The Mystery of the Mother Wolf Page 5

blizzard. You can use my snow boots by the door, and

  my down parka on the hook above them. And here,

  Nancy, take this flashlight.” Opening a drawer in a

  nearby desk, Alice pulled out a flashlight and gave it to

  Nancy.

  After pulling on Alice's parka and snow boots, Nancy

  flicked on the porch light and opened the door. Snow

  was already a foot deep on the little porch, and the

  wind threatened to slam the door closed on her. But

  she managed to slip out the narrow opening and take

  stock of her surroundings.

  The porch light illuminated a circle of snow about

  six feet in diameter. Nancy pulled the parka tight

  against the wind as she inspected the pool of lamplit

  snow. Boot prints led down the porch steps and into

  the yard, disappearing into the darkness.

  Leaning over, Nancy brushed the surface of the

  snow with her fingers, hunting for more clues. But the

  only clue she could find was the boot prints, which

  were disappearing by the second under the soft snow.

  Nancy placed Alice's boot inside one of the prints.

  Alice's boot was much smaller, so Nancy guessed that

  the prints belonged to a man. Because of the porch

  overhang, the prints on the porch hadn't been filled

  with very much snow, and Nancy observed that the

  boots must have had heavy, rough treads.

  Nancy shone the flashlight beyond the pool of lit

  snow. Driving flakes charged relentlessly through the

  dark air. Nancy glanced back at the house. The

  windows of the Marshalls' wing were ablaze with light,

  and the porch lantern shone like a beacon. She gritted

  her teeth. I'll be fine, she thought. Alice is way too

  worried. I won't go far.

  Nancy trudged into the snowy yard, pointing her

  flashlight at the boot prints and searching for any other

  clues. Maybe the thief dropped something, she thought

  hopefully.

  A sudden blast of wind blew up snow from the

  ground in a whirlwind of white. Nancy hugged the

  parka tightly against her throat as she continued to

  search. But there was nothing visible beyond the

  footprints, which by now were almost filled up with

  snow.

  Nancy peered over her shoulder at the house. To

  her amazement she saw no light—only snow cascading

  like a torrent from the sky. Where's the house? she

  wondered uneasily. I haven't gone that far, have I?

  With a chill caused by more than the weather,

  Nancy remembered Alice's words about people being

  lost in snowdrifts next to their homes. I'd better follow

  my footprints back, she thought, before it's too late.

  Nancy shone the flashlight on the indentations that

  she had just made, but they barely existed. The

  intruder's prints were completely gone by now.

  Whoever stole Rainbow must be out in this storm,

  Nancy reasoned. How far could a person get even in a

  four-wheel drive in this weather?

  Nancy forced herself to stay calm as she hunted for

  her tracks in the snow with the flashlight. Is it my

  imagination, she thought, or is my flashlight growing

  dimmer?

  The flashlight suddenly went out. Nancy shook it

  hard, determined to make it work. But her efforts were

  useless—the batteries were totally dead.

  The wind blew bitterly against her as she struggled

  to get her bearings. Where is the house? she wondered,

  glancing about for a familiar landmark, but the only

  thing that met her eyes was thick, pelting snow.

  Nancy shivered as snow trickled into her boots. She

  swiveled to each side, peering into the darkness for any

  hint of light. But each way looked exactly the same—

  snow against a black backdrop of night.

  Nancy stopped. She had become completely dis-

  oriented. Which way do I go? she wondered des-

  perately.

  6. Stolen Property

  Taking a deep breath, Nancy willed herself to think.

  Alice, Jenny, and George know I'm out here, she told

  herself. So it's only a matter of time before someone

  comes looking for me, and the house can't be very far.

  But I must have walked farther than I thought, she

  reasoned, or else I'd see lights.

  “Help!” she called, trying to make her voice heard

  above the shrieking wind. “Alice, Jenny, George, it's

  Nancy. I'm lost!”

  She could barely hear her own voice. They'll never

  hear me, she thought, discouraged.

  Snow continued to seep into Nancy's boots. She

  tried to wiggle her toes, but they were totally numb.

  Under her pajamas, her legs felt as cold and stiff as

  marble. With frozen fingers, she tugged at Alice's

  parka, trying vainly to make it stretch past her hips. I'll

  get frostbite if I don't find shelter soon, she realized.

  “Help!” she called again. “I'm lost.”

  “Who's that?” came a man's muffled answer. His

  voice barely carried over the eerie whistling of the

  wind, but Nancy felt like jumping with relief. “It's

  Nancy,” she cried. “I'm over here.”

  A moment later a flashlight bobbed into view. Thank

  goodness, Nancy thought, smiling gratefully at the

  hooded figure approaching her. A gray-and-white

  husky with black-tipped ears trotted before him on a

  leash—Icicle, Nancy remembered.

  “Nancy?” the man said. “What are you doing out

  here?”

  Nancy glanced up to see Paul Ferrier's face peering

  from inside the hood.

