shore, After a dozen strokes she rolled over on her back for a moment to
see what was happening. Ma Harper had shouted to Joe, and the words
carried plainly over the water.
"Take after her in the boat! We don't dare let her get away now! She
knows too much!"
Penny had forgotten the motorboat tied up at the pier. Now as she saw Joe
and Clark Clayton run toward it, her heart sank.
Though the race seemed hopeless, she flopped over onto her face again,
and swam with all her strength. Going with the current, her feet churned
the water behind her.
Several times, the men tried without success to start the motorboat
engine. Penny grew hopeful. Then she heard the blast as the motor caught,
and knew that in just a minute the men would overtake her.
Frantically, she glanced about for help. Already late afternoon, there
were no fishing boats on the river. Save for Ma Harper, who stood ready
to seize her should she try to swim in to the beach, no other persons
were visible on either shore. The _River Queen_ apparently was at the far
end of her run, hidden beyond the bend.
A hundred yards away, in shallow water, lay a large patch of tall river
grass and cat-tails. Seeing it, Penny took new hope. The area was large
enough to offer a temporary refuge if she could reach it! Not only would
the dense mat of high grass protect her from view, but a boat would not
be able to follow.
Starting to swim again, she put everything she had into each stroke. It
would be pinch and go to reach the grass patch! Aware of her intention,
Sweeper Joe and Clark Clayton had changed course, hoping to intercept
her.
CHAPTER
19
_FLIGHT_
The high water grass loomed up and Penny's feet struck a muddy bottom.
With the boat almost upon her, she plunged into the morass. The water
came to armpit level. Pushing aside the thick stalks which wrapped
themselves about her arms and body, she waded far into the patch before
she paused.
Hidden by the dense growth, she could not at first see the pursuing boat.
She knew, however, that it had halted at the edge of the patch, for the
motor had been cut off.
And after awhile she heard voices, low spoken, but nevertheless clear,
for the slightest sound carried over water.
"She's over there somewhere in the center of the patch!" one of the men
muttered. "I could tell where she went by the way the grass moved. Shall
we let her go?"
"No, we got to get her or she'll tell everything she knows to old man
Gandiss and the police!" the other answered.
With the motor shut off, the two men then took out paddles, and began to
force the boat through the jungle of grass. Observing that they were
coming straight toward her, Penny noiselessly waded on, taking every
precaution not to move the stalks unnecessarily. Noting the direction of
the wind, she went with it, hoping that any movement of the grass would
appear to be caused by the stiff breeze.
But she hoped in vain. For suddenly Joe the Sweeper shouted hoarsely:
"There she is! Over there!" He pointed with his paddle blade.
The men pushed the boat on, smashing the grass ahead of them. In despair,
Penny saw that wherever she went she was leaving a trail of trampled,
broken grass behind her.
No longer trying to prevent splashes, she waded in a wide half-circle.
Then quickly she back-tracked, this time making not a sound. Slipping
into the dense growth just beside the trail she had made, she
breathlessly waited.
The boat came into view. Taking a deep breath, Penny ducked under water.
Opening her eyes, she could see the blurred, dark bottom of the craft
moving slowly toward her, so close she could have reached out and touched
it.
Her breath began to grow short. The boat barely seemed to move. Penny's
lungs felt as if they were ready to burst, but still she remained under
water.
Then the men had passed, and she dared raise her head for an instant to
gulp in air. The boat reached the end of the trail through the grass that
Penny herself had made. There it halted, as Sweeper Joe and his
companion, realizing they had lost their quarry, debated their next move.
"She was here a minute ago!" Sweeper Joe growled. "I caught a glimpse of
her clothes, and saw the grass move. Where did she go?"
"She must have doubled back."
With difficulty the men turned the boat around and rowed toward Penny
again. When she dared wait no longer, she submerged again.
They passed her and she came up for air. A water snake slithered through
the grass, almost touching her hand.
Startled, Penny leaped backwards, making an ugly, loud splash in the
water. Slight as was the sound, it told the men where she hid. Turning in
the boat, they saw her through the grass, and bore toward her again.
By this time, Penny actually enjoyed the desperate game of hide and seek,
for so far, the advantage had been hers. She stood watching the boat
until it came very close.
Then she dived, coming up directly underneath the craft. Getting her
shoulder squarely under one side, she raised up, and with an ease that
surprised her, upset the boat.
