Trail of Lies (8 page)

Nancy found another pay phone and dialed the number of the Wilcox Shipping offices. She asked for Amanda.

“Amanda is out for the afternoon,” the receptionist said blandly. Nancy raised her eyebrows. It seemed Amanda was lying low.

Nancy flipped open the telephone book and found Amanda's home phone number. She dialed and let it ring, but there was no answer.

It was time to meet her father at the police
station. Since the address she had been given was only a few blocks from the Totem Pole, Nancy walked there. She found her father and Henry Wilcox waiting in a small conference room.

“Detective Chandler is taking a phone call. He'll be here in a minute. What have you found out?” Henry asked eagerly.

“I think the ivory is being loaded onto your ships in Seattle,” Nancy told him, explaining that both the beans and the cookies had been loaded there. “The only other cargo that came from Seattle was a bunch of paperback books. I'd like to check them before they're unloaded.”

Henry shook his head. “You're too late. The police let us unload the ship this morning.”

Undaunted, Nancy pulled her pad from her shoulder bag. “I've got the names of the stores where the cartons are going. Maybe we can check there. And I've also found out that some of the ivory carvings sold in the Totem Pole are illegal.”

“Great,” Carson said. “We can tell Chandler about it when he returns.”

“Your father said you wanted to ask me some questions,” Henry told Nancy. “You know I'll do whatever I can to help.” He heaved a gloomy sigh.

Nancy's blue eyes were bright with compassion.
“I know you will. First of all, I wondered whether you had told any of your employees about the smuggling charges.” She didn't think he had, but she knew she should confirm this before she tracked Amanda down for questioning.

“As we agreed, I didn't mention it to anyone,” Henry said, frowning.

As she had thought. “I also wondered about John Tilden's background,” Nancy said carefully.

“John?” Henry sounded surprised. “Surely you don't suspect him.”

Nancy shrugged her shoulders. “At this point, I don't know,” she said honestly. “I need some more information about him, such as where he worked before he came to you.”

“Before he came to Anchorage, he worked as a butler for a railroad executive in Seward.”

“Was he there a long time?” Nancy asked.

“No,” Henry admitted. “He told me he was let go after two days. I didn't press him as to the reason for the firing.”

Carson looked at Henry. “Why did you hire him?”

Henry shrugged. “My instincts told me he was a good man, and so far they've been right. John has been an excellent butler—and I like him.”

“One more question,” Nancy said. “I saw
from the employment records that Steve used to work for you. I wondered why he quit.”

A frown crossed Henry's face. “If you want to know that, you'll have to ask Steve. I assure you, though, it has nothing to do with this case.”

Nancy was about to press him further when the door to the conference room opened and Detective Chandler strode in. He grunted when he saw Nancy.

“I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave,” he told her. “This is official business—only the suspect and his counsel have the right to be here.”

Chandler's tone was firm. Nancy thought of pointing out that Carson wasn't Henry's counsel, but she knew that wouldn't help Henry any. Swallowing her disappointment, she said goodbye and headed back to the Wilcox mansion.

Nancy was deeply preoccupied during the entire drive back. The miles flew by unnoticed. When she arrived at the Wilcox mansion, she was greeted by an ecstatic George.

“I had the most fabulous day!” George exclaimed. “Steve and I spent the whole day working with the dogs.”

“That's great,” Nancy said.

“We took them out for a long run, and then we made them this really disgusting goop for
lunch.” George wrinkled her nose playfully, then babbled on. “Steve really loves his team—he'd spend all day just mucking around in the barn with them if he could, only he says Craig always beats him to the chores these days. He's going to help Craig buy his own team—that's going to be his Christmas present. Don't tell Craig, okay?”

“Mmm, that's terrific,” Nancy said absently.

George gave her a long look. “You don't sound very excited,” she commented. “Were you even listening to me?”

“Sorry,” Nancy said contritely. “It's just that my day's been pretty rough. Don't tell Dad, but I took a tumble down a flight of stairs, thanks to someone's helping hand.”

“Someone pushed you?” George exclaimed, her dark eyes widening. “Who do you think it was?”

“I'm not sure. By the time I landed, whoever it was had disappeared. I went back to the shipping offices, though, and Craig and John were there.”

“Do you think it was one of them?”

Nancy shrugged. “At this point, all I know is that they were there. One of them could have pushed me. But so could Amanda Spear.”

“Amanda?” This time George really was surprised. “You suspect Amanda?”

Nancy gave a tired chuckle. “I can see we've got some catching up to do,” she said. “Let's go up to our room—I need to lie down and rest my aching bones for a few minutes. While I'm doing that, I'll tell you all about
my
day.”

• • •

That night it snowed heavily, and a few lazy flakes were still falling when the girls came down for breakfast the next morning. Both Steve and Craig were keyed up during the meal. It was the day of the first trial run.

“We're in luck,” Craig said. “Steve's dogs run well in deep snow. Some of the other teams don't.”

Nancy and George offered to help the boys get the team ready, but they refused.

“They get excited when there are strangers around, and we want to store up all their enthusiasm for the race,” Steve said.

Several hours later Nancy and George drove to the state park where the trials were taking place. Once they turned off the main road, they had no trouble finding the spot. The parking lot was filled with trucks carrying wooden doghouses, and the sound of excited yipping filled the air.

Craig and Steve were harnessing the last of the team when Nancy and George arrived.

“I'm glad you're here to see me win,” Steve said, smiling at George.

