Nancy put her arms around his neck. “Oh,
Ned-I’m so glad you understand.” She
pulled his head down to hers, and their lips
met in a kiss that lasted a long time.
When they parted, Ned held her close and
ran his fingers through her hair. “Why don’t
we get our coats and go for a drive?” he said
breathlessly. “It’s a beautiful night.”
“I’d love it,” Nancy replied.
They were walking past the alcove that held
the house phones when Ned squeezed her
elbow. He put his finger to his lips and pulled
her back out of sight.
“Gerry? It’s me.” Nancy recognized Profes-
sor Trainey’s voice. She strained to make out
the words.
“Yes, I know,” she heard the professor say
into the phone. “It can’t be helped. Late
tomorrow night? Yes, the camp should
be quiet. No junior detectives to get in our
way.”
Chapter Eleven
Nancy heard Trainey hang up and then
watched him walk away.
Ned was slumped against the wall, his eyes
filled with misery. He stared at her. “You were
right about the professor all along.”
The bitterness in his voice surprised Nancy.
Her heart ached for him. “I’m sorry, Ned,”
she said, slipping her arms around him. “I kept
hoping it wasn’t him, but-”
“‘Junior detectives,'” Ned spat out. “And I
kept telling you how much he respected and
cared about his students. He thinks we’re a
joke!”
“He must be pretty desperate,” Nancy
pointed out. “I don’t think he would have
gotten involved if it weren’t for his money
problems. And let’s face it-if he is involved,
our investigation must really be getting in his
way.”
Ned’s eyes widened. “If? Of course he’s
involved. You heard what he said. He’s plan-
ning something for tomorrow night. And he
was talking to Turkower!”
Nancy remained impassive. “I’ve got to
admit, that surprises me,” she began slowly.
“After what Gerald did today to save me, I was
starting to think he was okay.”
Ned was obviously confused, and Nancy
realized that she hadn’t told him about 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 I admired
so much could be involved in something so
awful.” Ned shook his head. “Trainey is such a
hypocrite.”
Nancy stepped back. “Look, Ned. I don’t
have any real proof against the professor,
just what Brad said, so let’s not jump to
conclusions. What I really need to do is
catch the poachers in the act, and it sounds
like I might be able to do that tomorrow
night.”
Ned brightened a little. “Are you still up for
that drive?” he asked. “I know I am. I’m sick
of thinking about this mess.”
“I’ll run upstairs for my jacket,” Nancy
replied.
When she came back down dressed for the
outdoors she waved goodbye to Bess, who was
dancing in a square with Jack. Her friend gave
her a big grin, then Nancy went out to the
parking lot. It was quite chilly, and she was
glad to see that Ned had put the top up.
“Feel like looking at the moon from the
shore of Yellowstone Lake,” he asked her
softly as he started the Jeep.
On an impulse Nancy leaned over and
kissed him on the cheek.
He reached over and squeezed her hand.
“Will you forgive me for being so pigheaded?”
“I already have, Ned.”
They’d just turned onto the parkway that
ran beside the lake when Nancy said, “Ned,
look. Somebody’s in trouble.”
Parked on the opposite shoulder was a low-
slung Italian sports car. The driver was stand-
ing with a flashlight pointed under the raised
hood.
Ned pulled over and then carefully turned
around so he could light up the sports car. He
leaned out and called, “Need help?”
The driver moving toward them was very
familiar. They had both seen that face on
countless posters and CDs.
“Is that who I think it is?” Ned said to
Nancy.
Nancy studied the man’s liquid brown eyes
and curly, honey-colored hair. “It is. It’s Ran-
dy Dean!”
“Hi there!” Randy stopped next to Ned’s
door and leaned over to peer into the window.