The car was speeding along an open country road. Nancy slowed down for a curve. Then, to the surprise of her companions, she quickly stepped on the foot brake.
"Now what?" George demanded. "Don"t tell me we have a flat tire."
Nancy shook her head and pointed to a large signboard in a field to the left of the road. "See that poster, girls! An animal show is coming here."
"Not to River Heights, though," Bess said in disappointment as she turned to read the sign. "It"s at Hanover on the twentieth of this month."
"And that"s tomorrow," Nancy added. "But what else does it say?"
"Oh!" Bess exclaimed. "It"s the Bengleton Wild-Animal Show-the one Rai and Rishi were with!"
Nancy nodded. "Girls, let"s plan to attend," she urged eagerly. "Maybe we can learn something about Rai from performers in the show. At least I hope so."
"I never turn down an invitation to anything exciting," George answered.
"I"d love to go," Bess added quickly. "Will you take Rishi, Nancy?"
"I"ll see if he wants to go."
After dropping Bess and George at a supermarket, Nancy hurried home. This was Professor Stackpole"s afternoon to tutor Rishi, and she wanted to talk to the distinguished man before he left the house.
As Nancy ran up the front steps, he was politely bidding Mrs. Gruen good afternoon. The door behind him closed.
"Are lessons over so soon?" Nancy inquired.
"Yes, it did not take me long to hear them. Rishi is a brilliant student."
"I"m delighted to hear that, Dr. Stackpole," Nancy replied.
"Rishi"s mind never ceases to amaze me," the professor said. "His knowledge of the history of India is astounding, and he seems to be well versed in the traditions of various maharajas of India."
"I"ve often wondered if perhaps Rishi doesn"t come from such a family himself," Nancy interposed quickly.
She half expected Professor Stackpole to laugh at the suggestion, but instead he regarded her soberly.
"That possibility has occurred to me also. Do you know anything about his parents or his life in India?"
Nancy described her first meeting with Rai and Rishi, adding a little of the evidence she had gleaned from Mrs. Allison. As she mentioned the Sanskrit poetry and the name of lama Togara, Professor Stackpole"s interest increased.
"lama Togara is the governor of a small but wealthy province of India," he explained. "As I recall, the man ascended to power under rather peculiar circ.u.mstances, but the details have slipped my mind. If you wish, I"ll look up the data for you."
"I"d appreciate it, Dr. Stackpole."
The tutor left. Before he was out of sight, the front door opened and his pupil emerged. The boy intently gazed at Nancy.
"Rishi have sudden premonition!"
"Did you learn that big word in your English lesson today?" Nancy teased.
Rishi appeared not to hear her. "I have strange premonition," he repeated. "Strange vision. Rishi see himself on way to India to become a great man. Big honor come through help of Nancy Drew!"
Nancy listened closely to hear more, but the Indian boy"s reverie was interrupted by Hannah Gruen. Rishi immediately turned and went back into the house, without saying another word. Nancy whispered what the boy had been saying.
The housekeeper"s only comment was, "Poor child! He dreams too much."
Nancy worked in the garden until her father came home. Making certain that Rishi was not within hearing, she told Mr. Drew about the Bengleton Wild-Animal Show at Hanover.
"If I can get away from the office, I"ll run over with you," he promised.
"And perhaps you"d like to visit the abandoned Allison house?" Nancy asked, hoping he would. "It"s on the way."
"All right," the lawyer agreed. "You"ve told me so many wild tales about the place, I admit I"ve grown curious."
Nancy was awake early the next morning. She helped Hannah prepare breakfast. Then, while waiting for her father to come downstairs, she unfolded the morning newspaper. Casually her eye scanned the headlines. Suddenly she uttered a startled exclamation that reached the far corners of the house.
"Dad! Hannah! Rishi!" she called. "Come and read this!"
Boxes of Treasure "WHAT is it?" Mrs. Gruen asked, hurrying from the kitchen.
"Look at this paper!" Nancy cried, thrusting it into the housekeeper"s hand. "The story about the fire."
By this time Carson Drew had come downstairs. "What"s this about a fire?"
