She waited several minutes. Interested in the various items, Nancy walked about, getting farther and farther from the door. When still no one came, she decided to leave.
As the young detective turned around, she found herself looking straight at the missing stableman! Hitch had her costume in his hands and was about to run off with it.
“Stop!” Nancy cried, dashing across the supply tent.
But by the time she reached the doorway Hitch was out of sight.
CHAPTER XII
A Dangerous Performance
Nancy had to get back her costume! It was the only one of its kind in the circus and she needed the fancy riding habit for the evening performance!
“Oh, where did Hitch go?” she fumed, looking in every direction.
None of the circus people were in sight at the moment. With nothing but a hunch to follow, Nancy chose a direction which led to the nearest exit from the circus grounds. But she reached it without discovering her quarry.
Retracing her steps, Nancy started for another exit. As she ran, the young bareback rider began to wonder what she would do if the costume were not found.
“If I have to wear another one, Kroon will be sure to single me out,” Nancy thought, worried. “That will end my riding with the Vascon troupe.”
Seeing a workman taking down one of the small tents, Nancy hastened over to him and asked if he had seen a man running from the supply tent.
“No, miss,” he replied. “You looking for someone?”
Quickly Nancy told him that she was looking for a man named Hitch.
“Oh, I know him. He used to be connected with the circus.”
“He took my costume and I need it,” Nancy explained quickly. “Please help me find Hitch and hold him for the police.”
“I’ll do my best, miss,” the workman promised, hurrying away to help in the search.
Nancy decided to appeal to Dan Webster and went to his office. The horse trainer was thunderstruck when she told him of the groom’s latest bit of deviltry, and blamed himself.
“I thought we searched every part of these grounds for Hitch,” he said, “and all guards at the entrances were warned not to let him in or out.”
“I know you did your best,” Nancy said. “Right now, I must get my costume back. If Hitch has left the circus grounds and taken it with him, I don’t know what I’ll do.”
Dan Webster picked up his telephone. He called the ticket office and every other person stationed on the outside of the grounds. The last guard to whom he phoned said:
“Hey, wait a minute! I see something.”
A moment later the man reported that he had the missing costume.
“It was in a box under one of the booths. I noticed a man put a package down there, but didn’t know he was Hitch.”
At the time the guard had not given the incident a second thought, and did not know where Hitch had gone.
“I’m sure he didn’t leave the grounds, though,” the guard reported.
“Then he must be in hiding here!” Nancy thought fearfully.
Dan asked the guard to bring the costume at once to his office. While they were waiting for it, he warned Nancy to be wary every minute until the groom was caught.
“Don’t be alone for even a minute,” he advised her.
When the costume arrived, Nancy found to her relief that it was intact.
Hitch had evidently grabbed up a large box from the supply tent and put the costume and accessories into it so that he would not be spotted with them.
“Oh, thanks so much,” Nancy said to Dan, and hurried off to join Erika to dress for the performance.
“My goodness, where have you been?” her roommate asked. “It’s only fifteen minutes to parade time!”
Nancy told her roommate what had happened. Erika was aghast. “I hope that awful man left the circus grounds,” she said as she helped Nancy into her costume. Then the two girls raced to the make-up artist’s tent.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be ready for the riding act before the parade is over,” Nancy assured Erika.
“But you have to be in the parade. Didn’t you know that?” her roommate exclaimed.