Stage Fright (Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Book 6) by Carolyn Keene, Franklin W. Dixon Read Free Book Online Page A

Joe, and I was left alone onstage.
    “So much for the rest of that tour,” I mumbled. Not that I minded, really. But I did want to keep Damien close. I had other concerns this morning, though. Since Claire seemed safe with Joe and Nancy, I headed down to the subbasement. There was a small room of broken props down there: things from old shows that might be reusable, as well as pieces from this show in need of repair. Laurel had moved the burned plane down there to see what could be rescued, but she’d promised me first crack at it.
    The first basement level was where the wardrobe people worked. They made the costumes, fixed any damage that happened during the performances, and helped the actors get into and out of their clothes between scenes. Three or four people were gathered around sewing machines and bins of period hats and shoes. Jason, Claire’s dresser, waved to me. He had bright pink hair and a quick smile. Claire said that without him, she’d lose her head—literally.
    Past the wardrobe area was an old metal staircase that led to the lowest level of the theater. I stepped onto the stair and closed the heavy fire door behind me, instantly cutting off any noise from above. Because there were so many people working backstage, all ofthe different areas were as soundproof as possible. This kept the audience from hearing strange noises during the show. I tried not to worry about what else we might not be able to hear.
    Props were laid out on long rows of shelves. The biggest pieces, like a giant clown head with bright pink eyes, leaned against the back wall. It was a quiet, creepy place. I didn’t want to spend any more time here than I had to.
    “Anyone in here?” I called out as I entered the repair shop. Something skittered behind me, but unless Claire was being stalked by a mouse, I didn’t think it was anything to worry about.
    The room was filled to the brim with tools, art supplies, and broken props. The plane was laid out in the center of the room on a heavy wooden table. Most of the paint had burned off, and what remained was flaky and discolored. It really did look as if it had been through a war. Maybe they could find a use for it if they ever did a sequel to this show, but its life as a working airplane seemed over to me.
    I pulled a small kit from my pocket. A casual observer would think it was a glasses case, but it was actually a mini-forensics kit that Vijay had invented. With this, I could dust for fingerprints, check for bloodstains, and send chemical samples back to ATAC wirelessly.
    “Darn,” I said, as I put fingerprint powder all over theplane. As I’d suspected, nothing useful had survived the fire. As gently as I could, I opened the panel to reveal the engine. The hinges groaned and then snapped.
    “Oops,” I muttered, as I was left holding the panel in my hands. I tried to put it aside, but one of my fingers was stuck to the inside.
    “Eww!”
    Whatever the stuff was, it was so sticky it nearly pulled my skin off! Intrigued, I removed what looked like a plastic Q-tip from my kit. Vijay had built it to analyze the chemical structure of any compound. It sent the information back to him in his lab, where he could synthesize it and figure out what it was. I dabbed the plastic head in the sticky resin, pulling back almost as soon as I touched the stuff. I didn’t want to end up with my sensor permanently stuck to the engine block.
    I peered inside the engine compartment. The worst of the damage was in here. All I saw was dust, scorch marks, and blackened metal. After a minute of poking, I knew I’d learn nothing. If this was sabotage, the person had done a good job of covering their tracks.
    A booming sound came from outside the repair room.
    “Hello?” I yelled. My voice echoed back at me. “Is anyone out there?”
    No one responded. I grabbed a wrench from among the tools on the table, and slowly crept back out into themain room. Everything looked exactly as it had a few minutes