032 High Marks for Malice by Carolyn Keene Page B

of the pipes beside the opening. They blocked the fall of the towels into the laundry cart.
    She pulled one free, then a second, and tossed them into the cart. But the last towel was stuck fast. Nancy gave it a good hard yank.
    Immediately she knew she’d made a big mistake. That third towel had covered a split in the pipe. Now scalding steam came blasting out—right toward her face!

Chapter

Thirteen
    N ANCY REACTED INSTANTLY , dropping on all fours to duck the burning steam. In one smooth motion she was on her feet again, her back against one of the dryers. The small gray room filled rapidly, the steam boiling and swirling as it bounced against the concrete-block walls.
    In seconds Nancy was wrapped in the deadly fog. Perspiration streamed from her forehead, bathing her eyes in a salty, stinging flood. She was blind and finding it harder and harder to breathe. She had to get out!
    Dropping to her knees, Nancy felt her way toward the door, hoping she didn’t stray too farin either direction. If she didn’t get out soon, she’d die from the heat.
    She bumped into something hard and smooth, the door and not a concrete wall. But her relief was short-lived. Her hands were so wet she couldn’t turn the knob.
    Scrubbing them against the smooth fabric of her leotard, almost as wet as her hands, she gripped the knob as hard as she could. It turned. Nancy rushed out and almost ran over Maria.
    “Nancy! What happened to you? You’re soaking wet!”
    Unable to answer, Nancy slumped against the wall, trying to catch her breath. When she finally could speak, she explained what had happened. Maria was oddly silent.
    “You’d better call an engineer,” Nancy said sharply, wiping her eyes. “That pipe’s under a lot of pressure. If it explodes all the way—” As her vision cleared, she saw that Maria had turned ghostly pale, her eyes wide with fear.
    “Maria!” Nancy shook her.
    Coming to life, Maria took off, running as if her life depended on it.
    “Maria!” Nancy ran after her, stunned by the girl’s reaction. Pursuing her through corridor after corridor, she saw where Maria was heading—toward an exit. Nancy pushed herself to the limit, catching Maria as she hit the bar on the door to the outside.
    “Wait a minute, will you?” Nancy panted, winded. “What’s wrong with you?”
    Maria tried to shake her off but was not strong enough. Nancy watched as the slender girl tried to pull herself together. Finally she managed a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry, I panicked. You said the pipe would explode, and I didn’t want to be around when it did.”
    “The room would have contained it,” Nancy pointed out. “We weren’t in any danger in the hall. I can’t guarantee whether the washers and dryers would survive it, though.”
    The reminder of the appliances seemed to spur Maria to action. “I’d better get to a house phone.”
    Nancy opened the door, assuming Maria would use one of the wall phones in the corridor. They had passed several.
    But Maria shook her head and backed away. “No!” She gave a nervous smile. “Let’s go around to the front. I need some air. Basements make me nervous. I—sort of have a phobia about being underground.”
    “Oh. Sorry,” Nancy said. Perhaps that explained why Maria hadn’t come down to unclog the chute to begin with. It was just as well she hadn’t, Nancy thought, or she’d have been severely burned. It was pure luck that those towels . . .
    Or was it? Nancy slowed, beginning to wonderabout the accident in the laundry room. Had it been rigged? And for whom? She shivered as the winter air cut through her wet leotard. They entered the spacious lobby and started up the steps.
    “Oh, there you are.” One of the boys who’d been lifting weights leaned over the railing. “We were getting lonely up here.” He stared at Nancy. “Is it raining?”
    Belatedly, Nancy realized how she must look. Her hair was damp, snaking in reddish-blond tendrils over her shoulders.