Nancy Clue Mysteries 3 - A Ghost in the Closet (35 page)

Midge gave Velma's hand a little squeeze. "Honey, we'll be back," she promised. "And we'll get down to San Francisco as often as we can to see Cherry and Jackie."

At this, Cherry smiled. She never would have guessed, just one month before when she set out on a simple vacation, that she would end up having helped solve three baffling mysteries and find true love-twice! She couldn't wait to write to her chum, Nurse Penny Perkins, and tell her all the luscious details of her love affair, but right now she had a more important task at hand.

"I must finish this letter to Mother!" Cherry silently groaned. She got back to work.

5 August 1959

Dear Mother,

Please forgive my tardy reply to your gay letter as this has been a busier week than I had anticipated. I had an unexpected stint as a Sanitarium Nurse, which was brief but enlightening. I know what you're thinking. Wherever Cherry goes, sick people stick to her like glue! But I assure you my Midwestern vacation hasn't been all toil and trouble.

Mother, I've learned so many things this summer! I learned about the scientific applications in the fascinating world of criminal detection. Also, that manners and breeding are no substitute for good solid character. And mostly, I've learned the importance of choosing one's travel companion wisely. Some people have a different dress for every occasion. Other people, however, have a simple uniform that suits them no matter where they are.

It sounds like that particular resort is the right place for you and Father. As Aunt Gertrude always says, "Bloom where you're planted!" I now fully understand the meaning of those wise words. The Midwest has been fertile soil for a flower such as I. I've bloomed, too, Mother. I've really, really bloomed.

You know the darling pot-holders you offered to send me? Would you mind terribly mailing them to San Francisco instead, as I've decided to become a Golden Gate Nurse. I'll send you an address as soon as I'm settled. Don't worry! I've made a close friend in the San Francisco Police Department, and I'll be in good hands.

Love,

Your daughter,

Cherry Aimless, R. N.

A shiver went up Cherry's spine as she thought of whose hands she'd be in! She stuck the letter in a envelope and sealed it. "There," she said with a satisfied smile. "All my chores are finished. I've made my bed-our bed; washed out my panties and written out our travel itinerary. Now I can really relax!"

No sooner had Cherry stretched out on a chaise lounge than Fennel, Mrs. Hardly, Frank and Joe drove up in their sleek family sedan.

"Want to see my new suit?" Frank cried excitedly as he bounded onto the porch with a garment bag in his hand. He had a very special weekend engagement in Washington, DC, with a very special Secret Agent, and he wanted to look his very best!

"We went to Father's favorite men's shop and I got a whole new wardrobe," Frank enthused.

Joe rolled his eyes and reached for a sticky bun. He couldn't see what all the fuss over clothes was about when all a fellow really needed to look good was a trim-fitting uniform!

Frank slipped away to doff his chinos and cotton plaid shirt. When he returned, the collegiate lad with the wellscrubbed look was gone. In his place was a confident young man ready to step full-force into manhood, knowing he was dressed for it.

"Nice suit!" Midge jumped up to get a closer look at the Continentalcut double-breasted lightweight worsted-wool jacket with matching cuffless trousers. Frank and Fennel shared a secret grin. Little did Midge realize that an identical suit in a wider cut was awaiting her at Stan's Suit Shop.

"Oh, Francis," Mrs. Hardly exclaimed. "You're as handsome as your father."

Frank flushed happily. That was high praise, indeed!

Mr. Hardly took a starched white handkerchief of the finest linen from the breast pocket of his own suit and tucked it in Frank's pocket. With the back of his hand, he brushed the shoulders of the suit and gauged the drape of the jacket.

"This suit is the right choice, isn't it?" Frank asked earnestly.

"It's fine, son," Mr. Hardly replied softly. His eyes shone with love for his eldest son.

"After all my many adventures and death-defying feats, you wouldn't think I'd be nervous about going to the Spy Guy's Ball," Frank admitted, a little flustered. "Isn't that funny?"

Fennel gave Frank's shoulder a manful squeeze.

"I was worried about making a good impression in front of all those real-life Secret Agents, but suddenly when I slipped into this suit, I gained a new confidence. It's like donning a coat of armor. Is that silly, Father?" Frank blushed.

Fennel smiled tenderly. "Not at all, son," he reassured Frank. "After all, you know what I always say," he said with a sly wink.

"Clothes make the man!"

The End

About the Author

Mabel Maney spent her formative years travelling the Midwest in a green woodpaneled station wagon with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Maney, and three prize-winning black-and-white cocker spaniels, Taffy, Lady and Sadie, in search of blue ribbons and shiny trophies.

After her parents were lost at sea, Mabel and her dog chums settled with their maternal grandmother, Olive Krumpke, in Clear Lake, Wisconsin. Mabel received a strict Catholic education at Our Lady of the Lake School for Girls, where she devoted herself to clean living, community service and Catholic scholarship.

Her first full-length novel, Pets of the Saints (now out-of-print), won her accolades from around the state, and her macaroni model of the last days of Joan of Arc made apparent to all her artistic bent. After an unfortunate misstep prevented her from taking the veil, Mabel moved west, eventually settling in San Francisco where she lives happily with her beloved Miss Lily Bee.

Mabel Maney is the author of The Case of the Not-So-Nice Nurse (Cleis, 1993) and The Case of the Good-For-Nothing Girlfriend (Cleis, 1994). Her installation art and handmade books, self-published under the World O' Girls imprint, have earned her fellowships from The San Francisco Foundation and San Francisco State University, where she received her MFA in 1991. She is currently working on a musical based on the characters from A Ghost in the Closet.