“Poor guy,” a voice said, and Nancy stopped.
“Yeah,” someone else said. “Drowning—what a way for a lifeguard to go, huh?”
“Lifeguard?” Nancy asked.
“Yeah.” A boy nodded grimly. “What was his name? Ricardo, that’s it. Ricardo.”
Chapter Ten
Nancy stepped back from the towel-draped body. “Are you sure it’s Ricardo?” she asked.
“Hey, I helped pull him out of the water,” the boy replied. “And I’ve talked to him every day since I’ve been here. I know what he looks like.” The boy paused. “Hey, you look sick. Were you a friend of his?” he asked.
Nancy shook her head. “No, but I knew who he was.”
“Yeah, well, it’s too bad, huh? And you want to know something? He didn’t drown—he was shot.” The boy held up his hand. “And, yes, I’m sure. I pulled him out of the water, remember?”
Stunned, Nancy pushed her way through the crowd and stumbled back up the beach, trying to figure out what had happened Why had Ricardo been shot? Had he lost Maria, and had the people he worked with killed him for if
When she reached the street, Nancy heard the wail of a siren in the distance. The police, coming to investigate Ricardo’s murder. She knew she should talk to them, but what would she say? The last time she saw him, he was with a girl named Maria, but she had no idea where Maria was She had no idea who Ricardo worked for or who killed him You don’t really know anything at all, Nancy told herself Your main suspect is dead, and you’re back to square one
The Surfside Inn was just across the street, and Nancy decided to go there first, to shower and change Then she’d return to the beach and talk to the police But after she got the key from the desk and let herself into the room, Nancy realized she was too tired to take a shower. She was so wiped out, she was actually staggering. Her eyes were playing tricks on her, too. Instead of two single beds, she saw four, then two, then four again. Stumbling across the room, she bumped into the cot that Bess used, fell onto it, and was asleep before her head hit the pillow.
“Look at this!” a voice was saying. “There’s a body on my cot!”
Nancy burrowed her face deeper into the crook of her elbow. “Go away,” she mumbled.
Another voice said, “Look, she didn’t even bother to change. How’s that for lazy?”
“Please,” Nancy groaned, “not so loud.” She yawned and tried to slip back into sleep, but someone sat down on the cot, making it jiggle back and forth.
“Hey, Nan,” Bess said, laughing, “I don’t mind if you sleep here, but don’t you think you’d be more comfortable without my makeup kit poking you in the neck?”
Nancy moaned and shook her head, but it was too late—she was awake. She opened one eye and peered up through her tangled hair. Bess and George were staring down at her, looking extremely amused. “What’s happening?” she asked.
“Why don’t you tell us?” George suggested.
“Yeah,” Bess said, grinning. “We thought we had a wild night, but it looks like yours was wilder. Couldn’t even bother to take off your clothes before you fell asleep, huh?”
“Wild night?” Nancy croaked. Her throat was bone dry, and her tongue felt too big for her mouth. Swallowing, she pushed herself up on her elbows and turned onto her back. “It was wild, all right.”
When Bess and George saw how scratched and bruised she was, their teasing grins disappeared and their mouths dropped open.
“Nan, what happened to you?” Bess cried in horror.
“That must have been some battle,” George said. “Are you okay?”
“I will be, once I shower and eat and drink about a gallon of water.” Nancy sat up slowly and rubbed her neck. “You’re right, George,” she remarked, “it was some battle.”
“Well, tell us!” Bess demanded.
George went to the vending machine in the hall and brought back a soda and a package of peanut butter crackers. Nancy ate first, then told them everything that had happened the night before.