Hostage! Read online

  Regina's image was vivid in Elizabeth's mind as she opened the door of the Fiat and slid into the driver's seat. Regina looked so—so vulnerable, Elizabeth thought. And so confused.

  Elizabeth was more convinced than ever that something terrible was going on, but it still didn't make sense to her. Was that strange woman masquerading as Regina's aunt? And why? Was Regina being held in her very own house against her will?

  Elizabeth felt almost dizzy with confusion and alarm as she edged the Fiat around the curves leading down the big hill. Every question she could think of just led to a dozen more. Where were the Morrows, for example? And Nicholas? Did they even know the strange "aunt," or were they in trouble, too?

  Elizabeth had no answers as she maneuvered the Fiat up the Wakefields' driveway. Her father's car was in the driveway ahead of her. A quick glance at her wristwatch told Elizabeth that it was already six-thirty.

  The minute Elizabeth saw her father's car she made a quick decision. Mr. Wakefield was a lawyer, and Elizabeth had no doubt that he'd have some strong suggestions to make if she and Jessica told him about the strange sequence of events at the Morrow estate. Mr. Wakefield was a loving, protective father, and he'd want the twins to stay far away from trouble.

  "Jess and I are going to have to keep this a secret!" Elizabeth told herself grimly, hurrying for the front door.

  She wanted to get to her twin before Jessica could say anything to their parents about Regina. Otherwise, she had a feeling they'd both be barred from trying to help their friend. Their parents would never let them get involved in anything dangerous.

  And after this afternoon, Elizabeth was certain that whatever was going on at the Morrows', investigating it wasn't going to be free of danger.

  "Of course I didn't say anything to Daddy," Jessica said, frowning at her twin. She was lying on her side on the carpeted floor of her bedroom, lifting one leg in time to the aerobics record playing on her stereo.

  Elizabeth looked around her. "From one messy situation to another!" She laughed and sank down on the only corner of Jessica's bed that wasn't piled with clothing. Jessica's room was a standing joke in the Wakefield household. From the brown walls to the tangle of clothing everywhere the eye could see, her room looked "lived in" on its best days. That day it looked like a federal disaster area.

  "So what did you see over there?" Jessica prompted, sitting up and bouncing her blond head over to touch her knees.

  "You know, it hurts just to watch you do that," Elizabeth commented. "How can I possibly tell you what I saw over at the Morrows' place while you're hanging upside down?"

  "OK, OK," Jessica said, looking attentive at last. "Shoot."

  Elizabeth shuddered. "I don't think I like that word right now, Jess. It gives me the creeps. As a matter of fact, almost everything is giving me the creeps today!"

  "You must've stopped off to see Bruce," Jessica suggested, her aqua eyes twinkling.

  "This is serious," Elizabeth said in a low voice. Standing, she walked over to the door and closed it, then sat down again on the bed. "That's why I don't want Mom or Dad finding out about it, Jess. They'd never let either of us go over there again if they thought something dangerous were going on."

  "Liz, would you just get to the point and tell me what you saw?"

  Elizabeth quickly filled her sister in on the strange woman who'd lied to her about Regina being home. "But Regina was there," she concluded. "I saw her in the foyer. And her expression was so odd when she looked at me, Jess—sort of imploring and frightened."

  "I still think you've been reading too many thrillers," Jessica said after a minute's reflection. "But I have to admit, it sounds kind of weird. Do you think this woman is holding Regina hostage or something?"

  "I think," Elizabeth said thoughtfully, "that it's too complicated now for us to deal with on our own."

  "But you said you don't want Mom or Dad finding out!"

  "I don't," Elizabeth said grimly. "But they're not exactly the people I had in mind. Jessica, I think we should call the police."

  Jessica blinked. "Are you sure?" she asked dubiously. "Liz, don't you think you may be getting a little bit ahead of yourself? What if that lady really is Regina's aunt and she was just really grouchy this afternoon?"

  "That's a chance we'll just have to take," Elizabeth said grimly, reaching for the extension on her sister's night table. "At this point, Jess, I'd rather be safe than sorry. And I think I'd feel a whole lot safer if the Sweet Valley Police Department were in on this!"

