An Instinct for Trouble Page 9

  They reached the crest of the hill and started down. At the foot of it, Nancy stopped abruptly. Just ahead was a large crack in the earth, a dark, ominous ribbon snaking its way across the ground.

  “What’s that?” Nancy asked Trainey, trying to hide the fright she felt.

  “It looks like a runoff fissure,” Trainey said. “Every geyser has one. It’s the path the heated water takes after being shot into the air. It comes down the side of the geyser cone, collects, and runs along the fissure to underground pools.”

  “Exactly, Professor,” Jack said.

  While Jack held the gun, Piker taped Nancy’s ankles together, then picked her up and wedged her down into the fissure. 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 was no response. “Professor Trainey?” she asked. “What’s going to happen?”

  Trainey’s voice was grave. “If I have my bearings right, the water from Princess Geyser takes this path down the hill.” He stared at Nancy. “It erupts every two hours or so.”

  “You mean this fissure could fill up with boiling water soon?”

  Trainey closed his eyes. “That’s right.”

  A sudden hissing noise broke the silence.

  Nancy gasped. It was the geyser! Any minute they’d be scalded to death!

  Chapter

  Fifteen

  NANCY SHUT HER EYES and concentrated on rubbing the ropes on her wrist against a rough place on the fissure wall. Was it her imagination or could she feel one of them give just a bit?

  Besides her, Trainey groaned.

  She twisted her right arm, trying to get added leverage against the rope. She was sure that her skin was raw by now.

  The hissing grew louder. Nancy saw the glitter of reflected moonlight on rushing water below where she was wedged. Damp steam rose and enveloped her. With a desperate yank, she managed to pull one hand out of the looped rope, then free the other. She let the rope fall.

  “Listen, Professor, I’ve got my hands free. I’m going to try to climb out, then pull you to safety.”

  “Good luck,” Trainey said.

  Nancy noticed the rotten egg smell of sulphur. Her eyes were stinging. Cautiously, she brought her arms around in front of her and pressed her palms against the opposite wall of the fissure, then moved her knees up a couple of inches.

  “We’re running out of time,” Trainey gasped. “The water is rising too quickly.”

  “I know.” Nancy patiently worked her knees and hands upward. Her arm and leg muscles threatened to cramp, but at last one hand touched the top of the fissure. She grabbed hold, then quickly twisted, swinging her other hand to the other lip, just above where her head had been. Before her lower body could slide down into the crevice, she hoisted herself up. For a minute her feet dangled dangerously near the bubbling water at the bottom of the fissure.

  Then she thrust herself onto the edge and rolled away. She took a deep breath, tore the tape off her ankles, then leaned over to unbind Trainey’s hands and feet.

  The professor was panting by the time she’d talked him through the maneuvers that allowed him to climb out of the fissure.

  “We got out just in time,” Trainey said, once he’d caught his breath. He looked back at the crevice. The boiling current was halfway up the walls now. “Thanks to you, Nancy.”

  “We can talk later,” Nancy said. “Right now, we’ve got to stop that shipment from going out.”

  Nancy raced up the hill with Trainey behind her. Reaching the crest, she abruptly skidded to a stop. “Can you make it back to the campsite?” she asked.

  Trainey nodded.

  “Good!” Nancy said. “Go get help. Martin Robbins or his men have to be around here somewhere.”

  “What about you?” Trainey asked.

  “I’m going back to the cabin.”

  As the professor veered off in the direction of the campsite, Nancy crept down the hill toward the dark shape of the cabin.

  She dashed to one side of it and crouched against the wall. Cautiously, she poked her head out. Richard and Piker were on the trail in front of the cabin, heading downhill toward the road. Both carried cages of marmots. Where was Jack?

  Her pulse leapt as she heard footsteps behind her. Someone was coming! Nancy stood up and turned to find herself staring into Ned’s eyes.

  He threw his arms around her. “Nancy!” he whispered. “Are you all right?”

