The Nancy Drew Files #95

An Instinct for TroubleCarolyn Keene

THE CASE: Nancy investigates a pattern of sabotageand poaching on an animal research project. CONTACT: While Ned trails the yellow-bellied marmot,Nancy tracks a criminal conspiracy. SUSPECTS: Professor Dan Trainey-His project isrunning out of money, but with the marmots worth $500each, he may have discovered a way to keep it going.Jack Billings-The park ranger is Mr. Charm, but whilehe's flirting with Nancy, she may be flirting with danger.Gerald and Edith Turkower-They claim to be tourists, butNancy has uncovered evidence that they're concealingtheir true identities. COMPLICATIONS: One of Nancy's top suspects isProfessor Trainey. But Ned seems to care more abouthim-and his pretty daughter-than he does about Nancyand the truth.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter OneChapter TwoChapter ThreeChapter FourChapter FiveChapter SixChapter SevenChapter EightChapter NineChapter TenChapter ElevenChapter TwelveChapter ThirteenChapter FourteenChapter Fifteen

Chapter One

“Nancy!" Bess Marvin exclaimed."Listen -that's Randy Dean's new song,'Lonely Wilderness.' “She leaned forwardand turned up the volume on the car radio,then rolled down her window.

And the trees sway against theblue, blue sky.

But there's danger lurking nearby.Yes, danger nearby."It's like it was meant for us," Bess

said when the song ended. "I mean, herewe are, with the trees swaying against theblue sky."

Nancy Drew brushed a lock ofshoulder length, reddish blond hair off herface. "Let's hope there's no danger lurking

nearby.""These mountains and forest are

gorgeous," Bess said. "And Yellowstoneis supposed to be even better-one of themost beautiful places on earth."

It was a cool, crisp Wednesday inearly May. That morning Nancy and Besshad flown from their hometown of RiverHeights to Jackson, Wyoming, where theyhad rented a car for the drive north toYellowstone National Park.

"George would love this," Nancycommented as they passed a grove ofaspen trees. "Too bad she couldn't come."George Fayne, Bess's cousin, had beenforced to pass up the trip because of along-planned visit to friends in Boston.

"Bet you can't wait to see Ned,"

Bess said. Nancy smiled broadly. Herboyfriend was one of a small group ofEmerson College students who had beencamping in Yellowstone for three weeks,studying the habits of the yellow-belliedmarmot, a small, furry mammal common inthe park.

"I do miss him. I just wish it hadn'ttaken an emergency to get us together."

"Who was it who got hurt again?"Bess asked.

"A graduate student named BradKeeler," Nancy replied. "He was badlyburned when a propane stove explodedthe night before last, and Ned doesn't thinkit was an accident."

"Because all those marmot trapswere stolen, right?" Bess said.

"Right. Over the last couple ofweeks about four dozen traps havedisappeared. It happened gradually, andno one realized they were missing becausethey were stored in several differentplaces," Nancy explained. "But Bradfinally noticed and was starting to lookinto it before that stove blew up in hisface."

"How awful!" Bess exclaimed."What was the study group doing with thetraps, anyway?"

"They used them to catch themarmots last fall so they could attachtransmitters to the animals," Nancy said."That's how the Emerson people keeptrack of the marmots' movements."

"Neat," Bess said. "But why would

anyone want the traps?""Ned thinks someone is planning to

trap marmots with them and smuggle themout of the park, which is totally illegal,"Nancy answered.

"But he doesn't have any proof, sohe called you, since you happen to be notonly the love of his life but also anincredible detective,"

"Thanks for the compliment, but I'mreally worried about this case. This phaseof the Emerson study ends on Saturday.Ned says that if any marmots vanishbetween now and then, the study could beblamed. The third phase of the projectscheduled for this summer would becanceled, and all the college's workwould go down the drain." Nancy sighed.

"Ned's really upset.""You don't think that someone from

the Emerson group could be involved, doyou?"

"I'd hate to think it. But we've got tocheck," Nancy said solemnly as theypassed a sign that said South Entrance,Yellowstone National Park.

Tall, slender lodge pole pines linedthe road on either side, their tangy scentfilling the car. The trees were so thick insome places that it was like drivingthrough a tunnel.

"I can't wait to see the yellow-bellied marmots," Bess said.

Nancy grinned. "Ned said they looklike chubby, overgrown chipmunks, onlywith yellow undersides, which is how

they got their name. But most people callthem whistling marmots, because theycommunicate by making high-pitchedsounds."

"They sound cute-" Bess began butstopped abruptly.

A herd of brown elk appeared fromamong the trees on the right.

Nancy stepped on the brake.Paying no attention to the car, the

elk began prancing gracefully across theroad.

"Oh, Nancy, look at the babies!"Bess cried. Nancy chuckled as a handfulof little elk wobbled awkwardly in frontof the herd.

The herd stopped in a meadow onthe left side of the highway. Near the

center of the sparse grass where thecreatures were grazing, Nancy noticed acone of gray rock about a foot high. Fromits center, wisps of white steam curledinto the air.

"It's a geyser!" Nancy exclaimed.Bess's jaw dropped."The whole park is covered with

them," Nancy said as she started drivingagain. "Which is why Yellowstone is sospecial."

"I read the guidebook, too," Besssaid teasingly. "The geysers are remnantsof volcanoes that erupted around heremillions of years ago. But I still can'tbelieve it."

"Just wait until you see OldFaithful. It erupts about every hour and a

half. And it will be right outside ourwindow at the hotel," Nancy said.

"That's why I wanted to stay there,"Bess replied.

Nancy shook her head and laughedat her friend. "You just didn't want tocamp out, even though it would be better ifwe were closer to the study group."

"Oh, Nan, I can't!" she moaned. "Ihate bugs, but even worse I hate sleepingon the cold, bumpy ground."

"Okay, okay," Nancy said. "Youconvinced me. But you may be passing upthe chance to get close to a cute Emersonguy," she warned her friend.

Nancy stepped on the brake at anintersection. A sign pointed right to theGrand Loop Road and left to the inn and

visitors center.Before she could turn, a tour bus

passed in front other. She followed it inthe direction of the inn.

"It seems a bit early in the seasonfor tour buses," Nancy said.

"It's probably better to get herebefore the main tourist season starts,"Bess replied. "Is Ned meeting us at thehotel?"

"He said he'd try to. But theEmerson group is incredibly busy rightnow, gearing up for the end of this phaseof the study," Nancy explained. "If he's notthere when we arrive, we'll head over tothe campsite after we check in."

The road grew steeper, and Nancykept a safe distance between her white

rental car and the bus in front. On the farside of the pass, the highway ran beside agushing river.

"That must be the hotel," Bess said,pointing to the left. "Have you ever seenanything like it in your life?"

Nancy leaned forward and saw abuilding that was at least seven storieshigh with a slanted roof and rows of littledormer windows. Its walls were made ofhuge rough-cut logs stacked one on top ofthe other.

"It looks like a giant birdhouse,"Nancy said delightedly as she turned ontothe road that led to the inn and followed itto the front of the building. Then,remembering that Ned might be waitingfor her inside, she hastily stopped the car,

turned off the ignition, and jumped out."Go on ahead. Nancy," Bess urged

with a knowing smile. "I'll find someoneto help me with the bags. Then I'll park thecar in the lot over there," she said,pointing.

Gratefully, Nancy tossed Bess thecar keys, mounted the wooden stairs, andentered the lobby.

The center of the building was anatrium that rose all the way to the roof.Along two sides were level after level ofbalconies. A huge fireplace of giganticlava stones dominated the big space. Halfa dozen guests sat near the fire in old-fashioned rocking chairs. Another row ofrockers faced tall windows overlookingseveral geysers. A few people were

seated there, enjoying the view. But noNed. Nancy choked back herdisappointment.

Just then she saw Bess enter thelobby, followed by a bellhop pulling atrolley with Bess's two suitcases andNancy's small carry on bag.

"Where's Ned?" she asked whenNancy reached her side.

Nancy shook her head. "At thecampsite, I guess. I'd like to drive overand take a look."

"Okay, go ahead," Bess said,handing the car keys back to her friend."I'll check us in and start unpacking."

Nancy walked to the parking lotbriskly. The sun shone brightly, but the airwas chilly. She spotted the car, dashed

over, and got in. After glancing at the mapNed had faxed her, she started the engineand headed north for about fifteen miles.

At Madison Junction, where therewas a ranger station, general store, andcampground, she turned right. Shewatched carefully until she spotted a dirtroad leading off to the left, then bumpedalong it for about a quarter of a mile to thecampsite.

The Emerson College researchgroup was camping at the foot of a hill ina clearing partly ringed by lodge polepines. Nancy parked next to a Jeep andwalked quickly up the path toward thelittle cluster of woodland green tents.When she reached the fire pit at its center,she found the campsite deserted. Several

logs had been pulled around the fire pit toserve as benches. Not far away was thekitchen tent, with sides made of mosquitonetting and tables lined with pots, pans,and food.

A narrow trail snaked along theedge of the camp and then continued up thehill. Near the foot of the hill, and about ahundred yards from the campsite, was avery small, wooden cabin. Nancy wentover to inspect it.

There was a heavy padlock on thedoor and only one tiny window, throughwhich she could see a generator andcomputer. Next to the door, on the outsideof the cabin, was a makeshift bulletinboard. Nancy studied the work assignmentchart posted there. It was divided into

categories such as Computer DataCollection, Transmitter Checking, andObservation-Feeding Stations 1 through 4.

Nancy saw that Ned was assigned towatch feeding station 3 from two-thirty tofive that afternoon. Where was he now,though? She wondered. It was just abouttwo.

She strolled back toward the tents.The canvas flap that served as a door onthe nearest one was tied back. She glancedinside and saw a camera bag thatreminded her of Ned's, then started toraise the mosquito netting and go inside.

"Stop right there!" she heardsomeone shout behind her.

Nancy spun around and saw twomen in dark green coveralls running

toward her. The taller one, who hadpiercing black eyes and black stubble fora beard, reached her first. He grabbed herby the arm and yanked her away from thetent.

"Hey," Nancy protested, strugglingto free herself from his grip. "I wasn'tdoing anything wrong."

Just then the second man reachedher. He was built like a short redwoodand had the ruddy complexion of someonewho spent a lot of time outdoors.

"Yeah, sure," the tall man said,twisting Nancy's arm behind her.

Nancy had to bite her lip to keepfrom crying out.

"Looks like we caught ourselves athief," the short, burly guy said, taking a

step toward her. An ugly grin contortedhis face. "And we know just what to dowith her. Right, Richard?"

"Right," his buddy replied.

Chapter Two

“Come on, you," Richard growled.He wheeled Nancy around and startedpulling her toward the fire pit.

"Get your hands off me!" Nancysaid, furious.

"Not a chance," he replied,tightening his grip. "Should we take her tothe truck, Piker?"

"Yeah," the other man replied,giving Nancy a shove.

Nancy swung her leg out andbrought it up, slamming her knee intoRichard's stomach.

He bent over, giving her the chanceto pull away. She was just taking off whenshe heard a familiar voice call her name.

She whirled around to see Nedhurrying down the path toward her. "Am Iever glad to see you!" she said with relief.

Ned glanced at the two grim-facedmen and put his arm around Nancy."What's going on here?"

"These guys accused me of being athief," Nancy told him.

"What?" Ned was incredulous."This is my girlfriend."

Richard shrugged. "If you say so,but she was nosing around camp. Right,Piker?"

"Right," Piker said. "We were justlooking out for your group," he told Ned."We heard there'd been some troublearound here."

"Well, thanks," Ned replied. "But

like I said, Nancy's my girlfriend."Nancy watched Piker nervously

shift his weight. At last he nodded andsaid, "Well, okay. Let's get back to work,Richard." With that, the two men headedoff.

"That's quite a welcomingcommittee," Nancy said.

Before she could say anything else,Ned swept her into his arms. "Hellothere," he said as he lifted her chin withtwo fingers. The kiss that followed left herbreathless. "How's that for a welcome?"

"Mmm, much better." Nancy sighedand took in his handsome, square-jawedface and sparkling brown eyes.

Ned led Nancy to one of the logsnear the fire pit, and the two of them sat

down."Who were those guys, anyway?"

she asked."Park maintenance men," Ned

replied. "They're building a walkway nearhere. It goes to an old cabin near PrincessGeyser. What made them think you were athief?"

"Well," Nancy said, "I was peekinginside a tent, wondering if it was yours,when they grabbed me. I guess I did look alittle suspicious."

"Even so," Ned growled, "they hadno right to treat you badly." He took herhand. "Listen, Nan, I'm really sorry Icouldn't meet you at the hotel. The fact is,we have a major crisis. You know, we'vetagged hundreds of marmots so we can

track them. Well, part of my job is to makesure the receiver is picking up theirsignals and sending them to the computerso they're recorded properly."

Nancy nodded."This morning," he said slowly, "the

computer printout showed no trace ofalmost fifty whistling marmots. At first, Ithought we had a problem with thereceiver or with the computer, buteverything checked out okay. We went outto check the marmot colonies a few hoursago, and it was obvious that some weremissing. There's only one logicalexplanation. Someone is stealing them!"

"That's terrible," Nancy said. "Doyou have any idea when it could havehappened?"

"We observe the marmots twice aday at four feeding stations," he explained,pacing now. "So it had to have happenedafter the second observation yesterday-probably during the night."

Nancy shook her head. "It's hard tobelieve that people would kill such cutelittle animals for their fur," she saiddisgustedly.

Ned stopped pacing. "It's not the furthey want," he replied. "They want themarmots for pets."

"That's no excuse for taking them outof their natural habitat," Nancy said."Have you reported this to the parkservice?"

"Sure," Ned replied. "But withoutmore evidence the park service can't

launch a full scale investigation. They justdon't have the financial resources to act onour suspicions."

"That's awful," Nancy said."My sentiments exactly," Ned

agreed. "Of course, the park service didassign a really good ranger named JackBillings to our project. But his job is tohelp us, not track down poachers."

"Just what is it you're doing in thisproject?" Nancy asked, stretching her legsout. "I know you're studying marmots. Arethey endangered?"

"No, but their cousins, theVancouver Island marmots, are," he said."Professor Trainey's plan is to researchthe whistling marmots in Yellowstone sowe can figure out what conditions

marmot’s best thrive in. The informationwe gather here will be used by biologiststo breed Vancouver Island marmots incaptivity."

"That's wonderful," Nancy said.Ned nodded. "From the first moment

I heard Professor Trainey talk about thestudy, I knew I wanted to help. He evengot a federal grant to buy a state-of-the-arttracking system."

Nancy cocked her head curiously."Imagine a transmitter no bigger

than a dime that tells us not only where theanimal is," Ned went on, "but its bodytemperature, blood pressure, eating andsleeping cycles- it's just amazing!"

"And amazingly expensive, I bet,"Nancy commented.

Ned nodded his agreement andpulled her to her feet. "Come on, I'll showyou around. First stop is our commandpost."

He led Nancy across the campsite tothe tiny cabin she had stopped at earlier.He pulled a key ring from his jeanspocket, undid the padlock, pushed openthe door, and switched on the light thatdangled from the ceiling.

Nancy followed him inside.Along one wall was a plank table

that held the computer and printer. A smallfile cabinet in the comer was heaped highwith printouts.

"The device that receives the radiosignals from the transmitters is outside,"Ned explained.

Nancy pointed to a door at the otherside of the room and asked, "Where doesthat go?"

"To the supply room," Ned replied."That's what we call it, but it's really justa glorified closet. Still, it's big enough tohold traps, sacks of food pellets, and otherequipment."

"Is that where the traps were stolenfrom?" Nancy said.

"Some of them," Ned answered."But we've got four marmot observationstations, and we keep traps in the hutsthere, too." Ned leaned against theworktable. "It makes me sick to think thatthe poachers are using our equipment tosteal marmots!"

Nancy returned to the door and

studied the padlock. The shiny brass lockwas unscratched. "Who has keys to thiscabin?" she asked.

"Just the professor and Brad," Nedreplied. "These are the professor's keys Ihave. He gave them to me. We were atobservation station two, but he wanted meto come back to check the computer to seeif any signals from the missing marmotshad shown up."

"Could I see one of the traps?"Nancy asked. Ned went through the otherdoor and returned with a wire cage withopen doors at each end.

"We put food inside," Nedexplained. "When a marmot steps in to getit, its weight triggers a spring that closesthe doors."

Ned picked up a small disk attachedto a plastic collar. "Then we attach atransmitter to the animal's neck."

Nancy studied the collar. "And themarmots don't mind?"

"Usually not," Ned said with asmile. "Now and then we have totranquilize one." He indicated a smallhypodermic syringe on a shelf.

Nancy shuddered."It doesn't hurt," he insisted. "And

anyway, we don't have to do it very often.Most of the marmots, especially thoseunder two years old, are reallycooperative."

"What happens after the collar ison?" she asked.

