception desk and grabbed a pencil and a piece of paper. "Let me write this down before I forget." She scribbled a minute, then put the paper in her pocket. "I need to place an ad for a production intern," she explained. "With all the trouble this evening, I'd nearly forgotten."
"So you did hire Dan Wildman?" Nancy asked.
"That's the crazy thing about this," Helena said. "I hired him, but it was at Neal's insistence! He heard Dan's audition tape and interviewed him and was impressed with the very qualities that are now making Dan so popular: his wit, his drive, his imagination. I guess it didn't occur to Neal at the time that Dan could become so popular that he'd become a challenge to his friend, Ray Ludlow."
"Are you Ms. Santos?" a voice interrupted. The girls looked over to the reception desk where one of the plainclothes detectives was seated. He held up the telephone receiver, his hand covering the mouthpiece.
Helena nodded.
"There's a phone call for you. It's one of your advertisers."
"I'll pick it up in my office," Helena said. She turned to the girls. "Excuse me, I need to take this call. Then I'd better hand over the original of that kidnap note to the police detectives. Then I'm going home." She sighed. "It's been a long day. Thank you all for coming down here. You can't imagine how much I appreciate your help."
She reached into the pocket of her jacket, pulled out a business card, and wrote something on it. "This is my home phone number," Helena said. "Please don't hesitate to call me at home if you need to."
"We'll be in touch," Nancy said, taking the card.
"Will you be talking to the police?" Helena asked.
"Yes," Nancy said. "I'm particularly interested in whether any fingerprints turn up other than the station employees'. I'll check with Chief McGinnis about it later."
Nancy turned to her friends after Helena was gone. "I'd say we already have two suspects."
"Right," George said. "First, there's Neal Graham, who actually seemed glad to have Dan out of the way. And second, Ray Ludlow, who gets rid of his competition with Dan off the air."
"What about Lenny Gribble?" Nancy asked.
"What?" both Bess and George said in surprise. "You think he's a suspect?" Bess asked in disbelief.
"That skinny kid?" George asked.
"Well, Lenny may say he's Dan's Biggest Fan, but he's also a brand-new deejay at KRCK who wants to be on the air," Nancy replied.
Just then, down the hall, the door to the announcer's booth swung open, and Lenny ran out. He looked up and saw the girls in the lobby at the end of the hallway.
He grinned and said, "Gotta get a drink of water before this song is over." Then he held up his fist in a "thumbs-up" sign. "Can you believe it? I'm finally ON THE AIR! I think I'll call myself the 'Lean, Mean Man'!" Then he whooped and took off down the hall.
Bess and George stared at Nancy.
Nancy nodded. "See what I mean?" she said.
"Lenny Gribble has a perfect motive for wanting Dan Wildman out of the way—ambition. And that makes him a prime suspect!"
In Dan's Apartment
"I think I'd better have a talk with Lenny," Nancy said to her friends. "I'll stick around until he's off the air. You two can wait if you'd like or catch a bus home."
"I think I'll wait," Bess said. "This is going to be an interesting case. Radio celebrities and kidnapping and everything!"
"I'll wait, too," George agreed. She looked at her watch. "It's getting close to nine o'clock. Ray Ludlow should be showing up pretty soon."
"Right," Nancy said, nodding. "I want to talk to him, too."
The girls decided to wait in the radio station lobby, out of the way of the police. The police officers had gone, but the detectives were still there, taking statements from station employees.
Nancy spotted the gray-haired detective who had questioned her when she, Bess, and George had first arrived at the station. He had eyed the girls with interest and a fair amount of suspicion several times since they passed him in the hall. Nancy wondered if he had called Chief McGinnis yet to check her out.
The girls had just seated themselves on a large couch in the lobby when the front doors burst open and a well-built man with light brown hair and dark eyes stalked into the station.
"What in blazes is going on here?" he asked anyone within earshot. "What's this 'emergency' I heard about from my answering service?"
The girls looked at one another excitedly. They all recognized the deep, smooth voice of Ray Ludlow.
Nancy jumped up and approached him. "Excuse me, Mr. Ludlow," she said. "My name is Nancy Drew, and I've been asked by Helena Santos to help with the investigation—"
Ray stared at Nancy. "The investigation of what?"
