CHAPTER XV
STRICTLY BUSINESS
Our hero had accomplished his mission. He had learned all that he hadcome to Lookout Hill to find out. The two men and their mysteriousmachine had been located. Their connection as accomplices of Dave’senemies was positive.
“Here is something to think over before we make a definite move,”reflected the young aviator. “These fellows will, of course, hear aboutus if they go back to the town, which they probably will do. Then itwill be a new, closer chase.”
The professional curiosity of the pilot of the _Comet_ held him to thespot momentarily. He made a detour of the campfire. His object was toinspect the monoplane.
A score of ideas crowded Dave’s thoughts. He might tell his story to anofficer of the town, possibly have the tramp airship and its crewarrested, or at least detained. Again, he might quietly start up the_Comet_, strike a new route, and count on outdistancing all pursuers.
Dave glided along in the shelter of the underbrush until he came updirectly to the monoplane. A near glance told him that it was a superbmachine. Whoever the airmen hired by the wily Vernon were, theythoroughly understood their business, that seemed sure.
The young aviator was so engrossed in his inspection of the machine,thinking so fast as to what was best to do, that he was taken allunawares as some one nearly ran upon him. It was the man he had justseen at the campfire.
“Hello, who are you?” shot out the man, and he paused not five feet fromthe young airman and looked him over from head to foot.
“I heard of your machine and came to take a look at it,” replied Dave,on his guard and watching his challenger closely, for he had a bad face.
“Oh, you did?” said the fellow, moving a step nearer. “That’s a strangejacket you wear. Why, you’re an airman yourself and—you’re Dashaway!”
The man was too quick for Dave. As he spoke he made a deft spring. Itshowed that he was a natural acrobat. His grip on Dave’s arm was likeiron.
“Let me go. Suppose I am?” demanded our hero, struggling.
“Well, then I have a little business with you,” coolly answered hiscaptor. “Oh, you’re Dashaway. I saw you twice in Winnipeg. Come on. Tom!Tom!” he called out loudly, to his companion, as he found himself unableto budge his prisoner, although he weighed nearly double what Dave did.
The man near the campfire neither responded nor stirred. He was pasthelping his comrade. There was a reason why the young airman was able tomake so sturdy a resistance. His free hand clutched a sapling right athand. His foot he had twisted in among the network of strong roots.
The combatants stood directly at the edge of one of the pits thathoneycombed the plateau. Its edge crumbled as the man gave Dave a jerk.
“Look out!” cried our hero, “if you don’t want both of us to get atumble.”
“You come on,” ordered his captor, savagely. “I’ll stand no fooling.Come—on!”
He gave Dave a terrific jerk. It was so forceful that our hero’s graspof the tree tore loose, and he toppled over. In doing so his assailantlost his balance. He stumbled over Dave’s entangled foot. In someastonishment the young aviator found the fellow had completelydisappeared as he got to his feet.
“He’s done for himself, sure enough,” said Dave, and he peered down intothe pit. It was about twenty feet deep. He heard a groan. Then he traceda rustling about. His eyes becoming accustomed to the darkness, Dave wasfinally enabled to make out his enemy trying to climb up the steep sidesof the pit.
The roots he clutched at gave way in his grasp and a shower of dirt andgravel drove him back. The young aviator discerned that the man was notseriously hurt. He realized also that sooner or later his enemy wouldmanage to get out of the pit. If not at once, at least when his nowhelpless comrade came to himself, the man would be rescued.
“He is just where I want him,” thought the young aviator. “It won’t doto leave him the machine.”
Dave walked up again to the flying machine. He soon estimated itscondition and capacity. He found it to be a capable piece of mechanism.
“Hi, stop—Oh, thunder!”
This was shouted out after the runaway as the machine lifted into theair, Dave at the helm. Its rightful pilot spoke, but, his call barelycompleted as he grasped at the edge of the pit, down he slid again toits bottom.
Fifteen minutes later the machine dropped to earth in the field behindthe inn at Doubleday, not a hundred feet from the _Comet_. Hiram camerunning towards it.
“You, Dave?” he called out cautiously.
“With company,” answered Dave promptly.
“Gracious! It’s the pirate tramp, isn’t it?” cried the astonished Hiram.“Why, what does it mean? How did you manage it?”
“Don’t ask any questions just now,” responded the young airman. “Wake upElmer.”
“We’re going to get out of here?”
“Quick as we can. There’s a reason.”
Hiram bolted for the haymow. Elmer very shortly came up to the spotwhere Dave stood.
“For mercy’s sake, two of them!” he exclaimed, rubbing his eyes andstaring in surprise at the captured airship.
“Yes, this is the pirate,” explained the young pilot. “The fellows whoran it tried to follow us from Winnipeg. Turn about is fair play,fellows. Some of the same gang stole our machine near Washington for abad purpose. We will retaliate by borrowing theirs now for a goodpurpose.”
“Yes,” put in Hiram, with animation, “get them and the machine safelyout of harm’s way.”
“I intend to,” said Dave. “You’ll have to fly the craft, Hiram.”