  “Looking for Rainbow—she's missing,” Nancy said,

  bending to hug Icicle.

  Paul stared at her. “You're kidding! I mean, of

  course you're not, but how . . . terrible.”

  “What are you doing out here, Paul?” Nancy asked.

  Nancy could tell that Paul hadn't been sent to look for

  her, because he would have already learned from the

  Marshalls that Rainbow had disappeared.

  “Uh, I couldn't sleep, so I went to the education

  center to work on an exhibit,” he answered. “By the

  time I was ready to come back to the house, it was

  snowing pretty hard. I decided to get one of the barn

  dogs to come with me, just in case I got lost. It's kind of

  a distance between the barn and the house, and

  blizzards can be tricky—people have been lost in

  snowdrifts practically next to their homes.”

  “So I've learned,” Nancy told him.

  “And to make matters worse,” Paul went on, “the

  lights went out in the barn just as Icicle and I were

  leaving it. I guess the storm took out the electricity in

  the lodge, too.”

  So that's why I couldn't see the porch light anymore,

  Nancy realized. Between the electricity and my

  flashlight, I had really bad luck.

  Paul gripped Nancy's arm with one hand and held

  Icicle's leash with the other. With her nose to the

  ground, Icicle guided them through the storm. Nancy

  crossed her fingers that Icicle would know the way.

  Paul eyed Nancy disapprovingly as he
said, “You

  should have known better than to go outside in this

  weather, Nancy, even if you were helping find

  Rainbow.” Frowning, he added, “Tell me more about

  Rainbow. I can't believe she's missing. She probably

  just wandered off somewhere in the house. She's

  capable of jumping over that safety gate, you know.”

  Keeping her head bent against the wind and snow,

  Nancy began to tell Paul more details about Rainbow's

  disappearance. But she left out her role as a detective

  investigating the case. Most likely Paul is telling the

  truth about working in the education center tonight,

  she thought. Still, he had no witnesses. What if he had

  just come back from taking Rainbow somewhere when

  he found me lost in the snow?

  Paul's flashlight shone on a darkened window. Relief

  fluttered through Nancy—they'd reached the lodge. As

  Icicle bounded onto the porch, the door flew open.

  “Nancy!” Alice said, her hand at her chest as she

  stood in the doorway. “I was about to call out a search

  party for you. And, Paul—what are you doing here?

  We thought you were upstairs asleep. Thank goodness

  you brought Icicle. She'll bring a bit of comfort to

  those poor pups.”

  While Paul was busy telling Alice about his night,

  Nancy asked to borrow his flashlight for a moment.

  Shining it on the edge of the porch where some snow

  had accumulated, Nancy studied one of Paul's boot

  prints.

  Sure enough, the print showed rough, heavy treads,

  similar to those of the intruder. But since the earlier

  tracks hadn't been clear, Nancy couldn't tell if they

  were a match.

  Pointing the flashlight at Paul's feet, Nancy saw that

  his boots were surprisingly large, even though Paul was

  a slim man of medium height.

  One thing's for sure, she thought—his boots don't

  rule him out.

  Nancy handed the flashlight back to Paul, then

  followed him and Alice inside. Shedding the parka and

  boots, Nancy watched the grateful puppies settle

  around Icicle in the pen as Jenny bottle-fed them by

  candlelight. Icicle seemed resigned to the puppies

  nipping at her belly as they hunted vainly for milk,

  though every now and then she would firmly nudge

  them away.

  Nancy's fingers and toes tingled as they grew

  warmer. After saying good night to the Marshalls and

  Paul, Nancy returned to her room with George and

  immediately climbed into her warm, dry bed.

  The next thing Nancy knew, sunlight was pouring in

  through the bedroom window. She glanced at the

  bedside clock, which was blinking 12:00. The electricity

  was working again, she realized.

  Not wanting to bother George after a broken night's

  sleep, Nancy quietly crept out of bed and peered

  outside. Snow glistened on a pristine landscape like a

  sugary glaze. Soft, round drifts undulated across the

  fields, and the trees sparkled with dazzling white coats,

  looking like strange Arctic beasts. Nancy couldn't wait

  to go outside, but then she remembered Rainbow.

  “Hey, Nan, what time is it?” George asked groggily.

  “Between traveling yesterday and staying up half the

  night, I feel as if I've been hit by a truck.”

  Turning, Nancy saw George sitting up in bed, her

  short dark hair tousled from sleep. “I don't know. The

  clock is blinking twelve. We have to reset it. Anyway,

  I'm surprised at you, George,” she added with a grin.

  “You don't usually say you're tired. But one look at the

  snow will cure you. The minute you see it, you'll want

  to be out on the slopes.”

  George joined Nancy at the window. “Awesome,”

  she pronounced. “Let's get breakfast and hurry out-

  side.”

