They had just finished when Hitch fully regained consciousness. He tried to sit up but found that he could not do so because of the straps that bound him. Screaming like a madman, he cried out that he had done nothing and they had no business to tie him up.
"Hitch," said Ned, "you have plenty to account for. You'd better start talking."
The groom insisted that he would reveal nothing about himself, except to say that he was merely borrowing Belgian Star to get somewhere.
"You needn't tell us if you don't want to," Nancy said. "You can give your story to the police."
She walked off, heading for a pay telephone which hung on the wall. Since she had no coins, Nancy called to Ned to bring her some.
"I'll call Chief McGinnis for you," he offered. "See if you can get anything out of Hitch."
Returning to the prisoner, Nancy asked him why he had tried to strangle her with the whip at the circus.
The man's eyes nearly bulged from his head. "How'd you know I did that?" he asked.
Nancy did not reply. Instead she asked, "You know the police are looking for you. If you had no reason to run away, why did you leave Señor Roberto's employ?"
"I don't have to work here if I don't want to," Hitch said stubbornly.
"Did you have any reason for throwing the stone at me and injuring the rider at the circus, except that you don't like people to do trick riding?" Nancy questioned the man.
"I ain't talkin'."
Ned returned in a few moments. He told Nancy that Chief McGinnis himself was coming out to the riding academy to take charge of Hitch. While waiting for his arrival, Nancy and Ned discussed the case. Presently Ned remarked:
"I'm surprised that a stable with such valuable horses as these would be left unguarded."
"You're right," said Nancy. "Roberto has an apartment upstairs, you know. He must be away."
The more Nancy thought about this, the more she became convinced that Roberto would not leave the stable unguarded. If he were going to absent himself, he would arrange for some friend to stay there.
"Ned," she said, "I'm worried. Would you mind going upstairs? I'd like to be sure that Roberto is not here."
Ned looked at her, reading the ominous thought in her mind. Without answering, he clicked on a second-floor light and dashed up a pair of narrow stairs which led from the stable. A moment later he cried out:
"Nancy, come up here quick!"
CHAPTER XIV
The Clue in the Scrapbook
The sight that met Nancy's eyes as she reached the second floor of the academy made her wince. On the floor lay Señor Roberto, bound and gagged!
He wore no shirt and across his chest, as well as his face and neck, were a series of red, angry welts. Apparently he had been cruelly whipped!
By now, Ned had removed the gag. Nancy sprang forward to help untie the bonds that held the man's arms close to his side. Next, they cut the cords which bound his ankles together.
"I'll get some water," Nancy offered, "and see if I can find the first-aid kit."
"I think Roberto should go to a hospital," Ned told her.
"The police will be here any minute. Perhaps they'll take him," she suggested.
On the first floor of the stable Nancy found a first-aid kit. She carried it upstairs and used an antiseptic salve on the riding master's welts. Ned gave him a dose of aromatic spirits of ammonia.
But Roberto did not regain consciousness and both were relieved when Captain McGinnis and two policemen arrived. Since Hitch was well tied up, they turned their attention to Señor Roberto.
"This man is in bad shape," the chief remarked. "Clem," he said, addressing one of his men, "drive Señor Roberto to the hospital at once, and then return here."
The two policemen carried the riding master to their car and drove off.
Chief McGinnis now turned his attention to Hitch. He asked Nancy and Ned if the man were responsible for Roberto's condition.
"We haven't had a chance to ask him," said Nancy. "We just found Señor Roberto a few minutes ago."
The chief, with Ned's help, removed the straps from the groom and the officer began to interrogate him. Hitch insisted that he knew nothing about what had happened to Roberto. The officer tried a new tack:
"Suppose you tell your whole story and you'd better stick to the truth. It'll go easier with you in court."
Hitch became sullen and for several minutes would say nothing. But after Chief McGinnis had shot questions and accusations at him for nearly ten minutes, Hitch finally broke down. Suddenly he screamed:
"I hate Sims' Circus and everybody in it!"
"Why?" the officer asked him.
"Circuses are evil things. Everybody who runs 'em is crazy! Now take Kroon," he said.
As Hitch mentioned the ringmaster's name, Nancy leaned forward so that she would not miss a word.
"That ringmaster—he puts up a big front, but he's the biggest thief in the world."
"How do you know?" McGinnis asked him.
Suddenly Hitch became sullen again. He said he could tell plenty about Kroon and everybody else at Sims' Circus, but why should he? What would it get him? They were the people who ought to be going to jail, not he.
The next moment, Hitch gave the most bloodcurdling yell Nancy had ever heard. It sent shivers down her spine. Just as the scream ended in a choked gurgle, Hitch made a dash for the door. But Ned and Chief McGinnis were on him, and the prisoner did not get far.
"Take it easy, Hitch," the officer advised. "I guess I'll have to put bracelets on you."
The chief pulled handcuffs from his pocket and snapped them on the stableman's wrists. He led the prisoner to a chair and ordered him to sit there quietly until the policemen returned.
Nancy heard a clock begin to strike. She counted the strokes and then cried out:
"Ned, the circus! I must get back at once or I'll be too late."
She explained that she had only twenty minutes to reach the circus, change her clothes, and appear in the finale.
Before leaving, Nancy said to the chief, "I'd like to come to the jail and talk to Hitch in the morning if I may."
"Good idea," he told her. "I'll look for you."
The young couple dashed off. As soon as they reached the highway, Ned gave the car full power and it sped along. They had gone only about a mile when a police motorcycle roared up alongside of them. Its rider signaled for them to stop.
Nancy's heart sank. She knew the car had been traveling beyond the legal speed limit. Now a delay would mean that she would miss the circus finale! If Kroon should notice her absence, the whole Vascon troupe might lose their jobs that night!
"Oh, Officer," Nancy said quickly, leaning out of the window, "I'm one of the circus performers and I have to get back for the finale at once."
The motorcycle policeman looked at the girl intently for a moment, then said, "If you hadn't told me that, I would have said you were Nancy Drew of River Heights."
Both Nancy and Ned laughed. The girl admitted that she was Nancy Drew and quickly told the officer about her part in the circus and the reason for it.
"What's more," Ned added, "Nancy has just captured that stableman the police were looking for."
The officer asked for details of the capture. Nancy begrudged the time it took to tell the story, but it turned out to be time well spent. The officer said he would excuse Ned for speeding, and offered to lead the way directly to the circus.
It took only a few minutes for them to reach Sims' Circus. As Nancy hopped out of Ned's car she made arrangements to meet him at the main gate later. Then she thanked the officer for his help and dashed through the entrance stile.
Erika was nervously waiting for her. She literally peeled Nancy out of her street clothes and helped her put on her riding costume. There was no time to visit the make-up artist, so the girls did a quick job of retouching Nancy's make-up.