“I reckon I can do it,” asserted Hiram promptly. “What’s your idea,Dave?”
“A two hours’ flight, due west. Then we will hold a new council of war.We had best not delay. I don’t know how soon the fellow who runs thatcraft may be on our trail.”
No one appeared to observe or hinder the airship boys as they made theirpreparations to resume their journey. The pilot of the _Comet_ gave histrusty assistant explicit orders as to what was required of him.
The biplane started first from the ground. In the clear moonlight itscourse was not difficult to follow. Soon the leader and its consort werestarted on a steady course, due west. Hiram was in gay humor. Dave hadexplained the details of his encounter with the enemy, and the new pilotof the pirate airship chuckled as he drove it forward.
The incident had fully awakened Elmer, and Dave found him good livelycompany. There was a rare spice of adventure in the incident of thenight.
“You handled things just grand,” voted Dave’s enthusiastic admirer. “Iwonder how those fellows are feeling just about this time?”
It was after midnight when the young aviator directed his companion totake the distance record.
“Ninety-seven miles,” reported Elmer.
“I guess that will do,” said our hero. “We are going to land.”
A pleasant stretch of forest glade looked inviting. The _Comet_ came toanchor. In about ten minutes the other machine made an easy descentalmost at the side of the _Comet_.
“Well done, Hiram,” commended his friend, warmly. “Your lessons underold John Grimshaw are bringing famous results.”
“Glad you think so,” answered Hiram, with affected indifference, but helooked both pleased and proud.
“It’s about midnight,” said Dave. “We will turn in soon as we can,fellows. I will take the first watch.”
“Going to stay here until daylight?” inquired Hiram.
“Yes, and for a good breakfast,” replied the young airman. “We need therest, and there is little likelihood of our enemies catching up with usnow.”
“I should say not,” echoed Hiram with a chuckle.
“No, you have spiked their guns for keeps, Dave,” added Elmer.
It was a little later than sunrise when Hiram, on the last watch, wokeup his comrades. He had a fire of twigs going.
“Coffee
on the boil, fellows,” he announced cheerily; “ham done to aturn, and the bread being a little dry I thought we would have somebuttered toast.”
“Hurrah!” shouted the hungry and jubilant Elmer. “I feel as if I couldeat a horse.”
“Yes, this brisk Canadian air certainly gives a fellow a greatappetite,” declared Dave.
“Next town we stop at,” spoke Hiram, “I want to get some pancake flour.I’ve been just hankering for some old fashioned flapjacks. I’ve got agriddle among the traps, and I know I can turn out some elegantpancakes.”
“This is good enough for anybody,” insisted Elmer, his teeth deep in apiece of luscious ham cooked to a turn.
“Say,” spoke Hiram a few minutes later, “I strolled around the end ofthat grove of trees yonder before I woke you up. There’s a road justbeyond them, and there’s a town not half a mile away.”
“Is that so?” questioned the young aviator. “That suits my plansprecisely.”
“How is that?” asked Elmer.
“I will show you after breakfast,” replied Dave.
He got a pad of writing paper from the supply aboard the biplane. Davewas busy writing for some time. Then he got the repair outfit of the_Comet_.
“Come on, you can help me,” he said to Hiram and Elmer.
The young airman partially upset the captured airship. His comrades verysoon understood what this manœuvre meant. Dave removed a dozen or morescrews and bolts. Then he unhinged alternate struts and set to work onthe engine. The parts removed were stored aboard of the _Comet_.
“I guess that will cripple the craft enough to serve our purpose,” saidDave. “I don’t want to be a vandal and wholly destroy as pretty amachine as this is.”
“Can’t afford to take any risks with the bad crowd trying to break us upthough,” reminded Hiram.
“I don’t intend to,” answered Dave. “It will take a long trip clear backto Winnipeg to replace those parts. If those fellows we left back atDoubleday come on after the machine, it will be fully a week before theycan think of taking up the chase again.”
“By that time we will have reached Alaska; won’t we, Dave?” queriedElmer.
“And far beyond, if we fill the schedule blocked out,” replied the youngpilot of the _Comet_. “I’ll be back soon, fellows.”
Dave lined the grove of trees and was soon lost beyond it to the presentsight of his friends. In about half an hour he reappeared, walkingbriskly.
“It’s all right,” he reported. “Get the _Comet_ in trim.”
“Going to start up, eh?” remarked Elmer.
“We had better, I think, to avoid complications,” said Dave. “The townbeyond here has a telephone service probably, running to Doubleday. Thenote I wrote told of the dismantled machine here. It also explainedenough to warrant a ’phone call, explaining about it, sent to Doubleday.Those Winnipeg fellows can get their machine by coming for it.”
“You mean what is left of it,” corrected Hiram.
“I hired a boy I met to take my note to the postmaster of the town nearhere,” explained the young aviator. “I think I have been as fair allaround as we can afford to be under the circumstances.”
“That’s right,” assented Hiram, with vigor, and Elmer echoed thesentiment.
“The coast is clear—as far as Sitka, anyhow,” proceeded the youngairman. “And now, fellows,” he added briskly—“business, strictlybusiness.”