"Each transmitter has its own

identifying signal," Ned told her. "All ofthem are picked up on our receiver andautomatically fed into the computer. Then,two times a day, we download the file andchart the movements of the animals we'retracking. Since Brad's accident, that's beenmy job."

"How's Brad doing?" Nancy asked."Better," Ned said. "But they've kept

him pretty heavily sedated. No one's beenable to see him."

"Where did he get hurt?" Nancyqueried.

"Up the hill in the hut at observationpost one," Ned replied.

"I'd like to see it," Nancy said. Ned led Nancy to the trail that

wound up the hill. At the top of the slope,Ned halted.

"Well," he said with a sweep of hishand, "this is it. We have three otherfeeding stations, but this is the mostimportant one."

Nancy looked around. They were onlevel ground now. A circular area aboutthe size of a football field had been fencedoff with chicken wire.

"This is a marmot community, andthat's one of their burrows," Nedexplained, pointing to a raised mound onthe far side of the chicken wire. Inside the enclosure Nancy noticeda slim girl about her own age leaningdown to a burrow. She was wearing achecked shirt, straight-legged jeans, and

suede boots. Her long black hair waspulled back into a ponytail, and she hadpale blue eyes and an oval face with apronounced widow's peak. When she sawNancy and Ned, she came over to greetthem. "Hi, Jennifer, this is Nancy Drew,"Ned said casually. "Nancy, meet JenniferTrainey." "Hi, Jennifer," Nancy said."Trainey-are you related to theprofessor?" "He's my dad," Jennifer saidquickly, then added with a slight smile,"Ned didn't tell me he was expectingcompany." Nancy was about to respond whenshe noticed a flicker of movement from

inside the enclosure. She saw a smallhead peering out of one of the burrows. Asshe watched, delighted, a marmotemerged. Another was close behind. Theywere reddish brown with yellowabdomens and black rings near their bushytails.

"Meet Click and Clack, our mostsociable specimens," Jennifer said.

"They're adorable." Nancy glancedat Jennifer. "You must have been in on thisproject from the very beginning."

Jennifer laughed. "Since before thevery beginning," she replied.

The two marmots finished eating.One sat up on its hind legs. The furrycreature had a wide head with short,rounded ears, large eyes, and a black

button nose. It cocked its head sidewaysas if to ask Nancy what she was doingthere and then began grooming itself.

"Wait until Bess sees these. She'llgo crazy," Nancy said. "It looks like they'dbe really fun to work with."

"Oh, they are!" Jennifer exclaimed."Right now I'm monitoring the day carecenter."

"Day care center?" Nancy echoed."While the parents are out foraging

for food, the older members of thecommunity stay in the entrances to theburrows, making sure the babies are safe,"Jennifer explained. "If they sense danger,they give a shrill ear-piercing whistle."

"Did many marmots disappear fromthis feeding station?" Nancy asked.

Jennifer raised her eyebrows."It's okay," Ned said quickly. "I told

Nancy about what happened. She can betrusted- she's my girlfriend."

"Oh," Jennifer said smoothly. "Howlong are you here for?"

"A few days," Nancy replied."Great," Jennifer said, though Nancy

doubted her sincerity. "Well, I'd better getback to work," she went on withoutanswering Nancy's question. "See youlater." As Jennifer walked away, Nancyturned to Ned. "She's incredibly pretty,"she said. Ned reddened and shrugged, thenled Nancy toward a small hut. As theyapproached it, Nancy noticed a metal box

on top of a pole. She saw another one justlike it about fifty yards farther along thefence. "What are those things?" she asked. "Time-lapse cameras," Nedreplied. "They're set to take exposuresevery fifteen minutes. They even recordthe date and time at the bottom of eachnegative." "Incredible," Nancy said, thenpointed to the hut. "Is that where Brad washurt?" "Yeah," Ned replied. "We keep afew snacks and drinks in there.Apparently, Brad was heating water forcoffee. When boom! I heard the explosionand ran up the hill. Brad was lying acrossthe doorstep, unconscious." Nancy shook her head

sympathetically. "The force of theexplosion must have blown him out thedoor. He's lucky he wasn't killed." Inside the hut were two chairs anda folding table covered with computerprintouts and camera gear. Several bags offood pellets and a stack of traps lined thefar wall. Above it was a shelf with acanister of sugar, instant coffee, and teabags. Nancy pointed to a blackenedobject in the comer of the room. "Is thatthe stove that blew up?" Ned nodded, and she went over toit. The stove consisted of one burnerattached by a copper tube to a canister ofpropane. Nancy checked the propane tank.The fitting between it and the tubing was

tight, but when she traced a path up thetubing to the nut that connected it to theburner, she let out a gasp. "Find something?" Ned asked. Nancy held the tubing and the boltup to the light. "Look at this," she said."See those scratch marks? Someone'stampered with the nut," Ned's eyes narrowed. "That meanswhen Brad turned on the stove, propanestarted escaping." "Exactly," Nancy agreed. "Andwhen he lit the match, there was anexplosion." Ned straighten up. "So it wasn't anaccident. Someone deliberately tried tohurt Brad!"

Chapter Three “Or kill him," Nancy added as shedetached the tube and put it in the pocketof her jacket. "This is our first piece ofevidence." From the doorway, someone spokeup. "What's going on here?" Nancy turned and saw a lanky manof about fifty, whose black hair wassprinkled with gray at the temples. He hada deeply tanned face and a wide,unsmiling mouth. A tall, dark, good-looking guy in a ranger uniform and ayoung woman clad in blue jeans and apurple Emerson College sweatshirt stoodjust behind him.

Ned moved toward the group. "Iwas just showing my friend Nancy around.Professor Trainey, this is Nancy Drew."He gestured to the two people behindTrainey and added, "That's Jack Billings,a park ranger, and Alicia Nivel, fromEmerson." "Hi. You're Ned's girlfriend fromRiver Heights, aren't you?" A brief smileflashed across Alicia's face. "He talksabout you a lot." For a minute no one said anything.Then the professor turned to Ned. "Didanything new turn up on the computer?" heasked. Ned ran his hand back through hishair nervously. "Umm-I didn't get a chanceto look. Nancy showed up just when I got

to the command post," he explained. "I see," Trainey replied. Hecrossed his arms at his waist and stared atNed. "We've got fifty marmots missing,final observations to make before weleave on Saturday, at least a day ofpacking ahead of us-and you've invited avisitor here. I must say, your timingsurprises me." Ned swallowed. "But, sir, Nancyis-" Trainey held up his hand. "I needyou down at camp in ten minutes to draft aplot oftoday's readings." He turned and headeddown the path. Alicia gave Nancy an apologeticsmile and said, "You'll have to forgive us.

We're all pretty tense these days, whatwith the marmots missing and the grantextension hanging in the balance." The ranger patted her on the backand said, "Don't worry, Alicia. You'llmake it." "Thanks, Jack," Alicia replied. Ned shook his head despondently."I just wish Trainey had given me achance to explain why I invited Nancy.She's a well-known detective and is goingto track down the poachers." Nancy would have preferred tokeep her role a secret for a little whilelonger. Oh, well, too late now, shethought. Jack gave Nancy a big smile. "Aprivate eye," he said. "Well, I'll be. And a

pretty one, too." Nancy tried to keep from blushing,but it was no use. She thought that Jackwas amazingly handsome-rugged andintelligent looking, too. She turned toAlicia and asked, "What did you meanabout the grant extension?" "Our study is being paid for by afederal grant," Alicia said. "But therewere cost overruns, so Professor Traineyapplied for an extension, but in themeantime he's been paying some of theexpenses out of his own pocket." Nancy whistled. "That's prettydaring of him," she said. "Is he wealthy?" "I doubt it," Ned said. "He lives ina small cottage off campus and drives abeat-up truck. His work is about the only

thing that seems to matter to him." Nancy turned to Jack. "I met acouple of park maintenance men todaynamed Richard and Piker. Do you knowthem?" Jack hitched his thumbs in his beltand said, "Yes, I do. Why?" "They weren't exactly friendlywhen I met them at the campsite a littlewhile ago," Nancy replied. Jack gazed at Nancy. "I'm sorry ifthey gave you a hard time. I told themabout what happened to Brad and askedthem to be on the lookout for trouble.Actually, Piker and Richard are reallygood guys," Jack went on. "They're justbetter at building walkways than relatingto the public."

"Oh," Nancy said, keeping herdoubts to herself. "Ned told me aboutBrad's accident. That was the day beforeyesterday at about eight in the evening,right?" "Seven fifty-three, to be exact,"Ned said. Nancy flashed him a grateful smileand continued. "Were either of you aroundwhen it happened?" Jack gave a vigorous shake of hishead. "Not me. I was at the ranger station,giving a talk on the mammals ofYellowstone. It started at seven." "That's right," Alicia said."Jennifer and I were there. The slideswere terrific!" "Did either of you happen to use

the stove that afternoon?" Nancy asked,her eyes casually moving from Jack toAlicia and back. Alicia frowned in concentration. "Ithink I did. When I came up to change thefilm in the cameras, I made some hotchocolate." "What time was that?" Nancypressed. "Six-thirty," Alicia replied. "I leftabout ten minutes later to go to the lecture.I made it just in time." "I remember you huffing andpuffing as you ran into the room," Jacksaid with a grin. "But speaking of time,Trainey told us to meet him in tenminutes." "And me in the doghouse already!"

Ned exclaimed. "Come on. Nancy." Nancy and Ned jogged down thepath to the campsite with Alicia and Jackclose behind them. When they reached theparking area, Ned gave Nancy a quickkiss, then dashed off. Nancy drove away, thinking aboutthe investigation. If Alicia's recollectionwas correct, the propane stove wasworking at six-thirty on the day of theaccident. But by seven fifty- three, it hadbeen sabotaged. If she could placesomeone at the observation hut during thattime period, it would go a long waytoward breaking the case. As she drove up to the hotel, shesaw Bess standing on the porch, peeringanxiously at the road. The moment she

spotted Nancy, she started waving wildly.Nancy parked and ran over to her. "What is it, Bess?" she demanded."What's wrong?" "Nothing's wrong," Bess replied."I think I just solved the whole case!" "What do you mean?" Nancy sankdown onto a porch swing. Bess dropped down next to Nancyand handed her a piece of paper. "Justlook at this," she said. Nancy's eyes widened when sheread the title: "Hot New Pet Craze-Whistling Marmots." The sheet had beenphotocopied from a magazine. In thearticle the words native to Yellowstonewere highlighted in orange. Nancy's heart began to race.

"Where did you get this?" "I was sitting in the lobby," Bessexplained, "when a rich-looking couplecame in and stopped near me. As theymoved away, I noticed a piece of paper onthe floor, so I picked it up." "Hmm." Nancy scanned the pageand read out loud. “‘Rock star RandyDean's fondness for collecting marmotshas made the creature a sought-after petamong the rich and famous. According toone U.S. wildlife specialist, some peopleare willing to pay as much as five hundreddollars for one of these animals.'" "Randy keeps a bunch of marmotson his California estate," Bess said."According to the article, one of themescaped. A neighbor found it in her

kitchen, munching its way through a box ofcereal. The story made the newspapers,and ever since then people have wantedmarmots." "That's very interesting," Nancysaid slowly. "I guess we should find outthe couple's names and where they comefrom." Bess grinned proudly. "They'reGerald and Edith Turkower, and they'refrom-just guess -Bel Air, California." Nancy stared. "How do youknow?" "Simple," Bess said smugly."While they were registering, I checkedtheir luggage tags." "Good work," Nancy told herfriend. "Tell you what," she added, "as a

reward, I'll treat you to a cup of tea and asnack. I'll also fill you in on what I'velearned so far." The dining room had log walls andwooden ceiling beams. As they sat downat a table near the windows, Bess leanedforward and whispered, "Two tables toyour left-those are the Turkowers." Nancy casually glanced in theirdirection as the waitress arrived to takeher order. Then, just as their pie and teaarrived, a bellhop walked through thedining room, saying, "Nancy Drew,telephone call for Nancy Drew." Nancy waved to him and identifiedherself. "It sounds like an emergency," hetold her, pulling a cordless phone from a

holster on his belt. "Hello? Yes?" Nancy said. "Nancy, thank goodness I got you,"a breathless voice said. "It's Alicia Nivel.You've got to come at once. Ned's beenhurt!"

Chapter Four NANCY clutched the phone sotightly that her knuckles turned white."What happened?" "We don't know," Alicia replied."We found him on the floor at thecommand post unconscious. He must havefallen and hit his head on something. Whenhe came to, he asked us to call you rightaway, so I drove down to the general storeat Madison Junction." "I'll be there as soon as possible."Nancy switched off the phone and sprangup from her seat. "Ned's been hurt," shetold Bess. "I have to go to him rightaway." "I'll go, too." Bess waved for the

waitress and paid the check while Nancywent on ahead to get the car. The fifteen miles to the campsiteseemed to take forever. When Nancyturned in to the parking area, she flung thedoor open in one movement, then dashedup to camp and straight to the tiny cabin.Bess followed. Inside, Nancy saw Jack,Jennifer, and Alicia clustered around Nedwith an open first-aid kit on the floornearby. Ned was sitting propped upagainst the wall, holding his head in hishands. "Ned!" Nancy cried as she rushedin and knelt beside him. "Are you allright?" "I feel a lot better now that you'rehere."

Jennifer reluctantly moved asideso Nancy could look at the back of Ned'shead. There was a huge bump and driedblood on it. "What happened?" she asked. Ned shifted, and as he did, Nancynoticed something gleaming on the floorbehind him. She picked it up and tucked itinto her pocket. "Let me think. I was on my wayover to the command post. The door wasajar, and it's supposed to be kept shutbecause there's a lot of valuable hardwarein here. So I decided to make sureeverything was okay. I got inside, and thenext thing I knew, I was lying here withthis lump on my head and the mother of allheadaches. Somebody must have hit me." Just then Bess arrived. "Ned," she

gasped, "are you okay?" "Hi, Bess," he answered, trying hisbest to sound normal. "Guys, this is BessMarvin." Jennifer and Alicia nodded toBess. Jack glanced at her, smiled broadly,and held out his hand to shake hers. "Hellothere, I'm Jack Billings. Boy, does NedNickerson have some great-lookingfriends." Bess blushed but said nothing. Nancy got to her feet. "Someoneobviously wanted something. Is all theequipment still here?" Alicia had been studying thecomputer table. "It doesn't look as ifanything was taken." Nancy crossed to the supply room.

Everything looked much as it had whenshe had seen it a couple of hours earlier.Then she noticed the hypodermic syringeand several vials of tranquilizer weremissing. "Did anyone take a syringe andsome tranquilizer vials out of here?"Nancy asked over her shoulder. Alicia stepped inside and checkedthe shelf. "Oh-they are missing. But whowould have taken them?" Nancy's thoughts raced. First thegroup had discovered fifty marmotsmissing, and now someone seemed tohave stolen tranquilizers that could sedatemore marmots. Was someone planning totranquilize the fifty stolen creatures so

they could be quietly shipped out of thepark? Before she could ask morequestions, Nancy saw Professor Traineyat the doorway. "Now what?" he demanded,slightly out of breath. "Can't I leave thisproject for five minutes without-" Hisvoice faded as he noticed Ned on thefloor. "Someone hit Ned over the head,"Jennifer told her father. "And tranquilizersare missing from the supply room." Trainey's eyes widened as he kneltbeside Ned. "We've got to get you up tothe hospital in Gardiner as soon as wecan." He glanced around the room, clearlyupset. "Can someone drive him there? We

can't take chances-not with a head injury." "I'll go," Nancy quickly offered."Where is it?" "Gardiner is just over the state linein Montana, right outside the northentrance of the park. I'll ride along andshow you the way," Jack offered. "Justgive me a couple of minutes to clear itwith headquarters." Nancy remembered the object shehad stashed in her pocket. She slipped itout unobtrusively. It was a Phi BetaKappa key. Turning it over, she saw theinitials D.T. engraved on the back. DanTrainey. She leaned down to pat Ned'sshoulder, then crossed the room. "Professor?" she said quietly.

