She realized that she had had her book open to the same page for almost half an hour. The thought that kept running through her mind was that Ned cared more about Professor Trainey than he did about the truth. Suddenly she couldn't stand it any longer and put her book down, stood up, and got her jacket from the closet. A little fresh air, maybe a drive, would clear the cobwebs from her mind, she thought.
Nancy headed outside. The night was cold and crisp. As she walked toward the parking lot, she heard voices that sounded familiar. Just then the headlights of an incoming car swept across a small group of people about fifty feet away. Nancy ducked behind a parked car.
Edith and Gerald Turkower were deep in conversation with Richard and Piker, the two park maintenance men. Nancy crouched down and began moving between cars to get close enough to hear them. But the group broke up before she got there. She went back to her room and tried to sort out her thoughts. The only link she could think of between a rich California couple and two Yellowstone maintenance men was poaching.
Would any of them know how to track the marmots on the computer? Nancy doubted it. Someone in the camp had to be involved. Someone like Dan Trainey.
Nancy was still thinking when the door opened and Bess rushed in, her face aglow.
"The disco was great!" she exclaimed. "And it wasn't even crowded. We had lots of room to dance. You should have come."
Nancy smiled. "Next time."
"Jack is really something!" Bess fell into a chair. "He is totally dedicated to his work and knows absolutely everything about the park. I just hope I can get him as interested in me as he is in whistling marmots," she finished with a laugh.
Nancy smiled. "I get the feeling you had a good time," she said, then couldn't help sighing.
Bess stared at her. "What's wrong. Nan?"
"It's just that Ned's upset because Dan Trainey is on my list of suspects. I guess he thinks his friends should be exempt from my investigating them."
"That's ridiculous," Bess said. "Ned knows better than that. Nancy. He's just tired and stressed out. He'll feel different tomorrow."
Nancy shook her head. "I hope so," she said.
"Hey, I know," Bess continued. "There's going to be a square dance tomorrow night here at the hotel. Jack asked me to go with him. Why don't you and Ned come, too? We'll have a great time!"
"Good idea," Nancy said, feeling uncomfortable. That was the same dance that Jack had offered to take her to just a few hours before. Sure, he had been fooling around, but still.. . Was Jack one of those guys who had to charm every girl he met? If so, Bess was letting herself in for grief. Judging by the gleam in her eye, this was not the time to give her any warnings.
As Nancy and Bess were finishing their breakfast the next morning, Edith Turkower came over to their table. "We're doing a ranger-guided tour of Upper Geyser Basin," she announced. "Gerald and I thought you might like to come along."
Nancy gave Bess a gentle kick on the ankle and said, "I can't, but I know Bess would love to."
As Edith walked away, Nancy said softly, "Keep a close eye on them, Bess. It's important."
"No problem," Bess replied.
Once Bess left the table, Nancy decided to go to the Gardiner hospital to see Brad again.
She headed for her car. Lost in thought, she was already climbing a steep grade on the mountain road that led to Gardiner when she noticed a van close behind her-too close. It seemed to be tailgating her. She pressed harder on the gas pedal, but the van kept pace with her.
The road wound between a sheer wall of rock on the left and a deep ravine on the right. As they came around a long curve, the van pulled out to pass. Nancy edged over toward the ravine to give it more room, but instead of going ahead, the van stayed next to her. Alarmed, Nancy hit the brakes to let the other vehicle move ahead. Instead, the van slowed.
Then without warning it swerved toward her, its front bumper banging into Nancy's door. She struggled to control the wheel, but the van slammed into her again, forcing her car toward the edge of the ravine.
She glanced to her right, and her stomach twisted. The drop was endless, and she was just about to go over!
Chapter Six
All that separated Nancy from a drop into the ravine was a couple of feet of shoulder, and the van was continuing to nudge her over.
Nancy accelerated, attempting to pull ahead of her pursuer. She knew she couldn't keep driving at this speed-the road was too treacherous.
In seconds the van was behind her again, moving up to slam into her from the rear. She rounded a curve and spotted a sign for a scenic overlook. As she approached it, she took a deep breath and jerked the wheel sharply to the right. The wheels skidded on the gravel.
The van followed and was just about to ram into her again when Nancy saw a tall lodge pole pine at the far end of the overlook parking area. She steered her car straight at it. She was just about to hit it when she swerved left and shot back onto the highway.
In the rearview mirror, she saw the van graze the tree she had just missed. Then, to her astonishment, the driver of the van backed up, turned, and roared off in the other direction. Puzzled, Nancy stopped her car. When she looked ahead of her, she saw a park service vehicle pulling into the parking area and understood why the driver of the van had headed off in such a hurry. He'd seen the ranger, too.
The ranger stopped his car next to hers and jumped out. He was about forty and had a crew cut and neat mustache. "Are you all right?" he asked.
Nancy nodded, even though she felt shaken. "A van tried to run me off the road."
"Did you see who was driving?" The ranger leaned his elbows on the edge of her window. Nancy noted the name on the plate pinned to his breast pocket: Martin Robbins.
She shook her head.
"Will you come to my office to make a report? It's near the north entrance," he continued.
Nancy followed him back up the road to the ranger station.
Once inside and settled in a chair, she watched while Robbins filled out a report. "I don't suppose you got the license number?"
Nancy shook her head ruefully. "Sorry, things happened too fast. I did notice the words Minden Linen painted on the door of the van. Does that mean anything to you?"
"It's the biggest linen service in this area. All the hotels in Yellowstone get their sheets and towels from there. I know their chief dispatcher. I'll call him," Martin suggested.
Even though she only heard Martin's half of the conversation. Nancy could tell that something was wrong.
“Well?" she asked eagerly once he had hung up.
"One of their drivers, Bert Heckleby, missed a couple of deliveries this morning," Martin replied. "He's not answering calls on his radio either."
Could someone have paid Heckleby to attack her? Or stolen his van?
"I get the feeling that there's more to this than you're telling me," Martin said.
Taking a deep breath, Nancy explained everything, including the propane stove explosion and the missing marmots.