Nancy studied his face a moment. He certainly seemed surprised. Or maybe he's just a good actor, she thought.
She continued to watch him carefully as she told him. "I'm sorry, Mr. Ludlow, but Dan Wildman has been kidnapped."
"What?" Ray looked genuinely shocked.
"Yes, he was on the air, doing his show. Someone came in and overpowered him. He was only able to yell for help before he—"
Ray Ludlow burst out laughing.
His outburst startled Nancy. "What's so funny?"
"You fans are all the same," Ludlow said, gulping with laughter.
Nancy stared at him. "What do you mean?"
"You'll believe anything," Ludlow said, grinning. "Like the time Dan told listeners that Martians had landed on a farm outside River Heights." The deejay shook his head. "That guy doesn't know that KRCK is a rock station. He thinks it's a comedy station."
"Well, this is no joke," Nancy said. "See those men over there?" She pointed to the two police detectives. "They're detectives from the River Heights police force. Dan Wildman really has been kidnapped, Mr. Ludlow. My name is Nancy Drew, and I've been asked to help with the investigation."
Ray Ludlow looked over at the two police detectives, then back at Nancy. "So, it's the real thing," he said. "Well, what do you know about that."
"Finally, he gets the message," George murmured to Bess.
Just then Neal Graham appeared in the lobby.
"Good, you're here," he said, seeing Ray. "We've been trying to reach you."
"I went for a drive," Ray said. Nancy thought he sounded defensive, and she wondered why.
Graham obviously thought so, too. "Hey, that's okay," he said. "I don't expect you to stand by just in case one of the other deejays gets into trouble. And that Wildman's more trouble than he's worth. Get down to the announcer's booth now. I'll want you to take over Dan's show, or at least part of it. But I might have to let that kid Gribble get some air time. Audiences like variety."
"Audiences like me, you know that, Neal," Ray said with a grin, as he disappeared down the hall with Neal Graham close behind him.
Bess turned to her friends.
"Can you believe that guy?" she said. "And he seems so nice on the air. He didn't seem to care at all about what happened to Dan Wildman. He's just interested in himself!"
"He thought Dan was pulling one of his tricks," George said. "At first, anyway."
"He doesn't seem too unhappy that Dan has been kidnapped, that's for sure," Nancy said thoughtfully. "It means he's getting more air-time." Nancy paused for a moment, then she said, "You know, if Ray Ludlow were the kidnapper, he could keep Dan out of the way just long enough to make Dan's popularity plunge and his ratings go up. Then he'd let Dan go. When Dan eventually showed up no one would believe his story. Everyone would still think it was a hoax. After all, Dan has done a lot of crazy things before."
"And maybe Dan would be fired for being a troublemaker!" George said.
"Exactly."
"I think you might be on to something, Nancy," George said with obvious admiration.
Just then, Lenny, having been relieved by Ray Ludlow, scurried down the hall and into the lobby.
"Did you hear me on the air?" he asked, grinning. "How'd I sound? Great, right?" Lenny had a loud voice. He seemed to naturally talk about ten decibels above everyone else.
"No, they didn't pipe the broadcast into the lobby," Nancy said.
Lenny continued to grin. "I was really up for this, you know? I've been getting ready for my first broadcast for years! What a lucky break!"
Then he realized what he'd said, and his face turned a deep red.
"Oh, I mean, it's really horrible about Dan," he said, and his voice got louder as he became increasingly nervous. "I just hope that something really awful hasn't happened to him. I mean, being kidnapped is awful, but I hope he's okay. It'd just be too terrible for the world to lose that guy, that great deejay, I mean, the world would be a much lesser place, you know, if he— if something really serious happened to him. I really care about the guy. In fact, I was hoping you'd let me help you with your investigation—I'd do anything for Dan—really, I am his biggest fan. I use Dan as my model for the kind of deejay I'd like to be. I mean, I have my own style and everything, but I think he's the best, don't you?"
He stopped, blinking, and looked from Nancy to Bess to George and back again.
The girls stared at him, speechless.
"I mean—" he started to say.
"We know what you mean," Bess said quickly, to stop him from making another speech. "But I don't think we really need more help—"
"Oh, but I can get you into Dan's apartment," he interrupted.
The girls looked at one another, then back at him.