"May I speak to you privately for amoment?" Frowning, Trainey followed heroutside. "If you're concerned about Ned'scare, don't be," he began. "It's not that," Nancy replied. Sheshowed him the gold medallion. "I foundthis just now under Ned. It's yours, isn'tit?" Trainey took the key from her palmand examined it. "Yes," he said. "I noticedI'd lost it a few days ago. Thanks." "How do you suppose it came tobe lying under Ned-now?" Nancy asked. Trainey flushed. "What are youimplying?" "Professor Trainey," Nancy said,"I'm a detective. Something strange is

going on here. Ned asked me to help findout what it is." "Now, look here," Trainey saidimpatiently. "I have a research assistant inthe hospital, another of my students on theway there, fifty marmots missing, and acrucial deadline coming up in a couple ofdays. The last thing I need is an amateurdetective in my hair. Do I make myselfclear?" Nancy remained calm. "Do yourealize," she asked, "that someone fromyour group could be behind all thetrouble?" Trainey's eyes narrowed. "Whatdo you mean? Knowing she finally had his fullattention, Nancy continued. "As I

understand it, each marmot's transmitterhas its own distinctive code, right? "Yes, of course," Trainey replied,his voice ominously low. "So someone could use thecomputer to pin down an animal's locationat any given moment?" she pressed. "That's what the equipment isdesigned to do-if you know the codes,"Trainey replied. Nancy fixed her eyes on theprofessor's face. "And who knows them?" Trainey shrugged. "Everyone here,I suppose. The list is in the computer. ..."The professor's voice trailed off as herealized the significance of what he hadjust said. "It all points to an inside job,

professor," Nancy said quietly. Trainey scowled. "Look, Ms.Drew, are you suspecting me ofjeopardizing my project? That's insultingand crazy." "I'm not saying-" Nancy began. The professor interrupted her. "Idon't have time for this. Why don't you gosightseeing or something?" he barked, thenstalked away. As Nancy returned to the shed, shethought that it was unlikely the professorwould jeopardize his own project, butuntil she could prove otherwise, he had tobe a suspect. When she got back to the commandpost, Ned was sitting up near thecomputer. Nancy was glad to see that his

color was better. "Can you walk?" sheasked him. He smiled and assured her that hecould. "All right, we can go," Jack saidfrom the doorway. As they walked acrossthe campground to the parking area, hemoved to Bess's side. "Are you coming tothe hospital, too?" Bess nodded, and Nancy noticedthe interest in her friend's blue eyes. "Good," Jack continued, openingthe door for Ned and then the back door ofthe car for Bess. He slipped in next to her. As they started off in the directionof the north entrance, Ned asked, "Whatwere you talking to the professor about?" "The problems the study is

having," Nancy replied, being deliberatelyvague. "He seemed tense." "He has a right to be," Ned said."His reputation is riding on the success ofthis project." For the rest of the trip, Nancyconcentrated on her driving while Jackpointed out landmarks. Ned leaned back inhis seat with his eyes closed. At the hospital the group easilyfound the emergency room. After Ned andNancy spoke with the nurse there, anorderly led Ned into an examining room,explaining to Nancy that only the patientwas allowed inside. The rest of the groupfound seats in the waiting room. "I am totally starved," Bessannounced. "It's dinnertime."

"There are some vending machinesdownstairs," Jack said. "Is this the hospital Brad is in?"Nancy asked after Bess borrowed somequarters and headed for the elevator. "Yes," Jack replied. "I wonder if he's allowed visitorsyet." "I don't know," Jack said. "We canask. I hope he isn't badly scarred. Burnscan be pretty awful." As he spoke, he rubbed a reddishscar on the back of his left hand. "So, tellme about you and Ned. You seem to knoweach other pretty well," he continued. Nancy nodded. "We've been goingtogether for a long time." "Too bad," Jack said with a

charming smile. "If Ned weren't such anice guy, I'd ask you to the square dancetomorrow night at the Old Faithful Inn." "That's where we're staying,"Nancy remarked. "Then you've got no excuse formissing it," he said, casually draping anarm across the back of Nancy's chair."Are you sure I can't tempt you to go withme?" Jack asked teasingly. Nancy felt flattered but shook herhead. "I have a feeling Ned wouldn't likethat too much," she answered lightly. "Butmaybe I'll see you there." Jack gave a mock sigh ofdisappointment. "Too bad. Ned's a luckyguy." From the doorway Ned said, "I

sure am. The doctor says I'll be fine. Noconcussion or anything-but I had to have afew stitches." He gestured to the bandagewrapped all the way around his head. Itgave him a roguish look. Just then Bess came rushing up."Are they done with you already?" sheasked. "Can we go now?" "I'd like to meet Brad," Nancyreplied. "If they'll let us in to see him." "Good idea," Ned said. They asked for Brad's roomnumber at the front desk, then filed into theelevator. At the nurse's station theylearned that he was conscious and able toreceive visitors. A couple of minutes laterthe group piled into Brad's room. His faceand arms were heavily bandaged, but his

eyes lit up when he saw them. "Ned, Jack!" he said, and grinned."It's great to see you!" He turned his gazeto Nancy and Bess. "This is my girlfriend. NancyDrew, and her friend Bess Marvin," Nedexplained. "Nice to meet you," Brad said.Then he noticed Ned's bandage. "Hey,guy, what happened?" Ned told him. "We are some hard luck bunch,"Brad said. "First me, and now you." "Don't forget that marmot thatnipped me on the nose last week," Jackinterjected with a laugh. "That's right," Brad replied."Maybe you should watch your step if

you're going to hang around with us.Nancy." Ned filled Brad in about themissing marmots. "After the stoveexploded I asked Nancy to come out tolook into it. She's a detective, and ifanyone can figure out who's causing all thetrouble, she can." "Tell me about your accident,Brad," Nancy began. "There's not much to tell. The firstthing I did when I went on duty was makea cup of coffee." "Of course," Ned said, grinning."He's a caffeine addict." Brad smiled back, then continued."When I went to light the stove, there wasa whoosh, and then flames were

everywhere. The next thing I knew, I wokeup here." "How terrible!" Bess exclaimed. Brad's face hardened. "Yeah, well,I'm not so sure it was an accident. I sawsomeone sneaking out of the hut as Iwalked up the path." Nancy leaned forward eagerly."Could you tell who it was?" Brad stared up at the ceiling for along time. Finally he said, "I hate to say it,but it looked an awful lot like DanTrainey."

Chapter Five “No way," Ned said. "How couldyou even think that the professor hadanything to do with it?" Brad shook his head. "All I cantell you is that whoever it was, waswearing a dark green hat and a green coatlike the professor's. And considering theway he ran behind the hut, I'd say he didn'twant to be seen." "Well, it wasn't ProfessorTrainey," Ned insisted. "And that's that." Reluctantly, Nancy told them aboutfinding the professor's Phi Beta Kappakey. Ned scowled. "There's bound tobe an explanation. Did you ask him about

it?" "Yes," Nancy told him. "He saidhe noticed he lost it a few days ago." "Well, there you are," Nedconcluded. "It was probably on the floorall this time." Nancy glanced at Ned, who lookedupset. She decided to drop the subject fora while. Turning back to Brad, she asked,"Can you think of any reason why anyonewould want to hurt you?" "When I noticed that the trapswere missing, the others divided up mychores so I could look into it. Maybe myinvestigation bothered somebody," Bradsuggested. Nancy nodded thoughtfully. "Didyou discover anything?"

Before Brad could answer, a nursecame bustling in. Nancy could almost hearthe starch rustling in her white uniform. "Sorry, folks. Visiting hours areover." She took Brad's wrist between herfingers and checked her watch. The group said their goodbyes. Asthey left, Nancy decided to return the nextday to question Brad further. On the way back, Ned sat silentlybeside Nancy. .She could tell he wasthinking about the professor. Jack andBess kept up a steady stream ofconversation in the backseat, and Nancywas glad of it. "I have an idea," Jack said asNancy turned onto the dirt road leading tothe campsite. "There's a new little cafe

with disco music in West Yellowstone. Iknow Ned has to rest this evening, but wecould go dancing." "That sounds great," Bess replied. "Thanks, but I'll pass," Nancy said."You guys go without me." "Sure you don't mind?" Bessasked. Nancy shook her head. When she parked the car, Jackclimbed out, then put his head in throughthe window. "I'll come by the hotel aroundeight, okay?" he said to Bess. "If youchange your mind, you can still join us,"he added to Nancy. "Oh, wait," Bess called, gettingout and walking up the path after Jack."What kind of place is this? I need to

know what to wear." Jack laughed and put his armaround Bess's shoulders. The two of thembent their heads together and launched intoan animated conversation. Nancy looked over at Ned. Hewas sitting very stiffly, staring straightahead. "Are you feeling all right?" sheasked. "I'm fine," he said in a tense voice.But then he added, "There's no way DanTrainey tampered with that stove. Nancy." Nancy was silent, and Nedguessed the reason. "You're not listeningto me, are you?" "I'm listening," Nancy said. "But Ihave to check him out, and what Brad saidmakes him a suspect." When Ned didn't

respond, she continued. "Of course I'minvestigating everyone." Nancy hoped for a goodbye kiss,but Ned simply opened the door andwalked away. Without a word, he passedBess as she returned to the car. "Brrr!" Bess said, climbing intothe passenger seat. "Did you and Ned justhave a fight?" Nancy swallowed back tears butdidn't feel like talking on the drive back tothe hotel. Bess was quiet, too, until theyturned in to the parking lot. Then she said,"Let's go watch Old Faithful." Nancy would have preferred to liedown with a book, but she laughed andsaid, "Okay, Old Faithful it is!" The girls went through the lobby

and followed a path to the geyser. "Come on," Bess urged. "I see twospots on that bench over there. We'd bettergrab them." They sat down and studied thecenter of attention, a four-foot-high conethat looked like a shrunken volcano. Smallpuffs of white steam trailed lazily upwardfrom it. Suddenly there was a rumblingsound as if a truck were passing. Waterbubbled up over the surface of the coneand shot at least a hundred feet into theair. Finally, after two or three minutes, thecolumn of water slowly sank and thenvanished. "Wow!" Bess exclaimed. Nancy just smiled. Touching her arm, Bess said in an

undertone, "Look over there. See the guywith all the camera equipment? That'sTurkower." Nancy saw a couple in theirforties. The man was tall, with salt-and-pepper hair and a mustache. He had twoexpensive-looking cameras around hisneck and a leather camera bag over oneshoulder. Mrs. Turkower could have juststepped out of a beauty salon. "Come on, Bess," Nancy urged. "Iwant to meet them." The two girls strolled around thegeyser and stopped next to the Turkowers.Nancy took the photocopied article aboutthe marmots out of her pocket. "Excuse me," she said politely."Did you drop this? I looked for you

earlier, but you'd already gone upstairs." "So that's where it went," thewoman said with a tittering laugh. As sheaccepted the sheet of paper she added,"Thanks for returning it." "I'm Nancy Drew and this is myfriend Bess Marvin." "Gerald and Edith Turkowerhere," the man replied. "Smile!" he saidsuddenly. Before Nancy and Bess couldreact, he raised the camera and took threequick shots of them. "I wasn't ready!" Bess protested. "Gerald, really!" Edithadmonished. "He's such a camera nut." "I couldn't help looking at thatarticle," Nancy said casually. "Thosewhistling marmots are so cute! Wouldn't it

be fun to have one as a pet?" "Oh, yes," Edith replied. "I know awoman back home who has three of them." "Edith likes owning unusualthings," Gerald said, shooting a keenglance at Nancy. "I know there are lots of them herein Yellowstone. But isn't it illegal to takeanimals out of a national park?" Nancyasked, sounding naive. Gerald nodded. "Sure." Then hesmiled knowingly. "But there are waysaround that." Nancy's heartbeat quickened. Didthis couple want to buy a marmot? Orwere they somehow involved in thepoaching scheme? She decided to dangle alittle bait and see if one of them took it. "I

might consider it, but only if I was sure Iwouldn't get into any trouble." "Nobody likes trouble," Geraldsaid. To Nancy's disappointment, he didn'tsay more before they wandered off. "What do you think, Nan?" Bessasked. "Could they be stealing themarmots?" Nancy frowned. "They seem morelike buyers than sellers," she said. "Buteither way, we'll keep an eye on them." Somewhere downstairs a clockchimed. Nancy glanced at her wrist.Eleven o'clock. She was lying in thecomfortable brass bed in her hotel room. She realized that she had had herbook open to the same page for almost

half an hour. The thought that kept runningthrough her mind was that Ned cared moreabout Professor Trainey than he did aboutthe truth. Suddenly she couldn't stand itany longer and put her book down, stoodup, and got her jacket from the closet. Alittle fresh air, maybe a drive, would clearthe cobwebs from her mind, she thought. Nancy headed outside. The nightwas cold and crisp. As she walkedtoward the parking lot, she heard voicesthat sounded familiar. Just then theheadlights of an incoming car sweptacross a small group of people about fiftyfeet away. Nancy ducked behind a parkedcar. Edith and Gerald Turkower weredeep in conversation with Richard and

Piker, the two park maintenance men.Nancy crouched down and began movingbetween cars to get close enough to hearthem. But the group broke up before shegot there. She went back to her room andtried to sort out her thoughts. The only linkshe could think of between a richCalifornia couple and two Yellowstonemaintenance men was poaching. Would any of them know how totrack the marmots on the computer? Nancydoubted it. Someone in the camp had to beinvolved. Someone like Dan Trainey. Nancy was still thinking when thedoor opened and Bess rushed in, her faceaglow. "The disco was great!" sheexclaimed. "And it wasn't even crowded.

We had lots of room to dance. You shouldhave come." Nancy smiled. "Next time." "Jack is really something!" Bessfell into a chair. "He is totally dedicatedto his work and knows absolutelyeverything about the park. I just hope I canget him as interested in me as he is inwhistling marmots," she finished with alaugh. Nancy smiled. "I get the feelingyou had a good time," she said, thencouldn't help sighing. Bess stared at her. "What's wrong.Nan?" "It's just that Ned's upset becauseDan Trainey is on my list of suspects. Iguess he thinks his friends should be

exempt from my investigating them." "That's ridiculous," Bess said."Ned knows better than that. Nancy. He'sjust tired and stressed out. He'll feeldifferent tomorrow." Nancy shook her head. "I hope so,"she said. "Hey, I know," Bess continued."There's going to be a square dancetomorrow night here at the hotel. Jackasked me to go with him. Why don't youand Ned come, too? We'll have a greattime!" "Good idea," Nancy said, feelinguncomfortable. That was the same dancethat Jack had offered to take her to just afew hours before. Sure, he had beenfooling around, but still.. . Was Jack one

of those guys who had to charm every girlhe met? If so, Bess was letting herself infor grief. Judging by the gleam in her eye,this was not the time to give her anywarnings. As Nancy and Bess were finishingtheir breakfast the next morning, EdithTurkower came over to their table. "We'redoing a ranger-guided tour of UpperGeyser Basin," she announced. "Geraldand I thought you might like to comealong." Nancy gave Bess a gentle kick onthe ankle and said, "I can't, but I knowBess would love to." As Edith walked away, Nancysaid softly, "Keep a close eye on them,Bess. It's important."

"No problem," Bess replied. Once Bess left the table, Nancydecided to go to the Gardiner hospital tosee Brad again. She headed for her car. Lost inthought, she was already climbing a steepgrade on the mountain road that led toGardiner when she noticed a van closebehind her-too close. It seemed to betailgating her. She pressed harder on thegas pedal, but the van kept pace with her. The road wound between a sheerwall of rock on the left and a deep ravineon the right. As they came around a longcurve, the van pulled out to pass. Nancyedged over toward the ravine to give itmore room, but instead of going ahead, thevan stayed next to her. Alarmed, Nancy hit

the brakes to let the other vehicle moveahead. Instead, the van slowed. Then without warning it swervedtoward her, its front bumper banging intoNancy's door. She struggled to control thewheel, but the van slammed into her again,forcing her car toward the edge of theravine. She glanced to her right, and herstomach twisted. The drop was endless,and she was just about to go over!

Chapter Six All that separated Nancy from adrop into the ravine was a couple of feetof shoulder, and the van was continuing tonudge her over. Nancy accelerated, attempting topull ahead of her pursuer. She knew shecouldn't keep driving at this speed-theroad was too treacherous. In seconds the van was behind heragain, moving up to slam into her from therear. She rounded a curve and spotted asign for a scenic overlook. As sheapproached it, she took a deep breath andjerked the wheel sharply to the right. Thewheels skidded on the gravel. The van followed and was just

about to ram into her again when Nancysaw a tall lodge pole pine at the far end ofthe overlook parking area. She steered hercar straight at it. She was just about to hitit when she swerved left and shot backonto the highway. In the rearview mirror, she sawthe van graze the tree she had just missed.Then, to her astonishment, the driver of thevan backed up, turned, and roared off inthe other direction. Puzzled, Nancystopped her car. When she looked aheadof her, she saw a park service vehiclepulling into the parking area andunderstood why the driver of the van hadheaded off in such a hurry. He'd seen theranger, too. The ranger stopped his car next to

hers and jumped out. He was about fortyand had a crew cut and neat mustache."Are you all right?" he asked. Nancy nodded, even though shefelt shaken. "A van tried to run me off theroad." "Did you see who was driving?"The ranger leaned his elbows on the edgeof her window. Nancy noted the name onthe plate pinned to his breast pocket:Martin Robbins. She shook her head. "Will you come to my office tomake a report? It's near the northentrance," he continued. Nancy followed him back up theroad to the ranger station. Once inside and settled in a chair,

she watched while Robbins filled out areport. "I don't suppose you got the licensenumber?" Nancy shook her head ruefully."Sorry, things happened too fast. I didnotice the words Minden Linen painted onthe door of the van. Does that meananything to you?" "It's the biggest linen service inthis area. All the hotels in Yellowstoneget their sheets and towels from there. Iknow their chief dispatcher. I'll call him,"Martin suggested. Even though she only heardMartin's half of the conversation. Nancycould tell that something was wrong. “Well?" she asked eagerly once hehad hung up.

