Strangers on a Train (Nancy Drew Diaries #2)(25)

Pulling out my phone, I checked to see if Becca had texted back yet about my questions. She hadn’t, and I was about to stick the phone back in my pocket when I realized I hadn’t checked in with Ned in a couple of days.

I tapped out a quick message to him, mostly saying hi and updating him on the case. It was pretty late in River Heights due to the time difference, so I wasn’t expecting an answer until the next day.

Hearing a noise, I looked up and saw Tobias creeping along in the distance near the woods. He was too far away for me to see whatever bird or other local critter he was focused on, but seeing him reminded me of what he’d just told me.

Why would Wendy pay him for photos? It had to have something to do with her new plan. But what kind of money-making scheme could involve amateur photos of Alaskan animals? I wondered if Alan might have any guesses. After all, he was the expert on wildlife and such.

At least he was supposed to be. Suddenly I remembered the odd answers he’d given Tobias on the train earlier. It had almost sounded as if he didn’t know much about the native creatures of Alaska. But wouldn’t an environmental studies major know about things like that, especially if he was planning to make this trip the basis of a yearlong school project?

That brought another question to mind. What if Alan wasn’t what he claimed to be? I sat up straight, disturbed by the idea. But I couldn’t quite shake it. After all, Bess had just met Alan a few weeks ago—she really didn’t know him that well yet. Could he be pulling some kind of scam on her or something?

"You’re letting this mystery go to your head, Drew,” I said to myself with a half-smile. I glanced down at the message on my phone screen, hesitating for only a moment before adding a few quick lines, asking Ned to check up on Alan when he got the chance. That shouldn’t be hard, since they were both students at the university.

I hit send and leaned back in the lounge chair again. There. With that taken care of, I could go back to working on the case— beginning with tracking down Wendy. Still, the lounge chair was comfortable, and the evening temperature was perfect. Maybe I could just sit here and rest for a few minutes first....

My eyes drifted shut, and moments later I was asleep.





******





Unfortunately, my unplanned siesta made it hard to fall asleep that night. It didn’t help that it never really seemed to get dark in Alaska at that time of year. When Bess, George, and Alan returned from their ride at almost nine o’clock, it was still as bright as midday. And when we all headed into our separate rooms a couple of hours later, the sun was just sinking toward the horizon. I tossed and turned and finally drifted off after a while, but awoke suddenly at around two a.m.

Yawning widely, I got up and tiptoed toward the bathroom, trying to be quiet so I wouldn’t wake Bess and George. After using the facilities, I wandered over to the sink to wash my hands. I glanced out the window at the moonlit landscape.

I blinked. Was the near darkness playing tricks on my eyes? Or was that a hooded figure sneaking off toward the woods?

My sleepy mind struggled to figure out what this meant. I pressed my nose to the window, trying to get a better look. Was that Hiro sneaking off to meet Tatjana?

I blinked again, trying to focus my fuzzy mind. Maybe it was Hiro, or Tatjana for that matter. But what if it wasn’t?

That thought woke me up a little more. Hurrying out to the main room, I slipped on the shoes I’d left near the door and pulled a jacket over the shorts and tee I was sleeping in. Then I let myself out of the cabin as quietly as I could.

The figure had disappeared by the time I rounded the cabin and crossed the meadow. But he or she had been heading toward the same trail into the woods that Tatjana had used earlier, so I hurried that way too.

The woods were a lot darker and spookier at this time of night. Animal calls and rustling noises came from every direction. I did my best to ignore them, listening for any sound of human footsteps.

Enough moonlight filtered through the treetops for me to follow the narrow trail through the woods. I hurried along until the trail split, then hesitated. Tatjana had gone right earlier. Should I go that way now?

Then I heard the crack of a branch somewhere off to the left. I turned and went that way.

After walking for a few more minutes, I started to doubt my decision. I hadn’t heard another sound from up ahead. What if that cracking branch had been caused by an animal? My quarry could be a long way down the other fork by now.

Then I froze as I heard a sudden loud sound up ahead. It was muffled by the trees surrounding me, and I wasn’t sure what had caused it. It didn’t sound like footsteps—more like a loud but muffled grunt or squeal. What if it was an animal?

My heart pounded as I suddenly flashed back to all those wildlife warnings they’d given us on this cruise. Not to mention Bess’s comments about dangerous moose, and Tobias’s excited talk about grizzly bears and other native wildlife. What if I was about to stumble across a bear, a wolf, an irritated moose?

I stayed rooted in place, waiting for the sound to come again. But all I heard were the normal noises of the forest. Finally I crept forward again, moving slowly and carefully, wondering if I was being foolish. Maybe it would be smarter to go back to the lodge, get some backup. . . .

Then I saw the trees open up into a clearing just ahead. It was larger than the one where Hiro and Tatjana had met earlier. But that wasn’t the only difference. This clearing had a ramshackle corrugated shed in the middle of it.