Nancy pulled out Juliana's photograph, and showed it to the men, who stared at it. Finally one of them said, "It's her, all right-when she was younger. But she's not here!"
"Where is she?" Nancy asked.
"Well, usually she never leaves the place on account of being such a cripple. But when that government man came for her last night, she had to go. He took her away in a car."
"What government man?" Mr. Drew asked quickly. "Did he give his name?"
"He probably told Miss Fleur. We didn't hear it."
"Did she say why she had to go with him?" Nancy asked.
"It was something about income tax. Miss Fleur always thought she paid the government every penny she owed. She's very honest. But the man claimed she'd made a false report and might have to go to prison."
"This seems very irregular to me," Mr. Drew commented. "Even if Miss Fleur made a mistake in the amount of her tax, she would not be sentenced without a hearing. The usual procedure is to notify the accused by letter and have the person call at the tax office to explain his or her side of the matter."
"Dad," Nancy said, "it looks as if someone was very eager to get Miss Fleur away from here. We must End her!"
"First of all, we'll check with the Internal Revenue Service; that is, if I can use a telephone."
The two gardeners, sensing that Nancy and her father were sincere, invited them into the farmhouse. Mr. Drew called. When he finished, he looked grim.
"Just as we feared," he revealed. "The Internal Revenue Service has no case pending against Juliette Fleur, Juliana Johnson, or Julia Flower."
"Then it was a hoax!" Nancy exclaimed. “The man who came here was an impostor."
The gardeners suddenly looked alarmed. One of them said, "Are you saying Miss Fleur maybe was kidnapped?"
"Possibly," Mr. Drew replied.
The two workmen were speechless. "Oh, find her!" one said. "We think an awful lot of her."
"Have you any idea where she may have been taken?" Nancy asked. Both men said they had told her everything they knew.
They spread the news of the incident to Miss Fleur's other two employees who came in from the fields. Their faces became sad.
"Those kidnappers may hurt her!" one of the gardeners said.
"I wouldn't worry about that," Mr. Drew said to comfort the man. "Miss Fleur probably will receive good treatment. But unfortunately she will lose a fortune unless she can be found."
"But how? Shall we call the police?" the man asked.
"We'll stop at headquarters on the way home," Mr. Drew said, and promised the gardeners he would do everything he could to find Juliette Fleur.
"Tell me, what did the alleged government man look like?" he asked.
The gardeners' description was not very helpful.
"He was tall and slender," one said, "and wore dark glasses. He had a beard and a mustache."
"Probably a disguise," Nancy concluded.
After the Drews had told their story to the local police, they returned to the Hampton Motel. On their way to the dining room, Carson Drew purchased a copy of the River Heights newspaper.
A startling headline caught his eyes:
FAMOUS DANCER RETURNS IN
TIME TO CLAIM HEATH FORTUNE
The article stated that after a long search, Daniel Hector had found the missing Juliana, who now was staying at the Riverview Hotel in River Heights. For many years the famous dancer had been fulfilling professional engagements in South America under another name.
"So that's what Hector has been up to!" Nancy said hotly. "He had the real Juliana kidnapped to be able to present this impostor!"
"It certainly seems that way," Mr. Drew agreed. "If Daniel Hector can establish the impostor as the heiress, he will probably pay her well and then take over the estate."
"Let's hurry back to River Heights," Nancy suggested.
After hastening through lunch she and her father checked out of the motel, and soon were driving along the road toward home.
"I wonder where the abductor has hidden Juliana," Nancy said.
It was early afternoon when the Drews reached River Heights. The lawyer said he had to stop in his office for a couple of hours and that Nancy could use the car in the meantime.
"I think I'll go see Mrs. Fenimore and find out whether she has heard the news," Nancy decided as she got out of the car. She drove off and turned in the direction of the little house.
Joan and her mother were happy to see her. They had not read the newspapers, however, and had not heard from Daniel Hector. When Nancy told them about the article, Mrs. Fenimore became excited.
"You mean my sister has really been found? Oh, I just can't believe it! Where is she?"
"Mrs. Fenimore," Nancy said, "I don't want to disappoint you, but I believe that the woman Hector claims to have located is an impostor!"
"What do you mean?" Mrs. Fenimore looked bewildered.
Nancy told about the result of her investigation and of her suspicion that the real Juliana had been kidnapped.
"But that's terrible," Mrs. Fenimore finally said. "It's an unscrupulous scheme to cheat my sister out of her inheritance, and who knows, she might be a prisoner of Hector's for years! We must tell the police!"
"I wish we could," Nancy said. "But so far I can't prove anything. Unless we find your sister in time, Hector may get away with his crooked scheme."
"But I can tell if the claimant is my sister, can't I?"
"I don't know whether your word against hers would be proof enough. Anyway, I think we should meet the dancer who claims to be Juliana."
Joan insisted upon coming along, and soon the three of them arrived at the Rivervicw Hotel.
"You mean Senora Fernandez?" the desk clerk replied when Nancy inquired for the woman. "I'll see if she's receiving callers."
Mrs. Fenimore became more and more apprehensive as they waited. Finally the clerk told them to go up to Room 320. They knocked and a voice said, "Come in!"
A beautiful woman was reclining on the bed, her back braced by several embroidered pillows. She wore an exotic negligee which set off to advantage her dark hair and creamy white skin.
"Vera! I am so glad to see you again!" she said and got up to embrace Mrs. Fenimore. "And this is Joan, isn't it?" She kissed the little girl lightly on the cheek.
Mrs. Fenimore was so confused that for a moment she could not speak. Nancy broke the silence by giving her name.
"Miss Drew?" the dancer looked perplexed but only for an instant. "Yes, I believe Mr. Hector told me about you."
By now Mrs. Fenimore had relaxed. "Julie, why did you go away?"
"I-I eloped with my Mexican husband."
"But how could you desert Walter Heath?"
"I couldn't marry him, because I didn't love him. But I didn't want to hurt him either; that's why I disappeared."
"But now you've come back to claim his fortune," Nancy put in. "By the way, what are your plans for the estate?"