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diff --git a/40666-0.txt b/40666-0.txt index 9e32d33..fedc56f 100644 --- a/40666-0.txt +++ b/40666-0.txt @@ -1,34 +1,4 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Missing at Marshlands - Arden Blake Mystery Series #3 - -Author: Cleo Garis - -Release Date: September 5, 2012 [EBook #40666] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40666 *** They were afraid, yet they knew they must go in. (_Frontispiece_) (MISSING AT THE MARSHLANDS) @@ -6366,359 +6336,4 @@ But the chief didn’t. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - -***** This file should be named 40666-0.txt or 40666-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/0/6/6/40666/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Missing at Marshlands - Arden Blake Mystery Series #3 - -Author: Cleo Garis - -Release Date: September 5, 2012 [EBook #40666] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - They were afraid, yet they knew they must go in. - (_Frontispiece_) (MISSING AT THE MARSHLANDS) - - - _The Arden Blake Mystery Series_ - - - - - MISSING AT - MARSHLANDS - - - _By_ - CLEO F. GARIS - - A. L. BURT COMPANY - _Publishers_ - New York Chicago - - - _The Arden Blake Mystery Series_ - - BY CLEO F. GARIS - - The Orchard Secret - Mystery of Jockey Hollow - Missing at Marshlands - - - COPYRIGHT, 1934, BY - A. L. Burt Company - - - Missing At Marshlands - - PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - - - TO MY FRIEND - DOROTHY O'CONNOR - - _Who saw the Czar's snuffbox - and told me its tragic story._ - - - - - Contents - - - CHAPTER PAGE - I A Stalled Car 9 - II A Man, a Dog, and a Girl 19 - III The Russian 29 - IV A Girl and a Bracelet 42 - V The Stranger 50 - VI The Unwelcome Guest 56 - VII A Noise in the Night 65 - VIII Hard to Believe 72 - IX The Snuffbox 78 - X Beauty That Dazzled 85 - XI Still They Come 92 - XII A Friend in the Deep 98 - XIII The Tragic Messenger 105 - XIV Missing at Marshlands 110 - XV Downhearted; Not Discouraged 115 - XVI That Dark Woman 123 - XVII Olga Makes Light of It 130 - XVIII Reilly on the Case 136 - XIX Tania Howls 142 - XX Mrs. Landry Helps 147 - XXI Melissa Has a Pin 157 - XXII The Policewoman 164 - XXIII On the Water Trail 170 - XXIV The Man Arrives 178 - XXV The Man in the Marsh 187 - XXVI Melissa Again 192 - XXVII Terry's Tactics 199 - XXVIII Driven Away 205 - XXIX The Barking of Tania 219 - XXX All Is Well 227 - - - - - CHAPTER I - A Stalled Car - - -A bold morning sun thrust its warm glow into the crowded, cheerful room -at Cedar Ridge, glinting on half-filled suitcases and revealing with a -cruel indifference the dust gathered on the abandoned textbooks flung in -a pile on the window seat. It was a hot sun, for summer was upon the -land, and the school term was at an end. Arden, Terry, and Sim were -packing to go home. - -It had been a year full of interesting activity and some genuine fun, but -it had not been without hard work in the scholastic field. So, happy that -examinations were over at last, and overjoyed that they had passed all -subjects, except for a condition in mathematics for Sim, the three girls -were losing no time in leaving their beloved college behind them and -heading for a summer of rest and hoped-for adventure. - -Sim Westover was sitting on a suitcase that refused to close and bouncing -up and down in an effort to bring the yawning leather jaws together. - -"Oh--Terry--help! I'll never get this old suitcase fastened, and we won't -get down till after dark, and your mother will be worried and----" Sim's -list of worries and trials was ended by Terry, a smiling, sandy-haired -creature, thrusting Sim aside and putting a silk-covered knee on the -offending luggage, which closed obediently under such superior pressure. - -"There, little one, it's shut. Are you all packed now?" Terry Landry -asked, patting Sim maternally on her fair head. - -Sim ducked. "Don't _do_ that!" she wailed. "You act like a maiden aunt." - -"Phew!" A black-haired, blue-eyed girl crawled out from under a bed. "How -did that shoe ever get under there in the first place? I suppose you -threw it at a mouse, Sim. I should have made _you_ crawl after it." Arden -Blake straightened her smart tan-wool dress as she rose from the floor. - -"No," answered Terry before Sim could reply, "you did it yourself three -nights ago, I remember. And, incidentally, I seem to be the only one -ready, even though you two say I'm always late." - -Terry stood surveying the jumbled scene with amused eyes. Her two -roommates at once renewed their activity. Arden thrust the recovered shoe -into a bag with its fellow and announced that she too was finished. Sim, -powdering an uptilted nose, declared that if Arden was ready there was -nothing to wait for, so, opening the door of their room, called the -porter to take their bags. - -Down the long corridor they went, calling "goodbyes" at each open door -and gayly knocking at those closed, as they marched down the hall. - -For the last time that year they descended the five flights of stairs up -which they had so often raced. At the outer door of the building they -cast a quick look behind them, then piled into the waiting car. A -five-passenger touring car, it was, belonging to Arden's father. In it -the three girls were to drive down to Oceanedge, on the coast, where they -would spend a month or two visiting Terry and her mother in a seaside -cottage. Oceanedge was the development name of the resort. Natives called -it Marshlands. - -It was the first time the three girls had been permitted to take such a -long drive alone, and they were anxious to conduct themselves creditably. -Early as the start was, and it was not yet nine o'clock, the girls would -not reach the shore until nearly evening, so they were anxious to get -going. - -Relaxing comfortably against the cool leather upholstery, they soon left -Cedar Ridge behind them. Mile on mile piled up as they drove along the -uncrowded roads leading out of Morrisville. They talked little; thoughts -were too insistent, for leaving school was indeed a big event, and all -seemed completely to realize its importance. - -At noon they stopped at a wayside Tea Shoppe for lunch, and when -fortified by sandwiches and tea and a generous helping of chocolate cake -they continued on their journey, becoming less like students and more -like ordinary girls as they left college farther in the distance. - -The country was now taking on a seashore look, maple trees giving place -to patchy-barked sycamores and stunted, conventional pines, and grassy -meadows fading into sandy wastes and dunes; the road stretching always -before them, a dark ribbon between the yellow hills of sand, pebbles, and -broken shells. - -It was at just such a portion of country that they came upon the stalled -car. - -"Wait, Arden," Sim begged as they approached it, "let's see what the -trouble is. There hasn't been a garage for miles." - -"No, and there won't be another one for miles, either, not until we get -to Oceanedge," Terry announced. "Perhaps we should see if we could help." - -Arden promptly turned in to the side of the road, where they inspected a -rather ancient car, sagging over a flattened tire and looking like -anything but the power to move along. - -"A blowout," Terry remarked laconically. "The owner is probably walking -into town." - -Curiously they looked into the abandoned vehicle when, suddenly, a huge -white and tan dog, apparently aroused from a pleasant sleep, began to -bark ferociously. - -"No one could go near that car with that--that--what is it, Arden?" Sim -questioned. - -"A Russian wolfhound, and a beauty too," Arden replied, pursing her lips -into a crooning little whistle and trying to soothe the animal with -friendly assurance. - -"Look at all the stuff in the back there," Terry called, where, from a -safe distance, she was gazing in at the rear window. "Looks like a lot of -pictures." - -"I guess that's what they are. Well," Arden suggested, "shall we go on? -We'll probably overtake the owner." - -"Might as well," agreed Sim, and Terry nodded as she got back into -Arden's car. - -The dog stopped its barking, and as they drove off they could see it -curled up again on the front seat to finish its interrupted nap; a nose -of silky white and taffy-colored tan. It certainly was a beauty. - -Again the road lay straight before them, without even a tree on either -side to break the monotony. On the right, some distance away, they knew, -the blue inviting ocean lay shining in the sunlight, and on the left -miles of pine woods with a carpet of brown needles. - -They had not much farther to go, Terry told them, pointing out a -wary-looking wooden hand which indicated "Oceanedge, 5 mi." - -"Whoever do you suppose might own the old car?" Arden asked curiously as -they sped along. - -"I don't care whose dog it is, or car, or what's in the back or anything -about it," Sim said firmly. "I'm going to enjoy this summer, and I refuse -to become interested in another mystery. That car looked to me just like -one all ready to sprout." - -"That's just talk, Sim," Terry remarked. "If we meet a handsome stranger, -trudging slowly toward the village, would you say--pass him by?" -challenged Terry. - -"No, of course not," Sim amended. "We could give him a lift, and unless -my eyes deceive me, we are even now approaching the person in question." - -"You're right, little one," Arden announced, "it could be no other. Shall -I pull over?" She had taken her foot off the accelerator, and the car -slowed down. - -Sim and Terry nodded "Yes," vigorously, and Arden drove over to the side -of the road, stopping by the stranger. - -"May we give you a lift?" she asked pleasantly. - -The man looked at her sharply and seemed startled. He took a soft gray -hat from his head politely but still hesitated in answering. - -"Why, I--er--thank you very much," he faltered finally. "My car is back -there. I was unable to get the tool chest open, and, really," he smiled -ruefully, "I have no spare." - -The girls thrilled inwardly. He was so good-looking! A "handsome -stranger" in every respect, with just a suggestion of a foreign accent. - -"We are going to Oceanedge," Arden continued, "but we could drop you at a -garage on our way." - -"Oh, now," protested the man, "that would be too much. I am used to -walking. Besides," he said disarmingly, "your parents would perhaps not -approve." - -"Our parents," Sim flung in, "have faith in us--in our judgment. You -simply must let us take you. It is absurd to walk in this hot sun when we -are going that way." - -He shrugged in complaisance and, dusting off his clothes a bit, climbed -in the back seat, murmuring his thanks. - -"I, too, will be at Oceanedge for the summer," he said as if to break the -embarrassing pause. "I paint. I have rented a houseboat out where I can -be alone and have quiet. I do not need people around me. I have Tania, my -dog, and my paints, and so I am happy." He talked in a jerky fashion, as -though translating from a foreign tongue, as he went on. - -Sim, always the most loquacious of the three, volunteered the information -that they were visiting Terry and her mother, that they were fast -friends, and added, in a little burst of indignation, that of course they -would not bother him or attempt to break up his "quiet." The girls -frowned at her, but Sim was ever high-spirited. - -At Reilly's garage, the only one in the sleepy village, they set him down -after he had thanked them charmingly, and they continued on their way. -They had to go back again to the main road a short distance, for the -house, gayly called "Buckingham Palace" because it was so unlike the -great palace, was on a neck of land reaching out between ocean and bay -and south of the town. - -"Queer fellow, didn't you think, Arden?" Sim questioned, still wondering -about their reluctant passenger. - -"Mysterious would be a better word, I think. Really, I got that -impression of him. Very mysterious, as if he had something to hide." - -"Rather fond of himself, I'd say," Terry flung in. "We won't bother him. -He'll be quite alone on that old houseboat, and I hope the water rats -find his best cheese." - -"He was a little strange," Arden reasoned, ignoring Terry's joke. "Quite -different, I expect, from the usual village Romeo, eh, Terry?" - -"That dog, too, I'd hate to have that animal mad at me," Sim remarked, -pulling a blonde curl into further prominence from under her beret. - -"I can't imagine what a man like that would come to this forsaken place -for," Terry mused. "Heaven knows it's quiet enough, if that's what he -wants, but no scenery for painting. And wait until he sees that -houseboat! It's been tied up in the bay for years," and she sighed -comfortably. "Oh, well, as Sim says, let's not worry about _him_. We'll -probably never see him again." - -"He said he was happy, but he didn't look that way to me," Arden went on. -"I thought he looked rather sad, and we don't even know his name. If that -should ever matter." - -"Arden Blake!" Sim exclaimed, "if you make another mystery out of this -simple incident, after all we've just gone through, I'll never forgive -you! I'm pos-i-tive-ly off mysteries for life." - -"Terry's right. We'll probably never see him again. He would certainly -know how to hide himself and his dog," Arden said slowly, and then, -stepping on the gas, she drove as fast as she dared in the direction of -"Buckingham Palace." - - - - - CHAPTER II - A Man, a Dog, and a Girl - - -With almost startling suddenness, the little house affectionately known -as "Buckingham Palace" popped into view as the car swung round a turn in -the road. - -A white, two-story house, with brilliant orange awnings, that Terry's -father had bought when Oceanedge had promised to become a thriving -seashore resort. But the "plans of men" had gone "agley," and Oceanedge -had never developed beyond Terry's house, the beginnings of a boardwalk, -and a bridge over the small inlet of Bottle Bay. - -Arden kept her hand pressed down on the horn, and amid the noise of the -horn and Terry's shrill whistle with forefingers between her lips, -announced their arrival. - -"Yoo-hoo!" Terry called and once more gave her famous loud whistle. - -It was a feat much admired by the other two, who, although they had -practised faithfully under Terry's instruction, were never able to -produce as much as a single "toot" from carefully pursed lips. - -Terry's mother, a woman still young and pleasant enough to be Terry's -sister, appeared in the doorway and waved a hand. The girls jumped out -and hurried toward her. - -"Oh, Mother!" Terry exclaimed, throwing her arms affectionately around -her proud parent, "it's so good to be here. We made wonderful time and -never a puncture, even." - -"It's good to have you here, too," Terry's mother replied and with a -welcoming smile kissed Arden and Sim. - -"I'm glad you arrived safely, for I think we will get a storm before -night, it has been so sultry today," she went on, and as though to give -credence to her words a low, angry rumbling was heard in the west. - -"But come in and get comfortable. You must be starved. We have only a -cold supper, for we were not sure just when you'd get here. Ida," she -called, "the girls are here, we can begin whenever you're ready." - -"Yes, ma'm, Miz Landry, right away," came from the kitchen while the -girls were on their way upstairs. - -The house was not elaborate. One of those many rubber-stamp houses, four -bedrooms upstairs, maid's room downstairs type, but it was bright and -airy, and to the somewhat weary travelers it represented all that could -be desired. - -They quickly changed from "city clothes" into cooler cotton dresses and -slipped fresh shoes on stockingless feet. They hoped before their visit -was over to have acquired a tan that would defy detection of bare legs -and make true skin stockings look smarter still. - -Downstairs in the dining room Ida had made a noble attempt at a cold -supper. Potato salad, lettuce and sliced tomatoes, cold meat, and -lemonade that made a great hit. They ate hungrily and drank glass after -glass of the cool drink as the air became more dense and the storm more -imminent. - -Rolls of thunder growled nearer now, and the sky was dark and -threatening. Mrs. Landry lit the low-hung chandelier over the table; and -then, all at once, with a deafening clap of thunder, the storm was upon -them. - -"Terry, the windows upstairs!" Mrs. Landry called. "And, Sim and Arden, -see if you can pull up the porch awnings. Ida and I will take care of the -windows here." - -Terry dashed upstairs, and Sim and Arden made for the screen-enclosed -porch. - -A cool, almost cold, wind whipped their hair in their eyes and snapped -the awnings viciously as they hurriedly worked. - -"Isn't it glorious, Sim?" Arden asked, pulling with all her might at an -awning rope. - -"I don't like it," Sim answered and gave a little squeal at a flash of -lightning. - -"Look at the ocean--it's all gray, and just a little while ago it was so -blue. Oh, dear, Sim, let's pull together!" Arden wrapped the rope around -her hand, and they both tugged vigorously. - -The awning went up with a rush, and the girls hurried to the next one. -Upstairs a window slammed as Terry went on with her job. The sky was as -dark as night now, and the lightning flashed with increased brilliance; -sometimes in flaming vastness, then again in piercing arrows. - -Suddenly the rain came. Dashing down in silver sheets, it quickly drove -Arden and Sim inside. Terry came running downstairs, and they all -gathered in the living room, where they could watch the fury of the storm -over the ocean. - -"Are you frightened, girls?" Terry's mother asked, as she saw Sim wince -at a thunderclap. "You mustn't be. The storm will follow the bay right -out to sea. They never last long when it gets as black as this. It's -mostly wind, and it blows out quickly." - -"I love it," Arden replied. "I think it's beautiful. But it makes us seem -so small and...." She hesitated. A new noise could be distinguished above -the roar of the storm. The little group, with one accord, turned to a -side window from whence the sound seemed to come. What they saw made poor -frightened Sim gasp. It was a white peering face, with hair plastered -down by the rain, and a questioning look in the eyes. - -"Terry! Go to the door! Let her in!" Mrs. Landry called, quickly -realizing this was a girl's face. - -Terry sprang to obey. The front door opened; the screen door beyond it -was blown back and slammed against the side of the house. - -"Come in, come in," Terry shouted against the screaming wind. "You'll be -blown away!" - -But the storm-born creature, holding a torn sweater closer around her, -looked sharply at Terry, then turned and dashed away in the dim light and -was almost instantly lost to sight on the winding pathway. - -Terry, drying her face and smoothing her hair, came back to the harbor of -the lighted room. - -"She ran when I called her," she stated simply. "What do you suppose she -wanted, if she didn't want to come in?" - -"It's a queer time just to come for a look around," Sim agreed. "You must -have scared her away, Terry." - -"She's probably a water pixie," Arden remarked, still under the spell of -the majestic storm. "She was most likely never there at all; we just -imagined it." - -"What's that?" Sim asked. "Do I imagine I hear a knock at the door? I'm -sure I heard something." - -They all listened. There was certainly a sound like knocking. - -"She's come back!" Terry declared and once more opened the door. The -storm by this time had abated a bit, although the rain still lashed down -in lordly fury. - -As Terry flung back the door, the girls gasped, for there stood their -"handsome stranger" of the lift-ride, soaked thoroughly, with a -shivering, bedraggled dog huddling close to him. - -"Oh-h-h-h!" faltered Terry in her surprise. "Won't you come in?" she -continued, recovering her composure. - -"I'm afraid I am too wet," answered their strange caller, pushing a damp -strand of hair back from his face. "I am sorry to trouble you----" A -sudden gust of wind fury almost pulled the door from Terry's grasp. - -"Come in, come in," interrupted Terry's mother coming forward. "We don't -mind a little water; and the poor dog!" - -She stooped to pet the cringing animal and then drew back in alarm as a -snarl greeted her. - -"Tania!" called the man in rebuke, and then to Terry's mother he said: -"You must forgive her, she is not used to strangers, but she will not -harm you. Tania," he said again, "these people are friends." It was his -voice, apparently, not his words, the dog understood. - -Arden and Sim had pressed nearer to witness the little drama of the -storm. The man and his white wraith of a dog now stood dripping puddles -of rain water on Mrs. Landry's spotless floor. He looked shyly down at -the widening pools at his feet, smiled, and said: - -"I wonder if you could give me a few matches? I have not been very -practical, for I neglected to buy some. And the old ones I have are all -like this." He held up a soaked cardboard clip-container, soft from the -rain. There was just a hint of a foreign accent as he continued: "I am, -in a way, a neighbor, and, though I fear I am making a great deal of -trouble for you, I cannot light my lamp without matches." He made a -helpless gesture. - -"Neighbor?" questioned Mrs. Landry. "I don't understand." - -"Oh, yes!" Arden exclaimed, recognizing the visitor. "You are the -gentleman we drove into town this afternoon. He lives on the houseboat -down the bay," she quickly whispered to Terry's mother. Then to the -caller: "Will matches be all that you need?" - -"I think so, yes; thank you. But please allow me to introduce myself and -beg pardon for intruding like this. I am Dimitri Uzlov. I have rented the -houseboat for the summer while I do a little painting and sketching. This -is Tania, my faithful dog. She is not as savage as she appears. This -afternoon your daughters were kind enough to----" He looked at Mrs. -Landry and bowed formally. But she interrupted: - -"Only one daughter, Mr. Uzlov," and she indicated Terry by putting a hand -on her shoulder. "My other daughters are not here now. These young ladies -are Terry's guests--her college chums." - -Dimitri Uzlov bowed in acknowledgment. In so doing he turned the hat he -was holding upside down, and water began dripping and splashing from the -curved brim. - -"Oh!" he exclaimed in some confusion. - -"It doesn't matter," said Terry. - -"Thank you. But the young ladies were very kind to me this afternoon. No -doubt they have told you." Another bow to Mrs. Landry. "But I must not -stand here dripping like this. If I could have a few matches for my -lamps----" His slow, ingratiating smile came out again. - -Terry hurried to the kitchen and returned with matches and candles as -well. Mrs. Landry always kept a supply of both in stock, knowing, from -past sad experiences, that the electric current at Marshlands was not -always entirely dependable during severe storms. - -Terry held out the matches, long wooden ones with blue heads, and several -candles. - -"You are very provident," said Mr. Uzlov, smiling once more as he took -them, again bowing and splashing more water from his hat to the floor. "I -must be wise in this same way. I thank you a thousand times! You are so -kind!" - -The rain-soaked visitor turned to go. - -"Won't you wait a little longer," Mrs. Landry asked, "until the storm -lets up a bit?" - -"Thank you, but I must get back. I have stayed away too long already. My -humble houseboat is alone. Come, Tania," he replied and, giving them all -a shy smile, he stepped out on the porch. - -"But you'll catch cold--the rain----" Arden began. - -"It has almost stopped," Dimitri Uzlov smiled. "We must not stay any -longer. I am a solitary person. But thank you." And he was gone, leaving -only the telltale puddles behind him. - -As they watched from the window they could see him walking down the damp -sand in the direction of the houseboat with Tania, the Russian wolfhound, -at his heels, looking thinner than ever because of the way her silk hair -lay matted with the rain. - -Like a character from the "King of the Golden River" he looked, getting -farther and farther away until a sand-dune suddenly cut off their sight -of him. - -Only the footsteps were left, big ones for Dimitri and a series of small -holes where the dainty Tania had followed him. - -"What a strange man!" Mrs. Landry exclaimed. - -"I think he's just awfully shy," Arden said. "I suppose he couldn't bear -to come in with all us women staring at him." - -"Perhaps you're right, my dear," Terry's mother answered and once more -turned to the window. - -A big storm, a wild wraith of a girl, a real hermit, and a majestic -wolfhound! What more could the girls have expected? - - - - - CHAPTER III - The Russian - - -When the storm was over and the late summer sun came out for a brief half -hour before settling down for the night, there was hardly a hint of rain -left. The sandy ground absorbed the water almost as quickly as it fell, -leaving only tiny pock-marks behind. - -The girls opened doors and windows to capture the cool air, and Arden let -the porch awnings down and jumped back just in time to escape a small -cascade as the rain water tumbled free of the canvas pocket. - -Then Arden and Sim, Terry and her mother sat on the comfortably screened -porch and watched night fold her dark-blue wings over everything. - -"Funniest thing the way that 'Tess-of-the-Storm-Country' creature peeked -in at the window and then ran away," Terry observed dreamily. "Who could -she have been?" - -"I suppose she saw Dimitri Uzlov coming up the path and was frightened. -That dog of his certainly looked like nothing human," Sim replied. - -"A case of 'see what the storm blew in,'" Arden chuckled. "But don't you -think he's fascinating? I love his accent." - -Terry's mother gave a little laugh. - -"You youngsters always find something romantic in the most everyday -occurrences, don't you? But you mustn't bother Mr. Uzlov. He seems a -serious young man, and he hinted, quite charmingly, that he would rather -be alone. Well--" she smothered a little yawn--"I'm going to bed. It must -be half-past ten. Good-night, girls." - -"Oh--Mother--" Terry drawled--"as if we'd bother him." - -That was one of the nicest things about Terry's mother. She never -intruded, and any advice she gave was always offered in a way that they -could not possibly object to. But this evening her well-meant plan of -leaving them alone to talk was not needed, for they soon followed her -into the house, and after talking a while in sleepy monosyllables, -without much ceremony fell asleep in comfortable beds. - -The next morning brought a blue-and-gold day with a stiff northwest wind -kicking up whitecaps on Bottle Bay. "Buckingham Palace" stood on a little -neck of land, with the ocean on one side and the bay on the other. - -"Let's take the rowboat and go down the bay a bit," Terry suggested. -"It's too cold for bathing." - -"We could take a look at the houseboat without disturbing the hermit," -Arden remarked. "Maybe----" - -"Exactly what I had in mind," Terry said. "You're positively uncanny, -Arden, the way you read people's minds. We don't need to mention it to -Mother, though." - -It was after breakfast, and the girls were sitting on the bottom step of -the porch, idly watching tiny ants rebuild their houses that had been -washed away in the storm. - -"Let me row, Terry, will you?" Sim asked. "I'm going to start in training -this very day, and when we go back to Cedar Ridge in the fall I'll be the -champion swimmer of the college," she bragged. - -"You can row, all right, I've no desire to raise blisters on my -lily-white palms," Terry answered her, and going to the door of the house -she called: "Mother, we're going for a little row in the bay. The girls -want to take a look around. Yes, we'll be careful. 'Bye!" - -On the bay side an old though seaworthy rowboat was moored, covered with -a canvas which had kept out the rain. They quickly pulled off the cover, -and Terry took the oars from their place. With a few uncertain pushes, -they finally made one strong enough to get started. - -They were wearing shorts with sneakers, and bright handkerchiefs knotted -at their throats; no hats, but Sim had tied a ribbon like Alice in -Wonderland around her head to keep her short curls in place. It was -becoming, too, and perhaps Sim knew that. - -"Now let's see how good you are, Sim," Terry suggested. "Hail the -champion----" - -"I'm not good at all, but I will be. Arden, you get in the -what-do-you-call it--stern--the back, and, Terry, you sit there, too, -then you can watch me and tell where we're going." Sim found a place to -brace her heels and grasping the oars began to back water until they -could turn. - -"Don't just row down there and bump into the houseboat. Pretend we're -going some place else," Arden suggested. "We don't want to appear so -curious." - -"It won't make much difference; the wind is taking us there, anyway. -Oh--ouch!" Sim exclaimed. "I caught my fingers between the oars." She -shook her hands quickly to "throw off" the pain. - -"Well, don't let the oar go, silly!" Terry cautioned quickly. "Oh, Sim, -you lovely chump, there it goes!" - -The oar, as though pulled by the water, slipped out of the oarlock and -floated away entirely unconcerned. - -"Here, give me the other one, I'll paddle," Terry cried, reaching for the -one faithful remaining oar. - -Sim tried to hand it to her and in so doing gave Arden a little bump on -the head. - -"Oh, Sim, you're hitting me," Arden squealed. - -"Sorry!" grunted Sim. - -"Fine bunch of sailors you are. You can't paddle against this wind. Look -where we're going!" Arden was indicating the shore line. The houseboat -was only a few hundred feet away now, in a little cove, down the bay from -Terry's house, the distance being about a half mile. - -"We're going right toward it. What'll we do?" Sim wailed. "We'll hit it -in a minute!" - -"Oh, hush, Sim! We can't help it. Stick out the oar, Terry, so we don't -bump too hard," Arden ordered. - -Terry tried her best, but the oar slipped to one side, and the boat -rammed the houseboat with a little bump that, to the girls, sounded like -a crash. - -Instantly there was a ferocious barking, and the girls could hear a call: -"Tania! Tania!" and then a rush of words uttered in a soothing tone. - -They sat quite still, an embarrassed little group, while their lazy old -craft hugged the side of the houseboat. - -"Sim Westover," Arden hissed, "I could cheerfully duck you, clothes and -all. What will the man think?" - -"But, Arden----" began Sim, and then stopped as she heard footsteps on -the upper deck of the boat near them. - -Dimitri Uzlov had come on deck and was gazing down at them silently. They -looked back, uncertain how to explain their presence. Arden spoke: - -"We're sorry to have disturbed you, but we lost an oar and the boat -drifted over here." - -"I let it slip," Sim added a little nervously. "I'm not very good at -rowing, I'm afraid." She smiled up at him apologetically. - -He still looked down at them, saying nothing, half amused and half angry, -apparently. - -"If you could lend us an oar we could row over and get ours," Terry -suggested. "We'd bring yours right back." - -Suddenly the young man burst out laughing, and they all felt better, so -much better that they joined in the laugh themselves. - -"You are char-r-rming," he chuckled. "Of course you may take my oar; I -will get it for you," and he disappeared from sight as if he had dropped -down a hatchway. - -"See!" Arden whispered gleefully. "Isn't he nice?" - -Then they heard him call: "Can you push down to this end of my castle? My -rowboat is moored here." - -Terry poled the boat in the shallow water, for the houseboat was tied up -at the shore, to the place Dimitri indicated. - -There was a boat similar to theirs fast to the larger craft. Dimitri -handed Terry the oar, smiling. - -"Do you think you can recover your own?" he asked. - -"Oh, yes, easily," replied Terry. "I'll row this time." - -Sim climbed to the stern a little humbly and sat panting while Terry, -with long strokes, pulled toward the deeper water where their oar was -bobbing about in the sunlight. - -"Grab it, Sim," she called when they reached it, "and don't murder anyone -with it!" - -Sim grabbed and recovered the dripping wooden shaft successfully and also -gratefully. - -"Now we'll take his back," Terry went on, and turned their craft toward -the houseboat. - -Tania once more barkingly announced their arrival, and Dimitri appeared -at the signal. - -"Will you come on board and rest for a minute?" he invited hospitably. -"It was unfortunate that you lost your oar." - -"I don't know whether we ought----" began Terry but Arden, seeing his -smiling face take on an embarrassed look, interrupted with: - -"We'd love to, for just a second. I've never been on a houseboat." - -Terry tied their boat up near his, and the three girls went around to the -stern of the houseboat over a little boardwalk and up the rickety stairs -to the deck of the floating old craft. - -There they hesitated. Tania was keeping up a barrage of barking, showing -her fangs and growling at intervals. - -"Please, if you will come with me," Dimitri said. "I will impress on her -that you are my friends." - -They followed him guardedly. "Tania, come here," he ordered sternly. The -big white-and-tan dog stood like a statue. "Come here!" her master -repeated. Tania walked toward him with queenly dignity. - -Dimitri then put his hand on Arden's arm. "These are my friends," he -said; and then to the girls: "I will tell her that in Russian, and she -will be sure to understand. Then if you will each pat her head, you will -be fast friends." He smiled enthusiastically. - -The little ceremony of introduction was carried out, and Tania ceased her -worried barking. The dog put a dainty paw on Arden's white shorts as if -to reassure them all most completely. - -"Such a lovely dog," murmured Sim. - -"And intelligent, too," added Terry. - -"I will have pleasure in showing you my little floating home here, if you -would like to see it," said Mr. Uzlov, smiling his invitation. "It is the -first time I have ever lived on a houseboat. They are rather strange -creatures, is it not so?" Again he smiled. - -"This one is very old," Terry said. "I don't know how many years it has -been here. It belongs to Mr. Reilly, the town chief of police. This is -the first time it's been rented in I don't know how long. I think you -hadn't better try to move it either by sail or an outboard motor," she -warned with a laugh. "I fancy it would leak like a sieve." - -"Doubtless," he agreed, also laughing. "But I shall be safe enough on my -boat. I don't intend to move her, and probably she rests on the muddy -bottom of this bay and marshy land." - -The houseboat was not large. It consisted of a sort of large shed, with -windows, doors, and a flat roof perched on what had once been a scow. -There was a narrow space running all around the house part, between it -and a low rail. There was a small float at one end to which a rowboat was -made fast. From the float a cleated plank gave access to the lower deck -of the boat, if a deck it could be called. There was also a short flight -of rather rickety steps at the stern by which the girls had come aboard. -The houseboat had once been painted green, but little of the original -color remained. - -"Will you follow me?" Dimitri Uzlov requested, opening a sagging door -which led into the rear part of the houseboat. "This is where I do my -work." - -The girls saw that the interior of the craft consisted of really but one -large room, divided by heavy hanging curtains into two apartments. The -one they had entered did the double duty of a sleeping and working space, -for there was a cot in one corner. On a table gleamed a bright brass -samovar with some dishes about it. There was an easel and on a chair near -it brushes in pots, tubes of paint, and a much-smeared palette. The -curtained-off part was the kitchen. - -"I am finishing a marine for a client," the artist said, indicating the -half-finished canvas on the easel. - -Arden and her chums noticed several canvases stacked together near one -wall, and standing beside a window was another easel with a picture on -it. But what the subject of this picture was could not be seen, for it -was covered with a sheet. - -"Oh, how lovely it is here!" Arden exclaimed. "To have a place all your -own to do just as you please in and no need to worry about neighbors -looking in your windows!" - -"At least I am sufficiently isolated here," the Russian agreed. "The -houseboat is hard to come at. I always loved marshlands. That is one -reason I was attracted to this boat, old and shabby as it is." - -"It's wonderful, I think," murmured Sim. - -"But a little lonesome," suggested Terry. - -"I came here for lonesomeness--as one reason," Mr. Uzlov said. - -Arden glanced at the exposed picture showing a stormy ocean with sea -gulls fighting the wind. Dimitri smiled understanding as she said: - -"It is lovely!" - -The artist seemed to be losing some of his reluctance. - -Arden walked over toward the other painting--the one covered with a -sheet. She wondered what it could be. - -"What is this?" she asked, extending a hand as though to lift the -covering. "Is it your masterpiece?" - -Instantly the young man's face clouded. - -"Please--that--do not touch it--please! It is--unfinished. I cannot show -it to you. I am sorry!" - -His first words had been hurried--stiff--exclamatory. The girls at once -sensed a change in his manner. But his last word had been almost -pleading. Even then it seemed as if his friendliness, which had been so -pronounced on the arrival of his visitors, was now as covered as was the -picture. - -Arden drew back as if hurt. - -"I didn't mean to be curious," she faltered. "I'm sorry!" Even her words -sounded empty of meaning. - -Another change came over the face of Dimitri Uzlov. - -"You will be so good as to pardon me for my seeming ill haste," he -murmured. "But that picture--no--it must not be seen--yet." - -Matters were becoming a little strained and awkward, but Terry went into -the breach cleverly by saying: - -"We had better be going. It must be nearly lunch time. Mother will be -expecting us. Thank you for your help, Mr. Uzlov, and for letting us see -your houseboat." - -He did not try to stop them, nor did he express regret at their sudden -departure, but simply said good-bye and then watched them pull away in -the waiting rowboat. - -"Queerest person I ever met," Terry began. "One minute all sunshine and -gladness, and the next, all worked up because Arden asked about his old -picture." - -"I wouldn't have touched it, anyway," Arden replied. "I was just trying -to show a little interest. My goodness! Who would want to live in such a -messy place? No one but the sort they call--artists!" - -"I wonder what the hidden picture was?" Sim asked curiously. "Perhaps -he's a spy, making maps of the coast and inlet." - -"Now who said they refused to get mixed up in another mystery?" Terry -jeered. "Well, let's go home, I'm hungry." - -"So am I, but I would like to know what was on that easel," Sim remarked -as Terry pulled with strong strokes back to "Buckingham Palace." - - - - - CHAPTER IV - A Girl and a Bracelet - - -By afternoon the sun was warmer, and the girls, dressed in bathing suits, -were lying on the caressing sand of the little beach not far from the -house. They had spread their beach coats out beneath them and were -sprawled in favorable attitudes to acquire the all-important tan. At -intervals one of the girls sat up and coated herself liberally with -cocoanut oil. They did not seem to feel exactly like talking, as the sun -made them deliciously lazy. Perhaps they were thinking of their adventure -at school when, as told in the first volume of this series, _The Orchard -Secret_, many surprising things happened. Or they may have been letting -their minds wander to more surprising occurrences, as told in the -_Mystery of Jockey Hollow_. - -Sim, Arden, and Terry had been chums and schoolmates ever since they -first began to acquire knowledge in Vincent Prep, and their friendship -and loyalty continued until the present time, when they were just -finishing their freshman year at Cedar Ridge, the well-known college for -girls at Morrisville. This small city was not very distant from -Pentville, where the three lived. - -As Sim sat up to apply the oil again, she saw a dark object bobbing up -and down far out on the ocean. - -"Look, girls," she cried, "does that look like someone to you, or is it -just a log?" - -"Where?" Arden asked, squinting at the bright water toward which Sim -pointed, and then they were left in no doubt, for the bobbing dark spot -began to swim. With long, sure strokes it came nearer to them, and they -could see the white foam where the thrashing feet churned it up in -perfect timing. - -"Some swimmer," Sim said admiringly. "Wonderful form. I wonder who it -is?" - -"We'll soon see," Arden replied, and Terry nodded in agreement. - -The figure was making rapid time, and as it neared the beach, waited for -just the right minute and then coasted in on a blue-and-white breaker. - -The girls watched while the swimmer crawled a stroke then sprang upright -and shook off water like a happy young animal. - -"Why, it's the girl who looked in at the window last night," Terry -exclaimed. "She can swim, can't she?" - -The girl saw them suddenly and was about to run up the beach and away -when she hesitated. Sim saw an old gray sweater on the sand near them. It -obviously belonged to the swimmer, and she would have to come quite near -them to get it. - -Sim smiled at her as she looked at them in an almost frightened way. - -"You swim beautifully," Sim remarked to relieve the shy girl. "Did you -learn in the ocean?" - -"Yeah," she drawled, stooping for her sweater. "I learned in the ocean." -That was all she said. - -"Do you live here, at Oceanedge?" Arden asked next. - -"Not right here," replied the swimmer. "I live on the other side of the -bay with my father, but I come here to swim." After such a long speech -she again seemed ready to run away. - -"We live up there," Terry volunteered, indicating the house, the roof of -which could be seen above low pines. "We're just here for the summer. Do -you live here all year?" - -"Yes, I'm a native," their new friend went on in a rather bitter tone. "I -live, if you can call it that, with my father. He's a crabber and a worn -crab himself. What's that oil for?" Arden was dabbing a bit on a rather -red arm. - -"To make us tan; want some?" asked Sim kindly. - -The girl gave a little laugh. "My father would tan me if he caught me -using anything like that. He says I'm so homely now, there's no use -making me worse." - -"Oh, but you're a marvelous swimmer. I wish you'd swim with me some day," -said the sympathetic Sim. "What's your name? Mine is Bernice Westover, -but everyone calls me Sim," she finished affably. - -"Melissa Clayton," the girl answered. "That's a pretty thing." She -indicated a brilliantly painted wooden bracelet on Sim's arm, the kind -sponsored by the large department stores as being just the thing for -beach wear because, perhaps, you couldn't forget you had it on. - -"Do you like it? You may have it," Sim replied and slipped it off her -arm. "Here, I've got lots of things like these, and you might like to -have this." - -"Oh, can I really? I'd love it! I've never had a pretty thing like this -in my whole life. My father thinks such things are no good and only give -me wrong ideas. But I'll take care of it always." Melissa took the -bracelet and slipped it on her tanned muscular arm, looking at it -pathetically. - -She wore an old, dark-blue jersey bathing suit, a little too large for -her, and a white canvas belt. She had no bathing cap on, and her wet hair -was beginning to curl a little as it dried in the sun. She looked at the -wooden bracelet as though it were as precious as a diamond circlet, -turning it around and around to admire it. A slow smile spread over her -tanned face. - -"Do you go to school here in the winter, Melissa?" Arden asked. This wild -creature who swam like a sea nymph and smiled at a cheap wooden bracelet -was something different and "terribly interesting," in Arden's opinion. - -"I did go to school, but my father took me out last year when I turned -fourteen; said I'd be getting ideas. So I don't go any more," Melissa -replied, her white teeth gleaming and sparkling in her darkened face. - -"But what do you do all winter when it's cold and there's no crabbing?" -Sim inquired. "We're asking you an awful lot of questions; do you mind?" - -"No, I don't mind. I don't very often get a chance to talk