  “I am now,” she replied, returning his hug. “How did you find me?”

  “I was in the woods and ran into the professor,” Ned explained.

  “We’ve got to stop that shipment from leaving,” Nancy said urgently. She risked a quick peek in the window. Her heart sank. Only a few cages were still inside. There was no time to wait for reinforcements—they’d have to act alone. “Follow me to the truck,” she whispered to Ned.

  They crept quietly around the far side of it. “Now we wait,” she told Ned.

  In a few moments Richard and Piker came down the hill. “I’m glad that’s over,” Piker said.

  The two men climbed into the back of the truck. Nancy and Ned raced up, slammed the doors shut, and pulled the metal latch into place. Richard and Piker began to shout and pound on the door, but there was nothing they could do. They were trapped.

  Drawn by the noise, Jack came running down the path.

  From the shadows at the edge of the trail, Ned launched himself toward Jack in a flying tackle. Taken by surprise, Jack crashed to the ground but recovered quickly and hit Ned in the face with his elbow. Ned recoiled, and Nancy saw Jack’s fingers grope at his belt for his revolver. He was lifting it when Nancy raced over and aimed a karate kick at his wrist. Jack screamed and fell back.

  “I’ll hold him,” Ned said breathlessly. “Find some rope or something.”

  Once Jack was tied up, Ned shoved him into the cab of the truck, then walked ahead, giving hand signals, while Nancy maneuvered the truck down the trail to the road.

  As they drove up to the campsite, the truck’s headlights lit up a crowd gathered near the firepit. Nancy recognized Bess, Trainey, Alicia, Jennifer, Martin Robbins, and, to her surprise, Edith and Gerald Turkower. Nancy hopped down from the cab as the others raced to the parking area.

  “Nancy,” Bess cried. “Are you all right?”

  “I am now.” Nancy smiled and hugged her friend. Then she turned to Martin. “Richard and Piker are locked up in the back.”

  “And here’s the man behind the whole scheme,” Ned said, triumphantly pulling Jack from the cab.

  “Jack Billings? I can’t believe it!” Martin exclaimed.

  “What’s a few marmots? The park’s full of them, and I could use the money,” Jack said.

  Gerald stepped forward and, to Nancy’s astonishment, produced a pair of handcuffs. “I’ll handle him,” he said.

  “Edith and Gerry are agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department,” Trainey remarked.

  Bess looked startled. “What?”

  “It’s true.” Gerald untied the rope and snapped the cuffs on Jack’s wrists. “Dan called us in when the marmot traps began to disappear.”

  “Professor Trainey called you in?” Nancy repeated in surprise.

  “Sure. We’ve been friends for years,” Edith replied.

  “That’s why I didn’t want you on the case, Nancy,” Trainey explained. “I was afraid you might interfere with their investigation. Besides, look what happened to Brad when he tried investigating. I didn’t want anyone else hurt.”

  Two park service cars pulled up next to the truck. Martin pushed Jack toward them. “I’ll get this bunch into the cruisers.”

  Nancy turned to Gerald and Edith. “Your act sure fooled me,” she said. “And when I overheard Professor Trainey calling you from the square dance, I was sure that he was the brains behind the poaching scheme.”

  Professor Trainey laughed
. “That’ll teach me to let my daughter drag me to dances,” he said.

  “I asked Dan to scout around for us today, but when we got back from Jackson a little while ago, we found out that he’d vanished.”

  “I’m afraid I was out of action,” Trainey said, wryly. “Fortunately, Nancy was on the job.”

  Edith smiled. “Great detective work, Nancy! Did you know that there’s a five thousand dollar reward for catching poachers?”

  “Wow,” Nancy said.

  “Better start thinking about what to do with it,” Edith went on.

  • • •

  The next morning Nancy was awakened by voices outside her tent. Bess was gone, so Nancy knew it had to be fairly late. She got up, threw on jeans and a sweatshirt, combed her hair, then stepped out into the sunshine. The sight that met her made her gape.

