"Did they have a leader?"
Gene thought this over a moment. "Well, I guess you"d call the lightest one the leader.
He was tall and cruel-looking. Wore a cap something like a ship"s captain, and a dark-blue coat. While they were running away, one of the other men called out to him."
"What did he say?" Frank persisted.
"It sounded something like "Cap, got the stones?" "
Frank asked several more questions, but neither Gene nor his brother could give any further information. Presently Fred said he felt able to travel.
"All right," said Frank, "but you must remain quiet. We"ll carry you to the Morton house and phone your parents."
Frank and Chet made a chair carry to transport Fred and they all started off. Joe and Ahmed carried the snake cage.
As soon as they arrived at the farmhouse, Mrs. Morton put the injured boy on a couch in the living room while lola brought him a cup of bouillon. Gene phoned his father who agreed to come right over and take the boys home.
Frank then called Sam Radley, related the happenings in the woods, and described the location of the hunting lodge. Mr. Hardy"s operative a.s.sured him that he would start guarding the place at once.
92 "But I doubt if those people will return," he said.
lola Morton, feeling she could do nothing further for Fred Moran, had gone to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Joe followed her and she insisted that the Hardys and Ahmed stay to eat.
"We don"t need a second invitation," Joe said.
A short time later Mr. Moran arrived. When Frank explained the treatment which had been administered to his son, the man thanked everyone for his kindness.
After Mr. Moran left, the Mortons and their visitors sat down to lunch. When they finished, Ahmed declared that he thought the krait should be taken to the zoo as quickly as possible.
Frank brought the convertible to the front door and the krait"s cage was lifted into the trunk of the car.
The drive to the zoo was completed without further incident and the trio went in to talk to the curator of reptiles. The man accepted the krait gladly and said that the serum would be a welcome safeguard.
The Hardys drove Ahmed home. When they thanked the rug dealer for his help, he bowed politely at his doorway and replied: "It is you who are helping my prince and my people. I shall be forever grateful to you."
Frank and Joe waved a farewell, and the convertible moved away. As Frank turned into the Hardy driveway, Joe looked at him with a grin and said, 93 "Brother, I"m tired and hot. A shower will feel good!"
"That goes for me, too," Frank admitted. "About the liveliest thing I"m going to do the rest of today is make up a list of pigeon fanciers nearby and try to find out if one of them has lost any carrier pigeons recently."
Before locking the garage, they stopped to talk to the falcon which was bobbing back and forth on her perch as though in welcome. Joe brushed his fingers along the bird"s back between the shoulders and on the feathers of her wings.
"We sure deserted you today," he remarked.
After they had showered and put on clean clothes, Frank and Joe went to their father"s study and started to check the cla.s.sified telephone directory for pet shops.
"The owners ought to know something about pigeon fanciers," Joe declared, and Frank nodded in agreement.
The younger boy picked up a pencil and jotted down the numbers of all pet shops in the county. They made a series of telephone calls which netted no information. Not discouraged, the boys kept on. There were only three left on the list when Frank and Joe heard a noisy car coming down Elm Street.
"Sounds like Chet"s jalopy," Joe said, getting up to look out a window. He laughed. "It is!
And from the looks of the steam coming out of the radiator, he sure is in a hurry. Wonder what"s up."
94 Usually the stout boy nursed along his prized possession as though it were made of solid gold.
Chet hurried inside the house and up the stairs so fast that he was out of breath for several moments and could not say a word. When he did begin talking, he could hardly speak above a whisper. Finally he extended his hand in which lay a capsule, similar to the one containing the rubies.
"Where did you get this?" Frank asked quickly.
Chet finally calmed down enough to speak and said, "I was standing outside the barn when I heard a plane heading for the airport. About the same time I spotted a pigeon overhead, too. Suddenly it looked as though the pigeon tried to pa.s.s beneath the plane. I guess they brushed together. A shower of feathers came down, then the bird circled and plummeted right into the middle of a field!
"And you should have seen that plane zoom," Chet went on. "I"ll bet it gave the pilot a few bad moments. You know if that bird had smacked into the prop it would have meant real trouble. Why, I read in the newspaper just the other day about an accident like that-"
"But what about the pigeon?" Joe interrupted impatiently. "Was it dead?"
"No," Chet replied, "but badly shaken up. I put it in a cage and removed this capsule from its leg. Wait till you see what"s in it!"