"One of their drivers, BertHeckleby, missed a couple of deliveriesthis morning," Martin replied. "He's notanswering calls on his radio either." Could someone have paidHeckleby to attack her? Or stolen his van? "I get the feeling that there's moreto this than you're telling me," Martin said. Taking a deep breath, Nancyexplained everything, including thepropane stove explosion and the missingmarmots. Martin nodded. "Jack's kept me upto date on the problems, but he's notconvinced the marmots are being poached.He thinks someone may be trying tosabotage the study." "That's a possibility," Nancy

replied. "But traps and tranquilizers havebeen stolen. That points to poaching." The ranger frowned. "I did pass onword of this to the people at the Fish andWildlife Service," he said. "But there's notelling what they'll do about it. I wish Icould help more, but I simply don't havethe staff." After Nancy told Martin that shewas a detective, he grinned and noddedappreciatively. "I'd welcome any help youcan give, but be careful. Poaching isdangerous business especially when bigmoney is at stake." "I understand that whistlingmarmots can bring as much as fivehundred dollars apiece on the blackmarket," Nancy remarked. "If fifty of them

really were stolen, the poachers stand tomake twenty-five thousand dollars." Martin glanced above Nancy'sshoulder. She turned to see Jack Billingsat the open door of the office. He grinned at her and put a slideprojector on the table in the comer of theroom. "That ought to work now, Martin.Hey, Nancy. What brings you here?" "You'd better look after this girl.Jack," Martin cautioned. "Somebodydoesn't like her. A guy in a van just triedto run her off the road." "What? Are you serious?" Jackmoved closer to Nancy and put his handon her shoulder solicitously. "Are youokay? You want me to drive you back tothe hotel?"

"No need," Nancy replied. "I'm onmy way to visit Brad, anyway." She thanked Martin and thenwalked outside with Jack. The morningsun glinted against the dent in the side ofthe white rental car. "You need to be more careful.Nancy. I'd feel terrible if anythinghappened to you." "So would I," she joked. Shecouldn't help feeling attracted to him, butthe warmth and concern she saw in hiseyes made her feel awkward. "I'll tellBess I saw you," she added pointedly. "Please do. She's a great girl,"Jack said, smiling. "I'll see both of youlater, right?" Nancy got into her car and drove

off with only a wave for an answer. Onthe way to the hospital, she kept thinkingabout Jack. She hoped Bess wasn't gettinginto something she'd regret.

* * * Brad's face broke into awelcoming smile when he saw Nancy."Hi. It's great to see you." "Hi yourself," she replied,dropping into a chair by the bed. "Howare you feeling?" "Great! The doctor said I'll be outof this place in a day or two." "I'm glad." Nancy leaned forward."Listen, Brad, I want to talk about theproblems the study's been having. Did youfind out anything while you wereinvestigating?"

"The professor is in real financialtrouble," Brad replied reluctantly. "I foundlots of overdue bills in his tent. You knowhe's put his own money into this study." "Yes," Nancy said. "But once theextension comes through, he'll bereimbursed." "That's just it," Brad saidunhappily. "I found a letter from theDepartment of Interior in his tent. Therewon't be any extension. Trainey'sapplication was turned down." "What!" Nancy exclaimed. "That'sterrible. That means the professor's out allthat money." Brad nodded. "I'm afraid so." "Wow!" Nancy thought for amoment. "You know Professor Trainey

pretty well, don't you?" Brad nodded. "I think so. I'veworked with him pretty closely for acouple of years." "Could he be desperate enough totry to get his money back by sellingmarmots?" Nancy asked. Brad hesitated for a long time, "Iguess he could try to recoup his losses,"he said, sighing. "Does everyone know that youdrink a lot of coffee?" Nancy went on. Brad grinned, glad to change thesubject. "Sure. Everybody kids me aboutalways having a cup of the stuff glued tomy hand." "So it would have been a safeassumption that at some point in the

evening you would light the stove to boilwater?" "Yes," he confirmed. "What time did you get to the hutthat night?" "About seven-thirty," Bradreplied. Nancy nodded thoughtfully. Thedaily assignments were posted outside thecommand post shed, so everyone wouldhave known that Brad was monitoringfeeding station 1. Alicia left the hut aroundsix-thirty. That left the place empty for anhour-plenty of time to sabotage the stove. "I understand that you andProfessor Trainey have the only keys tothe command post," Nancy said, turningher thoughts to how the poachers could

have gained access to the computer thatmonitored the marmots' signals. "Technically, I guess that's true." Nancy was puzzled. "What do youmean?" "We had a spare that we kepthidden under a rock near the door-in casewe lost the others." Brad laughed. "I guessit wasn't such a great place to hide it,because one morning about two weeks agowe couldn't find it." Nancy's eyes widened. Just then anurse came in to change Brad's bandages.Nancy got up and said, "Well, I guess I'dbetter go. You've been a great help." As she drove back to the inn,Nancy's mind was spinning. Who'd takenthe key to the command post? Was it

someone unconnected to the study group-like the two maintenance men. Piker andRichard? She felt uneasy every time shethought of them, especially since she'dcaught them in the parking lot at the hotelwith the Turkowers. Was it possible that the professor,Piker and Richard, and the Turkowerswere all involved somehow? It seemed astrange group of people to be workingtogether. Still, she needed to keep her eyeon them all. When Nancy opened the door toher room, she found Bess, bubbling overwith enthusiasm. "I had a fabulousmorning! Upper Geyser Basin wasamazing. Did you know that Yellowstone

sits in the middle of the crater of agigantic volcano?" She paused andglanced around. "You don't suppose itcould erupt again, do you?" "I doubt it, Bess." Nancy laughed."What did you find out about theTurkowers?" Bess wrinkled her forehead."Gerald must have shot about a hundredpictures, and Edith never stopped talkingabout her neighbors back in California.But I don't think they're tourists at all. Infact, I'm now betting they're in charge ofkidnapping the marmots." Nancy turned that around in hermind. She had been thinking of theTurkowers as buyers who might lead herto the poaching ring. What if Bess was

right, though, and they were the sellersinstead? "But wait," Bess added. "I haven'ttold you my most exciting news. Guesswho's coming to Yellowstone Park?" "Smokey the Bear?" Nancysuggested. Bess threw a pillow at her. "Okay," she said. "I give up." "You'll never believe it," Besscried, her eyes wide with excitement."Randy Dean!"

Chapter Seven “Really? Randy Dean here?"Nancy said. "Are you sure?" Bess nodded emphatically. "Uh-huh. The ranger told us this morning. He'scoming to make a television special aboutthe importance of leaving animals in theirnatural environments." "Oh? What about all thosemarmots of his?" Nancy asked. Bess shrugged. "He must have hada change of heart." Her face lit up again."And not only that, he's going to be stayingright in this hotel. We might even meethim! Wouldn't that be awesome? Georgeis going to be so jealous when she hears." "We haven't met him yet," Nancy

pointed out. To herself, she wonderedabout the rock star's change of heart. Wasit for real or simply a good excuse for aTV special? "I had a rather eventfulmorning myself, Bess." She told her friend about whatBrad had said and the attempt to run heroff the road. "Nan, that's terrible!" Bessexclaimed. "You could have been killed!" "Well, I wasn't. And the main thingis, this attack shows that we're on the righttrack. The poachers are getting desperate." "So what's our next move?" Bessasked. "Lunch," Nancy said firmly. "Idon't know about you, but I'm starved." Downstairs, they found the dining

room crowded. As they were waiting bythe hostess station, Edith and GeraldTurkower came in. "Well, hello again," Edith saidwith a smile. Just then the hostess cameover. "I have a table for four by thewindow," she announced. "Wonderful," Edith said brightly."Why don't we all eat together?" "Sure," Nancy replied. Here was aperfect opportunity to find out more aboutthe Turkowers. The hostess led them to a roundoak table near the window and handedthem menus. "The cutthroat trout caught in theYellowstone Lake are supposed to be thebest in the world," Gerald told them,

placing his cameras on the windowsill. "Really?" Bess closed her menu."I'll try it." "So will I," Nancy said. "I'll just have the vegetarianplatter," Edith said. "It's a little chilly inhere, don't you think?" she added, slippinginto a beige sweater with a fur collar. The waitress came and took theirorders. As she left, Nancy asked casually,"How's the hunt for whistling marmotsgoing?" Edith made a face. "Not very well.We haven't even seen one yet." "What about you, any luck?"Gerald asked. "Why, yes," Nancy replied."There's a research group here studying

the marmots. I visited their campyesterday and saw a couple of them at oneof the feeding stations. They're every bitas cute as I expected, too." Nancy paused as the waitressplaced bowls of green salad in front ofeveryone. Nancy picked up her fork andtook a bite of salad. Then, leaningforward, she lowered her voice. "A guyfrom the group told me that some of themarmots are missing." She scrutinized the Turkowers andthought she saw an uneasy expression inGerald's eyes. "Do you think someone is stealingthem?" he asked. Nancy shrugged. "I have no idea." Gerald put down his fork. "I

suppose it's possible that someone on theEmerson team might be stealing marmots,"he mused. "College students are alwaysshort of cash." Nancy's breath caught in her throat.She had never mentioned EmersonCollege! Had Gerald noticed herreaction? With a wary expression, headded, "I think I saw an article about thatresearch project. Maybe we should paythem a visit. Edith won't be happy untilshe's had a chance to watch the littlecritters in action." He beamed fondly athis wife and winked. Edith smiled back at him. "In someways," she began, "a marmot would bebetter off with us than in the wild. We'dgive it such a good home," she cooed.

"Gerald and I are strong animal rightssupporters. Why, I've even become avegetarian." Nancy noticed the startledexpression on Bess's face, but before shecould figure out what caused it, theirbroiled trout had arrived. After lunch the Turkowers excusedthemselves, saying they planned to driveto Yellowstone Lake. "That couple is definitely phony,"Bess said in the main lobby. "What makes you say that?" Nancyasked. Bess rolled her eyes. "If Edith isso into animal rights," she demanded,"why was she wearing a sweater with amink collar?"

"Maybe it was fake fur," Nancysuggested. "No way!" Bess scoffed. "I cantell the difference, believe me." "Come on, Bess. I just saw theTurkowers head out the front door. I wantto check out their room." Nancy led the way to the housephones and asked the switchboard for theTurkowers. After half a dozen rings, theoperator said, "Sorry, Room three twenty-six doesn't answer." Nancy and Bess climbed the stairsto the third floor. At the Turkowers' door.Nancy rapped lightly, then tried the knob.It was locked. After a quick glance up anddown the hall, she pulled a small case oflock picks from her shoulder bag and went

to work. A few moments later the doorsprang open. "Bess, you stand guard while Isearch the room," Nancy said. Bessnodded and Nancy slipped inside. Like the room Nancy and Besswere sharing, this one had rough-hewnplank walls, brass beds, and an old-fashioned washstand complete withporcelain bowl and pitcher. The windowlooked out onto a steaming geyser field. Nancy opened the oak wardrobe inthe corner. The right side held women'sclothes. To her amazement, there wereonly three outfits hanging there. Nancy hadexpected Edith to be like Bess and bringvirtually everything she owned. She moved to the dresser and

started pulling drawers open. Quickly, sheriffled through a pile of men's shirts andsweaters. She came up empty-handed. As she pushed the drawer closed,she noticed that it seemed to be sticking.She pulled it all the way out and held it upso she could see the underside. There wasa manila envelope taped to the bottom ofthe drawer. Carefully removing it, she openedthe envelope and pulled out a sheet of faxpaper. There were no headings, simply alist of animals, each followed by a dollaramount and one or two locations. Shescanned the list, her eyes stopping at anentry that said: "Whistling Marmot-$400-$500-Yellowstone Park." Someone had inked a little star

next to it. Shocked, Nancy realized that shewas looking at a list of how much wildanimals would bring on the black market. Taking care not to crease thefragile sheet, Nancy put it back in theenvelope and retaped it to the underside ofthe drawer. Then she took one last peek atthe room to make sure she hadn't leftanything out of place and slipped out thedoor. On the way downstairs, she toldBess what she had found. "Well, that settles it," Bessdeclared. "I knew right from the start thatEdith and Gerald weren't ordinarytourists. They're in the marmot blackmarket up to their necks."

Nancy frowned. "I still thinksomeone from the Emerson group has tobe involved, too. All the thefts, not tomention Brad's and Ned's injuries, point toan inside job." "What's next. Nan?" Bess asked. "Let's head out and find Richardand Piker. I want to ask them a fewquestions about what they were discussingwith the Turkowers," she said. Bess rolled down her car window,but the breeze was too chilly, so she put itup again. The road led along the bank ofthe Firehole River, kept warm by the hotsprings in its bed. A layer of white misthid the surface of the water. Nancyslowed down as they passed the FountainPaint Pots, a series of pools turned vivid

colors by the algae that lived in them. Allat once she hit the brakes. "What is it?" Bess asked, alarmed."Is something wrong?" "Look-in the middle of thoseaspens," Nancy replied, pointing. "What is it?" Bess repeated. "Abear?" "No, it's a van," Nancy said. "Andif I'm not mistaken, it's the same one thattried to run me off the road this morning." "Are you sure?" Bess gasped. Nancy nodded and pulled onto theshoulder of the road. Getting out, shewalked down a dirt trail toward the half-concealed van. As she approached, shesaw the words Minden Linen painted onthe side.

"This is it," she said over hershoulder. "You can see the dent where itgrazed off the tree. And look." She pointedto a streak of white paint on the bumper."That's from our car." Bess glanced around nervously."Do you think the people who did it arestill around?" "I doubt it," Nancy said. Shepulled open the driver's side door andpeered inside. The keys were in theignition. "I'm going to search the cab.Keep an eye out for me, okay?" "Just make it quick," Bess urged. Hastily Nancy climbed into thecab and opened the glove compartment.She found nothing except the registrationand insurance card, both issued to the

linen supply company. Under the seat, she found acreased map of the park. She wasclimbing out when she suddenly heard athumping sound. Beth paled. "Nancy, let's get out ofhere." The sound came again, louder thistime. "There's someone in the back ofthe van!" Nancy exclaimed. She ranaround to the rear doors and yanked thehandle down. It was locked. "Bess, grabthe keys. They're in the ignition." Bess grabbed the large key ring,then dashed back to Nancy with it. Thethird key worked, and she yanked the dooropen.

The van was piled with neatlyfolded linen, and lying on a pile of towelsin the center was a middle-aged man withround, wild eyes. His hands and feet weretied, and in his mouth was a gag.

Chapter Eight Nancy and Bess scrambled into thevan and quickly released the man. "Mr. Heckleby?" Nancy inquiredas the man rubbed his chafed wrists. Henodded. "Are you all right?" Bess asked. "I've been better," he replied,massaging his ankles. "But I sure am gladyou came along. I've been tied up forhours." "What happened?" Nancy asked. Heckleby pushed back his unrulygray hair. "Beats me," he said. "I wasdriving along near Madison Junction whenI saw a car blocking the road. I stoppedand got out to see if I could help, and

someone grabbed me from behind. I feltsomething jab my arm. When I woke up Iwas hogtied and gagged on the floor of thevan." "You must have been drugged!"Nancy exclaimed. "Whoever it washijacked your truck and tried to run me offthe road with it." "Who would do a thing like that?And why?" he demanded. "I don't know," Nancy replied,remembering the missing syringes andtranquilizer vials at the campsite. The girls helped Heckleby out ofthe van. "I'd better call the office and havethem get a ranger over here." He reachedinto the cab for his radio.