  "What a day." Alice Wakefield sighed as she brought a platter of chicken to the dining room table. "I think I'll go crazy if I ever see another wallpaper pattern!" Slim, attractive and blond-haired, Mrs. Wakefield worked as an interior designer. Her blue eyes twinkled now as she filled her family in on the latest struggles with a particularly difficult client.

  "Sounds like your day was sort of like mine," Ned Wakefield said, leaning back in his chair and grinning. Running his hand through his wavy, dark hair, he said, "This has been one of those weeks when I wonder if I shouldn't give up the law and head for the beach!"

  "That sounds like a great idea, Daddy," Jessica said mischievously, reaching for the salad bowl. "We could sell the house and turn into nomads."

  Elizabeth groaned. "Can you imagine Jessica being a nomad? She'd bring about thirty suitcases just filled with things for her hair!"

  Just then the telephone rang, and the twins exchanged nervous glances. Elizabeth had asked Sergeant O'Brien to call her back after he'd checked out the Morrow estate. That was probably him phoning back now.

  "I'll get it!" both twins said in unison, jumping up and almost knocking each other over in the scramble for the kitchen phone. Elizabeth was half a second quicker and managed to lift the receiver before her sister. As she'd guessed, it was the police department calling. Sergeant O'Brien didn't sound very happy when he asked to speak to her.

  Jessica was standing beside her, so Elizabeth moved the receiver a short distance away from her ear, so they could both hear what Sergeant O'Brien had to say.

  "We made the check on the Morrow place, just like you asked us to," he said tersely. "But I couldn't find a single thing out of place. The woman who answered the door identified herself as Claire Davis, Skye Morrow's stepsister. She says she's visiting from out of town. Regina was upstairs when we stopped by, and we had no reason to think anything was wrong."

  "I see," Elizabeth said weakly. Stepsister! That was a new twist. She and Bruce hadn't thought of that. She wanted to ask him if the Morrows themselves were around, but she was afraid to say anything with her parents listening. "Well, thank you very much," she added lamely.

  "No problem," Sergeant O'Brien said shortly. "Only next time," he added, "try not to get so alarmed just because your girlfriend isn't able to come outside and meet you. OK?"

  Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders and looked helplessly at her sister as she replaced the receiver on the hook. Great, she thought miserably. Now I've really done it!

  "Who was that?" Mrs. Wakefield asked as the twins walked back into the dining room.

  "Oh, that was just someone with some information I was waiting for," Elizabeth said, resuming her seat. Her mother didn't question her, since Elizabeth was often gathering information for Oracle articles.

  "Are you OK, honey?" Mrs. Wakefield asked a minute later, looking at Elizabeth with concern.

  "I'm fine," Elizabeth murmured. She had been staring off into space. She forced herself to eat a bite of salad, but she could barely taste her mother's delicious blue-cheese dressing.

  Bruce had said that Mrs. Morrow didn't have a sister, she thought. But did she have a stepsister? If not, who could Claire Davis be?

  Elizabeth could tell Sergeant O'Brien had been trying to give her a message: Butt out. Whatever's going on over there, it's none of your business! But Elizabeth couldn't forget the image of Regina Morrow standing in the hallway, her blue eyes wide with fear.

  I've got to do somethin
g, Elizabeth thought desperately. If there's the slightest possibility that Regina is in danger, I've got to do everything I can to help her.

  She didn't care what Sergeant O'Brien thought. She was going to call Bruce the minute dinner was over. She wouldn't be satisfied till she was certain they'd done everything they could to make sure Regina wasn't in danger.

  Three

  "Liz, I've got to talk to you!" Jessica sang out, hurrying up the stairs after her twin.

  "Why?" Elizabeth asked, her eyes narrowing as she turned to face her sister. "You just want to hear what the police said so you can tease me again about Nancy Drew."

  Jessica shook her head. "No!" she objected. "I was thinking about Regina during dinner. And I think you're absolutely right. Something weird has got to be going on!"

  Elizabeth blinked. "Well, the police department doesn't think so. Sergeant O'Brien sounded like he wanted to drag me down to the station and rap me on the knuckles. They probably think I get a kick out of making crank complaints!"