"We'd love your help," Nancy said sweetly. "When can you take us?"
He grinned. "How about now?"
***
A full moon was rising when Nancy and the others headed toward the car. The KRCK building and trees cast long shadows into the street.
"So how did you get Dan's key?" Bess asked Lenny, as they all piled into the car.
"I've been a gofer for Dan since I started working at the studio," he said.
"What do you do?"
"I 'go fer' coffee, 'go fer' something he forgot at home. Just general errands. But he let me follow him around the station, and I learned a lot watching him while he was on the air." He grinned. "If you'd listened to my broadcast, you'd have seen what I mean." He shook his head. "That guy was so good!"
"Is so good," Bess corrected. "He'll be back." She looked at Nancy and smiled. "Nancy will find him."
Lenny's cheeks grew pink again, and he nodded. "Sure, he'll be back. I can't wait to see him again."
Lenny directed Nancy across town. They arrived at an apartment complex sprawled across a large grassy lawn. Huge oak trees shaded the four timber-and-glass buildings which made up the complex. In the center of the complex was a swimming pool, which sparkled under the bright lights surrounding it.
Nancy pulled into a parking area next to the second building.
"This is a nice place," Bess said. "Have you been here a lot?"
"Just to run some errands for Dan," Lenny said.
The girls got out of the car and followed Lenny down the sidewalk and into the building. Just inside the heavy wooden front door was a flight of stairs which Lenny headed up, taking two at a time.
"I love this place," Lenny said, a big grin on his face. "As soon as I'm on the air regularly and can afford it, I want to move in here, too."
At the top of the stairs, Lenny turned left and headed down the hall. Nancy hoped he wasn't going to talk in his normal loud voice before they got into the apartment. She didn't exactly want to advertise to the other tenants that they were walking into Dan's apartment.
But she didn't need to worry. Lenny didn't say a word until he stopped in front of number 12. He pulled the key from his pocket, slid it into the lock, and opened the door.
"After you, ladies," he said, and made a sweeping gesture with his arm toward the open room.
"Dan's bedroom is just down the hall," Lenny said, pointing at a hallway to their left. "And his study is just across from it. Feel free to look around."
Nancy headed into Dan's study first, hoping to find a clue to his whereabouts.
"What exactly are we looking for?" Lenny's voice called out loudly as he followed her down the hall.
"Anything that might give us a clue as to why Dan was kidnapped," Nancy said. "Maybe Dan wrote a note to himself or maybe there's a letter from someone who is angry with him. It's hard to say. I just hope that if there is a clue, we'll recognize it."
"Oh, we'll find lots of letters to him," Lenny said. "He's always getting fan letters, especially from junior and senior high school girls." He grinned. "But they won't be angry letters." He laughed loudly. "Far from it!"
Nancy sighed and wished Lenny would talk a little less frequently and a lot more quietly. He was pretty irritating to have around.
One thing she had to admit to herself, though. Lenny didn't seem like a guy who was harboring a dark criminal secret. He seemed too open, too bumbling, too—well— silly to be a kidnapper. Unless he was acting.
"Oh, man! Look at this letter!" Lenny exclaimed.
"What? What?" Bess and George came running from the bedroom. "Did you find a clue?"
" 'Dan the Wild Man,' " he read, " ‘I think you are the funniest, cutest guy on the air!' There's an exclamation point after that," Lenny said, grinning. He continued. " ‘I would love to meet you. I just know we'd get along very well, if you know what I mean!!' Two exclamation points!" Lenny shook his head and laughed. "This is great, this is great! Isn't that a great letter?"
Bess rolled her eyes.
"Lenny," Nancy said sharply, "we appreciate your help, but we're looking for clues here, not for prospective dates for Dan. Get it?"
Lenny gulped. "Oh, sure. Sorry."
Nancy sighed and went back to work. Lenny was right about one thing. Dan didn't seem to have any enemies, if the stack of letters on his desk was any indication. While several criticized his crazy antics on the air, none of them sounded particularly angry. And most of the letters were similar to the one Lenny had read aloud.
Besides the letters, there were dozens of autographed eight-by-ten glossy photos of himself that he was obviously preparing to send out in answer to his fan mail.
Dan was indeed a popular guy.
