Chapter Thirteen

The next few hours were among the most frantic of Nancy’s life. Within ten minutes Senator Kilpatrick sent the “armored car,” as George called it, to take Nancy, George, and Teresa to a private home somewhere nearby. The girls never found out who lived there, and no one was in sight, but inside the high walls around the grounds was a magnificent tennis court.

For two hours Teresa drilled Nancy in the characteristics of her tennis style, with George acting as coach to see if Nancy followed Teresa’s moves precisely.

“It’ll do,” George said at last. “Nancy could never pull off the substitution in a regular tournament match, but people will probably think your playing looks different because this is mixed doubles.”

“Let’s hope so!” Nancy said fervently. “My game’s suffering because I’m concentrating so hard on copying Teresa’s style. And I’d never have the stamina for a full match!”

“I would,” George said regretfully. “I wish I could try it.”

“Perhaps when this is over, you and I will have a chance to play together in another meet,” Teresa told George gently. There was a moment’s silence. They were only too aware that some of them might not come out of the afternoon’s deadly games alive.

“We’d better get back so Bess can have her crack at us,” Nancy said briskly.

The limousine sped them back to the hotel. Again they were whisked carefully inside, under heavy guard. Bess was in the suite, surrounded by hair and makeup paraphernalia. “I shortened Nancy’s skirt so it’ll be the right length for Teresa,” she reported. “And I bought Nancy some tennis shoes like the ones Teresa wears. You guys should be able to fit into the rest of each other’s clothes.” She hurried them both into the showers to wash their hair.

The next hour was a hectic flurry of activity, with Bess presiding and George acting as her assistant. Bess and George applied bronzer to Nancy’s skin. “You’d better have it everywhere,” George insisted, “since you’ll have to change clothes in the locker room.” Fortunately Nancy had some tan already, so the deeper color was not too much of a change.

After that, Bess-who was good at it-trimmed Nancy’s hair, referring to Teresa constantly as a model. Then she began to apply colored hair gel lavishly.

When she finished, Bess had matched the girls’ hair coloring quite well. Next she worked over them both with brush and blower.

Last of all came makeup. Bess relied mostly on Nancy and Teresa’s own cosmetics, but she was also able to do some skillful work with light and shadow.

“Be glad of what I learned when I was in those school plays,” Bess muttered, blending brown and lavender under Nancy’s cheekbones. “Okay, take a look.”

Till then, she’d kept Nancy and Teresa away from mirrors. Now they stared at themselves, amazed. Somehow Nancy’s cheekbones had grown higher and broader, the bone structure above her eyes seeming a bit more full. On Teresa the effect was the reverse. Once dressed, each girl’s resemblance to the other’s normal appearance was uncanny.

“Now spritz your faces with this bottled water to set the makeup,” Bess commanded. “No, wait! I’d better do it.”

“You’re not afraid this bronzer will run off?” Nancy asked apprehensively.

“Not till you scrub hard with soap,” Bess said emphatically. “I tried it once. Believe me, I know! Once I was a South Sea islander for days!”

“It’s time you two were going,” George said, glancing at her watch. “Señora Ramirez should just be leaving for that cocktail party. How’d you arrange that?”

“I told Dad that Señora Ramirez could use an evening out after all that’s happened. He knew just the right people to-” Nancy gasped. “We’ve been rushing so much I forgot to arrange transportation. Teresa can’t drive into D.C. in our car-not in rush-hour traffic!”

“It’s taken care of,” Bess said. A troubled look crossed her eyes. “Dan thinks he’s driving Nancy and me into Georgetown to follow up one of Nancy’s hunches. After we drop Teresa off, we’re going to have dinner at a place he knows. Then we’ll pick Teresa up again.”

“Good thinking,” George said approvingly.

“I hate not being honest with Dan,” Bess said. “But it was the only thing that I could come up with.”

Nancy nodded sympathetically. “I know what you mean,” she said, thinking of Ned. “But if you’d told the truth, it would have been Dan’s job to stop us.”

“I’ll be able to keep Dan occupied so he won’t ask Teresa too many questions,” Bess went on. “And the senator’s sending some other bodyguards, who haven’t seen either of you two before, to drive Teresa… well, actually you, to the doubles match. The senator agreed with me that Teresa might be safer without her San Carlos guards than with them, so she’s arranged a way to spring her from custody.”

“You didn’t tell Senator Kilpatrick what we’re doing, did you?” Nancy exclaimed. Instinct warned her the deception should be secret even from the senator. Especially after the way Dad lit into her earlier about jeopardizing our lives, she added mentally.

“I didn’t tell anybody,” Bess emphasized. “But I’ll sure be glad when this is over.”

“I, also,” Teresa said somberly. “No matter how it ends.”

There was a momentary silence.

The phone rang. It was Dan reporting that he was ready for the trip into D.C.

Teresa rose. Then, resting her hands lightly on Nancy’s shoulders, she looked directly into her eyes. “Vaya con Dios,” she murmured. She picked up Nancy’s handbag and slipped out into the corridor. Bess followed.

Ten minutes later George and Nancy left too, carrying Teresa’s tennis rackets and gym bag. George sat in the front seat of the government car, beside the driver. “Teresa wants to be alone,” she told the other bodyguard. “She’s got to psych herself up for this match.”

They rode out to the Loudon campus in absolute silence. Nancy was grateful that this limousine, like the one that had kidnapped her, had tinted windows. No one could look in at her, and in the Washington area limos were too common to attract much notice.

They reached the campus. Nancy noticed that the parking lot was well filled. Apparently many people had come to watch Teresa play and help the refugees from her country.

The limousine pulled up by the gym. To Nancy’s relief, security police had made the place off-limits for all but the four players. In the women’s locker room Teresa’s Canadian opponent greeted her pleasantly but otherwise let her alone. Nancy changed into Teresa’s favorite tennis outfit and put on the new tennis shoes. Fortunately they fit well. She propped Teresa’s mascot, a small doll-a replica of a San Carlos Indian woman-beside her on the bench and gazed at it somberly.

Nancy was beginning to realize all too well just how easily the switch of identities could go wrong. I can’t think about it, she told herself. I’ve got to psych myself into the game-into Teresa’s game. She closed her eyes and concentrated.

All at once she heard a commotion in the hall. There were the sounds of a scuffle, and then George’s voice was raised wildly.

“You don’t understand! I’ve got to see Teresa Montenegro!”

Nancy ran to the door. George was struggling with two guards in the lobby of the gym building. She caught Nancy’s eye and signaled frantically.

It was a risk, but Nancy took it. She stepped out of the locker room and strode forward to reach out for George, her own eyes flashing imperiously as she’d once seen Teresa’s do. “Let go of her!” she commanded.

To her great relief, the guards let go of George and stepped back-but only a few feet. They would never let George follow Nancy into the locker room out of their sight.

George turned her head so that only Nancy could see her lips. They formed the words almost soundlessly. “Trouble. Bess phoned. Teresa phoned her at the restaurant. The big guy down south has ordered the execution of traitors everywhere to begin at dawn!”