The Secret in the Old Attic by Carolyn Keene Read Free Book Online Page A

Hannah Gruen said firmly.
    Nancy tried to dispel the woman’s fears by saying, “Effie must have scared him off!” But she was worried. Perhaps an intruder had left the deadly spider there as a warning!
    The most likely person was the one who had stolen Fipp March’s original music! Was he Ben Banks?
    “I must write to the publisher of ‘Song of the Wind’ at once for the address of Ben Banks,” Nancy determined. “In all the excitement I completely forgot him.”
    “Oh!” Hannah Gruen said suddenly.
    Crack! Her broom came down with a whack on a spider which had just crawled from beneath the wardrobe. Nancy used the spray gun.
    “It’s the black widow!” Nancy cried jubilantly. “Now you’ll have nothing to worry about.”
    “Unless there are more of these poisonous creatures up here,” declared Mrs. Gruen.
    She agreed, however, that it probably would be safe for Nancy to stay, but cautioned her to be extra careful.
    While the housekeeper prepared supper, Nancy hurriedly wrote a note to the publisher of “Song of the Wind.” Then she went to make Effie comfortable. The maid was feverish and declared her arm itched dreadfully. When she finally dropped off to sleep, Nancy tiptoed away to see that Susan was all right.
    The little girl looked up and said, “A bad spider bit Effie. She told me all about it.”
    Nancy was provoked to learn the maid had told the story to Susan, but she merely smiled. “That’s right, Susan, but only good spiders live around here. The bad one is dead now.”
    To get the child’s mind off the unfortunate subject, she told her about the funny antics of the jumping spiders and the flying variety.
    “Some of them are just like trapeze performers in a circus,” Nancy explained. “They spin a thread and then let the wind carry them through the air. Sometimes they go all the way from shore to a ship at sea.”
    “Oh, that kind of spider would be lots of fun to watch!” Susan remarked, her fears gone now.
    Hannah Gruen brought up a tray of food for the little girL Nancy decided that while Susan was eating supper, Mr. March might sit with her, and she would drive Hannah home. When they reached the Drew house, Bess and George were just leaving.
    “Where in the world have you been, Nancy?” George remonstrated. “We thought something had happened to you. How about having dinner at my house and telling us about your new mystery?”
    Nancy thanked her, but explained why she could not accept the invitation. Bess exclaimed in horror when she heard about the black widow episode.
    “You’d better stay out of that place,” she advised.
    “I’ll be careful. Don’t worry,” Nancy replied. She told the girls to climb into her car and she would drop them off.
    Nancy left her friends at George’s house and went on. After stopping to buy a flashlight battery, she drove to the March estate and was in time to tuck Susan into bed. The little girl looked up at her wistfully.
    “I wish you’d always stay with me,” she confided. “You’re my best friend.”
    Nancy leaned down and kissed her. “I’m going to be here for a while,” she promised. “Suppose we pretend each day is a year.”
    Susan liked this game, and soon she went to sleep happily. Nancy joined Mr. March on the first floor, where he was listening to the radio. As they ate supper together, he told her more about his family.
    “I guess my son Fipp came by his musical ability naturally,” Mr. March said. “My mother wrote songs for the sheer joy of it. They were composed only for the family though, and never got beyond manuscript form. My son used parts of the melodies in his work. The piece called ‘Song of the Wind’ was based in part on one that my mother wrote years ago.”
    Nancy pounced eagerly on this bit of information. It might prove to be good evidence in case of a lawsuit!
    “What became of your mother’s old songs?” she asked quickly.
    “I couldn’t say. A few of the pieces may have been put away