Chapter 5 The Message in the Hollow Oak by Carolyn Keene
Disaster
Nancy and George stood helplessly by, watching the wrecking crew at work. The girls had done all they possibly could to assist the injured passengers; now they must wait and hope.
In response to Nancy’s frantic plea the wrecking crew had bravely battled the fire, removing several persons from the flaming car Mrs. Donnelly had occupied. The chaperon, however, had not been among those rescued.
“Are you sure she was in this coach?” one of the workers asked Nancy.
“Yes. She occupied section fourteen. I know she was inside at the time of the crash.”
“We may find her yet,” the man returned with forced cheerfulness, “but it does look bad.”
“It’s possible she was rescued before we got here,” George said hopefully.
Nancy nodded, trying all the while to keep up her spirits. She could not acknowledge to herself that Mrs. Donnelly might be dead.
The night was very black, the only illumination being that provided by torches and lanterns brought along by the wrecking crew. Many of the injured passengers had been removed to hospitals and nearby houses. It was possible that in the confusion they had failed to see Mrs. Donnelly. This hope gave them fresh courage.
“We may as well go back to Bess,” Nancy proposed, “for we can do no good here.”
The girls found Bess in much better condition than when they had left her. She was wrapped in a warm blanket to protect her from the cold night air.
“How is Mrs. Donnelly?” she asked instantly.
It was not easy to tell her the truth.
“She hasn’t been found yet,” Nancy said quietly. “But we still have hope.”
Bess was silent for a time; then she said soberly:
“This wreck has been a terrible thing. It was dreadful to sit here and see the workers carrying people past on stretchers. I hate to think that anything has happened to Mrs. Donnelly or to that new acquaintance of yours, Nancy.”
“Miss Chapelle?”
“Yes. She hasn’t been found, either.”
“I don’t believe she was seriously injured, for almost everyone in the observation car escaped lightly,” Nancy said thoughtfully. “It’s a mystery what became of her.”
“A great many strange things have happened tonight,” Bess declared significantly. “For instance, what could have caused the wreck?”
“The men said it was an open switch,” George told her.
“I suppose it was an accident, all right,” Bess agreed, “but I grew suspicious when I saw Raymond Niles and another fellow in the throng here tonight!”
Nancy and George exchanged quick glances. They could not decide if Bess actually had seen Niles and a companion, or if she had imagined it. Bess guessed what the two girls were thinking.
“Oh, I know you believe I was too dazed to recognize anyone! But I did see Raymond Niles.”
“Can you describe his companion?” Nancy questioned.
“Not very well, I’m afraid. He was about forty years of age, I should say. A dapper sort of man, though not as well dressed as Niles.”
Nancy recalled the information her father had given her just as the train had pulled into the River Heights station. Raymond Niles had provided bail for Tom Stripe. Bess’s description fitted the latter very well. Could it be possible that the two had boarded the train with the intention of following Nancy to Wellington Lake?
“I must be on my guard,” she thought, “but I’ll not worry Bess and George by telling them what I fear. If anything has happened to Mrs. Donnelly, we’ll not go to Canada now, anyway.”
For nearly an hour the three girls remained at the scene of the wreck. At the end of that period Nancy’s nerves began to give way under the strain. It was then that her friends observed that she, too, had been injured.
“You must see a doctor immediately,” Bess insisted.
“It’s nothing,” Nancy maintained. “I’ll be quite all right after a night’s rest. If we only knew what has become of Mrs. Donnelly and Miss Chapelle!”
“You’ll make yourself ill if you don’t stop worrying,” George advised her kindly. “I can’t help but feel they are both safe.”
“We should know the worst by morning,” Nancy said quietly. “There is no purpose in our remaining here. I suggest that we spend the remainder of the night at a hotel. I am sure there must be one in the vicinity.”
The others readily agreed to the suggestion, for they were exhausted from their harrowing experiences. A conveyance carried them to a nearby town, where they engaged a room at the Hamilton Hotel.
Before retiring, Nancy sent a telegram to her father, telling him that she was safe. Bess and George dispatched similar messages to their parents.
“I believe I’ll not be able to sleep a wink,” Bess declared nervously, as her chums tucked blankets about her. “I feel positively unnerved.”
“So do I,” Nancy acknowledged, “but we should be thankful we’re alive and uninjured.”
“And that our luggage wasn’t destroyed,” George added. “Nancy, did you manage to save your property papers?”
“Yes, they were in my purse, which I never let out of my hand.”
Nancy indicated the pocketbook which lay on the dresser. Bess regarded it fixedly, then closed her eyes and dropped off into a troubled sleep.
George, too, was so exhausted that she fell into a deep slumber almost the instant her head touched the pillow. At first Nancy was so restless and worried that she could not sleep, though presently she dozed off.
She awoke when it was yet dark, to experience a strange sensation. It seemed as though someone had called to her.
Sitting up, she looked about the hotel room. George was sleeping peacefully at her side. She looked toward the bed occupied by Bess, but it was empty.
Thoroughly alarmed, Nancy thrust aside the covers and sprang to the floor. She tried the outside door and found it still locked from the inside. She next ran to the open window. A low cry of horror escaped her as she gazed downward.
Bess, apparently walking in her sleep, had climbed out upon the fire escape. Then she had descended until she was on a level with a window ledge. At the moment she stood teetering upon the narrow slab of concrete! At any instant she might plunge to her death!
Nancy’s low cry had disturbed George. “What is it?” she murmured drowsily.
“Don’t make a sound,” Nancy warned fearfully. “Come here.”
George crept to the open window. As she beheld the sight below, she stifled an exclamation of fear.
“If we awaken her she will be sure to fall,” Nancy whispered, shuddering as she glanced down at the garden several feet below. “I’m going to try to get to her.”
It was a mystery how Bess had managed to climb over to the narrow ledge. She was poised far out of reach. Even from the fire escape Nancy could not assume the same position without risking her own life.
“I’ll have to try some other way,” she decided, returning to the bedroom window.
“We can never rescue her alone,” George said. “I’ll run downstairs for help.”
She drew on a robe, then disappeared.
Left to herself, Nancy watched Bess fearfully. The girl would be safe if she would remain where she was, but at any moment she might take a step forward, which would send her hurtling into the garden.
Unable to endure the suspense of waiting for help, Nancy rushed to an upstairs hall. Her eyes suddenly fell upon a coiled rope that a workman had left that day. Snatching it up, she ran to a window directly over the spot where Bess was standing.
A minute later George, followed by two frightened hotel attendants, raced back into the vacant bedroom.
“There she is!” George cried, as she pointed out the ghostly white figure upon the ledge.
Her words ended in a shrill scream. Bess’s foot had slipped. The horrified observers saw her pitch forward and fall toward the garden!