The Case of the Photo Finish Read Free Page A

did a great job of recovering yourself.”
    Cheryl rubbed her shoulder. “I think I’ll have a couple of bruises, but nothing that will stop me from competing. The nerve!” she exclaimed. “Having somebody bad-mouth me is one thing—I can let that just roll off—but when people start shoving me off a grandstand, I draw the line!”
    â€œAre you positive—” Nancy began.
    â€œYou bet I am!” Cheryl broke in. “You can ask Annelise. She was right there the whole time.” She gestured to the girl and boy she’d been walking with. “Nancy, meet Annelise and Willy. They’re from Switzerland, and they both speak better English than I do. The Swiss are incredible linguists, you know.”
    Willy smiled. “We have to be,” he said with only a trace of an accent. “Our country has four official languages—German, French, Italian, and a language called Romansh that nobody outside of Switzerland even knows about. English is the unofficial fifth.”
    â€œFive languages,” Bess said, shaking her blondhead in amazement. “And I thought learning just one extra was hard enough!”
    Nancy introduced Bess, then turned to Annelise. “Cheryl says that you saw someone try to push her from the grandstand. Is that right?”
    The Swiss girl thought for a moment. “I did not really see what happened,” she said. “It is possible that someone bumped into Cheryl, but I did not see it. I’m sorry.”
    â€œI think maybe I know what happened,” Willy said to Cheryl. “In the crowding, someone pushed into you by accident. Then, when you fell, the person was too frightened to admit what had happened.”
    â€œIt could have happened like that,” Cheryl admitted reluctantly. “But I was sure I felt a hand on my back, shoving me. And Marta was right there. Still, maybe I shouldn’t have accused her—not without proof. But I was really furious.”
    Marta did seem like the most likely suspect, thought Nancy. But she knew it was dangerous to jump to conclusions without evidence. “Is there anyone else who would have reason to push you?” she asked Cheryl.
    â€œNo one that I can think of,” the runner replied.
    Nancy looked around. The crowd had thinned out now that the ceremony was over. George was still there, standing on the steps of City Hall withHelga, Marta’s trainer. They didn’t seem to be talking to each other, Nancy noticed. Marta joined them a moment later; she had a knapsack on her back.
    Turning back to Cheryl, Nancy asked, “What happens now?”
    â€œThose who wish to go back to the athletic field may take the buses,” Willy replied. “Most of us will go to the homes of our hosts.”
    â€œOh, Cheryl, I’ve got my car here,” Nancy said, smiling at her guest. “Would you like a lift back to the house? You could unpack or whatever.”
    â€œSure, that’d be great,” Cheryl replied. “Hang on, I have to get my gym bag from the bus.”
    As she hurried away, Nancy realized that she hadn’t seen Eric and his cameras for five or ten minutes. She hoped he’d gone in search of a lab to develop those slides for her.
    â€œIt is a pleasure to meet you, Nancy,” said Willy, holding out his hand.
    â€œA great pleasure,” Annelise echoed, offering her hand as well.
    â€œThank you.” Nancy shook their hands. “It’s been great meeting both of you. And good luck in the games.”
    Cheryl came back as Annelise and Willy were walking away. “They’re nice,” she observed. “A little formal, but that’s just their style. Underneath it, they’re really sweet.”
    The two girls headed for Nancy’s car and drove to the Drews’ house. Nancy went to the kitchen to fix a snack while Cheryl went up to the guest room to relax for a while. Nancy had finished peeling and slicing