CHAPTER 18 _INSIDE THE LIGHTHOUSE_
Unchallenged, Penny and Louise reached the base of the lighthouse. But asthey slowly climbed the iron stairs, their courage fast slipped away.
"What will we say to the keeper?" Louise faltered. "I've even forgottenhis name."
"I haven't," said Penny. "It's Jim McCoy. If Mrs. Deline is allowedinside the tower, shouldn't we have the same privileges?"
"She's a personal friend."
"That should make no difference," Penny argued. "This is governmentproperty."
"Let's not do it," Louise pleaded, holding back.
Having proceeded so far. Penny was in no mood to retreat. Quickly, lestshe too lose her courage, she rapped hard on the tower door.
Minutes elapsed. Then the heavy oak door swung back and Jim McCoy, theburly keeper, peered out at the girls. His bushy brows drew together inan angry scowl.
"You here again!" he exclaimed.
"Yes," said Penny, making the word crisp and firm.
"I'll have to report you if you keep pestering me," the keeper scolded."How many times have I told you no visitors are allowed?"
"But you don't treat everyone the same!" Penny remonstrated. "Mrs. Delinejust came here."
"Mrs. Deline? Who's she?"
"Why, a woman who stays at the hotel. She came through this door not fiveminutes ago!"
"You must have imagined it. I've had no visitors."
Penny's silence said more plainly than words that she did not believe thekeeper.
"So you think I'm lying, eh?" he demanded unpleasantly. "Okay, come inand see for yourselves. I'm breaking a rule to invite you into the tower,but maybe then you'll be satisfied and quite bothering me. We have workto do here, you know."
The keeper stepped aside so that the girls might enter.
"My living quarters," he said curtly. "You see, I have no visitors."
Decidedly ill at ease, the girls gazed about the little circular room.The walls were lined with built-in cupboards. Nearly all of the furniturehad been made with a view to conserving space. As Mr. McCoy had said,there were no visitors--no evidence that Mrs. Deline ever had been there.
"Are you satisfied?" the keeper demanded unpleasantly.
"But we were sure Mrs. Deline came here," Penny stammered.
"There's been no one today except early this morning when a governmentinspector paid me a visit."
Penny did not believe the man but she deemed it wise to appear to do so.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "I guess we have made nuisances ofourselves."
"That's all right," the keeper said in a less unfriendly tone. "Kids arekids. Now that you're here, look around a bit."
"Oh, thank you," Louise replied gratefully. "I've always wanted to seethe inside of a lighthouse."
"I have some work to do," Mr. McCoy announced. "The light's not beenoperating right and I'm trying to get the mechanism adjusted. I'll beback."
He went out, allowing the door to slam hard.
The girls surveyed their surroundings with keen interest. On a table nearthe window there was a shortwave radio. A circular couch occupied anothercurving corner of the room.
"What became of Mrs. Deline?" Penny whispered. "She certainly came here."
"Of course she did! We saw her plain as day!"
"She must be somewhere in the tower. Probably there's a room above thisone."
Penny tiptoed to the door and tried to open it. To her surprise andchagrin, it would not budge.
"My Great Aunt!" she whispered. "We're locked in!"
"Maybe the door's just stuck." Louise strode across the room to helpPenny. Both of them tried without success to open it.
"Let's shout and pound!" Louise suggested.
"No, wait! I think we've been locked in here on purpose."
"Oh, Penny!"
"Now don't get nervous. The keeper's no fool. He'll have to let us out."
"But why would he lock us in?"
"Because he's provoked at us for one reason, Lou. Another, something'sgoing on here that he doesn't want us to know about. He and Mrs. Delinemay be having a tete-a-tete in the room above."
"Then let's listen. Maybe we can overhear their conversation."
Penny nodded and fell silent. Though the girls listened for a long while,no sound reached their ears.
"This is a nice situation!" Louise fumed. "I think the door lockeditself. We ought to shout for help."
"Goose, a door doesn't lock itself."
"This one might have a trick catch."
"It was Mr. Jim McCoy who accomplished the trick," Penny said. "Listen!Someone's coming now."
Plainly the girls could hear footsteps on the iron balcony outside thedoor. A moment later they were able to distinguish a murmur of men'svoices. The footsteps moved on and a moment later they heard a door closeoverhead.
"Another visitor!" Penny announced. "Did you hear what was said, Lou?"
"Couldn't make out a word."
"Nor could I. But that voice sounded familiar. I'm sure I've heard itsomewhere."
"I had the same feeling, Penny."
The girls listened intently, hoping to overhear conversation on the floorabove. However, the walls of the lighthouse were so thick that not a wordreached them. Now and then they thought they heard Mrs. Deline's highpitched voice.
"Louise, it's just come to me!" Penny whispered a moment later. "Ibelieve Mr. McCoy's visitor may be George Emory!"
"The voice did sound a little like his. But why would he come here?"
"Maybe we've under-rated George Emory. Why, all this time he may havebeen trying to get information from us."
"He did ask us quite a few questions, particularly about your father."
"And he seemed to know a lot about that outlaw radio station, Lou. Maybehe tried to throw us off the track by suggesting that we watch old JakeSkagway."
"We certainly fell for it, Penny."
"We did, if you assume that George Emory is upstairs having a conferencewith Mrs. Deline and the lighthouse keeper. But we're not sure."
"No, we're not, Penny. One easily can be mistaken in voices."
Determined to hear more, Penny cautiously climbed up on the radio table,so that her head and ear were close to the ceiling.
"Can you make out anything?" Louise whispered.
Penny shook her head in disgust. After a few minutes she dropped lightlydown from the table.
"Walls are too thick," she announced. "I could hear three voices though.Two were men and the other, a woman."
"Then Mrs. Deline must be here. The keeper lied about that part."
Presently the girls heard footsteps again on the iron stairway. Theymoved to the window, hoping to see whomever was descending from the roomabove. However, the little round aperture was so situated that it gave aview of only one side of the Point. They could not see the stairway northe stretch of beach leading to the hotel.
"We're certainly learning a lot!" Louise said crossly. "I've had enoughof this. Let's shout for help."
"All right," Penny agreed. "We may as well find out whether or not we'reprisoners."
Crossing to the heavy oak door, she pounded hard on the panels. Almost atonce the girls heard someone coming.
"Don't let on what we suspect," Penny warned her companion.
The next moment the door swung open to admit the keeper of the light.