Less than ten minutes later a parkservice cruiser pulled up behind Nancy'scar and two officers got out. Theyintroduced themselves as Rangers Dillonand Cramer and took statements from bothNancy and Heckleby. Before leaving, the officersoffered to drive Heckleby to the hospitalin Gardiner, but he said he was too farbehind on his rounds already. Afterthanking Nancy and Bess for rescuing him,he got into the van and drove off. Nancy was silent as she started thecar and swung onto the road. "What are you thinking, Nan?"Bess asked. Nancy told her about the syringes. "You think someone from Ned's

group drugged Mr. Heckleby and tried tokill you?" "I can't really narrow it down thatfar," Nancy replied slowly. "Anyonecould have taken the spare key to thecommand post." Nancy drove past MadisonJunction toward the Emerson campsite."We need to find out where everyone wasthis morning around ten. That's when I wasforced off the road." "I'll do my best," Bess promised. As Nancy got out of the car, sheheard hammering. Squinting against theafternoon sun, she spotted Richard andPiker about fifty yards away. "Come on,"she said to Bess in a low voice. Theyapproached the workers, who were lining

up long, smooth planks of wood andnailing them to stout crosspieces. "Hi!" Bess called gaily. "Buildinga new walkway?" The two men raised their heads.Piker's face was expressionless, butRichard gave Bess a slight grin. "Yeah,"he answered. "Why here?" Bess asked. "Therearen't any geysers around, are there?" "Princess Geyser is about a halfmile north," Richard explained. "This looks like a big job," Nancycommented. "How long have you been atit?" "Since first thing this morning," hesaid. "Why?" Nancy acted puzzled. "No reason,

except that I thought I saw you in Gardinerthis morning." Richard chuckled. "Must havebeen my double, because I've been hereall day." Nancy and Bess headed throughthe woods to the campsite. Jack wasbeside the command post, checking out theassignment sheet. When he saw them, hesmiled and yelled, "Well, hello there." His gaze moved warmly fromNancy to Bess and back again. Bessmoved close to him and said, "Helloyourself. It seems like ages since I sawyou. Have you been having an excitingday?" Nancy smothered a laugh. Bessmight be falling in love, but as promised,

she was trying to help out with the case. "Oh, very exciting," Jack replied,his smile broadening. "This morning Nedand I started packing up station four. Thencame the high point-I repaired a parkservice slide projector. I tell you, the lifeof a park ranger is full of thrills!" Bess giggled. "Is Ned still around?" Nancyasked. "He was up at feeding station onea while back," Jack told her. "I think I'll hike up there," Nancytold Bess. "Go ahead," she replied. "I'll stayhere." Nancy was about halfway up thehill when she heard a shrill whistling

sound. Startled, she stopped and lookedaround. It came again from a clump ofbushes about sixty feet to the left of thepath. She made her way there andcautiously parted the scraggly branches,then let out a cry. Under the bushes was a wire trapjust like the one Ned had showed her theday before. Inside was a little marmot.One of its hind legs was caught in the doorand was badly swollen. Nancy's first impulse was to runfor help, but she couldn't bear to leave thesuffering creature. She knew that handlingan injured animal could be dangerous, soshe took the scarf from around her neckand wrapped it around her hand. Even ifthe marmot tried to bite her, the scarf

would keep its teeth from breaking herskin. She knelt down and opened the door,gingerly freeing the marmot's leg. "There, there," she crooned as sheslowly withdrew her hand. "You'll be allright now." Just then she heard Bess'svoice shouting. "Nancy, where are you?" "Over here," Nancy yelled. Sheshut the cage door and stood up as Bessand Jack came hurrying up the path. Bess was huffing when shereached Nancy's side. "What happened?We heard a terrible noise." Jack came to a stop behind Bess."I told her it was a marmot," he said. "You're right, it is a marmot. See?Its leg was caught in the trap."

"Oh, no!" Bess gasped. "Is it badlyhurt?" Jack bent down and carefullyexamined the animal, then stood up, hisface angry. "His leg's not broken, but he'sdefinitely hurt," he told them. "Let's takehim back to camp. We'll clean the cut andbandage it." "Can I help. Jack?" Bess asked,her eyes fixed on the injured animal. "Of course." Jack's face relaxedinto a smile. "With a pretty angel of mercylike you, this little guy will recover in notime." "Are you coming. Nancy?" Bessasked. Nancy shook her head. "I'm goingup to the feeding station to see if Ned's

still there." As she made her way up thehill, she kept thinking about the marmot.Had the thieves overlooked that trap whenthey collected the other marmots, or werethey starting to trap more? When she approached the fenced-off area, she saw Ned and Jennifer, theirheads close together, making someadjustments to one of the time-lapsecameras. The sight made her a littleuneasy. She took a deep breath, pasted aconfident smile on her face, and calledout, "Hi, guys." "Nancy!" Ned dashed over andgave her a big hug and a quick kiss. Nancy's spirits soared; Ned wasn'tangry with her any longer. She turned to

find Jennifer watching them, a hint ofchallenge in her eyes. "I can finish up here by myself ifyou want to take a break," Jennifer said."We got a lot accomplished today. Nancy,will you be at the square dance tonight? Itshould be lots of fun. Ned, don't forget youpromised me a Virginia reel." Ned shifted his feet uncomfortably."Oh, I won't," he said, then turned toNancy. "I worked straight through lunch,so I'm due an hour or so. You want todrive to Mammoth Hot Springs? It's myfavorite place in the park." She touched his arm lightly. "Thatwould be great." They walked down thehill and stopped at the campsite to tellBess and Jack where she was going. Bess

was so occupied with helping Jack thatshe only nodded. Ned led Nancy to one of thecamp's Jeeps. The top was down soNancy zipped up her jacket beforeclimbing in. During the twenty-minute drive,Nancy told Ned everything that hadhappened since she'd last seen him. Shementioned the Turkowers, the attack on theroad, and how she'd found the linenservice driver bound and gagged in hisvan. Ned was appalled to learn howclose Nancy had come to being run off theroad. "You've got to be more careful.Nan," he said anxiously. "I don't knowwhat I'd do if anything happened to you."

She felt a sudden glow. "Don'tworry. I know what I'm doing," she toldhim. "And anyway, what about you? I'mnot the one who got himself knocked out.How's your head today?" Ned lilted one hand from thewheel to touch the back of his head, whereit was bandaged. "It's still there," he joked. "I cantake this bandage off tomorrow, though." "I hope you've been taking it easy." "Are you kidding?" he exclaimed."We have to wrap up everything bySaturday. I've been going like crazy sincedaybreak. We all have." He pulled the Jeep onto anembankment and parked. "Come on," hesaid, pocketing the keys. "From here we

walk." They crossed the road and madetheir way up the path. "Mammoth Hot Springs is atwenty-foot- high stack of limestone withone side cut away by erosion," Ned toldher. "And it's gorgeous. Look." Nancy gasped in delight as theycleared the trees, and she saw steamingwater flowing softly down a series ofstone terraces that looked like giantmulticolored steps. Near the top the stoneswere pure white, but farther down theywere splashed with red, brown, pink, andtan. "At the top the water is so hot thatnothing can live on the stones," Ned toldher. "But the water cools off as it flows

downward, allowing algae to grow on thelower terraces. That's why those ledgesare so many different colors." "It's beautiful!" Nancy exclaimed. "I wanted to be sure you saw this,"he said, putting his arm around her waist."But I'm afraid I have to get right back tocamp. You can't imagine how much workwe still have to do." After another long look at thelimestone terraces, they reluctantly headedback to the car. "How's the case going. Nancy?"Ned asked as he drove back to thecampsite. "I'm making some progress, but nota lot," she said. "I've got too manysuspects. Anyone could have taken the key

from under the rock by the command post,which means I have to consider outsiders,like Piker and Richard." Ned nodded. "Well, if the key wasstolen, Professor Trainey obviously didn'tdo it. He's got one of his own." Nancy remained silent for amoment, then told Ned the news about thegrant extension. He looked crushed. "Dan didn'tsay a word about it," he began. "I guesshe's too upset." "It's awful, I know," Nancy saidcarefully. "And I'm afraid I've still got towatch the professor. He must be prettydesperate for money now." Ned's knuckles whitened as hegripped the wheel tighter. "That's

ridiculous. Professor Trainey is the lastperson on earth who'd get involved inpoaching marmots-no matter how hard uphe is," he said indignantly. Nancy took a deep breath. "Try tosee it objectively. He's got a strongmotive. And he has complete access to theequipment. I can't rule him out on yoursay-so." Ned was silent for a long time. Ashe pulled into the parking area, he finallyspoke. "I'm beginning to wish I'd neverasked you to help. Some help! Doesn't thepoor guy have enough problems just tryingto get this part of the project completed bySaturday? If you can't manage to leaveDan Trainey alone, you'd better just turnaround and go back to River Heights!"

Nancy's anger spoke for her. "Idon't think you want this case solved!You're more interested in protecting yourprecious professor and not offending dearJennifer than you are in finding out who'sbeen poaching marmots." "At least Jennifer pays attention towhat I say," Ned retorted hotly. Nancy knew, even as the wordsrose to her lips, that she was going toregret them. She couldn't stop herselfthough. "Is Jennifer willing to shut hereyes to the truth just because you tell herto?" she demanded. "Then all I can say,Ned Nickerson, is that the two of youdeserve each other!"

Chapter Nine If that's the way you feel, I guess Iknow what to do about it!" Ned jumpedout of the Jeep and stomped away. Nancy sat still. What had Nedmeant? Did he want to break up? She started to follow him up to thecampsite but then checked her steps.Maybe she should wait a bit to give him achance to cool off. In the meantime shedecided to talk to Bess. Nancy found herat feeding station 1, stroking the injuredmarmot through the bars of its cage. "Oh, Nancy," Bess said, "look atSpike. Isn't he adorable?" Her blue eyessparkled with enthusiasm. In spite of the way she felt. Nancy

managed a faint smile. "Spike?" "I call him that because of the wayhis fur stands up around his head," Bessexplained. "Look, Jack bandaged Spike'sleg while I held him. The little guy didn'teven try to bite me. So how did things gowith Ned?" Bess asked, glancing at her.Then she quickly added, "Uh- oh. Not sowell, huh?" "No," Nancy said. She gave Bess afull account of their most recent argument,including their parting words. "That doesn't sound good," Bessreplied, frowning. "But you don't reallythink that Ned and Jennifer..." "I don't know what to think,"Nancy said. "They've been together everyday for two and a half weeks now. But I'm

sorry I said what I did-even if I meantevery word of it!" Nancy heard footsteps. Hoping itwas Ned, she spun around eagerly. It wasProfessor Trainey. She couldn't helpletting out a sigh of disappointment. Trainey nodded to her and gaveBess a distracted glance, then bent downto peer inside the cage. "This must be thelittle fellow Jack told me about," he said. "He's so cute," Bess announced."Maybe in my next life I'll come back as amarmot." Trainey actually smiled at her-itwas the first time Nancy had seen himhappy. Bess turned to Nancy and said,"Come on, let's go check out a few sights

while the light's still good. We'll haveplenty of time to eat dinner and changebefore the square dance." Nancy sighed and said, "I'llprobably skip the dance." Bess gave her a sharp glance, thenreplied, "We can discuss that later. Rightnow, what do you say to a waterfall?"Without waiting for an answer, Besshooked her arm in Nancy's to lead herdown to the car. After a few minutes of driving.Nancy said, "Bess? I think somebody'sfollowing us. A dark blue car's been rightbehind us the whole time." All at once thecar pulled off at a scenic overlook.'"Somuch for that," Nancy said with a laugh. "Iguess I'm getting paranoid."

Bess reached over to touch hershoulder. "Nancy?" she said in a tentativevoice. "Are you positive that the professoris involved in the poaching?" "Positive? Of course not," Nancyreplied, surprised by the question. "I don'thave evidence to prove it either way.Brad says he saw Him just before hisaccident-but he wasn't positive. And thenthere was that Phi Beta Kappa key." "Then he is your chief suspect." "Well," Nancy said slowly, "noone is in a better position to set up apoaching operation than he is. ..." "What happens if we don't find themissing marmots?" Bess asked. "Or ifmore of them disappear?" "I guess the study will be ruined-

and so will the professor's career," Nancyanswered. "So poaching and selling marmotswouldn't exactly solve his problem," Besswent on. "In some ways, it would onlymake it worse." Nancy nodded. "I see what youmean, Bess." Nancy's thoughts werechurning. Was she focusing too hard onTrainey? In that case she owed Ned anapology-if she could ever get him to listento it. She slowed the car down. "There'sa sign for the falls," she announced. After finding a spot in the crowdedparking area. Nancy and Bess followed asawdust- covered path through the woods.As they walked, they heard a low,

persistent rumble in the distance. Whenthey emerged from the trees at the base ofthe falls, the sound was overwhelming. Bess tapped Nancy's arm. Nancyturned and saw her friend's lips movingbut couldn't hear anything above the roarof the water. Bess pointed up the path andraised an eyebrow. Nancy nodded andfollowed her friend to an observationplatform perched a dozen feet above theriver, just beyond the reach of the spray. She craned her neck to peer up atthe top, where the water cascaded over aridge of red and yellow volcanic rock.The constant motion of the water made herfeel a little dizzy, so she clutched therailing for support. Bess leaned her head close to

Nancy's. "Would you like the binoculars?"she shouted, holding them out. Nancy tookthem and could see the individual dropletsof water splashing into the river. Alongthe banks, bright wildflowers grew. A large group of sightseers jostledonto the platform behind Nancy. Twomiddle-aged women pushed up andflanked her. As her gaze swept fartherdown the riverbank, she noticed a manwith black hair. Frowning, she focused thebinoculars to get a clearer image. She letout a gasp because she was looking at DanTrainey, who was holding a marmot trap!Nancy focused in tighter and realized thatTrainey was talking to someone who waspartly hidden by a tree trunk. All she

could make out were the other person'shands gesturing to Trainey. She wanted to get a better view, soshe started edging her way along therailing. She had almost reached the comerof the platform when someone shouted,"Look! A red-tailed hawk!" As the crowd on the platformsurged forward, Nancy felt someone putboth hands on her back and give her apowerful shove. A moment later she wasfalling over the rail into the swirling riverbelow.

Chapter Ten Nancy gasped as she hit the icywater. She had just enough time to fill herlungs and clamp her mouth shut before theriver swirled over her. She fought her wayto the surface and tried to make it to thenearest bank, but the raging current pulledher downstream. As an eddy spun her around, shegot one last glimpse of the platform shehad just been pushed from and saw Bessfrantically making her way through thestunned crowd, trying to reach theriverbank. The current tumbled her again,pushing her into a somersault. Nancyflailed her arms wildly and managed to

keep her head up, but she didn't know howmuch longer she could hold on. Downstream, a boulder rose upabove the surface about half a dozen feetfrom shore. If only she could get to it, shethought, she might have a chance of savingherself. Nancy put all the energy anddetermination she had into powerfulstrokes and kicks. Just as she was sure shecouldn't keep it up any longer, the rockwas right in front of her. She wrapped herarms around it and took a deep breath. "Nancy! Over here!" Startled, she looked over and sawGerald Turkower standing on theriverbank near her. "Hang on!" he shouted, cautiously

stepping off the bank. He inched forward,the water swirling around his knees now,then leaned forward and stretched out hishand. Nancy reached out and grasped it.Gerald steadied himself, then reeledNancy in to the bank as if she were one ofthose cutthroat trout he had talked about atlunch. Nancy's legs were numb andwouldn't hold her up. "Thanks," she saidto Gerald through chattering teeth. "Nancy! Are you all right?" Bessdemanded, running up. "C-c-cold" was all Nancy couldmanage. Gerald took off his fleece-linedleather jacket and draped it aroundNancy's shoulders.

Bess turned to him. "Where didyou come from?" she asked curiously. His eyes flickered. "I was in thewoods, taking pictures." Nancy looked sharply at him andstruggled to find her voice. "Was anybodywith you?" she asked after a second. Gerald shook his head. "Come on.Nancy, I'll help you to your car. You needto get in and turn the heater on full blast.How did you happen to fall in?" he askedas they walked. "I didn't," she replied. "Somebodypushed me." "What?" Gerald's face registeredshock, "Are you sure? Couldn't you justhave been jostled?"

Nancy shook her head. "I distinctlyfelt two hands shoving against my back. Itwas no accident, take my word for it. Didyou see anything, Bess?" "No. I'm sorry," Bess replied onthe verge of tears. "I was looking-at thefalls." "Don't worry about it," Nancysaid. "You had no reason to thinksomebody was going to push me in." As they reached the car, Geraldtold Nancy to go back to the hotel and takea hot shower. "I'll drive. Nan," Bess offered."You relax." Nancy gave Bess the keys, thenthanked Gerald again for rescuing her. "I'm glad I was there to help," he

replied, holding the door for her. Bess turned on the heater, andsoon Nancy stopped shivering. "It was aman who pushed me," she said. "As I wentover the railing, I got an impression of hishands. They were too big and hairy tobelong to a woman. Oh, Bess," Nancysaid, interrupting herself. "Yourbinoculars! They must have fallen into theriver with me. I'm so sorry." "Do you think I care about someold binoculars when I just watched younearly drown?" Bess scolded. As Bess turned into the hotelparking lot, she continued, "Who couldhave pushed you?" "I don't know. I just don't know. Infact, I don't know what to think anymore."