"Oh, Dad, Mrs. Allison"s house burned down last night!"
"And a good thing in my opinion," Mrs. Gruen declared firmly, offering the newspaper to the lawyer. "That place was full of danger."
"Speaking of fires, I think I smell something burning now," Mr. Drew said, sniffing the air.
"Oh, my! The bacon!" Mrs. Gruen turned and fled to the kitchen.
Carson Drew quickly scanned the newspaper account. According to the story, the blaze had started during the night and was of unknown origin. A pa.s.sing motorist had called the fire department, but before the firemen could reach the scene the building had been destroyed.
"It"s too bad Jasper Batt didn"t discover the fire in time to save the house," Nancy commented.
"From what you"ve told me of him, Nancy, he couldn"t have been a very reliable watchman. Possibly the fire started from a match he carelessly dropped himself."
Nancy nodded soberly. "Or it may have been a case of arson. Perhaps someone wished to conceal forever the secrets of that strange house."
"Do you think Mrs. Allison would set fire to her own house?" Mr. Drew questioned his daughter.
"No, I hardly think she would do such a thing. I really have no theory about the fire. But I should like to drive out this morning and look at the ruins."
"Apparently you"ve forgotten that this is the day for the wild-animal show," Nancy"s father reminded her.
"No, I haven"t. We can go to Mrs. Allison"s property first, then come back for Rishi. He has lessons now. I"ll phone Bess and George and see if they"ll be able to start early."
"The plan suits me," Mr. Drew agreed. "I"ve arranged to be away from the office all day."
Directly after breakfast Nancy talked with the cousins, saying she would pick them up at ten o"clock. Bess and George were waiting at the Fayne house when the Drews drove up. A short ride brought them within view of the Allison property.
Disregarding Steve Roach"s recent warning not to trespa.s.s, the four walked rapidly through the woods to the clearing where the old house had stood. Now it was only a smoking ruin. Nancy"s eyes roamed from the pile of debris to a lone figure working among the wreckage.
"Why, it"s Mrs. Allison!" she exclaimed.
They hurried forward to find the woman trying vainly to move several half-burned timbers that blocked the stone stairway leading down into the secret tunnel. As Mrs. Allison turned to face the newcomers, her eyes filled with tears.
"You shouldn"t be doing work like this!" Mr. Drew said. "If the timbers must be moved now, let me do it."
"I"ve been trying for an hour to get into the tunnel," Mrs. Allison half sobbed. "I am completely worn out."
"Why not wait until some of the debris has been cleared away?" Nancy suggested.
"Oh, you don"t understand. I am afraid to wait even a day. Someone may steal my precious treasures."
"Treasures?" Nancy asked.
"They are hidden in the tunnel-many boxes of priceless articles. I must remove them before anyone comes. Oh, Miss Drew, if you and your father will only help me, I"ll be so grateful."
"Of course we"ll help," Mr. Drew said quickly. "If these timbers are cool enough to handle I think we can get into the tunnel."
"Wouldn"t it be easier to enter the pa.s.sageway through the door in the rock?" Nancy questioned, hoping the woman might divulge the secret of its mechanism.
Mrs. Allison glanced sharply at the girl. If it occurred to her to wonder how Nancy was so well informed about the tunnel, she refrained from saying so.
Instead, she murmured impatiently, "No, no. We cannot enter that way."
Fortunately, the portion of the bas.e.m.e.nt in which the stone stairway stood had not entirely burned, so it was fairly clear of debris. In a short while Mr. Drew had dragged away the timbers blocking the pa.s.sage.
"It isn"t very safe to go in yet," he cautioned Mrs. Allison. "You might be overcome by fumes or heat."
"The air in the tunnel will be cool and clear," she insisted. "I must save my treasures! I have a big flashlight." She took it from her handbag.
"Then I"ll go with you," the lawyer told her. "But I feel that the undertaking may be dangerous. You girls remain here."
Bess and George looked relieved, for they had been eyeing the great charred hole with misgivings. Nancy, on the other hand, could not bear to remain behind.
"You"ll need me to help you," she said to her father. "And I have a flashlight, too."
"Oh, well, come along," he agreed.
