XIII
An Adventure
Nancy Drew had made up her mind to visit the Topham cottage the very next day, but in making her plans she had counted without Helen Corning and her friends. They were unwilling that she should be alone even for a minute.
From the moment she awoke in the morning and sniffed the fragrant odor of the pines, she was rushed from one thing to another. After a breakfast of fruit, fried eggs, crisp bacon, and hot corn bread, she was pressed into a tennis game. The afternoon was devoted to swimming and water polo. By evening Nancy Drew was so tired she could scarcely keep her eyes open, and she was thankful for the opportunity of tumbling into bed.
“Tomorrow I simply must find a way to visit the Topham cottage,” she told herself just before she dropped off to sleep.
Immediately after breakfast the following morning, Helen Corning announced the plan for the day.
“The girls have decided on an all-day hike into the woods, Nancy. You’ll go, won’t you?” Nancy groaned.
“You’re wearing me to a frazzle, Helen. Please let me off this time. I’d like to stay in camp today and just rest up.”
“Well, all right,” Helen agreed unwillingly. “I’ll stay with you.”
“Oh, no!” Nancy protested vigorously. “I won’t let you do that! You like to hike so well. Please go on. I’ll have a good time all by myself. Really, I will.”
“I don’t like to leave you, Nancy. But if you insist—”
“I do, Helen. Please don’t worry about me. I’ll have a good time here. If you don’t mind, I may take the launch out while you’re gone.”
“If you do, you’d better not go far,” Helen advised her. “We girls bought it secondhand for a song, and it’s my private opinion the engine isn’t much good.”
“I’ll be careful,” Nancy promised.
She could scarcely hide her eagerness to be off, but she was forced to wait until Helen and her friends had started on their hike. It seemed to Nancy that they would never leave, but at last they trudged away with their knapsacks slung over their shoulders.
“You’ll wish you had gone, too!” Helen called back over her shoulder.
As soon as the girls were out of sight, Nancy hurried down to the launch which was tied to the dock not far from the camp. She examined the engine. She had frequently handled motor boats, but never one of this particular make.
“I believe I can manage it all right, if only I can get the engine started,” Nancy told herself.
She discovered a pin sunk in the rim of a flywheel, and after adjusting other parts, pulled it out rather timidly. She gave the wheel a vigorous turn to the right. She tried again, swinging it farther and snapping back hard. To her delight the engine began to roar.
Cutting down the motor, Nancy steered out into deep water. At first she followed the shore, but as she became more familiar with the wheel and as the engine appeared to work perfectly, she headed out into the lake.
Nancy experienced a real thrill as the little launch responded to her hand. The lake was as smooth as glass, and there was scarcely a cloud in the sky. As the launch cut through the water a tiny spray blew in Nancy’s face, but she did not mind.
Far ahead she could see the opposite shore, and she headed straight for the point where she knew the Topham bungalow was located.
“If only the caretaker will let me in when I get there!” she thought, as she drew near her objective point.
But she was doomed never to reach the opposite shore that day, for unexpectedly there was a miss in the steady throb of the engine. The motor gave one long slow wheeze and died.
“Oh, what can have happened to it now?” Nancy cried anxiously. “I can’t have run out of gasoline.”
An examination of the tank revealed that it was nearly full. Nancy studied the engine doubtfully. Like most girls, she had never interested herself in the mechanics of what made wheels go around.
“Hateful thing!” she murmured. “I believe it stopped on purpose!”
Too late, Nancy recalled that her chum had warned her about the engine. Now, as she glanced toward shore, she saw no hope of rescue. She was within sight of the Topham bungalow, which appeared deserted, but miles from her own camp.
For nearly an hour she worked over the engine, but her efforts were useless. The stubborn motor refused to start.
“I’ll have to sit out here all day,” Nancy thought miserably. “This means I won’t get to visit the Topham cottage after all!”
It was especially tantalizing to be so close to the bungalow and yet know that she could not reach it. Nancy was tempted to swim, but she gave up the idea almost as quickly as it occurred to her, for she realized that even if she reached the Topham bungalow she would have no means of returning to camp. She decided that it would be better to remain on the lake and wait for a passing boat to rescue her.
Slowly the hours dragged on, and the launch drifted farther and farther from shore. Never had time seemed to pass so monotonously.
“There’s one thing certain,” Nancy Drew told herself. “If I ever get out of this launch, I’ll never set foot in it again!”
The camp boat seemed to be the only one on the lake, and as the day wore on she began to wonder if she ever would be rescued. The sun beat down upon her, and with the passing hours she became hungry as well as uncomfortable.
“After today I’ll never have another chance to visit the Topham bungalow alone,” she thought. “Helen means well, but she will stay with me every minute. I think the best thing I can do is to tell her I am starting for home tomorrow—that is, if I’m ever lucky enough to reach shore. On my way back to River Heights I’ll stop at the Topham cottage. Helen will be disappointed, but it can’t be helped.”
For want of other occupation, Nancy turned her attention again to the engine. When the sun sank into the water several hours later, she was still bending over it, a determined look in her eyes.
“There!” she muttered as she straightened up. “I’ve certainly done enough to it. If it won’t go now, it never will.”
She gave the wheel a vicious swing, and, to her astonishment, the engine began its steady roar as unconcerned as though it had never stopped.
“If that isn’t the limit!” Nancy exclaimed in wonder.
Hopefully, she glanced toward the shore, but already shadows were beginning to lurk among the trees and she knew that in less than an hour it would be dark.
“It’s too late to visit the bungalow tonight,” she decided regretfully. “I’d better get back to camp before this engine changes its mind again.”
Obedient to her will, the little launch plowed through the water toward camp, its engine laboring faithfully. As she eased up to the dock, Nancy saw Helen and her friends just trudging into camp. They hailed her with delight.
“I’m nearly dead,” Helen announced. “You were smart to stay in camp, Nancy.” She stopped abruptly and stared at her chum. “Why, you’re all sunburned, and you’re covered with grease! What have you been doing!”
“Taking a sunbath,” Nancy laughed. “By the way, Helen, you were right about that engine; but I don’t think it will give you any more trouble this summer. Anyway, I’ve donated eight hours to the cause.”
“Eight hours!” Helen gasped. “You’ve not been out on the lake all that time?”
“It served me right, I guess. I should have gone on the hike.”
But while Nancy made light of her adventure, she was disappointed. She had wasted a day, and time was precious. Would she ever reach the Topham bungalow? So far she had been thwarted at every turn.