to anybody. Pa -never says a word, hardly," the girl went on. - -Arden, Terry, and Sim watched her sympathetically as she stood first on -one foot then on the other in a nervous way, smoothing out the sand -beneath her feet. They had never met a girl like her, and pitied her at -once when they learned of her lonely life. But, sorry as they were, they -realized that there was something about her that was different, a hint of -a mind not as keenly alert as theirs. She was so slow to respond to their -advances. - -"Why did you run away the other night in the storm?" Terry bravely asked. -"We wanted you to come in." - -"I was afraid. I just wanted to look at you all in the nice bright room, -but when you saw me----" - -"Melissa!" thundered a voice behind them. - -They all started and turned. A shabbily dressed man was standing back of -them on the sand. They had not heard his footsteps. Had he purposely -crept up on Melissa? - -"What are you doing there?" he asked roughly. - -"Nothing, Pa--I was just swimmin'." Melissa seemed to swerve visibly, and -she looked nervously down at the bracelet Sim had given her. - -"What's that you got? Haven't I told you not to take things?" - -"I didn't take it, Pa. She gave it to me. I never even asked." - -"Give it back, right away, and come along home! You've been fooling -around here long enough. Quick, now!" - -Melissa's childish blue eyes pleaded to be allowed to keep the bracelet, -but her father, reading her thought, stepped forward and pulled it from -her arm. - -"Here, miss--I don't allow Melissa to take things," the gruff man -growled. - -"Oh--but it's nothing," faltered Sim. "Please----" - -Clayton ignored her entirely, as he did Arden and Terry. They might not -have been there, for all the attention they were given. Their attempt at -helping Melissa went for naught. - -Melissa pulled the gray sweater on over her still wet bathing suit and, -smiling ruefully, followed her father, who had begun plodding up the -beach. She did not look back but plodded along herself, trying to keep up -with his big steps but, apparently, not intending to walk beside him. - -The girls watched the retreating figures. Clayton was talking earnestly, -now and then flinging out a hand in gesture and turning to shake his fist -at his daughter, watching her closely as he tramped on. - -"What a mean man!" Sim exclaimed, fingering the returned bracelet. "That -poor child must have a rotten time." - -"He certainly was a gruff old fellow," Arden agreed. "But did it strike -you there was anything strange about that girl?" - -"Only that she seemed so awfully scared. Like a kitten or stray dog. And -I imagine she wanted to make friends," Terry replied. - -"I hope that man is kind to her. I hate people to be unhappy," Sim -remarked. "I'd better not begin to pity her, or I won't enjoy myself, and -I so want to do that." She smiled appreciatingly at Terry, and then, -taking the cork from the bottle of cocoanut oil, coated her pink skin -again before starting for another dip. - - - - - CHAPTER V - The Stranger - - -The water was too cold for a long swim, perhaps because of the violent -storm of the night before, and the girls did not stay in long. Sim, who -loved swimming above all other sports, had to come out reluctantly, as -she, too, felt cold. They dried themselves and raced back to the house to -dress. - -It was late afternoon when they were finally dressed and sitting once -more on the porch of "Buckingham Palace." - -"It's lovely here, Terry," Arden remarked looking dreamily at the ocean. - -"I hope you won't get tired of it. As you know by now, there's really -nothing to do. Swimming, rowing, walking, and fishing if you care for it. -But no country clubs. One movie that's better left alone, and a tiny -village," Terry explained at length. - -"Oh, but you're forgetting our Russian friend and the wild girl of the -swamps." - -Sim spoke up. "Not to mention the hard-hearted father and the ferocious -wolfhound _and_ the swimming. Don't you worry, we won't be bored. What I -like best is the complete absence of mystery." This was so pointed, the -remark made a good joke. - -"How about your theory that Dimitri is a spy and that Melissa is a -kidnaped heiress?" Arden asked Sim, who was lazily swaying on the porch -swing. - -"Well, I do think he's queer, and I may be right after all. It's not -natural for a man as young as he is to want to be alone unless he's -hiding something from somebody," Sim insisted. - -"Perhaps he is. But I find Melissa more interesting. Seemed to me that -man she called 'Pa' had hypnotized her. And how mean of him not to let -her keep the bracelet," Terry remarked. "Just plain mean!" - -As if that brought up different theories in each mind, their conversation -dragged. The swim and the row in the morning left them feeling pleasantly -weary and completely satisfied. Healthy fatigue was the real answer. - -Sim moved back and forth in the rustic swing, while Terry and Arden gazed -dreamily out to sea, where the dying sun turned white clouds to pink and -painted the water a deep blue in the miracle of sunset. - -They never even realized that a car was coming rapidly down the road -behind the house, raising billows of sandy dust, until it stopped with -screeching brakes at the back gate of Terry's house. - -"Who's that?" Sim asked, as Sim would. - -"I haven't the least idea, little one," Terry answered. "Unless it's some -more spies or kidnapers." - -"Let's go see," Arden suggested. "May we?" - -But they were saved the trouble, for a woman was striding up the -sand-edged path to the porch. She was dressed in black satin with a huge -silver fox scarf, and glittering earrings showed beneath a small satin -turban. She had dark eyes, and her lips were a scarlet gash. The girls -waited apprehensively. - -"I beg your par-r-don," the woman began. "Have you a houseboat around -here? He calls it--" she fumbled in a handbag and taking out a paper -looked at it closely--"he calls it _Merry Jane_. Can you tell me how to -reach it?" - -"There is a houseboat down the bay, if that's the one you mean," Terry -answered. "It is, I imagine, the only one around here." - -"No other houseboats?" the caller asked, showing white even teeth, pretty -in spite of the carmined lips. - -"No, only this one," Terry told her. "But I didn't know it had a name." - -"Then that must be it, my dear. Can you tell me how to reach it?" - -"You'll have to go back through the village, then along a swampy road to -the edge of the bay. The road is rather bad because of the rain last -night." - -"Through the village? Is there no other way? I did not understand one had -to go through the village," the woman remarked vaguely. - -"Unless you go by boat. I don't know of any other way of getting there," -Terry answered. - -The woman seemed to be considering. She tapped her hand impatiently on -the letter she had taken from her purse, and looked around her as though -trying to get her bearings and to make some decision. - -"But how can I get a boat? It is very important that I get over there. I -don't suppose--I would be glad to pay you--if---- Could you take me over? -Have you a boat?" the dark woman asked abruptly. - -"Yes," answered Terry. "I could take you over, and of course I'd be glad -to do it." - -"Can we go at once?" the woman asked nervously. - -"I guess so," Terry replied. "Tell Mother I'll be right back, will you, -Arden? I won't be long." - -"Of course, Terry. But don't you want----" Arden asked in a meaning, -unfinished way. - -For answer Terry turned aside from their strange caller and winked -understandingly at Arden and Sim. Arden did not press her point further, -but nodded her head and said no more. Both were thinking: "Now for -another adventure!" - -Terry quickly went for the oars and, with the dark flashy woman -following, made for the rowboat. The passenger got in gracefully despite -her extremely high-heeled shoes and sat in the stern while Terry pushed -off. - -"There it is, down there." Terry pointed to the moored boat where Dimitri -lived. - -"That?" her passenger asked incredulously. "That--that _thing_? Dimitri -is an odd one. Fancy him living there!" she sneered openly. - -Terry maintained an embarrassed silence and rowed more vigorously. They -soon reached the side of the houseboat, and at the sound of the oars -Tania appeared on the narrow little deck, barking furiously. - -"Dimitri! Dimitri!" the woman called. "Have you still got that beast? Tie -her up. I'm coming aboard." - -Dimitri, in answer to the call, opened the door and came outside. He -looked almost shocked as he saw Terry and her queer passenger, and for a -minute seemed awe-struck. Then he smiled at Terry, for it was impossible -to be heard above Tania's wild barking. He shrugged his shoulders and -grasping Tania by the collar had literally to pull the huge dog away from -the edge of the boat. - -Terry came closer and grasped the side of the houseboat that the woman -had spoken of as _Merry Jane_. She waited until Dimitri returned without -Tania. He leaned down and, holding the woman by the hand, assisted her to -climb aboard. Then, turning to Terry, smiling queerly, remarked: - -"I don't know whether to thank you, my friend, or----" - -Terry's eyes opened wide in astonishment. - -"Dimitri," the woman said between shut teeth. "What do you mean?" - -"Nothing, nothing. Come inside, Olga," he replied, and nodded to Terry as -he held open the door for his apparently uninvited guest. - -Terry knew at once she had no place in this strange little drama and -prepared to leave. From the houseboat came the sound of a feminine voice -raised in anger. But Terry could not understand the words beyond a -pleading "Dimitri." - -She rowed quickly away, back to safer if not saner surroundings. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - The Unwelcome Guest - - -Terry bent to the oars, pulling hard and taking long strokes with the -blades just missing the water. She could row with quite some skill when -she particularly wanted to, and now she could scarcely wait to get back -to tell Sim and Arden what had happened. - -As she reached the little dock where they tied up their boat, she looked -around and saw Arden and Sim inspecting the flashy green roadster which -the woman "Olga" had left parked near their back door. Terry put her -finger to her lips and whistled shrilly. Arden and Sim at once came -running to meet her. - -"What happened, Terry?--surely something?" Arden asked, climbing into the -boat. Sim followed, and all three settled down to talk on the quiet -water's edge. - -"Yes, lots!" Terry exclaimed. "He was furious when he saw her, and Tania -was wild." - -"Who was furious--what about?" Sim wanted to know. - -"Dimitri, stupid," Terry went on. "When he saw whom I had in the boat I -never saw a man look so mad." - -"What did he do?" Arden asked with great interest and hopeful expectancy. - -"Oh, he was polite enough in a cold way," Terry told them with a show of -relish. "He tied up Tania and said he didn't know whether or not to thank -me. I heard him call her 'Olga.' When I left they were jabbering away as -though they were mad at each other. Talking Russian, I guess," Terry said -rapidly. The sudden appearance of the spectacular woman had given them -more excitement than mere words might explain. - -"Why do you suppose she didn't want to go through the village?" Sim -inquired cannily. - -"It looks to me as if she didn't want to be seen," Arden ventured. - -"She seemed to know the artist pretty well," Terry resumed. "She spoke as -if it was queer that he should live in the houseboat." - -"Let's go back to the house, the mosquitoes are beginning to bite," Sim -said, slapping her stockingless leg. "We can talk better there, anyway. -Our voices might carry over the water." - -They all agreed this was a good plan and scrambled out of the boat. Terry -tied it up and took the oars, and they went back to the porch. - -It was almost dusk now, and the bay was hardly rippled by a land breeze -that carried the annoying little mosquitoes with it. The porch offered -the most comfortable place, screened in and commodiously furnished. Once -there, the girls got ready for a "good talk," and presently Terry's -mother joined them. - -"I wouldn't make too much out of this," she warned. "You girls will -become gossips if you don't be careful," she laughed. - -"But, Mother," Terry insisted, "he was so mad, and Tania was quite wild -with rage. There must be something wrong about it." - -"Tania is a nervous dog, she barks at everyone," Mrs. Landry remarked. - -"She knows us now. I don't think she'd bark at us ever again," Terry -decided rather triumphantly. - -As though to prove this assertion, at that very moment Tania came -bounding up the path. Her beautiful silky fur was coated with mud from -the marsh, and water was dripping from her as the dog pranced along. She -reached the screen door and gave a little "woof," asking to come in. - -Arden got up and opened the door. At once Tania, in high spirits, planted -her muddy feet on Arden's shoulders and licked her face. Arden staggered -backward from the weight of the dog and stumbled over a chair. Tania -could not keep on her own feet, and the two went down with a mighty bump. -In the scramble Tania again playfully licked Arden's face in the most -reassuring if not the most dignified way. - -Terry and Sim were laughing so hard they could do nothing to help, and -Arden rolled over and buried her face in her hands. It was so sudden and -so funny. - -"Tania!" called Mrs. Landry sharply. "Stop it! Come here at once!" - -At the sound of her name, Tania looked up and walked with her usual -dignity to Terry's mother, obediently resting her head in the woman's -lap. Mrs. Landry rubbed the silky ears and gently scolded the dog, while -Arden scrambled to her feet and attempted to brush off the mud. - -"See, Mother," Terry said as she stopped laughing. "I told you she knew -us." - -At that Terry reached out a hand to pet the animal and then exclaimed in -surprise: "Look! Tania has a note under her collar!" - -Quickly Terry pulled it out and began to read. - -"It's from Dimitri," she announced as her chums waited to hear. "He wants -to know if we can go back and get his guest, as his boat has sprung a -leak and he can't use it. Oh, Mother, may we go?" - -"You'll have to, I guess, since you took her over there," said Mrs. -Landry somewhat reluctantly. "But not all of you. With Tania and your -queer lady passenger the boat would be too crowded. Just two of you -should go, I think." - -"Oh, Mother, can't we all go?" Terry begged, reasoning that she, as the -best rower, must necessarily go, and hating to leave one of her chums at -home. - -"No, I think it would be too crowded. I'd worry. Why don't you toss a -coin and decide which one is to go with you?" Mrs. Landry suggested. She -always worked with the girls, never against them. - -Terry dashed into the house and, coming out, cried: "Heads Arden -goes--tails Sim does." She flipped the coin into the air and caught it on -the back of one hand, cleverly, covering it for a moment with her other -hand. Then she announced: "You win, Arden. It's too bad, Sim dear. But -you can take care of Mother, and we'll come back just as soon as we can -and tell you every little thing; won't we, Arden?" - -"Oh, surely!" - -As was natural, perhaps, Terry and Arden were too excited to notice -whether or not Sim minded very much being thus left behind. The two -hurried down to the rowboat with Tania trotting after them. The dog -curled up on the broad stern seat, and Arden sat near her to restrain her -if necessary. But there was no need. Tania seemed very much accustomed to -boats and hardly stirred. - -Terry rowed quickly in the direction of the _Merry Jane_. From her -position Arden could see Dimitri and his somewhat mysterious guest out on -the narrow, railed walk that extended all around the house part of the -boat. The Russian was obviously waiting for those whom he had summoned by -the note on his dog's collar. The woman Olga was talking to him rapidly, -as Terry and Arden could hear. They noticed, as they drew nearer, that -her face seemed paler than before, and her eyes were flaming. Dimitri -looked quizzically at the approaching boat, and when they pulled -alongside he quickly grasped Tania by the collar. The dog was -transformed, suddenly, from the dignified white animal who had sat so -quietly in the boat, to a raging, snarling beast. Dimitri hustled her on -the houseboat and made her secure somewhere inside. He reappeared almost -at once and said to Terry and Arden: - -"It is most kind of you to do this. I do not like to be such a nuisance, -but I promise you it shall not happen again." The girls thought he seemed -too cross even to talk to them. - -He motioned to Olga, who jumped lightly into the boat. - -"Good-bye, Dimitri," she said clearly. "You have won this time, but it is -not the end, by any means." - -"_Au'voir_, then, Olga, till we meet again. I hope it will not be--too -soon," he said, totally ignoring all politeness and smiling, the girls -thought, bitterly. - -"Thank you, comrade," he said to Terry. "Will you take her back now? She -is driving to New York tonight." - -Though he spoke to Terry, his remark almost seemed like an order to the -dark woman, an order delivered in such a tone that it would seem -foolhardy to overlook it. So Terry nodded her sandy head, and Arden said, -"Good-bye," almost inaudibly. Then they started back once more to Terry's -landing. - -When they were out of earshot the woman apparently regained some of her -composure; at least, she did not seem so angry. - -"You know Dimitri, then?" she asked in an attempt to be pleasant. - -"We gave him some candles one night, and he lent us an oar once," Arden -answered. "We don't see him very often." - -"No, and you won't," the woman added. "He is a queer one. Did he ever -show you any of his things? Any jewels, maybe?" - -"Only some pictures. Why?" Arden asked frankly. - -"I just wondered. Of course, he is very fond of his pictures and that dog -of his," she went on. "The largest picture. Did you see it?" - -Arden shook her head. - -"Oh, well," Olga shrugged her shoulders and adjusted her silver fox -scarf. "He won't bother you again, I'm sure," and she smiled to herself. - -They reached "Buckingham Palace," and Olga stepped out. With a -perfunctory "thank you" she hurried to her car. There was Melissa Clayton -gazing at it in raptures. Running her fingers over the shining fenders -and pushing the upholstery to test its softness, Melissa was enchanted. - -As Terry and Arden watched, they could see Olga speak to Melissa. The -girl answered, her face wreathed in smiles. Then, as Olga spoke again, -Melissa hurried around to the side away from the steering wheel and got -in the car, shutting the door after her. - -Olga, settling herself, started the motor, reversed the car on the narrow -sandy road, and turned back the way she had come, with Melissa beside -her. - -For a moment the girls were speechless. - -Melissa going off in the strange woman's car! - - - - - CHAPTER VII - A Noise in the Night - - -"Well, what do you think of that?" Terry exclaimed as Arden and she, -still in the boat at the little dock, watched Melissa get into Olga's car -and drive away. - -"Suppose she kidnaps little Melissa?" Arden facetiously suggested. "We -must tell Sim. I wonder where she is." - -"Sim! We're back!" Terry called. "Where are you?" - -"Here," Sim answered from inside the house. "I was writing a letter. Come -on up to my room and tell me all about it." - -Arden and Terry, each carrying an oar, almost ran from the dock to the -house, and Sim, who could not wait for them to come up to her room, met -them at the door. - -"Tell me all about it! I'm sure something exciting happened. I can tell -by your faces," Sim exclaimed quickly. - -"First, we'll tell you about the lovers' quarrel," Terry joked. "And if -_they_ are lovers----" - -"They are not," flatly declared Arden. "More like partners in crime----" - -"Hey, there!" warned Sim, "no crime in this. Go ahead, children. What -happened?" - -"Well, he was mad as hops when we got there," began Terry. - -"And she was, too," Arden added. - -"He practically said he hoped he'd never see her again," Terry resumed. - -"She was positively _livid_ when she got in the boat, and then she calmed -down and tried to be nice to us," Arden took up the tale. - -"He called me 'comrade.' Wasn't that sweet?" Terry wanted to know. - -"I can't figure it out at all," Sim confessed. "And from the window I saw -Melissa Clayton get in the gay car--imagine that! Melissa's been hanging -around here all the time you were away. She walked around the house once, -and then I saw her peek in the kitchen window." - -"What can she want, I wonder?" Arden mused. "She's a peculiar girl. Hope -she isn't in any trouble with that sour old dad of hers." - -"Looks to me as though we've dropped right into the middle of another -mystery," Terry announced, nodding her head wisely. "Maybe there are -always mysteries, but only _wise girls_ really discover them." - -"Oh, Terry!" Sim exclaimed woefully. "I did so want to be lazy this -summer. Mysteries are terribly wearing." - -"Well, you can be as lazy as you want to be, but for my part I'm in this -mystery up to my ears already, and I find it thrilling," Terry announced -firmly. - -Dinner that night was a somewhat hectic meal, for no one had a chance to -finish a sentence about the mysterious Olga and the departure of Melissa -before someone else would break in with the announcement of a new theory. - -Ida, the maid, did her serving wide-eyed with amazement. She was not a -girl to be easily frightened, but she possessed a great deal of natural -curiosity. Despite Mrs. Landry's efforts to shift the conversation into -other channels, the names Dimitri, Olga, and Melissa popped up -constantly. - -Eventually the little house was quiet, with its occupants settled down -for the night. Sim and Arden in one room and Terry alone in her own. - -Sim and Arden literally talked themselves to sleep, but Terry lay awake -for a long time listening to the lap of the waves on the shore and the -chirp of the crickets and grasshoppers in the sedges. - -It seemed as if Terry had just gone to sleep when she was awakened by a -sound somewhere in the house. She listened. It was a barely perceptible -squeak, as if a window were being pushed up very gently. She started, -then sat upright. Yes, there it was again. Then, without waiting for robe -or slippers, she jumped out of bed and ran down the short hall to Sim and -Arden. - -"Arden! Sim!" she called. "Wake up!" - -"H-m-m?" grunted Sim sleepily. - -"Someone's trying to get in!" Terry whispered hoarsely. - -Arden was awake instantly. "Where, Terry?" she murmured. - -"Downstairs, I guess. Sh-h-h! Listen!" Terry put a warning finger to her -lips. - -Sim was sitting up now, and the three girls were as quiet as statues in -the eerie moonlight streaming in the open window. - -"There it is again! Did you hear it? Just a tiny squeak," Terry asked. - -"It seems to be coming from the dining room. Had we better call your -mother?" Arden asked in a low voice. - -They listened again, with hearts pounding and eyes questioning. What -could it be? Or rather who could it be? Down at Oceanedge it was -customary not to lock doors, and windows were usually left wide open. But -Mrs. Landry, being city-bred, could never get out of the habit of locking -up for the night. Whoever it was, seemed deliberately trying to force up -a window, and it sounded as if the hands were slipping on the glass. - -"Can you light the downstairs lights from up here, Terry?" asked Arden. -"Don't you think it would be a good idea to show them we're awake?" - -"Yes, of course, Arden," Terry quickly replied. "I should have thought of -that before. I'll turn on the hall lights downstairs and give them an -alarm!" - -She slipped softly out into the hall and pushed a button. With a little -snap the lights flashed on. Then silently the alarmists waited with -apprehension. What should the next move be? - -The sound was not heard again, and the girls in Sim's room breathed a -little easier. - -"Do you think--they're gone?" Sim whispered. - -"I don't hear anything; do you?" Arden asked. - -"S-sh-h-h!" Terry hissed, and she went to the window. - -The scene below was flooded with moonlight. The sandy stretch, so clear -and unbroken, could not possibly hide a marauder. Terry was hoping to see -the intruder make a dash for the safety of the garage shadow. - -"Look!" she whispered to the girls. "It's a woman!" - -Arden and Sim dashed to the window just in time to witness the flight of -someone, who, they did not know, in the bright moonlight. The figure was -oddly distorted both by the light and the height from which they were -looking. - -"Who?" Arden asked cryptically. - -Terry shrugged in reply. The figure ran swiftly and was almost instantly -lost to sight in the shadow of the garage. - -"There's nothing we can do now," Terry remarked. "And there's no use -waking Mother. She'd only worry." - -"Perhaps we had better tell Chief Reilly in the morning," Arden -suggested. "Isn't it something new, having burglars around here?" - -"I never heard of one before. I didn't think they ever came down here," -Terry remarked. They were still looking out toward the garage. - -"But this could hardly have been an ordinary prowler," Sim reminded them. -"We may as well go back to bed. She surely won't come back, whoever she -was." - -"I'll leave the lights on downstairs. We must try to get some sleep," -Terry said, her stifled yawn entirely agreeing. - -"Want to come in here?" invited Arden to Terry, who roomed alone. - -"Oh--I don't know. I'm not afraid," Terry answered a little ruefully. -"But since you suggested it, yes, I guess I will. Move over, Sim." - -After all, three girls might be better than one for almost any midnight -alarm. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - Hard to Believe - - -Smiling to herself in the darkness, Sim pushed over in the twin bed so -that Terry could get in. Even at that, neither one would have very much -space, and Sim was amused to think that Terry, the trenchant, should feel -like spending the rest of the night with her rather than alone in her own -bed. - -"I'll see that Rufus Reilly hears about this," remarked Terry, burrowing -under the covers. "The idea of disturbing honest peace-loving people in -the middle of the night! What Oceanedge is coming to, I don't know." - -"Who's Rufus Reilly?" asked Arden. - -"He's the police force," Terry replied. "He owns the only garage in the -village and Dimitri's houseboat too." - -"Quite a factor in the life of the community, isn't he?" Sim murmured -sleepily. - -"Don't make fun of him, Sim," Terry rebuked. "He's a very important man. -He says so himself." - -"Well, I'm going to sleep," Arden declared, yawning freely. "I want to -look my best when I meet the chief." - -The conversation dragged, and feeling secure in the knowledge that the -midnight intruder had gone, the girls finally drifted off to sleep. - -The next morning, after breakfast, and with Mrs. Landry's consent, they -started for the village to report to Chief Reilly. - -Leaving by the front door, they were on their way to the garage at the -back when they came face to face with George Clayton, Melissa's father. - -"Good-morning," he said a little sheepishly. Perhaps he was conscious of -his somewhat fishy-scented clothes and muddy hip boots. - -"'Morning," Terry replied, and waited for him to speak again. All the -girls felt rather antagonistic toward him, since they had witnessed his -treatment of Melissa. - -"I wuz wonderin'," he began again, "that is--have you young ladies seen -anythin' of my daughter Melissa?" - -"Why, no. Not since early last evening," Arden replied. "Why?" - -"I wuz a little worried about her. She ain't been home all night, and I -thought maybe----" - -"The last time we saw her, she was riding in a green car that some woman -who came to see the artist on the houseboat parked here," Sim -volunteered. - -George Clayton blinked his eyes rapidly and seemed at a loss for anything -to say to that surprising news. - -"U-hum-m!" He shook his head. "Melissa ain't entirely responsible, you -know. She's overly fond of bright things. Like a blue jay. She just can't -resist 'em." - -"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Arden. "I do hope nothing happened to her." - -"We were just going to the village to tell Rufus Reilly about a burglar -we had around here last night," Terry explained. "Shall we tell him to -look for Melissa?" - -"Oh, no, miss, please!" Clayton exclaimed. "He knows all about Melissa. -Thinks I ought to send her to some institution. But I can't bear--to do -that," he concluded rather pathetically. - -"Why didn't you let her keep the bracelet the other day?" Sim asked -suddenly. "It was only worth a quarter. Perhaps she ran away because -you----" - -"I know, miss," Clayton interrupted, "she possibly told you how mean I -was to her. But if I let her keep it she'd follow you around all the -time, looking for something else." After all, perhaps the man was not so -mean as they had thought. - -"Say!" exclaimed Terry suddenly. "Maybe that was Melissa we heard last -night, coming back for the bracelet!" - -"It did look like her, I mean her height and all," agreed Sim. "I'm sure -that's just who it was." - -"She might have done it," the fisherman admitted reluctantly. "You won't -tell Reilly, will you?" - -"If you can keep her away from here so she won't scare us out of our wits -again, we won't," Terry agreed. For the girls still believed in their -hearts that Melissa was to be pitied and, though he said not, they felt -that her father was a hard man to deal with. - -"When she comes back I'll----" Clayton began but never finished, for -there was Melissa herself walking toward them along the little path. Her -pale pink cotton dress was a mass of wrinkles, and her hair in uncouth -disarray. One white string of her sneakers flapped as she walked. - -Instantly her father was a changed man. As soon as he saw her he drew -himself up to his full height and assumed an aggressive manner. - -"Melissa!" he shouted. "Come here!" - -"Yes, Pa," she answered meekly and came slowly forward with one arm held -up near her face as though to ward off a blow. - -"Where wuz you last night?" he demanded. - -"Here, Pa. I slept in the car in the garage," came the surprising reply. - -"Why didn't you come home?" he shouted at her. - -"I was afraid to. The lady took me for such a nice ride, it was late when -I got back." Poor Melissa, thought the girls. - -"What lady?" snarled her father. - -"I dunno her name. The pretty one with the nice fur. She asked me if I'd -like a ride, so I said yes. She gave me a quarter, too." Melissa held out -her tanned hand and showed them the money. - -"Don't you know any better than to go riding off with strangers?" her -father shouted. "And scarin' these young ladies, who was so nice to you, -out of their wits? Wuz you around this house last night?" - -"I was just lookin' in a window. I didn't mean any harm." How cruel for a -poor girl to be helpless! - -"Well, you come along home with me." - -Melissa looked woefully at the surprised girls and started off to follow -her father, who went clumping down the path in his hip boots. - -"Mr. Clayton," called Arden after him. "Please don't punish Melissa; she -didn't do any harm." - -"I'll take care of Melissa," he answered shortly, completely forgetting -how anxious he had been only a short time before to appear the worried -father. - -"If you touch her I'll, I'll----" Arden said, but he continued on his -way, not even listening to her. - -"What a horrid old man!" Terry remarked anxiously. "First he shows his -concern and then----" - -"His teeth," finished Sim. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - The Snuffbox - - -Several days after their rather unpleasant meeting with Melissa's father, -George Clayton, the three girls were "soaking up the sun" on the beach. -Of course, as it developed, there was nothing to report to Chief Reilly. -They were quite sure that Melissa had been their erstwhile burglar. More -than ever the girls felt Melissa needed a friend. They talked over the -situation, trying to piece together the girl's story and her father's -denial of that part which blamed him. But whether he was entirely fair -and just, trying to protect his daughter, or whether his allusions to her -"being queer" were merely a pretext to excuse himself, not even Arden the -wise ventured to decide. But in the end the opinion was unanimous that -Melissa needed friends, and they each and all resolved to do all they -could to befriend the strange, wild creature. - -But finally the delightfully warm air, the friendly sun, and the inviting -ocean drove all such serious thoughts from their minds. What could be -more perfect than such a day in such a place for such girls! - -Sim was almost asleep, while Arden and Terry were blissfully drowsy. They -were turning a golden tan, most becoming to all save Terry, who, as she -herself declared, was "raising a fine crop of freckles." - -Arden rolled over on her back and then sat bolt upright in surprise. Far -out of the corner of her eye she could see Dimitri Uzlov in bathing togs -coming toward them. - -"Wake up, kids," she hissed in a stage whisper. "Here comes our hero, and -he's tramping right this way. Don't look now! He'll know I told you." - -Of course they did look, even though Arden had warned them not to. But -the oncoming "hero" didn't seem to mind. In fact, he smiled pleasantly -and deliberately sat down on the sand by Arden. - -"Hello," said Arden casually, while Terry and Sim smiled vacuously. - -"Hello," he answered. "It was awfully kind of you to bring my--" he -began--"I want to thank you for rowing over to the houseboat and back -with my---- That is, I hope it did not trouble you too much," he -stammered. - -He was clearly embarrassed and not at all sure how to proceed. - -Arden realized at once that Dimitri was attempting to explain and for -some reason apologize for the visit of the mysterious Olga. - -"Not at all," Arden replied reassuringly. "We didn't mind a bit." - -"I did not expect her. I was quite surprised. I do not think she will -come again." - -In his embarrassment his accent was becoming more pronounced, and Sim and -Terry shot a sly glance of delight at each other. - -"Please don't let that little thing worry you," Arden hastened to add. -"It was nothing at all." - -"You are very kind," Dimitri smiled. "I would like to ask you all, and -your mother," he nodded to Terry, "to take tea with me on the houseboat. -Perhaps it would amuse you to have tea in the Russian manner. Yes?" - -"We'd love it," Terry replied quickly, "and I know Mother would, too." - -"Would I be giving you too short notice to ask you today? I am letting up -a bit in my work, and tomorrow I must begin again with new vigor," the -young man stated simply. - -"I'm sure it will be all right," Terry answered. "We don't have many -dates down here, and if Mother can come, we'll all be over this -afternoon." - -"That will be charming," Dimitri said. "I will expect you. And now I must -go home and bathe Tania so she will look her best at my little party." - -He rose and bowed, quite as dignified as if he had been fully dressed -instead of merely wearing the informal bathing suit; then he left them -smiling after him. - -"What a surprise!" gasped Sim. - -"What a lark!" insisted Arden. - -"What fun!" squealed Terry. - -"He's so young and good-looking to have such an ugly old name," went on -Arden, as if anxious to reconstruct the "hero" into somebody more -American. - -"Adds to the glamour," drawled Terry with assumed sophistication. "I -always did adore those foreign names." - -"Too, too divine," mocked Sim. - -"Hey, there!" exclaimed Terry. "We have got to go right now and tell -Mother. He said this afternoon." - -"Not yet," Arden rebuked. "Wait until he gets out of sight. He'll think -we've never been asked any place before if we act so--grabby." - -Impatiently they sat and waited until Dimitri had gone behind the small -pavilion; then they scrambled up and hurried to tell Terry's mother. - -She was much amused at their exuberance and laughed at the serious way -they had of deciding what they would wear. A simple tea on a houseboat -and all this to-do! - -Eventually the hour rolled around, and they set out in high spirits, -Terry puffing as much with excitement as with effort as she rowed the -boatful down the bay. - -Once on the houseboat they were somewhat ill at ease. But Dimitri was a -perfect host and with Old World courtesy succeeded in making them feel, -as Arden said later, "like the visiting Czarina and her daughters." - -Tania was beautifully white and fluffy, greeting them all with a friendly -"woof" and briskly wagging tail. - -"Oh, a samovar!" exclaimed Arden as she sighted the polished brass urn -with a dull glowing charcoal fire underneath. - -"It is only to boil the water. I could have done it on the oil stove, but -I thought you would like it this way," Dimitri said, smiling. - -"We are enjoying it," Terry assured him. "Won't you show Mother some of -your pictures?" she cautiously interposed. - -"They are really not worth looking at," he replied modestly. And he -seemed sincere about it, too. - -"Of course they are," Arden interrupted. "They're lovely." - -Dimitri pulled one canvas out from a pile leaning against the wall. It -was a marine, done in dark and light blues, a fair sea and a clear sky. -The girls looked at it politely but hoped he would show them the covered -canvas, and in fact Arden stood near it, waiting. Dimitri noticed her and -gazed at her keenly for a second, as though understanding her wish. - -"Now, I will show you something really lovely," he said. "Because I am -proud of it and because it is a thing of so much beauty. I do not show it -to everyone; few people know I have it, and I ask you, please, not to -mention to anyone that I have it in my possession. Pardon me a minute, -please." - -He pushed aside a curtain that divided the room into two parts and -disappeared behind the improvised screen. They could hear him moving -something like a heavy piece of furniture, and then they heard the squeak -of a key in a lock. They looked wonderingly at each other, but no one -spoke. What could he be going to show them? Why all the mystery? - -He came back almost at once, holding something in his hands as though it -were too precious to be exposed to the air. Silently they gathered around -him, and cautiously, almost solemnly, he opened his hands! - -Then they beheld the treasure! - -There, shining dully on his carefully outstretched palm, they beheld a -box, a tiny snuffbox of burnished gold! - -"Oh!" came a chorus. But no other word was spoken. - -Somehow this all seemed like some sacred rite to their still bewildered -eyes which could now discern jewels, even diamonds, surrounding the box. - -It was about four inches long and an inch deep, with a delicately painted -medallion top, the medallion framed by precious stones: diamonds and -rubies! - -Dimitri was watching them intently, his own eyes glittering with the -beauty of his valued possession. - -Terry's mother took a step nearer. Even she had fallen under the spell of -this strange treasure. - - - - - CHAPTER X - Beauty That Dazzled - - -"How perfectly beautiful!" exclaimed Arden. "What is it?" - -"It is a snuffbox that once belonged to the Russian Czar. It is of great -value. A fortune almost." He held it so they could all see it. "Now -watch." - -With his thumb he pushed down a section of the golden side. This -uncovered a small compartment in which rested a little key. He took out -the key and turned the box upside down. Then they saw that the under side -was as elaborately designed as the top. Daintily painted miniature -woodland scenes with birds and a bounding deer. He inserted the key in a -tiny hole and gave it a few turns, then very carefully placed the box on -a near-by table. - -The beautiful medallion in the center of the box showed a brightly -plumaged bird on a tropical tree, and around the medallion, like a frame, -was a row of marvelous diamonds and rubies. The box suddenly opened, as -the group watched, and a tiny bird, not much over a half inch in height, -sprang up, turned his little head from side to side, and moved his wee -feathered wings up and down magically. As they waited, awe-struck, the -tinkle of a song was heard, and it seemed as though the little feathered -creature was actually singing. Then in a flash the fairy songster ceased -his song, folded up his wings, and the medallion snapped shut, leaving -the golden and bejeweled box as the cage of the little wizard. - -"Oh!" gasped Arden, the first to speak. "It is so lovely it almost makes -me feel like crying," she stammered. "Could you make him do it again?" - -"Of course," Dimitri replied. "Did you see this little watch in the side -and the real feathers on the little bird?" - -"I have never seen anything like it!" exclaimed Mrs. Landry. "It must be -worth a fortune." - -"It is," solemnly answered Dimitri. "It is the only really valuable -possession I have left except----" He turned aside without finishing the -sentence. Again he wound the spring, and once more the remarkable -performance was repeated. The artist let them each examine the treasure, -and at last taking it from Arden he looked at it fondly and very -deliberately carried it back to its hiding place. When he returned he -remarked: - -"I could not bear to lose it, and perhaps it is childish of me to keep it -with me instead of in some deep bank vault, but it belonged to my mother, -and I like to have it near me to look at when I become discouraged." - -The girls were still spellbound, while Mrs. Landry assured him that it -was the natural thing to do and hoped it would be quite safe in his -affectionate keeping. - -"I have hidden it well, I hope, and I need not tell you why I have -trusted you all." - -There was something so pathetically frank about the artist's proud -display of his treasure that even the girls, who had joked and speculated -upon the mysterious man, were now profoundly impressed. - -"We will never violate your confidence." Mrs. Landry spoke for the group, -but even that polite assurance seemed unnecessary. - -Somehow the artist knew he could trust them; and he had! - -"And now, will you try some tea, Russian style?" - -The girls agreed all at once and wanted to help, but he waved them aside -and served them quite as though he were accustomed to having four guests -every day in the week on this wobbly old houseboat. - -They sat, sipping from glasses the clear amber liquid though Dimitri, as -a concession to their American tastes, offered them cream as well as -sliced lemon. He sweetened his own clear tea liberally. - -The houseboat, for all the masculine untidiness, was a bright pleasant -place, and the little party chatted like old friends until Mrs. Landry -announced they must go. - -"We must not wear out our welcome, you know," she said lightly, "and -perhaps you will come and have dinner with us some time, Mr. Uzlov." - -"Thank you, I would be pleased to," he suavely answered. - -Then, saying good-bye, they left, a smiling, happy foursome, and started -away in the old rowboat over to the Landry landing. - -As Terry pushed out in the boat they heard a light step, surely a girl's -step, and a few seconds later they saw Melissa rowing quickly away from -the side of the houseboat. - -"There's Melissa," Sim exclaimed needlessly, for they had all seen her. -"No need to worry about her comings and goings." - -"She's always around from one place to another. I suppose she doesn't -know what to do with herself all day," Terry answered between strokes, -taking it all very casually. - -"Where is her home, Terry? Is it near here?" Arden asked. - -"Not very. It's clear across the bay; two or three miles, anyway, isn't -it, Mother?" - -"Every bit of that," Mrs. Landry replied. "Poor creature! She doesn't -lead a very happy life. I hope you girls will be kind to her if you can." - -"Of course we will, Mrs. Landry," Sim assured her, and then in another -mood she asked, "Wasn't that a knockout snuffbox? Imagine keeping nasty -old snuff in it." - -"Dimitri doesn't keep _anything_ in it. He loves it because it's so -beautiful," Arden announced. "There's a true artist for you." She was -very much in earnest. - -"You like him a little, don't you, Arden?" Terry asked whimsically. - -"Don't be silly, Terry! You like him, too," Arden snapped back. - -"We all do, even Mrs. Landry, don't you?" Sim wanted to know, joining in -the complimentary chorus. - -Terry's mother smiled and nodded. - -"Well, I think it's strange, just the same," Arden said almost to -herself, "very strange." - -"What, the box?" Sim inquired. - -"No; but I mean the way he spoke about Olga, and the way he keeps that -picture covered," Arden answered. "And a lot of things not really--well, -not exactly wordy things but _queer_ things," she wound up vaguely. - -"Melissa is odd too. Why do you suppose Olga took her riding and gave her -money?" Terry asked, adding more interest to the mystifying questions. - -"I can't imagine. It's strange the way she always pops up," Arden added. -"I mean Melissa, not Olga." - -"I don't like her father, either," Terry went on. "He's the meanest man I -ever saw, and I don't believe a word he says!" - -"Now, Terry," Mrs. Landry rebuked, "you know nothing about him. He's just -not like the city people we're used to, and you probably misjudge him." - -"But he seems so cruel and crafty. I wonder if he punished Melissa for -staying away the other night? The night she stayed in the garage." - -"Oh, he couldn't!" Arden exclaimed. "I'll ask Melissa the next time I see -her. I wonder where she went just now? I don't see her boat anywhere. She -seems to have disappeared all of a sudden." - -"Playing hide and seek with us, maybe," Terry suggested. "Hope we don't -catch any of this queer business," she finished, easing a little to look -at her burning hand. - -"I think this whole place is queer," Sim said, looking over the -untroubled bay. "I don't like that Olga, nor George Clayton, either, and -I'm sure he's up to some shady business--not to say dark and dangerous." - -"Now, Sim," Mrs. Landry said gently, "you mustn't make a mystery out of -everything. He's probably just an ordinary crabber and fisherman with a -difficult daughter to look out for, and in these wild places girls cannot -be allowed to run wild, you know." - -They were almost home, and everyone seemed willing to think a little and -stop talking. "Buckingham Palace" stood out with reassuring friendliness -against the late afternoon sky and looked decidedly more inviting than -the moldy houseboat. - -"You may be right, Mother," Terry said, pulling the oars gently as they -drifted up to their little dock. "But there's something going on, I'm -sure. Something we don't know anything about--yet," she ended -significantly. - -And no one there was to say "nay" to that possibility. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - Still They Come - - -The girls did not really enjoy the tea as it had been served on the -_Merry Jane_. Not that the tea wasn't good; it must have been, for -Russian tea is famous. But it tasted that way, they thought--"famous." -Home-made tea was much more congenial. Consequently, at home again, the -tea given them at "Buckingham Palace" when supper was served was even -more appreciated than usual. - -"Maybe that water from the samovar----" began Terry. - -"No, those old brass urns are lined with--well, I think it's tin or -lead," Arden informed them. "Grandfather had one; bought it from a man -who used to work for Tolstoi. It had the stamp from what this man called -the president's factory, which meant, I believe, it was made in a sort of -royal shop," Arden concluded. - -"Why, what a lot you know," teased Sim. "Why didn't you tell the artist? -He might trace some relationship----" - -"Oh, say!" interrupted Terry. "You and your old samovar! What about the -jeweled box? Don't you feel guilty to have seen a thing--so--well, so -precious?" - -This brought on a discussion so animated and so filled with questions and -exclamations that the beauty of the snuffbox must have been greatly -enhanced by so much young enthusiasm. - -Afterwards they were sitting, as had become their custom, on the screened -porch. The first one out always claimed the comfortable swing. Next in -favor came two large, low wicker chairs covered with bright striped -linen. Tonight Terry was in the swing and Arden and Sim curled up in -chairs. - -They must have been talking very loudly or else have been asleep, they -facetiously decided later. How else could they explain the fact that a -car had driven right up to the back door and they had not heard it? - -In fact they all jumped with surprise when Arden called their attention -to a young man, coming up the sandy path. - -"Sit up, girls, here comes another visitor," she exclaimed. "What now, I -wonder?" - -The young man hesitated as he reached the screen door. - -"Good-evening," said Arden pleasantly. - -"Good-evening," responded the caller. "I hope I have not disturbed you, -but I wonder if you could tell me how to reach a houseboat? I understand -it is somewhere near here." - -"Oh, you mean _Merry Jane_," Sim piped up brightly. "Lots of people ask -us that. That is, you're the second one who has inquired," she replied, -feeling a little foolish at being so friendly. - -He smiled amicably and said he hoped they had not been bothered in that -way. - -"We didn't mind," Terry chimed in. "We don't have much to do here, -anyway." The girls really were being silly. - -"It's down the bay, but you can't reach it by car. The road is too soft -this time of year," Arden said helpfully, the first one really to answer -his question. - -"Is one obliged to walk, then?" the man asked. His wording was foreign -and a slight accent made it seem more so. - -"No; walking would be dangerous, too," Arden explained. "The only way is -by boat." She waited to see what effect this announcement would have, but -Sim spoiled it. - -"We have a rowboat you could use. We could take you," she announced, -still pursuing the rôle of the very young. - -"But couldn't I take myself? That is, with your permission and if you -wouldn't be using the boat?" He looked questioningly at them. - -"I guess we won't be going out again tonight," Terry remarked. "You'll be -careful not to lose the oars, won't you? I'll show you where we keep the -boat." - -Terry, followed by Arden and Sim, led the way to the dock, stopping to -pick up the oars as they went. - -"Let me take them, please," the caller protested. Terry handed him the -oars. - -They wanted very much to ask if he knew Dimitri and try to get some more -information, but they could not naturally work the talk around to it. The -young man volunteered no information at all. He seemed quite sure of -himself, and Arden fancied she saw in him a slight resemblance to -Dimitri. - -When they reached the old rowboat, Terry pointed down the bay. - -"The _Merry Jane_ is just around the bend; if you stay close to shore, -you can't miss it," she instructed the stranger. - -They all looked admiringly over the still green water where the fish were -beginning to jump in the stillness of the evening. The beauty of the bay -was inescapable. - -"Tania, the big dog, will bark, and you can row in the direction of the -noise, if you should be doubtful about the location," Arden suggested. - -The man raised an eyebrow. "You know Dimitri, then?" he asked. - -"Yes, indeed," Sim answered. "We're good friends." She felt justified in -saying that. - -"I am a friend, too," their caller replied as he got into the boat. "I'll -take very good care of your skiff and tie it up very carefully when I -return." He pushed off and began rowing easily down the bay. "Good-bye," -he called to the girls. "And thank you, a thousand times!" - -"Good-bye," Terry answered, while the others mumbled something. - -They waited until he was out of sight, and then began the flood of "What -do you think's" and "Maybe's." But of course they all agreed on one -thing. That he was very charming and well mannered and that perhaps all -foreigners were that way. But they decided it was indeed queer the way -Dimitri's friends all came to them for advice on reaching the old -houseboat. The newest caller gave rise to plenty of speculation, but the -girls retired earlier than usual, and it was, perhaps, for this reason -that Arden awoke sometime near morning, although it was still dark. -Deciding she could not get back to sleep, she lay tossing restlessly. - -The events of the day marched before her now active mind. The gold -snuffbox, Olga, Tania, Dimitri, the man who had come that evening. It was -all very puzzling. She turned over and looked at Sim, sleeping -peacefully. Nothing bothered her. Arden sighed and then started. What was -that noise? Another mysterious visitor? She strained every nerve to -listen. Then she smiled as she realized it was the motor of an auto -purring along. Going to the window, she saw the stranger's car move -slowly as it was started and disappear as it gathered speed. She looked -at her wrist watch. The dial showed four-thirty, and he was just coming -back from the houseboat! - -"'Curiouser and curiouser,'" Arden said to herself as she climbed back to -bed. "Alice in Wonderland had nothing on me. I wonder, too." - - - - - CHAPTER XII - A Friend in the Deep - - -"Well, Sim," said Arden, stretching luxuriously, "I feel merry as a grig -this morning." - -"You don't say," Sim replied with sarcasm. "I guess you haven't looked -outside then. I think we're in for a storm. What is a grig, anyway?" - -"I don't know exactly," Arden continued, "but that's how I feel. It's -very merry. How do you feel?" - -"I feel like a chocolate nut sundae," Sim answered, making a wry face. - -"You're a little cross, too. What's the trouble?" Arden asked. - -"Oh, nothing. But I'm thinking, if we do get a northeaster, there won't -be any bathing for days. I think I'll go in today just to get a swim -before it comes," Sim answered. "Look at that," she continued, pointing -to the little weather vane on the garage roof. - -It was quivering in the wind and pointing due northeast. A brave morning -sun was trying to pierce the leaden clouds, but not making much headway. - -A week before, Arden had seen the second mysterious caller drive away in -his car after tying up their boat. Since then they had neither seen nor -heard from Dimitri, and in an orgy of swimming and sunbathing had almost -forgotten about him, so perfect had the weather been and so completely -had the girls enjoyed it. - -Now Sim and Arden were in their room making plans for the day, and Terry, -in gay bathrobe and slippers, strolled in to talk things over before -breakfast. - -"Don't go in today, Sim, there's bound to be a bad undertow; and besides, -I have to go to town," Terry remarked as she had heard Sim's decision. - -"But the tide will be coming in, and I'll only take a short dip. I'll be -ready when you want to go. Let's eat now, and by the time we have our -rooms in order I can go in for a swim. Then we'll drive to the village. -How's that?" Sim asked, smiling. - -"You seem to have it all planned. I suppose it's all right. It's nearly -ten now, so let's go down for breakfast," Terry suggested. "I'm hungry." - -Sim and Arden, donning bathrobes and slipping their feet into soft mules, -pattered downstairs after Terry. - -They ate and put on their bathing suits when they went upstairs again, a -habit they had fallen into since the lovely weather had begun. - -When they went out a little later, Sim wished she hadn't been so -insistent about swimming. The breakers were piling in, slapping down on -the beach and churning up a white sudsy foam. - -"I'm not going in _that_ sea," Arden decided, "and I don't think you -should either, Sim." - -"Nonsense, Arden," Sim said scornfully. "It looks a lot worse than it -is." - -"We'll have rain before night," Terry stated positively, "and the ocean -is getting rougher all the time. Go on in, Sim, if you're going to, but -be careful." - -In a moment of bravado, Sim flung off her sweater and ran down to the -water. She hesitated for a second as the cold water whirled around her -feet, then, running swiftly, she plunged in head first. She was lost to -sight immediately, but presently came up again and waved a hand to Arden -and Terry, who were watching. Then she turned and began to swim out into -the sea. - -"I wish she wouldn't go out," Arden worried. - -"Oh, she'll be all right. Sim's a good swimmer," Terry reassured her. - -As they watched they could see Sim's scarlet bathing cap bobbing in the -rough sea. She swam easily for a while and then floated on her back. Did -they imagine it, or was she having trouble? Arden and Terry strained -their eyes to see. Sim was swimming hard toward the shore but seemed to -be making no headway. - -"She's having a hard time getting back. Do you think she's all right?" -Arden asked anxiously. - -"Wait--" Terry cautioned--"I'm not sure----" - -Sim was still swimming but seemed to be tiring. She turned over on her -back for a brief rest and began again. But it seemed no use. Apparently -she was caught in a sea-puss and was still making no headway. - -Terrified, Terry and Arden looked at each other, unable to utter a word. -In that instant a figure flashed by them and disappeared with a splash in -the waves. Still speechless, they both knew---- - -It was Melissa! - -She was going to help Sim to safety. The girls watching on the beach felt -the relief so suddenly and so completely that each grasped the other. - -"Melissa!" breathed Terry. - -"She'll get her," answered Arden. - -What little they had done to make friends with the girl came now in a -rush of grateful memory. - -Yes, Melissa would help them. She was their friend. - -In almost no time at all Melissa and Sim walked out of the wild sea, a -little further down the beach. Arden and Terry ran down to greet them. - -"Sim, you idiot! I told you not to go in. Are you all right?" Arden asked -breathlessly. - -"Of course I'm all right," Sim panted. - -"She was caught in a sea-puss. There's a trick in getting out. It's -because the storm is coming and the inlet to the bay is so near," Melissa -answered modestly. - -"It was very brave of you to go out, just the same," Terry insisted. "It -was just fine!" - -Sim looked a little sheepish and pulled her sweater on over her dripping -suit. - -"Don't tell your mother, Terry; you know how she would worry," Sim said. -"Melissa, you were swell!" she exclaimed. - -Melissa smiled happily. It was seldom, indeed, that her actions pleased -anyone. Her whole day would be happy now, and at night she could lie in -her hard little bed and remember how the girls had praised her. It took -so little to brighten the dull life of Melissa. - -The girls thanked her again and cautioned her about telling Mrs. Landry. -Then, waving good-bye to Melissa, they left her, digging her toes in the -sand in embarrassment, with her confused thoughts. - -The three girls, a guilty little group, went back to "Buckingham Palace" -and dressed quickly, never mentioning the almost tragic adventure to -Terry's mother. - -Sim's feet and hands were still cold when she climbed into the car beside -Arden and Terry, a while later, as they started for the village. - -The storm was coming in rapidly now. The sun was obscured, and sudden -strong gusts of wind swerved the car as they drove along. It had not yet -begun to rain. But Chief of Police Reilly cocked his weather eye and -"reckoned" it would not be long in coming. He was filling the gas tank of -the little car and chatting with the girls as he worked. - -"How do you like your new neighbor, Miz Landry?" he asked, showing a -shining gold tooth. - -"We like him all right, but we don't see much of him," Terry answered, -smiling. - -"Funny feller," he chuckled as he wiped off the windshield. "Wrote to me -'long 'bout last April and rented my ole boat. Never even saw it." He -gave the windshield a grand swipe. - -"Do you know Melissa Clayton?" Sim asked, abruptly changing the subject. -Her adventure in the ocean was still fresh in her mind. - -"Sure; everyone knows Melissa," the chief answered. - -"How about her father? What kind of a man is he?" pursued Sim. - -"George Clayton? He's all right. None too smart, but he gets along," -Reilly answered indifferently. "Can't make a silk purse out of a sow's -ear, you know." - -But Sim was not satisfied. She wanted to find out if Melissa's father was -as cruel as they imagined him to be. The chief, however, in his -good-natured way, didn't see what Sim was driving at and gave her no -satisfaction. Finally she questioned him no further. They agreed on the -weather and said they'd see him soon again, just how soon, none of them -knew. - -Then they drove back home and unloaded the last of the groceries from the -car just as the first drops of rain showed on the windshield. Like all -bad news, it was better to have it started. The sooner begun the sooner -it would be over. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - The Tragic Messenger - - -The wind increased in violence, and with the high tide of the afternoon -the surf pounded with wild fury. At Terry's home the rain lashed the -windows, and the awnings protested noisily against the gale. Arden -announced blandly that she no longer felt "merry as a grig." - -"Let's play rummy, the storm makes me restless," Sim suggested. - -"If you feel restless now, I hate to think how you'll feel after three -days of it," Terry reminded her. - -"Three days!" Arden exclaimed. "I'll have to get out my tatting to keep -me busy, I guess." - -"You can't tat, silly," Sim smiled. "Come on, let's play cards." - -Terry opened a painted card table, and they began a half-hearted game of -rummy. But Arden couldn't concentrate, so Terry and Sim told her to "give -up," whereat they abandoned the cards. - -"Listen to that old ocean," Arden remarked. "If you were out there now, -Sim, it would take more than Melissa to pull you to safety." - -"Wasn't she great?" Sim asked. "She knew just how to go about it. I -wasn't scared, but I was beginning to tire. Melissa took me out beyond -the current, and then we struck a stroke and got in easily. Were you -frightened?" - -"We were a little," Terry admitted. "We weren't sure whether you were all -right. I was ready to come out when Melissa dashed by us like a shot, and -then it seemed only a few seconds till you were back on the beach." - -"She's a marvelous swimmer," Sim said admiringly. "I wish she could lead -a more pleasant life, poor girl." - -"Chief Reilly didn't seem to think her father was so awful," Terry -remarked. - -"Oh, Chief Reilly!" Arden exclaimed. "He doesn't seem to think much -anyway." - -"He doesn't have to think much. There's nothing for him to think about -down here. I don't know what he'd do if he ever had a real case," Terry -went on. - -"The excitement would probably be too much for him. I'll bet he reads -detective stories and has it all planned out just the way he'd conduct a -murder inquiry," Arden laughed. - -"Yes," Sim agreed. "He'd probably go measuring footprints and looking for -clues. Do you suppose he'd use bloodhounds?" - -"Why not?" Terry asked. "None of our well-known detectives ever used -bloodhounds, so it's reasonable to suppose that Detective Reilly would." - -"We're not so bad ourselves at solving mysteries. How about the Apple -Orchard and Jockey Hollow?" Arden reminded them. - -"Of course--we're really very good," Terry agreed facetiously. "I could -do with a nice mystery. This is ideal weather for it. Angry sea, howling -wind and dashing rain, big black clouds----" - -"Do you ever have any murders or serious crimes down here, Terry?" Sim -asked suddenly. - -"Yes--we had a very important one about three years ago. Reilly saw a -headless tiny body floating in the bay," Terry said dramatically. - -"No, really?" Arden and Sim were all attention. - -"Really," answered Terry. "But when they picked it up, it turned out to -be a doll some youngster dropped in the water." - -"Oh, Terry," Sim said throwing a pillow at her. "You had me all worked -up." - -Terry laughed mischievously and threw the pillow back. A well aimed throw -from Arden caught Terry squarely in the face with such force that the -chair in which she was sitting went over backwards and Terry with it. In -the scramble that followed they did not hear the scratching at the door. -It was not until they took a little breathing spell that Arden cautioned -them to be quiet. - -"Ssh-sh a minute," she said. "Did you hear that scratching?" - -They listened. It came from the front door, and this time a bark also -could be heard. - -"It's a dog!" Sim exclaimed, and getting up from the pile of cushions on -the floor she went to open the door. - -"Why, it's Tania!" Arden declared. "The poor dog! Look at her!" - -Poor dog indeed! The silky, white fur clung to her thin frame, and a -piece of rope trailed from her collar. Like all dogs of her breed, she -was thin when in the best of condition, but now she looked worse than -that. She seemed really like a poor starved animal. - -"She looks terrible," Arden exclaimed, and disregarding the wet fur she -began to stroke the regally pointed head. - -"She's hungry. Look how thin she is. Let's give her something to eat," -Terry suggested, already starting toward the kitchen. - -Tania was extremely grateful for the food Terry put before her and ate -ravenously, while the girls murmured soothingly to the grateful dog. - -"But how strange that she should get like this," Terry reminded them. -"Dimitri always takes such good care of her." - -"And that old rope, the end looks frayed off. Do you suppose----" Arden -looked at her chums with terror in her eyes. This, coming directly after -their talk, joking as it was, about murders, gave them all a shocked, -sudden pause. It seemed horrible even to imagine that Dimitri---- - -"Oh, Arden! How awful! We haven't seen Dimitri for a week. Do you -think----" Terry was too frightened to put intelligible questions. - -Arden nodded her head solemnly. "I'm afraid so," she said in a quiet -voice. "Something must have happened on board the _Merry Jane_." - -For the first time the girls realized how interested they had become in -Dimitri. His charming manners, his accent, his appearance, and the almost -mysterious aloofness he maintained, all went to make him most attractive. -Now that they feared foul play might have overtaken him, it was dismaying -even to guess what had happened on the lonely houseboat. - -But poor mute Tania could not tell them her story. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - Missing at Marshlands - - -"Oh, Tania!" Sim exclaimed, taking the intelligent head in her hands. -"What happened?" - -But the dog only wagged a bedraggled tail and blinked her eyes with -pleasure. - -"We must go over at once and see," Arden decided. "We'll have to walk, -too. We couldn't row in this wind." - -Quickly they got into old coats and heavy shoes, pulled soft hats well -down, and started for the _Merry Jane_. - -Outside the little cottage the wind tore at them fiercely, and the blown -sand mingled with rain stung their legs and faces. Carried through the -air by the gale, flakes of foam from the ocean were borne far up the -beach like a strange summer snowstorm. - -Tania slunk along behind them as they bent to the wind, clearly hating to -be out in such nasty weather when she apparently had hoped to remain in -the warm dryness of "Buckingham Palace." - -"Isn't this wild?" Sim said holding her coat close to her. "I do hope -nothing serious has happened." - -"We all do," Arden answered. "Terry, can you find your way through the -marsh?" - -"I think we'd better follow the shore line of the bay. It will be safer," -Terry decided. "There isn't much shore left now the water has blown in so -far, we'll have to walk single file." - -Terry took the lead, followed by Arden and Sim, with Tania picking her -way along daintily after them. - -They made good time, for the wind was at their backs and served to push -them forward. Just ahead, its sides slapped by the lapping waves, they -could see the old houseboat looming up darkly in the rain. - -Silently they went around to the land side, where the wooden steps led to -the narrow promenade that ran completely around the boat. - -There on the rain-swept deck they hesitated. Not a sound, except the -noise of the storm, reached them. They were a little afraid, yet they -knew they must go in. - -Arden went forward, found the door unlocked, and pushed it open. Her -companions followed her, and cautiously they entered the picturesque main -room. It was just as they had last seen it. The mysterious painting -covered on the easel, the jars of paint brushes on the table, and the -odds and ends Dimitri had left lying about, were all, apparently, -untouched. But the artist himself was not there. - -Terry pushed aside the faded curtains that kept the little kitchen -separate from the rest of the boat. - -"He's not here," she said simply. - -"From the looks of this place he hasn't been here for quite a while," Sim -amended. "See the grease on that pan." - -Arden, however, made a more important discovery. She pointed to a little -wall cupboard. The door hung crazily on its hinges, disclosing the empty -space within. - -"Look," she exclaimed. "That door has been broken open. I'll bet that's -where Dimitri kept the snuffbox!" The words came so suddenly, the girls -gasped involuntarily. - -"I believe you're right, Arden," Terry said quickly. "Then either Dimitri -left and took the box with him, or somebody broke in and stole it. But if -Dimitri took the box he wouldn't have had to break the cupboard open. He -had a key. Some thief has been here." - -"If that happened--where is Dimitri?" Sim asked excitedly. - -"That's what we've got to find out," Arden declared. "We'll have to look -very carefully in case there are any clues about. Come on." - -Systematically they went over the old boat, but after a careful search -they had learned no more. When they completed their tour, they assembled -again in the main room. - -There the covered canvas loomed up as large, in their disturbed -imaginings, as a forbidding specter. Sim touched a corner of the cloth. - -"Don't, Sim," Arden stopped her. - -"Perhaps we ought to," Sim suggested. But Arden shook her head. They -should not raise the cloth. - -In their search they had found nothing significant except the place where -Tania had been tied up; it was outside, near the stern of the boat. There -was no dust, of course, to tell them how long the place had been -unoccupied, but an open window through which the rain had come, soaking -cushions and the floor, gave evidence that at least no one had been there -since the storm had begun. Or, if they had, they had not troubled to -close the window. - -"These brushes are stiff with paint," Terry remarked, picking up a -long-handled one that lay near a color-filled palette. "And the paint on -the palette is hard too," she continued. "That's unusual; all the other -brushes are soaking in turpentine, and when we were here before, Dimitri -had just cleaned his palette." - -"He must have left suddenly, then," Arden guessed. "He was very neat in -his painting. It looks pretty serious to me," she concluded. - -Terry shook out her damp coat. They were all quite wet, but the day, -despite the storm, was warm, and they had given no thought to themselves -since they left home. Following Terry's example, the others now shook -their coats. - -Tania curled up in a dry corner and prepared to sleep. The adventure was -not to her liking; besides, though the girls did not know it, she had -been over the boat countless numbers of times looking for her master. It -was not until hunger had driven her that she left her home and sought out -her friends. Instinctively she went to them--trusted them. - -Sim, still standing by the covered picture, took hold again of the cloth. -Some power she could not resist made her pull it off before Arden had -time to stop her. - -"Oh, Sim!" Arden exclaimed reproachfully. "I asked----" - -A change came over Arden's expressive face. Her blue eyes clouded with -tears. Surprised and startled, the three girls stood looking at the -canvas, almost unable to believe their own eyes at what was revealed to -them. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - Downhearted; Not Discouraged - - -Spellbound they gazed at the revelation. - -It was a large picture, almost finished, and its bold strokes had been -laid on with a sureness that told of the joy the artist had put into his -work. - -But the subject was what held them so amazed. For there, instead of the -usual landscape, was a portrait of Arden, sitting on a mound of -warm-colored sand with Tania at her feet. One slim hand was almost buried -in the white fur. The sky back of her hinted at an approaching storm, and -a portion of sea showed the ocean that peculiar color which comes just -before a change. Arden in the picture was gazing wistfully out to sea, -her eyes dreamy yet questioning, as though she were wondering what life -held in store for her. - -"Oh, Arden," gasped Sim, the first to speak. "How lovely!" - -"And to think we never knew or even guessed," Terry added. "He must be in -love with you," she finished softly. - -"Don't be silly, Terry," Arden scolded, her face crimson with blushes. -"He just happened to use my face. It doesn't look much like me, anyway. -I'm not that pretty." - -"It looks exactly like you," Sim insisted. "There's no use being falsely -modest about such things. You know you're pretty." - -"Oh, stop!" Arden begged, and her friends saw that her eyes were filled -with tears. "He's gone now, and whatever happened to him, I'm afraid to -guess. But I know one thing. He never would have gone away without -leaving some word unless he was taken against his will." - -"What shall we do?" Sim asked, coming as usual straight to the heart of -the matter and for the moment disregarding the portrait. - -"I don't know," Arden replied helplessly. For a time the girls listened -while the storm howled outside and the waves slapped harder against the -fat sides of the _Merry Jane_. - -"We can't stay here very much longer," Terry reminded them. "The tide is -coming in, and there won't be any place left to walk on back home." - -Arden nodded grimly; then, without a word of explanation, she went out -the door and back to the stern of the houseboat. She returned as quickly -as she had gone. - -"I just wanted to see," she explained, "if Dimitri's rowboat was still -tied up. It is, and his old car is there, too." - -"Then, of course, wherever he went or was taken, he didn't go in his own -boat or car," Terry reasoned. - -"I don't know what we can do," Arden said again. "But I think we should -wait a little while before we spread an alarm. After all, he may have -stayed in town because of the storm." - -"Of course. Why didn't we think of that before?" Sim agreed, sighing with -relief. "We'd better lock Tania in and get back ourselves. Then we can -drive to town and look around for him there." - -They were relieved at having something definite to do, some real plan to -work upon. Terry with difficulty closed the open window. Arden coaxed -Tania out to the kitchen and left water for her to drink, besides two dog -biscuits she found in a box. Sim carefully covered the picture again, -still conscious of the thrilling surprise it had given them. - -Finding they could not lock the door from the outside, they pulled it -shut and, after one more look around the old boat, they wrapped their -coats tightly about them and set out for "Buckingham Palace." - -The discovery of Arden's portrait under such almost terrifying conditions -left the little group frankly bewildered. - -"How could he have drawn so well from memory?" Arden wondered. - -"What will Arden say or do about it?" Sim reflected. - -"Anyhow," Terry was deciding, "it's a perfectly swell picture." - -Then, as if voicing the unspoken words of her companions, Arden said: - -"Please don't let's say anything about--the picture--now." - -"All right," replied her companions, and they certainly meant it would be -"all right" to keep their newest secret. - -"I can't understand it," Arden remarked as they plodded along. -"Especially about Tania. He _was_ so fond of her." - -"_Was?_ Oh, Arden!" Sim wailed at the slip Arden had made. - -"Everything will be all right. I'm sure there is some simple -explanation," Terry said soothingly. - -"I hope so," Sim murmured, not quite so sure. - -They could still hear Tania howling mournfully at being left alone, but -Arden insisted they should not go back, for Tania was safe, she declared. -Soon the dog's howls could be heard no longer, with the noise of the wind -and the endless slashing of the breakers on the shore. - -The tide had risen just as Terry said it would, and in some places the -girls had to wade in water up to their knees as they trudged along. When -at last they reached Terry's house they were indeed a woebegone little -band, and there was no use denying it. - -Mrs. Landry was shocked when she saw them and sent them to change into -dry things at once. After which they gathered in the living room and told -Terry's mother all about their disheartening adventure, not, however, -mentioning the surprise portrait. - -"And, Mother," Terry pleaded, "can't we go to town at once to see if he -has been there?" - -"Terry, dear, you always rush so," Mrs. Landry reminded her. "Don't you -think the weather is too bad to go all that way now? Why not wait----" - -"We'll be all right," Terry interrupted. "I'm sure none of us could sleep -a wink if we didn't at least do everything possible to find out what has -happened to Dimitri." - -"Well----" Mrs. Landry was weakening. "If you dress warmly and promise to -be back before dark, I guess you may go. But drive carefully, and don't -do anything foolish." The vague warning meant more than the words which -conveyed it. - -They were not long in getting ready after receiving that permission. In a -surprisingly short time the little car was bouncing up the road with the -three girls huddled together in it bound for the village. - -"Where shall we go first?" asked Sim as they neared town. - -"We can get some gas and sort of ask Reilly," Terry suggested. "He's -always friendly and sees everything." - -"Of course, that's what we'll do first," Arden agreed. - -But when they had jokingly asked the Chief how his tenant was getting -along, he replied crisply: - -"I should think _you'd_ know about that. I haven't seen him in more'n a -week. Takes more'n two cats t' make a coop of chickens," he added. Mr. -Reilly's proverbs were sometimes queer. "Nope, ain't seen him." - -"You haven't!" Terry droned. - -More than a week! Disheartened, they tried to smile at the obliging -Reilly, but the attempt was by no means a success. - -He looked after them quizzically as they left. - -In the little drug store where they bought postal cards and stamps they -did not need nor even want, they asked the girl clerk if she had seen -"the artist" lately. - -She gave them a silly grin and shook her head. - -"Not him. He only came in here once for some stamps, weeks ago, but not -since. Queer duck. Friend of yours?" - -"Sort of," Arden replied indifferently, and they left the store with -their heads up but their spirits down. - -"Well, that exhausts the village, except for the food store. We can buy -some oranges and ask Mr. Gushweller," Terry suggested. - -The combination grocery and butcher store was without customers when the -girls entered, and the beaming owner, Mr. Gushweller, came forward -rubbing his hands and remarking how glad he was to see them. - -Arden looked expertly at the oranges, critically "weighing" them in her -hand. How should they ask about Dimitri without exciting Mr. Gushweller's -curiosity? - -But Sim saved the day. "Say, Mr. Gushweller," she said brightly, "what -kind of meat is good for a dog--that Russian wolfhound, you know? The one -that artist owns? He asked if we'd pick up something for her." - -"Wall, he gen'ally gits these." Gushweller indicated a prepared dog food -in cans. "I thought it was about time he got a new supply. He ain't -bought none for a couple weeks now." - -"I'll take three cans," Sim replied automatically, while one half of her -brain registered the disappointing fact that Dimitri hadn't been in that -store either. - -Loaded again with unwanted stuff, although Tania could use the dog food, -they were a serious threesome as they drove homeward in the early -evening. The storm continued violently to tear things up, and all were -thinking the same thing. Dimitri hadn't been to town even to get food for -Tania. Where was he in this awful storm? - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - That Dark Woman - - -"If he had taken his car, or even the boat, it wouldn't seem so--so -ominous," Arden reasoned as they drove homeward. "But to find them both -there, and Tania practically starving. Well----" - -"That broken cupboard, too," Sim said. "I feel sure that's where he used -to keep the snuffbox. Do you remember the day we came to tea? The sound -of a small door and a key in the lock?" - -"It certainly looked as though it had been forced open," Terry replied. - -"I hate to tell Chief Reilly. I'm afraid he'll get things all mixed up. -Let's wait a little longer, and we'll do whatever your mother advises," -Arden said, and Terry agreed, silently nodding her head. - -The storm was surely now at its height. In some parts of the road, where -there was not much distance to the ocean, the waves had been blown in so -that a curved white line of foam was left on the ground almost under the -wheels of the car. The sand came in sheets, blowing and sticking on the -wet windshield, making the driving difficult indeed. - -Mrs. Landry did not hide her relief when they put the car in the garage -and came tramping into the house. - -"Did you find him?" she asked brightly, and then at once knew they had -not, for they looked at her hopelessly and shook their heads. - -"No one has seen him for days," Terry said briefly. - -"He didn't even buy food for Tania," added Arden. "Do you suppose -something terrible has happened to him? That someone knew he had that -snuffbox and----" - -"I don't believe so," Mrs. Landry soothed, talking slowly and softly, as -one speaks to a frightened child. "I'm sure you will hear good news in -the morning. Come, get your damp things off and see how much better -you'll feel after you've had some of Ida's chicken pie." - -Later, when they ate the pie and apparently enjoyed it, wise Mrs. Landry -kept the conversational ball rolling as well as she could, but it was not -easy. There was so much worry in their serious young faces that smiles -were few and far between among the girls. - -They retired early, tired from their long walk through the rain and the -rough drive to the village and back. But healthy bodies make healthy -minds, and next morning they were surprised, and a little ashamed, at -having slept so well; in fact, at having overslept so well. - -"We must go and feed Tania," Arden decided after breakfast. "We'll look -more carefully this time for some clues and hope for the best." - -Tania was overjoyed to see them and ate greedily of the food Sim gave her -from one of the cans she had bought the day before. - -"Was that chair like that yesterday?" Terry asked indicating an -overturned rocker. - -"I don't remember," Sim answered. "I was so excited." - -"I don't, either, but Tania might have done it," Arden suggested. - -"Then it doesn't indicate a struggle or anything," Terry remarked. "I -guess it wasn't important, anyway." - -"Tania will be safer here than anywhere else, and she hates the rain so," -Sim said in fixing little things for the lonely dog's comfort. - -They left the _Merry Jane_ again, much the same as they had found her, -and returned to "Buckingham Palace," finally deciding to tell Chief -Reilly if they did not hear from Dimitri by noon. - -They were about to drive to town to deliver their doleful message when -the sound of a car coming down the muddy road filled them with sudden -hope. - -Surely this was Dimitri coming back safe and sound! If only it could -be---- - -"Oh, gosh!" Sim exclaimed. "I'm glad he's back! I was so worried." - -"Me, too!" said Terry ungrammatically. - -They waited at the back gate and watched the splashing approach of the -car. Mud-stained as it was, they could still distinguish the color. A -green roadster! - -It came to a sudden stop with screeching of brakes, and the door, with -grimy side curtains attached, was swung open. - -Then they could see that the dark Olga was behind the wheel, hesitating -before putting a black satin shoe on the muddy ground as she prepared to -step out. - -She smiled as she saw the three girls in a row looking at her in dismay. - -"A reception committee. Yes?" she asked. "Good-morning! Here I am again, -you see." - -"Good-morning," Arden replied mechanically, trying to look past the woman -into the car. Woefully there came to her the realization that it -contained no one but Olga. There was no sign of Dimitri. - -Suddenly, Arden feared that Sim or Terry might give away their discovery -about Dimitri's absence before she had a chance to question the woman and -learn if Olga knew of his disappearance. - -But Sim and Terry acted as if struck dumb. They had been so sure that -their artist friend would be in the car. Surely, Arden thought, Olga -could see surprise and dismay in their faces. Perhaps she did not notice, -or perhaps she was only concerned with herself, for when she spoke again -she asked if they could do her the very great favor of taking her over to -the _Merry Jane_. - -"Why, I guess----" began Arden and then decided on a bold question. "But -why didn't you take the road from the village? You must have come past it -as you drove out." - -"A road from the village!" Olga repeated. "I thought there was no way -except to go by boat from here." - -"Oh, yes," Terry explained. "There is a way. This road you are on now -branches off farther back and goes through the marsh, right to the -houseboat. Of course, it is not much of a road, but it is wide enough for -one car." - -"Really?" The dark woman raised black, curved brows. "I did not mean to -be such a great trouble." - -"Oh, it's no trouble," Arden exclaimed quickly. "If the bay were not so -rough, we would be glad to take you. But the storm----" It would not do -to make Olga antagonistic. They could learn nothing then. - -"I guess you will have to drive----" began Sim but a look from Arden -stopped her from continuing. - -"And if I meet Dimitri coming out in his handsome car, we will be like -two goats on the bridge. Yes?" Olga smiled as she still sat in the auto, -reluctant to put her dainty feet on the wet ground. - -"But you won't meet him," Terry said quickly. "He's not there!" She -waited to see what effect this statement would have on the mysterious -woman. - -"No? He often goes away, sketching. He is very strong. A sea such as this -wild one would delight him. However, I will go over and wait for him." -Olga decided and drew her slim legs back into the car as she prepared to -drive away. - -"But he won't come back; at least, we don't think he will. He's been gone -for days without taking the car or his skiff, and the houseboat was not -even locked," Arden stated and watched the woman closely for her reaction -to that statement. - -"What do you mean?" Olga asked shrilly and jumped quickly out of the car -to stand squarely in front of Arden. She looked straight into Arden's -eyes and repeated her question. "What do you mean? What are you trying to -tell me?" - -"Dimitri's gone," said Arden simply. - -"Gone?" Olga asked. "Come, we must go over at once! There is something I -must find out!" - -And then the excitement began all over again. