Nancy reached out and grabbed the sleeve of George’s sweater. “Hey, George, we’ve got something for you,” she said.
“That’s nice,” she said, stopping.
Nancy waved the pass in front of her friend’s eyes. “Drew calling Fayne,” she said. “Drew calling Fayne. Come in, please.”
“Huh?” George’s eyes refocused. “What’d you say?”
Ned laughed. “We said that Lake got us those passes. You’ll get your chance to run in Olympic Stadium.”
George squealed and grabbed the pass, jumping up and down with excitement. “I can’t believe it!”
“And we’ll be there to watch,” Nancy said. “We’ve got passes to the press box.”
“Speaking of tomorrow,” Ned said, looking at Nancy, “what’s on the agenda?”
Nancy sat down on the sofa and pulled her knees up under her chin. “Well, I’ve been thinking,” she said. “About Dandridge, that is.”
“What about him?” George asked.
“We definitely can’t strike him off our list of suspects. There’s every possibility that yesterday’s drop was a dummy.”
“So what do you want to do?” Ned asked, sitting down beside Nancy.
“We’re going to question him again,” Nancy said. “First thing in the morning. If he’s been telling us the truth, his bank account should show some very large cash withdrawals—and no substantial deposits.”
“While you’re doing that,” George broke in, “I hope you don’t mind if I go out with Pierre. Tomorrow’s his day off, and he wants to show me the view from Mont-Royal. I could go to the stadium from there and meet you after my run.”
Nancy stared at her friend in mock anger. “You know, it’s a good thing I don’t have to depend on you to solve this case, Fayne.”
“Well, you can’t blame a girl for falling in love, can you?” George said dreamily.
“So you don’t believe what I’ve told you?” Dr. Dandridge growled. He had agreed to meet Nancy and Ned in his office the next morning even though it was Saturday. “You still insist that I’ve got something to do with this blackmail business?”
Nancy smiled pleasantly. “Right now there are just too many loose ends to permit me to draw any conclusions, Dr. Dandridge. However, there is a way you could help us tie some of them up.”
The doctor frowned. “Just what did you have in mind, Ms. Drew?”
“Your bank account should be a complete record of your dealings with the blackmailer. We’d like to see it.”
Dr. Dandridge looked shocked. “My bank account? You want my personal records?”
“Actually, it would be easier if you just called an officer at your bank,” Nancy told him. “I could review the account there and save you the inconvenience of digging out your statements.”
Dr. Dandridge sighed and reached for the phone. “If this is the only way to convince you,” he said, “then it’s worth it. Fortunately, my bank is open on Saturday mornings.”
On the way to the bank, Nancy stopped to call Ms. Amberton at her home to bring her up to date on what they’d done the day before, and on their talk with the doctor. But she wasn’t home.
“It was okay,” Nancy told Ned. “I just left a message telling her that we found out who was driving the yellow Mercedes. That should interest her.”
“You understand, of course, that this is extremely irregular,” the bank manager said. He was dressed in a conservative black suit and vest, and his hair was thinning on top. “It is highly unusual to give out information on other people’s accounts.”
“But you had Dr. Dandridge’s phone call,” Nancy assured him smoothly. “And I’ve also brought you a signed request.”
“Yes, of course,” the manager said with a sigh. He cleared his throat. “Well, then, here is a summary of the activity in the account.” He handed a computer printout to Nancy. “I must say, I have been puzzled by the recent large cash withdrawals from this account.”
Nancy scanned the printout. She spotted the withdrawals right away. They exactly corresponded to what Dr. Dandridge had told them.
“This is the only account the doctor has with this bank?” she asked, just to be sure.
“The only one,” the manager said. “With the exception of his loan account, of course.” He shifted uneasily. “A rather large loan, as a matter of fact.”