A large, shiny bus was stopped infront of the hotel entrance. People werespilling out of it onto the sidewalk. "Look, Nancy," Bess saidexcitedly, pointing out the bus, which saidRandy Dean Productions. "Do you thinkRandy's with them?" she asked. Nancy smiled. "I doubt if a big starlike Randy Dean would arrive on a bus,"she said. "He's probably coming byprivate helicopter." "I guess you're right," Bess said,parking the car. "Come on, let's get youinside and warm." Nancy's legs felt likelead as she climbed the steps to the hotellobby. "All I want to do is lie down in awarm tub and soak for a month or two,"she announced as Bess unlocked the door

to their room. Bess gave her a concerned look."Are you sure you don't want to see adoctor?" "I'm sure," Nancy replied firmly."After a hot bath and a little rest, I'll be asgood as new." At Bess's urging, the girls haddinner in their room. As the waiter tookaway the tray, Bess gave Nancy a closelook and said, "You look a lot better. Youmay not be up for an evening of squaredancing, but at least you can sit andwatch." "You really think I ought to go?"Nancy asked. Bess was now standing in front ofthe mirror, smoothing the waist of her

knee-length denim skirt. "You want to seeNed, don't you?" "Of course I do," Nancy replied,then paused. "But I don't know what to sayto him." Bess spun around, went to Nancy,and sat beside her on the bed. "First you'lltell him you're sorry," she stated flatly."Then you'll say that you love him. Thenhe'll take you for a moonlight drive ..."Bess giggled. "And I'm not going to saywhat happens after that." Nancy shook her head sadly. "Ionly wish it could be that easy." Bess gave Nancy a hug. "Stopworrying. It's going to be fine." While Nancy pulled on a full-skirted blue corduroy dress, Bess went on.

"I talked to Jack while you were napping.He'll meet us in the lobby at eight." "'Us'?" Nancy repeated. "Well, sure," Bess said. "This is agroup event, you know, not a date." When they reached the head of thestairs, Bess began searching through herpurse. "I forgot my compact," she said."I've got to go back." "Okay," Nancy said. "I'll meet youin the lobby." Jack, in worn but perfectly fittingjeans and a red plaid shirt, was standingnear the foot of the stairs. He saw Nancycoming and gave her a warm smile. "Icalled Bess after you got back to the hotel,and she told me what happened," he said,concerned. "Are you all right?"

"Good as new," Nancy said. "Besswill be down in a minute." She took in the transformed lobby.All the furniture had been cleared awayfrom the central area, and a small stagehad been set up near the windows. Paperlanterns dangled from the log rafters, andbales of hay had been placed along thewalls. "They did a great job of decoratingthis place, didn't they?" Jack said, and ledthe way to a table at the edge of the dancefloor. "I'm glad you felt well enough tocome. I've been really looking forward tothe dance," he added with a glance full ofmeaning. "So has Bess," Nancy repliedpointedly as she spotted her friend coming

down the stairs. Jack sprang to his feet as Bessapproached. "Hey, you look terrific!" Bess blushed becomingly andthrew in a little curtsy. The other tables were filling up.Two men and a woman in matching shirtsclimbed up on the stage and started tuninga guitar, fiddle, and string bass. A woman in a fringed leather vestjoined the trio on stage and picked up amicrophone. "Okay, folks," she said. "We'regoing to start out real easy this evening.You don't need a partner for this one.Don't be shy, just form two long lines,gents on the left and ladies on the right.The name of the tune is 'Rabbit in the

Peapatch.'" "Come on, you two," Jack urged,springing up. As the band launched intothe rollicking tune. Nancy saw Ned andJennifer come in the door. Jennifer waspulling Ned toward the two lines ofdancers. As he passed, Ned spotted Nancyand smiled at her tentatively. Then thedance started, and Nancy was too busyfollowing the caller's instructions to payattention to Ned. "This is fun!" Bess exclaimedbreathlessly when the first number ended. Nancy smiled, but her eyes werenow searching for Ned. There he was, shethought, near the stage. He was lookingaround, too. For her? Taking a deep

breath, Nancy crossed the room. "Hi, Ned," she said. He didn't say a word, only tookher hand and led her off to the far side ofthe fireplace. They turned to face eachother. Nancy could hear the music start forthe next dance, but the only thing thatmattered now was Ned. He was staring down at the floor.She was about to say something when hespoke up. "I really lost it this afternoon,"he said, his brown eyes shining. "I'msorry. Nan. You know I didn't mean thosethings I said." "Of course I do," Nancyresponded. "I said things I didn't mean,too, and I'm sorry. I really do understandthe way you feel about Professor Trainey.

It's just that-" "It's just that you're too good adetective not to follow up on all theevidence you find, no matter where itleads," he finished. "And I wouldn't wantyou any different." Nancy put her arms around hisneck. "Oh, Ned-I'm so glad youunderstand." She pulled his head down tohers, and their lips met in a kiss that lasteda long time. When they parted, Ned held herclose and ran his fingers through her hair."Why don't we get our coats and go for adrive?" he said breathlessly. "It's abeautiful night." "I'd love it," Nancy replied. They were walking past the alcove

that held the house phones when Nedsqueezed her elbow. He put his finger tohis lips and pulled her back out of sight. "Gerry? It's me." Nancyrecognized Professor Trainey's voice. Shestrained to make out the words. "Yes, I know," she heard theprofessor say into the phone. "It can't behelped. Late tomorrow night? Yes, thecamp should be quiet. No juniordetectives to get in our way."

Chapter Eleven Nancy heard Trainey hang up andthen watched him walk away. Ned was slumped against the wall,his eyes filled with misery. He stared ather. "You were right about the professorall along." The bitterness in his voicesurprised Nancy. Her heart ached for him."I'm sorry, Ned," she said, slipping herarms around him. "I kept hoping it wasn'thim, but-" "'Junior detectives,'" Ned spatout. "And I kept telling you how much herespected and cared about his students. Hethinks we're a joke!" "He must be pretty desperate,"

Nancy pointed out. "I don't think he wouldhave gotten involved if it weren't for hismoney problems. And let's face it-if he isinvolved, our investigation must really begetting in his way." Ned's eyes widened. "If? Ofcourse he's involved. You heard what hesaid. He's planning something fortomorrow night. And he was talking toTurkower!" Nancy remained impassive. "I'vegot to admit, that surprises me," she beganslowly. "After what Gerald did today tosave me, I was starting to think he wasokay." Ned was obviously confused, andNancy realized that she hadn't told himabout her dip into the river. She took a

deep breath and told the whole story."Gerald pulled me out," she concluded. "I just can't believe that someone Iadmired so much could be involved insomething so awful." Ned shook his head."Trainey is such a hypocrite." Nancy stepped back. "Look, Ned. Idon't have any real proof against theprofessor, just what Brad said, so let's notjump to conclusions. What I really need todo is catch the poachers in the act, and itsounds like I might be able to do thattomorrow night." Ned brightened a little. "Are youstill up for that drive?" he asked. "I know Iam. I'm sick of thinking about this mess." "I'll run upstairs for my jacket,"Nancy replied.

When she came back downdressed for the outdoors she wavedgoodbye to Bess, who was dancing in asquare with Jack. Her friend gave her abig grin, then Nancy went out to theparking lot. It was quite chilly, and shewas glad to see that Ned had put the topup. "Feel like looking at the moonfrom the shore of Yellowstone Lake," heasked her softly as he started the Jeep. On an impulse Nancy leaned overand kissed him on the cheek. He reached over and squeezed herhand. "Will you forgive me for being sopigheaded?" "I already have, Ned." They'd just turned onto the

parkway that ran beside the lake whenNancy said, "Ned, look. Somebody's introuble." Parked on the opposite shoulderwas a low- slung Italian sports car. Thedriver was standing with a flashlightpointed under the raised hood. Ned pulled over and then carefullyturned around so he could light up thesports car. He leaned out and called,"Need help?" The driver moving toward themwas very familiar. They had both seen thatface on countless posters and CDs. "Is that who I think it is?" Ned saidto Nancy. Nancy studied the man's liquidbrown eyes and curly, honey-colored hair.

"It is. It's Randy Dean!" "Hi there!" Randy stopped next toNed's door and leaned over to peer intothe window. "Thanks for coming to myrescue." "You have car trouble?" Nedasked. The rock star shrugged. "It looksthat way. I went over a big bump a whileback and heard a loud thump. Then, abouthalf a mile back, the engine startedsputtering. Now it's stopped. Do you knowanything about cars?" "We both know a little," Nedreplied. "We can take a look if you'dlike." "Great." Randy backed away, andNed and Nancy got out of the Jeep. He

held his hand out to Ned. "I'm RandyDean." Ned grinned. "Yeah, we figuredthat out. I'm Ned Nickerson and this isNancy Drew." "Hi, Nancy." She was surprised athow personable and open Randy seemed. Ned reached for Randy'sflashlight, clicked it on, and peered underthe hood. Nancy joined him. They poked around under the hoodfor a few minutes, then Ned said, "I don'tknow what's wrong. Let me see if I canstart it." Ned climbed into the driver's seat,but when he turned the key in the ignition,the engine only coughed and sputtered. Nancy leaned inside and looked at

the array of gauges on the dashboard. "Didyou know you're out of gas?" Randy frowned. "That'simpossible. I filled the tank just an hourago." Ned got down on the ground andshone the flashlight under the car. "You'vegot a leak in your fuel line," he reported."It must have happened when you hit thatbump. All your gas has leaked out," hesaid, getting up and slapping his palmsagainst his jeans. Ned offered to take Randy to thehotel. The rock star transferred hisluggage from the tiny trunk of the sportscar to the Jeep and climbed into thebackseat next to it. "I read a magazine article about

you the other night," Nancy said casually."It mentioned that you collect whistlingmarmots." "I used to have quite a few ofthem," Randy admitted. "They make funpets. But I don't collect them anymore." "Why not?" Nancy asked. "I realized how wrong it is to takeanimals out of the wild," he repliedearnestly. "In fact, that's why I'm here. I'mdoing a TV program on the importance ofprotecting wild animals and their habitats.Would you guys like to come watch usfilm?" "We'd love to," Nancy promptlyreplied. "Do you think I could bring afriend, too? She's a big fan of yours." Nedpulled into the hotel parking lot.

"Of course you can," Randy said."I'll write a note to the production crew assoon as I get upstairs. Thanks foreverything. I would have had to sit outthere all night." "Glad we could help," Nedreplied. He gave Randy a hand carryinghis luggage into the lobby while Nancyparked the Jeep. The square dance was still goingon as Nancy and Ned found a quiet spotand settled down on a couch on the farside of the big room. "I keep thinking about that phonecall," Ned said. "You think the Turkowersare the buyers?" "It seems that way." "What do you think they're

arranging for tomorrow night?" he asked. "My hunch is that Trainey's goingto turn over the marmots he's alreadycaptured to the Turkowers." Ned acted surprised. "You thinkthe animals are still in the park?" "Yes, I do," Nancy said. "If theyweren't, why would the Turkowers behanging around? And I'll bet they're beingkept somewhere fairly close to thecampsite, too." "So what's our next move?" "We have to keep our eyes on theTurkowers and Trainey-and I'm stillinterested in Piker and Richard. It couldbe that the professor hired them to do therough work," she speculated. "But themain thing is, it's obvious that this whole

case is centered at your camp. We can'thope to solve it if I'm always somewhereelse. I think it's time Bess and I move tothe campsite." "So you and Bess are going tocamp." Ned grinned. "I'd love to be therewhen you break the news to her." Nancy grimaced. "Do you haveany idea what we can do aboutequipment? We'll need a tent and sleepingbags at least." "There are outfitters in WestYellowstone and Jackson that sellcamping gear. But why not ask MartinRobbins at the ranger station? I bet hecould lend you what you need." "Good idea," she said. He put his arm around Nancy's

shoulders, and she settled back againsthim. "I'm glad you're moving to the camp,"he continued softly. "Having you so nearwill be the only bright spot in this wholeawful situation." "I can't believe that you actuallymet Randy Dean!" Bess exclaimed."That's too awesome! What's he like?" Nancy yawned. The morning sunwas streaming through the window."Really nice, Bess. He acts like a regularguy. But you'll have a chance to meethim," Nancy said. "He's staying right herein the hotel. And he invited us to comewatch him making his TV special. I hopewe can." "What do you mean, you hope we

can?" Bess demanded. "Wild horsescouldn't stop me!" Nancy smiled. "I don't know aboutwild horses, but we are here on aninvestigation, remember." Bess stared at her, aghast, thenimmediately brightened. "Oh, we'll solveit in plenty of time," she proclaimed. "Listen, Bess," Nancy said as sheran a brush through her hair. "I think themissing marmots are being shipped outtonight." She told her friend about thephone call. "I know you're not going tolike this," she continued slowly, "but weneed to move to the campsite to watch thesituation more closely." "Oh, no!" Bess wailed. "Leave thehotel just when Randy Dean arrives? And

move into a cold tent? I'll die!" "Oh, come on, where's your senseof adventure?" Nancy asked lightly."Besides, if I'm right that tonight is thenight, it won't be for long." "Well-okay," Bess said gloomily."I'll do it, but don't expect me to enjoy it." "After breakfast I'm going to headover to the ranger station to talk to MartinRobbins. Maybe he can assign somerangers to patrol the campsite tonight. Nedalso thought he might have a tent and acouple of sleeping bags we can borrow,"Nancy said. Bess dusted powder on her nose,then frowned at her image in the mirror."What about me?" she asked. "I want you to track down the

Turkowers," Nancy said. "See if you canfind out what they're up to today. I'll pickyou up here when I come back from seeingRobbins, and we can go out to thecampsite together." As she walked toward her car,Nancy noticed a piece of paper tuckedunder the windshield wiper. It might be acircular of some sort, she thought, but shehad a hunch it wasn't. Distinctly uneasy,she unfolded the paper. The message was short and to thepoint: "Mind your own business, NancyDrew. Marmots aren't the only things thatcan disappear!"

Chapter Twelve Nancy stared at the note. It hadbeen written in large, square letters with ared marker on a piece of computer paper.It resembled the paper they were using atthe campsite, but she'd have to compare itto be sure. Still, with the key to thecommand post missing, that hardlynarrowed things down. She leaned against the side of thecar and thought. The poachers wereobviously desperate to get her off thecase. They'd tried to put her out ofcommission twice the day before- andnow this note. She'd planned to watch hermain suspects closely, but it made her un-easy to think that they had their eyes on

her, too. Nancy put the threatening note inher pocket, got into the car, and started forthe ranger station. As she drove, she foundherself frequently checking the rearviewmirror, but she didn't see any sign that shewas being followed. When she entered MartinRobbins's office, he was standing at thebig wall map of Yellowstone with a sheafof papers in his hand. He turned and said,"Hello, Nancy. What brings you here?" "I wanted to fill you in on what'sbeen happening with the case," she said,joining him at the map. As she recited everything,beginning with the incident at the falls andending with the conversation she'd

overheard between Trainey and GeraldTurkower, Martin's frown deepened."You've been busy. And it looks likeyou're making progress flushing thesecharacters out." He crossed his arms andsaid slowly, "But from what you say,you've haven't got enough proof for me tomove on." He went behind his desk andsat down, then gestured toward a chair. "I know that," Nancy said, sittingdown. "That's why I'm moving to theEmerson campsite today. From whatTrainey said on the phone, I think themissing marmots are going to be shippedout tonight, and I'm pretty sure they'rebeing kept someplace nearby," shereplied.

The ranger nodded. He remainedsilent for a moment, then hit the desk withhis fist. "I feel as if my hands are tied onthis. Without more proof, I can't justify afull-scale search of the area around thecamp, but I will beef up the patrolvehicles along that stretch of the highwaytonight." Nancy smiled slightly. "That willhelp. And that reminds me-there'ssomething else you can do for me. I waswondering if you have some camping gearI could borrow. All my friend Bess and Ireally need is a tent and two sleepingbags." Robbins chuckled. "And a coupleof air mattresses, too, believe me.Otherwise, you'll be so sore after one

night that you won't be able to walk. Letme think. I know I have a couple ofsleeping bags here, but I may have to callaround to get you a tent. And anyway, I'mnot sure it's such a great idea. Thesepeople have already shown how ruthlessthey are." "I know that," Nancy repliedgrimly. "That's why I have to stop themnow." Robbins rubbed his chinthoughtfully. Finally he said, "Well, allright, but on one condition-you call me thesecond anything starts to go down. I don'twant to take any chances." "I understand," Nancy told him. He made a call. "One of therangers over at Tower Junction has a tent

he can lend you. He'll be passing by herein half an hour, so he'll drop it off. Okay?" "Great," Nancy replied. "Thanks alot. I guess I'll go get Bess and drop her bythe campsite, then come back." She started to get up, then sankback down in her seat. "There's one morething. You've got two park maintenancemen named Richard and Piker. I saw themtalking to the Turkowers. That's just one ofthe things that makes me suspicious ofthem. How well do you know them?" Martin leaned back in his chairand gazed toward the ceiling. "If you meanpersonally, I hardly know them at all," hefinally said. "As far as their work goes, nocomplaints about them." Nancy looked at Martin earnestly.

