The Wrong Track (4 page)

“It sure is,” Bess agreed. She leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath of the hot, dry air. “Wonderful,” she murmured.

For a few minutes the girls relaxed in silence, letting the heat of the sauna work its magic.

Finally Bess opened her eyes and looked at
Nancy. “George told me you've been busy,” she said.

Nancy laughed. “I guess I have. But not busy enough. I still don't know what Ben's so angry about, or why Jody hates Rebecca.”

Bess was about to speak when they both heard someone at the door. Nancy held her finger to her lips, warning Bess to be quiet. She didn't want to get caught talking about the mystery. Bess nodded. When no one entered the sauna after a minute or two, Nancy shrugged.

“So what do we do next?” Bess asked, getting back to the case.

“We have to find out more about both Ben and Jody. You and George can help with that, because you're not pretending to be reporters. Jody's careful about what she says to me.” Nancy leaned back against the wall. “I'm having dinner with the Reismuellers tonight. Why don't you and George come to my condo afterward, say around ten? We can work out a plan then.”

Bess nodded and stood up. “I'm starting to feel cooked,” she said, pulling her towel around her. “Let's go.” She walked the three steps to the door and pushed on the handle.

“Nancy, the door won't open,” Bess said, pushing on the handle again, surprise showing on her face.

“Push a little harder,” Nancy suggested. “It's new. Maybe it just sticks.”

Bess pushed. “Nancy, it doesn't work.” This time her voice betrayed her mounting panic. “It's locked.”

“That's strange,” said Nancy, frowning. “Sauna doors don't have locks.”

She came up beside Bess and tried the handle herself. The door wouldn't budge. She tried kicking the door. Still nothing.

Bess's face was flushed. “We've got to get out of here!” she cried. “I can't take this heat.”

Nancy felt her own temperature rising, and she knew they couldn't stay much longer. Her eyes scanned the walls for a thermostat to turn the heat down. Nothing.

“The controls must be on the outside,” she told Bess, trying to keep her voice calm.

“Oh, Nancy!” Bess wailed. “What are we going to do?”

Nancy pressed her face against the small window in the door and peered through it to the right and left. What she saw made her heart sink. Someone had wedged a piece of wood between the door and the frame.

They were locked in!

H
ELP
!” Bess shouted. “Somebody help!”

Nancy leaned against the door again and shoved, hoping to dislodge the wedge of wood. Nothing happened.

“We'll never get out of here!” Bess wailed.

“We'll get out, Bess,” Nancy said with quiet determination. “There are lots of people around. Someone has to hear us shouting.”

Bess gave Nancy a weak smile. “You're right,” she said, wiping the sweat from her forehead. “I just hope that someone comes soon. I need to lose five pounds, not twenty,” she joked. “Help!” she cried again, banging on the door.

At that moment Nancy heard footsteps outside the door and a loud scraping noise. Finally the door swung open.

“Thank goodness!” Bess flung herself out of the sauna and into the cooler air.

George was standing there, dressed in her sweats with a towel around her neck and a wedge-shaped piece of wood in her hand. “Why was this stuck in the door?” she asked, concern in her brown eyes.

“Someone barred the door,” Nancy answered, shrugging her shoulders. She put an arm around Bess. “Maybe it was just a prank. Whoever did it must have known somebody would come along to let us out.”

“I'm just glad it's over,” Bess said. Nancy felt her friend start to shiver. “I'm ready to put on some clothes and grab a bite to eat. After that experience I need to rebuild my strength.”

“I want to ask the attendant if she saw anything before I change,” Nancy said. “And I'm going out to dinner tonight.”

After Bess and George went into the locker room Nancy searched for the attendant. She found her sorting towels outside the locker room. As Nancy told her what happened the attendant became deathly white, and her eyes grew round.

“I left for only a minute. There were a lot of guests around,” the girl told Nancy with a nervous shrug. “I'll keep my eyes open, though. That could have been dangerous!”

Nancy left her and went into the locker room to join Bess and George, but they had already gone. As Nancy changed she thought about the wedged door. Did the person who had done it want to trap her and Bess or someone else? Maybe it was just a prank played by someone who wanted to cause trouble at Tall Pines.

If the person was after Bess and Nancy, who knew they were going to be in the sauna? There was Jody, who had suggested it, and Dave Kendall, who saw her entering the building. Either one of them could have jammed the door. But why? It made no sense. As far as everyone at Tall Pines knew, Nancy was a reporter for
Tracks,
not a detective. Who would want to harm a reporter?

Unless . . . There was a possibility that her cover was blown and someone knew she was at Tall Pines investigating the theft. If so, Nancy could be in danger.

The air was cold with a hint of snow as Nancy headed back to her condo. It was seven-thirty; she'd barely have time to dress for dinner. She settled on a pair of black trousers and a teal blue silk blouse. A quick brush through her hair and a dash of pink lipstick and she was ready to go.

Nancy entered Edelweiss, just before eight. Crisp white linen cloths covered each table, and crystal glassware and silver flatware gleamed in the candlelight. Karl Reismueller greeted her just inside the door.

“Good evening,” he said in a deep voice. “I'd like you to meet my wife, Sheila.”

Sheila Reismueller was tall, thin, and stunning. She had dressed in a stylishly short rose-colored dress, and her champagne blond hair was swept up into a sophisticated French twist. Her hand was perched on her husband's arm, and Nancy thought the two of them made an elegant couple.

“I'm glad to meet you, Mrs. Reismueller,”
Nancy said. As she shook Sheila's hand Nancy noticed her perfume—roses and lilies with a hint of something spicy.

“Call me Sheila,” the woman said, her blue eyes sparkling.

“And I insist you call me Karl. ‘Mr. Reismueller' makes me feel a hundred years old.”