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - Olga Makes Light of It - - -"To find out something," was what Olga had said, her dark eyes flashing. -The girls, too, wanted to find things out. Did Olga know about the -missing snuffbox, and did she also know, or suspect, where Dimitri might -be? - -They eagerly accepted the invitation to get into the car. Olga drove -rapidly, scorning ruts and bumps. Once she spoke questioningly to Arden, -who was in the front seat with her. - -"My little friend, Melissa? Did she enjoy her ride?" - -"Very much," replied Arden. "But she got into trouble over it. Her -father----" - -"Ah, yes, she told me of him. Have you seen her recently, then?" - -"Not for quite a few days," Arden answered, and then she remembered, with -a start, that no one had seen Melissa or George Clayton for--she could -not recall how long. Three or four days, at least. - -"The dog!" Olga exclaimed suddenly. "Is she still on the boat? She cannot -bear me. I attempted to discipline her once, and ever since that I cannot -go near her. She never forgets." - -"She's still there, but I guess we can tie her up before you go in," -Arden said, wondering how they were going to do it. - -Then Olga drove without talking further. When they got to the end of the -narrow road leading to the houseboat the three girls sprang out and, -going on board, coaxed Tania to the stern of the craft, where they tied -her securely. They then called down that it was safe for Olga to come -aboard. - -"Watch her carefully," Arden cautioned Terry and Sim, indicating Olga. -"Notice just what she does." - -Terry and Sim agreed silently as Olga appeared at the steps. Tania barked -furiously at the sight of her and strained to get loose. Olga, casting -the merest glance in the direction of the animal, at once went inside the -houseboat. The three girls followed close behind her. She did not -hesitate in the living room. But, walking briskly, pushed aside the -curtains and stopped short as the broken cupboard caught her eye. The -mysterious covered canvas might not have been there for all the notice -she gave it. - -"Who did that?" she asked, angrily turning to the girls. "Who? Tell me at -once!" - -"We found it that way," Arden answered. "What's the matter?" - -"Matter?" Olga repeated. "Did you not know, then, that Dimitri had here a -gold box worth a fortune? Come! I see by your faces you did know. This is -where he kept it. I told him it was foolish. After all, one can get -around Tania with a piece of raw beef. Yes!" - -She was quite beside herself with rage. Her dark eyes flashed, and she -bit her lips impatiently. Then, apparently realizing how odd all this -must seem to the girls and shrugging her shoulders, she attempted to make -light of the incident. With another shrug of her expressive shoulders, -she said: - -"But of course he has removed his precious box with him. He can take care -of himself, that one. Ha! Yes! There is no use wasting time here. I must -get back to New York--quickly!" - -Olga fumbled in her bag and pulled out a gaudy compact. At the same time -a paper fell but, though she did not notice it, none of the girls -attempted to pick it up. The whole affair seemed to rob them of their -natural intelligence. Olga's personality was so overpowering. - -"But," Arden began, "why should he break open the cupboard? Surely he had -a key." - -"I have known him to lose things more important than keys. Don't worry -your pretty heads over it, Dimitri is not harmed, I am sure of it." Olga -used her compact vigorously. All that she did was vigorous. - -"And Tania," Sim reminded her. "He left nothing for her to eat." - -"About that I know nothing. Oh, you dear, foolish children! What do you -think has happened? Murder? Abduction? Come, I am going back!" Olga swept -out of the small space. She had succeeded in making the girls feel very -young and rather silly. They followed her almost against their wills, and -she drove them back to the cottage, where she stopped and, smiling -brightly, said: - -"Please don't distress yourselves. I tell you, Dimitri is very capable. -You believe me--yes?" - -"Yes, of course," Arden faltered. - -"Oh, and if you see my little friend Melissa, tell her I have been here, -will you?" - -The girls nodded dumbly, and Olga drove off up the muddy road, splashing -the brown water widely out from beneath the wheels. - -There was a temporary lull in the storm, a sort of breathing spell. The -rain had ceased, and the wind was less. The surf, though, was heavier -than ever, booming on and tearing at the beach. - -Arden stood in a little pool of rain water watching the car fade from -sight. She suddenly moved aside as the water soaked through her shoes and -wet her feet. - -"What next?" she asked of no one in particular. "She is the queerest -person I ever saw." - -"Do you think she really was disturbed about Dimitri and just pretended -she wasn't?" Sim inquired. - -"If you ask me," Terry began, "she doesn't care a snap about Dimitri. But -she did seem mad about the box and the broken cupboard." - -"That's just what I thought," agreed Arden. "I think she was surprised to -find it gone, and maybe I'm crazy, too, but she seemed to expect that, -somehow." - -"Why should we tell Melissa we saw her?" Terry reflected. "Anyway, we -haven't seen Melissa for days, and that's odd, too." - -"That's just Olga's manner: playing Lady Bountiful to the poor native -child," Sim sneered. "What does she know about Melissa, anyway?" - -"What does she know about this whole business?" Arden said firmly. "I'm -for telling Chief Reilly. Then, if anything should be wrong, our -consciences would be clear. What do you say?" - -"I think you're right, Arden!" Terry exclaimed. "There's more to this -than we realize. Wait till I tell Mother where we're going." - -Terry ran into the house and was out again almost at once. - -Arden backed the car from the garage, Sim shut the doors after her, and -the three were ready for the drive to the village. - -"Let's go!" called Terry hopping into the moving car. "Hurry, Arden! It's -beginning to rain again." - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - Reilly on the Case - - -The rain was coming down in torrents by the time the village was reached, -and, going at once to Reilly's garage, the girls found him seated in his -narrow little office reading a newspaper. - -He smiled jovially as she saw them, his little blue eyes almost hidden -behind many wrinkles. - -"Afternoon, ladies!" he exclaimed. "How's this for weather? A cat can -look at a king." - -But Arden had no time for polite preliminaries. - -"Mr. Reilly," she began, "we have something very important to tell you." - -"Have you, now? What's happened? Rain leakin' through into your dinin' -room table? It never pours but the salt gets damp." - -"Please, I'm serious," Arden said firmly, and taking a deep breath she -announced: - -"Dimitri Uzlov has disappeared!" - -"Disappeared! What do you mean?" - -"He's been gone from the houseboat for days, and nobody has heard from -him. You said, yourself, you hadn't seen him lately. Remember?" - -"Yes, I remember," agreed the chief. "But what makes you think he's -disappeared?" - -"His dog came over to our house, starving, with a piece of frayed rope on -her collar," Terry burst out. - -"The door of the houseboat was open, and the rain was pouring in," -volunteered Sim. - -"Both his car and rowboat are there, and there's a cupboard broken open -on the houseboat," Arden added excitedly. - -"But perhaps he's just gone for a day or two," suggested the chief, -obviously not wanting to start on a "case" in the riotous weather. - -"Oh, you must believe us!" Arden exclaimed. "It takes more than a day or -two to starve a big dog. And we inquired all around the village. No one -has seen Mr. Uzlov." - -"Have you told anyone else about this?" Reilly asked professionally. "How -many people know he's gone?" - -"Just us and my mother and that woman who came to see him," Terry -answered. - -"Oh, Terry!" Arden exclaimed. "And we don't even know her last name or -her license number. We let her go away without asking." - -"How stupid! That's just what we did, and I'm sure she knew more than she -let on," Sim said in dismay. - -"Mr. Reilly," Arden pleaded, "won't you come with us to the _Merry Jane_? -We'll feel better if you take a look around, because we'd never forgive -ourselves if anything was wrong." - -"Why--" Reilly rubbed his chin thoughtfully--"yes, I'll come. Might as -well go right now. Just in case----" - -"Good! You follow us in your car, as we won't be coming back this way -again," Arden decided as Chief Reilly slipped into his warm uniform coat -whereon a large shiny badge was prominently displayed. - -He followed them back along the road in his ancient flivver, his fat -cheeks shaking as he bounced over the ruts and puddles. - -He slung one plump leg over the door without opening it and slid, rather -than climbed, out. The girls waited impatiently as he stood surveying the -lonely stretch of Marshlands from all angles. - -Terry fidgeted. "What does he think he's going to see, looking around -like this? White pebbles as in the fairy tale?" she hissed. - -"Shsh-h! he'll hear you," Arden cautioned. - -Chief Reilly, having had his look around, mounted the wooden steps at the -rear side of the houseboat and asked, in his most businesslike manner: - -"Everything just as you found it last?" - -"Everything; except for the closed window," Arden replied. - -Tania, delighted at seeing her friends again, "woofed" happily, and -apparently Chief Reilly was her friend, too, for she allowed him to rub -her silky ears. - -"We came over here the day Tania ran to us, begging for food. And we -found the place deserted and this cupboard broken open," said Arden. - -"Huhm-um," Reilly grunted, peering into the small compartment with its -shattered door. - -"These paint brushes," Sim said, showing him one, "were never left by Mr. -Dimitri to harden up like this. They were scattered about when we first -came over." - -"That so?" the chief asked. "I wouldn't know about that. I'm no painter." - -"There's something else that's very odd," Arden stated. "Dimitri Uzlov -had in his possession a very valuable gold box. Besides ourselves, we -don't know just how many people knew about it, but we think the woman -Olga did. Anyway, it's gone, too." - -Reilly raised his eyebrows. The case was beginning to be interesting. -What he had imagined to be the silly idea of excitable "summer folks" -seemed now to have something to it after all. - -"Did this artist have many visitors?" he asked. - -"Two that we know about," replied Terry. - -"The woman Olga, and a man who rowed over here in our boat a few nights -ago. He came back toward morning," said Sim. - -"The woman came first and asked the way over here. Terry rowed her over. -Dimitri and she seemed to be very angry about something. We rowed her -back again, and she took Melissa Clayton for a ride in her car, a green -sport roadster," supplied Arden. - -"Funny I never saw it go through town," Reilly remarked at this point. -"But what you don't know can't set the river on fire." He grinned. - -"It's more than that," Terry agreed. "That woman didn't seem to want to -be seen in town at all." - -"And something very queer about the whole thing," Sim interrupted, "is -where has Melissa been all this while? She usually hangs around our -house." - -"Oh, I wouldn't consider that," Reilly suggested. "This bad weather -probably accounts for it. She's home." - -"Well, then, after that," Arden went on with her story of events, "a man, -dark, tall, and somewhat like Dimitri, drove up one night and he, too, -asked the way to the _Merry Jane_. He wouldn't let us row him over. He -was very polite about it, and he took our boat. Toward morning I saw him -drive away in his car that he had left parked at Terry's house, -and--and--" Arden faltered as she realized another surprising -fact--"that's the last time we heard from Dimitri!" - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - Tania Howls - - -This startling announcement held them all speechless. They had completely -overlooked its significance. And yet it was so obvious. The dark stranger -had evidently come over to the houseboat that night and---- Surely he was -responsible for Dimitri's disappearance. - -Terry wandered over to the combination bed and couch and sank down upon -it. She looked in a bewildered fashion at the floor and almost -immediately was galvanized into action. At her feet lay a white paper; -something they had not noticed before. She snatched it up and spread it -out on her knee. It was part of an envelope torn partly across and -lengthwise. Written on it in ordinary blue ink was this: - - _Ser_ - _Ninth S_ - _New Y_ - -"Look!" excitedly exclaimed Terry. "Here's part of an address!" - -They all crowded close to see, and Chief Reilly, as befitted one in his -station, held out his hand for the paper. Terry meekly gave it to him. - -"You're right!" he exclaimed and turned the paper over. Then, as the -surprised girls watched, he drew out from the inside of the envelope a -second small piece of paper. "This seems to be some kind of a map," he -announced, turning it around in an effort to decide which was the top. - -"Let's see!" Arden asked. The chief gave it to her. "It is a map!" she -agreed, "and it shows the road from the city and the branch one to the -village. See, it has part of the word Oceanedge." - -"Perhaps we can find the rest of it," Sim suggested. But a most careful -search failed to reveal more of the paper. - -"Olga dropped that!" Arden announced suddenly. "I remember seeing it fall -from her bag, but I was too stupid to do anything about it." - -"Oh, no, Arden," Terry said. "If you had noticed it and called it to her -attention, she would have picked it up again. As it is now, we're -reasonably sure she knew the way to the _Merry Jane_ all the while, -though she tried to make us believe she didn't." - -"And to think we let her go without even finding out her name or who she -was," Sim moaned. - -"Now I'm sure there's something queer about Dimitri being away," Arden -said convincingly. "Why should Olga pretend to be ignorant about the -road? Why didn't she worry about Dimitri? How did she know about the -snuffbox? She went straight to the cupboard as if to get it." - -"You girls may have stumbled on something at that!" the chief exclaimed -with a faint note of admiration in his voice. "Yes, indeed!" - -They stood in the untidy living room wondering what might be the solution -to all this mystery. Tania rubbed against Sim's slim legs. The girl -gently pulled the silky ears, something forming in her mind. - -"I've got an idea!" Sim cried out. "Perhaps Tania could trace Dimitri if -she had something of his to sniff at. After all, she's a wolfhound, and -the hound part of her name must mean that she can trace missing persons." - -"We can try," Arden admitted. Somehow, despite the chief's presence, the -girls regarded the "case" as their own and did not dream of consulting -him on matters such as this one. - -Momentarily the discovery of the piece of letter and the map was -forgotten in the excitement of the new suggestion. Sim found a battered -old felt hat and held it before Tania's nose. - -The dog sniffed at it disdainfully and then sat back on her haunches -looking at Sim. - -"Go find him!" Sim urged. "Find Dimitri!" - -The tone of her voice may have done it, or else it was a game of dog and -played before, for she sprang up again and dashed toward the door. -Standing on her hind legs and pushing with her forepaws, she opened it, -for it was not fully latched. - -Tania galloped down to the water edge and ran back and forth excitedly, -her nose to the ground. The cat-tails in the marsh bent before the strong -wind, which whistled eerily through the tall sedge grass. As is usual -with nor'easters, the rain had temporarily ceased again, and the -afternoon sky seemed a little brighter. Tania turned to look -questioningly at the girls as she raced back and forth along the little -strip of ground. At last she stopped and, sitting down, facing the -storm-swept bay, she howled mournfully. - -"Tania!" Arden called. The dog came slowly to her, tail between her legs, -a picture of despair. - -"What does that mean?" Terry asked of Reilly. She did not dare to -interpret the performance for herself. "Do you think he may -have--drowned?" - -"Naw," Rufus Reilly replied scornfully. "It probably don't mean a thing. -That dog couldn't follow no scent in the wet weather. Just the same," he -continued wisely, "this here is a mysterious case, all right, all right! -I'm glad you called me in. It's the first time I've had any real work to -do in years. Now, what in thunder did I do with that paper? I've got to -study it a bit." He began to search in his numerous pockets. - -"Here it is, Mr. Reilly," Arden said handing it to him. "You let me look -at it." - -"Oh, yes, so I did! Well, I guess there's not much we can do around here, -is there?" he asked the girls. "Out of sight makes the mare go." Another, -of his silly, joking proverbs. - -They shook their heads silently. Arden took Tania back to the houseboat -again and shut her inside. Food and water had been left for her. Then, -after a quick look around, they all left. - -"I'll work on the case," Rufus Reilly announced as he climbed into his -car, "and let you know about it sometime tomorrow. Don't worry, though. -It'll all come out in the wash." And chuckling at his poor joke he drove -away in the early twilight. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - Mrs. Landry Helps - - -"Great help _he_ is," Sim remarked disdainfully as they watched the old -car bump along. - -"We don't know any more now than we did before," Terry said, agreeing -with Sim. - -"Yes, we do," Arden contradicted. "You're forgetting about that paper. -While you two were watching Tania perform her little trick, I was -memorizing the words on that torn piece." - -"Good for you, Sherlock!" Sim exclaimed. "And what do we do next? Go home -and work out the cryptogram?" - -"Something like that," Arden answered. "I've got a plan. Let's get going, -and we'll see how it works out. Terry, is it too late to go to town for -just a few minutes? What I'm going to do won't take long." - -"What are you going to do?" Terry questioned. "Tell us." - -"I thought of going to the drug store and trying to trace the writer of -this note by getting information of the New York telephone company," -Arden told them. - -"Good idea, Ard! Of course we have time for that. And, anyway, we'd -better do it while you still remember the words," Terry said. - -"Oh, don't worry, I won't forget them," Arden replied with the first show -of relief they had felt in some time. "A Blake never forgets!" - -They piled into the car and rode along the deserted road to the village. -The drug store was fortunately empty except for a rather stupid-looking -boy clerk. - -Arden entered the phone booth, and her chums crowded around her. They -waited impatiently for the really short interval it took to make the -connection with the New York office. As the clear sharp voice of the girl -sang out "Information," Arden explained the difficulty. - -"We are trying to get the phone number of an address in New York," she -said, "but we've torn the paper. I'll give you as much as I can. Do you -think you can help us?" - -"Sorry, madam," came the voice, "but I can't possibly trace the name." - -Arden hung up and turned sorrowfully toward her friends. - -"I might have known it," she said. "Of course we couldn't do anything -that way. It was a desperate chance at best." - -"Too bad, Arden," Terry soothed. "I still think it was a good idea. But -let's get out of here; our young friend," she indicated the curious -clerk, "is awfully interested in us." - -"We'd better be starting for home, anyway," Arden suggested. "Your mother -might worry." - -So they left the little village, which was quite deserted now in the late -afternoon, and wearily put the car away for the night in the garage of -the little white house. - -Mrs. Landry was interested to learn all that had happened, and urged them -to keep up their spirits. Somewhat woefully, the girls smiled at her and -agreed at least to try further. - -After the evening meal, when they gathered in the living room, Arden and -Sim decided to write letters home but thought it best not to mention the -new "mystery." - -Arden sat at the small wicker desk, pen and paper before her, and got as -far as "Dearest Mother." But her mind was far away and after this -auspicious beginning she looked up from the paper dreamily. - -Poor Dimitri! Where could he be? And Olga--and the paper and the -snuffbox. Then Arden, drawing a line through the beginning of her letter, -wrote down the queer words from the envelope. - - _Ser_ - _Ninth S_ - _New Y_ - -What could that possibly be? What man's name began with the letters S E -R? - -"Terry," Arden said suddenly, "have you a dictionary here? One that would -have proper names in it?" - -"I have one that I brought down with some books from Cedar Ridge. Will -that help you?" Terry replied. - -"Get it, will you, please," Arden continued. "I'm going to try and work -out this puzzle and send a telegram to an address. If it isn't delivered, -we'll know it's no good. I'd rather spend the last of my allowance that -way than on candy." - -"Swell plan, Arden!" Sim exclaimed. "Get the trusty dictionary, Terry, -and let's start to work." - -Terry dashed up the stairs and rummaged hurriedly in the pile of almost -forgotten college books in her room and at length returned carrying the -volume. - -Arden flicked back the flimsy pages and ran her hand down the line. - -There were biblical first names as well as Greek and Latin ones, and -Arden was somewhat at sea as she murmured: - - Serah - Seraphim - Sered - Seres - Sergia - Sergius - Seriah - Seron - Serug - -"Do you like any of them, or does any one sound logical?" she asked her -chums. - -"Sergius!" exclaimed Sim. "That sounds Russian to me." - -"Sergia," Terry voted. "That's also Russian, but one may be a woman's -name. How can we get around that? There's no way of finding out from this -list. It's very impartial." - -"We can get around it this way," Arden declared. "Just use Serg. Then -we'll be safe if it's a man or woman. You know a boy's name could be Ted, -and they call some girls Ted. I'm in favor of just Serg." - -"It sounds good," admired Terry. - -"I'm for it," added Sim. "But what about a last name?" - -"There's going to be a rub," said Terry. "We took the easiest part -first." - -"It seems almost impossible, doesn't it?" sighed Arden. - -"Yes, it does. It might be Smith or Brown or Jones," Sim remarked. "This -is quite an undertaking, I'm afraid." - -"Well, there's no harm in trying," Arden protested. "Working with Dimitri -in mind, it's logical to suppose that, being Russian, he'd have Russian -friends or relatives, isn't it?" - -Sim and Terry agreed silently. - -"I guess relatives, Arden," said Sim suddenly. "I think that man who came -here looked like Dimitri." - -"Maybe you're right, Sim. Shall we try Uzlov?" Arden looked to them for -agreement. - -"Yes!" exclaimed Terry. "Serg Uzlov! That's a good start." - -"Of course, we may not gain anything by this, and besides, perhaps we -should have told Rufus Reilly what we intend to do. Do you think so?" -questioned Arden, chewing the little ring on the top of the fountain pen. - -"Not at all!" Sim protested. "If Dimitri was a brother, or something, I -think we'd do just this, and I think we're perfectly justified in doing -it." - -This outburst gave them new courage, and they puzzled for some time over -the address. Then Terry finally called in her mother. - -"What would be the Russian quarter in New York, Mother?" she asked, -explaining what they were trying to do. - -"Let me try to remember," said Mrs. Landry. "Perhaps if I looked again at -the address as you have it, something might suggest itself to me." - -They showed it to her, Arden writing it out from memory again. - -"There seems to be no question but what this address is in New York," -Mrs. Landry went on, after several seconds of obvious concentration. -"Now, as to the street. From the way the address is written it must be -Ninth Street. It cannot be Nineteenth Street for there was no part of a -word before the Ninth, was there?" - -"No." The girls were agreed on that point. - -"And it cannot have been Twenty-ninth, or Thirty-ninth or any of the -higher numbered streets in the pines. Because the word Ninth was too near -the left side of the envelope. So I think it is safe to assume that Ninth -Street was intended." - -"Splendid!" exclaimed Arden. "Terry, your mother should be in entire -charge of this mystery investigation." - -"Oh, no, my dear. None of that for me, if you please," Mrs. Landry -laughed. - -"But you're helping us so!" murmured Sim. - -"This may be no help at all, as it turns out. But I'll go on to the end -as far as I can. We'll decide on Ninth Street. That, as you know, is at -least partly in what is, or was, the Greenwich Village section of New -York. - -"I think it safe to say there are Russians there. You know there are -artists and writers living there and all sorts of odd tearooms, some -undoubtedly of Russian character." - -"Oh, we are coming on!" cried Arden. "What next, Mrs. Landry?" - -"Well, I should say, from looking at this, that no house number was ever -put in front of the street. Whoever wrote this must have known that the -letter would go to its destination without a house number on it. The -writer must have sent other letters in the same way, trusting to the mail -man knowing where to leave it." - -"Some mail man!" commented Terry admiringly. - -"But then Ninth Street may be a short one," said Mrs. Landry. "I can't -just recollect about that, though I have been on it. At any rate, I -think, in such a desperate case as this," and here she smiled slightly, -"you would be justified in sending the telegram to the name you have -selected, with just Ninth Street, New York, as its destination. Those -telegraph messenger boys are clever. One may know just where to take it -or he may inquire of some Russian in the Village. The Russians are -clannish, like all foreigners, and this person may be well known." - -"Oh, I'm sure it's going to succeed now!" declared Arden. - -"Of course!" murmured her chums, Sim adding: - -"You write the telegram out now, Ard." - -Arden wrote and read: - - _"'Serg Uzlov. Ninth Street, New York City. Can you give us any - information concerning Dimitri Uzlov? Very important. Anxious to get in - touch with him. Telegraph my expense.'"_ - -"That's a lot more than ten words," remarked Sim. - -"Who cares?" laughed Terry. "This may mean a lot. But you'll have to sign -some name to it, won't you?" - -"Could we use yours, Mrs. Landry?" asked Arden. - -"Yes, I think so," Terry's mother answered after a moment of thought. "It -will do no harm." - -"Then we'll do it," decided Arden. - -"I can hardly wait!" Sim cried excitedly. "Of course we couldn't go to -town tonight?" she looked beseechingly at Mrs. Landry. - -"Of course not, my dear young Watson," Terry's mother smiled as she -replied. "You sleuths have done quite enough for one day. Besides, think -how silly you'll feel if you find out nothing has happened at all." - -"I suppose so," Terry reluctantly admitted. "But somehow, Mother, I think -there's something in this." - -"You may be right," her mother agreed. "Nevertheless, your commanding -officer orders you all to bed." - -Somewhat petulantly they kissed the jovial lady good-night and went -upstairs, but not to sleep till some time later, when, unable to stay -awake any longer, they at last succumbed to the call of Morpheus. - -But sleeping though they were, it was a fitful rest. Filled with dreams -of gold boxes, strange dark women, and telegrams. Once Arden cried out, -"Tania! Tania!" and Sim gave her a sleepy nudge to wake her from her -dream. - -Arden sighed and rolled over. Morning was so long in coming. At length -the smiling sun climbed up over the edge of the ocean and announced the -beginning of a new day. - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - Melissa Has a Pin - - -As soon as they possibly could after breakfast the next day, the three -girls rowed over to the houseboat and fed Tania. They let her romp for a -while and reluctantly locked her up again. They feared the townspeople, -ever on the watch for something to talk about, would find some choice -gossip if they were seen in the village with the "Russian's" dog. - -The storm was over, and the sun, almost a stranger, broke through the -clouds, blinding in its brightness. The day promised to be hot, so -dressed in cool "semi-back" dresses the girls left the houseboat and went -home first to report to Mrs. Landry that there was no news. - -Then they got the car out and went to the village to send the telegram, -which they all hoped would bring good results. - -"You'd better shut the door of the phone booth," Terry suggested to Arden -as they entered the drug store. "You never can tell who'll be listening, -and the whole town would be excited if they heard the message." - -"Yes, I think that would be best," Arden agreed. - -Trying to appear nonchalant, as though this was an ordinary call, Arden -sent off the message. She requested an immediate answer. To make doubly -sure, she informed the operator who took the telegram that she must know -as soon as possible if it was delivered and left the number of the -drug-store phone. - -The telegraph company had an arrangement with the drug store so that -messages could be telephoned in and payment made to the clerk. When Arden -had completed the dictation, at the request of the operator, she got the -drug clerk into the booth, and he was informed as to the toll, which -Arden paid him. - -"It will take a while, even if it is delivered," Arden told her friends. -"So we might as well do the shopping and come back." - -"Oh, I do hope we get a reply," Sim said earnestly. "I couldn't sleep -last night thinking about Dimitri." - -"For a person who couldn't sleep, you gave a marvelous imitation," Arden -answered sarcastically. "Three or four times I could have sworn you were -dead to the world." - -"Me-ouw--me-ouw," Terry squeaked. "Don't be catty! The time will go -quicker if we keep busy." - -They did all the shopping they had to for Terry's mother and walked once -around the block to kill more time before returning to the drug store. - -Arden could no longer be diplomatic. She marched up to the dull-looking -soda boy and asked in clear tones: "Did a message come for me?" - -"Haven't had a call today," replied the youth behind the counter. "Were -you expect----" - -The phone bell rang sharply. Arden almost ran to answer it, slamming the -door shut behind her. - -Terry and Sim could see her face, bright with anticipation for a few -seconds, then with dismay saw her expression change. They couldn't hear -what she was saying, but in a short while she was out again and beckoned -them to follow her outside. - -"That was one of the managers of the telegraph company in New York," -Arden reported. "He's in the office nearest Ninth Street. He said they -couldn't send a boy out to deliver a message without a street address--it -would lose too much time. But if we are willing to pay extra for -messenger service, he says he'll have a boy sort of scout around and try -to locate the party." - -"What did you tell him?" asked Terry. - -"Told him to go ahead and we'd pay anything in reason. He said it -probably would not be much more than a dollar." - -"We'll chip in," declared Terry. - -"I thought you would; that's why I authorized him to go on. So now we'll -have some more waiting. They're going to try again." - -"Oh, I hope we have some luck this time," Terry remarked. "But whatever -shall we do with ourselves while we're waiting?" - -"That's a problem," Arden said thoughtfully. "Let's get our hair washed -and waved. Mine could stand it. It's full of salt water." - -"Great!" Sim exclaimed. "Of course, we know the beauty parlor here is -nothing to write home about, but it will serve." - -"It will serve us, little one," Terry declared, and they walked three -abreast down the sunny street. - -The girl operators were glad to have some new customers, and city folks -at that, so they asked innumerable questions. The three girls were -guarded in their answers, afraid they would give away their secret. - -A none too gentle girl rubbed Arden's scalp with stubby fingers, keeping -up her barrage of questions the while. What was the latest coiffure in -the city? Was the long bob going out? What kind of a permanent did she -have? Wearily Arden answered, wishing the girl would keep quiet. - -But at last it was over and they went back to haunt the drug store again. - -No, the clerk told them, no message had yet come. - -The girls sat down on the steps outside. This was not an unusual thing to -do. In a small village one could sit for hours by the gas station, post -office, or drug store without being thought queer. - -In an agony of suspense, they waited fifteen minutes--twenty minutes. -They reached a point where they were sitting silently, each busy with her -own worrying and wondering thoughts. - -An answer was almost too much to expect of the most kindly fate. But it -was true there was no harm in trying. Dimitri was gone, and the snuffbox -too. The situation, despite Chief Reilly's jovial acceptance of it, was -taking on a serious character. - -Sim was just about to ask if the state police should not be notified, -when the phone in the store rang shrilly. They could hear it, for the -booth door had been left open. - -Arden jumped up. For a fleeting second she looked at her companions as -though to plead with some unseen force that this call should bring -results. Then she dashed inside with no thought of appearance. When she -emerged from the booth this time her chums knew she had met with some -success. Her face wreathed in smiles she burst out: - -"We've got an answer!" - -"Oh, what?" - -"Tell us!" - -"It was the telegraph manager again," Arden reported. "The boy finally -located our man, and we owe a dollar and a quarter. It took a little -longer than was expected." - -"Pooh! Only an extra quarter!" exclaimed Sim. - -"But did they deliver the telegram?" asked Terry. - -"Yes, of course. To Serge Uzlov, and he wired an answer." - -"Oh!" Sim and Terry exclaimed in unison. "What did he say?" - -"'Leaving at once for Oceanedge,'" quoted Arden. - -"How wonderful!" Terry almost shouted. "Then he was some relative of poor -Dimitri?" - -"It looks that way," admitted Arden. "Wait, we must pay that dollar and a -quarter," she said quickly, for Sim and Terry evinced a desire to hasten -away. They made up the money, though it rather taxed their purses after -the beauty parlor treatment. But they didn't mind in the least. - -"Now let's go and tell your mother, Terry," suggested Sim. - -They started out of the drug store and almost bowled over Melissa -Clayton, who was on the point of entering. - -"Oh, Melissa, how are you?" Sim asked. "We haven't seen you for a long -time." - -"I'm all right," the girl replied noncommittally. - -"Weren't sick, were you?" Arden asked. - -"No, just a cold," Melissa replied. - -"All better?" Terry inquired. They were anxious to be on their way, yet -they could not pass by the poor child for whom they had so much sympathy. - -"What a pretty pin," Arden remarked next, looking at a stick pin with a -deep red stone which Melissa had thrust through the collar of an old -middy blouse. "Where did you get it?" - -Sim and Terry pressed closer; they could tell from Arden's tone that this -was no idle question, and as they looked they started, for the pin, a -man's, they had all seen Dimitri wearing the day of the little tea party. - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - The Policewoman - - -"I found it," Melissa replied without hesitating. - -"How lucky! Where?" Arden continued. - -"On the beach," Melissa went on. Then she pushed past the girls and -entered the store. - -Arden did not question her further, fearing to make the girl suspicious. -But on the way home the three discussed the remarkable coincidence. - -"Now, where on earth could Melissa have found that pin?" Sim asked. "Of -course, it belonged to Dimitri, and I don't for a minute believe she -found it on the beach." - -"Nor I," Arden agreed. "My guess is that, if she found it at all, she -found it on the houseboat. And that means she was there before we were, -because we went over it pretty thoroughly by ourselves, and the chief -didn't miss anything when he came with us." - -"I suppose we ought to ask if he found out anything, just to keep up -appearances," Terry suggested. "What do you think, girls?" - -"Oh, of course, it would never do to let him think we had forgotten about -him. We can stop in now and ask how the case is coming," Arden replied. -"But we don't need to mention the telegram." - -The chief, when they pulled up by the garage, crawled out from under a -car. With a comical show of secrecy he came toward them, glancing over -his shoulder as he came. - -"I ain't had a chance to do nothing yet," he said, wiping some grease off -his hands. "My car broke down. But I'm a-studyin' it, and I'll let you -know this afternoon. You heard anything?" - -Arden hesitated before replying. After all, she had _heard_ nothing. That -they had an answer to their telegram was just a bit of luck, and she -thought it just as well if the chief did not know of it. - -"No," she answered. "We haven't heard a thing." - -"Well, don't worry," Reilly said, smiling. "Remember, a murderer always -returns to the scene of his crime." - -"And you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear," Sim flung back at -him. He did so annoy her! Imagine "studyin' it." What good would that do, -and what nonsense was that about a murderer? - -"That's right!" chuckled Reilly. "You know, young ladies, the whole -trouble with cases of this kind is haste. Haste is what gums things up. -Go slowly, and you have much better results. You ain't told anyone in -town, have you? These here people are powerful talkers." - -"Not a soul, Mr. Reilly," Arden assured him. - -"You keep on studying it and let us know when you learn something, will -you?" suggested Sim. - -"'Deed I will, and I'll have some news soon, sure. In the meantime don't -forget. Look before you leap," the chief said, smiling. - -"Yes," Sim said as the car pulled away, "that's good advice, and 'he who -hesitates is lost' is good, too." - -Reilly looked after them with a puzzled expression on his face. Was that -little snip making fun of him? Then he shrugged and crawled back under -the car he was trying to fix. - -"Sim, you cheerful idiot, were you trying to make him mad?" Terry asked -as they drove home. - -"No, but he annoyed me so I couldn't help it. I don't believe he'll be a -bit of good. I know more about mysteries than he does." - -"But it wouldn't do to antagonize him. After all, he's the strong arm of -the law down here," Arden reminded her. - -"Not such a very strong arm, in my opinion," Sim answered, and she -slipped deeper down in the car seat. - -"Oh, well, don't let's argue," Terry soothed. "We've got too much to -think about now." - -Sim was instantly alert again. "I remember distinctly seeing that pin in -Dimitri's tie the day he showed us the snuffbox. Melissa knows more than -we think," she said. - -"We don't know very much when you come right down to it," Arden reminded -her. "If a real detective questioned us, there's very little we could -tell him." - -"How long will it take that Serge Uzlov to get down?" Sim asked of no one -in particular. "I wish he'd take a plane." - -"There's no place here at Marshlands for a plane to alight," Terry -answered. "Unless he took a seaplane and landed on the bay. Think what -excitement that would cause!" - -"I suppose so," Sim admitted as they turned in the driveway. "We'll just -have to wait. I won't have a fingernail left by evening. I chewed them -nearly all off waiting for that phone call." - -Terry whistled for her mother. At the sound of that shrill call, Mrs. -Landry, try as she did to appear rather uninterested in the whole -baffling case, came out of the house quickly and listened with great -interest to the story of the message. - -"And, Mother," Terry finished, "as we left the store we met Melissa -coming in, and she was wearing a tie pin of Dimitri's. What do you think -of that?" - -"Did you say anything about it?" Mrs. Landry asked. - -"We didn't let her know we recognized it, and she said she found it on -the beach," Terry answered. - -"Perhaps she did. Surely you don't think Melissa had anything to do with -all this?" Mrs. Landry questioned. - -"That's just it. We don't know _who_ had anything to do with it," Terry -moaned. - -"Well," Sim stated firmly, "I'll feel better when that man from New York -gets here. I'll bet he knows something." - -The others had nothing to say to that, and they all went indoors for -luncheon. - -The meal was nearly finished when there was a knock at the front door. -Bells in seashore cottages never seem to ring. They may at the beginning -of the season, but almost always, before it ends, there appears over the -push button a little note stating: "Please knock." - -Now, in answer to that invitation, a knock sounded. - -"I'll go," said Ida, who had just brought in the dessert. - -The three girls glanced eagerly at one another. - -Was it Serge? - -But in another moment they knew it was not, for they heard the murmuring -of a woman's voice talking to the maid. Presently Ida came back, a -frightened look on her face, to announce: - -"It's a policewoman." - -"A policewoman!" exclaimed Mrs. Landry. "Are you sure, Ida?" - -"Oh, yes'm. I've seen 'em in New York. They all dress the same, and they -have a queer look on their face, and they wear heavy shoes. It's a -policewoman all right." - -"But what does she want?" Terry asked. - -"Melissa Clayton," said Ida. - -"Oh!" murmured Arden. "If they arrest that poor child----" - -"Perhaps we'd better have this policewoman in," suggested Mrs. Landry. - -"Oh, yes!" said Sim. "We've got to find out about this. Perhaps she may -know something about Dimitri." - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - On the Water Trail - - -Mrs. Landry told Ida to invite the visitor to sit on the front porch -while the dessert was being eaten. - -"If I asked her into the front room she would probably hear what you -girls talk about," said Terry's mother, "and you are sure to talk, I -know." - -"You can't blame us in these circumstances," said Sim. - -"No, I can't." Mrs. Landry smiled understandingly. "But why should a -policewoman come here for this child?" - -"We're going to find out very soon," declared Arden. - -The dessert was eaten in record time, and then, after a whispered -conference, it was decided that Mrs. Landry should first interview the -caller alone and, if necessary, call in the girls. - -"Though, if she wants us to help her catch poor Melissa, what shall we -do?" whispered Terry. - -"We won't tell her a thing," decided Sim. "Why should we make more -trouble for the poor child?" - -"Even if she took Dimitri's pin?" suggested Arden. - -"We don't know that she took it--we don't even know, for sure, that it is -his pin," said Terry while her mother went out on the porch. "We couldn't -prove it in court." - -"I suppose not," agreed Arden. "Though I, myself, believe it is his. Now, -be careful," she warned. "Don't let on that we know anything about -Melissa, or have just seen her, unless we have to." - -The others agreed to this. They could hear the murmuring talk between -Mrs. Landry and the caller. Presently Terry's mother came into the dining -room, where the girls were still sitting, to say: - -"It isn't anything to worry about. Good news, rather than bad." - -"About Dimitri?" asked Arden eagerly. - -"No. It's all Melissa. You had better hear this woman's story. She -doesn't want to arrest the poor child, so you can talk freely to her. And -she isn't a policewoman. She is from a private detective agency, though." - -"It's almost as bad," said Terry. "Why is a detective agency interested -in Melissa?" - -"You had better hear the whole story," suggested Mrs. Landry. "Come, and -I will introduce you." - -The three girls trailed after her out to the porch. The woman was as Ida -had described her. She looked determined and efficient but not unkind, -nor like one who would, as Arden remarked later, "hound a poor girl to -death." - -"This is my daughter," said Mrs. Landry, presenting Terry, "and her two -college chums who are spending the summer with her. Miss Blake and Miss -Westover." - -"Pleased to meet you. I'm Emma Tash, and I'm from the Torrance Private -Detective Agency in New York. I was sent down here by my chief to find -out something about a girl named Melissa Clayton. As we always do in -these cases, we make some inquiries of friends and neighbors before going -directly to the parties themselves. - -"I stopped in the village, and I found out that you people are friendly -with this girl. Do you mind telling me something about her?" - -"With the understanding," put in Mrs. Landry, "that there is no harm -intended to Melissa." - -"Oh, now," Emma Tash was quick to say, "I told you that at the start." - -"Perhaps you wouldn't mind repeating it for the benefit of my daughter -and her friends," suggested Terry's mother. - -"Not at all. I'll put my cards on the table, so to speak, and you can -judge how much you want to tell me. This Melissa Clayton, according to -the case as it comes to me, has an elderly aunt, her mother's sister, who -is quite wealthy. This aunt, a widow named Mrs. Lulu Benlon, has for a -long time wanted to befriend this girl, but Melissa's father refuses to -let anything be done for her." - -"Just like him!" murmured Arden. - -"I heard something like that in the village," went on Emma Tash. "But -we'll come to him later. Anyhow, the firm I am with has been hired to see -if something can't be done now. It seems that several times, in years -past, Mrs. Benlon tried to do something for Melissa but was prevented. -After being turned down more than once, she gave up. Now Mrs. Benlon is -ailing. She's afraid she is going to die soon, but before that she wants -to make another effort to help Melissa." - -"Couldn't she leave her money in a will?" asked Sim. - -"Yes, that was