CHAPTER XIII.
A Harsh Skipper.
although Chet had opened the capsule when he had removed it from the pigeon, he would not reveal the contents to the Hardys. Instead, he waited as Frank removed the cap.
Inside was a tightly rolled bit of paper which he released with his fingernail. He smoothed out the note on his father"s desk and held it down at each end with paperweights.
A message, printed in block letters, read: CAUGHT L ABOUT TO SQUEAL.
HOLDING HERE.
NO DELIVERIES UNTIL REPLACEMENT ARRIVES.
There was no signature.
Frank straightened up and slapped Chet on the back. "Good work, pal. This may help to speed up our case."
As Chet beamed, Frank turned to Joe. "I guess we"d better forget those pigeon fanciers for the time being and concentrate on this new clue."
"You bet!"
They decided first to find out if the paper on which the cryptic message was written held any further clues. Holding it to the light, Frank studied the watermark. It looked like a fouled anchor insigne with several other figures that might have been porpoises or sea horses.
"Look at this, fellows," he said. "The next step is to contact various paper manufacturers to see if we can trace the origin of the paper."
From a list in Mr. Hardy"s files, they selected the best-known ones first and sent night letters to the manufacturers, describing the insigne and asking if it belonged to a special customer.
"Now all we can do is wait," Frank said.
No report came in from the paper mills during the following morning. At lunchtime Joe said, "While we"re waiting, let"s check up on that man Gene Moran told us about yesterday-the one who might be a ship"s captain."
"Okay. What say we try the Bayport water front again. Maybe the owner of that restaurant where we met Ragu can give us a clue."
The Hardys drove to the docks and headed for the eating place. When they questioned the proprietor about a tall, cruel-looking sea captain, he grinned and looked toward two men who were busily eating steaks at a table in a far corner of the room.
97 "How about those two?" he asked.
One of them was bearded and had a scar alongside his right eye. His companion wore a ferocious scowl on his unshaven face.
Frank studied the pair, then, approaching them, remarked: "Pardon me. We"re looking for a ship"s captain who was out near the hunting lodge in Smith"s woods yesterday. Was either of you there?"
The bearded man looked Frank over coolly, then asked, "What makes you think a seagoin" man would be messin" around in the woods? I was out on my ship all day yesterday. And a wasted day it was, too!"
Unseen by Frank and Joe, the restaurant owner had come up behind them. Wiping his hands on his ap.r.o.n, he said: "These boys are looking for a tall, cruel-looking captain, men. Either one of you like to take the job?"
"What"s it for?" asked the second captain. Then laughing loudly, he said, "A high school play? Long John Silver or something. I"ll go home and get my wooden leg. Ho-ho!"
All three of the men roared with laughter. Frank and Joe reddened.
"I"m sorry we wasted your time," Frank said.
As the Hardys headed for the door, they overheard one of the sea captains remark, "Luigi, who are those two whippersnappers?"
To the boys" amazement, the restaurant man re98 plied, "The Hardy boys. Their father is a big-time detective."
"Detective, eh? Zounds, Zeke, you and I will have to watch our step!"
Raucous laughter followed as the boys walked out of the restaurant. They visited other places along the water front but saw no one they thought was a likely suspect.
Finally the boys paused to rest near a small fishing craft. A jovial-looking man was seated in a rocking chair on the upper deck. Grinning, he called down: "Are you the lads who are huntin" for a cruel-lookin" skipper?"
Frank and Joe admitted that they were. "How did you hear about it?" Frank asked.
"The joke"s all up and down the water front by now," the man told them. "Just the same, maybe I can help you. If I were lookin" for a fellow of that stripe, I"d check with Captain Flont of the Daisy K. Daisy K. He looks like old Captain Kidd himself!" He looks like old Captain Kidd himself!"
The Daisy K Daisy K again, the Hardys thought excitedly! again, the Hardys thought excitedly!
"Was Captain Flont"s boat out at sea yesterday?" Joe asked.
"No, she wasn"t," replied the man. "She was tied to her bollards all day long. I can swear to that, for I was a mite lazy myself yesterday and didn"t leave port."
"Was the captain aboard the Daisy K?" Daisy K?" Joe asked. Joe asked.
"Not until late in the evening."
