after him, but Luke was already too far off to hear.
âFor Peteâs sake, stop showing off about how brave you are,â George scolded.
âLook whoâs trying to give lessons in good sense,â Ned muttered.
George straightened up angrily. âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â
Ned and Nancy exchanged glances. âNothing,â Ned said in a gentler tone. âIâm just furious with myself for falling. And Iâm worried about how I may have messed up my leg for the baseball season. Iâm sorry.â
George looked dubious, but accepted the apology.
Soon after, Luke reappeared, pulling astretcher behind him. Nancy and George helped him load Ned onto the stretcher. Luke laid Nedâs skis, poles, and the boot Nancy had taken off next to him.
Then he strapped Ned in, picked up the stretcherâs handles, and began a slow, careful snowplow down the treacherous slope. Nancy and George skied anxiously behind.
âCanât we stop for a rest?â Nancy called when they were halfway down. She could tell from Nedâs face that, although Luke was trying to be gentle, the ride down was very painful.
âI know heâs hurting,â Luke said over his shoulder, continuing his snowplow, âbut the sooner we get to the bottom, the better heâll feel.â Nancy sighed. She knew Luke was right, so she and George skied on.
At last the foursome reached the bottom of the steep slope. Luke pulled the stretcher up to the doors of the first aid station. âHere we are,â he said, unstrapping Ned and helping him to stand on his good leg. He supported most of Nedâs weight as Ned limped into the infirmary.
When at last he was lying on a nice, motionless bed, Ned drew in a ragged breath. Luke looked at him with a faint smile. âYouâre a lot like me, arenât you? You donât like anybody to tell you what you can do or canât do. But let me give you one piece of advice, okay? Donât ski on a trail until youâre ready for it.â
âI know. But I have this daredevil girlfriend . . .â Ned gave Nancy a secret smile.
Suddenly Luke turned on Nancy, his facedarkening. âWhat? On the most dangerous slope we have? Are you crazy? If you want to take your own life in your hands like you did yesterday, thatâs one thing! But I will not allow you to go around here daring other people to kill themselves!â
âShe didnât ,â Ned said with all the force he could muster. âThe race was my idea.â
âWas it?â Luke demanded harshly. âYou donât strike me as the kind of guy whoâd do something that stupid unless you had a pretty good reason. Maybe that reason was impressing Nancy Drew.â
All at once Luke was shouting at Nancy. âYouâve got to be more careful! Do you have any idea at all what itâs like to be responsible for someone elseâs tragedy?â He stopped, mid-breath, suddenly realizing that the others were staring at him. His eyes locked with Georgeâs.
Georgeâs face went from white to scarlet and back to white. With a choking sound, Luke wrenched around and ran out of the first-aid station.
There was a moment of stunned silence. Then George ran after him.
Ned managed a whistle. âMan, that guyâs weird!â
âSomethingâs weird all right,â Nancy said, âand George knows it.â
âWhat set Luke off like that, anyway?â Ned asked.
âI donât know.â Yet, Nancy added to herself. âIt sounds as if Luke was responsible for anaccident. Maybe thatâs why heâs such a dictator about safety.â She frowned. âAlthough that doesnât explain everything.â But before she could continue, the infirmary attendants came in.
After Nedâs ankle had been examined and wrapped in an ice pack, one of the first-aid attendants drove Nancy and Ned back to Webb Cove Lodge. Luke and