Linda and Bess looked frightened. “You mean the rafts aren’t safe?” Linda said haltingly.

“A raft is always safe as long as it is right-side-up and everybody stays on it,” Mike replied, with another challenging look at Max.

“Do they capsize often?” Bess asked, glancing at George and putting special emphasis on the word capsize. Nancy hid a smile. Bess was learning the vocabulary.

“Hardly ever.” Max tipped his cap toward the back of his head.

“As long as you don’t get careless,” Tod put in. “If you do…”

“Right,” Max said, avoiding Mike’s eyes. He put his hand casually on Bess’s arm. “Listen, Bess, if you’re scared, ride along with me, and I’ll show you what to watch out for. That way, you’ll understand what’s going on.”

A happy smile lit Bess’s face. “Sure,” she said. “I’d love to.”

Nancy and George exchanged worried looks. Why did Bess have to give away her heart on a moment’s notice? They’d have to talk with her first chance they got and warn her.

For the time being, Nancy just wanted some answers to the questions that had been bothering her all along. How much did the others know about the contest? George couldn’t remember entering it-could they? She turned to Linda. “So,” she said, “another lucky winner. Tell me how you won the contest.”

Linda shook her head. “You know, it’s funny,” she replied timidly. “When the letter from Paula Hancock came, I was completely surprised. I couldn’t even remember entering a contest.”

“Me, neither,” Ralph volunteered. “Linda and I have talked about it, and neither one of us can figure out exactly how we got here.”

Nancy looked at Mike and Tod. “What about you?” she asked.

Tod shrugged. “Who knows? I don’t remember entering, but I might have. You know how it goes. When you see a contest at a store or something, you always put your name in the box. I figure that’s what happened here. I probably entered it at the sporting goods store.”