| For Love Or Money | ✔︎

Chapter Thirteen

"What are you two doing here ?" He repeated, a threatening tone in his voice. "Who told you you could snoop around like this ?"

"Now, Jack," Eleanor said in a quivering voice, holding out a restraining hand toward him, "I just wanted to show Nancy that article about Nila stealing from that poor old woman, and I remembered it was here, in that box on your desk," she finished, her voice tapering off to a mere whisper. "I did have the key you gave me ---- so I ---- we ---- um . . ."

Jack grunted huffily, but the explanation Eleanor had given him ---- that they were investigating Nila, not him ---- mollified him a bit. "Well, I see you found what you were looking for," he said, eyeing the article in Nancy's hand. "Now get out. You can take it with you, but don't ever let me catch you sneaking into my house again, understand ?"

"Of course not, Jack," Eleanor assured him.

"And give me back my key while you're at it," he said, grabbing it out of her hand roughly.

"Just a moment, Jack," Nancy broke in. "Not so fast. There are one or two things that I need to clear up with you."

"I don't have to talk to you," he reminded her. "You're not a cop, and I haven't done anything wrong."

"Maybe not," Nancy replied, "but the police will be wanting to talk to you soon. I happen to have a lot of friends on the force, and I'll be telling them all about my investigation. It might go very hard on you if I tell them everything I've found out."

Jack seemed torn between the urge to rip her apart right there and his anxiety over what she might know about him. "All right," he said finally, sinking down into the swivel chair behind his desk. "What do you want to know ?"

"First of all," Nancy began, brushing aside a few of the papers on top of the desk and perching herself on the cleared spot, "it was you who asked Tom Walczek to steal the draft of Mr. Pierce's new will, wasn't it ?"

Jack clenched his jaw so tightly Nancy was afraid he'd break his teeth. "Yeah, that was me," he said. "It was pretty stupid, but I had to know what was in it. Anyway, it doesn't mean I tried to kill anybody, because I didn't."

"All right," Nancy said. "Second of all, this copy of the article about Nila is a forgery."

"What ?" Jack's eyes widened, and he stared at Eleanor, seemingly flabbergasted.

"We should go now, Nancy," Eleanor said, sounding nervous. "Cecilia will wonder where I am."

"I looked up the real article at the library," Nancy told Jack, ignoring Eleanor. "The photo and the name have been changed. The nurse who stole from her employer wasn't Nila at all."

"B-but ----" Jack sputtered.

"So you see," Nancy continued. "Someone's been out to get Nila all along. I was just wondering if it might be you."

Jack bolted up out of his chair, slamming both palms down on the desktop. "Don't you start accusing me," he bellowed. "It wasn't me who fooled with that article. If you're looking for a criminal, try her !" He said, pointing to Eleanor, who shrank back in terror. "She's the one who showed me the article."

"What ?" Nancy asked, taken aback. "But, Eleanor, you said ----"

"N---no, Jack," Eleanor said, standing her ground with her back against the office door. "Don't you remember ? You showed it to me, not the other way around."

"She's lying !" Jack shouted, pointing at her. "Look at her ---- can't you see she's lying ?"

Nancy bit her lip, thinking fast. Eleanor was less likely to be lying than Jack, she decided. He was probably much more practiced at it. "Eleanor," she said, "would you mind waiting for me outside ? I'd like to talk to Jack for a moment."