Lindsay's team was right near Steve's, and
she must have overheard his words. “Pretty confident, aren't you?” she called over.

Steve grinned. “Just realistic. I've been working hard. Today I'm going to prove I'm a better musher than you.”

Lindsay raised a skeptical eyebrow and turned away.

A crowd was beginning to gather, and Nancy scanned the spectators, searching for Amanda. Though it was a work day, the trials had been arranged so that people could come on their lunch break. But there was no sign of the bookkeeper.

Craig gave Thunder a gentle pat on his nose, then turned to Nancy. “Is your father coming?”

Nancy thought it was better not to mention that her father and Henry were at the police station. It might upset Steve and weaken his concentration. “I don't think so,” she replied. “He and Mr. Wilcox are at the office today.”

Steve glowered at Craig. “You can bet your life Dad won't come!” he said bitterly.

Once again, the depth of Steve's hostility toward his father surprised Nancy. She was dying to ask about it, but she held back. Just before Steve's key trial was not the right time.

“Where's the best view?” she asked. “George and I want to be sure we see everything.”

Steve pointed to the opposite side of the
field. “If you stand over there, you can see the last turn and the finish line. That's usually the most exciting place to be.”

Craig nodded. “As soon as Steve takes off, I'll join you there.”

It was almost noon, and the teams were starting to pull into position, two to a row. As the two teams with the best cumulative scores of the season, Steve and Lindsay were in front, side by side.

Steve flashed a smile at George, then bent down and spoke to his team. An instant later, the starting bell sounded.

The teams were off!

The course was a mile long, and when the trail wound into the forest, Nancy and George could no longer see the teams. There was, however, no doubt that the race was on. The sound of the dogs' excited cries echoed through the trees.

When the teams appeared a few minutes later, Steve and Lindsay were still even. Their lead dogs were in a dead heat. It looked as if Lindsay wasn't going to let Steve win without a fight.

Nancy watched the teams round the corner, then glanced at the crowd of spectators on the opposite side. Craig was still over there, talking to a man in a big fur hat.

Then Nancy noticed John Tilden standing
only a few feet away. It seemed odd that John was there. He hadn't struck her as a sled-dog enthusiast.

When the first team emerged from the forest on the second lap, it was Steve's, clearly in the lead. A second later Lindsay appeared, but the distance between Steve's team and hers was growing.

Soon Nancy forgot everything except the excitement of the race. Steve headed into the forest on the third lap, his lead undeniable. Then somehow Lindsay caught up to him, for both teams came out into the open together. Once again the dogs were running side by side. They stayed side by side for the fourth lap.

“I can't believe it!” George cried. “It's going to be a photo finish.”

“There's one more lap,” Nancy said.

“Steve's going to win. He's got to.” George clapped her hands together excitedly.

This time when the dogs burst out of the forest, Lindsay's team was ahead by a few feet. If Steve was going to win, he'd have to coax a last burst of speed from his dogs.

As Lindsay's team hurtled ahead, a loud crack echoed through the crisp winter air. For a brief instant, no one reacted. Then Lindsay's team swerved from the trail. The young woman tugged desperately on the lines,
shouting to her dogs to get them back on the track.

But the dogs were out of control, and the sled was headed straight for Nancy and George!

N
ANCY MOVED INSTINCTIVELY
, shoving George to the ground and flinging herself down next to her. She heard the dogs' labored breathing and the jingle of their harness as they raced past, snow spraying up from their paws. The sled's runners hissed by, only inches from her head. Then it was over, as suddenly as it had begun.

“What happened?” George asked shakily, climbing to her feet and brushing snow from her pants.

Nancy stood slowly. “Something spooked Lindsay's team.”

She turned. Lindsay had her dogs under control and was headed back toward them.
She stopped the team and set the brake on the sled.

“Are you all right?” she asked anxiously.

“We're fine,” George said, somewhat abruptly.

Lindsay's relief was obvious. “I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened back there. All I could think about when Butterscotch swerved was that you might be hurt.”

Nancy managed a laugh. “I never thought I'd see the end of the race from quite that angle.” She shaded her eyes with her hand and gazed at the finish line. Steve had apparently crossed it first. Now she could see him running back toward the scene of the accident.

Moments later he and Craig reached the girls. “Are you okay? What happened?” Steve demanded. He put a protective arm around George.

Lindsay's face was still pale as she spoke. “It sounded as if someone cracked a whip near my team. Butterscotch went wild, the way she always does when she hears a whip.”

Steve gave Lindsay an irritated look. “You pamper those dogs too much. They ought to be used to loud noises.”

“That's not the point,” Craig said, putting a cautionary hand on his friend's arm.

Nancy looked dubious. “I don't think it was a whip, Lindsay.” She turned to George. “Did you see anyone crack a whip?”

“No,” said George.

“I didn't either,” Nancy told them.

“I don't know what it was then,” Lindsay said, with a glance at Steve. “Obviously, though, someone didn't want me to win the trial.”

Steve flushed. “You can't think I had anything to do with it.”

“Can't I?” Lindsay glared. “You said you were going to win, one way or another.”

But Nancy wasn't listening to the conversation anymore. She'd just spotted John Tilden walking away from the track toward the parking lot. She turned to George. “Would you wait here?” she asked softly so that the others would not overhear her. “I want to talk to John.”

George nodded, and Nancy walked quickly across the field.

“John!” she called.