The Hardys thanked the man and walked along 99 the pier to the anchorage of the Daisy K. Daisy K. As they drew closer, they could see signs of As they drew closer, they could see signs of activity aboard the fishing craft. Captain Flont was poring over some charts in the deckhouse. Ragu stood lounging in the sun on the rear deck.
Frank and Joe halted at the gangway, and with nautical courtesy, Frank called, "Ahoy, the Daisy K. Daisy K. May we come aboard?" May we come aboard?"
Captain Flont, cruel-looking and harsh, leaned out the window and said sourly, "What do you expect? A full-dress review and a bos"n with a pipe? If you"ve got business with us, come aboard but make it snappy!"
As Frank and Joe stepped on the deck, Ragu looked up with an insolent stare. Joe peered at him intently in return, but the mate did not flinch.
As Captain Flont came to the rear door of the deckhouse to meet the Hardys, Frank decided that the best way to obtain the information he wanted was by a ruse. He started his inquiries by saying, "We"re looking for some information about a couple of our friends who were going fishing with you yesterday," he said.
"We didn"t go fishing yesterday," Captain Flont replied quickly.
"Oh, then maybe you were the captain who was over in Smith"s woods yesterday," Joe broke in.
Captain Flont"s grip tightened on the doorjamb. He scowled, then declared, "I wasn"t in any woods. Now get off this boat!"
100 The Hardy boys held their ground. "How about your man Ragu?" Frank asked. "Was he over there?"
At the mention of his name, Ragu came up behind them. He had picked up a heavy deck mop, and was wielding it as though he might turn it into a formidable weapon. Looking at his captain, the dark-skinned sailor said: "I was with Captain Flont yesterday. We were on ship"s business."
"Now you have your answers," the skipper shouted. "Get off my ship!"
Frank and Joe did not move quickly enough to suit the captain. The captain"s shout had aroused the other two crew members who came up from below. They, with the willing help of Ragu, gripped the unwanted callers by the elbows and rushed them off the boat. The boys were thrown forcibly onto the dock.
As the sailors returned to the gangplank, Frank and Joe heard one of them mutter, "It"s lucky they didn"t show up for the moonlight ride!"
The boys brushed themselves off and walked back to their car. When they were almost home, Joe, still rubbing his bruised hip and black-and-blue arm, said: "It sure is strange that it takes a captain, a mate, and two crew members to run a fifty-foot fishing cruiser. And what do you think that fellow meant about a moonlight ride?"
"I don"t know, but I believe we ought to find out if he meant tonight. There"ll be a full moon. Let"s 101 take the Sleuth Sleuth out and keep an eye on the out and keep an eye on the Daisy K." Daisy K."
At home the boys found a telegram from one of the paper mills. Frank read it and said: "Joe, did you ever hear of the Mediterranean Steamship Line? The records of this paper company show that the fouled anchor stationery was made for them and is used on all their ships. It was sold through the London office."
Joe said he had never heard of the line, but went to one of his father"s bookcases and brought back a paper-covered book containing ships" registries of various countries. He thumbed through it, then halted at one page.
"Here it is," he announced. "Some of their ships ply between New York and the Middle East. Do you want me to check the recent arrivals and departures of any of them?"
"That"s a good idea," Frank agreed.
As Joe scanned the shipping news in the Bayport Times, Bayport Times, he said, "Here"s an item on he said, "Here"s an item on one-the S.S. Continental. Continental. She arrived in New York early this week. Her normal course would She arrived in New York early this week. Her normal course would have taken her close to the coast at Bayport. Say, do you think the Continental Continental might be the might be the boat that"s bringing aliens to the United States?"
"It could be," Frank admitted. "But it might just be a ship on which a member of the gang was travel-ing."
Determined to track down every possible clue, Frank called the Mediterranean Line"s New York 102 office. He explained that the Hardys were detectives, working on a government case, and asked for a list of Indian pa.s.sengers on recent voyages of their ships to New York. The pa.s.senger agent a.s.sured him that it would be sent by mail at once, together with any other helpful information the line could give.
"With that co-operation, it sounds as if the company"s on the up and up," he remarked to his brother.
Just as the moon was rising that evening, Frank and Joe headed for the Sleuth, Sleuth, which which was still moored at a neighbor"s boathouse. They paused to note the progress of repairs on their own building which had been so badly burned.
"It"ll be at least two weeks before we can take the Sleuth Sleuth back," Frank commented. back," Frank commented.