  Jessica snorted. "They don't know anything," she said mysteriously, grabbing her sister's arm and pulling her up the remaining stairs. "Come on," she hissed. "Let's go to your room. We've got to talk about this alone."

  Elizabeth shook her head. Jessica was famous for throwing herself headlong into things. From the expression on her face, it looked as if what was happening at the Morrows' was going to be her latest obsession.

  "I've figured out how we can get through to Regina and find out what's going on over there!" Jessica exclaimed, whirling around to face Elizabeth after closing the door behind her. "Liz, I've come up with the perfect scheme. You're going to kick yourself for not having thought of it ages ago!"

  "Go on." Elizabeth threw herself across her bed. "Tell me your plan, Sherlock Holmes. I'm all ears."

  "Eddie Strong," Jessica said, folding her arms and looking at her sister with obvious satisfaction. "You forgot all about him, didn't you?"

  Elizabeth frowned. "I don't get it. What good is Eddie going to do us now?"

  Jessica looked as though she couldn't believe her own ears. "My own sister," she said mournfully, "doesn't even know the first thing about solving mysteries! But that's where you're lucky." She giggled. "Remember all those times at the beach when you were reading some big boring novel and I was reading Agatha Christie? It's paying off now!"

  "Spare me," Elizabeth said, laughing. "Just tell me what your ace-sleuth mind has in store for poor Eddie Strong."

  "Well, it's perfectly simple," Jessica said airily. "Eddie made a delivery to the Morrows last week, right?"

  "Right," Elizabeth confirmed. "Or for this Claire Davis woman, anyway. We don't really know where the Morrows are."

  "That doesn't matter now," Jessica said reprovingly. "What matters is getting some kind of message to Regina. And that's where Eddie comes in."

  Elizabeth's eyes widened. "You mean use Eddie to—"

  "I mean," Jessica interrupted, "finding out from Eddie when the next delivery is supposed to be made to the Morrows'. Then we'll ask him if we can make the delivery for him. That way," she added, her eyes flashing, "we can sneak a message in for Regina. How's that for master sleuthing?"

  "Jessica Wakefield, you're a genius!" Elizabeth cried, jumping up and throwing her arms around her twin. "But who's going to pretend to be the delivery boy?" she asked a second later.

  "Bruce, obviously," Jessica answered. "That'll be some sight!"

  "OK," Elizabeth said, thinking fast. "Why don't you call Eddie, and I'll call Bruce. Find out when he's supposed to take this week's delivery over, and make sure it won't cause a problem if we make the delivery for him. OK?"

  "OK," Jessica said, her expression suddenly turning solemn. "Liz, do you think Regina's really in serious trouble?"

  Elizabeth bit her lip. "I don't know," she said nervously. "But I'm really glad you're willing to help now, Jess. Because if she is in trouble, Bruce and I are going to need all the help we can get!"

  "Wait a minute," Bruce said anxiously. "Liz, you're going so fast I can't keep up with you! Now tell me what happened again from the minute that woman opened the Morrows' front door."

  Elizabeth was on the extension in her bedroom, trying to keep her voice down in case her parents came upstairs. "She was really strange, Bruce," she told him, shuddering again as she remembered Claire Davis's steely gray eyes. "And she wouldn't let me in! She kept trying to shut the door on me. That was when I saw Regina," she added.

  Bruce's voice was choked with emotion. "How did she look, Liz? Was she OK? If that woman's trying to hurt her—if anyone tries to hurt her . . ."

  "She looked fine," Elizabeth said gently. "Bruce, are you absolutely sure that neither of Regina's parents has a stepsister? Because the policeman said that—"

  "She's lying!" Bruce broke in, angry and upset. "I don't know who that woman is, but I know she's lying! Regina's parents are both only children. And neither of them have stepsisters!"

  "Bruce," Elizabeth whispered, looking nervously at her closed door, "try not to get upset. I know how you must be feeling, but if we're going to help Regina—"

  "There's no 'if about it," Bruce cut in. "Liz, we've got to do something—right away!"

  "You're right," Elizabeth told him. "I couldn't agree more." And taking a deep breath, she outlined Jessica's scheme. "Jess is downstairs, calling Eddie Strong on the second line that our parents just had installed," she added. "As soon as she finds out when the next delivery is supposed to be made, we can set a time to meet."

