Nancy quickly ran back outside . She was going to head for the rose garden, but stopped short just outside the door .

Nila was kneeling on the path, both hands grasping her head . Frightened sobs racked her body . Alongside her on the path were the shattered remnants of a brick . When Nancy looked up, she saw a gap in the masonry of a parapet surrounding the roof, three stories above . That had to be where the brick had fallen from .

The rear door of the house opened, and Karen and Philip ran outside to see what had happened . When they saw Nila on her knees, they stopped short, unsure how to react . Nancy noticed that neither of them offered to help .

Eleanor ran out behind her niece and nephew, followed by Bess, who went straight to Nancy's side . Above them, a second story window flew open, and a frightened and concerned Cecilia leaned out .

Nancy went to Nila and knelt beside her . "Are you all right ?" Nancy asked, helping her to her feet .

"Yes, I --- I think so," Nila stammered . "That brick ---- it came out of nowhere ! I was just so --- so stunned . It couldn't have missed me by more than a foot !"

"And it's a good thing it did," Nancy said soberly, kicking the remnants of the brick around with her toe . "If it had hit you, it could have killed you ."

"We really ought to have Father hire a mason to check that brickwork," Karen said to Philip as they stood there, looking up toward the balcony around the roof . "Ever since he got sick, the house has been falling apart ."

Nancy was shocked by their insensitivity . But was their blatant indifference evidence of something more sinister ? Bess's voice interrupted Nancy's thoughts .

"Here, let me help you inside," Bess offered, slipping a supporting arm around Nila and guiding her past Karen and Philip . They and Eleanor followed Bess and Nila inside .

Cecilia stared down at Nancy from the open window . "Why do you keep coming around here ?" she asked bluntly . "Haven't you caused enough trouble already ?" Without waiting for Nancy to answer, Cecilia drew back inside and lowered the window .

Left alone, Nancy stared up at the window and the roof above it . All at once the bushes behind her parted . Out stepped Jack, holding a length of rope in one hand and a golf club in the other . He held her eyes locked in a steely stare as he slowly approached her .

Nancy stumbled backward, startled . Jack stopped and lowered his hands . Then, suddenly, a trace of smile played on his lips . "Did you think I was going to kill you ?" he asked .

"It crossed my mind, to be honest," Nancy admitted .

"You've certainly given me a motive, for all the trouble you've caused between Karen and me ."

"You're the one who caused the trouble, Jack," Nancy said, holding her ground . "I didn't gamble away Karen's money . And it hadn't been my intention to tell her, but she asked me point blank what I'd learned about you . Should I have kept the truth from her ?"

"Her own brother didn't seem to have a problem with it," Jack growled .

"I'm not Philip," Nancy countered .

"No kidding," Jack said . Then he sighed, and his broad shoulders sagged . "I know," he said . "You're right . I'm not a perfect person, okay ? But I do love Karen . I just wanted the restaurant to be a big success . I thought if I could make one big win, I could expand, open some new outlets, really make a splash . I can't help it if things didn't pan out . I was unlucky ."

Nancy shook her head . "A lot of times, we make our own luck, Jack," she said . "And you were playing a loser's game ."

He gritted his teeth, blinking hard . "I suppose you're going to tell Karen it's my fault that the old man's cutting us out of his will, too," he said under his breath ."

"No . I'm not even going to get into that with her," Nancy assured him . "Karen can draw her own conclusions ." Then something occurred to her . "Who told you Mr. Pierce was changing his will ?" she asked .

"We all know about it," he said cryptically . "Family secrets don't stay secret for long ---- at least not around here ."

"I see," Nancy said . "Well, that certainly gives you all a motive to kill Nila ."

"Nobody's trying to kill Nila," he insisted . "And this rope proves it ! I just found it in the bushes a minute ago ."

He handed Nancy the rope . She could see that it was looped and knotted at one end, so that a brick would have fit just inside the loop . "You say you found this in the bushes ?" she asked him warily .

"That's right . The way I see it, Nila had it all rigged . All she had to do was pull, then step back while the brick fell from the roof . Then she screams, tosses the rope in the bushes, and waits for everyone to show up ." Jack flashed a nasty smile at her . "But then, you're so quick, you've probably figured all that out for yourself already ."

Nancy narrowed her eyes . "And how did you happen to come by and find the rope she'd hidden in the bushes, if you don't mind my asking ?"

"Not at all," Jack responded . "I'd been hitting plastic golf balls and lost one of them by the wall of the house . So I went behind the bushes to look for it . The rope nearly hit me on the head when she tossed it in ." He showed her the golf ball in his palm .

"I see," Nancy said non-committally . "Are you sure she threw the rope into the bushes ? It couldn't have fallen from the roof ?"

"Hmmm, I suppose it could have," Jack admitted . "But if someone was really trying to kill her, why not just throw the brick ? Why bother with the rope ?"

"Why indeed ?" Nancy agreed . "Unless the person wanted to make it look like Nila was faking the whole thing ."

Jack shrugged . "You're the detective," he said, his cold blue eyes fastened on her . "But I'll tell you one thing ---- I didn't try to kill her . I couldn't have gotten down here that fast from the roof, anyway ."

Nancy fingered the rope in her hands . "Unless you had the rope all rigged beforehand and just yanked on it when she walked by," she pointed out, silencing him effectively . She walked toward the front of the house, leaving him there steaming .

After placing the rope in the trunk of her car, Nancy headed back inside, thinking about Jack and the rest of Charles Pierce's family . With all those riches, they'd still managed to make themselves miserable . She hoped that, if they did inherit the old man's money, they'd handle it more wisely than they'd handled their previous fortunes .
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