Murder On Ice (5 page)

At last the foursome reached the bottom of the steep slope. Luke pulled the stretcher up to the doors of the first aid station. “Here we are,” he said, unstrapping Ned and helping him to stand on his good leg. He supported most of Ned's weight as Ned limped into the infirmary.

When at last he was lying on a nice, motionless bed, Ned drew in a ragged breath. Luke looked at him with a faint smile. “You're a lot like me, aren't you? You don't like anybody to tell you what you can do or can't do. But let me give you one piece of advice, okay?
Don't
ski on a trail until you're ready for it.”

“I know. But I have this daredevil girlfriend . . .” Ned gave Nancy a secret smile.

Suddenly Luke turned on Nancy, his face
darkening. “What? On the most dangerous slope we have? Are you crazy? If you want to take your own life in your hands like you did yesterday, that's one thing! But I
will not
allow you to go around here daring other people to kill themselves!”

“She
didn't
,” Ned said with all the force he could muster. “The race was my idea.”

“Was it?” Luke demanded harshly. “You don't strike me as the kind of guy who'd do something that stupid unless you had a pretty good reason. Maybe that reason was impressing Nancy Drew.”

All at once Luke was shouting at Nancy. “You've got to be more careful!
Do you have any idea at all what it's like to be responsible for someone else's tragedy?”
He stopped, mid-breath, suddenly realizing that the others were staring at him. His eyes locked with George's.

George's face went from white to scarlet and back to white. With a choking sound, Luke wrenched around and ran out of the first-aid station.

There was a moment of stunned silence. Then George ran after him.

Ned managed a whistle. “Man, that guy's
weird!”

“Something's weird all right,” Nancy said, “and George knows it.”

“What set Luke off like that, anyway?” Ned asked.

“I don't know.”
Yet,
Nancy added to herself. “It sounds as if Luke was responsible for an
accident. Maybe that's why he's such a dictator about safety.” She frowned. “Although that doesn't explain everything.” But before she could continue, the infirmary attendants came in.

After Ned's ankle had been examined and wrapped in an ice pack, one of the first-aid attendants drove Nancy and Ned back to Webb Cove Lodge. Luke and George were standing on the front porch of the lodge when the medical van arrived. They stepped aside as Nancy helped Ned up the steps. Clearly, they were embarrassed about what had happened in the infirmary, but didn't want to talk about it.

“I hope you're feeling a little better now,” Luke said quietly as Ned and Nancy passed him.

George retrieved Ned's skis, boots, and poles from the van. “Thanks for bringing my friend home,” she told the driver.

“Get better soon,” the attendant called to Ned as he headed back toward Big Birch. Then the uncomfortable silence closed in on the foursome again.

The front door opened, and Liz's voice interrupted the awkward moment. “Lunch in five min—oh, no!” She stepped outside quickly. “What happened, Ned?”

“Bobcat Trail was too much for him,” Luke said briefly. “He sprained his ankle.”

Liz shot an alarmed look at Nancy. “Another accident?” she asked. Then she shook her head. “It doesn't matter right now, anyway. First thing we have to do is to get Ned inside where he can
lie down.” She looked at Nancy with concern. “You take it easy young lady. You look as though you've had the stuffing knocked out of you, too.”

“I'm okay,” Nancy replied, picking up Ned's borrowed ski boots and collecting the skis. She looked at them absently.

Then she looked at the skis again, hard, and dropped the boots with a thud.

“It wasn't the trail that caused Ned's fall,” she burst out, “or our racing! The binding on this ski has come loose—one of the screws came out.”

There was a chorus of shocked exclamations. Nancy cut through them sharply.

“Look at this!” She pointed. “This screw hole's a lot bigger than it ought to be. Somebody enlarged the hole so the screw wouldn't hold! This wasn't an accident—it was caused deliberately! And it nearly killed Ned!”

G
IVE ME THAT
!” Luke said sharply. He snatched the ski from Nancy's hand and examined the binding in silence. “This screw hole wasn't shaved down,” he said finally. “It
wore
down. That's why the screw came out. It could happen at any time.”

Luke seemed calmer, but his hands still trembled. He paused and inhaled deeply. “Ned, I'm terribly sorry. I haven't used these skis lately. I should have inspected them before I lent them to you.”

“It's not your fault,” Ned said after a moment. “Let's just forget it, all right?”

Nancy took the ski back from Luke. “It can happen at any time?” she asked skeptically. She wondered why Luke, who was such a fanatic
about safety,
hadn't
inspected his equipment before lending it to somebody.

“On gear that gets hard use, yes.” Luke stepped to Ned's side. “We'd better get you inside and lying down.” He helped Ned hobble into the lodge and over to the couch in front of the fire. Nancy followed them, frowning and thinking that Luke was showing an awful lot of concern.

“It may be just a sprain—but if the swelling doesn't go down by morning, I'm going to drive you to the hospital to get an X ray,” Liz told Ned. “I'll bring you an ice pack,” she added, heading for the kitchen.

Nancy followed her. When they were alone, Nancy asked, “Liz, have you ever heard of a binding coming loose and leaving a hole like that?”

“It's possible. But it's definitely not common!” Liz's eyes narrowed. “You really think somebody deliberately tried to kill Ned? Who would have a motive for doing that?”

“You
have
had a prowler,” Nancy pointed out. “Somebody looking in windows and writing MURDERER in the snow. None of that's very rational.”

Nancy swallowed hard. Then suddenly she burst out, “Wait a minute! Those were
Luke's
skis!”

“Luke's skis,” Liz repeated. “And he gave them to Ned.” She paled. “Do you think he's to blame for Ned's accident?”

