"Taking the Baby Racer out."
"Oh, the machine has been out, then, has it?" remarked Dave.
"Yes, and up. Say, Dave, I made the five hundred feet level. I hope you"re not put out. It was a chance to make fifty dollars."
"Fifty dollars?"
"Uh-huh," bobbed Hiram in a broad grin.
"How was that?"
"Why, Grimshaw was piloting a party over the grounds. Rich man and his family-wife, son and two daughters. The youngest one was a daring little miss. She wanted to fly, and would fly. Grimshaw got to bragging about what you had done with the Baby Racer. Well, nothing would do but I must roll the little beauty out."
"That was all right, Hiram," the young aviator hastened to say. "I should always feel that the biplane is safe in your hands."
"Well, finally the father consented to let his daughter try a fly along the ground. I settled her in a comfortable seat, and away we went. I made it a good stiff run, and there was some jolting, but the girl was wild over it. She begged for a second run. We got such a fine start that I lifted about twenty feet in the air."
"And then, of course, she screamed out in fear?" said Dave, with a smile.
"Screamed nothing," dissented Hiram. "She just spoke one delighted "O-oh!" and then: "Higher, oh, please keep on going!" Say, Dave, she looked so bright and brave I couldn"t help it--Z--I--P!"
"What does "Z--I--P!" mean, Hiram?" asked Dave.
"A slide, a swoop, then a circle, another, a shoot upwards, and the girl laughing out, "Oh, this is just grand!" Her sister shrieked, her mother fainted away, and her father was shaking his cane at us and yelling for us to come back. The Racer did her prettiest in two grand circles of the grounds, and came down light as a feather. The girl jumped out, one big smile. "Just think of it!" I heard her cry to her sister, "when I"ve told my seminary chums that I"ve been up in a real airship!" Then, seeing that she was safe, I think her folks were just as proud of her exploit as she was. Anyhow, she ran up to her father in a coaxing way, and came back to place a bank note in my hand. When they were gone, and I found that it was a fifty dollar bill, old Grimshaw chuckled and said he had hinted to the party that the regular fee for a ride in an airship was one hundred dollars. I"m mighty glad you"re back, Dave."
"Why, you seem to have got along finely without me," said Dave.
"We"ve missed you, all the same. Where you going, Dave?" asked Hiram, as his friend moved out of the shed.
"Why, I"m anxious to see Mr. King as soon as I can. I have something very important to talk about with him."
"It"s about that rush telegram?"
"Yes, Hiram."
"What did it mean?"
"When we meet with Mr. King you shall, hear all about it, Hiram."
"Well, Mr. King isn"t home yet," explained Hiram.
Dave looked disappointed.
"That is," continued Hiram, "he hadn"t got back when I was last up at the Aegis hangar."
"When was that?"
"About four o"clock this afternoon. Mr. Grimshaw, though, said he expected him on the six o"clock train."
"We"ll go and see if he has returned," said Dave.
They started for the aviator"s headquarters. Half the distance covered, they met him coming in search of them. Mr. King looked pale and worried. Dave knew that something had happened to upset him.
"I"m glad you"re back, Dashaway," said Mr. King. "Grimshaw told me you had been called to headquarters by the Interstate people. I should have wired you to return right away if you had not returned.
Something very important has transpired."
"About Mr. Dale--about my father"s old friend, Mr. King?" asked Dave.
"That"s it exactly. Bad news, Dashaway, I"m sorry to say,"
announced the aviator in a very serious tone.
CHAPTER XIV
THE MISSING AIRCRAFT
The aviator led the way back to the Aegis hangar. Dave saw that Mr.
King was not inclined to explain any further until they were off the public course, so he asked no more questions, for the present. Dave had a good deal to tell himself. His mind had been full of it all day. Something in the grave, thoughtful manner of Mr. King, however, caused him to defer his own anxiety and impatience.
When they were inside the comfortable room where the aviator made his office, Mr. King turned to Dave with a very sober face.
"I said I had bad news, Dashaway," he spoke, "and that"s no mistake."
"Then you failed to find Mr. Dale at Warrenton?" inquired Dave.
"He has not been there for over a week."
"Why, I thought he lived there?"
"He did. He went away, or was kidnapped, nearly ten days ago."
"Kidnapped?" exclaimed Dave in surprise.
"That"s what I think. Mr. Dale lived alone, except for a very old man servant. As near as I can figure it out, that young thief, Gregg, appeared at Warrenton two days after I had him arrested. I did a very foolish thing in dealing with the young scamp."
"You mean letting him go free?" inquired Dave.
"Yes, I feared at the time that I was unwise in not punishing him, to serve as a lesson against more mischief. He acted so scared, though, he helped me get back the property he had stolen from you, he signed a confession telling that he was not the real Dave Dashaway and had imposed on Mr. Dale, so I thought he would proceed to at once make himself very scarce. I felt sure that he would not be able to play any more tricks on Mr. Dale, for I expected that you and I would go the very next day and see this old friend of your father. You know we were rushed from Dayton to the next meet, and had no chance to get to Warrenton and explain matters to Mr. Dale. I blame myself for not sending you at, once to him at the time. As I told you, I wrote to a friend, a lawyer at Warrenton, to learn what I could about Mr. Dale. He reported Mr. Dale was absent on a trip.
When I got to Warrenton yesterday and met the old Dale servant, I saw at once that something was wrong."
"How do you mean, Mr. King?" asked Dave quite anxiously.
"Well, I learned that this young scamp, Gregg, had appeared at Warrenton two days after I let him go."
"Still pretending to be Dave Dashaway?"