Uninvited Visitors
Rex did not forget his promise to take Enid to her home at Bay City. Soon
after breakfast the following morning, he swooped down out of the sky
with his amphibian, landing a short distance from the yacht as the bay
was very rough. The girls had one of the sailors take them out to the
plane in the motor boat.
“The old bus is loaded with gas and rarin’ to go,” Rex declared, helping
them into the cockpit.
“What do you think about the weather?” Madge inquired somewhat anxiously.
“Oh, we’ll make it all right,” he returned without concern. “According to
the airport weather report we may run into a storm before we reach Bay
City, but it probably won’t amount to much.”
“You take your storms casually,” Madge smiled. “Remember, we’re not
seasoned to it the way you are.”
“There’s nothing to be afraid of,” he assured her. “We’ll not have any
trouble unless it is in taking off. The water is pretty rough this
morning.”
As soon as the girls were comfortably settled in the cockpit, he
accelerated the engine and they were off. The amphibian moved slowly at
first, then with increasing speed. As it planed over the waves, the bow
had a tendency to drop into the following trough and Rex was kept busy
trying to prevent it nosing in. Once before flying speed was gained, the
waves threw the plane a little way into the air. While the girls caught
their breath in fear, Rex acted instinctively. He minimized the stall and
as the nose dropped, pulled back the stick to level out.
Madge and Enid breathed easier when the amphibian finally shook her wings
free from the bay and smoothly climbed. They gazed down over the cockpit,
distinguishing The Flora which seemed a mere speck on the water.
It was impossible to talk against the roar of the wind and the motor, so
the girls enjoyed the scenery to the fullest measure. Although they
followed a water route, seldom were they out of sight of land.
Before they had been in the air an hour, Madge noticed that they were
running into heavy clouds. Rex too, studied the sky a trifle anxiously
though he flashed the girls a reassuring smile. Soon the little plane was
hemmed in. A sudden gust of wind sent the ship careening to a dizzy
angle.
A flash of jagged lightning cracked across the black void beyond the
propeller. Rex put the plane into a steep climb in an attempt to get
above the storm.
For an endless minute it seemed that the clouds were everywhere. Then the
plane rose above them into the warm sunlight. The girls looked down,
gazing upon a solid floor of clouds. They felt snug in the cockpit and
enjoyed watching nature’s fireworks from a safe gallery seat.
For a time they flew blind. Presently they saw a break in the clouds and
plunged down to find themselves beyond the storm center. The air was
choppy and now and then the ship made dizzy drops. Fortunately, neither
of the girls were troubled with air sickness though Enid was not sorry
when Bay City was sighted ahead.
Approaching the beach, Rex throttled the motor and sent the amphibian
into a glide. It rapidly lost speed, “stalled” a few inches above the
water and settled upon the surface with scarcely a jolt, skimming slowly
toward shore. Rex held the nose high for the water was still rough.
As the plane came in, two airport attendants waded out and grasped the
wings, steadying the ship until Rex brought it to a standstill.
Arrangements were made to have the plane refueled, and then the three
friends left the field. A taxicab carried them to the Burnett summer home
at the edge of the city.
They dismissed the driver at the huge iron gate which marked the entrance
of the grounds, telling him to return for them in an hour.
“Our caretaker should be around here somewhere,” Enid said. “I imagine
we’re locked out.”
Rex rattled the gate and to his surprise it opened. They entered the
grounds.
“What a beautiful estate!” Madge exclaimed admiringly.
Enid did not share her enthusiasm for she was looking at the untrimmed
grass, the weedy flower beds, the scraggy hedge.
“It doesn’t look as though the place has been touched in weeks. Wait
until I find that caretaker! He thinks he can shirk just because we’re
away.”
She walked determinedly up the gravel path, Madge and Rex following. Enid
rapped firmly on the front door but there was no response.
“He must be somewhere around the grounds,” she declared. “I’ll use my own
key.”
“Perhaps the door is unlocked,” Madge suggested.
Enid turned the knob and to her surprise the door opened. She stepped
aside to permit the others to enter.
“Why, look what has happened!” Madge, who was the first to cross the
threshold, cried. “The place is all upset!”
It was obvious that the Burnett living room had been ransacked. Shelves
had been emptied of their contents, furniture moved, objects littered
over the floor.
“It looks as though we’ve been robbed,” Enid said quietly, surveying the
wreckage. “It’s a foregone conclusion, everything of value is missing,
but we may as well look around.”
They went from one room to the other. While everything appeared to have
been disturbed, silverware, valuable paintings and rugs had not been
taken. In fact, Enid could not find that anything actually was missing.
“I’m afraid to go to Father’s room,” she confessed. “He keeps his most
treasured art pieces there, and I know they’ll be gone.”
She led the way upstairs and flung open the door of her father’s chamber.
“I knew it!” she exclaimed. “Just look at the place!”
A valuable vase lay upon the floor, smashed into bits. Books had been
torn from the wall cases and various articles of curious design were
scattered about.
“At least they didn’t take everything,” Madge commented. “Can you tell
what is missing, Enid?”
“Not without taking a complete inventory. Some of Father’s most valued
antiques are here though. I can’t understand it.”
“Perhaps your trusted caretaker has skipped out with some of the things
he most fancied,” Rex suggested.
Enid’s face tightened.
“Wait until I find him! He’s responsible for this, although I have no
thought that he actually took the things. More than likely he simply went
away and left the house unguarded, thinking that we would never know the
difference.”
“Have you employed him long?” Rex asked.
“No, Father engaged him only the week before we left here.”
Madge had been moving slowly about the room, examining the many objects
scattered about. She saw old clocks, odd pieces of jewelry, grotesque
vases, and articles from nearly every country.
“It’s peculiar that all these things were left,” she mused aloud. “I
wonder what the thief was after? Enid, where is the Zudi Drum Bowl?”
In the excitement, Enid had entirely forgotten the one object of most
importance. Her face disclosed her chagrin.
“Why, I expected to find it here in Father’s room.”
“Then it must be gone. At least I haven’t seen anything that resembles
the description you gave me.”
“Oh, if it’s been taken, what in the world shall I do?”
“It may be here,” Madge comforted. “We haven’t thoroughly searched yet.”
They hastily straightened the room, returning many of the antiques to
their shelves. While they looked in every conceivable place, the Zudi
Drum Bowl was not found. At length, Enid sank down in a chair, burying
her face in her hands.
“Oh, it’s no use. I know it’s gone! That’s why nothing else was taken.
The thieves were after the Zudi Drum.”
Rex tried to cheer her but with poor success.
“That drum seems to be in great demand,” Madge commented thoughtfully.
“It must be valuable.”
“Oh, it is,” Enid responded gloomily, “but I doubt if it would bring as
high a price as some of the things that weren’t taken. Of course, it had
to disappear just when it might have bought Father’s release.”
Madge remained quiet for a few minutes, then suddenly asked:
“Are you certain the Zudi Drum was kept in this room?”
“I don’t see where else it could be.”
“I should have thought your father would have been afraid of it being
stolen. Doesn’t he have any other place where he keeps his valuables?”
At Madge’s words, a startled expression came into Enid’s eyes. She sprang
to her feet.
“Why didn’t I think of it before? Father may have put that drum in the
wall safe!”
“Do you know the combination?” Madge demanded eagerly.
“If I haven’t forgotten.”
“Then let’s have a look.”
With one accord, the three friends rushed for the stairs.
“I never once thought of the safe when we were in the library!” Enid
cried, leading the way. “I do hope it hasn’t been blown open!”