Mildred A. Wirt

“ Recalling the cool gust of wind that had struck her face, Penny took thought. Was it possible that Elda actually had seen someone crouching on the skylight? However, the idea seemed fantastic. She could think of no reason why any person would hide on the roof above the photography room.
“Oh, snap out of it, Elda,” she said carelessly. “Even if you did see a shadow, what of it?”
“It was a man, I tell you!”
“A workman perhaps. Mr. DeWitt sent me to tell you he was in a hurry for that picture.”
“Oh, tell Mr. DeWitt to jump in an ink well!” Elda retorted angrily. “He’s always in a hurry.” ”

“ Penny started to reply, but thought better of it. Seating herself beside Elda, she unhooded the typewriter, rolled a sheet of copy paper into it, and experimented with the keys.
The main newsroom was a confusion of sound. Although work was being handled with dispatch, there was an air of tension, for press time on the five-star edition was drawing close. Telephones were ringing, and Editor DeWitt, who sat at the head of the big rectangular desk, tersely assigned reporters to take the incoming calls. Not far from Penny’s ear, the police shortwave radio blared. Copy boys ran to and fro. ”

“ IN SEARCH OF WEBB
“Beautiful! Beautiful!” chuckled the major as the flames began to die away. “That proves our theory. No machine is required to set off the mines—only the action of water.”
“Professor Bettenridge must have heard the explosion!” Penny exclaimed, fairly beside herself with excitement. “What will happen now?”
“If human nature runs true to form, he will soon come here to investigate,” the major predicted. ”

“ Angrily, Penny brushed dust from her slacks. “But I’m as mad as a hornet! If that man thinks he can push me around—”
Already Webb was well down the road, walking at a leisurely but arrogant pace.
“Forget it, forget it,” Louise soothed. “We’d get no place picking a quarrel with a man like that. Anyway, you more or less accused him of thievery.”
“And a thief is exactly what he is!” Penny retorted. “There isn’t a doubt in my mind that he’s the one who stole Ben’s watch!”
“Then the thing for us to do is report him to the police. We’ll get nowhere talking to him ourselves.” ”

“ Penny asked, puzzled. “What did the men hope to gain by dynamiting the plant?”
“They did it on orders from a man higher up—a man who personally hates the owner of the Conway Steel Plant.”
“Then it was a grudge matter?” Captain Bricker inquired dubiously.
“Not entirely,” Ben returned. “Labor troubles are mixed up in it. This man, who represents a minor faction, has been trying to gain control over the employes without much success. By planning a series of accidents similar to the dynamiting, he thought he might bring the management around to his way of thinking.” ”

“ Some distance down the hall was a seldom-used stairway which led to the roof. Finding a door opening into it, Penny climbed the steps to look about. The rooftop was deserted, but in the building directly across from the Star, a corridor window remained open.
“How easy it would be for a man to step out onto the roof from there,” she thought. “If the skylight or the stairway door were unlocked, he easily could enter the Star photography room without being seen.” ”

“ Angry employes now were bearing directly toward Penny and Salt. Suddenly a woman in the crowd pointed toward the photographer, shouting: “There he is! Get him!”
Dismayed, Penny saw then that Salt wore a light overcoat which bore a striking resemblance to the garment of the fleeing stranger. Their builds too were somewhat similar, for both were thin and angular. In the darkness, the mob had failed to see the car roll away, and had mistaken Salt for the saboteur.
[23]
“Let’s get out of here!” Salt muttered. “One thing you can’t do is argue with a mob!” ”

“ Guided by the sound, Captain Bricker tried the door. It was locked.
A powerfully built man, the officer hurled his weight against the door, and the lock gave way. Keeping back, lest he become a target for a bullet, he kicked the door open. The room was empty! But, the flashlight beam caught the outline of a trapdoor in the floor. The officer flung it open. Below, in the hold, lay a man gagged and bound hand and foot.
Following the police officer into the room, Penny uttered a little cry as she recognized Ben Bartell. ”

“ Penny exclaimed, recognizing him.
“But notice the driver of the car,” Salt said. “It’s Jason Cordell! Ben was right.”
“Then the man is guilty!” Penny cried. “Oh, Dad, I was certain of it!”
Mr. Parker scanned the plate carefully to ascertain there was no possible mistake.
“Yes, it’s Jason Cordell,” he agreed. “The truth is hard to believe. Why, I lunched with him only yesterday—”
“Dad, he’s a criminal no matter how respectable he has acted.”
“You’re right,” acknowledged Mr. Parker. “I’ll notify the police at once and have him picked up for questioning.” ”

