Strangers on a Train (Nancy Drew Diaries #2)(31)

We were kept busy for the next couple of hours admiring the scenery and spotting wildlife. The bus stopped a few times so we could get out and take pictures—of Dali sheep high up on a cliff, a family of grizzly bears in the valley below the road, and a particularly scenic overpass.

The bus had paused to let a moose cross the road when my phone rang. George was taking pictures through the front windscreen, but she looked over at me in surprise. “Hey, you still have a signal! Who is it?” she asked.

"Don’t know.” I checked the readout. “Oh, it’s Ned! Wonder why he’s calling instead of texting?”

Bess smiled. “Duh. He probably misses hearing your voice.”

I stuck out my tongue at her as I picked up the call. “Ned!” I exclaimed. "I miss you. How are you? What time is it there?”

“Nancy?” His voice sounded fuzzy and very far away. Glancing at the readout, I saw that I barely had one bar’s worth of reception.

“Ned? I can hardly hear you. I’m in the middle of Denali National Park, and—”

“Nancy, listen,” he cut me off. “I checked into this Alan guy like you asked, and I—”

BZZZ The line went dead.

"Ned?” I said.

“Dropped?” George asked.

"Yeah. No surprise, I guess.” I shrugged, not wanting to mention what he’d said, since Alan and Bess were in the seat right behind us. “Guess I’ll call him back when we get back to the lodge.”

I couldn’t help wondering what Ned had found out about Alan. Was it good news or bad news?



George was still taking pictures of the moose, which seemed to be taking its time ambling across the road. “Good thing Tobias isn’t on our bus,” she said. “He’d probably want to get out and say hello.”



"Be nice,” Bess said, leaning forward from her seat. “That kid knows a lot about animals. He probably knows moose can be dangerous.”

I glanced back to see if the other buses had caught up to ours yet. But there was no sign of them. "Looks like Mr. Moose is moving on,” I said. “He might be gone before Tobias’s bus gets here.”

The tour continued. Our guide used the moose’s appearance to warn us once more about keeping a safe distance from the animals, especially the larger and more dangerous ones. Alan raised his hand.

"My girlfriend claims moose are more dangerous than grizzly bears,” he said with a grin. "True or false?”

“Depends how you look at it,” the guide responded. "It’s true that people have been hurt and killed by both species. Moose aren’t normally as aggressive as bears, though females with young can be quite protective. But due to their numbers and large size...”



I barely heard the rest of the guide’s answer, distracted by wondering once again about Alan. Was he just joking around by asking a question like that? Or was it a clue that he might not be what he seemed? I wished Ned had been able to finish whatever he was trying to tell me.



But there was no point in fretting about it now. Even if Ned had found out something bad—like that Alan was only posing as a university student to impress Bess—there wasn’t much I could do about it at the moment. If there was another mystery there, it could wait until we got home to River Heights.

Oohs and aahs were rising around me, and I realized we’d just come into view of a gorgeous lake. I didn’t waste another thought on anything but soaking up the scenery until we stopped at a picnic grounds for lunch.

The lunch spot was just as scenic as the rest of the park. It overlooked part of the valley, with rocky foothills behind it. We all ate quickly, talking about everything we’d seen so far. Then people scattered in different directions, snapping photos of scenery, wild-flowers, and some Dali sheep visible on a ridge nearby. I pulled out my own camera to get a shot of a curious ptarmigan, but as the bird waddled away, I once again found myself feeling a little distracted. I just couldn’t seem to totally forget about those loose ends—especially that note in my suitcase and the smashed glass on my seat. It was hard to believe either of those things was an accident or even a prank. But who could have done them? And why?

I wandered off by myself around a pile of boulders, not wanting Bess and George to notice my expression. They both know me pretty well, and I wasn’t in the mood for their teasing. Leaning against one of the rocks, I stared at the mountains in the distance and tried to puzzle out some answers.

“Nancy!” Alan burst into view, breathless and giddy. "You have to come check this out. I just spotted a litter of adorable baby foxes!”

"Really?” The guide had mentioned that we would probably encounter some foxes in the park, though we hadn’t seen any yet. "Where are they? Did you tell Bess and George?”

He tugged on my sleeve. “Hurry, before they wander off,” he urged. “I’ll find Bess and George and bring them over.”

I tried to shake off my distraction. "Okay. Where are they?”

He pointed to an outcropping nearby. "That way. Just climb over those rocks and down the other side and you’ll see them.” "Cool.” As he rushed off in the other direction, I headed for the outcropping. I was still deep in thought as I carefully picked my way over the rocky ground and clambered down the steep far side. That put me in a little valley near a creek sheltered on three sides by rocky slopes.