The two men went sprawling into the water. Unable to swim, they made
animal noises and clutched desperately at the grass for support. But as
their feet found solid footing, they started furiously toward Penny.
Taking her time, and deliberately seeking deeper water, she waded away.
"That will hold them for a few minutes," she thought gleefully. "I'll get
out of this jungle now, and swim ashore."
One more the girl's hopes were rudely dashed. As she reached the edge of
the grass area, she was disconcerted to see another rowboat approaching
from the direction of the Harper place. With shadows deepening on the
water, she could not at first distinguish the man. Then she recognized
Claude Harper.
"He must have come home, and Ma sent him here to help capture me!" she
thought. "If I swim out now, I'll certainly be caught."
Crouching down so that her nose was just above the water, she waited.
Claude Harper rowed on, resting upon his oars when perhaps ten yards
away.
"Joe!" he called.
There was an answering shout from the center of the grass patch.
"That gal's somewhere close by!" Sweeper Joe shouted in warning. "She
upset our boat. Stay where you are, and see that she doesn't slip past
you!"
Thus warned, Claude Harper began to survey the grass patch intently. He
looked hard at the place where Penny stood. She was certain he had seen
her, but after a moment, he turned slightly, and his eyes roved on.
As she hesitated, not knowing what to do, Sweeper Joe and Clark Clayton,
who had bailed out their boat, came paddling out to meet Harper. Wet and
plastered with mud, they had lost one of the paddles.
"If you ain't sights!" Harper cackled upon seeing them. He slapped his
thigh in glee. "You look like a couple o' stupid mud turtles!"
"Fool!" rasped Sweeper Joe. "Don't you have sense enough to figure what
will happen if that girl gets away from us?"
"You ain't goin' back to no job at the Gandiss factory. Nor Clayton
neither!"
"It's a lot more serious than that!" Joe snapped. He guided the boat
alongside Harper's craft. "Why do you think I took that job in the first
place, and spent better than two years studyin' the Gandiss factory
layout? I lined up the employes we could get to go along with us, got
everything organized--and now this gal has to bust up the show just as
the profits begin to roll in!"
"Better pipe down," Harper warned curtly. "She can hear you, and so can
everyone else on the river."
"What's the difference?" Joe argued in disgust. "We're through. I'm
gettin' out of this town tonight!"
"Me with you," added Clark Clayton. "Ever since Gandiss put detectives on
the job, I figured the game was gettin' too dangerous."
Now it was Claude Harper who lost his temper. "Hold on," he said
warningly. "It's all right for you guys to blow town, but what about me
and the wife?"
"You can do what you please," Joe retorted.
"We got your brass cached in our basement. If the cops should find it
there, we'd take the rap."
"Get rid of it."
"That's a lot easier said than done. Besides, that brass is worth a tidy
sum o' money."
"Then why not sell it tonight?" Joe proposed suddenly. "If we can get it
to the junkman who has a place across from the factory, he'll pay us a
good price. We can complete the deal, and still get out of town before
midnight."
"That's okay for you," Harper argued, "but Ma and I own property here,
and we got a good business."
"It was your stupid wife's stocking business that got us into this jam!"
Clark Clayton snarled.
"I ain't talkin' about that. I mean our dance hall. We clean up about a
hundred bucks every Saturday night."
"You should have thought about that before you went in with us," Joe
retorted. "You knew the risks you were taking. Anyway, this mess was your
wife's making."
A silence fell, and then Clark Clayton said: "We ain't gettin' nowhere.
We got to decide what we're goin' to do, and we got to make sure that gal
don't get out o' this weed patch until we've arranged our escape."
In whispers, the men conferred. Though Penny strained her ears, she could
not catch a single word. However, a plan satisfactory to the three seemed
to have been formulated, for presently, the two boats separated.
Sweeper Joe and Clark Clayton paddled off, heading for the pier at the
Harpers'. The other man remained in his rowboat, unquestionably detailed
to keep watch of the grass patch and prevent the girl's escape.
To amuse himself, he began to call out to her, though he could not see
her or know where she was.
"You think you're a clever one!" he taunted. "But you jest wait! We'll
get you out o' there, and when we do, you ain't goin' to like it!"
Lest a movement of the grass or a splash betray her, Penny remained
perfectly still. Shadows deepened on the river for night was fast coming
on. Her muscles became stiff and cramped. The wind chilled her to the
very bone, and the water which at first had not seemed unbearably cold,
made her teeth chatter and dance. Each minute became an hour as the
torture increased.