"I know this is slightly irregular, but couldI please see their personnel files?" Martin frowned. "I'm sorry.Nancy. Those files are confidential." "Oh, of course, I understand,"Nancy replied. "I wouldn't dream ofasking you to do something that's againstthe rules. But you have the right to consulttheir files, don't you?" "Of course I do," Martin said. "And if you looked through themand noticed anything that might beimportant for me to know, it would beonly natural to mention it, wouldn't it?" A slow smile spread across hislips. "That's so," he said, getting up andcrossing to a bank of gray metal filecabinets. He scanned the labels on the

drawers, then opened one near the bottomand pulled out two olive-colored hangingfile folders. "Here we are," he said."Richard Geismar and Piker Slattery." He opened the first of the files andglanced through it. Next he looked at thesecond one. "That's funny," he said."These two guys both grew up in Ashland,Idaho. That's a little town about fortymiles west of the park. They were born inthe same year, too." He flipped back and forth betweenthe two files. "Odd," he continued. "Theirjob records are practically identical." "Would you mind if I check one ortwo of their references?" Nancy asked."I'd need to use your phone." "I think that would be all right,"

Martin said. He grabbed a scratch pad andscribbled a couple of names andaddresses on it, then passed it over. "Hereare the most recent references." Nancy dialed, but the first numberMartin gave her was disconnected. Shetried the next one. "Hopper and Wade Construction,"a polite voice said. "May I help you?" Nancy put on her mostprofessional voice. "I hope so. I'm calling from theNational Park Service in Yellowstone."She gave Martin an apologetic look, buthe just grinned. She turned her attentionback to the phone, telling the woman thatRichard and Piker were looking for jobsand had listed Hopper and Wade as a

reference. "Gee, I'm sorry, but I don'trecognize the names," the woman said."Just a minute, let me punch them into ourcomputer." Nancy held her breath as thewoman put her on hold. Finally, she hearda click over the line. "I'm sorry, but wedon't have a record of anyone with eitherof those names. Are you sure you have theright company?" "Yes," Nancy replied. "Well,thanks very much." She hung up. "Richardand Piker lied on their applications," shetold Martin. "That's enough to get them fired.It's strange -we usually check references,"Martin said. "But it doesn't prove thatthey're poachers- only liars. Come on, I'll

get those sleeping bags and air mattressesfor you." They loaded the gear into thetrunk, then Martin said, "I'll see youlater," and went back inside. At the hotel Nancy found Besssitting in the lobby, wearing a blue workshirt and well-cut blue denim overalls."I'm all ready to go camping," sheannounced. "At least, as ready as I'll everbe." "What's with the Turkowers?" "The desk clerk told me they wentoff for a day-long hike through the GrandCanyon of the Yellowstone," Bess replieddutifully. "I wonder if that's where theyreally are," Nancy said, then explained

that she'd gotten mattresses and sleepingbags from Martin but had to go back forthe tent. "I'll drop you off at the campsitefirst," she went on a little tensely. "I wantyou to keep track of the professor." Fifteen minutes later Nancywatched Bess trudge up the path to thecampsite, two sleeping bags slung overher shoulder and a suitcase in her lefthand. Back at the ranger station. Nancyfound a very grim Martin Robbins. "Ichecked out the other references thoseclowns gave," he reported. "Every one ofthem a fake. They're out of here first thingMonday morning whether you turn upanything against them or not. My next jobwill be to find out how they got through

the hiring process in the first place. Thesystem is supposed to prevent this kind ofthing." "This place is deserted," Bess toldNancy back at the campsite. "Everyonewent off to the feeding stations to packup." "What about Trainey?" Nancyasked. "That's the weird thing," Bessreplied. "I went up to the command post awhile ago and noticed the professorriming through a stack of photos. When hegot to one of them, he got livid. I mean, hisface turned bright red and he stalked off tohis tent, then hopped into a Jeep and blewout of here." She stared at her friend.

"What do you think it means?" "I have no idea," Nancy replied. "Jack acted strange, too," Besscontinued, frowning. "I asked him to helpme feed Spike, but he brushed me off. Idon't understand it. Just last night he wassaying he could get really serious aboutme and today you'd think I had the plague." "I don't know quite how to saythis," Nancy said slowly, "but Jack hasbeen more or less flirting with me, too." "Really?" Bess's eyes grew roundwith surprise. Nancy nodded. Bess was silent for a long time.Tears welled up in her eyes, but she shookher head and angrily wiped them away.Finally she said, "You must think I'm a

real idiot, falling for such a total phony.He was faking his interest in me the wholetime, wasn't he?" Nancy shook her head. "He's veryconvincing,"-she said. "And maybe he issincere in a way. He may be one of thoseguys who doesn't feel good about himselfunless he's got somebody falling in lovewith him. So he convinces himself that thelines he's passing out are true." Bess straightened up, then put on asmile. "Believe me, from now on I'mstaying away from him." "Come on, Bess," Nancy said tochange the subject. "This is the perfectopportunity to search Trainey's tent." Bess became alarmed. "But hemight come back at any time!"

"You can stand outside and keepwatch." "Well-okay," Bess saidreluctantly. The two girls walked across thecampground that was half packed already.Nancy looked at the piles of boxes with afeeling of urgency. She had to get to thebottom of things before time ran out. While Bess stood guard in front ofTrainey's tent. Nancy slipped inside.There was a sleeping bag spread out atopan army cot, a single, well-worn suitcase,and a folding table with a laptopcomputer. Nancy knelt down and openedthe suitcase, but all it contained wereclean, neatly folded clothes. She turnedher attention to a few papers next to the

computer, which turned out to be notes fora report on the project. Trainey's green coat and floppygreen hat were lying on the cot. Nancypicked them up and felt through the coatpockets. In the inside pocket was anenvelope that contained a singlephotograph. It was too dark to make it out.She put the coat and hat back the way theyhad been and hurried outside. "What is it?" Bess demanded."Did you find something?" "Yes, this picture." In the brightsunshine, it was easy to distinguish thefigure of a person in a green coat andgreen hat walking out of the hut by feedingstation 1. The hat and coat were Trainey's! Bess flashed her friend a puzzled

look. "What's so important about thispicture?" Nancy pointed. "Look at the dateand time at the bottom." Bess read, then counted on herfingers. "Nancy!" she exclaimed. "Thatwas just before the propane stoveexploded. That proves it! Trainey causedBrad's accident!"

Chapter Thirteen This picture is proof. Nancy,"Bess repeated. "Trainey had to havetampered with the stove." "I'm not positive, Bess," Nancysaid. "The picture's too blurry. It could beanybody wearing that hat and coat, and ifit is Trainey, why would he keep such anincriminating picture? Why not destroyit?" Bess gave the photograph back toNancy. "I don't know." "And besides," Nancy continued,"it seems likely that this is the picture thatmade Trainey so upset. What if this isn'tTrainey? When he saw it, he must haverealized that somebody was trying to

frame him. He may even have figured outwho." Nancy scrutinized the photograph.The floppy hat and turned-up collar of thecoat made an effective disguise. All thatshowed of the person's face was onecheek and part of the nose. Frustrated, she was about to putthe photo away when she noticed a smallwhite spot on the person's nose. Shestudied it closely but couldn't tell what itwas. It could just be a speck of dust on thelens of the enlarger. She slipped the photo into herpocket just as she heard Ned, Jennifer, andAlicia come down the path from thefeeding station. "Welcome to Camp Marmotville,"

Alicia called. "Thanks," Nancy replied. "How'sit going?" "We've got the packing undercontrol," Jennifer said. "Hey, you haven'tseen my dad, have you?" "He left here in a Jeep about forty-five minutes ago," Bess reported. Jennifer frowned. "Huh. He wassupposed to meet us up the hill, but henever showed up. I think I'll check theother feeding stations. Maybe a problemcame up." She walked off toward theroad. "Are those maintenance guysaround today?" Nancy asked. "I haven't seen them," Ned replied. "What about Jack?" Nancy went

on. "Is he still at the feeding station?" "No. He came through about anhour ago but said he had paperwork todo," Ned explained. "I'm sure he'll showup in a little while." "So you guys moved out here justin time for our big cookout," Alicia said,smiling. "Cookout?" Bess asked withinterest. "Our farewell dinner," Aliciaexplained. "To celebrate the end of stagetwo of the study. I'm about to make potatosalad. Anyone want to help?" Bess gave Nancy an inquiringlook, then said, "Sure, I'm game." As they walked away. Nancy toldNed about Richard and Piker's references.

"Can you get away? I want to check thoseguys out." "Sure," Ned said. "I'll just take thetime." "I'm a little concerned aboutProfessor Trainey now, Ned," Nancy saidas she started the car and headed for thewestern entrance of the park. She told Ned about the photographshe found in Trainey's tent. "What if I'vebeen wrong about him? If he knew whowas in that photo and went to confronthim, he could be in danger." "Do you think we should go backand look for him?" Ned asked. Nancy shook her head. "Let's leavethat to Jennifer for now." The narrow road led down into a

valley and across a railroad track into atown. She turned onto the main street. Itwas lined with two- story wood framebuildings and resembled the set for awestern. Just past the business district wasa white building with a green slate roof.The sign out front identified it as the townhall. Nancy parked, and they walked in. The Ashland Police Departmentoccupied one big room on the groundfloor. A husky man of about thirty wassitting at one of the two desks. The nameplate on the desk said Chief Tucker. AsNancy and Ned approached the counterseparating the waiting area from theoffice, he raised his head with a friendlysmile. "Hi, folks, can I help you?"

Nancy introduced herself and Nedand explained that they were investigatinga poaching scheme in Yellowstone Park."You can call Chief Ranger Robbins tocheck us out," she added. "Thanks, I'll do that." He swiveledto face the telephone and spoke for acouple of minutes, then turned back tothem. "Well, now, Nancy and Ned, whatcan I do for you?" "We need information about twomen named Richard Geismar and PikerSlattery," Nancy said. "According to theirfiles, they grew up in Ashland." Tucker frowned. "Those namesdon't ring a bell, but I've only been herethree years." He went over to the filecabinets along the back wall. "We've got

files here that go back pretty far," heremarked as he flipped through one of thedrawers. "If either of these guys were everinvolved in anything illegal, it shouldshow in this drawer. Ah, here we go." He returned to his desk with twomanila folders and began to leaf throughthem. "Well, well," he said. "Definitelynot model citizens. Vandalism, grand theftauto, breaking and entering, arson. Theydid time for that one." "Wow," Ned said. "It looks likeyou were right to suspect them, Nancy." Tucker showed her a photo of amuch younger Piker. "That's one of them,"she confirmed. "You watch your step with thesefellows," Tucker said. "You know who

could tell you all about them? MargeryMilliken, the principal at the consolidatedhigh school before she retired. Go downto the end of the street and turn right," hesaid, gesturing. "It's a white house. I'll callto tell her you're coming." Nancy thanked Tucker for his help,and she and Ned returned to the car. Theyfound the house easily. The womanwaiting on the porch steps was wearing adark skirt and a white blouse. Her grayhair was twisted up in a french roll. Apair of reading glasses dangled from herneck. "Ms. Drew, Mr. Nickerson? I'mMargery Milliken. I understand you wantsome information about two of my formerstudents. Come in."

She motioned them to the sofa."Now, what do you want to know aboutRichard and Piker?" "Whatever you can tell us," Nancyreplied. The woman tightened her lips, thenshook her head sadly. "Not among mysuccesses, I'm afraid. They both had badrecords in school. But I think they mighthave straightened out if it hadn't been forJeff Barnes. He was a year younger thanthey, but there was no question who wasthe ringleader, especially at the end." "What happened?" Ned asked. Ms. Milliken clicked her tongue."One night the three of them stole a car.When it ran low on gas, they broke into afilling station about twenty miles west of

here. To cover their tracks, they set theplace on fire, but something went wrong.Jeff's hand was badly burned, and ofcourse they were caught. Richard andPiker went to jail, but Jeff was still ajuvenile, so he was given a suspendedsentence. The Barnes family moved awayright after that, and Richard and Pikerhave never shown their faces around heresince. "Thank you so much," Nancy said.They chatted a little while longer. ThenNancy andNed told Ms. Milliken goodbye andreturned to the car. Ned offered to drive. Nancy was certain now thatRichard and Piker were involved in thepoaching, but they didn't sound like the

organizers. Who then? If that Jeff Barneswere around, he'd be a perfect candidate. By the time they got back to camp,the sun was low in the sky. Preparationsfor the cookout were in full swing. "Ned?" Alicia asked. "Could youbring that big table from the shed? Jacksaid he'd do it this morning, but he nevershowed up." "Sure," Ned said, and headed off. "Is your father back?" Nancy askedJennifer. Jennifer was obviously worried."No, and I can't understand it. Where canhe be?" Nancy wanted to say somethingreassuring, but she was worried herself. When darkness fell. Nancy helped

Ned build a fire while Bess set out plates,napkins, and bowls of coleslaw andpotato salad. The hamburgers and frankstasted delicious, but Professor Trainey'sabsence spoiled the good time. Peoplekept glancing over their shoulders into thesurrounding darkness, then inching closerto the fire. "Maybe Jack and the professorwent off together and had car trouble,"Alicia suggested. Jennifer shook her head. "Jack hasa two- way radio in his car," she pointedout. "All rangers do. He could have calledthe station and had somebody come bywith a message." Nancy's thoughts spun. What if heroriginal idea, that Trainey was the head of

the poachers, was right after all, and Jackhad discovered it? Trainey and his gangmight be holding Jack captive to keep himfrom interfering with the last phase of theoperation. As the party broke up, Nancy tookNed and Bess aside. "We have to taketurns keeping watch tonight," she toldthem, checking her watch. "It's just eleven.I'll take the first two hours, then Ned canspell me." Bess nodded and quickly duckedinto the tent, leaving Nancy and Ned alonein the moonlight. "Should I stay with you?" Nedasked. "It might be safer." Nancy put her arms around hisneck. "I'd love you to, but you might

distract me from my job. Besides, youneed to rest before your shift." "All right. Be careful, Nan," Nedwhispered. He gave her a lingering kiss,then went to his tent. Nancy watched him go with asense of regret and loneliness. Shecrossed the campground to the spot shehad picked out earlier, next to a largelodge pole pine. It gave her a clear viewof the campsite but kept her hidden indeep shadows. The camp grew quiet. In thedistance an owl hooted. Somewherecloser, an animal crept stealthily throughthe underbrush. Nancy shivered and pulledthe zipper of her jacket up higher. Ghostlywisps of white fog began to drift by.

Nancy shifted her position, folded herarms tight against her chest, and scannedthe camp. As the minutes ticked by, she felther eyes closing. So she decided to walkaround to keep from falling asleep. Shecircled the campground, then walkedhalfway down the road that led to thehighway. Stopping just before the lastbend, she saw a truck move by, its emptyrear end rattling. She tensed. It seemed odd to betraveling through the park at that hour.Without stopping to think, she raced downthe road, reaching the highway just in timeto see the truck turn into the woods about aquarter of a mile east. It looked to Nancyto be near the spot where Piker and

Richard had been working on the newtrail. She jogged to the place where thetruck had disappeared, realizing that therewas a dirt access road there. Themaintenance men had probably used it tomove supplies into their work area. Nancy turned in and kept running.She'd covered about a half a mile whenshe saw the truck parked up ahead. Sheslowed and made her way up to itcautiously. She heard a low voice on the farside of the cab. It was Richard! Aflashlight clicked on, illuminating thefigures of the two maintenance men. "Hurry up," Piker said. "We've gota lot of work to do."

"Yeah," Richard replied. "I'm notlooking forward to carrying all thosecages." Nancy's spine stiffened. Thatmeant the marmots had to be stashedsomeplace nearby. The two men began movingforward. Nancy followed at a safedistance. The access road ended abouttwenty feet beyond the truck, dwindlinginto a path that wound up a hillside. Her calf muscles were feeling thestrain of the climb, and she began to noticethat the trees were thinning out. Nancyspied a cabin to the right of the trail. Pikerunlocked the door and the two of themwent inside. Nancy circled the cabin andsaw a small window in the back. She

crept up to it, pulled herself up, andpeered in through the dusty pane. Her breath caught in her throat.Lining the walls were dozens of cages ofmarmots. Nancy could hear Piker. "Thattranquilizer is strong. They'll be under fora few hours, plenty of time to get them allinto the truck and out of here." . "How much longer do we have tohang around here?" Richard asked. Piker shrugged. "Until the bossgets back. He said he wanted to nosearound the camp to make sure the kiddieswere all in bed." Nancy let herself down from thewindow. Any minute the boss could comeback. She had to get out of sight. She wasturning to go when two strong hands

grabbed her and forced her arms upbehind her back!

