Guilt of the Brass Thieves Part 18

For the first time Penny really felt sorry for the boy. Resisting a temptation to rub salt in his wounds, she said kindly:

"Well, I suppose you felt justified in asking for the trophy."

"I wish I hadn't done that, Penny. It's just that Sally gets me sometimes. She's so blamed c.o.c.ky!"

"And she feels the same way about you. On the whole, though, I wonder if Sally has had a square deal?"

Jack straightened, staring at the _Spindrift_ which tugged impatiently at her shortened ropes. Waves were beginning to lap over the dock boards.

"You mean about the factory?" he asked in a subdued voice.

Penny nodded.

"I never did think Sally was a thief," Jack said slowly. "Judging from Heiney Growski's report, someone may have planted the bra.s.s in her locker. Probably that fellow Joe, the Sweeper."

"Don't you feel she should be cleared?"

"How can we do anything without proof? This fellow Joe isn't convicted yet. Besides, he's only one of a gang. Sally could be involved, though I doubt it."

"You're not really convinced then?" Penny gazed at him curiously.

"Yes, I am," Jack answered after a slight hesitation. "Sally's innocent.

I know that."

"Then why don't we do something about it?"

"What? My father has employed the best detectives already."

"At least you could tell Sally how you feel about it."

Jack kicked at the dock post with the toe of his tennis shoe. "And have her tear into me like a wild cat?" he countered. "You don't know Sally."

"Are you so sure that you do?" Penny asked. Turning she walked swiftly away.

Jack came padding up the gravel path after her.

"Wait!" he commanded, grasping her by the arm. "So you think I've given Sally a raw deal?"

"I have no opinion in the matter," Penny returned, deliberately aloof.

"If I could do anything to prove Sally innocent you know I'd jump at the chance," Jack argued, trying to regain Penny's good graces.

"You really mean that?"

"Yes, I do."

"Then why don't you try to get a little evidence against this man Joe, the Sweeper?" Penny proposed eagerly. "You visit the factory nearly every day. Keep your eyes and ears open and see what you can learn."

"Everyone knows who I am," Jack argued. "There wouldn't be a chance--"

Meeting Penny's steady, appraising gaze, he broke off and finished: "Oh, okay, I'll do what I can, but it's useless."

"Not if you have a plan."

Jack stared at Penny with sudden suspicion. "Say, what are you leading up to anyhow?" he demanded. "Do _you_ have one?"

"Not exactly. It just occurred to me that by watching at the gate of the factory when the employes leave, one might spot some of the men who are carrying off bra.s.s in their clothing."

Jack gave an amused snort. "Oh, that's been done. Company detectives made any number of checks."

"That's just the point," Penny argued. "They were factory employes, probably known to some of the workers."

"I'm even more widely recognized," Jack said. "Besides, Clayton, our gateman, has instructions to be on the watch for anyone who might try to carry anything away. He's reported several persons. When they were searched, nothing was found."

"Your gateman is entirely trustworthy?"

"Why not? He's an old employee."

Penny said no more, though she was thinking of the conversation overheard while at the factory gatehouse. Even if Jack took no interest, she decided she would try to do what she could herself. But there really seemed no place to begin.

"If you get any good ideas, I'll be glad to help," Jack said as if reading her thoughts. "Just to barge ahead without any plan, doesn't make sense to me."

Penny knew that he was right. Much as she desired to help clear Sally, she had no definite scheme in mind.

As the pair turned to leave the docks, they heard a shout from across the water. The _Cat's Paw_, with canvas spread wide, was sailing before the wind, directly toward the island. Sally, at the tiller, signaled that she wanted to talk to them.

The boat came in like a house afire, but though the landing was fast, it was skillful. Sally looped a rope around the dock post, but did not bother to tie up.

"Penny," she said breathlessly. "I didn't get half a chance to thank you this afternoon for helping me in the race."

"I didn't do anything," Penny laughed. "I merely went along for the ride."

"That may be your story, but everyone who saw the race knows better. What I really came here for is to ask you to spend the night with me aboard the _River Queen_. We'll have a chance to get better acquainted."

The invitation caught Penny by surprise. Sally mistook her hesitation for reluctance.

"Probably you don't feel you want to leave here," she said quickly. "It was just one of those sudden ideas of mine."

"I want to come," Penny answered eagerly. "If Mr. and Mrs. Gandiss wouldn't mind. Wait and I'll ask."

Darting to the house, she talked over the matter with her father and then with her hostess. "By all means go," the latter urged. "I imagine you will enjoy the experience. Jack can pick you up in the motorboat in the morning."

Packing her pajamas and a few toilet articles into a tight roll, Penny ran back to the dock. Jack and Sally were arguing about details of the afternoon race, but they abandoned the battle as she hurried up.

"Jack, you're to pick me up tomorrow morning," she advised him as she climbed aboard the _Cat's Paw_, "Don't forget."

The _River Queen_ already had been anch.o.r.ed for the night in a quiet cove half a mile down river. With darkness approaching, lights were winking all along the sh.o.r.e. Across the river, the Gandiss factory was a blaze of white illumination. Farther downstream, the colored lights of an amus.e.m.e.nt park with a high roller coaster, cut a bright pattern in the sky.

Sally glanced for a moment toward the factory but made no mention of her unpleasant experience there. "Pop and I stay alone at night on the _Queen_," she explained as they approached the ferry. "Our crew is made up of men who live in town, so usually they go home after the six o'clock run."