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after him, but Luke was already too far off to hear.
    â€œFor Pete’s sake, stop showing off about how brave you are,” George scolded.
    â€œLook who’s trying to give lessons in good sense,” Ned muttered.
    George straightened up angrily. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
    Ned and Nancy exchanged glances. “Nothing,” Ned said in a gentler tone. “I’m just furious with myself for falling. And I’m worried about how I may have messed up my leg for the baseball season. I’m sorry.”
    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 Ned’s skis, poles, and the boot Nancy had taken off next to him.
    Then he strapped Ned in, picked up the stretcher’s handles, and began a slow, careful snowplow down the treacherous slope. Nancy and George skied anxiously behind.
    â€œCan’t we stop for a rest?” Nancy called when they were halfway down. She could tell from Ned’s face that, although Luke was trying to be gentle, the ride down was very painful.
    â€œI know he’s hurting,” Luke said over his shoulder, continuing his snowplow, “but the sooner we get to the bottom, the better he’ll feel.” 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. “Here we are,” he said, unstrapping Ned and helping him to stand on his good leg. He supported most of Ned’s 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. “You’re a lot like me, aren’t you? You don’t like anybody to tell you what you can do or can’t do. But let me give you one piece of advice, okay? Don’t ski on a trail until you’re ready for it.”
    â€œI know. But I have this daredevil girlfriend . . .” Ned gave Nancy a secret smile.
    Suddenly Luke turned on Nancy, his facedarkening. “What? 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, that’s one thing! But I will not allow you to go around here daring other people to kill themselves!”
    â€œShe didn’t ,” Ned said with all the force he could muster. “The race was my idea.”
    â€œWas it?” Luke demanded harshly. “You don’t strike me as the kind of guy who’d do something that stupid unless you had a pretty good reason. Maybe that reason was impressing Nancy Drew.”
    All at once Luke was shouting at Nancy. “You’ve got to be more careful! Do you have any idea at all what it’s like to be responsible for someone else’s tragedy?” He stopped, mid-breath, suddenly realizing that the others were staring at him. His eyes locked with George’s.
    George’s 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. “Man, that guy’s weird!”
    â€œSomething’s weird all right,” Nancy said, “and George knows it.”
    â€œWhat set Luke off like that, anyway?” Ned asked.
    â€œI don’t know.” Yet, Nancy added to herself. “It sounds as if Luke was responsible for anaccident. Maybe that’s why he’s such a dictator about safety.” She frowned. “Although that doesn’t explain everything.” But before she could continue, the infirmary attendants came in.
    After Ned’s 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