“Only to the carpenter who boarded up the windows, and he sent it right back as soon as the work was finished.”
“He would have had time to order a duplicate—”
“That’s it!” Judy broke in excitedly. “Was the carpenter’s name John Beer?”
Immediately Judy regretted having asked the question. It was like poking at a hornet’s nest.
“John Beer is an honest carpenter,” Danny’s father exclaimed. “He wouldn’t do a thing like that. Get out, both of you, before you make any more accusations. I’ll call the police myself and have this stolen stuff hauled out of here, and then I’ll get my boy back from those meddling old ladies, and furthermore,” he added, glaring at Judy, “if I find that cat of yours prowling around in my house I’ll wring its neck!”
“You wouldn’t be so cruel! Come on, Peter,” Judy urged. When they were outside, she added, “I shouldn’t have mentioned John Beer. It was just a guess—”
“And a pretty good one,” Peter said. “He probably did have refinished furniture in his truck and then, when Sammis refused to buy it, he took it somewhere else and sold it. If that’s John Beer in the picture—”
“I don’t think it is,” Judy interrupted. “The man with the lady’s face is tall and thin like—like Danny’s father. You don’t think he will find Blackberry, do you?”
“Not before we do—I hope. Even if he does, I doubt that he’ll carry out his threat. He’s angry and confused now, but when he has time to think this over he may come to the same conclusion we did. That key he gave John Beer may turn out to be the key to the whole puzzle. Better call Blackberry once more before we leave,” Peter advised when they had reached the car. “We can’t wait long, though. I have a report to turn in. George Anderson may not know it, but his life may be in danger if we don’t get some of our men there fast.”
“You mean the thieves—”