Ned leaned toward her and touched her cheek with the tip of his finger. There was a slight smile on his lips. “What you’re saying is that you’ve been taking me for granted. Is that it?”

Nancy nodded regretfully. “I guess so. Maybe that’s why I was so ready to accept George’s offer of the raft trip. I think we need time together so you can help me figure out all over again just why it is I love you so much.”

“We don’t have to wait until we get to Montana for me to start working on that assignment,” Ned said softly. He leaned closer and put his arms around her. “Let me give you a couple of reminders.” He kissed her tenderly, then kissed her again. “Got it figured out yet, Detective Drew?”

Nancy relaxed into his arms. “No, not yet,” she said. “Why don’t you try again? When it comes to love, I’m a very slow learner.”

At that moment, the telephone rang. Nancy sighed. “Somebody’s got awfully poor timing,” she said as she lifted the receiver.

“Nancy Drew?” The voice on the other end of the line was low and muffled.

“Yes?” Nancy said slowly, sensing that something was wrong.

The next words struck her with an icy coldness. Her stomach twisted into a frigid knot. “The trip your friend won is no prize,” the voice said ominously. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay home-and stay alive!”

Chapter Two

“What’s still not clear to me,” Nancy told George and Bess the next day, leaning across the table at Bennie’s Ice Cream Parlor, “is whether the phone call I got last night was a warning or a threat. I mean, I couldn’t tell from the tone of voice whether the caller meant to threaten me with harm or keep me from getting hurt.” She chewed her lip, puzzled. “I couldn’t even tell whether the voice was female or male.”