  Twenty minutes later Nancy and George were in the

  dining room, eating steaming hot waffles that John had

  just cooked. The Warriners and Paul were still asleep,

  Nancy learned, but all three of the Marshalls, looking

  totally exhausted, were eating at the table. John told

  the girls that they'd stayed up the rest of the night

  taking care of the puppies.

  Bess joined the group, wearing black ski pants and a

  black wool Irish knit sweater. When she learned what

  had happened to Rainbow, she said, “I can't believe I

  slept through all that stuff going on. I'm so sorry about

  Rainbow. I hope we find her soon.”

  “I hope so, too, Bess,” Alice said. “With Nancy here

  to investigate, we've got a good chance of things

  working out.”

  Nancy smiled, but privately she felt worried. Other

  than the Swiss army knife and some vague boot prints,

  she hardly had any clues to go on. She wished she

  could feel as optimistic as Alice.

  “Speaking of investigating,” Nancy said, “I'd like to

  search the barns. The person might have taken Rain-

  bow to one of them, waiting for the storm to let up.

  The boot tracks seemed to lead in that direction.

  Maybe I'll find some clues there.”

  Alice brightened. “I'm honored that you're getting to

  work on the case right away, Nancy. Feel free to search

  anywhere you want.”

  After finishing breakfast Nancy, Bess, and George

  waded through the snow to search the horse barn

  they'd toured the day before.

  “Hello, there, girls,” came a low baritone voice as

  they were checking out an empty stall. “May I help

  you?”

  Nancy looked up, surprised to see a stranger in his

  twenties gazing at her over the stall door. The man was

  tall, broad-shouldered, and ruggedly handsome, with

  dark hair and eyes full of good humor.

  “Oh, hi,” Nancy replied. “We were just . . . uh, ex-

  ploring. We're guests here at the lodge.”

  “I'm Ross Minkowski,” the man drawled. “I take

  care of the ranch here at Elk River.” He extended his

  hand, and Nancy, Bess, and George each shook it.

  Nancy felt immediately comfortable with his friendly,

  open manner.

  “It's nice to meet you girls,” he said, smiling. “Sorry

  I wasn't around for you yesterday. It was my day off,

  and I spent it snowboarding. I'd really recommend

  giving that sport a try if you've never done it. It's a

  hoot.”

  “I'd love to snowboard,” George said excitedly

  “Well, don't bother to rent the equipment just yet,”

  Ross said. “The Marshalls have some extra stuff that

  might be your size.”

  “Thanks,” George said.

  Nancy dug into her parka pocket and pulled out the

  red Swiss army knife. “Is this yours?” she asked. “I

  found it yesterday in the upstairs hall. It has your

  initials on it.”

  Ross glanced at the knife and shook his head.

  “Nope. It's not mine.” Picking it up, he examined the

  initials. “Let me think—who else has those initials?

  Well, the only person who comes to mind is this
old

  hermit guy down the road named Rusty Marconi. And

  I doubt he would have been visiting the Marshalls.”

  The girls thanked Ross and went outside. Nancy

  didn't want to blow her cover by looking through the

  barn for clues while Ross was there.

  “He seems like a nice enough guy,” Bess said. “But

  it's creepy that the only person he could think of with

  the initials RM is Rusty.”

  “I hope Rusty isn't stalking the Marshalls,” George

  said. “The thought that he might have Rainbow really

  freaks me out.”

  “Me, too,” Nancy said. “But it makes sense that

  Rusty stole Rainbow. He's mad at the Marshalls for

  trying to get the town to make him clean up his land.”

  “I bet that's exactly what's going on,” Bess said

  darkly.

  Nancy considered other possibilities for Rainbow's

  disappearance. Casting her mind back to the night

  before, she remembered Paul's claim that he was

  working in the education center when the Marshalls

  discovered that Rainbow was missing. His excuse

  sounded kind of lame, Nancy thought. Would he really

  have gone outside in a dangerous snowstorm in the

  middle of the night just to catch up on some work?

  Still, Nancy reasoned that they should rule out Rusty

  before focusing on Paul. After all, there was no reason

  for Paul to kidnap Rainbow. Just as she was about to

  suggest checking out Rusty's property, the door of the

  wing burst open.

  John rushed outside, checking frantically from side

  to side. The moment he saw the girls, he shouted,

  “Nancy, George, Bess! Rainbow's puppies are missing!”

  7. A Telltale Letter

  The girls stared at John speechlessly as he made his

  way toward them. “The puppies?” Bess squeaked,

  barely able to get out the words.

  “But didn't Grover and Icicle bark?” Nancy asked

  when John had reached them.

  He shook his head, catching his breath after slogging

  through the knee-deep snow.

  “Maybe they were tranquilized,” Bess suggested.

  “Here's what happened,” John explained. “Alice and

  Jenny took Grover and Icicle for their morning walk, so

  our sitting room wasn't guarded when the thief

  sneaked in. I'd left the puppies alone while I went to

  the kitchen to plan dinner. When I returned to the

  room after about half an hour, the puppies were gone.”