"I'll have to do something," she thought desperately. "I can't endure
this much longer."
CHAPTER
20
_A DESPERATE PLIGHT_
In the rowboat, Claude Harper slowly patrolled the area, keeping an alert
watch for the slightest movement amid the grass. Once as a crane arose
from the dense growth into the darkening sky, he focused a flashlight
beam on the spot.
"He's prepared to stay here half the night if necessary," Penny thought,
shivering.
She could think of no means of escape. When it became completely dark,
she might be able to swim away without being detected. But long exposure
in cold water had weakened her, and she was none too certain of her
ability to reach shore.
Her absence at the island surely must have been noticed by this time, she
reasoned. Why was not a boat sent in search of her?
"I hope they don't assume I am staying with Sally for the night," she
worried.
Penny's thoughts were momentarily distracted as she heard indistinct
voices from the direction of the Harper dock. Lights had been turned on
in the house and basement.
"Those men are getting rid of the stolen brass," she reasoned. "If they
try to sell it to Heiney, they still may be caught."
Presently the motorboat moved away from the Harper dock, its engine
laboring. The craft was sunk low in the water as if from a heavy load.
The boat did not turn down stream as Penny expected. Instead, it crossed
the river at right angles, stopping in mid-stream at the deepest part of
the channel. There the engine was cut off.
"Now what?" thought Penny.
Claude Harper likewise seemed puzzled by the action, for he turned to
stare, muttering to himself.
Though Penny could not see what the men were doing aboard the boat, she
heard a loud splash as something heavy was dropped overboard.
"The fools!" Claude Harper exclaimed. "The fools!"
Another splash and still another followed. Then the boat turned and came
toward the grass patch. Claude Harper hailed the men with an angry
exclamation.
"You idiots! After all the risk we've taken, you dump our profits in the
river!"
"Keep your shirt on!" Sweeper Joe retorted. "It was the only thing to do.
Glowershick just phoned from town."
"What'd he have to report?"
"Nothing good. You know that junk shop where we arranged to sell our
stuff? Where the owner offered us a higher price than any other place in
town?"
"Well?"
"He was a dick, planted there by old man Gandiss himself. They've already
got wind of who's in on the deal."
"Then if we try to sell the brass anywhere else, we'll be pinched."
"You're catching on, Harper."
"Have you dumped all the stuff in the river?"
"It will take two more trips at least. And there's the brass lantern to
get rid of," Joe added. "As soon as the job is done, Clark and me are
gettin' out of the city."
"What are Ma and me gonna do?" Harper whined. "We've got property here."
"That's up to you," Joe snapped. "If it wasn't for the gal you'd be safe
enough. Seen anything of her?"
"Nary a sign."
"She may have slipped away under water. The gal swims like an eel."
"I don't think she got away. I been watchin' like a hawk."
"She's sure to spill everything, and she's seen plenty," Joe muttered.
"Even though the cops don't find any evidence, they could make it plenty
tough for you and the missus."
"We got to leave town," Harper admitted. "After takin' all this risk and
bein' all set to cash in big, it's a dirty break. It ain't fair."
"Squawkin' won't do no good," Joe said shortly. "The question is, what
are we goin' to do about the gal?"
"We got to make sure she won't carry no tales until we're safely out of
town."
"Then we'll have to flush her out of this bird nest," Joe decided.
"There's a way we can do it."
The manner in which she was to be caught, soon became apparent to Penny.
Systematically, the men began to flatten all of the grass with their
paddles and oars. Foot by foot, she retreated. Their strategy was
discouragingly clear. The flattened grass no longer offered protection.
Soon it all would be level with the water, and she would have no screen.
So cold that her limbs were nearly paralyzed, Penny considered giving
herself up. In any case, the outcome would be the same. The only other
recourse was to scream for help, and hope that someone along the shore
would hear her and investigate.
With only the Harper house close by, the prospect that anyone would come
to her aid was practically nil.
Angered at not finding the girl, Harper and his companions swung their
paddles viciously. Penny retreated further, still reluctant to abandon
freedom.
Then far downstream, she saw the _River Queen_, recognizing it by the
pattern its lights made above the water. The ferry had finished its
passenger run, and now apparently was coming upstream to anchor for the
night.
