beach?”
“Can’t say I have,” the clam digger replied.
“Are you figurin’ on lookin’ for one?”
Nancy smiled as she said, “Perhaps some time
when you’re not busy-”
Salty suddenly slapped his thigh and chuckled.
“Women!” he said. “They never come right out
an’ say what they want. Nancy, I’ll meet you an’
your friends at Campbell’s Landing ten o’clock
sharp tomorrow mornin’, barrin’ rain.”
Nancy thanked him. “Another thing, Salty. I’d
like to find out about Walter Heath’s experi-
ments. Are you sure you can’t tell me more about
them?”
The man shook his head. “I don’t know a thing
more. But maybe Sam Weatherby can help ye.”
“The curio dealer?”
“Sam worked at the Heath factory before he
went into business for himself. He knew Walt as
well as anyone in town.”
“Then I’ll go to sec Sam Weatherby!” Nancy
said, grateful for the information.
Soon after Salty had gone down the street, Bess
and George left for home, promising to be on
hand the next morning. Nancy drove to Sam
Weatherby’s shop.
“Haven’t seen you in a while,” he greeted her
cheerfully. “Did you bring that pearl and the
shell I offered to buy?”
Nancy told him the pearl had been stolen.
“That’s too bad,” the man said sympathetically.
“Well, maybe you’ll find a bigger one.”
“I hope so,” Nancy said with a smile. “But
right now I’m more interested in Walter Heath’s
experiments.”
She told about the pile of crushed and broken
whelk shells she had found at the pond. “The
colors were so beautiful, I’ve been wondering if
he was trying to make dye from them.”
“You guessed right,” Mr. Weatherby said, eye-
ing her intently. “So far as I know, Walt had no
luck, but he kept working at it. And once he said
to me, ‘Sam, even if I don’t succeed in making a
fortune in dye, there’s another treasure on my
estate.’ Then he winked and said, ‘It’s right in
plain sight, tool'”
“What did he mean by that?” Nancy asked.
The dealer shrugged. “Who knows? Walt was
like that-full of riddles and secrets. In one way
his experimental work brought him luck.”
“How?”
“He found a big pearl; at least, that’s what he
told me. Said he was going to present it to a young
lady friend of his-a dancer.”
Nancy blinked in astonishment at the reve-
lation. Had he really given the pearl to Juliana?
Or was it hidden in one of the cloister walls? And
was that what someone was looking for?
Nancy thanked the curio dealer for his infor-
mation and turned to leave. An object in the
showcase caught her eye. Lying in a velvet-lined
case was the antique charm from a man’s watch
chain that Daniel Hector had sold to Mr.
Weatherby.
“Handsome, isn’t it?” the jeweler remarked,
taking the charm from its case. “An old English
family design. A genuine heirloom.”
Nancy admired the piece of jewelry. Mr.
Weatherby also showed her a pair of earrings, a
bracelet, and a brooch, all bearing the same de-
sign.
“Daniel Hector sold me this entire set,” Mr.
Weatherby revealed. “That lawyer is a hard cus-
tomer, though. He argues for the last penny.”
“Did he inherit these from English ancestors?”
Nancy asked.
“That’s what he said. Between you and me, I
think he got them from a client who couldn’t pay
a bill.”
Nancy wondered if Hector had received the
charm and the other pieces of jewelry honestly,
but kept quiet.
When Nancy reached home she learned that
during her absence a call had come from Hope-
well. Either she or her father was to get in touch
with the man who had phoned.
“He was a detective,” Hannah Gruen told her,
“and he wouldn’t give me a message.”
Nancy called headquarters at Hopewell. The
plainclothesman was out at the time but had left
his report for her. The stranger he had shadowed
the night before had driven to River Heights.
From there he had gone to the abandoned Heath
factory to meet another man.
“If I only knew who that person was!” Nancy
exclaimed.
“I have a description of him,” said the police
sergeant and read it. Nancy was almost certain he