"Do you think it belongs to that girl who looks like Cecily?" Bess asked.

"Yes, I do," Nancy answered. "Especially since I believe the two are related."

George was impatient for action. "I'll bet that girl could clear up a lot of mysteries if we could only find her again."

Nancy's thoughts were in a whirl. Why had the red-haired young woman seemed so frightened and run from the girls the first night at the cabin? "And why did she think we wanted to take the babies?" Nancy mused.

If the girl was related to Cecily, and she too had been searching around Pudding Stone Lodge for the family fortune, why had not Nancy and her friends seen her on the grounds?

Finally Nancy said, "The girl may come back here for the locket. Let's wait."

"But she may run away again if she sees us here," George argued.

"We'll hide," said Bess. "I don't like this soggy old place. Let's go up in the woods where it's dry."

Nancy decided to take the locket with her. If its owner did not appear, at least the young sleuth would have a valuable bit of evidence to show Cecily. The three girls sloshed out of the swamp, dried their feet, and put on their shoes. They climbed a steep slope and found a grassy spot among the trees from where they had a view of the rowboat. After fifteen minutes had gone by, George became restless.

"We might have to wait for ages," she said. "The girl may not have been wearing the bracelet. Perhaps it dropped out of her pocket or purse and she won't miss it for some time."

"That's possible," Nancy agreed. "Well, let's wait for half an hour more. If nothing happens, we'll leave." The girl detective's mind continued to dwell on all the possible clues they had uncovered so far. She had not forgotten the flashing light from the bull's-eye window at the lodge which she still believed was a signal.

Nancy sat up straight. Certain pieces of the mystery puzzle were beginning to fit into place. "Maybe it's too fantastic, but it is a pattern."

"Detective Drew," George said, "don't keep your deductions a secret."

Nancy smiled, then said somberly, "There might be something more sinister to this whole thing than we imagined."

"Like what?" Bess asked, wide-eyed.

"Well, that red-haired girl may not show up because she might have been kidnapped."

"Kidnapped!By whom?"

"The Driscolls."

Bess gasped. "What makes you think that?"

Quickly Nancy revealed her recent speculations. "And," she went on, "I'm sure the Driscolls are involved in something underhanded, and that their service business is a front."

George caught the drift of Nancy's thoughts. "You mean that this girl may have been searching around Pudding Stone Lodge and have discovered something crooked about the Driscolls? They caught her and are holding her prisoner to keep her from revealing it?"

"Exactly."

George whistled. "This mystery sure is getting complicated. Now Nancy has put kidnappers into the picture."

Nancy laughed. "I didn't say I know this is true," she defended herself. "I was just thinking out loud."

"I like it," said Bess. "Tell us some more of your thoughts."

Nancy went on, "You remember that machine noise-well, it could be from a printing press-the Driscoll brothers may even be counterfeiters."

"You mean you and I were in the house of people who are trying to cheat Uncle Sam?" Bess inquired.

Again Nancy chuckled. "You asked me to think out loud, Bess. Have you had enough of the awful possibilities?"

Bess looked hurt. "I can take it, but I really think that if any of these ideas you mentioned have any truth in them, the police should be notified."

"Without one shred of evidence?" Nancy asked. "No, I won't make any accusations at this point. But I'm going to prove or disprove my theories."

George stood up. She glanced at her watch and said, "The half hour is up, and if that red-haired gal is a prisoner, she's not going to come around here. Let's go!"

In her haste George stepped backward down the slope and lost her balance. She teetered for several seconds as both Nancy and Bess made a dive for her. But they could not reach the swaying girl in time. She fell on her back, hitting her head hard. The blow stunned her, and George began to roll down the hill.

Nancy and Bess gasped. Their friend was heading straight for a group of thorny bushes at the bottom!

The two girls leaped forward but were too late. Bess screamed as her dazed cousin hurtled into the bushes. Fortunately, her body had swerved and landed feet first. This saved her face and hands from being scratched.

By the time Nancy and Bess reached her, George was coming out of her daze.

"Thank goodness!" Bess heaved a sigh of relief, and pulled George from the bushes. Her legs were badly scratched and her clothes dirty and torn.

Bess rushed over to the water and soaked a handkerchief, which she brought back and laid across George's eyes and forehead. The dark-haired girl sat up. "What a ninny I am!" she exclaimed. "Well, at least I can wash my face and hands."

Bess insisted upon getting fresh water and doing the washing. George smiled. "I have to admit sometimes you treat me pretty well, cousin," she teased.

Bess made a face, then went again to the lake, and after the third cleanup George began to look more like herself. There was a slight lump on the back of her head, but she said it was not really bothering her.

"But I would appreciate going back to the cottage," she said.

George objected to being helped, but Nancy and Bess paid no attention to her protests. "We don't want any more spills," Bess told her.

When they reached the cottage, George refused to lie down, saying what she needed was a good, juicy steak.

Cecily, after expressing her sympathy over George's accident, offered to get supper. "We do have steak and it won't take long to broil it."

Nancy offered to help, saying she had a surprise for Cecily and would tell her about it while they were working in the kitchen. She pulled the half-locket from her pocket.

"This matches yours, doesn't it?" she asked.

Cecily stared unbelievingly. "I'm sure it does, but I'll get mine and we'll compare."

There was excitement all over again when Cecily put the two halves together. A perfect fit! "Where in the world did you get this?" she asked.

Nancy told the whole story, adding that during her previous visit to the area the old battered boat had not been there. "Either someone just tried to hide it, or it drifted there. I'm sure the locket wasn't in it very long. I do have an idea as to the person who lost the locket."

"Who?" Cecily asked eagerly.

Nancy reminded her of the hunch that the red-haired girl who resembled Cecily was a relative. "And if this part of your great-grandmother's locket does belong to her, I'm convinced."