As Penny watched the boat, she took new hope. If only she could signal
Captain Barker or Sally! Unless the ferry changed course, it was almost
certain to pass the grass patch. However, with the water shallow there,
it would give the area a wide berth.
"Even if I shouted for help, no one aboard would hear me," she reasoned.
"But I'll have to try something! I'm finished if I stay here."
Straight up the river came the _Queen_. Penny could see a man in the
lighted pilot house, but no one was visible on the decks. The ferry was
traveling at a rapid speed.
Penny decided to wait no longer. Creeping to the very edge of the grass,
she ducked under water, and started to swim. Her strength had gone even
more than she realized. Arms and legs were so stiff they barely could
press against the water as she stroked. A few feet and she was forced to
come to the surface.
"There she is!" shouted Sweeper Joe. Bringing the boat around, he started
directly for her.
Penny swam with all the power at her command, stroking deep and fast. Not
daring to look back, she could hear the dip of Sweeper Joe's oars.
Straight toward the deepest part of the channel, she propelled herself.
Her crawl strokes were jerky, but they carried her along. And she had
calculated well. Aided by the current, she would intercept the path of
the oncoming _River Queen_.
From the water, the ferryboat looked like an immense monster as it
steamed majestically up the river. Not wishing to attract attention to
himself or his companions, Joe shipped his oars and temporarily gave up
the chase. But he remained close by, watching alertly. Should the
ferryboat fail to see or pick up Penny, he would be after her upon the
instant.
Treading water, the girl shouted for help and waved an arm. Her voice was
weak even to her own ears, and could not possibly carry to the pilot
house of the _Queen_. Would her frantic signals be seen? The night was
dark, and she was not yet in the arc of the vessel's lights.
Penny swam a few more strokes, then treaded water again, and signaled
frantically. The _River Queen_ did not slacken speed.
"They haven't seen me!" she thought desperately. "It's useless."
Now a new danger presented itself. The _Queen_ had swerved slightly so
that Penny was directly in its path. Still she had not been seen. Looming
up in gigantic proportions above her, the ferry threatened to run her
down.
CHAPTER
21
_RESCUE_
Fearful that she would be killed, Penny screamed and waved. Straight on
steamed the _River Queen_, so close now that she could see Sally Barker
on the starboard deck. But the girl was gazing away from her, toward
Sweeper Joe and the other drifting boat.
"Help! Help!" screamed Penny in one last desperate attempt to save
herself.
Her cry carried, for she saw Sally whirl around and stare intently at the
dark water ahead. Then she shouted an order to her father. There came a
clanging of bells, and the _Queen_ swerved to port, missing Penny by a
scant ten feet.
Great waves engulfed her, and she fought to keep above the surface. Her
strength was practically gone. She rolled over on her back, gasping for
breath.
Then she saw that the _Queen_ had greatly reduced speed and was turning
back on her course. A lifeboat also was being lowered.
"They're going to pick me up!" Penny thought, nearly overcome by relief.
The next minute Sally and a sailor were pulling her into the boat.
"Why, it's Penny! And she's half drowned!" she heard her friend exclaim.
Then she knew no more.
When she opened her eyes, Penny found herself in a warm, comfortable bed.
Sally stood beside her with a cup of steaming hot soup.
"You're coming around fine," she praised. "Drink this! Then you'll feel
better."
Penny pulled herself up on an elbow and took a swallow of the soup. It
was good and warmed her chilled body. She gulped the cupful down.
"Sally--"
"Better not try to talk too much now," Sally advised kindly. "How did you
get into the water?"
The question aroused Penny, bringing back a flood of memories. She
suddenly realized that she was in Sally's cabin on the _River Queen_ and
the ferry was moving.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"You're safe," Sally said soothingly. "You were swimming in the river. We
nearly ran you down. Lucky I saw you just in time and we picked you up."
"Yes, I know," Penny agreed. "But _where_ are we? Near the Harpers?"
"Oh, no, we passed their place long ago. We're far upriver."
Penny struggled up, swinging her feet out of the bunk. She saw then that
she was wearing a pair of Sally's pajamas, and that her own wet garments
hung over a chair.
"We must turn back!" she cried. "Tell Captain Barker, please! Oh, it's
vitally important, Sally!"
Sally was maddeningly deliberate.
"Now don't get excited, Penny," she advised. "Everything will be all
right."
