Burt L. Standish

“ A revolver roared in the other room and a bullet crashed into a piece of china on the sideboard and then broke the heavy French mirror behind it into a thousand fragments.
If Clancy had not been quick, that bullet would have struck the young fellow with the gun, for it traversed a line that crossed the exact point where he had been standing.
The young fellow was quick-witted, and, while at first he may have misunderstood Clancy’s action, the crash of the bullet gave him knowledge of the true state of affairs.
“There they go!” cried Clancy. ”

“ Fortune grew restive, and was plainly eager to give Hibbard as good as he sent, but his “pard” checked him with a look.
“It doesn’t take an expert, nor much of a mechanic, to tell what is wrong with that engine,” said he. “If the rest of the car is in order, I can settle the difficulty in thirty seconds.”
“Wow!” cried Hibbard, with an ugly laugh. “He’s a wizard, a regular motor wizard. He rolls up out of the desert, and——”
“That will do!” cut in the judge sharply. “What is your name, young man?” he asked, turning to Clancy. ”

“ For a few moments Clancy was astounded. Fortune’s grin was wide and inviting—in fact, he was about the pleasantest slugger Clancy had ever seen.
“Cut out the foolishness,” said Owen. “What reason have I got to fight with you?”
“Shucks! You got to have a reason for every blame’ thing? Climb my neck—if you got the sand! Ain’t I beggin’ hard enough?”
Abruptly Clancy made up his mind to enter heartily into the spirit of the affair. So he sprang erect and sailed into Jimmie Fortune, whom he had just saved from being dashed to pieces at the bottom of the cliff. ”

“ Clancy was surprised and delighted at the expression of these sentiments. From what he had heard regarding Rockwell, he expected to find in the man a cunning, unscrupulous person who would be exceedingly hard to deal with. Yet here Rockwell was showing a grateful disposition which did not tally with the reports of his character which had come to Clancy.
If Clancy could have seen the guileful light in Rockwell’s eyes, it is safe to say he would not have been so pleased. But the goggles hid the garage owner’s eyes, and the youth was left in the dark as to what was passing in the man’s mind. ”

“ Here he had better success. On the other side of Cerro Gordo Street was a house with a glass conservatory jutting out. The yard was a mass of dark shrubbery which the faint glow from the electric light on the corner could not penetrate.
“That must be the place,” thought Clancy. “I’ll go down a little farther and cross over. If I’m careful, I may find out what Hibbard and Long Tom are doing.”
From palm to palm he skulked along Cerro Gordo Street, and then, suddenly, came to a halt. Ahead of him, at the curb, stood a motor car. ”

“ Laying hands on top of the iron fence, Clancy bounded lightly over and into the yard. Fortune tried to vault, but his boots handicapped him. The toe of one of them caught on an iron picket and he came down among the bushes in a sprawl. He started to sputter, but Clancy laid a quick hand over his lips.
“Sh-h-h!” hissed Clancy warningly.
So far as they could discover, Fortune’s floundering had not aroused any one. After a few moments, they began crawling toward the side wall of the house. ”

“ Rockwell,” said Clancy. “I haven’t been brought up to stand for that sort of thing.”
“Bosh! You’re too thin-skinned. Business is business, young fellow, and nowadays a man has to be mighty shrewd if he makes good. It’s principally the rich men who keep cars in garages, and it’s necessary to keep their machines in trim—even if you have to use tact, once in a while, to get permission to overhaul a car. As for the driver’s end of it—well, maybe that’s plain graft, but it’s legitimate so far as the garage owner is concerned. If he keeps his customers he has to pay the driver his bit.” ”

“ If Rockwell knew what was wrong with the judge’s car—and it was foolish to think that a man who ran a garage could not locate so simple a difficulty—then why hadn’t he fixed the motor instead of offering to tow the car in for an overhauling?
Clancy, who was quick-witted, fell to wondering if Hibbard and Rockwell might not be in “cahoots” to secure money from the judge for “repairs” that were not needed. The chauffeur had shown that he was not to be trusted, and Clancy had heard stories of Rockwell which were far from being a credit to him. ”