The maître d' showed them to a table by the windows. When the women were seated he unfolded their napkins with a flourish.

“May I bring you an appetizer?” he asked.

Karl ordered fondue. “That's a fancy name for bread and melted cheese,” he joked. “Where I'm from we always have it after a hard day's skiing.”

“This is a gorgeous restaurant,” Nancy said. Karl Reismueller's showmanship was obvious. Both the front and back walls of the restaurant were windowed. Several of the trails were lit, and the view was magnificent.

The waiter brought their fondue, and they set to dipping the toasted bread into the steaming pot of melted cheese. Nancy remarked on the vases of fresh roses on each table. “The flowers are wonderful,” she said.

“You can thank Sheila for them,” Karl said with a fond glance at his wife. “She insists that we have fresh flowers every night.”

“It might seem to be an extravagance, but I just love fresh flowers,” Sheila said. “That's why we named the restaurant Edelweiss.”

Nancy remembered the orchids in Dave
Kendall's office and asked Sheila if she was responsible for them, too.

“No,” she said, laughing lightly and fingering a large horseshoe-shaped pin on her left shoulder. Nancy assumed those were real diamonds covering the pin's surface.

“Dave deserves the compliments,” Sheila said. “Indoor gardening is one of his hobbies, and, as you saw, he's awfully good at it.”

“Dave's also a good manager,” Karl added as the waiter cleared the fondue pot from their table. “He's responsible for whatever success we're having.” Nancy noticed Bess and George taking seats at the table next to them.

Sheila turned to Nancy. “My husband is too modest,” she said. “He's the genius behind this and our other businesses. Why, his printing company is the biggest in the state, and his chain of toy stores just keeps growing.” She laid her hand on his arm. “Isn't that right, Karl?”

Karl frowned slightly. “Let's not bore Nancy, Sheila,” he said. “Tell me, have you had a chance to ski any of the trails?”

Nancy shook her head. “I'm skiing with Ben at nine tomorrow morning, though.”

“You and Sheila ought to ski together,” Karl said. “She knows the trails as well as any instructor at Tall Pines.”

“I'd like that,” Nancy agreed.

“It'll have to be the day after tomorrow,” Sheila told Karl. “I have several appointments tomorrow.”

Taking a sip of water, Nancy turned to Karl. She decided it was time to get whatever information she could on the theft. “I heard about the theft you had here,” she said. “I understand the police weren't able to recover most of the money.”

Sheila's face grew pale. “That was the last thing we needed, more money prob—”

“We feel we know who took the money,” Karl interrupted smoothly, “but have decided not to press charges. The publicity would be far too damaging. I certainly hope,” he added with a rueful smile, “that nothing about that unfortunate incident will end up in the pages of
Tracks.”

Nancy smiled and offered a quiet no. She did wonder whether Sheila had started to say “money problems.” She hadn't heard of any at Tall Pines.

Before Nancy could ask any more questions, Karl moved on to the subject of Tall Pines's other attractions. As they ate their filet mignon followed by baked Alaska and coffee he amused them with anecdotes about the resort and its opening.

“Thank you for a lovely meal,” Nancy said as they were leaving. “The Edelweiss will get a great write-up in our magazine.”

Karl smiled, his white teeth glistening in the candlelight. “Now, that's what I like to hear!” he said. “Come, Sheila.” He pulled back his wife's chair and took her arm. “This has been a long day. Come see me tomorrow, Nancy, if you like. You know where to find me.”

Nancy waited for the elegant couple to leave the dining room before motioning to Bess and George, who were still sitting at the table next to hers. “See you at my condo in ten minutes,” she whispered softly as she passed by them.

• • •

The three friends were in the living room of Nancy's condo, and she was just finishing telling them what she thought Sheila Reismueller was going to say before her husband had cut her off.

George had built a small fire while Nancy talked, and Bess was curled up in one of the oversize chairs.

“I don't see how it fits into the case,” Nancy admitted, “but I want to check it out.”

A frown crossed George's face. “We're here to clear Rebecca,” she reminded Nancy.

Nancy nodded. She had a plan ready. “I want to follow up with Ben. I need to find out what kind of shady things he thinks are going on here, so I've scheduled a lesson with him tomorrow morning.” She turned to Bess. “Would you cover Jody? Find out if there's any reason she needs money. And also find out why she seems to hate Rebecca so much.”

Bess grinned. “No problem. I wanted to check out the ski shop anyway.”

George raised a questioning eyebrow. “What should I do?”

Nancy thought for a moment. “Why don't you go over to Rob Watson's lodge tomorrow and see what you can find out there?” Nancy continued
explaining. “Tall Pines is Rob's biggest rival. He may be trying to sabotage the resort.”

“It's a real sacrifice, you know, leaving Tall Pines to go to Rob's,” George said with a laugh.

“Let's meet here again tomorrow night,” Nancy suggested as the girls were leaving.

Nancy stood in the doorway and watched them walk off toward the main lodge, where they were staying. Snow had started to fall lightly. As she went back inside she decided to check out Dave Kendall's office, where the theft had occurred.

Three whole weeks had passed, and Nancy knew she was probably wasting her time but felt a need to check it out anyway. She grabbed her ski parka and within a few minutes was at the Tall Pines administration building. Making sure no one was around, Nancy gently shoved against the front door. She was surprised that it was open.

Also surprising was the light streaming out from under Dave's office door. Someone was in there.

Nancy decided that at that time of night it was probably a cleaning crew. Then she heard someone speak and recognized the man's voice as Dave's. She was wrong—Dave was working late. As she was planning her next move the outside door to the building was flung open, and a blast of cold air rushed in. Nancy turned, wondering who was coming into the office so late.