  Two large trucks were parked near the campsite. From one of them came the rumble of a powerful electrical generator. Dozens of people were wheeling big blue metal equipment cases, rolls of cable, and light stands up the path to feeding station 1.

  “Nan! Do you realize what’s happening?” Bess ran over to greet her friend. “Randy Dean’s going to shoot his special right here! He’ll be here any minute, and I’m going to meet him if I have to sprain my ankle to do it!”

  Nancy looked around. “Where is everyone else?”

  “They’re all up at the feeding station;” Bess explained. “Come on, hurry!”

  At that moment Nancy heard the low throaty growl of a perfectly tuned racing engine. She looked over her shoulder and saw a bright red sports car pulling to a stop in the lot.

  “Bess,” she said, “your prayers are about to be answered.”

  Bess gasped as Randy Dean stepped out of his car. “Hey, Nancy!” he called. “Good to see you again.”

  “Hi, Randy,” Nancy replied when the rock star joined them. “I want you to meet my friend Bess Marvin.”

  Randy held out his hand. “Hi, Bess.”

  Bess turned pale, then red, as she took his hand. Still holding it, she gasped out, “This is just so totally awesome! I think you’re the best singer ever!”

  “Well, thanks,” Randy replied. He gently disengaged his hand and glanced up the hill. “Is that the way to the feeding station?”

  Bess nodded.

  “I’d better get up there. My producer will kill me if I’m late. Want to come?”

  Bess just about tripped over her own feet as she moved to Randy’s side.

  At the top of the hill, Randy sat down on a folding chair while a makeup artist went to work on him. Dan Trainey was inside the enclosure, holding a marmot. The Turkowers, Ned, and the rest of the Emerson students were off to one side, watching. To Nancy’s delight, Brad was among them.

  “Hi.” He grinned when she and Bess went over. “I finally talked them into letting me out of that place.”

  Nancy smiled and returned his greeting.

  “Ned’s told me everything,” Brad went on. “Imagine, Jack being the mastermind of the whole scheme.”

  Ned kissed Nancy and then put his arm around her shoulders. “Didn’t I tell you she was a first-rate detective?”

  Trainey brought Spike over and handed him to Bess. He had removed the bandage. “This little fellow’s ready to be set free,” he said.

  A stricken look appeared on Bess’s face. “So soon?”

  “It’s time,” Trainey said firmly.

  “Oh.” Bess turned away from her friends. Nancy could see she was fighting back tears.

  “We have to do it, Bess,” she said softly. “He belongs in the wild.”

  Randy joined the group. “I have a great idea,” he said to Bess. “Why don’t you release your little marmot as part of my show?”

  Bess’s eyes widened. “Me? On television?”

  Randy nodded. “We’ll release him together. It’ll be a great sequence.”

  Bess was too stunned to speak. Then she looked down at herself and shrieked. “I’ve got to change my clothes!”

  Nancy laughed as Bess placed Spike in his cage, turned, and ran down the hill to their tent. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Bess move that quickly,” she said.

  “Thanks for everything you’ve done, Nancy,” Trainey said. “You’ve helped make this study a success and saved my reputation.”

  “You’re welcome,” Nancy replied. “What about the last stage of the project?”

  Trainey sighed. “That part’s not as successful. We can retag the marmots you recovered, but unless we can raise more money, the study ends right now.”

  Nancy smiled. “Would five thousand dollars help?” she asked.

  Trainey stared at her.

  “I’m donating my reward money to the 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’s shoulders. “Thanks, Nan.”

  “Say,” Alicia said with a broad smile. “Maybe you and Bess could come back in August and help us with the last phase of the study.”

  “I’d love to,” Nancy said, “but I don’t know if I’m brave enough.”

  “Why?” Alicia asked. “Are you afraid of bears?”

  Nancy shook her head. “No. I’d be too afraid to tell Bess that she has to camp out!”

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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