“ Clancy’s keen eyes had been going over the motor. At a glance he had located the difficulty, and he was amazed to hear the garage owner and the chauffeur assert their ignorance of it.
“The trouble’s plain enough,” he blurted out. “I can locate it from here.”
Instantly the red-headed fellow captured the complete attention of the judge, Rockwell, and Hibbard.
“You must be a wonder!” sneered Hibbard. “I’ve been drivin’ a car for four years, but maybe you know a heap more’n I do. You act like one of these chaps that know it all!”
“Are you a mechanic?” inquired Rockwell. ”

“ It was an honest, straightforward answer, but it failed to make the proper impression on Rockwell somehow.
“The garage business is peculiar,” remarked Rockwell. “To make anything at all, the proprietor of a garage has to pull a lot of wires. Now, Judge Pembroke just wallows in money, and he wants his cars in the best condition always. I’ve been at him for a long time to get that big machine overhauled, but as long as it runs fairly well he seems to be satisfied. That’s the way with car owners,” and a complaining note entered the man’s voice. ”

“ He pushed Fortune away and nodded to Clancy to take charge of him and restrain his hostile ardor. Clancy at once passed to the side of his friend and caught his arm restrainingly. Rockwell, who did not seem to recognize Fortune as a relative, got off into the background once more.
“So,” went on the judge, in scathing tones, again giving attention to Dirk Hibbard, “you take my car out without permission and go over mountain trails with it at forty miles an hour! What have you to say for yourself?”
“Judge Pembroke,” answered Hibbard, “these two hoboes are pullin’ the wool over your eyes. ”

“ Clancy threw back his red head and burst into a laugh.
“Where’s the joke?” asked Fortune.
“What use have I got for a chap like you?” Clancy returned. “Why, I’m looking for a job myself. That’s why I’m going to Phoenix, Fortune. And I’m walking to save stage fare from Mesa.”
“Didn’t know but you might be a Vandefeller, or a Rockybilt in disguise,” grinned Fortune. “I’ve worked for purty nigh everybody in southern Arizona, and I jest wanted to add you to my list of employers. I don’t seem able to hold a job long. ”

“ Fortune had come to a dead stop in the trail. He stared at his new “pard,” then craned his head forward and put a hand behind his ear.
“Otra vez!” he murmured. “Come again with that, Red. A note for—how much?”
“Thousand dollars.”
“Gee-wollops! I didn’t know there was that much dinero in the world. And here you tune up and allow you couldn’t hire me at fifty plunks a month!”
“The note doesn’t belong to me,” Clancy explained, “but to my father. The folks need the money—and I may have a hard time collecting it. You say you have been in Phoenix, Jimmie?” ”

“ Fortune had already kicked off his boots and removed his flannel shirt. He was out of his trousers in a jiffy and had rolled up head and ears in a blanket.
“Buenas noches, pard!” came in muffled tones from the depths of the blanket.
Clancy turned off the light, passed to the window, raised the shade, and then the sash, and softly climbed through and dropped to the ground. By a roundabout course he gained First Avenue, went by the front of the garage on the opposite side of the street, and so came into the main thoroughfare of the town. ”

“ The man behind that steering wheel ought to be pinched! He didn’t give the fellow in the trail any chance at all—just ran him down and made him jump over the edge of the cliff. Now the driver of that car hasn’t the common decency to come back and see how much harm has been done!”
The scene of this reckless automobile driving was a trail leading toward the city of Phoenix, Arizona. It was one of those mountain-and-desert trails which lead for miles over thirsty, sun-scorched plains, and occasionally climb to dizzy heights by narrow, hair-raising spirals clipped from the mountainside. ”

“ As the judge walked off, leaving Clancy poorer by twenty-five dollars a month because of his promise to Rockwell, Fortune saw a chance and took quick advantage of it.
“Hold your bronks a minute, judge,” he called, hurrying after Pembroke. “I’m big for my size and old for my age, and I reckon I could pull down that seventy-five allee same Clancy. What do you say?”
The judge paused and cast a reflective eye over Jimmie.
“Can you drive a car?” he inquired.
“Me? Gee-wollops! Say, I invented cars. ”