The rest of the apartment offered nothing in the way of a clue. After a half hour more of searching, Nancy had to admit that they weren't going to find evidence that would finger anyone in the kidnapping.
"What now, Nancy?" Bess asked.
"I wish I could tell you," Nancy said, frustrated.'
"Well, I still work at the station," Lenny said. "I could be a spy, and like, keep my nose to the ground, so to speak, and maybe I'd overhear something that might help you."
"I don't think so," Nancy said. "But thanks for offering." She didn't want to break the news to him that he wasn't exactly spy material.
"Didn't Helena Santos say that she was going to hire an intern in the production office?" George asked suddenly.
"That's right," Lenny said. "It's a temporary part-time position."
"That's right. She mentioned that she was going to put an ad in the paper," Nancy said. She looked meaningfully at George.
"I can't," George said. "Remember, I have to help my cousin get ready for her wedding next week."
"How about you, Bess?" Nancy asked. "I'd do it, but too many people in River Heights know I'm a detective, and after the kidnapping, they'd know for sure why I was there. If someone at the station is responsible for the kidnapping, they'd have their guard up if I were there."
Bess made a face. "Something tells me I'm going to be trying out all those typewriters I saw in nearly every room of the station."
Nancy nodded seriously. "We do need to see if any of them matches the lettering of the ransom note."
"But there are hundreds of them!" Bess wailed.
Lenny spoke up. "Oh, no, Bess. I'm sure there couldn't be more than fifteen or twenty, counting the old ones in the store room." He turned to leave the room. "You know, I'm thirsty. I don't think Dan will mind if I steal one of his sodas." He disappeared in the direction of the kitchen.
Nancy turned to Bess. "Will you do it?" she asked her friend.
Bess groaned. "Twenty typewriters. Give me a break!"
"It would really be a big help, Bess," Nancy said.
"Okay, okay," Bess said, pulling herself up. "I'll do it for you, Nancy, and Dan Wildman."
"Thanks, Bess," Nancy said, grateful for her friend's help. "I'll call Helena when I get home to set it up."
Bess smiled. There was a faraway look in her eyes. "Dan will probably want to thank me in person," she said dreamily.
"We have to find him first," George reminded her cousin.
"The sooner, the better," Nancy said in a serious tone. "After looking at these letters and seeing how incredibly popular Dan is, I'm worried about his safety. Ray Ludlow—if he is the kidnapper—might not let Dan go. He may want him out of the way— permanently."
Talking to Neal Graham
Helena Santos had agreed to hire Bess as a production intern, so at eight o'clock the next morning, Nancy drove her friend to KRCK for her first day of work. Already in the parking lot were vans from three television stations and two newspapers in the area. Several people were unloading video equipment from a station wagon parked at the far end of the lot.
"Uh-oh," Nancy said. "This case is really going to get a lot of publicity."
Lenny arrived as Bess was getting out of the car. He walked over to Nancy's car, leaned in the passenger's side window, and grinned at Nancy.
"Look at all the media coverage we're getting!" Lenny declared loudly. He was obviously impressed. "Maybe we'll be on TV, Nance."
Bess rolled her eyes. "Lenny, nobody calls her Nance."
"Okay, sorry," he said, still smiling, and straightened up. "Ready to go to work, Bess? We’ll fight our way through the crowds of reporters and get to the head of the line. Get it? Headline?" He laughed hilariously at his own joke.
"I get it, Lenny," Bess said with a sigh. Then she leaned down to smile at Nancy. "I'll keep my ears and eyes open for anything that might help."
"Great," Nancy said. "And, Bess, thanks a lot."
Lenny's head popped into the window again. "I'll take good care of her, Nancy, don't you worry about that."
Bess cleared her throat. "Great, Lenny, thanks," she said, with an obvious lack of enthusiasm. Nancy tried not to smile.
Lenny certainly was trying to be helpful. Maybe he's trying a little too hard, Nancy thought. But that just might be his style. Unless his style is a deliberate cover-up, to hide the fact that he's the kidnapper.
Nancy sighed as she watched them walk into the building. She felt frustrated about this case, and at the moment, she really didn't know where to go for more information. Helena had already told her all she knew about the station and the employees who might be involved in the kidnapping. Lenny certainly seemed eager to help, but even if he wasn't the kidnapper, it didn't seem likely that he was going to provide any key information that would help her solve this case.
