"Of course I don"t intend to go out after him, when dad and mom don"t want us to," Andy carefully explained to his brother, "but it does no harm to ask; does it?" and he laughed joyously.
"No, I suppose not," a.s.sented Frank.
It was about a week after the rescue of the mysterious lad, and his physical condition had continued to improve. He would soon be able to get around, the doctor said. Frank and Andy, who never grew tired of discussing the problem, and of wondering when the lad"s mind would come back, were strolling along the beach of Harbor View. The weather had cleared and they were thinking of going for a sail, mainly on pleasure but incidentally to look for the wrecked motor boat.
"It"s queer no one has sighted her, or heard of her," remarked Andy, gazing on to sea, as if he might pick up the disabled craft on the horizon.
"Yes," agreed Frank. "I guess she"s sunk all right."
They walked on in silence, and were about to turn back toward where their boat was moored, when they noticed a man walking rapidly along the sands of the beach toward them.
"He seems to be in a hurry," observed Frank, in a low voice.
"Yes," agreed his brother. "He looks as if he wanted to speak to us."
"He"s a stranger around here," went on Andy.
A moment later the man hailed them.
"I beg your pardon," he began, striding up to the two brothers, and shifting his gaze rapidly from one to the other. "But have you seen or heard of a large motor boat going ash.o.r.e around here? I"m looking for one. There would be a boy in it perhaps--a lad of about your size.
Perhaps he put in here to get out of the storm. I"ve inquired all along the coast, but I can"t get any word of him. You haven"t happened to have heard anything, have you?"
Frank and Andy looked at each other quickly. At last they seemed on the track of the mystery.
"Was he a tall, dark lad, with black hair?" asked Frank.
"Yes--yes, that"s the boy I"m looking for!" exclaimed the man quickly.
"And was the motor boat a long one, painted white with a green water line, and with the engines forward under a hood?" added Andy.
"Yes!" eagerly cried the man, in his excitement taking hold of Andy"s coat. "That"s the boat! Where is it? I must have it!"
"She"s wrecked," said Frank quickly. "We saw her on the Shark"s Teeth, going to pieces, and we"ve been looking for her since, but the boy--"
"Yes--yes! The boy--the boy! What of him? Where is Paul--?"
The man stopped suddenly, and fairly clapped his hand over his own lips to keep back the next word. He seemed strangely confused.
"We rescued the boy, and he is up at our house," said Frank quickly.
"We have been trying to pick up the wreck of the boat and learn who the boy is. He has lost his memory."
"Lost his memory!" the man exclaimed, and he actually appeared glad of it.
"Yes, he doesn"t remember even his name," explained the elder Racer lad. "But now we can solve the mystery as you know him. You say his name is Paul. What is his other name? Who are you? Don"t you want to see him? We can take you to him--to Paul."
The brothers eyed the man eagerly. On his part he seemed to shrink away.
"I--I made a mistake," he said, biting his nails. "I know no one named Paul. I--I--it was an error. That is not the boy I want. I must hurry on. Perhaps I shall get some news at the next settlement. I am--obliged to you."
His shifty eyes gazed at the brothers by turns. Then the man suddenly turned away muttering something under his breath.
"But you seemed to know him!" insisted Frank, feeling that the mystery was deepening.
"No--no! I--I made a mistake. His name is not Paul. I am wrong.
That is--well, never mind, I"m sorry to have troubled you."
He was about to hurry away.
"Won"t you come and see him?" urged Frank. "It is not far up to our house. My mother would be glad to meet you. Perhaps, after all, this lad may be the one you seek. His name may be Paul."
"No--no! I must go! I must go. I--I don"t know any Paul," and before the Racer boys could have stopped him, had they been so inclined, the man wheeled about and walked rapidly down the beach.
CHAPTER VI
CHET SEDLEY"S STYLE
"Well, wouldn"t that frazzle you!" exclaimed Andy.
"It certainly is queer," agreed his brother.
They stood looking down the beach after the figure of the strange man who had seemed to know the lad whom they had rescued from the sea, but who, on learning of his location, had shown a desire to get away without calling on the unfortunate youth.
Andy set out on a run.
"Here, where you going?" his brother demanded quickly.
"I"m going after that man, and make him tell what he knows!" declared the impulsive youth. "It"s a shame to let him get away in this fashion, just when we were on the verge of learning something," Andy called back over his shoulder.
"You come right back here!" exclaimed the older lad, sprinting after his brother and catching him by the arm.
"But he"ll get away, and we"ll never solve the mystery!"
"That may be, but we can"t take this means of finding out. We don"t know who that man is. He may be a dangerous chap, who would make trouble if you interfered with him. You stay here."
"But how are we ever going to find out, Frank?"
"If this boy is the one whom that man wants he"ll show his hand sooner or later. He was taken by surprise when he found that we had him, and he didn"t know what to say. But he won"t disappear altogether--not while the lad is with us. He"ll come around again. Now you stay with me."
"All right," a.s.sented Andy, but with no very good grace. "I"m going to holler after him, anyhow."
Then, before Frank could stop him, had he been minded to do so, Andy raised his voice in a shout:
"Hey, where are you going? Don"t you want to send some word to that boy we rescued?"
The man turned half around, and for a moment Andy and Frank hoped he would come back. Instead he shouted something that sounded like: