Mildred A. Wirt

“ On either side of Baldiff Road stretched dense woods, a growth that crept to the very boundaries of the Harrison estate. Penny instantly noted that it would be possible for a person to flee from the cemetery to the very door of the estate without once leaving the shelter of trees.
“Perhaps it was the same woman!” she thought. “If she lives here, it would be logical for her to specify Oakland Cemetery as a meeting place! And escape would be easy for her, too!”
Penny slid down from the fence. It would do no good to question the woman. ”

“ The suggestion that her father might ruthlessly be done away with shocked Penny. And a canny corner of her mind demanded to know how Mr. Schirr could be so well informed. She was quite certain her father had not taken him into his confidence.
“Dad is no coward,” she said proudly.
“Oh, no one ever questioned his bravery, Miss Parker. Your father is courageous to the point of rashness. But if he prints an exposé story about the tire theft gang, it’s apt to prove the most foolish act of his life.” ”

“ The ghost, his face shadowed, rattled the chain again. Then with a distinct, audible sigh, he turned and tramped back along the fence away from the gate.
“Aw, that spook could get out if he wanted to,” muttered the taxi driver. “Why don’t he climb over the fence?”
“Perhaps the man is a sleep walker,” suggested Mrs. Weems nervously. “Whoever he is, the poor fellow should be in his bed.”
Penny was determined to learn the identity of the man. Moving to the gate, she called softly. The figure in white whirled around, looking straight toward her. ”

“ If true, Mr. Parker’s disappearance remained as mysterious as ever. Penny was silent a moment and then she asked the woman why she had fled from the cemetery.
“Because I saw a police car parked behind the bushes,” the other answered defiantly. “And those detectives chased me, too! I only intended to be helpful and maybe win a reward. Now I want nothing to do with the case. I’ve told you everything I know.”
The woman unlocked the gate and started to enter the grounds.
“You’re not Mrs. Deming?” Penny asked quickly.
“Who I am is my own business.”
“I suppose the ghost is your own affair too!” ”

“ Snow fell steadily, whipping and stinging their faces.
Gasping, half-winded, they kept doggedly on. Finally they struggled into a clearing at the top of the hill. Penny wiped her eyes and gazed down through a gap in the white-coated evergreens. A quarter of the way down the slope on the other side appeared a glowing dot of light.
[12]
“I’m afraid it’s only a cabin,” she said dubiously. “It can’t be the airplane listening post.”
“Let’s go there anyway,” advised Louise. “We can warm ourselves and ask how to get back to civilization.” ”

“ Penny waited a few minutes, then wandered about the floor where a number of cars had been stored. No workmen were in evidence.
“This might be a good time to do a bit of looking around!” she thought suddenly. “I’ll never have a better chance.”
Penny opened the doors into the room where she had observed Sam Burkholder mount a new tire on the car of a customer. One wall was stacked high with large wooden boxes, not unlike those she and Louise had seen delivered by the truck driver, Hank Biglow, on the night of the blizzard. ”

“ Driving on to Riverview, she left Salt’s car at the Star plant, then taxied home to tell Mrs. Weems of her failure at the cemetery.
“Don’t feel badly about it,” the housekeeper comforted. “Surely the woman who telephoned will make another attempt to reach you.”
“I doubt it,” Penny replied gloomily. “She’ll know now that the police are watching for her.”
“This entire affair is so bewildering,” sighed Mrs. Weems. “How could your father have been kidnaped? If what we’ve learned is true, he left the scene of the accident of his own free will.” ”

“ Deeply troubled, she tramped down the hall to the newsroom. Reporters were in a fever of activity, pounding out their stories. Copy boys had a nervous, tense expression as they ran to and fro on their errands. Harley Schirr, however, was not in evidence.
“The Big Shot has sealed himself in your father’s office!” informed one of the copy desk men in a muted voice. “Guess you heard about DeWitt?”
Penny nodded.
“The Great Genius has taken over, and how! This place is operating on an efficiency-plus basis now. Why, he’s got me so cockeyed, I compose poetry.” ”

“ Her face grim, Penny ran on toward the parking lot.
Reaching the trailer, the girls saw by tire tracks in the snow that the car had been detached and driven away.
“I knew it! I knew it!” Penny wailed, pounding her mittens together. “The coupe’s been stolen!”
“What’s that across the road?” Louise demanded. “It looks like an automobile to me. In the ditch, too!”
[5]
Taking new hope, Penny went to investigate the little ravine. Through a screen of bare tree branches and bushes, she glimpsed a blur of metal.
“It’s the car!” she cried jubilantly. “But how did it get across the road?” ”

“ Schirr looked stunned. Then he laughed unpleasantly.
“So you’re discharging me,” he mocked. “By what right may I ask?”
“This is my father’s plant.”
“Which doesn’t necessarily make you the editor or the owner, Miss Penelope Parker. You’re a minor as well as a nuisance. If your father proves to be dead, the court will step in—”
“Get out!” cried Penny, fighting to keep back the tears. “You don’t care about Dad, or anything but your own selfish interests!” ”

“ Mr. Parker teased her. “Your car now is in running order again. Mine will be in the garage for many a day. I’ll have to pay my own repair bill, too.”
“Unless the hit-skip driver is found.”
“I’m afraid he never will be,” sighed Mr. Parker. “I’ll always believe the men who crowded me off the road were hired by the tire-theft gang. No way to prove it though.”
“The car license number Mrs. Botts gave police didn’t seem to be accurate,” Penny replied. “By the way, have you decided what you’ll do about her?” ”

“ Mrs. Weems settled the matter. “Do stop dawdling and get on to the office. Your father shouldn’t be kept waiting.”
With anything but enthusiasm, Penny took herself to the plant of the Riverview Star. Passing through the busy newsroom where reporters pounded at their typewriters, she entered her father’s private office.
“Hello, Dad,” she greeted him with forced cheerfulness. “Mrs. Weems said you wanted to see me.”
“So you lost five tires last night?” the editor barked. Mr. Parker was a lean, keen-eyed man of early middle age, known throughout the state as a fearless newspaper man. ”

“ Weems came in to report that Louise once more was on the telephone.
“Penny, I can’t tell you how shocked I was to learn about your father,” her chum began breathlessly. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“I’m afraid not, Lou.”
“What are you using for a car? You must need one badly.”
“Salt Sommers let me have his last night. I’ll get along.”
“Penny, I know how you can buy tires!” Louise went on. “In fact, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“How can I buy tires? Rubber is supposed to be scarce.” ”

“ Penny did not wish to believe, yet she knew her chum was right.
“Anyway, I’m going to talk to him,” she declared. “Now that I am inside the grounds, I’ll ring the doorbell.”
Leaving Louise and Joe on the other side of the fence, Penny went boldly to the front door. She knocked several times and rang the bell. There was no response.
“Why doesn’t someone answer?” she thought impatiently.
At the rear of the house a door slammed. Suddenly Louise called from the gate: “Penny! A woman is leaving the estate by the back way!” ”

“ The girls were in favor of searching for the yellow taxi, but Salt pointed out that the chance of finding it was a slim one. He proposed that they return to the mansion and try to force information from Mrs. Botts.
“Detective Fuller had no luck,” replied Penny. “She has one story and she sticks to it. Her one fear is that she’ll lose her job.”
“Then this is the time to make things merry for her!” urged the photographer. “If Mr. Deming just arrived home, we’ll toss a few firebrands around and find out what he has to say!” ”

“ Penny shook her head and laughed. “Getting started always is quite a trick,” she replied. “Sit tight! We have a stiff breeze tonight.”
Penny and her father wore no protective goggles. The sharp wind stung their eyes even though they kept their heads low.
“How’ll we know when we get to the warehouse?” Mr. Parker shouted. “I can’t see anything!”
“Just trust me,” laughed Penny. “All I worry about is stopping this bronco when we get there!”
The boat was moving with the speed of an express train. Penny made her decisions with lightning-like rapidity, twice steering to avoid open stretches of water. ”

“ To face Mr. Schirr once more, was a most unpleasant ordeal for Penny. Nevertheless, she sought his office, apologizing for the intrusion.
“I am busy,” the editor said pointedly. “What is it you want?”
Penny explained that she had talked with Mose Johnson and was convinced that his offense would not be repeated.
“I want you to put him back on his old job,” she requested.
“Impossible!”
“Why do you take that attitude?” inquired Penny, stiffening for an argument. “Dad always liked Mose.”
“One can’t mix sentiment with business. ”

“ Mr. Parker smiled as he reached for a final edition of the Star. The paper carried not only an account of the round-up at Johnson’s Warehouse, but a full confession from Mrs. Botts.
“I bear the woman no ill will,” he said. “She’s already lost her position as caretaker at the Deming estate. That’s punishment enough as far as I’m concerned.”
Presently Mrs. Weems entered the living-room with a glass of milk. When she tried to make the publisher take it he complained that he no longer was an invalid.
“Now drink your milk like a good lad,” Penny scolded. “Why, you’re still as thin as a ghost.” ”

“ Penny said furiously. “It wasn’t our fault his old truck skidded.”
“But it is our fault we’re lost on this road,” Louise added. “How are we ever to find the listening post?”
[10]
Penny leaned against the leeward side of a giant pine. Already it was so dark that she could see only a few feet down the road. There were no houses, no lights, nothing to guide her.
“Penny, are we really lost?” Louise demanded, suddenly afraid.
“We really, truly are,” her chum answered in a quavering voice. “The post must be somewhere near here, but we’ll never find it. All we can do is try to get back to the car.” ”

“ He read a newspaper and fed a dollar and a half into a pin-ball machine.
Penny and Louise ordered coffee. Knowing that Salt might be waiting for them, they swallowed the brew scalding hot and arose to leave.
At the cashier’s desk Penny paid the bill. Upon impulse she quietly asked the man behind the cash register if he knew the driver.
“Fellow by the name of Hank Biglow,” he answered.
Before Penny could ask another question, a police patrol car screeched to a standstill just outside the restaurant. The cafe owner turned to stare as did the driver. ”

“ Detective Fuller was not entirely satisfied with the housekeeper’s story. “Guess we’ll have to take you along to the station for questioning,” he concluded.
Only then did Mrs. Botts lose her composure.
“No, don’t take me away!” she pleaded anxiously. “My employer is coming home tonight. I just received the telegram. If I’m not here when he arrives, I may lose my job!”
Actually Detective Fuller had little evidence against Mrs. Botts and doubted that he could hold her many hours in jail. Far more might be gained by allowing the woman her freedom and keeping watch of the house. ”

“ Weems.
Penny gave the housekeeper a tiny pinch to break the spell which had fallen upon her. “That’s no ghost,” she whispered. “Don’t you see! It’s a man wearing a heavy white bathrobe over his clothing. He’s pulled the wide collar up over his head like a hood!”
[118]
“It’s a man all right,” added the taxi driver. “You can tell by the way he walks. Ghosts kinda slither, don’t they?” ”

“ Although he remained at the counter, he kept watching the police car through the window.
The brief interchange between cafe owner and driver had interested Penny. To delay her departure, she bought a candy bar and began to unwrap it.
Only one policeman had alighted from the car. Tramping into the cafe, he pounded his hands together and sought the warmth of a radiator.
“Mind if I have a little of your heat?” he asked the cafe owner.
“Help yourself.”
Penny had been watching Hank Biglow. A moment before the man had sat tense and nervous at the counter. ”

“ What do you mean, Penny?”
“Dad has enemies. Harley Schirr told me today that if any attempt was made to expose a certain gang of thieves, it would mean real trouble.”
“But your father has had no connection with such persons.”
“He and Jerry worked on a case together,” Penny explained. “Today at the time of the accident, Dad carried a brief case with all the evidence in it!”
“Even so, I fail to see—”
“According to the report, Dad’s car was practically forced off the road,” Penny added excitedly. “I think that auto crash was deliberately engineered! Don’t you understand, Mrs. Weems? ”

“ Penny was zipping on her galoshes when the doorbell rang. Without giving her time to answer it, Louise Sidell marched into the kitchen bearing a freshly baked lemon pie.
“Mother sent this over,” she explained. “I slipped on the ice coming over and nearly had a catastrophe!”
Carefully Louise deposited the pie on the kitchen table. Cutting short Penny’s praise of it, she inquired alertly: “Going somewhere?”
Penny explained that she intended to motor to the Harrison estate.
“Not alone?” Louise demanded.
“I’ll have to, I guess. Mrs. Weems is sick, so I can’t take her along.” ”

“ Parker immediately examined the contents of both his desk and strongbox. To his chagrin he found that Penny was right. Every document pertaining to Schirr was missing.
“Well, it doesn’t matter,” the publisher said philosophically. “He’ll never set foot in this office again, nor in any other Riverview newspaper!”
“Dad,” said Penny, “I’ve wondered if Schirr may not be hooked up with the tire-theft gang. What do you think?”
“My poor thinker isn’t much good these days. However, I very much doubt it, Penny. Schirr always was a snoop and not above taking money for writing biased stories. ”