“ If there is no garage in Phoenix that can find a place for me, I’ll have to go to some other town.”
Rockwell remained thoughtful for several minutes.
“Ever work in a garage?” he asked.
“No,” was the answer. “Up to now I haven’t had to work. Dad has had plenty of money, and I was attending an academy and getting ready for college. When the crash came, I had to quit school and look for work. The care of the family now falls on me, and—and I’ve got to make good.”
“Now that I know you’re John Clancy’s son,” said Rockwell slowly, “I’m inclined to do more than ordinary to make a place for you. ”

“ Now, it happened that the gasoline jaunting car was approaching from behind with considerable acceleration. I am sure the buzz wagon could not have been more than ten rods behind me when the cheffonier blew that blast on his horn, and the blasted thing made me jump.
And the machine was moving with such expedience that when I came down I alighted fairly on the cushioned seat in the tonneau. ”

“ With folded arms, I serenely waited until little Fido reached the bank and dragged the elephant, limp and nearly drowned, but still alive, out upon dry ground.
The spectators cheered wildly, and the proprietor of the circus made a dastardly attempt to fall on my neck and kiss me, but I held him off.
“My dear boy,” he cried, “I owe you a thousand thanks.”
“No,” I answered; “you owe me five hundred dollars, and I’ll take it in frigid cash. Even a certified check will be scrutinized with suspicion.” ”

“ For a second, Clancy was blinded, and could see little. As his vision cleared, he discovered that the man who had made a prisoner of him was a young fellow, who bore a striking facial resemblance to the judge. He wore a blanket robe and slippers, and held a small, automatic pistol in his right hand.
“Jove!” murmured the chap with the gun. “You don’t look much like a tough, and that’s a fact. But circumstances are against you, my lad. ”

“ THE MOTOR WIZARD.
As Clancy drew nearer the group at the foot of the slope, it became apparent that the stout gentleman was “laying down the law” to the driver of the big car. Rockwell continued to hang discreetly in the background.
Into this group Fortune plunged like a whirlwind. In half a minute he had laid violent hands on the chauffeur, and the two fell to struggling with might and main. ”

“ If I can’t make good without stealing, then I won’t make good, that’s all.”
Silence settled down between the two. The car rolled into Washington Street and along it to First Avenue. As it turned into the avenue, the front of the garage was brought plainly into sight. A big red star hung over the door. Above the star were the words, “Red Star Garage,” and, below it, the attractive legend, “Free Air.”
The garage was an adobe structure, but it looked rather imposing and prosperous. A man in greasy overclothes was out in front, filling a radiator. ”

“ The manager of the circus, who was likewise the owner, came tearing through the crowd, frothing at the mouth, and shrieking that he would pay a reward of five hundred dollars to any one who would rescue the elephant.
I saw my opportunity, and grappled with it.
“Clam yourself, sir,” said I. “I will relieve you of that five hundred. Your priceless treasure shall not perish.”
Then I called my faithful dog.
“Fido,” I cried, pointing toward the drowning mammal, “it’s up to you to get busy. We need the mazuma. Go fetch, Fido.” ”

“ Two dark figures could be seen rushing across the street toward the dark bulk of the car.
“There they go!” exclaimed Clancy. “They’ve got a surprise in store for themselves! Look, they’re trying to crank the engine.”
One of the forms could be seen working at the front of the car. He started up with a frantic oath.
“Take to your heels, Chantay! They’ve tampered with the car! Run!”
A figure jumped from the tonneau of the machine and flung off through the night. Hibbard, who had been pulling the crank, ran back along the line of palm trees. ”

“ Clancy smiled, and shook his head.
“We’re a good way yet from cracking the shell of the mystery,” said he. “If this is really the ground plan of a house at the corner of Second and Cerro Gordo, why did Hibbard draw it and show it to Chantay Seeche? That’s the mystery, Jimmie, and we haven’t begun to solve it.”
Fortune’s face went blank.
“That’s you! I missed the p’int, and no mistake. But Hibbard and Chantay wasn’t considerin’ that plan for any good purpose, believe me. There’s a hen on, and trouble’s hatchin’. How we goin’ to find out what’s in the wind?” ”