Chapter Fourteen Nancy's captor hustled her aroundto the front of the cabin, kicked the dooropen, and shoved her through. Shestumbled into the light and fell to the floor.Piker and Richard spun around, startled. "We've got a visitor," a familiarvoice announced. Nancy looked up. Jack Billingswas standing next to the open door, arevolver in his hand pointed toward her. She sat up cautiously as heapproached. The gun was about two feetfrom her face when she noticed the bumscar on his hand. Just then everything fellinto place. "Hello, Jeff," she said as calmly as

she could. "Didn't anyone ever tell youthat keeping the same initials when youtake an alias is one of the oldest mistakesin the book?" "You have been doing someinvestigating, haven't you?" he said. Nancy swallowed. Shedesperately needed to play for time. If shecould stall the three of them, Ned mightcome searching for her or one of the patrolcars Martin Robbins had assigned to thearea might check up the access road. "Your poaching plan was prettyclever," she told Jack. "How did youcome up with it?" Jack leaned back against thedoorjamb but kept the gun pointed atNancy. "I saw an article a while back

about Randy Dean and his marmots. It saidthat people were paying a lot of money forthem." Nancy nodded, and he continued,apparently glad to have an appreciativeaudience. "A little later I was sorting themail at the ranger station when I cameacross a letter from Trainey about themarmot study. I saw my chance right awayand volunteered to serve as liaison to theproject." "And you managed to get Richardand Piker hired as maintenance men inspite of their forged references," Nancyguessed. "You hear that, guys?" Jack saidmockingly. "She's onto you." "Come on, enough chitchat,"

Richard said. "Let's pack up and get out ofhere." Anger flashed across Jack'shandsome face. "I'm the one who makesthe decisions around here," he growled."Get those cages into the truck. I'll makeour guest comfortable." While Piker and Richard startedcarrying cages out of the cabin, he tooksome rope and tied Nancy's wrists behindher back, then tugged her toward a door inthe comer of the room. "Hey, Prof," he called, shoving itopen, "here's some company for you." Trainey was sitting on the floor ofthe small storeroom, his hands tied behindhis back. His face was caked with driedblood from a gash on his forehead.

"Are you all right?" she asked asJack pushed her down beside him. He nodded. "I'm sorry they gotyou, too," he said in a low voice. "I'm sorry we got either of you,"Jack cut in. "I don't like complications. Idid my best to convince you to stay out ofour way. But you wouldn't listen, so youhave to pay the price." Keep him talking, Nancy toldherself. "How did you manage to steal somany marmots?" she asked. "Easy!" Jack bragged. "I had Pikerand Richard steal some cages, then I got aprintout of the transmitter signals. I knewthe counts were done in the afternoon, sowe started trapping right after dark onTuesday and worked all night. We hauled

them up here and removed the transmitterslong before the college crowd was evenawake." "You missed Spike," Nancycommented. "Spike," Jack spat out. "Thatfriend of yours is really something. She iscute, though, I've got to give her that." Nancy wanted to punch him. Just then Piker and Richardreturned for more cages. As they gatheredup a second load, Professor Traineyasked, "Why did you try to kill Brad?" Jack scowled. "I didn't," he said,robbing the scar on the back of his hand."All I wanted to do was discourage him,so I rigged the stove." "But you were giving a slide show

during the time it was sabotaged," Nancysaid. Jack gave her a self-satisfiedsmile. "Hey, that's right. I guess I didn't doit after all!" Nancy thought quickly. "Aliciaused the stove to make hot chocolate atabout six-thirty, and Brad came on duty atseven-thirty. So the stove had been riggedby then." Jack leaned back against the doorframe. "You're pretty good. Nancy. Butyou should have checked that out more.The narration for the show was taped. Istarted it, then slipped back to thecampsite." Nancy nodded. "Borrowing the professor's coat

and hat was a nice touch, you've got toadmit," he went on. "If anyone saw me,they'd suspect it was him." "Except for the fact that one of thetime lapse cameras caught you leaving thehut," Trainey said dryly. "The moment Isaw it, I realized it was you who hadtampered with the stove." Nancy turned to Trainey. "How? Ifound the picture in your tent but couldn'ttell who it was." "I had an advantage over you.Nancy," Trainey explained. "Iremembered that Jack had been bitten onthe nose by a marmot and wore a bandagefor a few days." "The white spot!" Nancy gasped."So that's what it was."

There was a loud crash outside,and Jack rushed out the door. The moment he was out of sight.Nancy started struggling against her rope.Pain shot through her wrists, and shecould tell she was getting nowhere. "Howdid he capture you?" she asked ProfessorTrainey. "Sheer stupidity," he replied."When I saw that picture, I got mad andrushed off to find him. I met up with him atfeeding station two, which is near here.He hit me, and when I came to I was inthis cabin." Jack returned with Piker. "Okay,let's go," he said, and grabbed Trainey bythe front of his shirt and pulled him to hisfeet. Nancy managed to stand up on her

own. To distract Jack, she asked, "Wereyou the one who pushed me off theplatform and tried to run me off the road?" "Not guilty," he replied. "That wasRichard. He knocked out your boyfriend,too. Ned walked in while Richard wasstealing the tranquilizer." "You're a real bunch of creeps,"Trainey lashed out. "Calm down, professor," Jack toldhim. "I gave you all plenty of warnings. Ieven put a note on Nancy's windshield.Why didn't you pay attention? It's all yourown fault. Okay, Piker, grab that roll oftape and a flashlight." "Where are you taking us?" Nancyasked as Jack shoved her and Trainey

toward the door. "I want to show you one ofYellowstone's natural wonders," hereplied blandly, taking the pistol from hisbelt. He and Piker forced them to marchup the hill behind the cabin while Richardwalked off toward the truck. The fog hadthickened. Even with the flashlight, it wasimpossible to see more than a few yardsahead. They reached the crest of the hilland started down. At the foot of it. Nancystopped abruptly. Just ahead was a largecrack in the earth, a dark, ominous ribbonsnaking its way across the ground. "What's that?" Nancy askedTrainey, trying to hide the fright she felt.

"It looks like a runoff fissure,"Trainey said. "Every geyser has one. It'sthe path the heated water takes after beingshot into the air. It comes down the side ofthe geyser cone, collects, and runs alongthe fissure to underground pools." "Exactly, Professor," Jack said. While Jack held the gun. Pikertaped Nancy's ankles together, then pickedher up and wedged her down into thefissure. Trainey was lowered next to her. "Come on. Piker," Jack said."We've got to finish loading the truck.Let's get out of here." "Wait," Nancy cried, but there wasno response. "Professor Trainey?" sheasked. "What's going to happen?" Trainey's voice was grave. "If I

have my bearings right, the water fromPrincess Geyser takes this path down thehill." He stared at Nancy. "It erupts everytwo hours or so." "You mean this fissure could fillup with boiling water soon?" Trainey closed his eyes. "That'sright." A sudden hissing noise broke thesilence. Nancy gasped. It was the geyser!Any minute they'd be scalded to death!

Chapter Fifteen Nancy shut her eyes andconcentrated on rubbing the ropes on herwrist against a rough place on the fissurewall. Was it her imagination or could shefeel one of them give just a bit? Besides her, Trainey groaned. She twisted her right arm, trying toget added leverage against the rope. Shewas sure that her skin was raw by now. The hissing grew louder. Nancysaw the glitter of reflected moonlight onrushing water below where she waswedged. Damp steam rose and envelopedher. With a desperate yank, she managedto pull one hand out of the looped rope,then free the other. She let the rope fall.

"Listen, Professor, I've got myhands free. I'm going to try to climb out,then pull you to safety." "Good luck," Trainey said. Nancy noticed the rotten egg smellof sulphur. Her eyes were stinging.Cautiously, she brought her arms around infront of her and pressed her palms againstthe opposite wall of the fissure, thenmoved her knees up a couple of inches. "We're running out of time,"Trainey gasped. "The water is rising tooquickly." "I know." Nancy patiently workedher knees and hands upward. Her arm andleg muscles threatened to cramp, but atlast one hand touched the top of thefissure. She grabbed hold, then quickly

twisted, swinging her other hand to theother lip, just above where her head hadbeen. Before her lower body could slidedown into the crevice, she hoisted herselfup. For a minute her feet dangleddangerously near the bubbling water at thebottom of the fissure. Then she thrust herself onto theedge and rolled away. She took a deepbreath, tore the tape off her ankles, thenleaned over to unbind Trainey's hands andfeet. The professor was panting by thetime she'd talked him through themaneuvers that allowed him to climb outof the fissure. "We got out just in time," Traineysaid, once he'd caught his breath. He

looked back at the crevice. The boilingcurrent was halfway up the walls now."Thanks to you. Nancy." "We can talk later," Nancy said."Right now, we've got to stop thatshipment from going out." Nancy raced up the hill withTrainey behind her. Reaching the crest,she abruptly skidded to a stop. "Can youmake it back to the campsite?" she asked. Trainey nodded. "Good!" Nancy said. "Go get help.Martin Robbins or his men have to bearound here somewhere." "What about you?" Trainey asked. "I'm going back to the cabin." As the professor veered off in thedirection of the campsite, Nancy crept

down the hill toward the dark shape of thecabin. She dashed to one side of it andcrouched against the wall. Cautiously, shepoked her head out. Richard and Pikerwere on the trail in front of the cabin,heading downhill toward the road. Bothcarried cages of marmots. Where was Jack? Her pulse leapt as she heardfootsteps behind her. Someone wascoming! Nancy stood up and turned to findherself staring into Ned's eyes. He threw his arms around her."Nancy!" he whispered. "Are you allright?" "I am now," she replied, returninghis hug. "How did you find me?"

"I was in the woods and ran intothe professor," Ned explained. "We've got to stop that shipmentfrom leaving," Nancy said urgently. Sherisked a quick peek in the window. Herheart sank. Only a few cages were stillinside. There was no time to wait forreinforcements-they'd have to act alone."Follow me to the truck," she whisperedto Ned. They crept quietly around the farside of it. "Now we wait," she told Ned. In a few moments Richard andPiker came down the hill. "I'm glad that'sover," Piker said. The two men climbed into the backof the truck. Nancy and Ned raced up,

slammed the doors shut, and pulled themetal latch into place. Richard and Pikerbegan to shout and pound on the door, butthere was nothing they could do. Theywere trapped. Drawn by the noise. Jack camerunning down the path. From the shadows at the edge ofthe trail, Ned launched himself towardJack in a flying tackle. Taken by surprise.Jack crashed to the ground but recoveredquickly and hit Ned in the face with hiselbow. Ned recoiled, and Nancy sawJack's fingers grope at his belt for hisrevolver. He was lifting it when Nancyraced over and aimed a karate kick at hiswrist. Jack screamed and fell back. "I'll hold him," Ned said

breathlessly. "Find some rope orsomething." Once Jack was tied up, Nedshoved him into the cab of the truck, thenwalked ahead, giving hand signals, whileNancy maneuvered the truck down thetrail to the road. As they drove up to the campsite,the truck's headlights lit up a crowdgathered near the firepit. Nancyrecognized Bess, Trainey, Alicia,Jennifer, Martin Robbins, and, to hersurprise, Edith and Gerald Turkower.Nancy hopped down from the cab as theothers raced to the parking area. "Nancy," Bess cried. "Are you allright?" "I am now." Nancy smiled and

hugged her friend. Then she turned toMartin. "Richard and Piker are locked upin the back." "And here's the man behind thewhole scheme," Ned said, triumphantlypulling Jack from the cab. "Jack Billings? I can't believe it!"Martin exclaimed. "What's a few marmots? Thepark's full of them, and I could use themoney," Jack said. Gerald stepped forward and, toNancy's astonishment, produced a pair ofhandcuffs. "I'll handle him," he said. "Edith and Gerry are agents of theU.S. Fish and Wildlife Department,"Trainey remarked.

Bess looked startled. "What?" "It's true." Gerald untied the ropeand snapped the cuffs on Jack's wrists."Dan called us in when the marmot trapsbegan to disappear." "Professor Trainey called you in?"Nancy repeated in surprise. "Sure. We've been friends foryears," Edith replied. "That's why I didn't want you onthe case, Nancy," Trainey explained. "Iwas afraid you might interfere with theirinvestigation. Besides, look whathappened to Brad when he triedinvestigating. I didn't want anyone elsehurt." Two park service cars pulled upnext to the truck. Martin pushed Jack

toward them. "I'll get this bunch into thecruisers." Nancy turned to Gerald andEdith. "Your act sure fooled me," shesaid. "And when I overheard ProfessorTrainey calling you from the square dance,I was sure that he was the brains behindthe poaching scheme." Professor Trainey laughed."That'll teach me to let my daughter dragme to dances," he said. "I asked Dan to scout around for ustoday, but when we got back from Jacksona little while ago, we found out that he'dvanished." "I'm afraid I was out of action,"Trainey said, wryly. "Fortunately, Nancywas on the job."

Edith smiled. "Great detectivework. Nancy! Did you know that there's afive thousand dollar reward for catchingpoachers?" "Wow," Nancy said. "Better start thinking about what todo with it," Edith went on. The next morning Nancy wasawakened by voices outside her tent. Besswas gone, so Nancy knew it had to befairly late. She got up, threw on jeans anda sweatshirt, combed her hair, thenstepped out into the sunshine. The sightthat met her made her gape. Two large trucks were parkednear the campsite. From one of them camethe rumble of a powerful electricalgenerator. Dozens of people were

wheeling big blue metal equipment cases,rolls of cable, and light stands up the pathto feeding station 1. "Nan! Do you realize what'shappening?" Bess ran over to greet herfriend. "Randy Dean's going to shoot hisspecial right here! He'll be here anyminute, and I'm going to meet him if I haveto sprain my ankle to do it!" Nancy looked around. "Where iseveryone else?" "They're all up at the feedingstation," Bess explained. "Come on,hurry!" At that moment Nancy heard thelow throaty growl of a perfectly tunedracing engine. She looked over hershoulder and saw a bright red sports car

pulling to a stop in the lot. "Bess," she said, "your prayers areabout to be answered." Bess gasped as Randy Deanstepped out of his car. "Hey, Nancy!" hecalled. "Good to see you again." "Hi, Randy," Nancy replied whenthe rock star joined them. "I want you tomeet my friend Bess Marvin." Randy held out his hand. "Hi,Bess." Bess turned pale, then red, as shetook his hand. Still holding it, she gaspedout, "This is just so totally awesome! Ithink you're the best singer ever!" "Well, thanks," Randy replied. Hegently disengaged his hand and glanced upthe hill. "Is that the way to the feeding

station?" Bess nodded. "I'd better get up there. Myproducer will kill me if I'm late. Want tocome?" Bess just about tripped over herown feet as she moved to Randy's side. At the top of the hill, Randy satdown on a folding chair while a makeupartist went to work on him. Dan Traineywas inside the enclosure, holding amarmot. The Turkowers, Ned, and the restof the Emerson students were off to oneside, watching. To Nancy's delight, Bradwas among them. "Hi." He grinned when she andBess went over. "I finally talked them intoletting me out of that place."

Nancy smiled and returned hisgreeting. "Ned's told me everything," Bradwent on. "Imagine, Jack being themastermind of the whole scheme." Ned kissed Nancy and then put hisarm around her shoulders. "Didn't I tellyou she was a first-rate detective?" Trainey brought Spike over andhanded him to Bess. He had removed thebandage. "This little fellow's ready to beset free," he said. A stricken look appeared onBess's face. "So soon?" "It's time," Trainey said firmly. "Oh." Bess turned away from herfriends. Nancy could see she was fighting

back tears. "We have to do it, Bess," she saidsoftly. "He belongs in the wild." Randy joined the group. "I have agreat idea," he said to Bess. "Why don'tyou release your little marmot as part ofmy show?" Bess's eyes widened. "Me? Ontelevision?" Randy nodded. "We'll release himtogether. It'll be a great sequence." Bess was too stunned to speak.Then she looked down at herself andshrieked. "I've got to change my clothes!" Nancy laughed as Bess placedSpike in his cage, turned, and ran downthe hill to their tent. "I don't think I've everseen Bess move that quickly," she said.

"Thanks for everything you'vedone. Nancy," Trainey said. "You'vehelped make this study a success andsaved my reputation." "You're welcome," Nancy replied."What about the last stage of the project?" Trainey sighed. "That part's not assuccessful. We can retag the marmots yourecovered, but unless we can raise moremoney, the study ends right now." Nancy smiled. "Would fivethousand dollars help?" she asked. Trainey stared at her. "I'm donating my reward money tothe project," Nancy explained. "That's very generous. Nancy,"Trainey replied. "Are you sure?" "Yes, Professor, I know you'll put

it to good use." Ned put his arm around Nancy'sshoulders. "Thanks, Nan." "Say," Alicia said with a broadsmile. "Maybe you and Bess could comeback in August and help us with the lastphase of the study." "I'd love to," Nancy said, "but Idon't know if I'm brave enough." "Why?" Alicia asked. "Are youafraid of bears?" Nancy shook her head. "No. I'd betoo afraid to tell Bess that she has to campout!"