Leaving Bess and George behind, the other three swiftly descended into the tunnel. The fumes were even more unpleasant than they had antic.i.p.ated. Both Mrs. Allison and Nancy were choking and coughing before they reached the cooler interior of the underground pa.s.sage.
The woman went directly to a secret corridor that branched off the main pa.s.sageway. Using her flashlight, she located a rectangular stone set high in the wall. Her hand moved deftly over it to touch a hidden spring.
Nancy and her father heard a faint click. Then the woman tugged at the block and it slipped out of its place in the wall. In the cavity were several small boxes.
"Your treasures seem to be safe where they are," Mr. Drew commented. "I doubt that anyone would ever suspect there was such a clever hiding place."
"I can"t leave the boxes here," Mrs. Allison declared. "They must be taken to a bank vault."
"That is the best thing to do," the lawyer agreed. "It shouldn"t take us long to remove the boxes."
He pulled several boxes out and put them on the floor of the pa.s.sageway, noticing their weight. He and Nancy wondered what the contents might be, but Mrs. Allison offered no information and they tactfully refrained from asking her.
Nancy bent down to pick up a small package, only to have Mrs. Allison say quickly, "No, I"ll take that one."
As Nancy selected another box, her father lifted one of the heavy cartons. With Mrs. Allison bringing up the rear, the three started to carry their burdens along the tunnel.
Carson Drew, who was in the lead, suddenly halted. A loud, rumbling noise thundered through the tunnel, and a few loose stones overhead clattered down dangerously near their heads.
The lawyer pushed his daughter and Mrs. Allison back against the wall, saying sharply, "Don"t move!"
The three huddled there for several minutes until the stones stopped falling. A thick cloud of dust filled the pa.s.sageway.
"There"s been a cave-in somewhere ahead," Mr. Drew said tensely. "Let"s get out of here before we"re buried alive."
"We can"t leave my treasures behind!" Mrs. Allison cried in distress as she saw that Mr. Drew intended to abandon the boxes. "They represent a fortune!"
Considering the emergency, Nancy and her father thought that the woman was selfish to place her own interests above their lives. They knew, however, that it would take less time to carry out the boxes than to make Mrs. Allison understand the need to hurry. They picked up the boxes and rushed down the tunnel.
They were able to go only a short distance. Rounding a slight turn in the pa.s.sageway they were dismayed to find it blocked by a pile of dirt, rock, and overhead beams that had given way.
"I was afraid of this!" Mr. Drew exclaimed. "We"re trapped!"
"Oh, what shall we do? What shall we do?" Mrs. Allison wailed. "We"ll never get out of here alive."
Sinking down on one of the boxes of treasure, she sobbed hysterically.
"The situation probably isn"t as serious as it appears," Mr. Drew said with forced cheerful-ness. "If we"re unable to dig our way out, Bess and George may soon realize that something is wrong and send help."
Meanwhile, Nancy had been pulling and tugging at one of the half-buried timbers. "The cave-in doesn"t extend far!" she cried. "We"re near the main tunnel entrance. I can see a faint streak of light."
"You"re right, Nancy," Carson Drew agreed jubilantly. "We may get out of here by our own efforts yet!"
The two started to work through the debris, succeeding after some backbreaking labor in enlarging the aperture slightly. But beyond that point they could not budge the heavy beams.
"If I only had a few tools," the lawyer said dejectedly as he sank down on the floor of the tunnel to rest. "I fear we"re trapped. We must wait for a rescue."
Nancy measured the opening with her eye. "I believe I could crawl through, Dad. If you"ll help a little, I"m sure I can make it. Let me try, anyway."
Before her father could protest, Nancy thrust her head and shoulders into the yawning hole. Midway through she became wedged fast. The young sleuth squirmed and twisted, unable to move either forward or backward. Then, by sheer strength, Mr. Drew pushed her through to the other side.
"I"ll go for help," Nancy offered.
She ran to the main tunnel and was relieved to find it clear. She raced up the stone steps, where Bess and George were waiting.
"Come quickly and help!" Nancy pleaded. "Mrs. Allison and my father are trapped in the tunnel."