“ For the remainder of the day she worked with deep concentration, only dimly aware of what went on about her. Seemingly there were endless numbers of obituaries to write. Telephones rang constantly. Work was never finished, for as soon as one edition was off the press, another was in the making.
[11]
Now and then Penny caught herself glancing toward an empty desk at the far corner of the room. Jerry Livingston had sat there until a year ago when he had been granted a leave of absence to join the Army Air Force. Unquestionably the Star’s most talented reporter, he had been Penny’s best friend. ”

“ Salt, I feel worse than a worm.”
“Oh, buck up, Penny! Things like this happen. One has to learn to take the breaks.”
“Nothing like this ever happened before—I’m sure of that,” Penny said dismally. “What ought I to do, Salt?”
“Not a thing,” he assured her. “Just show up for work tomorrow the same as ever and don’t think any more about it. I’ll get the camera back, and by tomorrow DeWitt will have forgotten everything.”
“You’re very optimistic,” Penny returned. “Very optimistic indeed.”
Not wishing to return through the newsroom, she slipped down the back stairs and took a bus home. ”

“ Observing that Ben was shivering from cold, and that the stranger too was severely chilled, Penny proposed calling either the rescue squad or an ambulance.
“Not on your life,” muttered the rescued man, trying to get up. “I’m okay, and I’m getting out of here.”
With Ben’s help, he managed to struggle to his feet, but they buckled under him when he tried to walk.
The man looked surprised.
“We’ll have to call the rescue squad,” Penny decided firmly.
“I have a better idea,” Ben supplied. “We can take him to my shack.”
Penny thought that the man should have hospital treatment. ”

“ Switching on another light, Penny glanced over the room. The drawer of a filing cabinet where old films, and plates were kept, remained open.
“Someone may have been looking in there!” she commented. “Salt, whoever he is, he must be searching for a film he is afraid we’ll publish in the paper.”
“Maybe so,” Salt agreed, holding a hand to his throbbing forehead. “But I don’t know of any picture we have that would damage anyone.”
Penny stepped to the doorway of the darkroom. In the larger room, the skylight remained closed. It was impossible to tell if anyone had entered the building in that way. ”

“ The room was so barren that Penny tried not to give an appearance of noticing. There was only a table, one chair, the sagging bed, and a shelf with a few cracked dishes.
“I’ll get along with him all right,” Ben said, obviously expecting Penny to leave.
She refused to take the hint. Instead she said: “This man will either have to go to a hospital or stay here all night. He’s in no condition to walk anywhere.”
“He can have my bed tonight,” Ben said. “I’ll manage.” ”

“ Hearing it, Salt stopped short to listen. From the gates outside the factory came the rumbling murmur of an angry crowd.
[22]
“A mob must be forming!” Salt exclaimed. “Something’s up!”
He started for the gate with Penny hard at his heels.
At first they could not see what had caused the commotion. But as the group of angry employes swept nearer the gate, a man in a light overcoat who apparently was fleeing for his life, leaped into a car which waited at the curb.
“Quick!” Penny cried. “Take a picture!”
Salt already had his camera into position. As the car started up, the flash bulb went off. ”

“ Nettled, Professor Bettenridge could think of no further excuse. Glancing significantly at his wife, he said: “My dear, will you go to the house and get the card for our inquisitors?”
“We will all go,” corrected the major. “Your wife may be wanted as your accomplice in this latest secret ray machine fleece. We prefer that she does not escape.” ”

“ Penny broke in. “I tossed the camera and plates into a passing car. I was trying to save them, but it didn’t work out that way.”
DeWitt’s eyebrows jerked upward and he listened without comment as Penny told the story. Then he said grimly: “That’s fine! That’s just dandy!” and stalked out of the composing room.
Penny gazed despairingly at Salt.
“If you hadn’t told him it was your fault, he’d have taken it okay,” Salt sighed. “Oh, well, it was the only thing to do. Anyway, there’s one consolation. He can’t fire you.” ”

“ Mr. Parker chuckled, as he snapped off the photography room lights. “Everything locked?”
“How about the skylight?” asked Penny.
“Open again,” reported Salt as he checked it. “It’s just no use trying to get folks to cooperate around here. Too many fresh air fiends.”
“Let it stay unlocked,” Mr. Parker directed carelessly. “With our prowler safely behind bars, we’ve no further cause for worry.” He looked at his watch. “Now, even though it is late, suppose we go and celebrate?”
“Oh, fine!” cried Penny. “And why not stop at the Safety building and ask Ben Bartell to go with us? ”

“ Professor Bettenridge’s expression did not change, but the brief glance he flashed his wife was not lost upon Penny or Salt.
[129]
“You understand, of course,” he said smoothly, “that the Navy probably will insist upon ultimate purchase of the machine even if I relinquish ownership?”
“Certainly,” agreed Mr. Johnson. “I should expect to make such a sale. The machine would have no practical use except in warfare.”
Penny was tempted to ask the man if he considered it patriotic to try to obtain control of a machine in the hope of selling it to the government at a high profit to himself. ”

“ But how could a light ray machine explode mines that were under water? Why, if it could be done, military warfare would be revolutionized!”
“Unbelievable changes are coming every day.”
“This one certainly is unbelievable! I’ll take no stock in it unless I see the machine work with my own eyes!”
Approaching the shack, the girls saw no one. The door was closed. And it was locked, Penny discovered, upon testing it.
“No one here,” she said in disappointment.
“They must be around somewhere,” Louise declared, unwilling to give up. “Maybe that car belongs to them.” ”

“ She closed the skylight and dropped lightly to the floor.
“Looking for termites?” the photographer asked.
“Two legged ones! Salt, someone has been prowling about in here! Whoever he was, he came in through this skylight.”
“What makes you think so, kitten?” Salt looked mildly amused and not in the least convinced.
Penny told him what had happened and showed him the footprints on the filing cabinet. Only then did the photographer take her seriously.
“Well, this is something!” he exclaimed. “But who would sneak in here and for what reason?”
“Do you have anything valuable in the darkroom?” ”

“ Penny admitted. “But I have a suspicion the professor doesn’t want Mr. Johnson to know Webb is here today. He might insist on a test of the secret ray machine.”
“Why all the mystery? Professor Bettenridge certainly can’t expect to sell the invention unless he can give a successful demonstration.”
“I suspect that may be the point, Lou. Things aren’t properly set for a successful test today. Tomorrow night may be a different story.”
“But if the machine is as good as the professor claims, it should explode mines as well one time as another.” ”

“ Briefly, a musical note produced on the crystal globe, is carried by ultra violet ray to the scene of the mine. The vibration will cause any unstable substance such as melinite to explode.”
“And you claim you actually can explode mines with this machine?” Penny asked.
“I not only claim it, I have demonstrated the machine’s powers,” Professor Bettenridge replied. “How I do it, of course, is my own secret.”
“Will you explode a mine for us now?” Louise questioned eagerly.
Professor Bettenridge looked mildly amused. “My dear young lady,” he said. “Do you realize that mines are very expensive? ”

“ I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“I was looking for a camera and plates.”
“I regret I still fail to follow you,” the man said stiffly. “Why should our car contain a camera? My wife and I take no interest in photography.”
“Aren’t you Professor Bettenridge?”
“I am.”
Penny gazed again at the car. “This must be the automobile,” she said, deeply troubled. “On the night of the Conway Steel Plant explosion, I tossed a camera and photographic plates into the back seat to prevent them being destroyed by a mob.” ”

“ Determined that the man should not escape, Penny, Salt and Mr. Parker started for the farmhouse, leaving the major and Mr. Johnson to question the professor. As they rapped on the screen door, Mrs. Leonard came to let them in.
“What is going on here tonight, may I ask?” she demanded irritably. “People banging in and out of the house at all hours! Explosions! I declare, I wish I never had rented a room to that crazy professor and his wife!”
“Is Webb Nelson here?” Mr. Parker asked. ”

“ Penny paid no heed, but started off in pursuit of the stranger. He had already disappeared among the trees and was well on his way toward the lake. Not wishing to be deserted, Louise quickly followed her chum.
“He’s going to the professor’s shack!” Penny observed a moment later.
“Perhaps he is another prospective buyer of the secret ray machine,” Louise speculated. “Business seems to be rushing today.”
Penny was not convinced. “I’m sure it is Webb,” she declared. “If we can force him to admit his identity, we may get Ben’s watch back.” ”