Penny resisted as Sally tried to push her back into bed. "You don't
understand!" she protested. "Sweeper Joe, Claude Harper, and Clark
Clayton are expecting to make their get-away tonight. They're the ones
who have been stealing brass from the Gandiss factory. It's all cached in
the basement of the Harper house--or was unless they've dumped it."
"Penny, are you straight in your head? You know what you're saying?"
"I certainly do! I went there this afternoon. When I learned too much,
they tried to hold me prisoner. I escaped by the river--hid in the grass
patch. But they followed me there, and were about to get me, when the
_River Queen_ steamed by."
"I did see two small boats there. Just before you shouted I wondered what
they would be doing at this time of night."
"Sweeper Joe and Clark Clayton have been dumping the stolen brass! Unless
police stop them before they dispose of it all, not a scrap of evidence
will be left! All those men expect to leave town tonight!"
"Thank heavens, we have a ship-to-shore radio telephone!" Sally cried,
thoroughly aroused. "I'll have Pop call the police right away!"
She bolted out the cabin door.
Every muscle and joint in Penny's body ached, but there was no time to
think of her misery. Her own clothes could not be put on. Searching in
Sally's wardrobe, she found a sweater and a skirt, and undergarments she
needed. By the time her friend returned, she was dressed.
"Penny, you shouldn't have gotten up!" Sally protested quickly.
"I can't afford to miss the excitement," Penny grinned. "Hope you don't
mind lending me some of your clothes."
"Of course not, and if you must stay up, you'll need a pair of shoes."
Sally found a pair of sandals, which although too large, would serve.
After Penny had put them on, she said: "Let's go to the pilot house,
because I want you to tell Pop exactly what happened."
"Did you notify police?"
"Pop sent the message. It may take a little while, but police should be
at the Harpers' almost anytime now."
"Those men saw me taken aboard this boat," Penny worried. "I'm afraid
they'll get away before the police arrive."
The girls climbed to the pilot house where Captain Barker had just turned
the wheel over to a helmsman. All members of the crew remained aboard,
for with the _Queen_ late on her run, there had been no opportunity as
yet to put the men ashore.
"We may need all our hands tonight," Captain Barker predicted. "No
telling what may develop. I have one of those feelings."
"Now Pop!" reproved Sally. "The last time you made a remark like that, we
smashed a rudder. Remember?"
"Aye, I remember all too well," he rejoined grimly.
Urged by Sally, Penny related everything that had happened at the
Harpers', and told of her endurance contest in the grass patch.
"We'll head back that direction and see what's doing," Captain Barker
offered to satisfy her. "Maybe we'll catch sight of those rascals in
their boats."
Although the _Queen_ cruised slowly near the shoal area where Penny had
encountered adventure, there was no sign of any small boat. The ferry
crept dangerously close to the grass patch.
"Watch 'er like a cat!" Captain Barker warned the helmsman. "Cramp her!
Cramp her!"
When the man did not react speedily enough, he seized the wheel and
helped spin it hard down. The _Queen_ responded readily, moving into
deeper waters.
Satisfied that there were no small boats in the vicinity, Captain Barker,
headed upstream toward the Harpers'. Across the water, lights were to be
seen on both floors of the two-story river house, but so far as could be
discerned, no boats were tied up at the pier or docks.
"The place isn't deserted, that's certain," Penny declared, peering into
the wall of darkness. "How long should it take the police to get there?"
"If the radio message we sent was properly transmitted, they should be on
their way now," the captain replied.
Sally, impatient for action, was all for taking a crew and descending
upon the house and its occupants. Puffing thoughtfully at his pipe, her
father considered the proposal, but shook his head.
"We have no authority to make a search," he pointed out. "Any such action
would make us liable for court action. Just be patient and you'll see
fireworks."
Knowing that to stand by near the Harpers' pier would warn the house
occupants they were being watched, Captain Barker ordered the _Queen_ to
turn downriver toward the main freight and passenger docks.
An excursion boat, the _Florence_, passed them, her railings lined with
women and children who had enjoyed an all-day outing and were returning
home. The steamer tied up at the Ninth Street dock and began to disgorge
passengers.
Then it happened. Penny saw a sudden flash of flame which seemed to come
from the hold of the excursion ship. The next instant fire shot from the
portholes and began to spread.
Captain Barker gave a hoarse shout which sent a chill down her spine.