Nancy's eyes widened when she read the title: "Hot New Pet Craze-Whistling Marmots." The sheet had been photocopied from a magazine. In the article the words native to Yellowstone were highlighted in orange.
Nancy's heart began to race. "Where did you get this?"
"I was sitting in the lobby," Bess explained, "when a rich-looking couple came in and stopped near me. As they moved away, I noticed a piece of paper on the floor, so I picked it up."
"Hmm." Nancy scanned the page and read out loud. “‘Rock star Randy Dean's fondness for collecting marmots has made the creature a sought-after pet among the rich and famous. According to one U.S. wildlife specialist, some people are willing to pay as much as five hundred dollars for one of these animals.'"
"Randy keeps a bunch of marmots on his California estate," Bess said. "According to the article, one of them escaped. A neighbor found it in her kitchen, munching its way through a box of cereal. The story made the newspapers, and ever since then people have wanted marmots."
"That's very interesting," Nancy said slowly. "I guess we should find out the couple's names and where they come from."
Bess grinned proudly. "They're Gerald and Edith Turkower, and they're from-just guess -Bel Air, California."
Nancy stared. "How do you know?"
"Simple," Bess said smugly. "While they were registering, I checked their luggage tags."
"Good work," Nancy told her friend. "Tell you what," she added, "as a reward, I'll treat you to a cup of tea and a snack. I'll also fill you in on what I've learned so far."
The dining room had log walls and wooden ceiling beams. As they sat down at a table near the windows, Bess leaned forward and whispered, "Two tables to your left-those are the Turkowers."
Nancy casually glanced in their direction as the waitress arrived to take her order. Then, just as their pie and tea arrived, a bellhop walked through the dining room, saying, "Nancy Drew, telephone call for Nancy Drew."
Nancy waved to him and identified herself.
"It sounds like an emergency," he told her, pulling a cordless phone from a holster on his belt.
"Hello? Yes?" Nancy said.
"Nancy, thank goodness I got you," a breathless voice said. "It's Alicia Nivel. You've got to come at once. Ned's been hurt!"
Chapter Four
NANCY clutched the phone so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "What happened?"
"We don't know," Alicia replied. "We found him on the floor at the command post unconscious. He must have fallen and hit his head on something. When he came to, he asked us to call you right away, so I drove down to the general store at Madison Junction."
"I'll be there as soon as possible." Nancy switched off the phone and sprang up from her seat. "Ned's been hurt," she told Bess. "I have to go to him right away."
"I'll go, too." Bess waved for the waitress and paid the check while Nancy went on ahead to get the car.
The fifteen miles to the campsite seemed to take forever. When Nancy turned in to the parking area, she flung the door open in one movement, then dashed up to camp and straight to the tiny cabin. Bess followed. Inside, Nancy saw Jack, Jennifer, and Alicia clustered around Ned with an open first-aid kit on the floor nearby. Ned was sitting propped up against the wall, holding his head in his hands.
"Ned!" Nancy cried as she rushed in and knelt beside him. "Are you all right?"
"I feel a lot better now that you're here."
Jennifer reluctantly moved aside so Nancy could look at the back of Ned's head. There was a huge bump and dried blood on it. "What happened?" she asked.
Ned shifted, and as he did, Nancy noticed something gleaming on the floor behind him. She picked it up and tucked it into her pocket.
"Let me think. I was on my way over to the command post. The door was ajar, and it's supposed to be kept shut because there's a lot of valuable hardware in here. So I decided to make sure everything was okay. I got inside, and the next thing I knew, I was lying here with this lump on my head and the mother of all headaches. Somebody must have hit me."
Just then Bess arrived. "Ned," she gasped, "are you okay?"
"Hi, Bess," he answered, trying his best to sound normal. "Guys, this is Bess Marvin."
Jennifer and Alicia nodded to Bess. Jack glanced at her, smiled broadly, and held out his hand to shake hers. "Hello there, I'm Jack Billings. Boy, does Ned Nickerson have some great-looking friends."
Bess blushed but said nothing.
Nancy got to her feet. "Someone obviously wanted something. Is all the equipment still here?"
Alicia had been studying the computer table. "It doesn't look as if anything was taken."
Nancy crossed to the supply room. Everything looked much as it had when she had seen it a couple of hours earlier. Then she noticed the hypodermic syringe and several vials of tranquilizer were missing.
"Did anyone take a syringe and some tranquilizer vials out of here?" Nancy asked over her shoulder.
Alicia stepped inside and checked the shelf.
"Oh-they are missing. But who would have taken them?"
Nancy's thoughts raced. First the group had discovered fifty marmots missing, and now someone seemed to have stolen tranquilizers that could sedate more marmots. Was someone planning to tranquilize the fifty stolen creatures so they could be quietly shipped out of the park?
Before she could ask more questions, Nancy saw Professor Trainey at the doorway.
"Now what?" he demanded, slightly out of breath. "Can't I leave this project for five minutes without-" His voice faded as he noticed Ned on the floor.
"Someone hit Ned over the head," Jennifer told her father. "And tranquilizers are missing from the supply room."
Trainey's eyes widened as he knelt beside Ned. "We've got to get you up to the hospital in Gardiner as soon as we can." He glanced around the room, clearly upset. "Can someone drive him there? We can't take chances-not with a head injury."
"I'll go," Nancy quickly offered. "Where is it?"
"Gardiner is just over the state line in Montana, right outside the north entrance of the park. I'll ride along and show you the way," Jack offered. "Just give me a couple of minutes to clear it with headquarters."
Nancy remembered the object she had stashed in her pocket. She slipped it out unobtrusively. It was a Phi Beta Kappa key. Turning it over, she saw the initials D.T. engraved on the back. Dan Trainey.
She leaned down to pat Ned's shoulder, then crossed the room.
"Professor?" she said quietly. "May I speak to you privately for a moment?"
Frowning, Trainey followed her outside. "If you're concerned about Ned's care, don't be," he began.
"It's not that," Nancy replied. She showed him the gold medallion. "I found this just now under Ned. It's yours, isn't it?"
Trainey took the key from her palm and examined it. "Yes," he said. "I noticed I'd lost it a few days ago. Thanks."