  "It better be soon," Bruce said grimly. "I can't stand the thought of Regina trapped over there with some strange woman for very much longer."

  "Are you all right?" Elizabeth asked him, concerned. Something about his voice worried her. She could imagine how frustrating it must be for him, wondering whether or not Regina was in danger.

  "Yeah," Bruce said and sighed. "I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's all. I got dragged into a meeting with Coach Schultz and Mr. Collins today. Mr. Collins was really laying into Ken Matthews."

  Elizabeth was surprised. Blond, good-looking Ken was captain of the football team and one of the most popular boys in the junior class, and Mr. Collins was a very fair teacher. "What was the problem?"

  Bruce didn't sound very interested in Ken just then. "Ken is flunking English," he muttered. "His grades are so bad that he might not be able to stay on the football team. And the coach is all upset because there's that big centennial game coming up against Palisades High. Anyway, it turned into a big free-for-all. I got dragged into the discussion because I'm head of the student centennial committee. The game is a really big part of the whole thing, and without Ken on the team, we won't stand a chance against Palisades."

  "That's too bad," Elizabeth said. She knew Ken had Mr. Collins for English, and she was surprised Ken was doing so badly. Mr. Collins was a wonderful teacher, and all the students liked him, Ken included. And it must be killing Ken to be faced with having to quit the team. But at Sweet Valley the rule was that no student could participate in extracurricular activities without passing grades in all subjects.

  It sounded as though Bruce had his hands full. Sweet Valley had been planning its centennial celebration for some time. Elizabeth knew how much it meant to Bruce to do a good job representing the high school in the civic celebration. The game against Palisades High was one of the biggest events in the celebration, and obviously Bruce wanted it to go smoothly.

  "What do you think Ken's problem is?" Elizabeth asked. "It isn't like him to be having trouble—and I thought he really liked English!"

  "Everyone likes English," Bruce said gloomily. "Even I did—until about three o'clock this afternoon. Now I feel like it's making my life even more complicated than it already is."

  Elizabeth was quiet for a minute. She knew Mr. Collins better than many of her classmates because he was the faculty adviser to The Oracle. Elizabeth liked him a lot, and she was sure that whatever was going on with Ken, Mr. Collins would
help straighten it out.

  But Elizabeth's train of thought was interrupted as Jessica pushed the door open and hurried over, her face flushed and her eyes shining. "Tell Bruce we're in business," Jessica declared. "I just talked to Eddie Strong, and he's supposed to make a delivery at the Morrows' place tomorrow afternoon!"

  Elizabeth felt a chill creeping up her spine. They were really going to do it! There was no turning back now.

  "Bruce," she said into the receiver, "Jessica's cleared everything with Eddie. And it looks like we're on for tomorrow after school. Are you ready to masquerade as a delivery boy?"

  "Ready!" Bruce exclaimed, his voice cracking with emotion. "Elizabeth Wakefield, you've got yourself a date!"

  "Just run it by me one more time," Elizabeth said. She was sitting on Jessica's bed in her nightshirt, uneasily scanning the letter she and Jessica had written to Regina on a sheet of notebook paper. "Dear Regina," the letter began.

  We know you're home, and we're worried about you. Are you OK? If you can, write us a note. If you wrap it around something heavy and drop it out your window, we can pick it up tonight. Tell us everything you can in the letter—what we can do to help and who we should go to.

  And promise us you'll be careful!

  Love,

  Bruce, Elizabeth, and Jessica

  "What do we do with it?" Elizabeth continued. "How can we make sure Regina will get it and Claire Davis won't?"

  Jessica bounced up from her desk. "I already thought of that," she said triumphantly. "The object is to think of something from the store for Regina and tuck the letter inside. Eddie says the Morrows have a standing order at the store—eggs, milk, butter, things like that. If we include something extra, it'll catch Regina's eye. And the best thing I can think of," she finished off, "is a copy of Ingenue magazine. Thrift Mart carries magazines, and from the way you've described Claire Davis, she won't be interested in fashion or beauty!"

  "You've outdone yourself." Elizabeth chuckled. "So what do we do while Bruce is dropping off the groceries?"