talked of, but Mrs. Benlon is queer," said Emma Tash. "She -wants to be sure Melissa will get the benefit of her help, and if she -left her money there is no telling that Melissa would ever get it. Mrs. -Benlon, it seems, wants the satisfaction of knowing, herself, that what -she does will really benefit the girl." - -"She's probably wise there," said Mrs. Landry. - -"Yes, I guess so," the detective investigator admitted. "So that's why -I'm here. Mrs. Benlon has offered to take Melissa out of what, from all -accounts, is a poor sort of a home and give her a good one--even send her -to school to be educated. But Mrs. Benlon doesn't want George Clayton to -have anything of her bounty. It seems that he wasn't kind to his wife, -who was Mrs. Benlon's younger sister. - -"As I get the story, it was a sort of runaway match; marry in haste and -repent all the rest of your life. Anyhow, Melissa's mother died soon -after the girl's birth, and she had been brought up in a hand-to-mouth -sort of way ever since, according to Mrs. Benlon. But if it can be -brought about there is a happier time ahead for Melissa. Now that you -know what I want, will you help me?" - -"Yes!" exclaimed Arden, and her chums nodded in agreement. - -"What do you want us to do?" asked Terry. - -"Tell me all you can about this girl and her father and, if you can, -suggest how I can best get in communication with them," said Emma Tash. - -"That last part isn't going to be easy," said Terry. "George Clayton is a -queer man; ugly too, I'm afraid." - -"That bears out what I have heard," said the investigator. "But there -must be some way. Perhaps you can help me. But first tell me all you -can--that is, all you want me to know." - -This last clause was a saving one for the girls. They felt, under it, -that they need not mention the pin nor any possible connection Melissa -might have with the houseboat. Dimitri Uzlov need not be brought in, nor -the fact that he was not to be found. The girls could still keep to -themselves, as far as Emma Tash was concerned, the secret of the man -missing at Marshlands. - -With this in mind, Terry, Arden, and Sim, by turns, assisted with a word -from Mrs. Landry now and then, told about Melissa Clayton and her father. - -"They live in a sort of shack on the edge of the bay, not far from the -marsh," said Terry. "You can get to it by a long winding road out of the -village, but the best way is to go by boat." - -"Then I'll go that way," said the woman detective determinedly. - -"I don't believe you'll get very close to the Clayton shack if you -approach openly by boat," said Terry. "George Clayton is a suspicious -man, and if he's home he'll probably order you off his premises." - -"He may not be home," said Emma Tash. "If he isn't, so much the better. I -can talk to Melissa alone. She ought to be old enough to make up her mind -to leave her poverty for a better home with her aunt." - -"That's just it," said Arden. "I think Melissa is rather simple-minded, -to state it gently. Do you think you would be justified in inducing that -sort of a person to do something her father would oppose?" - -"Oh, no, I wouldn't do that for anything," was the quick answer. "If I -find her that kind of a girl I will report back to my office and we'll -get legal advice. But Mrs. Benlon thinks she owes a duty to her niece, -and she wants to carry it out as soon as she can." - -"Here's an idea," said Sim suddenly. "What about going crabbing?" - -"Going crabbing!" exclaimed Arden, not seeing the relevancy of the -remark. "What in the world for?" - -"We have to take the water trail to the Clayton shack," went on Sim. -"Now, if we pretend to be crabbing we can gradually work our way toward -it without exciting suspicion. Melissa may be outside or even out in a -boat herself, crabbing or fishing. Her father may be out lifting his -lobster pots. In that case Miss Tash can see the girl and talk with her. -Melissa won't be afraid if she sees us." - -"Say, that's a good idea!" declared Terry. - -"But you know," said Arden, "we have to wait here for----" - -She did not finish, though her chums knew whom she meant. - -"Oh, I don't want to take you away," Emma Tash hastened to assure the -girls. "I could go by myself." - -"I think it would be better if some of the girls went with you," -suggested Mrs. Landry. "Melissa would feel much more confidence." - -"I suppose she would, as I'm a stranger to her. But I hate to be a -bother." - -"No bother at all," said Terry. "One of us can go with you, and the rest -of us can stay here to receive our expected visitor. He may not come -after all," she added. - -"Oh, I think he will," said Arden. - -"Then you two stay here," suggested Terry quickly. "I will go in our boat -with this lady. We'll do some crabbing. It will be the best way." - -"And if our friend comes," said Sim, "we'll hold him until you get back, -Terry." - -"Yes, do that." - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - The Man Arrives - - -Emma Tash was a very efficient woman. No sooner had the crabbing plan of -approaching the Clayton shack been decided upon than she lifted up a -small black bag which she had set beside her chair. - -"If we are going crabbing," she said with a smile, "I have my disguise in -here." - -"Disguise!" repeated the girls in a chorus. - -Truly things were developing fast at Marshlands. - -A detective woman! - -A disguise! - -Arden's eyes sparkled. - -"It isn't much of a disguise," went on Emma Tash. "We women investigators -don't go in much for that sort of thing. Some of our men do, though. But -when I knew I had to come down to the seashore, naturally I thought of -bathing, fishing, or crabbing. - -"Now, I'm not very fond of ocean bathing, so I passed up that suit. I -don't know how to fish, but I do know how to crab, and I used to do it -when I was a girl. So I brought my crabbing disguise with me." - -"What in the world is a crabbing disguise?" asked Terry, as their visitor -laughed. "George Clayton doesn't wear one." - -"It's just an old dress I don't care what happens to," said Emma Tash, -"and an old-fashioned sunbonnet. With that on, I defy anyone who sees me -in it to recognize me afterward if I dress as I am now." - -"Oh, that sort of a disguise," laughed Terry. "Well, I guess that will be -all right. And we had better start," she added. "Time is passing, and I -want to be back here to help receive our visitor." - -"I will be as quick as I can," Emma Tash said. "If I could go somewhere -to change my dress----" - -"I'll show you," offered Mrs. Landry. "Come with me, please." - -While the visitor was upstairs, the girls, in breathless whispers, -discussed her and her errand. They agreed that the plan they had adopted -was the best one possible in the circumstances. - -"Only," sighed Terry who, in a sense, was offering herself as a -sacrifice, "I do hope Serge Uzlov doesn't arrive until I get back." - -"We'll keep him for you," promised Arden. - -Emma Tash certainly was a very different person in her crabbing disguise. -She looked the part of a back-country native to perfection. She and Terry -were soon off in the boat, provided with a net, a peach basket to hold -the crabs, and some old pieces of meat, on strings, for bait. - -Sim and Arden watched Terry row away in the direction of the Clayton -shack. - -"And now we'll just have to sit here and wait," sighed Arden as Terry and -her passenger disappeared around a point. - -"We could go in swimming," suggested Sim, ever mindful of her ambition to -become an expert in aquatic sports. - -"Then let's. It will make the time pass quicker. After all, I don't -believe he can get here until late afternoon. There aren't many shore -trains out of New York until near the commuting hour," said Arden. - -So Sim and Arden put on their suits and went in for a dip. But it was -rather too cool for real enjoyment in the water, and they soon came out -and sunned themselves on the sand. - -Meanwhile Terry, with her usual skill at the oars, was sending the boat -along at good speed toward their objective. - -"Mustn't row too fast now, though," she told Emma Tash when she was near -the Clayton shack. "Crabbers usually just anchor, put the bait over the -side, and wait for bites." - -"I know," said the detective woman. "I've done it often enough. But -crabbers often haul up the anchor and go from place to place looking for -better luck. In that way we can gradually approach without any -suspicions." - -"I think so," Terry agreed. - -She rowed on until they were within view of the place where Melissa -lived. There was no sign of life about the shack or its outbuildings. -Whether Melissa had returned home after meeting the girls in the drug -store, Terry had no way of finding out. - -"Perhaps we'd better stop here," suggested Emma Tash. "I can make an -observation while you put some bait over the side." - -"Observation?" questioned Terry. - -"Yes. With these. We find them useful on cases." - -Emma Tash produced from a pocket in her crabbing dress a binocular, and -as Terry threw the little anchor over, Emma Tash focused the glass on the -Clayton shack. - -The boat had drifted the length of the anchor rope with the incoming -tide, which is always best for crabbing, and Terry was putting over the -first bit of bait when the detective woman lowered the binocular and -said: - -"Not a sign of life. I guess there's nobody home." - -"Melissa would hardly have had time to get here since we saw her in the -drug store," said Terry. "And very likely her father is out in his boat." - -"Then we'll just have to wait and trust to luck," was the decision of -Emma Tash. "I'd like to see the girl alone." - -They began to crab in earnest now. For, after all, George Clayton might -be lurking about his place and see them. For a time Terry really entered -into the enjoyment of their occupation, for the crabs were biting well -and she landed a number of big blue-clawed ones, while her companion did -likewise. - -Now and then they would net a "mammy," her apron bulging with a cluster -of yellow eggs ready to be deposited in some clump of the lettuce-like -seaweed. These "mammy" crabs were always thrown back to aid in the -propagation of future generations. - -"I think we had better move a little--a little closer," suggested the -detective in a low voice after a half hour of good luck. "I want to take -another look." - -"Yes," Terry agreed. She pulled up the anchor, but this time the -policewoman did the rowing, and she rowed well. Terry envied her skill. - -Again they anchored, but this time they had picked a poor location and -caught nothing. Inspection through the glass still revealed no sign of -life about the place. It appeared silent and deserted. - -"I think we can chance going a bit closer," said Emma Tash after another -half hour. "If I don't see anything then, I believe I'll take a chance -and land. I'll walk up to the place. Melissa may be asleep in there." - -"I hardly think so," said Terry. "But you can try." - -They hoisted the anchor again, moved nearer the place, and once more the -glass was used. - -"I can't see a sign of anybody," Emma Tash declared. "I'm going up -there." - -Once more Terry pulled up the mud-hook, and again the oars were used by -the detective. But just as she was easing up, in preparation to letting -the boat glide up the mucky beach, a man's voice called: - -"Keep away from here! I don't let nobody land!" - -George Clayton suddenly appeared in front of his shack, holding a long -pole. - -"Get away!" he cried. "This is a private beach! You can crab all you want -to out there, but don't land. I've warned you!" - -"Well, that's that," said Terry in a low voice. She held her head down. -In spite of the fact that she was wearing a big straw hat, she feared the -man might recognize her. - -But Emma Tash did not give up so easily. - -"Can't we land and get a drink of water?" she called. - -"No! Keep off!" - -"Very well." - -There was nothing for it but to row away, and this they did. - -"But I'm not giving up," said the detective when they were on their way -back to "Buckingham Palace." Terry wondered if Serge were there. "I'll go -back to New York and suggest a different method," Emma Tash said. "The -girl's aunt is anxious to do something for the child, and her brute of a -father shouldn't be allowed to stand in the way." - -"Of course not," Terry agreed. - -She rowed fast back to the little dock, and her first unasked question -was answered, as Sim and Arden who came down to meet her, with Arden's -remark: - -"He hasn't arrived yet." - -"Well, I'm glad I didn't miss him," Terry said. - -Emma Tash changed back into her regular dress, put the crabbing disguise -into her bag and, thanking them all for the help, started for the -village, saying she would take a train back to New York. - -"But I'm coming here again," she said. "And if you get a chance I wish -you would let Melissa know that her aunt wants to help her." - -"We will," Terry promised. - -It was now late afternoon, and the girls, nervous with the tension, sat -on the porch, waiting. Not for anything would they now go far away from -the house. The "man from New York" might arrive any minute. - -"Oh, dear," Sim wailed. "Isn't this suspense awful? If that man doesn't -come soon, I'll----" - -"It's almost five o'clock," Arden said, looking at her watch. "He ought -to get here soon." - -"You youngsters will be nervous wrecks," Mrs. Landry remarked as Terry -paced restlessly up and down the front porch. "Can't you find something -to do?" - -"I can't sit still long enough to do anything," Terry replied. - -"Listen!" Arden cautioned. "Isn't that a car?" - -Instantly there was quiet. They all strained their ears to hear the sound -of bumping wheels. - -"Yes!" Terry exclaimed. "Come on!" - -Flinging open the screen door of the porch she raced around to the back, -where the yellow sand road stretched. Sim and Arden followed close behind -her. - -They stood like pointers, immobile, while the car approached. It reached -the gate and stopped. The side door was opened, and a polished shoe was -thrust out. Then the whole man appeared, and the girls gasped audibly. It -was the dark young man who had rowed himself over to the houseboat when -they last heard from Dimitri! - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - The Man in the Marsh - - -"Then it was you!" Arden burst out impulsively as she saw him. - -"I beg your pardon?" the young man replied, somewhat puzzled. "I am Serge -Uzlov. I received a telegram this morning which brought me down here. Did -you----?" - -"I sent it," Arden replied. "We guessed at your address and sent it -because we thought you might know something about Dimitri." - -"Know something--about my own brother? I'm afraid I don't understand." He -looked from one to the other of the girls, his face showing wonderment -and some fear. - -"Of course, how could you?" Terry remarked. "Please come up on the porch, -and we'll explain." - -There, while he sipped a cool drink Sim got for him, Serge Uzlov heard -the queer story of Dimitri's disappearance. - -"So you see," Arden went on, "we got worried and took a chance on the -telegram." - -"It was a very lucky chance, as it turned out," Serge agreed. "I cannot -imagine what could become of Dimitri. He's a lonely fellow, yes. But he -always keeps in touch with me. I had a long talk with him when I was down -before, and he seemed in good health and the best of spirits." - -"He didn't say anything about going away, then?" Arden asked. - -"Not a word. In fact, he told me how much he liked it down here," the -young man went on. "Could we not go over to the boat? I am anxious to -look around." - -"Yes, we can go over at once," Arden replied. "We shall go by boat, it is -quicker." - -They all got into the faithful little rowboat, and the young man took the -oars. He could row with quite some skill, being an athletic type. His -tanned face showed he was no stranger to outdoor life. Arden looked -searchingly at him. Just what did he know? - -Sim and Terry were curious, too. They were suspicious of everyone now. -The fact that this man claimed to be the brother of Dimitri proved -nothing. - -The boat moved quickly through the quiet evening water. - -"We did tell the chief of police about your brother," Arden admitted, -"but you have nothing to fear from him. He's studying the case, as he -says, and the last time we saw him he was working on his old car." - -The young man smiled. "I am sure Dimitri will be found all right," he -said. "And I'm very grateful to you for sending for me. It was indeed -fortunate that you found the paper. From your description of it, I think -it must have been from my sister Olga. She has been here, she tells me, -to see Dimitri." - -"Olga! Your sister!" Sim exclaimed unbelievingly. - -"Yes," Serge Uzlov replied. "There are just the three of us, now. Olga, -Dimitri, and I. We are a queer family, I suppose, each one living alone; -each one having his own friends and always trying to make ends meet." - -"I don't know just what we imagined about you and your sister," Arden -said slyly, "but it never occurred to us, I'm sure, that you two were -related." - -"And you were too well mannered to ask," Serge suggested, smiling. - -"Or perhaps we just didn't think about it," Sim said modestly. - -The young man pulled vigorously, and the little rowboat plowed through -the bay. To their right, as they approached it, lay the _Merry Jane_, -looking as they had last seen it. - -When they were close to the houseboat, Tania began to bark: sharp, -staccato barks and deep growls in her throat. - -"Tania must have heard us coming," Sim suggested. - -"I think, Sim," Arden corrected her, "that Tania's barking at something -else. She sounds pretty angry to me." - -They listened again. Tania was snarling and barking furiously. - -"Tania!" called Arden as they came alongside the houseboat. "Tania, we -are your friends!" - -As she called they all heard the sound of running footsteps on the part -of the deck farthest away from them. - -"There's somebody here!" Serge cried, and hurried to make fast the -rowboat. - -Leaving the girls still seated in the skiff, Serge leaped from it to the -deck of the _Merry Jane_ just in time to see a man jump over the side -into the deep marsh grass. - -Serge looked after him, but the intruder was completely hidden by the -tall growth. - -"He got away!" Serge called to the girls. He was about to follow the -runaway man when Arden stopped him. - -"There's no use in following him, you could never catch him in that -marsh," she said and Serge was forced to agree with her as he saw how -dense were the tall cat-tails and sedge-grass in the swamp. - -"What did he look like?" Terry asked. - -"I couldn't see his face. He was just going over the side when I -approached. But I saw black rubber boots." - -"That might have been anyone," Arden said. "Half the natives in Oceanedge -wear boots around the marsh." - -"Let's go inside," suggested Sim, "and see what he was after." - -"Yes," agreed Serge. "That's the only thing to do now." - -He led the way and, not pausing for a moment in the outer room, parted -the curtains and, as the girls could see, went straight to the shattered -cupboard. - -"It's gone!" Serge exclaimed. He turned to face the girls, his hands -spread wide in a gesture of despair. "It's gone!" - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - Melissa Again - - -Sim smiled a little bitterly. "If you mean the snuffbox," she said, "we -know it's gone. It has been for some time." - -"Then you know about it?" Serge asked. - -"We knew Dimitri _had_ it, if that's what you mean," Arden went on. "But -we don't know where it is _now_." - -"Of course," the young man breathed a sigh of relief, "Dimitri has it -with him, wherever he is." - -"He may have. We can't prove he hasn't," Terry said explaining. "But why -should he have broken open his own cupboard?" - -"You're right!" exclaimed Serge. "He would never have done that." - -"I wonder what that man who jumped overboard was doing," Sim mused. "I -don't see that he has touched anything in here." - -After a look around, they all agreed that, whatever was his mysterious -reason for coming, he apparently had left in a hurry. Several books that -had been on the table now lay on the floor, but that was all in evidence. - -"We're just as much in the dark as ever," Terry remarked sadly. "We'll -have to start all over again." - -"Tell us about Dimitri," Arden said to Serge. "You were, as far as we can -tell, the last person who saw him a----" she started, she had almost said -"alive." So she began again. "Was he all right when you saw him last? Did -he say anything about going away?" - -"We sat talking and eating all evening," Serge explained. "Russians are -great eaters, you know. But Dimitri didn't mention going away, and I left -him in the best of spirits. Then I rowed back, got into my car, and drove -on to New York." - -"That doesn't help at all," Sim wailed. "It only proves that Dimitri left -very suddenly and probably against his will. He would have told you if -he'd planned leaving, wouldn't he?" she asked the young man. - -"I am sure he had no thought of going," Serge hastened to assure her. "He -was too much interested in the portrait he was finishing." - -"You mean the one of me?" Arden asked simply. - -"Yes; you've seen it?" - -"We looked--after Dimitri----" Arden said sadly. "Do you think he would -mind?" - -Serge shrugged. "Don't worry about it. We have something more important -to think about." - -"But the worst of it is," Sim complained, "that we're so helpless." - -"We can do nothing here, at any rate," agreed Serge. - -"You will come to dinner with us, won't you?" Terry asked. "Mother -expects you. There is no place in town where you can get anything worth -eating." - -"You are sure it won't be too much trouble? I did not expect it, you -know," Serge answered, smiling. - -"Of course not," Terry insisted. "You have to get your car, anyway." - -After another look around, the little party left the houseboat once more. -Tania seemed used to these comings and goings, for she took no notice of -them as they departed. - -The water of the bay was as smooth as glass as they rowed away, the girls -looking back wistfully as they left the houseboat behind. - -Terry's mother had a delicious meal waiting, and after so much excitement -and activity the girls felt very hungry. - -The conversation naturally centered about the disappearance of Dimitri. -They discussed it from all angles. It was during a lull in the talk that -Terry gave a little scream. - -"What's the matter?" Arden asked at once. - -"Nothing," Terry answered. "I saw a face at the window, and it made me -jump. But it's only Melissa again." - -"See what she wants, Terry," Mrs. Landry told her daughter. "Perhaps the -poor child is hungry." - -Terry left the table and hurried outside. She could see Melissa running -down the path in the late summer twilight. She was wearing black rubber -hip boots and her old gray sweater, but surely, Terry thought to herself, -it couldn't have been Melissa whom they had seen on the houseboat. Terry -felt she must stop the girl, at any rate, to find out. - -"Melissa! Melissa!" Terry called. "Wait, I have something for you." - -Melissa stopped and faced Terry. "What?" she asked abruptly. "What've you -got?" - -"Something nice," Terry assured her, and then, because she could think of -nothing else, she asked the frightened girl, "Do you like chocolate -cake?" - -"Sure do," Melissa replied shyly. "Heaps!" - -"Come on back, then," Terry coaxed, and Melissa came towards her. - -Terry took her into the bright little kitchen and gave her a large glass -of milk and a big piece of chocolate cake. Melissa ate greedily, and -Terry spoke gently to her to gain her confidence. - -"That certainly is a lovely pin," Terry remarked. "Would you mind if I -showed it to my mother? She's in the other room, but I'll bring it right -back." - -"I guess so," Melissa agreed reluctantly, and taking the stick pin from -her collar she handed the ornament to Terry. Her rather pale blue eyes -were questioning her benefactor, and she looked not at all sure that she -liked the situation. - -Terry took the pin and pushed in the swinging door that led to the dining -room. - -"Come, finish your dinner," Mrs. Landry said. "What happened to Melissa?" - -"She's out in the kitchen," Terry replied and put a warning finger to her -lips. "Don't let her hear you. I just wanted to show this to Mr. Uzlov." -She held the pin out to Serge. "Isn't this your brother's?" - -Serge took it and examined it closely. - -"I gave it to Dimitri years ago," he said. "He always liked it. I don't -believe he would have parted with it willingly." - -"We didn't think so, either," Arden remarked, taking what small -satisfaction there was in the fact. - -"Go back to her, Terry," Mrs. Landry directed, "and talk to her a bit. -See if she will tell you anything. But don't frighten her," she -cautioned, and then to Serge she explained, "Melissa is like some -woodland creature. She runs at the first hint of danger. Poor child! The -girls have done all they can to help her, but she doesn't trust anyone." - -Terry, taking the pin, they all having decided it would excite Melissa if -they kept it, returned to the kitchen. - -Ida, the maid, was rattling pans and knives in the sink, but Melissa was -gone. - -"Where's Melissa?" Terry asked. - -"She went," Ida answered briefly. - -"Why? Did you say anything to frighten her?" Terry wanted to know. - -"Never said a word," Ida insisted. "She et the cake and got up and walked -out." - -Terry clenched her fists. Melissa gone again, and just when they thought -they would learn something. If the girl really wanted to hide, they could -never find her. There was only one thing to do. Follow her at once before -she got too far away. - -"I'll be back in a minute," Terry flung over her shoulder, and still -holding the pin clutched in one hand she slipped out the back door after -the elusive Melissa Clayton. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVII - Terry's Tactics - - -Melissa was just about to push off in her old rowboat when Terry, without -asking permission, hopped in and sat smiling at the startled girl. - -"You're in a great hurry, Melissa," Terry said in an effort to be -friendly. "You forgot your pin." - -Without saying a word Melissa held out her hand. But Terry, holding up -the piece of jewelry, teased Melissa. - -"I'll give it to you when you tell me where you really got it," Terry -said. - -"I found it, just like I told you," Melissa insisted. - -"Come, now, Melissa, that's hard to believe. But don't let me stop you -from having your sail. I'd be glad to have someone row me for a change. -I'm always giving other people a ride." - -"Well, I ought to be gettin' home. Pa will wonder about me," Melissa -said. - -"Don't forget that piece of cake I just gave you. And you left before I -got back to you. Why? Is anything worrying you?" - -"No, I just thought I'd better go," Melissa murmured sulkily. "Thanks for -the cake." - -"That's all right, I'd give you something a lot better than that if you -could help me," Terry said. Perhaps if Melissa thought she could be of -some definite use she would tell where she really got the pin. - -"What? What would you give me?" Melissa asked craftily. - -"What would you like--jewelry?" Terry questioned with a quiet sort of -emphasis on the last word. - -"Jewelry?" Melissa's eyes lit up greedily. "I got some jewelry now that'd -be better than any you could give me. No, you better not come along. I -got to be goin' home." - -"How could you have?" Terry asked, deliberately trying to antagonize the -girl. "The only jewelry you ever got was that old bracelet Sim gave you -weeks ago and that your father made you give back." - -"It is not," Melissa insisted. "I've got----No, I won't tell you; you're -just jealous." - -"Come on, Melissa, be a sport. You tell me about the secret you know and -I'll tell you something I know about you. Something fine. You'll love it. -What do you say, is it a bargain?" - -Terry waited. It would never do to rush things. If Melissa got stubborn -it would be hopeless, and Terry was almost positive, now, that the queer -girl was in possession of something. - -Melissa looked at her uninvited guest in the boat distrustfully. There -was no reason for not trusting her. The three girls had been very kind to -her this summer and had tried to give her the bracelet. Still, she -hesitated. Her father was also to be reckoned with. What would be his -attitude? Oh, well, Melissa mentally shrugged. - -"I did take the pin, but no one was there, and I knew the man wouldn't -care," Melissa said, watching Terry closely. - -"When, Melissa? When did you take it?" Terry asked, hoping that the girl -could throw some light on Dimitri's disappearance. - -"One day when the man was out with his dog, painting," Melissa replied. -"I sneaked in just to have a look around. Some of the village people said -he might be a spy, so I went over to see what a spy was. What is a spy, -anyway?" Melissa asked, forgetting for the minute that she had just told -Terry that the pin had not been found after all. - -"Never mind that. Dimitri's not a spy. That's foolish. Tell me the secret -you know." Terry was becoming impatient. - -Melissa hedged. This girl was too wise. Melissa's father might punish her -severely, send her away, even, where she'd have to dress up and wear -shoes in hot weather and do other uncomfortable things. - -"You won't tell my father?" Melissa begged Terry. - -"Not if you don't want me to," Terry replied. - -"Well," Melissa began, "over at my house I've got the prettiest box!" - -Terry jumped. The snuffbox! But she mustn't seem too surprised. - -"You have? Tell me about it. I won't tell your father," Terry said, -smiling confidentially. - -"I got it on the houseboat. It was in a little closet on the wall and I -broke the door open to see it," Melissa confessed, now trusting Terry -completely. - -"But how did you know it was there?" asked Terry. - -"The pretty lady told me about it. She gave me a dollar to bring it to -her, but after I found it, I liked it so much I couldn't bear to give it -up," Melissa explained. - -"But don't you know, Melissa, that you shouldn't take things that belong -to other people?" Terry said gently. - -"This was only a yellow box, and the lady said it was hers, anyway." - -"It wasn't, Melissa. It was Dimitri's, and the lady had no right to it. -Where is it now?" - -"I've got it safe," the girl said briefly. - -"Melissa," began Terry in a tone that commanded attention, "that was a -very wrong and dangerous thing to do, to take that box. I want you to -come back with me, while I explain to my friends and the Russian man's -brother just what happened. Then I want you to go over to your house with -us and give back the box." - -"Oh, no," pleaded Melissa. "I won't do it. My father would do something -awful to me if I did." - -"You've got to. If you don't," threatened Terry, "you'll probably be -arrested, and then what will become of you?" - -Melissa's eyes widened with fright. "Arrested?" she echoed dully. - -Terry nodded her head. - -"You better come back with me," she said quietly. Slowly Melissa began to -turn the boat. She was cornered, and she knew it. Terry spoke quietly as -they rowed back to the cottage, explaining to the worried girl that she -and her friends would see that no harm came to her. So well did she plead -that by the time they docked the boat, Melissa had grown confident, and -even eager to do Terry's bidding. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVIII - Driven Away - - -A great deal of tact was necessary to keep Melissa in a helpful frame of -mind. One careless word, and Terry knew Melissa would run. So, hoping her -chums would understand, she walked back to the house, talking cheerfully -to the girl as they went. - -"Melissa is going to help us find the snuffbox," Terry announced to the -astonished group that awaited them on the porch. "She knows where it is, -and she's going to take us over to her house for it." - -Frantic looks and powerful concentration seemed to do the trick, for -Arden fell in with Terry's plan. - -"That's fine, Melissa," Arden complimented her. "Let's start at once, -before it gets too dark. Terry, you and Melissa go together, and the rest -of us will follow in our boat." - -"Give her back the pin, at least for a time," suggested Arden. "It will -make her trust us more." - -"Not a bad idea," agreed Terry. "I will." - -"Yes, do," said Serge in a low voice. - -Terry slipped the pin back to Melissa, and she and the girl started for -the boats. - -"All right, Mother?" Terry asked. "Do you want to come too?" - -"No," replied Mrs. Landry. "I might be of some use here. Come back as -quickly as you can, and good luck to you." - -They needed no urging, and with Melissa leading and the others following, -they crossed the peaceful bay and landed close to the pitiful shack that -Melissa called "home." - -"It's in my room," the girl told them, proud in her simple way to be the -center of so much excitement. - -"You show us," Arden urged. - -Melissa entered the solitary house, the door of which swung loosely on -its hinges. The front room, furnished with an unpainted wooden table and -three rickety chairs, was dreary and uninviting. The girl, clumping along -in the boots which were much too large for her, entered a small room to -one side. It was little bigger than a large closet with a white-painted -bed and an old bureau topped by a cracked looking glass. - -After much shaking and pulling, Melissa succeeded in opening the top -drawer. She rummaged under some old clothes and thrust her hands far back -in the bureau. - -Suddenly, with an unbelieving look on her face, she turned to the little -group crowded in the narrow doorway. - -"It's gone!" she exclaimed. "The box, the pretty yellow one that I put -there myself, is gone!" - -Was it a trick that Melissa had played on them? Or had Terry argued so -successfully that the girl had actually come to believe she really did -possess the box? - -"Are you sure you had it?" Arden asked gently. "When did you see it -last?" - -"This morning I took it out to look at it," Melissa replied slowly. - -"What did it look like?" Terry asked, not quite believing that Melissa -ever had it now. - -"It had a little bird on and the prettiest shiny stones all around the -edge," Melissa answered woefully. "Oh, I did like it so much! It was so -pretty!" - -The girls fell silent. They had met another stone wall. They had neither -Dimitri nor the snuffbox. They were as much in the dark as ever. - -"But, Melissa," Sim began, "what could have happened to it?" - -"I don't know," Melissa replied slowly. - -They looked curiously at the bare little room. Poor child, it was not -surprising that she loved bright shiny things so much. In a place such as -this was, anyone would crave relief from its drabness. - -Arden turned to go, and the others were about to follow when they were -halted by the sound of heavy footsteps hastening up the wooden steps that -led into the house. - -The three girls drew together. Serge stepped forward as though to protect -them. - -"It's Pa," Melissa said, looking fearfully at them. - -"What's going on in here?" an angry voice was heard before they saw the -owner of it. - -Melissa shrank back to the wall between the bed and bureau. - -"What are you people doing here? Who let you in here?" It was George -Clayton, wildly angry at this invasion of his property. - -"We came by ourselves," Terry said, boldly anxious to keep her pledge -with Melissa. - -"You did! Well, I advise you to go by yourselves before I run you off!" -Clayton bellowed, reaching for a shotgun on the wall. - -"Now, see here, Clayton," Serge began, standing fearlessly before the -angry man. "Be careful how you handle that gun. You don't want to do -anything you might be sorry for later." - -"I know what I'm doing," Melissa's father insisted. "You people get out -of here! This is my property. You've got to get a warrant before you can -come snooping around my place!" - -"All right, we'll go," Serge said in a low voice. "But you watch your -step. I've heard you're not very popular in these parts." - -Clayton made an angry motion as though to strike Serge, but with an -effort controlled himself and, spluttering and fuming, literally drove -them from the shack. - -They all piled into the little rowboat and made their way slowly back -across the bay, disappointed and defeated, hardly knowing what to -say--what to believe. - -Serge decided to go at once back to New York. - -"Dimitri might have gone to my place. I will get in touch with you -tomorrow and let you know," he said and, not going into the house again, -he thanked Mrs. Landry, who was anxiously waiting at the small dock and, -climbing in his car, drove quickly out of sight. - -For a little while there was silence among them. Even Sim, who often -could find humor in matters where others could not, had nothing to say. -Mrs. Landry looked at the faces of the girls, and, guessing their -thoughts, said: - -"Never mind, my dears. It isn't your fault." - -"But I did so hope something would come of this," said Terry. "After -getting Melissa to admit she had the box, then not to find it!" - -"Do you really think she had it?" asked Arden. - -"That's hard to answer," Terry replied. "I don't see why she would want -to deceive us. She described the cupboard, told how she slipped aboard -the houseboat while Dimitri was out in the marsh, painting, and we all -know she's crazy about such objects as that bright and beautiful -snuffbox." - -"And to think it may be gone forever," sighed Sim. - -"We're not going to let it be lost forever!" suddenly declared Arden. - -"What are you going to do about it?" challenged Terry. - -"I'm going to see to it that a thorough search is made of that shack, in -spite of George Clayton!" Arden's head went up bravely, and there was a -determined look in her eyes. - -"How?" questioned Terry. - -"With the help of the police or that detective woman, Emma Tash!" - -"I think it is time you got the authorities more actively interested, my -dears," said Mrs. Landry, who had heard, with some alarm, the actions of -the crabber in the matter of the shotgun. "That man must be curbed. He is -standing in the way of good to his daughter. If we could get in touch -with Emma Tash she might bring some man with her who would proceed in -spite of Clayton and his gun. This father of Melissa's may be just -'bluffing,' as the boys say." - -"Didn't Miss Tash leave you her address?" asked Arden. - -"Yes," Mrs. Landry answered, "she did. But it may take a few days to get -in communication with her and get her down here. Instead of her, I would -suggest our local chief." - -"Rufus Reilly?" asked Sim. "Oh, my goodness, he and his duck that can't -fly on one leg!" - -"Besides," added Terry, "he claims to have been working on the case, but -all he does is to tinker with that old car." - -"Still," decided Arden, "I think we should go to him again. It is up to -him to do something. If we bring another officer here, he would first go -to Mr. Reilly. I believe that is police law. So let's go see our -proverb-splitting chief and tell him what happened today. We can say we -feel sure the stolen snuffbox is in the shack, and he can get a search -warrant if he needs to." - -"I am coming around to your way of thinking, Arden," admitted Sim. -"Perhaps, when the chief hears about Clayton's gun, it will stir him up -to something like fighting rage, and we'll get some action." - -"Well, then, let's," agreed Terry. "It's too late now, but we'll get the -chief to go to the shack the first thing in the morning." - -However, when morning came, after an anxious night in which no news came -of the missing artist, Mrs. Landry decided it might be well to wait for -another day. - -"Dimitri's brother may learn something in New York," she said, "and that -may make it needless to go and beard this Clayton boor in his shack." - -"Yes, I suppose waiting another day will do no harm," Arden agreed. "But -I don't believe Dimitri is in New York or has his box. He would not be -where he is, a free agent, without sending some word to his brother -Serge, at least, about himself. No, Dimitri is where he can't get word to -his friends." - -"And where do you think that place is?" asked Sim. - -Arden shrugged her shoulders in a hopeless negative. - -Time hanging heavy on their hands, the girls paid another visit to the -houseboat but did not go on board. There was no sign of life about the -_Merry Jane_ save for Tania. She was shut up in what amounted to a kennel -on the outside narrow deck, where the girls had put her on their last -visit. There was plenty of food and water. - -Poor Tania whined pitifully when she found that her friends were not -coming to see her and departed without taking her with them. - -"She misses Dimitri terribly," said Arden. - -"Yes," agreed Sim. - -The day passed and no word came from Serge. Later it developed that he -was so frantically going from one to another of the friends of his -brother in New York, a fruitless search, that he forgot all about his -promise to communicate with the girls. - -"Well, this settles it!" declared Arden as they were at breakfast the -second day after the visit of Serge. The morning mail had come but -brought no news. "I'm going to get the chief and visit Melissa and her -father again." - -"Do you mean you're going with him?" asked Terry. - -"Yes. I think we should all go, I mean we three, don't you, Mrs. Landry?" - -"Well, if there's danger--but then I hardly believe there will be if you -have the chief with you. Yes, go, by all means." - -"This is going to be a real expedition!" declared Terry as she drove her -chums over to the village, parked their car near the chief's garage, and -walked to where they found the officer still tinkering with his old auto. - -"Good-morning, girls," he greeted them, wiping a smudge of oil off his -face. "You see I'm busy as usual, time and tide in a long race, you -know," and the gold tooth grinned at them cheerfully. - -"Mr. Reilly, can you come with us at once?" asked Arden in businesslike -tones. "There may be an arrest to make." - -"An arrest?" The chief showed new interest. - -"Yes. Over at the Clayton shack. It's quite a story." - -The chief, when he heard it, could not but admit it was. There was a new -air about him now. He seemed much more in earnest than at any time since -Dimitri Uzlov had been missing at Marshlands. - -"I'll be with you in a few minutes, girls," the chief said. "Just as soon -as I can wash up and pin my badge on. Then we'll get in my motorboat and -ride over to see this Mr. Clayton." - -"How would it be," suggested Terry, "if you took us back to our dock in -your boat and then we picked up our rowboat? You could tow us in that to -the Clayton shack." - -"Yes, I could do that," the chief agreed. "It's a little ways from here -to where my motorboat is docked, and my car isn't running yet, but a walk -won't hurt none of us." - -"We can all go to your dock in our car," Terry said. - -"Sure enough. Didn't think of that. Well, we'll go see this Clayton. So -he was going for his gun, was he? I'll see about that! Don't give up the -ship and keep your powder dry. Be with you in two shakes of a lamb's -tail." He was as good as his word, soon coming out of his garage office -with a clean face and a badge on his coat. It did not take long to drive -to the dock where the chief kept his motorboat tied. The girls got in and -were soon chugging on their way to "Buckingham Palace." Mrs. Landry was -rather surprised to see them back so soon, but agreed, after an -explanation had been made, that it would be wise to take two boats. - -"You never can tell what may happen," she said. - -"True enough, as the old lady said when she kissed the cow," chuckled the -chief. "My boat isn't very good to look at, and we might get stalled. In -which case a rowboat would be as handy as a pocket on the end of a dog's -tail." - -His craft, if not very presentable, had speed, and they went along -rapidly. As they passed close to the _Merry Jane_, Tania either saw, -heard, or scented them, for she began to bark in a friendly way. - -"Oh, that poor dog!" exclaimed Arden. "Let's take her with us!" - -"We could," agreed Sim. - -"It might be a good thing," said Terry. "She's a sort of hound, you -know." - -"And you think maybe she can smell out where Melissa has hid the -snuffbox!" chuckled the chief. "But a dog is always a good thing to have -on a case like this. Two strings to your rubber boot, you know. We'll get -her." - -Tania was frantic with joy to be among her friends again and curled up on -the stern seat with Arden as the chief again started his boat across the -bay. - -They were not long in coming in sight of the Clayton shack. The chief -wasted no time in preliminaries but steered at once for the ramshackle -old dock where he made his craft fast. Then he assisted the girls to tie -theirs, and they got out, Tania following them and sniffing with her -pointed nose in the direction of the gloomy house. - -"Perhaps we had better be a bit cautious," suggested Terry somewhat -timidly. "This man may rush out at us." - -"What puzzles me," said the chief, "is why he hasn't hailed us before -this. Accordin' to what you told me, he ordered you off before, without -you havin' a chance to set foot on his land." - -"Yes, he did," said Terry. "It is rather strange no one appears." - -The shack showed no sign of life in or about it. - -"I'll give him a hail," suggested the chief. And he roared out: "Clayton, -where are you? Here's company! Come out, but if you bring a gun it won't -be healthy for you!" - -There was no answer to this challenge. - -Tania barked. Still all was silent about the place. - -"I'm going in," the chief suddenly decided. "You girls wait for me here." -He looked to make sure that his badge of office was conspicuous and -pushed open the door. It was not locked. - -The girls were a little nervous as the chief disappeared inside. But -still there was no sound. The silence was almost terrifying. The chief -came out in a few minutes to say: - -"I can't seem to find anybody." - -"I think you had better look again and go in every room," said Arden. Her -voice was firm. "There must be someone." - -"All right, I'll take another look," assented the chief. "No trouble to -show goods and some pitchers go to the well too often." - -Again he disappeared inside the place. - -Again portentous silence held them all in its grip. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIX - The Barking of Tania - - -Chief Reilly came out of the poor little house, a veritable shack it was, -shaking his head. - -"I suppose," remarked Sim in an aside to Arden, "he is going to say 'it's -a long road without a cat in the attic,' or something equally brilliant." - -"He might," remarked Terry, "propose that the race is not always to the -swift but there are none so blind as those who won't eat." - -"Meaning what?" asked Arden. - -"That we've drawn a blank," said Sim. - -She was right. For the first impression, gathered on arrival at the home -of the Claytons, that no one was there, was borne out as the chief -emerged a second time from an inspection of the premises. - -"Can't find anybody," he announced with a flourish of his big red hands. - -"You mean there's nobody home?" asked Terry. - -"That's about it," said Mr. Reilly. "Nobody home. You can't get anything -out of an empty bag except dust, you know." - -"And I suppose there was plenty of dust?" suggested Sim. - -"Well, not so much as you'd think for," said the officer and garage -owner. "Melissa must have humped herself, for the old shack was pretty -clean. Case of pot calling the kettle black, you know." - -"Poor kid! I guess she had her own troubles," remarked Arden. "I wonder -where her father took her and why?" - -"Maybe we'll know that when we find Dimitri," suggested Terry. - -"If we ever do," voiced Sim. - -"Oh, don't be Mrs. Gloom!" exclaimed Arden. "Of course we'll find him." - -"And find out why he painted such a lovely picture of you," said Terry. - -"Silly!" murmured Arden as she blushed beneath her tan. But it was -obvious that she was as curious as were her chums about the mysterious -portrait. - -"Well, I guess we've found out all we can here, which is about less than -nothing with a hole in the middle," said the chief, as he came back from -a walk about the place. "None of the Claytons are here. Not that there's -many in this branch of the family--jest Melissa and her dad. But they're -gone." - -Suddenly Arden had a thought. She expressed it to Sim and Terry while the -chief was looking into a rain-water barrel, as if he might find the -missing Dimitri there. Arden said: - -"I think we ought to tell him about the policewoman." - -"Emma Tash," murmured Sim. - -"Yes," said Terry. "I think we had." - -"Mr. Reilly," began Arden, after receiving this confirmation, "we have -something to tell you." - -"You ain't got that Russian stranger hid away with that there gold -snuffbox, have you?" chuckled the chief. "Like a hen on a wet griddle, -you know." - -"Oh, he'll be the death of me," sighed Sim. - -"It's about Melissa," said Arden, and then, much to the astonishment of -the chief, the girls told him about the visit of the detective woman and -the happier prospects for the unfortunate girl. - -"I always knowed there was something more than met the eye in them -Claytons," said the chief. "Hum! Melissa with a rich aunt that wants to -send her to school and make her into a lady. Well, I hope she does. -Melissa is a good girl in spite of being a bit queer. She's the champion -swimmer around here." - -"Maybe she might give me points," said Sim. - -"Oh, yes, she's a natural swimmer," went on the chief, taking no notice -of this aside. "And a good girl. Loves bright things--birds and flowers. -More than once I've seen her sitting on a fence where somebody had a -garden full of red poppies, looking at 'em to beat the band. Her old man, -though--there's a case! All he cares about are crabs, lobsters, and -fish." - -"Did you ever hear," asked Arden, thinking to confirm what Emma Tash had -said, "that Melissa's mother came of a good family?" - -"It wouldn't have to be very good to beat the Clayton end of it," said -Mr. Reilly. "Yes, Mrs. Clayton was a different breed. Give a dog a bad -name and throw him a bone," he chuckled. "Yes, Melissa's mother made a -bad match of it. I hope this here detective woman can do something for -the poor kid." - -"Maybe she has," said Terry suddenly. - -"What do you mean?" asked Sim. - -"Maybe Emma Tash has been here without us knowing it and has taken -Melissa away," explained Terry. "That detective woman was smart. She may -have come here, met George Clayton and Melissa, and have prevailed on him -to let her take the girl. That would account for their being gone now." - -For a moment they were inclined to accept this theory. Then Arden, as -usual putting her finger on the critical point, said: - -"It wouldn't account, though, for the barking of Tania." - -For the first time they all realized that the dog was barking with an -unusual note in the tone and that she kept it up almost continuously. Up -to this moment they had been so engrossed with approaching the shack -without inciting George Clayton to the point of desperate resistance that -they had not paid much attention to Tania. - -Now they noticed that the dog was running about the shack in a most -excited manner, scarcely ceasing her growls and barks. And, now that -their attention was fixed on her, they saw that she stopped at a certain -cellar window and barked there with unusual vigor. - -"The barking of Tania," murmured Sim. "No, the taking away of Melissa by -the detective woman, with her father's consent, and his desertion of his -home, would not account for the barking of Tania. Arden, I think we are -going to make a discovery--a big discovery." - -"What do you mean?" faltered Terry. "Do you think Dimitri----" She could -not finish. She dared not finish. But the others knew what she had in -mind. - -"Now you speak of it," said the chief, "that dog is making quite a row. -Barking dogs, you know, catch no cats. But we'll see what's up." - -"You think, don't you, Sim," said Arden, "that there is something in the -cellar?" - -"I can't help but think that, from the way Tania acts. Look at her now, -barking into the window." - -It was as Sim said. The dog was trying almost to thrust her pointed -muzzle into the glass. - -"Maybe Clayton and Melissa are hiding there," said Terry. "You didn't go -down cellar, did you, Mr. Reilly?" - -"No, I didn't. Didn't see any use. But if you think we'd better, why, I -got a flashlight in my boat." - -"I think we had better," said Arden. - -"Then we will. Nothing like eating your cake and having your bread," the -chief declared. "Wait a minute." - -He tried to run down to his motorboat but made a bad job of that, for he -only waddled. However, he soon came back with the flashlight. Meanwhile -Tania had not ceased her barking. She no longer ran frantically about the -shack. She remained at the one window and barked continuously. - -"Now, girls," said the chief as he again started into the house, "there's -no use of you running into any danger. I don't say there _is_ danger but -if it's _there_ I ain't going to let you run your pretty necks into no -noose. I'm paid for this work and I'll do it. Nobody can ever say Rufus -Reilly let anybody else pull his pancakes out of the ice box. I'll go -down in that cellar alone." - -"But if Clayton is there," said Arden, "and starts to fight you----" - -"I've got a gun," said the chief, showing an automatic. "I can fight as -good as the next one if I have to, but I don't think I'll have to. If I -do, well, you're outside here to go git help. You know what I mean." A -gold-toothed smile. - -"Yes," said Terry. "If we hear shooting, or any calls for help from the -cellar, we'll take your motorboat and go get assistance. I can run a -boat." - -"That's the idea," said the chief. "You go right back to town and get -Henry Doremus and Ike Tantker. They're deputy constables, and you can -generally find 'em around my garage. If they ain't there, Ted Rollaby, my -mechanic, will tell you what to do. Now I'm goin' in." - -There was an outside slanting door leading down into the cellar. The -chief pulled this up, hooked it into place, and then, with his flashlight -in one hand and his automatic in the other, started down the half-rotten -wooden steps. - -He had no sooner started down than Tania, deserting her barking post at -the window, rushed past him and was into the dark musty cellar ahead of -him. - -"Oh," murmured Arden, "I'm glad the dog went down." - -"So am I," said Sim. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to the funny old -chief, even if he does drive me crazy with his proverbs." - -"What do you think he'll find?" asked Terry. - -Before either of her chums could hazard a guess they all heard, above the -frantic barking of Tania, the chief's voice shouting: - -"I've got him! I've found him! Here he is, tied up like a bag of potatoes -in the cellar. I've found Mr. Uzlov!" - - - - - CHAPTER XXX - All Is Well - - -Gazing with fear-widened eyes at one another, the three girls waited for -what might happen next. - -The chief had found the man missing from Marshlands; but in what -condition? The worst might have happened, for it was now obvious that -Dimitri had been the prisoner of George Clayton ever since the mysterious -disappearance from the _Merry Jane_. - -"Oh," murmured Arden, "if he is----" - -She could not finish. - -"I--I feel sort of funny," said Terry. - -"Girl, if you pass out on us now I'll never speak to you again as long as -I live!" threatened Sim. - -"Oh, I'm all right--I guess," Terry said. "But----" - -She was interrupted by the voice of Chief Reilly coming, muffled, from -the cellar. - -"Guess maybe you girls had better come down here," he called. "I might -need your testimony for evidence." - -"Oh!" almost shouted Arden. "Is he----" - -"Mr. Uzlov is all right. He's alive, though I can't say he's very well," -went on the chief. "He's bound and gagged and all knocked out, but I -can't see anything very wrong. There's so many ropes on him I'll need -help in getting them off quick. But I want you to see him so you can -testify against this rat of a Clayton. Nasty piece of business, if you -ask me." - -The girls could hear Tania now joyously whimpering. The dog no longer -barked fiercely. It was evident she was with her beloved master whom she -found to be alive, at least. - -Thus reassured, the three descended the outside cellar steps. The chief -held his torch for them to see, and by its light they noted that he had -already started on the work of rescue. A cloth that had been bound around -the Russian's mouth had been taken off. But he was still trussed up. - -With a slash of his knife, while Arden held the light, the chief released -the roped hands. And as Dimitri rubbed his numbed lips he said weakly: - -"So you've come at last." - -"Oh, if we had only guessed this before!" exclaimed Arden. - -"Still, you are in good time. I am not harmed," said Dimitri. Then he -could talk no longer, for Tania was frantically licking his face. - -With the help of the girls, one of whom held the light while the chief -and the others loosed the binding strands, Dimitri Uzlov was soon set -free. He was a little weak in his legs, but after stamping about managed -to regain the use of them and was able to leave the cellar. - -He had been found in a sort of closet in one corner, small and dark, with -only the cracks around the sealed window for ventilation. - -"I seen that shut closet door as soon as I got down here," said the chief -as they all went into the upper sunlight. "I'd 'a' knowed somebody was in -that closet even if the dog hadn't rushed for it like--well, like a mouse -goin' for cheese in a trap," he finished. - -"It is good to be out again," said Dimitri as he paused at the top of the -steps and took a long deep breath. "I have been in the dark too long." - -"But what happened?" - -"How did he get you?" - -"Did he harm you?" - -"Where is he now, and Melissa?" - -The girls' questions came trippingly. - -"I think it is best if I go back to my houseboat and there tell you the -story," said the artist. "Perhaps there is even left some tea--and I -should dearly love a cup of tea. This Clayton jailer gave me nothing but -coffee. I am so sick of it!" - -"There is tea left," said Arden. - -"That is good. I suppose," and his voice faltered, "that my precious box -is not left. They must have taken that." - -"I'm afraid they did," said Arden. - -"Well, it is fate! I am glad at least to be alive," and Dimitri shrugged -his shoulders with resignation. - -"You all better get in my boat and leave yours here until later," said -the chief when it was found that Dimitri, after a long drink of water, -was able to walk with more ease. "We'll make better time that way. More -haste the quicker you get over it." - -Sim shook her fist at him behind his back. - -They all piled into the motorboat, Tania never leaving her master's side, -and in a short time they were at the _Merry Jane_. After it was seen that -Dimitri, though obviously suffering from neglect, was not seriously -harmed, it came to Arden's mind that she and her chums must make a -confession. - -They had looked at the forbidden picture. It was very likely that -Dimitri's trained vision would detect that the cloth had been removed and -put back. Of course, he might think Clayton had done it, but it was -better to tell. So Arden said: - -"We discovered your secret." - -"My secret?" He appeared not to understand. - -"That picture," she added. "We looked at it." - -The whiteness of Dimitri's face, blanched by many days of confinement in -a dark cellar, was changed to a deep red as he murmured: - -"I hope you do not think me too presumptuous." - -"It is lovely!" declared Sim. - -"A beautiful picture," said Terry. - -"And you--have you nothing to say in forgiveness?" He was looking -straight at Arden. - -"Oh, I think it is wonderful," she said. "There is no need of pardon. But -it is too beautiful! I never----" - -"It is not half good enough!" he interrupted. "It was only from memory. -Perhaps you will do me the honor to sit for me that I may properly -complete it." - -"If Daddy and Mother consent," she said. - -"As if they wouldn't!" said Sim. - -They were at the houseboat now. It seemed silent and deserted, but the -chief said: - -"Might as well take precautions. Nobody ever yet died of a broken neck by -drinking milk. I'll go aboard first." - -"And if he utters another of his famous sayings I'll choke him with my -handkerchief!" hissed Sim. - -The silence of Tania as they approached close to the _Merry Jane_ was -fairly conclusive evidence that no strangers were aboard. They walked -confidently up the little gangplank and, allowing Dimitri to take the -lead, followed him into the living room. - -He went through the curtains to the broken cupboard, and as they all -stood grouped behind him they saw him, after a moment of hesitation, put -his hand in and take out an object. Then they heard his delighted cry: - -"Here it is! My box! And not harmed in the least. Wait!" - -Quickly he pressed the spring, took out the key, and wound up the -mechanism. Suddenly the jeweled bird began to sing. A fairy hymn of -victory. - -"But how did it get here?" asked Arden. - -"The mystery is solved--but how?" questioned Terry. - -"This has got my goat," admitted the chief. "There's no fool like a -spring chicken," he added, showing his gold tooth in a wide grin. - -"I think this may explain matters," remarked Dimitri as he again put his -hand into the shattered cupboard and brought out several sheets of paper. -He glanced over them and said: "It is a confession from this George -Clayton--he who caught me and held me prisoner. It perhaps tells -everything, my friends." - -It did. George Clayton, crabber, lobsterman, and fisher, proved to be -more of a scholar than anyone had ever suspected. He wrote a good hand, -though some of the words were rather shaky. - -_"'First of all,'"_ the written sheets revealed, _"'I want to let the -girls, who were kind to my Melissa, know that she is in good hands. -Melissa had nothing to do with me catching Mr. Uzlov. After I got him she -wanted me to let him go, but I wouldn't. Melissa is a good girl. I'm -going to let her aunt have her and bring her up right. A woman named Emma -Tash came to my place the other day, though I told her to get out, but -she didn't.'"_ - -"Emma Tash just wouldn't do that a second time," said Terry, recalling -the crabbing party. - -_"'So I had a talk with her,'"_ Dimitri read on from the letter, _"'and I -decided it wasn't right to Melissa to keep her here with me. Not that I'm -going to be here any more. I'm leaving. But before I left I told this -Emma Tash she could take Melissa and bring her up the way her aunt wants -her brought up. So that woman took her off.'"_ - -"Then the poor child will have something in life after all," murmured -Arden. "I'm so glad!" - -"She may even become a champion swimmer," suggested Sim. - -"Oh, you and your swimming," laughed Terry. "Let's find out about the -snuffbox." - -"That's right here," said Mr. Uzlov. He read on: - -_"'Melissa has always been different from other girls. Mrs. Landry and -the three young ladies know that. One day Melissa came home to me with -this gold box that I'm leaving back in your cupboard. She told me she had -broken open your cupboard and taken it from your houseboat, Mr. Uzlov. -Melissa always loved bright things. Well, I was struck all of a heap when -I saw she had it. I didn't know what to do. In a way it was stealing, but -not for Melissa. She didn't mean to steal it. She just couldn't help -taking it once she saw it. I love my daughter. Nobody shall ever say I -don't. Anyhow, here's your gold box back and I'm going to clear out and -Melissa has gone with that good detective woman. That's all. From George -Clayton.'"_ - -There was a little silence following the reading of the strange letter. - -"But it isn't all," said Arden, looking at Dimitri. "How did he get you -and hold you a prisoner?" - -"I suppose that is my part to explain," said Dimitri. "Well, it shall not -take me long. First we shall begin with Olga." - -"Who is she?" burst out Sim impulsively. - -"She is my talented but spendthrift sister," said Dimitri with a little -embarrassed laugh. "She always claimed to have an interest, and right, in -the snuffbox, which once belonged to the late lamented Czar, but that was -not so. I mean she had no interest in it. That box was mine alone. That -is what we often quarreled about. My brother Serge, with whom you say you -got in touch, can bear me out in this. I sent for him when Olga -became--well, rather troublesome," he said with a smile. - -"So," he resumed, "one day I came back here, after having been out in the -marsh sketching, to find my cupboard broken open and my box gone. I was -thunderstruck. Of course I suspected my sister. But before I had time to -do anything, this Clayton man came on board with the box. He said his -daughter had taken my treasure, as she often did with bright things, not -knowing their value, and he had come to restore it. He asked me not to -have her arrested or to prosecute her as he would give me the box back. - -"But there I made a mistake." Again Dimitri shrugged his expressive -shoulders. "I was naturally resentful at being robbed, even by poor -Melissa, who, I understand, is not wholly responsible. So I flared up and -said the guilty must be punished; that the law must take its course. Yes, -we Russians are too temperamental--I admit that. I said I would see that -no real harm came to the girl but that she must be sent away and taught -to do the right." - -"He didn't like that, not for a cent, and it takes ten shillings to make -a pound," interpolated Mr. Reilly. - -"You are right," agreed Dimitri, evidently not bored by this cross -quotation. "At once Mr. Clayton, what you call, flared up. Before I could -avoid him, he had attacked me. He is a big man. He had me at a -disadvantage, and before I could do anything he had put part of a fish -net over my head, for all the world like the old Roman gladiators." He -laughed a little, for he had brewed some tea in his samovar, and the -sipping of it appeared to revive him more than anything else. "So he had -me helpless." - -"But Tania," interrupted Sim. "Where was she?" - -"He must have suddenly planned his attack," resumed Dimitri, "for when he -carried me away, half unconscious as I was, I dimly saw Tania tied and -lying on the deck. He must, a little while before, have given her some -drugged meat. He didn't take time to make friends with her and entice her -away." - -"But just what did Clayton do to you?" asked Terry. - -"He threatened after the net was over me, to take me away and keep me -away if I did not promise to let Melissa go unharmed. I would not -promise. I felt it was for the girl's own good that I be instrumental in -sending her to some institution. I was stubborn. He grew very angry. I -tried to hit him. He hit me. It all went black before my eyes, and when I -awoke, I was bound and my mouth was tied, in the place where you found -me." - -"Oh, how terrible," said Arden. - -"Such a brute!" declared Terry. - -"You should have shouted for help," argued Sim. - -"I tried to, dear young lady, but one cannot shout with one's mouth -bundled up like a muff. So I remained a prisoner. At times the man came -down to me and opened my mouth that I might eat, but he stood over me -with a gun so I dared not shout. But his place is so isolated that it -would have done no good if I had. Each time he said he would let me go if -I would promise. But I would not promise. I assure you we Russians are -very stubborn." Even now he seemed proud of it, and the girls rather -liked him for it. - -"You couldn't trick him out of it?" asked Mr. Reilly. - -"Trick?" Dimitri questioned. - -"I mean promise and then get out and later do as you pleased." - -"The Uzlovs never do that, sir! I beg of you! Yes!" - -"Oh, well, all right. You can't go two ways at the same time," said the -chief, grinning. "What else happened?" - -"Nothing. I stayed in the cellar closet. Clayton maintained me bound and -gagged as you saw. Once he came to me to say he had gone back to my boat -to restore my beautiful box. But, as he was about to put it in the broken -cupboard, he was surprised by you girls and my brother Serge coming on -board. So Clayton leaped over the rail in great haste. I suppose you did -not then see him or my box?" - -"We heard a noise," said Terry, "and saw a man jump off your boat, but we -didn't even guess who was leaving the _Merry Jane_ in such a rush. And to -think at that time the snuffbox was on the point of being given back. If -we only had known!" - -"Perhaps it is as well," said Dimitri with rather a wan smile. "If the -box had been put back then, and my sister Olga, she of the so spendthrift -habits, had paid another visit, she might have then taken it. And if she -knew this Clayton had it, without doubt she would have so raged at him -that she would have secured it. So it is all well as it is. Also Mr. -Clayton told me something else. It seems my beautiful but desperate -sister tried to bribe poor Melissa, with auto rides and some money and -trinkets, to get the box for her. But that plot did not quite come off. -It may have been Olga's talk, speaking of my box in the cupboard, that -caused Melissa to take it for herself." - -"And she got your tie pin, also," said Arden. - -"Oh, yes, but I have that back." He showed it to them. "Mr. Clayton gave -it to me. He said his daughter had picked it up off the floor in my paint -room. It is very possible. Poor Melissa!" - -"But how did Clayton and his daughter come to go away and leave you tied -in the cellar?" asked the chief. "If it hadn't been for the way your dog -barked, we might never have found you." - -"Oh, yes. That I can explain. Good Tania!" He pulled her silky ears. -"Only last night," Dimitri went on, "Mr. Clayton came to my prison cell -and told me he was then leaving to go to the _Merry Jane_ and, under the -cover of darkness, restore my box." - -"And he did!" exclaimed Sim. "Some virtue in him, anyhow." - -"Yes," agreed the artist. "Also he told me that matters were all now -settled. He did not require any promise from me, for he told me his -daughter was going away with her aunt and he would separate from her. -Perhaps that is not so?" He looked questioningly at the girls. - -"Oh, yes, that part is true," said Arden. - -"I am so glad. The poor child! Well, Mr. Clayton went on to say that he -was shuffling off, as he expressed it, though why shuffle, I do not know. -Nevertheless, he said he and his daughter were going away. But he felt he -had to protect himself. So he said he would not release me then. But when -he was safely far enough away, he would telephone to you, sir, the head -of the Metropolitan Police here, and tell you to come and unbind me." -Dimitri bowed to Mr. Reilly. - -"First I heard about that," said the chief. "I didn't get no telephone -call. Out of sight sours no cream." - -"Maybe a message has come since you started out with us," suggested Sim. - -"Maybe it has; better late than never get to the fair." - -"Oh----" Sim began, but she repressed herself. - -"So you see how it all happened," concluded Dimitri. "I was taken -unawares, kept prisoner even when my lovely box was restored, and all -because I was such a stickler for a principle. Yes, we Russians are very -stubborn. But, to say the truth, I was on the point of agreeing to what -Mr. Clayton wanted me to, about not being instrumental in having his -daughter sent away, when he told me he had arranged for my release, so it -is just as well. I have my pride left." - -"But you must have suffered," said Terry. - -"One must always suffer for one's pride. Yes?" - -There was little else to tell. The _Merry Jane_ seemed like her old self -again with Dimitri and Tania on board. The Russian drank more tea and -offered glasses to his guests. - -"What are you thinking of, Arden?" asked Sim, noticing that her chum was -scarcely sipping her tea and had a dreamy far-away look in her eyes. - -"I was wondering," came the answer, and Arden addressed Dimitri, "if you -were down in the cellar of the Clayton shack the time we went to it, with -your brother and Melissa, to get the box she said she had. Did you hear -us talking or moving around up above you?" - -"No, I can't say I did," the Russian replied. "But that is easily -accounted for. I dozed or slept much of the time. More than once I think -Clayton put some quieting potion in my food or drink, for I seemed always -to have a heavy, sleepy feeling. No, I didn't know how near you were." - -"If we had only known then," said Terry, "we could have made a thrilling -rescue. But we didn't. Or if we had taken Tania she would have discovered -you. A pity we didn't." - -"Yes," agreed Arden. - -"Please do not reproach yourselves," said Dimitri. "I am too much in your -debt to allow that. It is all over now." - -"Another thing I wonder about," said Arden. "You know when we went to the -shack with Melissa after she promised to restore the box, and it wasn't -where she said she had hidden it, she was, or appeared to be, greatly -surprised. I wonder if she was acting or if she knew her father had taken -the treasure?" - -"I don't believe Melissa could act that much, though she is very clever -at times," said Terry. "I don't believe she suspected her father had -taken the box from where she had concealed it. And it would be well -within reason, considering her character, for her to have thought that -perhaps she had forgotten where she had put the box. You know, when we -first talked with her father, after he wouldn't let her keep the -bracelet, he said she often took trifling bright objects and hid them all -around the house. He said she often forgot where she had hidden her -simple treasures and would go looking for them day after day. Then she -would suddenly recall the place and be happy again. So in this case -Melissa might have thought that, after putting the box in her poor little -bureau, she herself had removed it and couldn't recall where it was." - -"Yes, that would account for it," Sim said. - -"It's very possible," Arden agreed. "It is all very strange. The poor -girl certainly needs careful and regular training. I'm so glad this aunt -of hers remembers her in time." - -"I wonder if Melissa knew you were down in the cellar?" asked Sim. - -Dimitri shrugged his shoulders, answering: "It is difficult to say. I -don't know just when her father told her what he had done. I believe, -though, it was only a short time before they both left." - -"It's queer Melissa didn't discover you," spoke Arden. - -"No, not when you consider what sort of a girl she is," replied Sim. "She -was always coming and going, wandering like a wild spirit. I don't -believe she saw much of her father. He could easily keep his secret from -her." - -"I believe he did," said the Russian. "It is strange to think that once -you were all so close to me, and again so near to getting the box when -Clayton brought it back but was frightened away. Very strange. But, Mr. -Reilly, I am neglecting you. Let me give you some more tea, if you -please." - -"Not for me," said the chief. "Coffee sets me up better. It is the cup -which cheers but doesn't give you the jitters." He laughed. "And now, if -there's no arrests to be made, I guess we might as well call it a day, -wind the clock, and put the cat out." He laughed again. - -"Your brother will be anxious about you," said Arden. "You should let him -know, Mr. Uzlov." - -"I shall. At once." - -"We are going back," said Terry. "We could send him a telegram. In fact, -we did." - -"You did?" - -"I mean before we found you," and Arden's ruse was detailed. - -"Oh, how clever of you, my dear young ladies. Yes, I must let Serge know. -If you will be so good. His address----" - -He fumbled in his pocket and brought out a paper with the house number in -Ninth Street. - -"That will save time," said Arden. "We will wire him. You must need a -rest." - -"Oh, a rest will be most delightful," said the artist. "I must get in -condition to finish--that." He waved toward the covered canvas. - -"I haven't yet thanked you," murmured Arden. - -"It is I who must thank you, dear young lady," and he murmured something -in Russian, translating: "It is the subject, not the picture, to whom the -artist is indebted." - -The chief showed a desire to be gone. Doubtless to learn if that -telephone from Clayton had come into his garage. - -"We must be going," said Terry. - -"But we shall see you again," added Sim. - -"Marshlands will be a place for a real vacation, now that there is no -mystery to solve," said Arden, laughing a little. - -"I thank you." Dimitri bowed very formally. "And, if you will be so good, -include in your telegram to my brother the fact that I am going to sell -the snuffbox and give Olga the share she thinks she ought to have. Poor -girl! She must not suffer because of my love for a relic. I shall sell -the box." - -"Oh," murmured Arden. "That lovely box!" - -"It will still be lovely, no matter who possesses it," said Dimitri. "And -now I must rest." - -Truly he was very weary, for his imprisonment in the dank cellar had told -on his nerves. But he said he needed no attention; that he and Tania -would be all right for the remainder of their stay on the _Merry Jane_. -He did need a little fresh food, however, and Chief Reilly promised to -bring some back in his motorboat. - -So, with bows from Dimitri, tail-wagging from Tania, and hand-flutterings -from the girls, while the chief demonstrated his gold-tooth grin, the -visitors came away. They went back to get Terry's boat, and then the -girls, being towed by the chief to the dock of "Buckingham Palace," -hastened to tell Mrs. Landry the news. - -"Well, fancy that!" she exclaimed. "I hope it is all true about Melissa." - -It was true, as they learned a few days later, for a letter arrived from -Emma Tash confirming everything, and with it there was a little note from -Melissa. Of course Emma Tash knew nothing about the prisoner in the -cellar, and Melissa was forced into silence by her father. She did not -know, as a matter of fact, until the last few days of the imprisonment, -that her father had captured Dimitri. If she had known, she probably -would have told the girls. - -"But everything is all right now," said Arden as she and her chums sat on -the warm sands after a dip in the ocean. - -"Yes," said Terry, "the mystery is over." - -"And it was a good one while it lasted," declared Sim. "See what Arden -gets out of it." - -"What?" asked Arden, letting sand flow through her tanned fingers. - -"Lovely picture." - -"Oh, that!" - -"Will your folks let you take it?" asked Terry. - -"Oh, yes. They didn't make any fuss at all when I told them." - -"I don't know what Dimitri would have done if they had," laughed Sim. -"Oh, he _is_ such an interesting character." - -"So is the chief, if you come to that," spoke Terry. - -"It's a long lane that has no back door," chuckled Arden. And then she -ducked to avoid a clam shell tossed at her by Sim. - -"In a way it's rather sad," said Terry dreamily, after a long, thoughtful -pause. - -"What?" asked Sim. - -"Having a mystery end. I wonder if we'll ever be involved in another?" - -"Maybe," said Sim. - -And the girls were. In the succeeding volume, _The Hermit of Pirate -Light_, will be told what happened when the girls spent another summer -together. - -Several times during the remainder of the season at Marshlands, Arden and -her chums visited Dimitri at his houseboat. He finished Arden's portrait, -which was later exhibited in New York, and the fact was made the occasion -for a little party attended by Olga and Serge. Olga seemed a much -different person, now that she had some money from the sale of the Czar's -snuffbox, which brought a very large sum. Dimitri also gave his brother -part of the price. As for himself, he never seemed to care about money. - -"My art is everything," he said. Truly it seemed so. - -Chief Reilly, who was a guest at the "picture party," as it was called, -admitted that George Clayton had left a telephone message telling about -his prisoner and urging that he be released. - -"But, shucks," said the chief, "you can't make a silk purse out of a -sow's ear." - -"If he says that again," threatened Sim, "I'll run home." - -But the chief didn't. - - - THE END - - - - - Transcriber's Notes - - ---The book's actual title is "Missing at Marshlands", not "Missing at the - Marshlands" as on the cover. - ---Silently corrected a few typos (but left nonstandard spelling and - dialect as is). - ---Rearranged front matter to a more-logical streaming order. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - -***** This file should be named 40666-8.txt or 40666-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/0/6/6/40666/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Garis</title> @@ -146,43 +146,7 @@ p.t15,div.t15,.t15 { margin-left:19em;text-indent:-3em; margin-top:0; margin-b </style> </head> <body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Missing at Marshlands - Arden Blake Mystery Series #3 - -Author: Cleo Garis - -Release Date: September 5, 2012 [EBook #40666] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40666 ***</div> <div id="cover" class="img"> <img id="coverpage" src="images/cover.jpg" alt="Missing at Marshlands" width="500" height="726" /> @@ -6375,379 +6339,6 @@ home.”</p> <li>Silently corrected a few typos (but left nonstandard spelling and dialect as is).</li> <li>Rearranged front matter to a more-logical streaming order.</li></ul> - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - -***** This file should be named 40666-h.htm or 40666-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/0/6/6/40666/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Missing at Marshlands - Arden Blake Mystery Series #3 - -Author: Cleo Garis - -Release Date: September 5, 2012 [EBook #40666] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - They were afraid, yet they knew they must go in. - (_Frontispiece_) (MISSING AT THE MARSHLANDS) - - - _The Arden Blake Mystery Series_ - - - - - MISSING AT - MARSHLANDS - - - _By_ - CLEO F. GARIS - - A. L. BURT COMPANY - _Publishers_ - New York Chicago - - - _The Arden Blake Mystery Series_ - - BY CLEO F. GARIS - - The Orchard Secret - Mystery of Jockey Hollow - Missing at Marshlands - - - COPYRIGHT, 1934, BY - A. L. Burt Company - - - Missing At Marshlands - - PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - - - TO MY FRIEND - DOROTHY O'CONNOR - - _Who saw the Czar's snuffbox - and told me its tragic story._ - - - - - Contents - - - CHAPTER PAGE - I A Stalled Car 9 - II A Man, a Dog, and a Girl 19 - III The Russian 29 - IV A Girl and a Bracelet 42 - V The Stranger 50 - VI The Unwelcome Guest 56 - VII A Noise in the Night 65 - VIII Hard to Believe 72 - IX The Snuffbox 78 - X Beauty That Dazzled 85 - XI Still They Come 92 - XII A Friend in the Deep 98 - XIII The Tragic Messenger 105 - XIV Missing at Marshlands 110 - XV Downhearted; Not Discouraged 115 - XVI That Dark Woman 123 - XVII Olga Makes Light of It 130 - XVIII Reilly on the Case 136 - XIX Tania Howls 142 - XX Mrs. Landry Helps 147 - XXI Melissa Has a Pin 157 - XXII The Policewoman 164 - XXIII On the Water Trail 170 - XXIV The Man Arrives 178 - XXV The Man in the Marsh 187 - XXVI Melissa Again 192 - XXVII Terry's Tactics 199 - XXVIII Driven Away 205 - XXIX The Barking of Tania 219 - XXX All Is Well 227 - - - - - CHAPTER I - A Stalled Car - - -A bold morning sun thrust its warm glow into the crowded, cheerful room -at Cedar Ridge, glinting on half-filled suitcases and revealing with a -cruel indifference the dust gathered on the abandoned textbooks flung in -a pile on the window seat. It was a hot sun, for summer was upon the -land, and the school term was at an end. Arden, Terry, and Sim were -packing to go home. - -It had been a year full of interesting activity and some genuine fun, but -it had not been without hard work in the scholastic field. So, happy that -examinations were over at last, and overjoyed that they had passed all -subjects, except for a condition in mathematics for Sim, the three girls -were losing no time in leaving their beloved college behind them and -heading for a summer of rest and hoped-for adventure. - -Sim Westover was sitting on a suitcase that refused to close and bouncing -up and down in an effort to bring the yawning leather jaws together. - -"Oh--Terry--help! I'll never get this old suitcase fastened, and we won't -get down till after dark, and your mother will be worried and----" Sim's -list of worries and trials was ended by Terry, a smiling, sandy-haired -creature, thrusting Sim aside and putting a silk-covered knee on the -offending luggage, which closed obediently under such superior pressure. - -"There, little one, it's shut. Are you all packed now?" Terry Landry -asked, patting Sim maternally on her fair head. - -Sim ducked. "Don't _do_ that!" she wailed. "You act like a maiden aunt." - -"Phew!" A black-haired, blue-eyed girl crawled out from under a bed. "How -did that shoe ever get under there in the first place? I suppose you -threw it at a mouse, Sim. I should have made _you_ crawl after it." Arden -Blake straightened her smart tan-wool dress as she rose from the floor. - -"No," answered Terry before Sim could reply, "you did it yourself three -nights ago, I remember. And, incidentally, I seem to be the only one -ready, even though you two say I'm always late." - -Terry stood surveying the jumbled scene with amused eyes. Her two -roommates at once renewed their activity. Arden thrust the recovered shoe -into a bag with its fellow and announced that she too was finished. Sim, -powdering an uptilted nose, declared that if Arden was ready there was -nothing to wait for, so, opening the door of their room, called the -porter to take their bags. - -Down the long corridor they went, calling "goodbyes" at each open door -and gayly knocking at those closed, as they marched down the hall. - -For the last time that year they descended the five flights of stairs up -which they had so often raced. At the outer door of the building they -cast a quick look behind them, then piled into the waiting car. A -five-passenger touring car, it was, belonging to Arden's father. In it -the three girls were to drive down to Oceanedge, on the coast, where they -would spend a month or two visiting Terry and her mother in a seaside -cottage. Oceanedge was the development name of the resort. Natives called -it Marshlands. - -It was the first time the three girls had been permitted to take such a -long drive alone, and they were anxious to conduct themselves creditably. -Early as the start was, and it was not yet nine o'clock, the girls would -not reach the shore until nearly evening, so they were anxious to get -going. - -Relaxing comfortably against the cool leather upholstery, they soon left -Cedar Ridge behind them. Mile on mile piled up as they drove along the -uncrowded roads leading out of Morrisville. They talked little; thoughts -were too insistent, for leaving school was indeed a big event, and all -seemed completely to realize its importance. - -At noon they stopped at a wayside Tea Shoppe for lunch, and when -fortified by sandwiches and tea and a generous helping of chocolate cake -they continued on their journey, becoming less like students and more -like ordinary girls as they left college farther in the distance. - -The country was now taking on a seashore look, maple trees giving place -to patchy-barked sycamores and stunted, conventional pines, and grassy -meadows fading into sandy wastes and dunes; the road stretching always -before them, a dark ribbon between the yellow hills of sand, pebbles, and -broken shells. - -It was at just such a portion of country that they came upon the stalled -car. - -"Wait, Arden," Sim begged as they approached it, "let's see what the -trouble is. There hasn't been a garage for miles." - -"No, and there won't be another one for miles, either, not until we get -to Oceanedge," Terry announced. "Perhaps we should see if we could help." - -Arden promptly turned in to the side of the road, where they inspected a -rather ancient car, sagging over a flattened tire and looking like -anything but the power to move along. - -"A blowout," Terry remarked laconically. "The owner is probably walking -into town." - -Curiously they looked into the abandoned vehicle when, suddenly, a huge -white and tan dog, apparently aroused from a pleasant sleep, began to -bark ferociously. - -"No one could go near that car with that--that--what is it, Arden?" Sim -questioned. - -"A Russian wolfhound, and a beauty too," Arden replied, pursing her lips -into a crooning little whistle and trying to soothe the animal with -friendly assurance. - -"Look at all the stuff in the back there," Terry called, where, from a -safe distance, she was gazing in at the rear window. "Looks like a lot of -pictures." - -"I guess that's what they are. Well," Arden suggested, "shall we go on? -We'll probably overtake the owner." - -"Might as well," agreed Sim, and Terry nodded as she got back into -Arden's car. - -The dog stopped its barking, and as they drove off they could see it -curled up again on the front seat to finish its interrupted nap; a nose -of silky white and taffy-colored tan. It certainly was a beauty. - -Again the road lay straight before them, without even a tree on either -side