Nancy Drew Mistery Stories #64: Captive Witness CHAPTER 8 Danger in the Alps
"Don't move!" It was Gutterman's voice, trembling and filled with fear. "Don't even breathe."
All four passengers had good reason to obey the order because the car had gone partially through the guardrail and was teetering over the cliff. It's right rear wheel hung out in space and the left one was poised on the very edge.
"Let's get out of here," Burger cried, starting to climb out on his side, which was safely on the road.
Gutterman stopped him with a snarl. "If you lay one foot on the ground, I'll make you wish you were never born!"
"But what can we do?" Burger whined.
Gutterman pondered the question carefully. "It seems to me that you and I can't get out because the weight of our friends in back will then topple the car right over the edge."
"You could open the back door on your side, Herr Burger. Just push the switch and unlock it, and Ned and I will get out slowly. Then you can get out, too," Nancy said steadily.
"No, you don't," Gutterman responded. "You two might make it and Burger could jump. With all the motion, the car would go over and take me with it."
"Well, you can't get out your side," Nancy pointed out. "You'd step into space, just as I would."
"No," Gutterman decided. "This is what we will do. Both of you should move as far over to the left as you can. I will climb over Burger and stand on the running board. Then, Burger, you start it up and see if the four-wheel drive can pull us out of this."
"Wait a minute," Ned protested. "If that doesn't work, you and Burger can jump free, but Nancy and I will go over the edge with the car."
"How clever you are," Gutterman sneered. "You do catch on quickly. That should make you both want to hug the left side of the car with all your might."
With no other choice, Nancy and Ned flattened themselves against the left side. The car tilted and rocked slightly.
"The worst is yet to come," Nancy breathed through her almost clenched teeth, "when that big galumph Gutterman tries to crawl over Burger. If he makes one slip, we'll really rock!"
"Don't think about it," Ned said. "Just squeeze yourself against this door."
Holding their breath, they froze as Gutterman, with surprising grace, managed to climb over Burger and out onto the left running board of the car. He hung off as far as he could, bearing his weight down fully, then told Burger to put the car in gear.
Burger did as he was ordered. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, the big, brown car began to move, its left rear wheel sending some gravel and rocks into the valley as it slipped slightly. The whole car tilted and, with a soft lunge, pulled up until the right rear wheel spun into contact with the ground and rolled to safety.
"Masterful driving," Gutterman said, patting his henchman on the shoulder. From the back seat, neither Ned nor Nancy let up on their tormentors.
"Oh, masterful," Nancy said. "Wasn't it, Ned?"
"Wonderful. Almost as good as the way he was driving when he went through the guardrail."
The two young people strived to make their captors so angry that they would open the back door to get at them. Nancy's plan could then be activated. While Ned attacked, she would fire her tear-gas "book" and perhaps they could finally escape.
But Gutterman and Burger were in a self-congratulatory mood. They even began singing as Burger continued to take the car higher into the mountains, this time at a more reasonable speed.
After several hours of driving, however, Burger pulled the car off on a dirt road and drove to what appeared to be a shepherd's hut. He stopped about a hundred feet away and turned around, almost backing over an extremely steep gorge in the process.
Nancy gulped again. "I don't know what they're going to do to us, Ned, but whatever it is, it has to be better than being locked in a high-powered automobile driven by Herr Burger."
"Absolutely," Ned concurred. "But what do you suppose they have in mind?"
The young couple soon found out as both Burger and Gutterman got out and walked around to the right-hand back door. "Now," Gutterman rasped as he unlocked the door with one hand while keeping the other thrust threatingly in his coat pocket, "you get out, Miss Drew. And you, Mr. Nickerson, you stay far over on the other side of the car if you know what's good for you."
Ned glanced down at Gutterman's pocket. Was there a gun inside? he wondered. Reading Ned's mind, the girl detective cautioned him.
"Don't do anything, Ned, please."
"Where are you taking her?" the young man demanded.
Gutterman flashed his evil smile, but said nothing. When Nancy got out, the door was shut and locked. Ned was left alone, helplessly watching the two men lead Nancy toward the shack.
But as she entered what appeared to be a crude building, she was amazed to find it beautifully cozy with sparkling, waxed floors, a cheery fireplace, a pretty rug, and upholstered furniture.
"Being a shepherd must pay very well," Nancy murmured, gesturing at the expensive furnishings. "But the shepherd doesn't own this anymore, does he?" she added, looking hard at Gutterman. "The wolves have taken over."
Gutterman shrugged. "Wolves. Sheep. I have no time for your small talk, Miss Drew. Let's get down to business."
"Excuse me," Nancy said, "but it was a long drive up here. Do you have a powder room where I could freshen up a bit?"
Gutterman pointed to a door at the far end of the room and, with an expansive bow, indicated that Nancy would find what she wanted there.
Will there be a window? she wondered. If so, will it be big enough for me to squeeze through? Her experienced eyes roved over every inch of the cottage searching for something, anything, that might produce a way out of the trap.
Once inside the bathroom, she saw there was no lock on the door. Obviously, Herr Gutterman had used this building for previous interrogations and didn't want his prisoners to lock themselves in while they plotted their next move.
Glancing swiftly around, she discovered a window but, unfortunately, it was high up and much too small even for a willowy eighteen-year-old.
After splashing water on her face, she dried off with a towel and looked in the mirror.
"Think, Nancy," she hissed. "Think. Don't just stand there."
Back outside in the living room, she found Herr Burger busily making coffee while Herr Gutterman lounged in a chair near the door. Apparently, Ned was still left behind in the car. Nancy noted quickly that the three windows in the room were all barred on the inside. Escape that way was impossible. Then she brightened. If escape through the window was impossible, then pursuit would be impossible, too. If only she could slip outside and lock the door behind her! Gutterman and Burger would be trapped!
Herr Gutterman was talking, babbling really, about his cleverness, and Nancy only half listened as she concentrated on escape.
The door to the room was made of solid oak, but Nancy had noticed a peculiar feature. On the outside walls were two metal slots like those found on cattle cars. They were used to hold a two-by-four or other heavy piece of timber across the door. Normally, such a crude but effective lock would be put inside a door to prevent forced entry. But obviously Herr Gutterman found himself constantly in need of locking people in, not keeping them out. Hence, the door to the building opened outward and could be blocked easily by dropping a piece of timber in the slots.
Instantly, Nancy flicked her eyes about the room looking for the timber to do the job. She saw it leaning against the doorjamb.
All she had to do was rise from her chair, pass Gutterman, grab the timber, open the door, slam it, and then throw the timber into place across the door.
She groaned inwardly. I'll never make it, she thought. But then Herr Gutterman said something that made her sit up straight.
"Of course," the man purred, "it would be advisable for you to answer my questions very quickly and correctly. You see, we left the engine of the car turned off. Therefore, no air will be fed into the back seat. Poor Mr. Nickerson. Who can say how long he will last?" |