“An awful lot of accidents seem to happen around Luke,” Nancy said thoughtfully. “These skis. The tow rope. It's just that . . .”

“What?” Liz demanded.

“Someone else could have seen Luke's skis and not realized that Ned would be using them. Same thing with the rope tow. The traps could have been set
for
Luke, not
by
him!” Frustrated, Nancy paced around the room. “I need a good motive, or even better, some useful evidence.”

“This is really turning into a nightmare,” Liz said, shuddering dramatically.

“Just stay calm,” Nancy cautioned. “And let's keep this conversation between the two of us, okay?” She gave Liz's hand a squeeze and then hurried back out to Ned.

Nancy hadn't planned on a quiet afternoon with Ned, but she decided that the idea suited her just fine. However, they didn't spend it by the fire. With the aid of a pair of crutches that Liz kept on hand for such emergencies, Ned was able to limp out to the small lake beside the lodge. It was cleared for skating, and that's just what Nancy did. Ned sat and watched from a wooden bench, his leg propped up on a log.

Nancy was an excellent skater, and she found the rhythm of the sport soothing. She was glad to have a chance to mull over what had been happening. Writing didn't just appear in the snow, and bindings on skis didn't just wear down! As Luke well knows, Nancy told herself. Somebody had deliberately sabotaged those skis!

The problem was, who? And why? And who
was the intended victim? Liz had jumped to the conclusion that Luke had done it. Maybe he had, maybe not. Even if he hadn't, he apparently knew or suspected the answers to those questions. What exactly was he trying to cover up?

Much as Nancy loved solving mysteries, this one was causing some trouble.

She felt—lonely. The case had already come between her and George. And she could see it creating problems between her and Ned. Who's next? she wondered. Will Bess get angry at me? She skated over to sit with Ned for a while.

They returned to the lodge as the shadows started falling. Keeping his leg up all afternoon had done Ned's ankle good. The swelling had gone down a bit. As the aromas of chili and baking apples wafted into the lounge from the kitchen, the other guests began straggling in from the slopes.

Bess and Gunther appeared first. “We heard about your ankle, Ned. How are you feeling?” Bess said. “You missed some great skiing!” she called as she headed toward the dorm.

“You say that like a confirmed athlete!” Ned called back, grinning. Bess stuck her tongue out at him before disappearing. A group of college students appeared next and then, last of all, Luke and George.

Luke went directly upstairs without speaking to Nancy or Ned, but George came over to them right away. “How's the ankle?” she asked. Nancy noted that George's voice sounded strained.

“Hanging in there,” Ned said lightly.

Nancy smiled at George. “How was the skiing?”

For a moment, George's eyes were radiant. “Oh, I had a great time!” she replied. Then her smile stiffened, and the light faded from her eyes. “Well, I'd better get ready for dinner.” As she left the lounge, Nancy watched her thoughtfully.

Luke joined the guests for dinner that night, but he took a seat at the far end of the table near Liz. Ned hobbled over to the closer end, on his crutches, and Nancy, Bess, and Gunther joined him.

Soon, George returned. She had changed into dark red stretch pants and a Norwegian sweater, adding small gold earrings. She looked, Nancy thought, absolutely gorgeous. George hesitated for a moment, looking the table over, and then sat with Luke.

Luke didn't act like his usual aloof self at dinner. He actually relaxed and smiled, talking with George, the two of them in their own private world. They even joined the others after dinner, toasting marshmallows around the fire.

“How's the ankle doing?” Luke asked Ned.

“Pretty good. I guess it'll be okay by baseball season.” He smiled and went on, trying to sound casual. “We've sure had a lot of accidents lately. Whatever happened to that old towline?”

“I threw it out,” Luke replied shortly. He looked as if he was about to get up and leave, until he caught George's eye. “Not much skiing, I guess, where you come from?”

“Nope,” Ned answered.

“How about
your
hometown, Luke?” Nancy put in. “Lots of skiing there?”

Luke's face tightened. He looked as if he was quite alarmed, but was trying not to appear so. “Little town in Maine,” he said, and immediately turned back to Ned. “Do any competitive skiing?”

Ned shook his head. “If I had, would
this
have happened?” He laughed. “After this accident, I guess it's obvious that I'm no Olympic star.”

Suddenly Luke seemed very, very uncomfortable. He tried to laugh with Ned, but the sound that came out of his throat was more like a croak. Nancy glanced at George and realized with a shock that George wasn't smiling, either.

Ned hit a nerve, Nancy thought. I'd better follow it up. “Is that something you'd like to do, Luke?” she asked. “Ski in the Olympics?”

“No,” Luke replied shortly.

“Why not?” Nancy asked casually. “You're quite a skier.”

“Luke's a pro.” George cut Nancy off abruptly. “He wouldn't be eligible, remember?”

By now Gunther and Bess were looking at them strangely. Nancy signaled Bess with her eyes, and Bess jumped into the awkward pause with a giggle.

“What are we playing here, Twenty Questions?” she asked. Deliberately, she steered the conversation back to Nancy's line of questioning. “What competitive sports are you interested in?”

“I'm not. Competition can be destructive if
people care too much—or if they don't know what they're doing.” Luke looked straight at Nancy. “You shouldn't go taking risks. Mountains have no mercy.”

Nancy narrowed her eyes. “Some risks are worth taking . . . as long as they don't endanger other people.”

Luke's fair skin flushed dark red. “One kind of sport I don't like is answering nosy questions. Excuse me.” And with that, he stormed off.

As soon as he was out of the room, George jumped up. “For once in your life, can't you be something other than Nancy Drew, girl detective? Do you always have to go poking into people's private lives?”

“George—”

“Just forget it!” George cried. Then she stalked off after Luke.