to break the monotony. On the right, some distance away, they knew, -the blue inviting ocean lay shining in the sunlight, and on the left -miles of pine woods with a carpet of brown needles. - -They had not much farther to go, Terry told them, pointing out a -wary-looking wooden hand which indicated "Oceanedge, 5 mi." - -"Whoever do you suppose might own the old car?" Arden asked curiously as -they sped along. - -"I don't care whose dog it is, or car, or what's in the back or anything -about it," Sim said firmly. "I'm going to enjoy this summer, and I refuse -to become interested in another mystery. That car looked to me just like -one all ready to sprout." - -"That's just talk, Sim," Terry remarked. "If we meet a handsome stranger, -trudging slowly toward the village, would you say--pass him by?" -challenged Terry. - -"No, of course not," Sim amended. "We could give him a lift, and unless -my eyes deceive me, we are even now approaching the person in question." - -"You're right, little one," Arden announced, "it could be no other. Shall -I pull over?" She had taken her foot off the accelerator, and the car -slowed down. - -Sim and Terry nodded "Yes," vigorously, and Arden drove over to the side -of the road, stopping by the stranger. - -"May we give you a lift?" she asked pleasantly. - -The man looked at her sharply and seemed startled. He took a soft gray -hat from his head politely but still hesitated in answering. - -"Why, I--er--thank you very much," he faltered finally. "My car is back -there. I was unable to get the tool chest open, and, really," he smiled -ruefully, "I have no spare." - -The girls thrilled inwardly. He was so good-looking! A "handsome -stranger" in every respect, with just a suggestion of a foreign accent. - -"We are going to Oceanedge," Arden continued, "but we could drop you at a -garage on our way." - -"Oh, now," protested the man, "that would be too much. I am used to -walking. Besides," he said disarmingly, "your parents would perhaps not -approve." - -"Our parents," Sim flung in, "have faith in us--in our judgment. You -simply must let us take you. It is absurd to walk in this hot sun when we -are going that way." - -He shrugged in complaisance and, dusting off his clothes a bit, climbed -in the back seat, murmuring his thanks. - -"I, too, will be at Oceanedge for the summer," he said as if to break the -embarrassing pause. "I paint. I have rented a houseboat out where I can -be alone and have quiet. I do not need people around me. I have Tania, my -dog, and my paints, and so I am happy." He talked in a jerky fashion, as -though translating from a foreign tongue, as he went on. - -Sim, always the most loquacious of the three, volunteered the information -that they were visiting Terry and her mother, that they were fast -friends, and added, in a little burst of indignation, that of course they -would not bother him or attempt to break up his "quiet." The girls -frowned at her, but Sim was ever high-spirited. - -At Reilly's garage, the only one in the sleepy village, they set him down -after he had thanked them charmingly, and they continued on their way. -They had to go back again to the main road a short distance, for the -house, gayly called "Buckingham Palace" because it was so unlike the -great palace, was on a neck of land reaching out between ocean and bay -and south of the town. - -"Queer fellow, didn't you think, Arden?" Sim questioned, still wondering -about their reluctant passenger. - -"Mysterious would be a better word, I think. Really, I got that -impression of him. Very mysterious, as if he had something to hide." - -"Rather fond of himself, I'd say," Terry flung in. "We won't bother him. -He'll be quite alone on that old houseboat, and I hope the water rats -find his best cheese." - -"He was a little strange," Arden reasoned, ignoring Terry's joke. "Quite -different, I expect, from the usual village Romeo, eh, Terry?" - -"That dog, too, I'd hate to have that animal mad at me," Sim remarked, -pulling a blonde curl into further prominence from under her beret. - -"I can't imagine what a man like that would come to this forsaken place -for," Terry mused. "Heaven knows it's quiet enough, if that's what he -wants, but no scenery for painting. And wait until he sees that -houseboat! It's been tied up in the bay for years," and she sighed -comfortably. "Oh, well, as Sim says, let's not worry about _him_. We'll -probably never see him again." - -"He said he was happy, but he didn't look that way to me," Arden went on. -"I thought he looked rather sad, and we don't even know his name. If that -should ever matter." - -"Arden Blake!" Sim exclaimed, "if you make another mystery out of this -simple incident, after all we've just gone through, I'll never forgive -you! I'm pos-i-tive-ly off mysteries for life." - -"Terry's right. We'll probably never see him again. He would certainly -know how to hide himself and his dog," Arden said slowly, and then, -stepping on the gas, she drove as fast as she dared in the direction of -"Buckingham Palace." - - - - - CHAPTER II - A Man, a Dog, and a Girl - - -With almost startling suddenness, the little house affectionately known -as "Buckingham Palace" popped into view as the car swung round a turn in -the road. - -A white, two-story house, with brilliant orange awnings, that Terry's -father had bought when Oceanedge had promised to become a thriving -seashore resort. But the "plans of men" had gone "agley," and Oceanedge -had never developed beyond Terry's house, the beginnings of a boardwalk, -and a bridge over the small inlet of Bottle Bay. - -Arden kept her hand pressed down on the horn, and amid the noise of the -horn and Terry's shrill whistle with forefingers between her lips, -announced their arrival. - -"Yoo-hoo!" Terry called and once more gave her famous loud whistle. - -It was a feat much admired by the other two, who, although they had -practised faithfully under Terry's instruction, were never able to -produce as much as a single "toot" from carefully pursed lips. - -Terry's mother, a woman still young and pleasant enough to be Terry's -sister, appeared in the doorway and waved a hand. The girls jumped out -and hurried toward her. - -"Oh, Mother!" Terry exclaimed, throwing her arms affectionately around -her proud parent, "it's so good to be here. We made wonderful time and -never a puncture, even." - -"It's good to have you here, too," Terry's mother replied and with a -welcoming smile kissed Arden and Sim. - -"I'm glad you arrived safely, for I think we will get a storm before -night, it has been so sultry today," she went on, and as though to give -credence to her words a low, angry rumbling was heard in the west. - -"But come in and get comfortable. You must be starved. We have only a -cold supper, for we were not sure just when you'd get here. Ida," she -called, "the girls are here, we can begin whenever you're ready." - -"Yes, ma'm, Miz Landry, right away," came from the kitchen while the -girls were on their way upstairs. - -The house was not elaborate. One of those many rubber-stamp houses, four -bedrooms upstairs, maid's room downstairs type, but it was bright and -airy, and to the somewhat weary travelers it represented all that could -be desired. - -They quickly changed from "city clothes" into cooler cotton dresses and -slipped fresh shoes on stockingless feet. They hoped before their visit -was over to have acquired a tan that would defy detection of bare legs -and make true skin stockings look smarter still. - -Downstairs in the dining room Ida had made a noble attempt at a cold -supper. Potato salad, lettuce and sliced tomatoes, cold meat, and -lemonade that made a great hit. They ate hungrily and drank glass after -glass of the cool drink as the air became more dense and the storm more -imminent. - -Rolls of thunder growled nearer now, and the sky was dark and -threatening. Mrs. Landry lit the low-hung chandelier over the table; and -then, all at once, with a deafening clap of thunder, the storm was upon -them. - -"Terry, the windows upstairs!" Mrs. Landry called. "And, Sim and Arden, -see if you can pull up the porch awnings. Ida and I will take care of the -windows here." - -Terry dashed upstairs, and Sim and Arden made for the screen-enclosed -porch. - -A cool, almost cold, wind whipped their hair in their eyes and snapped -the awnings viciously as they hurriedly worked. - -"Isn't it glorious, Sim?" Arden asked, pulling with all her might at an -awning rope. - -"I don't like it," Sim answered and gave a little squeal at a flash of -lightning. - -"Look at the ocean--it's all gray, and just a little while ago it was so -blue. Oh, dear, Sim, let's pull together!" Arden wrapped the rope around -her hand, and they both tugged vigorously. - -The awning went up with a rush, and the girls hurried to the next one. -Upstairs a window slammed as Terry went on with her job. The sky was as -dark as night now, and the lightning flashed with increased brilliance; -sometimes in flaming vastness, then again in piercing arrows. - -Suddenly the rain came. Dashing down in silver sheets, it quickly drove -Arden and Sim inside. Terry came running downstairs, and they all -gathered in the living room, where they could watch the fury of the storm -over the ocean. - -"Are you frightened, girls?" Terry's mother asked, as she saw Sim wince -at a thunderclap. "You mustn't be. The storm will follow the bay right -out to sea. They never last long when it gets as black as this. It's -mostly wind, and it blows out quickly." - -"I love it," Arden replied. "I think it's beautiful. But it makes us seem -so small and...." She hesitated. A new noise could be distinguished above -the roar of the storm. The little group, with one accord, turned to a -side window from whence the sound seemed to come. What they saw made poor -frightened Sim gasp. It was a white peering face, with hair plastered -down by the rain, and a questioning look in the eyes. - -"Terry! Go to the door! Let her in!" Mrs. Landry called, quickly -realizing this was a girl's face. - -Terry sprang to obey. The front door opened; the screen door beyond it -was blown back and slammed against the side of the house. - -"Come in, come in," Terry shouted against the screaming wind. "You'll be -blown away!" - -But the storm-born creature, holding a torn sweater closer around her, -looked sharply at Terry, then turned and dashed away in the dim light and -was almost instantly lost to sight on the winding pathway. - -Terry, drying her face and smoothing her hair, came back to the harbor of -the lighted room. - -"She ran when I called her," she stated simply. "What do you suppose she -wanted, if she didn't want to come in?" - -"It's a queer time just to come for a look around," Sim agreed. "You must -have scared her away, Terry." - -"She's probably a water pixie," Arden remarked, still under the spell of -the majestic storm. "She was most likely never there at all; we just -imagined it." - -"What's that?" Sim asked. "Do I imagine I hear a knock at the door? I'm -sure I heard something." - -They all listened. There was certainly a sound like knocking. - -"She's come back!" Terry declared and once more opened the door. The -storm by this time had abated a bit, although the rain still lashed down -in lordly fury. - -As Terry flung back the door, the girls gasped, for there stood their -"handsome stranger" of the lift-ride, soaked thoroughly, with a -shivering, bedraggled dog huddling close to him. - -"Oh-h-h-h!" faltered Terry in her surprise. "Won't you come in?" she -continued, recovering her composure. - -"I'm afraid I am too wet," answered their strange caller, pushing a damp -strand of hair back from his face. "I am sorry to trouble you----" A -sudden gust of wind fury almost pulled the door from Terry's grasp. - -"Come in, come in," interrupted Terry's mother coming forward. "We don't -mind a little water; and the poor dog!" - -She stooped to pet the cringing animal and then drew back in alarm as a -snarl greeted her. - -"Tania!" called the man in rebuke, and then to Terry's mother he said: -"You must forgive her, she is not used to strangers, but she will not -harm you. Tania," he said again, "these people are friends." It was his -voice, apparently, not his words, the dog understood. - -Arden and Sim had pressed nearer to witness the little drama of the -storm. The man and his white wraith of a dog now stood dripping puddles -of rain water on Mrs. Landry's spotless floor. He looked shyly down at -the widening pools at his feet, smiled, and said: - -"I wonder if you could give me a few matches? I have not been very -practical, for I neglected to buy some. And the old ones I have are all -like this." He held up a soaked cardboard clip-container, soft from the -rain. There was just a hint of a foreign accent as he continued: "I am, -in a way, a neighbor, and, though I fear I am making a great deal of -trouble for you, I cannot light my lamp without matches." He made a -helpless gesture. - -"Neighbor?" questioned Mrs. Landry. "I don't understand." - -"Oh, yes!" Arden exclaimed, recognizing the visitor. "You are the -gentleman we drove into town this afternoon. He lives on the houseboat -down the bay," she quickly whispered to Terry's mother. Then to the -caller: "Will matches be all that you need?" - -"I think so, yes; thank you. But please allow me to introduce myself and -beg pardon for intruding like this. I am Dimitri Uzlov. I have rented the -houseboat for the summer while I do a little painting and sketching. This -is Tania, my faithful dog. She is not as savage as she appears. This -afternoon your daughters were kind enough to----" He looked at Mrs. -Landry and bowed formally. But she interrupted: - -"Only one daughter, Mr. Uzlov," and she indicated Terry by putting a hand -on her shoulder. "My other daughters are not here now. These young ladies -are Terry's guests--her college chums." - -Dimitri Uzlov bowed in acknowledgment. In so doing he turned the hat he -was holding upside down, and water began dripping and splashing from the -curved brim. - -"Oh!" he exclaimed in some confusion. - -"It doesn't matter," said Terry. - -"Thank you. But the young ladies were very kind to me this afternoon. No -doubt they have told you." Another bow to Mrs. Landry. "But I must not -stand here dripping like this. If I could have a few matches for my -lamps----" His slow, ingratiating smile came out again. - -Terry hurried to the kitchen and returned with matches and candles as -well. Mrs. Landry always kept a supply of both in stock, knowing, from -past sad experiences, that the electric current at Marshlands was not -always entirely dependable during severe storms. - -Terry held out the matches, long wooden ones with blue heads, and several -candles. - -"You are very provident," said Mr. Uzlov, smiling once more as he took -them, again bowing and splashing more water from his hat to the floor. "I -must be wise in this same way. I thank you a thousand times! You are so -kind!" - -The rain-soaked visitor turned to go. - -"Won't you wait a little longer," Mrs. Landry asked, "until the storm -lets up a bit?" - -"Thank you, but I must get back. I have stayed away too long already. My -humble houseboat is alone. Come, Tania," he replied and, giving them all -a shy smile, he stepped out on the porch. - -"But you'll catch cold--the rain----" Arden began. - -"It has almost stopped," Dimitri Uzlov smiled. "We must not stay any -longer. I am a solitary person. But thank you." And he was gone, leaving -only the telltale puddles behind him. - -As they watched from the window they could see him walking down the damp -sand in the direction of the houseboat with Tania, the Russian wolfhound, -at his heels, looking thinner than ever because of the way her silk hair -lay matted with the rain. - -Like a character from the "King of the Golden River" he looked, getting -farther and farther away until a sand-dune suddenly cut off their sight -of him. - -Only the footsteps were left, big ones for Dimitri and a series of small -holes where the dainty Tania had followed him. - -"What a strange man!" Mrs. Landry exclaimed. - -"I think he's just awfully shy," Arden said. "I suppose he couldn't bear -to come in with all us women staring at him." - -"Perhaps you're right, my dear," Terry's mother answered and once more -turned to the window. - -A big storm, a wild wraith of a girl, a real hermit, and a majestic -wolfhound! What more could the girls have expected? - - - - - CHAPTER III - The Russian - - -When the storm was over and the late summer sun came out for a brief half -hour before settling down for the night, there was hardly a hint of rain -left. The sandy ground absorbed the water almost as quickly as it fell, -leaving only tiny pock-marks behind. - -The girls opened doors and windows to capture the cool air, and Arden let -the porch awnings down and jumped back just in time to escape a small -cascade as the rain water tumbled free of the canvas pocket. - -Then Arden and Sim, Terry and her mother sat on the comfortably screened -porch and watched night fold her dark-blue wings over everything. - -"Funniest thing the way that 'Tess-of-the-Storm-Country' creature peeked -in at the window and then ran away," Terry observed dreamily. "Who could -she have been?" - -"I suppose she saw Dimitri Uzlov coming up the path and was frightened. -That dog of his certainly looked like nothing human," Sim replied. - -"A case of 'see what the storm blew in,'" Arden chuckled. "But don't you -think he's fascinating? I love his accent." - -Terry's mother gave a little laugh. - -"You youngsters always find something romantic in the most everyday -occurrences, don't you? But you mustn't bother Mr. Uzlov. He seems a -serious young man, and he hinted, quite charmingly, that he would rather -be alone. Well--" she smothered a little yawn--"I'm going to bed. It must -be half-past ten. Good-night, girls." - -"Oh--Mother--" Terry drawled--"as if we'd bother him." - -That was one of the nicest things about Terry's mother. She never -intruded, and any advice she gave was always offered in a way that they -could not possibly object to. But this evening her well-meant plan of -leaving them alone to talk was not needed, for they soon followed her -into the house, and after talking a while in sleepy monosyllables, -without much ceremony fell asleep in comfortable beds. - -The next morning brought a blue-and-gold day with a stiff northwest wind -kicking up whitecaps on Bottle Bay. "Buckingham Palace" stood on a little -neck of land, with the ocean on one side and the bay on the other. - -"Let's take the rowboat and go down the bay a bit," Terry suggested. -"It's too cold for bathing." - -"We could take a look at the houseboat without disturbing the hermit," -Arden remarked. "Maybe----" - -"Exactly what I had in mind," Terry said. "You're positively uncanny, -Arden, the way you read people's minds. We don't need to mention it to -Mother, though." - -It was after breakfast, and the girls were sitting on the bottom step of -the porch, idly watching tiny ants rebuild their houses that had been -washed away in the storm. - -"Let me row, Terry, will you?" Sim asked. "I'm going to start in training -this very day, and when we go back to Cedar Ridge in the fall I'll be the -champion swimmer of the college," she bragged. - -"You can row, all right, I've no desire to raise blisters on my -lily-white palms," Terry answered her, and going to the door of the house -she called: "Mother, we're going for a little row in the bay. The girls -want to take a look around. Yes, we'll be careful. 'Bye!" - -On the bay side an old though seaworthy rowboat was moored, covered with -a canvas which had kept out the rain. They quickly pulled off the cover, -and Terry took the oars from their place. With a few uncertain pushes, -they finally made one strong enough to get started. - -They were wearing shorts with sneakers, and bright handkerchiefs knotted -at their throats; no hats, but Sim had tied a ribbon like Alice in -Wonderland around her head to keep her short curls in place. It was -becoming, too, and perhaps Sim knew that. - -"Now let's see how good you are, Sim," Terry suggested. "Hail the -champion----" - -"I'm not good at all, but I will be. Arden, you get in the -what-do-you-call it--stern--the back, and, Terry, you sit there, too, -then you can watch me and tell where we're going." Sim found a place to -brace her heels and grasping the oars began to back water until they -could turn. - -"Don't just row down there and bump into the houseboat. Pretend we're -going some place else," Arden suggested. "We don't want to appear so -curious." - -"It won't make much difference; the wind is taking us there, anyway. -Oh--ouch!" Sim exclaimed. "I caught my fingers between the oars." She -shook her hands quickly to "throw off" the pain. - -"Well, don't let the oar go, silly!" Terry cautioned quickly. "Oh, Sim, -you lovely chump, there it goes!" - -The oar, as though pulled by the water, slipped out of the oarlock and -floated away entirely unconcerned. - -"Here, give me the other one, I'll paddle," Terry cried, reaching for the -one faithful remaining oar. - -Sim tried to hand it to her and in so doing gave Arden a little bump on -the head. - -"Oh, Sim, you're hitting me," Arden squealed. - -"Sorry!" grunted Sim. - -"Fine bunch of sailors you are. You can't paddle against this wind. Look -where we're going!" Arden was indicating the shore line. The houseboat -was only a few hundred feet away now, in a little cove, down the bay from -Terry's house, the distance being about a half mile. - -"We're going right toward it. What'll we do?" Sim wailed. "We'll hit it -in a minute!" - -"Oh, hush, Sim! We can't help it. Stick out the oar, Terry, so we don't -bump too hard," Arden ordered. - -Terry tried her best, but the oar slipped to one side, and the boat -rammed the houseboat with a little bump that, to the girls, sounded like -a crash. - -Instantly there was a ferocious barking, and the girls could hear a call: -"Tania! Tania!" and then a rush of words uttered in a soothing tone. - -They sat quite still, an embarrassed little group, while their lazy old -craft hugged the side of the houseboat. - -"Sim Westover," Arden hissed, "I could cheerfully duck you, clothes and -all. What will the man think?" - -"But, Arden----" began Sim, and then stopped as she heard footsteps on -the upper deck of the boat near them. - -Dimitri Uzlov had come on deck and was gazing down at them silently. They -looked back, uncertain how to explain their presence. Arden spoke: - -"We're sorry to have disturbed you, but we lost an oar and the boat -drifted over here." - -"I let it slip," Sim added a little nervously. "I'm not very good at -rowing, I'm afraid." She smiled up at him apologetically. - -He still looked down at them, saying nothing, half amused and half angry, -apparently. - -"If you could lend us an oar we could row over and get ours," Terry -suggested. "We'd bring yours right back." - -Suddenly the young man burst out laughing, and they all felt better, so -much better that they joined in the laugh themselves. - -"You are char-r-rming," he chuckled. "Of course you may take my oar; I -will get it for you," and he disappeared from sight as if he had dropped -down a hatchway. - -"See!" Arden whispered gleefully. "Isn't he nice?" - -Then they heard him call: "Can you push down to this end of my castle? My -rowboat is moored here." - -Terry poled the boat in the shallow water, for the houseboat was tied up -at the shore, to the place Dimitri indicated. - -There was a boat similar to theirs fast to the larger craft. Dimitri -handed Terry the oar, smiling. - -"Do you think you can recover your own?" he asked. - -"Oh, yes, easily," replied Terry. "I'll row this time." - -Sim climbed to the stern a little humbly and sat panting while Terry, -with long strokes, pulled toward the deeper water where their oar was -bobbing about in the sunlight. - -"Grab it, Sim," she called when they reached it, "and don't murder anyone -with it!" - -Sim grabbed and recovered the dripping wooden shaft successfully and also -gratefully. - -"Now we'll take his back," Terry went on, and turned their craft toward -the houseboat. - -Tania once more barkingly announced their arrival, and Dimitri appeared -at the signal. - -"Will you come on board and rest for a minute?" he invited hospitably. -"It was unfortunate that you lost your oar." - -"I don't know whether we ought----" began Terry but Arden, seeing his -smiling face take on an embarrassed look, interrupted with: - -"We'd love to, for just a second. I've never been on a houseboat." - -Terry tied their boat up near his, and the three girls went around to the -stern of the houseboat over a little boardwalk and up the rickety stairs -to the deck of the floating old craft. - -There they hesitated. Tania was keeping up a barrage of barking, showing -her fangs and growling at intervals. - -"Please, if you will come with me," Dimitri said. "I will impress on her -that you are my friends." - -They followed him guardedly. "Tania, come here," he ordered sternly. The -big white-and-tan dog stood like a statue. "Come here!" her master -repeated. Tania walked toward him with queenly dignity. - -Dimitri then put his hand on Arden's arm. "These are my friends," he -said; and then to the girls: "I will tell her that in Russian, and she -will be sure to understand. Then if you will each pat her head, you will -be fast friends." He smiled enthusiastically. - -The little ceremony of introduction was carried out, and Tania ceased her -worried barking. The dog put a dainty paw on Arden's white shorts as if -to reassure them all most completely. - -"Such a lovely dog," murmured Sim. - -"And intelligent, too," added Terry. - -"I will have pleasure in showing you my little floating home here, if you -would like to see it," said Mr. Uzlov, smiling his invitation. "It is the -first time I have ever lived on a houseboat. They are rather strange -creatures, is it not so?" Again he smiled. - -"This one is very old," Terry said. "I don't know how many years it has -been here. It belongs to Mr. Reilly, the town chief of police. This is -the first time it's been rented in I don't know how long. I think you -hadn't better try to move it either by sail or an outboard motor," she -warned with a laugh. "I fancy it would leak like a sieve." - -"Doubtless," he agreed, also laughing. "But I shall be safe enough on my -boat. I don't intend to move her, and probably she rests on the muddy -bottom of this bay and marshy land." - -The houseboat was not large. It consisted of a sort of large shed, with -windows, doors, and a flat roof perched on what had once been a scow. -There was a narrow space running all around the house part, between it -and a low rail. There was a small float at one end to which a rowboat was -made fast. From the float a cleated plank gave access to the lower deck -of the boat, if a deck it could be called. There was also a short flight -of rather rickety steps at the stern by which the girls had come aboard. -The houseboat had once been painted green, but little of the original -color remained. - -"Will you follow me?" Dimitri Uzlov requested, opening a sagging door -which led into the rear part of the houseboat. "This is where I do my -work." - -The girls saw that the interior of the craft consisted of really but one -large room, divided by heavy hanging curtains into two apartments. The -one they had entered did the double duty of a sleeping and working space, -for there was a cot in one corner. On a table gleamed a bright brass -samovar with some dishes about it. There was an easel and on a chair near -it brushes in pots, tubes of paint, and a much-smeared palette. The -curtained-off part was the kitchen. - -"I am finishing a marine for a client," the artist said, indicating the -half-finished canvas on the easel. - -Arden and her chums noticed several canvases stacked together near one -wall, and standing beside a window was another easel with a picture on -it. But what the subject of this picture was could not be seen, for it -was covered with a sheet. - -"Oh, how lovely it is here!" Arden exclaimed. "To have a place all your -own to do just as you please in and no need to worry about neighbors -looking in your windows!" - -"At least I am sufficiently isolated here," the Russian agreed. "The -houseboat is hard to come at. I always loved marshlands. That is one -reason I was attracted to this boat, old and shabby as it is." - -"It's wonderful, I think," murmured Sim. - -"But a little lonesome," suggested Terry. - -"I came here for lonesomeness--as one reason," Mr. Uzlov said. - -Arden glanced at the exposed picture showing a stormy ocean with sea -gulls fighting the wind. Dimitri smiled understanding as she said: - -"It is lovely!" - -The artist seemed to be losing some of his reluctance. - -Arden walked over toward the other painting--the one covered with a -sheet. She wondered what it could be. - -"What is this?" she asked, extending a hand as though to lift the -covering. "Is it your masterpiece?" - -Instantly the young man's face clouded. - -"Please--that--do not touch it--please! It is--unfinished. I cannot show -it to you. I am sorry!" - -His first words had been hurried--stiff--exclamatory. The girls at once -sensed a change in his manner. But his last word had been almost -pleading. Even then it seemed as if his friendliness, which had been so -pronounced on the arrival of his visitors, was now as covered as was the -picture. - -Arden drew back as if hurt. - -"I didn't mean to be curious," she faltered. "I'm sorry!" Even her words -sounded empty of meaning. - -Another change came over the face of Dimitri Uzlov. - -"You will be so good as to pardon me for my seeming ill haste," he -murmured. "But that picture--no--it must not be seen--yet." - -Matters were becoming a little strained and awkward, but Terry went into -the breach cleverly by saying: - -"We had better be going. It must be nearly lunch time. Mother will be -expecting us. Thank you for your help, Mr. Uzlov, and for letting us see -your houseboat." - -He did not try to stop them, nor did he express regret at their sudden -departure, but simply said good-bye and then watched them pull away in -the waiting rowboat. - -"Queerest person I ever met," Terry began. "One minute all sunshine and -gladness, and the next, all worked up because Arden asked about his old -picture." - -"I wouldn't have touched it, anyway," Arden replied. "I was just trying -to show a little interest. My goodness! Who would want to live in such a -messy place? No one but the sort they call--artists!" - -"I wonder what the hidden picture was?" Sim asked curiously. "Perhaps -he's a spy, making maps of the coast and inlet." - -"Now who said they refused to get mixed up in another mystery?" Terry -jeered. "Well, let's go home, I'm hungry." - -"So am I, but I would like to know what was on that easel," Sim remarked -as Terry pulled with strong strokes back to "Buckingham Palace." - - - - - CHAPTER IV - A Girl and a Bracelet - - -By afternoon the sun was warmer, and the girls, dressed in bathing suits, -were lying on the caressing sand of the little beach not far from the -house. They had spread their beach coats out beneath them and were -sprawled in favorable attitudes to acquire the all-important tan. At -intervals one of the girls sat up and coated herself liberally with -cocoanut oil. They did not seem to feel exactly like talking, as the sun -made them deliciously lazy. Perhaps they were thinking of their adventure -at school when, as told in the first volume of this series, _The Orchard -Secret_, many surprising things happened. Or they may have been letting -their minds wander to more surprising occurrences, as told in the -_Mystery of Jockey Hollow_. - -Sim, Arden, and Terry had been chums and schoolmates ever since they -first began to acquire knowledge in Vincent Prep, and their friendship -and loyalty continued until the present time, when they were just -finishing their freshman year at Cedar Ridge, the well-known college for -girls at Morrisville. This small city was not very distant from -Pentville, where the three lived. - -As Sim sat up to apply the oil again, she saw a dark object bobbing up -and down far out on the ocean. - -"Look, girls," she cried, "does that look like someone to you, or is it -just a log?" - -"Where?" Arden asked, squinting at the bright water toward which Sim -pointed, and then they were left in no doubt, for the bobbing dark spot -began to swim. With long, sure strokes it came nearer to them, and they -could see the white foam where the thrashing feet churned it up in -perfect timing. - -"Some swimmer," Sim said admiringly. "Wonderful form. I wonder who it -is?" - -"We'll soon see," Arden replied, and Terry nodded in agreement. - -The figure was making rapid time, and as it neared the beach, waited for -just the right minute and then coasted in on a blue-and-white breaker. - -The girls watched while the swimmer crawled a stroke then sprang upright -and shook off water like a happy young animal. - -"Why, it's the girl who looked in at the window last night," Terry -exclaimed. "She can swim, can't she?" - -The girl saw them suddenly and was about to run up the beach and away -when she hesitated. Sim saw an old gray sweater on the sand near them. It -obviously belonged to the swimmer, and she would have to come quite near -them to get it. - -Sim smiled at her as she looked at them in an almost frightened way. - -"You swim beautifully," Sim remarked to relieve the shy girl. "Did you -learn in the ocean?" - -"Yeah," she drawled, stooping for her sweater. "I learned in the ocean." -That was all she said. - -"Do you live here, at Oceanedge?" Arden asked next. - -"Not right here," replied the swimmer. "I live on the other side of the -bay with my father, but I come here to swim." After such a long speech -she again seemed ready to run away. - -"We live up there," Terry volunteered, indicating the house, the roof of -which could be seen above low pines. "We're just here for the summer. Do -you live here all year?" - -"Yes, I'm a native," their new friend went on in a rather bitter tone. "I -live, if you can call it that, with my father. He's a crabber and a worn -crab himself. What's that oil for?" Arden was dabbing a bit on a rather -red arm. - -"To make us tan; want some?" asked Sim kindly. - -The girl gave a little laugh. "My father would tan me if he caught me -using anything like that. He says I'm so homely now, there's no use -making me worse." - -"Oh, but you're a marvelous swimmer. I wish you'd swim with me some day," -said the sympathetic Sim. "What's your name? Mine is Bernice Westover, -but everyone calls me Sim," she finished affably. - -"Melissa Clayton," the girl answered. "That's a pretty thing." She -indicated a brilliantly painted wooden bracelet on Sim's arm, the kind -sponsored by the large department stores as being just the thing for -beach wear because, perhaps, you couldn't forget you had it on. - -"Do you like it? You may have it," Sim replied and slipped it off her -arm. "Here, I've got lots of things like these, and you might like to -have this." - -"Oh, can I really? I'd love it! I've never had a pretty thing like this -in my whole life. My father thinks such things are no good and only give -me wrong ideas. But I'll take care of it always." Melissa took the -bracelet and slipped it on her tanned muscular arm, looking at it -pathetically. - -She wore an old, dark-blue jersey bathing suit, a little too large for -her, and a white canvas belt. She had no bathing cap on, and her wet hair -was beginning to curl a little as it dried in the sun. She looked at the -wooden bracelet as though it were as precious as a diamond circlet, -turning it around and around to admire it. A slow smile spread over her -tanned face. - -"Do you go to school here in the winter, Melissa?" Arden asked. This wild -creature who swam like a sea nymph and smiled at a cheap wooden bracelet -was something different and "terribly interesting," in Arden's opinion. - -"I did go to school, but my father took me out last year when I turned -fourteen; said I'd be getting ideas. So I don't go any more," Melissa -replied, her white teeth gleaming and sparkling in her darkened face. - -"But what do you do all winter when it's cold and there's no crabbing?" -Sim inquired. "We're asking you an awful lot of questions; do you mind?" - -"No, I don't mind. I don't very often get a chance to talk to anybody. Pa -never says a word, hardly," the girl went on. - -Arden, Terry, and Sim watched her sympathetically as she stood first on -one foot then on the other in a nervous way, smoothing out the sand -beneath her feet. They had never met a girl like her, and pitied her at -once when they learned of her lonely life. But, sorry as they were, they -realized that there was something about her that was different, a hint of -a mind not as keenly alert as theirs. She was so slow to respond to their -advances. - -"Why did you run away the other night in the storm?" Terry bravely asked. -"We wanted you to come in." - -"I was afraid. I just wanted to look at you all in the nice bright room, -but when you saw me----" - -"Melissa!" thundered a voice behind them. - -They all started and turned. A shabbily dressed man was standing back of -them on the sand. They had not heard his footsteps. Had he purposely -crept up on Melissa? - -"What are you doing there?" he asked roughly. - -"Nothing, Pa--I was just swimmin'." Melissa seemed to swerve visibly, and -she looked nervously down at the bracelet Sim had given her. - -"What's that you got? Haven't I told you not to take things?" - -"I didn't take it, Pa. She gave it to me. I never even asked." - -"Give it back, right away, and come along home! You've been fooling -around here long enough. Quick, now!" - -Melissa's childish blue eyes pleaded to be allowed to keep the bracelet, -but her father, reading her thought, stepped forward and pulled it from -her arm. - -"Here, miss--I don't allow Melissa to take things," the gruff man -growled. - -"Oh--but it's nothing," faltered Sim. "Please----" - -Clayton ignored her entirely, as he did Arden and Terry. They might not -have been there, for all the attention they were given. Their attempt at -helping Melissa went for naught. - -Melissa pulled the gray sweater on over her still wet bathing suit and, -smiling ruefully, followed her father, who had begun plodding up the -beach. She did not look back but plodded along herself, trying to keep up -with his big steps but, apparently, not intending to walk beside him. - -The girls watched the retreating figures. Clayton was talking earnestly, -now and then flinging out a hand in gesture and turning to shake his fist -at his daughter, watching her closely as he tramped on. - -"What a mean man!" Sim exclaimed, fingering the returned bracelet. "That -poor child must have a rotten time." - -"He certainly was a gruff old fellow," Arden agreed. "But did it strike -you there was anything strange about that girl?" - -"Only that she seemed so awfully scared. Like a kitten or stray dog. And -I imagine she wanted to make friends," Terry replied. - -"I hope that man is kind to her. I hate people to be unhappy," Sim -remarked. "I'd better not begin to pity her, or I won't enjoy myself, and -I so want to do that." She smiled appreciatingly at Terry, and then, -taking the cork from the bottle of cocoanut oil, coated her pink skin -again before starting for another dip. - - - - - CHAPTER V - The Stranger - - -The water was too cold for a long swim, perhaps because of the violent -storm of the night before, and the girls did not stay in long. Sim, who -loved swimming above all other sports, had to come out reluctantly, as -she, too, felt cold. They dried themselves and raced back to the house to -dress. - -It was late afternoon when they were finally dressed and sitting once -more on the porch of "Buckingham Palace." - -"It's lovely here, Terry," Arden remarked looking dreamily at the ocean. - -"I hope you won't get tired of it. As you know by now, there's really -nothing to do. Swimming, rowing, walking, and fishing if you care for it. -But no country clubs. One movie that's better left alone, and a tiny -village," Terry explained at length. - -"Oh, but you're forgetting our Russian friend and the wild girl of the -swamps." - -Sim spoke up. "Not to mention the hard-hearted father and the ferocious -wolfhound _and_ the swimming. Don't you worry, we won't be bored. What I -like best is the complete absence of mystery." This was so pointed, the -remark made a good joke. - -"How about your theory that Dimitri is a spy and that Melissa is a -kidnaped heiress?" Arden asked Sim, who was lazily swaying on the porch -swing. - -"Well, I do think he's queer, and I may be right after all. It's not -natural for a man as young as he is to want to be alone unless he's -hiding something from somebody," Sim insisted. - -"Perhaps he is. But I find Melissa more interesting. Seemed to me that -man she called 'Pa' had hypnotized her. And how mean of him not to let -her keep the bracelet," Terry remarked. "Just plain mean!" - -As if that brought up different theories in each mind, their conversation -dragged. The swim and the row in the morning left them feeling pleasantly -weary and completely satisfied. Healthy fatigue was the real answer. - -Sim moved back and forth in the rustic swing, while Terry and Arden gazed -dreamily out to sea, where the dying sun turned white clouds to pink and -painted the water a deep blue in the miracle of sunset. - -They never even realized that a car was coming rapidly down the road -behind the house, raising billows of sandy dust, until it stopped with -screeching brakes at the back gate of Terry's house. - -"Who's that?" Sim asked, as Sim would. - -"I haven't the least idea, little one," Terry answered. "Unless it's some -more spies or kidnapers." - -"Let's go see," Arden suggested. "May we?" - -But they were saved the trouble, for a woman was striding up the -sand-edged path to the porch. She was dressed in black satin with a huge -silver fox scarf, and glittering earrings showed beneath a small satin -turban. She had dark eyes, and her lips were a scarlet gash. The girls -waited apprehensively. - -"I beg your par-r-don," the woman began. "Have you a houseboat around -here? He calls it--" she fumbled in a handbag and taking out a paper -looked at it closely--"he calls it _Merry Jane_. Can you tell me how to -reach it?" - -"There is a houseboat down the bay, if that's the one you mean," Terry -answered. "It is, I imagine, the only one around here." - -"No other houseboats?" the caller asked, showing white even teeth, pretty -in spite of the carmined lips. - -"No, only this one," Terry told her. "But I didn't know it had a name." - -"Then that must be it, my dear. Can you tell me how to reach it?" - -"You'll have to go back through the village, then along a swampy road to -the edge of the bay. The road is rather bad because of the rain last -night." - -"Through the village? Is there no other way? I did not understand one had -to go through the village," the woman remarked vaguely. - -"Unless you go by boat. I don't know of any other way of getting there," -Terry answered. - -The woman seemed to be considering. She tapped her hand impatiently on -the letter she had taken from her purse, and looked around her as though -trying to get her bearings and to make some decision. - -"But how can I get a boat? It is very important that I get over there. I -don't suppose--I would be glad to pay you--if---- Could you take me over? -Have you a boat?" the dark woman asked abruptly. - -"Yes," answered Terry. "I could take you over, and of course I'd be glad -to do it." - -"Can we go at once?" the woman asked nervously. - -"I guess so," Terry replied. "Tell Mother I'll be right back, will you, -Arden? I won't be long." - -"Of course, Terry. But don't you want----" Arden asked in a meaning, -unfinished way. - -For answer Terry turned aside from their strange caller and winked -understandingly at Arden and Sim. Arden did not press her point further, -but nodded her head and said no more. Both were thinking: "Now for -another adventure!" - -Terry quickly went for the oars and, with the dark flashy woman -following, made for the rowboat. The passenger got in gracefully despite -her extremely high-heeled shoes and sat in the stern while Terry pushed -off. - -"There it is, down there." Terry pointed to the moored boat where Dimitri -lived. - -"That?" her passenger asked incredulously. "That--that _thing_? Dimitri -is an odd one. Fancy him living there!" she sneered openly. - -Terry maintained an embarrassed silence and rowed more vigorously. They -soon reached the side of the houseboat, and at the sound of the oars -Tania appeared on the narrow little deck, barking furiously. - -"Dimitri! Dimitri!" the woman called. "Have you still got that beast? Tie -her up. I'm coming aboard." - -Dimitri, in answer to the call, opened the door and came outside. He -looked almost shocked as he saw Terry and her queer passenger, and for a -minute seemed awe-struck. Then he smiled at Terry, for it was impossible -to be heard above Tania's wild barking. He shrugged his shoulders and -grasping Tania by the collar had literally to pull the huge dog away from -the edge of the boat. - -Terry came closer and grasped the side of the houseboat that the woman -had spoken of as _Merry Jane_. She waited until Dimitri returned without -Tania. He leaned down and, holding the woman by the hand, assisted her to -climb aboard. Then, turning to Terry, smiling queerly, remarked: - -"I don't know whether to thank you, my friend, or----" - -Terry's eyes opened wide in astonishment. - -"Dimitri," the woman said between shut teeth. "What do you mean?" - -"Nothing, nothing. Come inside, Olga," he replied, and nodded to Terry as -he held open the door for his apparently uninvited guest. - -Terry knew at once she had no place in this strange little drama and -prepared to leave. From the houseboat came the sound of a feminine voice -raised in anger. But Terry could not understand the words beyond a -pleading "Dimitri." - -She rowed quickly away, back to safer if not saner surroundings. - - - - - CHAPTER VI - The Unwelcome Guest - - -Terry bent to the oars, pulling hard and taking long strokes with the -blades just missing the water. She could row with quite some skill when -she particularly wanted to, and now she could scarcely wait to get back -to tell Sim and Arden what had happened. - -As she reached the little dock where they tied up their boat, she looked -around and saw Arden and Sim inspecting the flashy green roadster which -the woman "Olga" had left parked near their back door. Terry put her -finger to her lips and whistled shrilly. Arden and Sim at once came -running to meet her. - -"What happened, Terry?