The other players in the mystery, Neal Graham, Tom Cottner, and Ray Ludlow, weren't at all interested in talking. At least, they hadn't been last night.
Nancy decided it was time to talk to Neal Graham about the rivalry between Ray and Dan. The station owner certainly had not been friendly last evening, but perhaps he had cooled down a bit since then. It was worth a try.
She parked her car and entered the building. The lobby was filled with reporters. They came in all shapes and sizes and both genders. Some held video cameras or lighting equipment, others were hauling out microphones and notepads. Nancy made her way to the reception desk.
A tiny brunette woman sat behind the desk. She looked bewildered in the middle of all the hubbub. The nameplate sitting next to a small green plant in front of her said Angela Fenley. She forced a smile when Nancy approached.
"Hi," Nancy said. "I'm Nancy Drew. Would it be possible for me to see Mr. Graham?"
The woman looked doubtful. "Do you have an appointment, Ms. Drew?" she asked.
"No, I don't," Nancy said. "But I'm helping with the kidnapping investigation, and it would be very helpful if I could talk with him."
"I see," she said, and smiled faintly. "Just a moment, please." She lifted the telephone receiver to her ear and pushed three buttons. "Nancy Drew is here to see you," she said. "Shall I send her back?"
The smile faded as she listened to her employer and she nodded silently. "Okay," she said. "Yes, Mr. Graham, I'll tell her." She hung up.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Drew," the woman said, "but Mr. Graham says to tell you that he won't talk to you and that the police are handling the case."
Nancy nodded. She wasn't surprised. Nevertheless, she felt very disappointed.
"I see," she said thoughtfully. "Well, thank you for trying, Angela." Then she had an idea. "By the way, is Helena Santos here yet?"
"Sure, she's in her office," Angela said. "She came in about twenty minutes ago." She picked up the phone again. This time after announcing that Nancy was here, she looked up smiling. "Ms. Santos says to come right on down."
"Thanks again," Nancy said. "Uh, Helena's office is near Mr. Graham's, isn't it? I can never remember."
"Yes, just one door past his," Angela said.
"Oh, right," Nancy said with an innocent smile.
Of course, Nancy already knew where Helena's office was; she'd been there last evening. But now she knew where Neal Graham's office was, and that's where she headed now.
She didn't bother to knock, just opened the door and walked in.
Neal Graham was on the telephone. He looked up, astonished, when Nancy entered.
"That's all I know at the moment," Neal Graham said, eyeing Nancy angrily. "Yes, I'll give you an interview as soon as we know anything."
He hung up the phone and opened his mouth to speak.
Nancy held up a hand. "Mr. Graham," Nancy said before he could say a word, "don't blame Angela. She passed along your message that you didn't want to talk to me. She thinks I came back here to see Helena."
Graham stood behind his desk. "Of all the insolent—" His face grew red with anger as Nancy had seen it yesterday. "I told you to keep your nose out of my business, and I meant it!" He shook his head. "I've got a hundred people who all want to talk to me. And they will give the station publicity that might, just might, give the station a boost in advertising sales. So tell me, for the love of Mike, why should I talk to you!" He stopped and glared at Nancy. "I shouldn't have fired my security guard the day before yesterday. If I had hired a new one, believe me, I'd have him throw you out!"
If you'd hired a new one, you wouldn't need my help or the help of the police, Nancy thought to herself. A security guard might have stopped the kidnapper.
"All I need is a minute of your time," she said aloud. "Helena told me how concerned you are about this station and Dan Wildman. I'm sure you want Dan to be found before anything terrible happens to him."
"Well, of course I do," Graham said. "I want to get this nightmare over with. I've got enough other things to deal with—I don't need a kidnapping, too."
Nancy started to speak. "Mr. Graham—"
"I'll give you a minute," Graham said gruffly, "and then you will go. Understand?"
Nancy nodded and smiled. "Of course. Thank you, Mr. Graham."
Neal Graham sat again behind his desk. "So, get on with it."
"Tell me about the rivalry between Dan Wildman and Ray Ludlow," Nancy said, seating herself across the desk from him.
Nancy had intentionally acted as if it was understood that there was