--surely something?" Arden asked, climbing into the -boat. Sim followed, and all three settled down to talk on the quiet -water's edge. - -"Yes, lots!" Terry exclaimed. "He was furious when he saw her, and Tania -was wild." - -"Who was furious--what about?" Sim wanted to know. - -"Dimitri, stupid," Terry went on. "When he saw whom I had in the boat I -never saw a man look so mad." - -"What did he do?" Arden asked with great interest and hopeful expectancy. - -"Oh, he was polite enough in a cold way," Terry told them with a show of -relish. "He tied up Tania and said he didn't know whether or not to thank -me. I heard him call her 'Olga.' When I left they were jabbering away as -though they were mad at each other. Talking Russian, I guess," Terry said -rapidly. The sudden appearance of the spectacular woman had given them -more excitement than mere words might explain. - -"Why do you suppose she didn't want to go through the village?" Sim -inquired cannily. - -"It looks to me as if she didn't want to be seen," Arden ventured. - -"She seemed to know the artist pretty well," Terry resumed. "She spoke as -if it was queer that he should live in the houseboat." - -"Let's go back to the house, the mosquitoes are beginning to bite," Sim -said, slapping her stockingless leg. "We can talk better there, anyway. -Our voices might carry over the water." - -They all agreed this was a good plan and scrambled out of the boat. Terry -tied it up and took the oars, and they went back to the porch. - -It was almost dusk now, and the bay was hardly rippled by a land breeze -that carried the annoying little mosquitoes with it. The porch offered -the most comfortable place, screened in and commodiously furnished. Once -there, the girls got ready for a "good talk," and presently Terry's -mother joined them. - -"I wouldn't make too much out of this," she warned. "You girls will -become gossips if you don't be careful," she laughed. - -"But, Mother," Terry insisted, "he was so mad, and Tania was quite wild -with rage. There must be something wrong about it." - -"Tania is a nervous dog, she barks at everyone," Mrs. Landry remarked. - -"She knows us now. I don't think she'd bark at us ever again," Terry -decided rather triumphantly. - -As though to prove this assertion, at that very moment Tania came -bounding up the path. Her beautiful silky fur was coated with mud from -the marsh, and water was dripping from her as the dog pranced along. She -reached the screen door and gave a little "woof," asking to come in. - -Arden got up and opened the door. At once Tania, in high spirits, planted -her muddy feet on Arden's shoulders and licked her face. Arden staggered -backward from the weight of the dog and stumbled over a chair. Tania -could not keep on her own feet, and the two went down with a mighty bump. -In the scramble Tania again playfully licked Arden's face in the most -reassuring if not the most dignified way. - -Terry and Sim were laughing so hard they could do nothing to help, and -Arden rolled over and buried her face in her hands. It was so sudden and -so funny. - -"Tania!" called Mrs. Landry sharply. "Stop it! Come here at once!" - -At the sound of her name, Tania looked up and walked with her usual -dignity to Terry's mother, obediently resting her head in the woman's -lap. Mrs. Landry rubbed the silky ears and gently scolded the dog, while -Arden scrambled to her feet and attempted to brush off the mud. - -"See, Mother," Terry said as she stopped laughing. "I told you she knew -us." - -At that Terry reached out a hand to pet the animal and then exclaimed in -surprise: "Look! Tania has a note under her collar!" - -Quickly Terry pulled it out and began to read. - -"It's from Dimitri," she announced as her chums waited to hear. "He wants -to know if we can go back and get his guest, as his boat has sprung a -leak and he can't use it. Oh, Mother, may we go?" - -"You'll have to, I guess, since you took her over there," said Mrs. -Landry somewhat reluctantly. "But not all of you. With Tania and your -queer lady passenger the boat would be too crowded. Just two of you -should go, I think." - -"Oh, Mother, can't we all go?" Terry begged, reasoning that she, as the -best rower, must necessarily go, and hating to leave one of her chums at -home. - -"No, I think it would be too crowded. I'd worry. Why don't you toss a -coin and decide which one is to go with you?" Mrs. Landry suggested. She -always worked with the girls, never against them. - -Terry dashed into the house and, coming out, cried: "Heads Arden -goes--tails Sim does." She flipped the coin into the air and caught it on -the back of one hand, cleverly, covering it for a moment with her other -hand. Then she announced: "You win, Arden. It's too bad, Sim dear. But -you can take care of Mother, and we'll come back just as soon as we can -and tell you every little thing; won't we, Arden?" - -"Oh, surely!" - -As was natural, perhaps, Terry and Arden were too excited to notice -whether or not Sim minded very much being thus left behind. The two -hurried down to the rowboat with Tania trotting after them. The dog -curled up on the broad stern seat, and Arden sat near her to restrain her -if necessary. But there was no need. Tania seemed very much accustomed to -boats and hardly stirred. - -Terry rowed quickly in the direction of the _Merry Jane_. From her -position Arden could see Dimitri and his somewhat mysterious guest out on -the narrow, railed walk that extended all around the house part of the -boat. The Russian was obviously waiting for those whom he had summoned by -the note on his dog's collar. The woman Olga was talking to him rapidly, -as Terry and Arden could hear. They noticed, as they drew nearer, that -her face seemed paler than before, and her eyes were flaming. Dimitri -looked quizzically at the approaching boat, and when they pulled -alongside he quickly grasped Tania by the collar. The dog was -transformed, suddenly, from the dignified white animal who had sat so -quietly in the boat, to a raging, snarling beast. Dimitri hustled her on -the houseboat and made her secure somewhere inside. He reappeared almost -at once and said to Terry and Arden: - -"It is most kind of you to do this. I do not like to be such a nuisance, -but I promise you it shall not happen again." The girls thought he seemed -too cross even to talk to them. - -He motioned to Olga, who jumped lightly into the boat. - -"Good-bye, Dimitri," she said clearly. "You have won this time, but it is -not the end, by any means." - -"_Au'voir_, then, Olga, till we meet again. I hope it will not be--too -soon," he said, totally ignoring all politeness and smiling, the girls -thought, bitterly. - -"Thank you, comrade," he said to Terry. "Will you take her back now? She -is driving to New York tonight." - -Though he spoke to Terry, his remark almost seemed like an order to the -dark woman, an order delivered in such a tone that it would seem -foolhardy to overlook it. So Terry nodded her sandy head, and Arden said, -"Good-bye," almost inaudibly. Then they started back once more to Terry's -landing. - -When they were out of earshot the woman apparently regained some of her -composure; at least, she did not seem so angry. - -"You know Dimitri, then?" she asked in an attempt to be pleasant. - -"We gave him some candles one night, and he lent us an oar once," Arden -answered. "We don't see him very often." - -"No, and you won't," the woman added. "He is a queer one. Did he ever -show you any of his things? Any jewels, maybe?" - -"Only some pictures. Why?" Arden asked frankly. - -"I just wondered. Of course, he is very fond of his pictures and that dog -of his," she went on. "The largest picture. Did you see it?" - -Arden shook her head. - -"Oh, well," Olga shrugged her shoulders and adjusted her silver fox -scarf. "He won't bother you again, I'm sure," and she smiled to herself. - -They reached "Buckingham Palace," and Olga stepped out. With a -perfunctory "thank you" she hurried to her car. There was Melissa Clayton -gazing at it in raptures. Running her fingers over the shining fenders -and pushing the upholstery to test its softness, Melissa was enchanted. - -As Terry and Arden watched, they could see Olga speak to Melissa. The -girl answered, her face wreathed in smiles. Then, as Olga spoke again, -Melissa hurried around to the side away from the steering wheel and got -in the car, shutting the door after her. - -Olga, settling herself, started the motor, reversed the car on the narrow -sandy road, and turned back the way she had come, with Melissa beside -her. - -For a moment the girls were speechless. - -Melissa going off in the strange woman's car! - - - - - CHAPTER VII - A Noise in the Night - - -"Well, what do you think of that?" Terry exclaimed as Arden and she, -still in the boat at the little dock, watched Melissa get into Olga's car -and drive away. - -"Suppose she kidnaps little Melissa?" Arden facetiously suggested. "We -must tell Sim. I wonder where she is." - -"Sim! We're back!" Terry called. "Where are you?" - -"Here," Sim answered from inside the house. "I was writing a letter. Come -on up to my room and tell me all about it." - -Arden and Terry, each carrying an oar, almost ran from the dock to the -house, and Sim, who could not wait for them to come up to her room, met -them at the door. - -"Tell me all about it! I'm sure something exciting happened. I can tell -by your faces," Sim exclaimed quickly. - -"First, we'll tell you about the lovers' quarrel," Terry joked. "And if -_they_ are lovers----" - -"They are not," flatly declared Arden. "More like partners in crime----" - -"Hey, there!" warned Sim, "no crime in this. Go ahead, children. What -happened?" - -"Well, he was mad as hops when we got there," began Terry. - -"And she was, too," Arden added. - -"He practically said he hoped he'd never see her again," Terry resumed. - -"She was positively _livid_ when she got in the boat, and then she calmed -down and tried to be nice to us," Arden took up the tale. - -"He called me 'comrade.' Wasn't that sweet?" Terry wanted to know. - -"I can't figure it out at all," Sim confessed. "And from the window I saw -Melissa Clayton get in the gay car--imagine that! Melissa's been hanging -around here all the time you were away. She walked around the house once, -and then I saw her peek in the kitchen window." - -"What can she want, I wonder?" Arden mused. "She's a peculiar girl. Hope -she isn't in any trouble with that sour old dad of hers." - -"Looks to me as though we've dropped right into the middle of another -mystery," Terry announced, nodding her head wisely. "Maybe there are -always mysteries, but only _wise girls_ really discover them." - -"Oh, Terry!" Sim exclaimed woefully. "I did so want to be lazy this -summer. Mysteries are terribly wearing." - -"Well, you can be as lazy as you want to be, but for my part I'm in this -mystery up to my ears already, and I find it thrilling," Terry announced -firmly. - -Dinner that night was a somewhat hectic meal, for no one had a chance to -finish a sentence about the mysterious Olga and the departure of Melissa -before someone else would break in with the announcement of a new theory. - -Ida, the maid, did her serving wide-eyed with amazement. She was not a -girl to be easily frightened, but she possessed a great deal of natural -curiosity. Despite Mrs. Landry's efforts to shift the conversation into -other channels, the names Dimitri, Olga, and Melissa popped up -constantly. - -Eventually the little house was quiet, with its occupants settled down -for the night. Sim and Arden in one room and Terry alone in her own. - -Sim and Arden literally talked themselves to sleep, but Terry lay awake -for a long time listening to the lap of the waves on the shore and the -chirp of the crickets and grasshoppers in the sedges. - -It seemed as if Terry had just gone to sleep when she was awakened by a -sound somewhere in the house. She listened. It was a barely perceptible -squeak, as if a window were being pushed up very gently. She started, -then sat upright. Yes, there it was again. Then, without waiting for robe -or slippers, she jumped out of bed and ran down the short hall to Sim and -Arden. - -"Arden! Sim!" she called. "Wake up!" - -"H-m-m?" grunted Sim sleepily. - -"Someone's trying to get in!" Terry whispered hoarsely. - -Arden was awake instantly. "Where, Terry?" she murmured. - -"Downstairs, I guess. Sh-h-h! Listen!" Terry put a warning finger to her -lips. - -Sim was sitting up now, and the three girls were as quiet as statues in -the eerie moonlight streaming in the open window. - -"There it is again! Did you hear it? Just a tiny squeak," Terry asked. - -"It seems to be coming from the dining room. Had we better call your -mother?" Arden asked in a low voice. - -They listened again, with hearts pounding and eyes questioning. What -could it be? Or rather who could it be? Down at Oceanedge it was -customary not to lock doors, and windows were usually left wide open. But -Mrs. Landry, being city-bred, could never get out of the habit of locking -up for the night. Whoever it was, seemed deliberately trying to force up -a window, and it sounded as if the hands were slipping on the glass. - -"Can you light the downstairs lights from up here, Terry?" asked Arden. -"Don't you think it would be a good idea to show them we're awake?" - -"Yes, of course, Arden," Terry quickly replied. "I should have thought of -that before. I'll turn on the hall lights downstairs and give them an -alarm!" - -She slipped softly out into the hall and pushed a button. With a little -snap the lights flashed on. Then silently the alarmists waited with -apprehension. What should the next move be? - -The sound was not heard again, and the girls in Sim's room breathed a -little easier. - -"Do you think--they're gone?" Sim whispered. - -"I don't hear anything; do you?" Arden asked. - -"S-sh-h-h!" Terry hissed, and she went to the window. - -The scene below was flooded with moonlight. The sandy stretch, so clear -and unbroken, could not possibly hide a marauder. Terry was hoping to see -the intruder make a dash for the safety of the garage shadow. - -"Look!" she whispered to the girls. "It's a woman!" - -Arden and Sim dashed to the window just in time to witness the flight of -someone, who, they did not know, in the bright moonlight. The figure was -oddly distorted both by the light and the height from which they were -looking. - -"Who?" Arden asked cryptically. - -Terry shrugged in reply. The figure ran swiftly and was almost instantly -lost to sight in the shadow of the garage. - -"There's nothing we can do now," Terry remarked. "And there's no use -waking Mother. She'd only worry." - -"Perhaps we had better tell Chief Reilly in the morning," Arden -suggested. "Isn't it something new, having burglars around here?" - -"I never heard of one before. I didn't think they ever came down here," -Terry remarked. They were still looking out toward the garage. - -"But this could hardly have been an ordinary prowler," Sim reminded them. -"We may as well go back to bed. She surely won't come back, whoever she -was." - -"I'll leave the lights on downstairs. We must try to get some sleep," -Terry said, her stifled yawn entirely agreeing. - -"Want to come in here?" invited Arden to Terry, who roomed alone. - -"Oh--I don't know. I'm not afraid," Terry answered a little ruefully. -"But since you suggested it, yes, I guess I will. Move over, Sim." - -After all, three girls might be better than one for almost any midnight -alarm. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII - Hard to Believe - - -Smiling to herself in the darkness, Sim pushed over in the twin bed so -that Terry could get in. Even at that, neither one would have very much -space, and Sim was amused to think that Terry, the trenchant, should feel -like spending the rest of the night with her rather than alone in her own -bed. - -"I'll see that Rufus Reilly hears about this," remarked Terry, burrowing -under the covers. "The idea of disturbing honest peace-loving people in -the middle of the night! What Oceanedge is coming to, I don't know." - -"Who's Rufus Reilly?" asked Arden. - -"He's the police force," Terry replied. "He owns the only garage in the -village and Dimitri's houseboat too." - -"Quite a factor in the life of the community, isn't he?" Sim murmured -sleepily. - -"Don't make fun of him, Sim," Terry rebuked. "He's a very important man. -He says so himself." - -"Well, I'm going to sleep," Arden declared, yawning freely. "I want to -look my best when I meet the chief." - -The conversation dragged, and feeling secure in the knowledge that the -midnight intruder had gone, the girls finally drifted off to sleep. - -The next morning, after breakfast, and with Mrs. Landry's consent, they -started for the village to report to Chief Reilly. - -Leaving by the front door, they were on their way to the garage at the -back when they came face to face with George Clayton, Melissa's father. - -"Good-morning," he said a little sheepishly. Perhaps he was conscious of -his somewhat fishy-scented clothes and muddy hip boots. - -"'Morning," Terry replied, and waited for him to speak again. All the -girls felt rather antagonistic toward him, since they had witnessed his -treatment of Melissa. - -"I wuz wonderin'," he began again, "that is--have you young ladies seen -anythin' of my daughter Melissa?" - -"Why, no. Not since early last evening," Arden replied. "Why?" - -"I wuz a little worried about her. She ain't been home all night, and I -thought maybe----" - -"The last time we saw her, she was riding in a green car that some woman -who came to see the artist on the houseboat parked here," Sim -volunteered. - -George Clayton blinked his eyes rapidly and seemed at a loss for anything -to say to that surprising news. - -"U-hum-m!" He shook his head. "Melissa ain't entirely responsible, you -know. She's overly fond of bright things. Like a blue jay. She just can't -resist 'em." - -"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Arden. "I do hope nothing happened to her." - -"We were just going to the village to tell Rufus Reilly about a burglar -we had around here last night," Terry explained. "Shall we tell him to -look for Melissa?" - -"Oh, no, miss, please!" Clayton exclaimed. "He knows all about Melissa. -Thinks I ought to send her to some institution. But I can't bear--to do -that," he concluded rather pathetically. - -"Why didn't you let her keep the bracelet the other day?" Sim asked -suddenly. "It was only worth a quarter. Perhaps she ran away because -you----" - -"I know, miss," Clayton interrupted, "she possibly told you how mean I -was to her. But if I let her keep it she'd follow you around all the -time, looking for something else." After all, perhaps the man was not so -mean as they had thought. - -"Say!" exclaimed Terry suddenly. "Maybe that was Melissa we heard last -night, coming back for the bracelet!" - -"It did look like her, I mean her height and all," agreed Sim. "I'm sure -that's just who it was." - -"She might have done it," the fisherman admitted reluctantly. "You won't -tell Reilly, will you?" - -"If you can keep her away from here so she won't scare us out of our wits -again, we won't," Terry agreed. For the girls still believed in their -hearts that Melissa was to be pitied and, though he said not, they felt -that her father was a hard man to deal with. - -"When she comes back I'll----" Clayton began but never finished, for -there was Melissa herself walking toward them along the little path. Her -pale pink cotton dress was a mass of wrinkles, and her hair in uncouth -disarray. One white string of her sneakers flapped as she walked. - -Instantly her father was a changed man. As soon as he saw her he drew -himself up to his full height and assumed an aggressive manner. - -"Melissa!" he shouted. "Come here!" - -"Yes, Pa," she answered meekly and came slowly forward with one arm held -up near her face as though to ward off a blow. - -"Where wuz you last night?" he demanded. - -"Here, Pa. I slept in the car in the garage," came the surprising reply. - -"Why didn't you come home?" he shouted at her. - -"I was afraid to. The lady took me for such a nice ride, it was late when -I got back." Poor Melissa, thought the girls. - -"What lady?" snarled her father. - -"I dunno her name. The pretty one with the nice fur. She asked me if I'd -like a ride, so I said yes. She gave me a quarter, too." Melissa held out -her tanned hand and showed them the money. - -"Don't you know any better than to go riding off with strangers?" her -father shouted. "And scarin' these young ladies, who was so nice to you, -out of their wits? Wuz you around this house last night?" - -"I was just lookin' in a window. I didn't mean any harm." How cruel for a -poor girl to be helpless! - -"Well, you come along home with me." - -Melissa looked woefully at the surprised girls and started off to follow -her father, who went clumping down the path in his hip boots. - -"Mr. Clayton," called Arden after him. "Please don't punish Melissa; she -didn't do any harm." - -"I'll take care of Melissa," he answered shortly, completely forgetting -how anxious he had been only a short time before to appear the worried -father. - -"If you touch her I'll, I'll----" Arden said, but he continued on his -way, not even listening to her. - -"What a horrid old man!" Terry remarked anxiously. "First he shows his -concern and then----" - -"His teeth," finished Sim. - - - - - CHAPTER IX - The Snuffbox - - -Several days after their rather unpleasant meeting with Melissa's father, -George Clayton, the three girls were "soaking up the sun" on the beach. -Of course, as it developed, there was nothing to report to Chief Reilly. -They were quite sure that Melissa had been their erstwhile burglar. More -than ever the girls felt Melissa needed a friend. They talked over the -situation, trying to piece together the girl's story and her father's -denial of that part which blamed him. But whether he was entirely fair -and just, trying to protect his daughter, or whether his allusions to her -"being queer" were merely a pretext to excuse himself, not even Arden the -wise ventured to decide. But in the end the opinion was unanimous that -Melissa needed friends, and they each and all resolved to do all they -could to befriend the strange, wild creature. - -But finally the delightfully warm air, the friendly sun, and the inviting -ocean drove all such serious thoughts from their minds. What could be -more perfect than such a day in such a place for such girls! - -Sim was almost asleep, while Arden and Terry were blissfully drowsy. They -were turning a golden tan, most becoming to all save Terry, who, as she -herself declared, was "raising a fine crop of freckles." - -Arden rolled over on her back and then sat bolt upright in surprise. Far -out of the corner of her eye she could see Dimitri Uzlov in bathing togs -coming toward them. - -"Wake up, kids," she hissed in a stage whisper. "Here comes our hero, and -he's tramping right this way. Don't look now! He'll know I told you." - -Of course they did look, even though Arden had warned them not to. But -the oncoming "hero" didn't seem to mind. In fact, he smiled pleasantly -and deliberately sat down on the sand by Arden. - -"Hello," said Arden casually, while Terry and Sim smiled vacuously. - -"Hello," he answered. "It was awfully kind of you to bring my--" he -began--"I want to thank you for rowing over to the houseboat and back -with my---- That is, I hope it did not trouble you too much," he -stammered. - -He was clearly embarrassed and not at all sure how to proceed. - -Arden realized at once that Dimitri was attempting to explain and for -some reason apologize for the visit of the mysterious Olga. - -"Not at all," Arden replied reassuringly. "We didn't mind a bit." - -"I did not expect her. I was quite surprised. I do not think she will -come again." - -In his embarrassment his accent was becoming more pronounced, and Sim and -Terry shot a sly glance of delight at each other. - -"Please don't let that little thing worry you," Arden hastened to add. -"It was nothing at all." - -"You are very kind," Dimitri smiled. "I would like to ask you all, and -your mother," he nodded to Terry, "to take tea with me on the houseboat. -Perhaps it would amuse you to have tea in the Russian manner. Yes?" - -"We'd love it," Terry replied quickly, "and I know Mother would, too." - -"Would I be giving you too short notice to ask you today? I am letting up -a bit in my work, and tomorrow I must begin again with new vigor," the -young man stated simply. - -"I'm sure it will be all right," Terry answered. "We don't have many -dates down here, and if Mother can come, we'll all be over this -afternoon." - -"That will be charming," Dimitri said. "I will expect you. And now I must -go home and bathe Tania so she will look her best at my little party." - -He rose and bowed, quite as dignified as if he had been fully dressed -instead of merely wearing the informal bathing suit; then he left them -smiling after him. - -"What a surprise!" gasped Sim. - -"What a lark!" insisted Arden. - -"What fun!" squealed Terry. - -"He's so young and good-looking to have such an ugly old name," went on -Arden, as if anxious to reconstruct the "hero" into somebody more -American. - -"Adds to the glamour," drawled Terry with assumed sophistication. "I -always did adore those foreign names." - -"Too, too divine," mocked Sim. - -"Hey, there!" exclaimed Terry. "We have got to go right now and tell -Mother. He said this afternoon." - -"Not yet," Arden rebuked. "Wait until he gets out of sight. He'll think -we've never been asked any place before if we act so--grabby." - -Impatiently they sat and waited until Dimitri had gone behind the small -pavilion; then they scrambled up and hurried to tell Terry's mother. - -She was much amused at their exuberance and laughed at the serious way -they had of deciding what they would wear. A simple tea on a houseboat -and all this to-do! - -Eventually the hour rolled around, and they set out in high spirits, -Terry puffing as much with excitement as with effort as she rowed the -boatful down the bay. - -Once on the houseboat they were somewhat ill at ease. But Dimitri was a -perfect host and with Old World courtesy succeeded in making them feel, -as Arden said later, "like the visiting Czarina and her daughters." - -Tania was beautifully white and fluffy, greeting them all with a friendly -"woof" and briskly wagging tail. - -"Oh, a samovar!" exclaimed Arden as she sighted the polished brass urn -with a dull glowing charcoal fire underneath. - -"It is only to boil the water. I could have done it on the oil stove, but -I thought you would like it this way," Dimitri said, smiling. - -"We are enjoying it," Terry assured him. "Won't you show Mother some of -your pictures?" she cautiously interposed. - -"They are really not worth looking at," he replied modestly. And he -seemed sincere about it, too. - -"Of course they are," Arden interrupted. "They're lovely." - -Dimitri pulled one canvas out from a pile leaning against the wall. It -was a marine, done in dark and light blues, a fair sea and a clear sky. -The girls looked at it politely but hoped he would show them the covered -canvas, and in fact Arden stood near it, waiting. Dimitri noticed her and -gazed at her keenly for a second, as though understanding her wish. - -"Now, I will show you something really lovely," he said. "Because I am -proud of it and because it is a thing of so much beauty. I do not show it -to everyone; few people know I have it, and I ask you, please, not to -mention to anyone that I have it in my possession. Pardon me a minute, -please." - -He pushed aside a curtain that divided the room into two parts and -disappeared behind the improvised screen. They could hear him moving -something like a heavy piece of furniture, and then they heard the squeak -of a key in a lock. They looked wonderingly at each other, but no one -spoke. What could he be going to show them? Why all the mystery? - -He came back almost at once, holding something in his hands as though it -were too precious to be exposed to the air. Silently they gathered around -him, and cautiously, almost solemnly, he opened his hands! - -Then they beheld the treasure! - -There, shining dully on his carefully outstretched palm, they beheld a -box, a tiny snuffbox of burnished gold! - -"Oh!" came a chorus. But no other word was spoken. - -Somehow this all seemed like some sacred rite to their still bewildered -eyes which could now discern jewels, even diamonds, surrounding the box. - -It was about four inches long and an inch deep, with a delicately painted -medallion top, the medallion framed by precious stones: diamonds and -rubies! - -Dimitri was watching them intently, his own eyes glittering with the -beauty of his valued possession. - -Terry's mother took a step nearer. Even she had fallen under the spell of -this strange treasure. - - - - - CHAPTER X - Beauty That Dazzled - - -"How perfectly beautiful!" exclaimed Arden. "What is it?" - -"It is a snuffbox that once belonged to the Russian Czar. It is of great -value. A fortune almost." He held it so they could all see it. "Now -watch." - -With his thumb he pushed down a section of the golden side. This -uncovered a small compartment in which rested a little key. He took out -the key and turned the box upside down. Then they saw that the under side -was as elaborately designed as the top. Daintily painted miniature -woodland scenes with birds and a bounding deer. He inserted the key in a -tiny hole and gave it a few turns, then very carefully placed the box on -a near-by table. - -The beautiful medallion in the center of the box showed a brightly -plumaged bird on a tropical tree, and around the medallion, like a frame, -was a row of marvelous diamonds and rubies. The box suddenly opened, as -the group watched, and a tiny bird, not much over a half inch in height, -sprang up, turned his little head from side to side, and moved his wee -feathered wings up and down magically. As they waited, awe-struck, the -tinkle of a song was heard, and it seemed as though the little feathered -creature was actually singing. Then in a flash the fairy songster ceased -his song, folded up his wings, and the medallion snapped shut, leaving -the golden and bejeweled box as the cage of the little wizard. - -"Oh!" gasped Arden, the first to speak. "It is so lovely it almost makes -me feel like crying," she stammered. "Could you make him do it again?" - -"Of course," Dimitri replied. "Did you see this little watch in the side -and the real feathers on the little bird?" - -"I have never seen anything like it!" exclaimed Mrs. Landry. "It must be -worth a fortune." - -"It is," solemnly answered Dimitri. "It is the only really valuable -possession I have left except----" He turned aside without finishing the -sentence. Again he wound the spring, and once more the remarkable -performance was repeated. The artist let them each examine the treasure, -and at last taking it from Arden he looked at it fondly and very -deliberately carried it back to its hiding place. When he returned he -remarked: - -"I could not bear to lose it, and perhaps it is childish of me to keep it -with me instead of in some deep bank vault, but it belonged to my mother, -and I like to have it near me to look at when I become discouraged." - -The girls were still spellbound, while Mrs. Landry assured him that it -was the natural thing to do and hoped it would be quite safe in his -affectionate keeping. - -"I have hidden it well, I hope, and I need not tell you why I have -trusted you all." - -There was something so pathetically frank about the artist's proud -display of his treasure that even the girls, who had joked and speculated -upon the mysterious man, were now profoundly impressed. - -"We will never violate your confidence." Mrs. Landry spoke for the group, -but even that polite assurance seemed unnecessary. - -Somehow the artist knew he could trust them; and he had! - -"And now, will you try some tea, Russian style?" - -The girls agreed all at once and wanted to help, but he waved them aside -and served them quite as though he were accustomed to having four guests -every day in the week on this wobbly old houseboat. - -They sat, sipping from glasses the clear amber liquid though Dimitri, as -a concession to their American tastes, offered them cream as well as -sliced lemon. He sweetened his own clear tea liberally. - -The houseboat, for all the masculine untidiness, was a bright pleasant -place, and the little party chatted like old friends until Mrs. Landry -announced they must go. - -"We must not wear out our welcome, you know," she said lightly, "and -perhaps you will come and have dinner with us some time, Mr. Uzlov." - -"Thank you, I would be pleased to," he suavely answered. - -Then, saying good-bye, they left, a smiling, happy foursome, and started -away in the old rowboat over to the Landry landing. - -As Terry pushed out in the boat they heard a light step, surely a girl's -step, and a few seconds later they saw Melissa rowing quickly away from -the side of the houseboat. - -"There's Melissa," Sim exclaimed needlessly, for they had all seen her. -"No need to worry about her comings and goings." - -"She's always around from one place to another. I suppose she doesn't -know what to do with herself all day," Terry answered between strokes, -taking it all very casually. - -"Where is her home, Terry? Is it near here?" Arden asked. - -"Not very. It's clear across the bay; two or three miles, anyway, isn't -it, Mother?" - -"Every bit of that," Mrs. Landry replied. "Poor creature! She doesn't -lead a very happy life. I hope you girls will be kind to her if you can." - -"Of course we will, Mrs. Landry," Sim assured her, and then in another -mood she asked, "Wasn't that a knockout snuffbox? Imagine keeping nasty -old snuff in it." - -"Dimitri doesn't keep _anything_ in it. He loves it because it's so -beautiful," Arden announced. "There's a true artist for you." She was -very much in earnest. - -"You like him a little, don't you, Arden?" Terry asked whimsically. - -"Don't be silly, Terry! You like him, too," Arden snapped back. - -"We all do, even Mrs. Landry, don't you?" Sim wanted to know, joining in -the complimentary chorus. - -Terry's mother smiled and nodded. - -"Well, I think it's strange, just the same," Arden said almost to -herself, "very strange." - -"What, the box?" Sim inquired. - -"No; but I mean the way he spoke about Olga, and the way he keeps that -picture covered," Arden answered. "And a lot of things not really--well, -not exactly wordy things but _queer_ things," she wound up vaguely. - -"Melissa is odd too. Why do you suppose Olga took her riding and gave her -money?" Terry asked, adding more interest to the mystifying questions. - -"I can't imagine. It's strange the way she always pops up," Arden added. -"I mean Melissa, not Olga." - -"I don't like her father, either," Terry went on. "He's the meanest man I -ever saw, and I don't believe a word he says!" - -"Now, Terry," Mrs. Landry rebuked, "you know nothing about him. He's just -not like the city people we're used to, and you probably misjudge him." - -"But he seems so cruel and crafty. I wonder if he punished Melissa for -staying away the other night? The night she stayed in the garage." - -"Oh, he couldn't!" Arden exclaimed. "I'll ask Melissa the next time I see -her. I wonder where she went just now? I don't see her boat anywhere. She -seems to have disappeared all of a sudden." - -"Playing hide and seek with us, maybe," Terry suggested. "Hope we don't -catch any of this queer business," she finished, easing a little to look -at her burning hand. - -"I think this whole place is queer," Sim said, looking over the -untroubled bay. "I don't like that Olga, nor George Clayton, either, and -I'm sure he's up to some shady business--not to say dark and dangerous." - -"Now, Sim," Mrs. Landry said gently, "you mustn't make a mystery out of -everything. He's probably just an ordinary crabber and fisherman with a -difficult daughter to look out for, and in these wild places girls cannot -be allowed to run wild, you know." - -They were almost home, and everyone seemed willing to think a little and -stop talking. "Buckingham Palace" stood out with reassuring friendliness -against the late afternoon sky and looked decidedly more inviting than -the moldy houseboat. - -"You may be right, Mother," Terry said, pulling the oars gently as they -drifted up to their little dock. "But there's something going on, I'm -sure. Something we don't know anything about--yet," she ended -significantly. - -And no one there was to say "nay" to that possibility. - - - - - CHAPTER XI - Still They Come - - -The girls did not really enjoy the tea as it had been served on the -_Merry Jane_. Not that the tea wasn't good; it must have been, for -Russian tea is famous. But it tasted that way, they thought--"famous." -Home-made tea was much more congenial. Consequently, at home again, the -tea given them at "Buckingham Palace" when supper was served was even -more appreciated than usual. - -"Maybe that water from the samovar----" began Terry. - -"No, those old brass urns are lined with--well, I think it's tin or -lead," Arden informed them. "Grandfather had one; bought it from a man -who used to work for Tolstoi. It had the stamp from what this man called -the president's factory, which meant, I believe, it was made in a sort of -royal shop," Arden concluded. - -"Why, what a lot you know," teased Sim. "Why didn't you tell the artist? -He might trace some relationship----" - -"Oh, say!" interrupted Terry. "You and your old samovar! What about the -jeweled box? Don't you feel guilty to have seen a thing--so--well, so -precious?" - -This brought on a discussion so animated and so filled with questions and -exclamations that the beauty of the snuffbox must have been greatly -enhanced by so much young enthusiasm. - -Afterwards they were sitting, as had become their custom, on the screened -porch. The first one out always claimed the comfortable swing. Next in -favor came two large, low wicker chairs covered with bright striped -linen. Tonight Terry was in the swing and Arden and Sim curled up in -chairs. - -They must have been talking very loudly or else have been asleep, they -facetiously decided later. How else could they explain the fact that a -car had driven right up to the back door and they had not heard it? - -In fact they all jumped with surprise when Arden called their attention -to a young man, coming up the sandy path. - -"Sit up, girls, here comes another visitor," she exclaimed. "What now, I -wonder?" - -The young man hesitated as he reached the screen door. - -"Good-evening," said Arden pleasantly. - -"Good-evening," responded the caller. "I hope I have not disturbed you, -but I wonder if you could tell me how to reach a houseboat? I understand -it is somewhere near here." - -"Oh, you mean _Merry Jane_," Sim piped up brightly. "Lots of people ask -us that. That is, you're the second one who has inquired," she replied, -feeling a little foolish at being so friendly. - -He smiled amicably and said he hoped they had not been bothered in that -way. - -"We didn't mind," Terry chimed in. "We don't have much to do here, -anyway." The girls really were being silly. - -"It's down the bay, but you can't reach it by car. The road is too soft -this time of year," Arden said helpfully, the first one really to answer -his question. - -"Is one obliged to walk, then?" the man asked. His wording was foreign -and a slight accent made it seem more so. - -"No; walking would be dangerous, too," Arden explained. "The only way is -by boat." She waited to see what effect this announcement would have, but -Sim spoiled it. - -"We have a rowboat you could use. We could take you," she announced, -still pursuing the role of the very young. - -"But couldn't I take myself? That is, with your permission and if you -wouldn't be using the boat?" He looked questioningly at them. - -"I guess we won't be going out again tonight," Terry remarked. "You'll be -careful not to lose the oars, won't you? I'll show you where we keep the -boat." - -Terry, followed by Arden and Sim, led the way to the dock, stopping to -pick up the oars as they went. - -"Let me take them, please," the caller protested. Terry handed him the -oars. - -They wanted very much to ask if he knew Dimitri and try to get some more -information, but they could not naturally work the talk around to it. The -young man volunteered no information at all. He seemed quite sure of -himself, and Arden fancied she saw in him a slight resemblance to -Dimitri. - -When they reached the old rowboat, Terry pointed down the bay. - -"The _Merry Jane_ is just around the bend; if you stay close to shore, -you can't miss it," she instructed the stranger. - -They all looked admiringly over the still green water where the fish were -beginning to jump in the stillness of the evening. The beauty of the bay -was inescapable. - -"Tania, the big dog, will bark, and you can row in the direction of the -noise, if you should be doubtful about the location," Arden suggested. - -The man raised an eyebrow. "You know Dimitri, then?" he asked. - -"Yes, indeed," Sim answered. "We're good friends." She felt justified in -saying that. - -"I am a friend, too," their caller replied as he got into the boat. "I'll -take very good care of your skiff and tie it up very carefully when I -return." He pushed off and began rowing easily down the bay. "Good-bye," -he called to the girls. "And thank you, a thousand times!" - -"Good-bye," Terry answered, while the others mumbled something. - -They waited until he was out of sight, and then began the flood of "What -do you think's" and "Maybe's." But of course they all agreed on one -thing. That he was very charming and well mannered and that perhaps all -foreigners were that way. But they decided it was indeed queer the way -Dimitri's friends all came to them for advice on reaching the old -houseboat. The newest caller gave rise to plenty of speculation, but the -girls retired earlier than usual, and it was, perhaps, for this reason -that Arden awoke sometime near morning, although it was still dark. -Deciding she could not get back to sleep, she lay tossing restlessly. - -The events of the day marched before her now active mind. The gold -snuffbox, Olga, Tania, Dimitri, the man who had come that evening. It was -all very puzzling. She turned over and looked at Sim, sleeping -peacefully. Nothing bothered her. Arden sighed and then started. What was -that noise? Another mysterious visitor? She strained every nerve to -listen. Then she smiled as she realized it was the motor of an auto -purring along. Going to the window, she saw the stranger's car move -slowly as it was started and disappear as it gathered speed. She looked -at her wrist watch. The dial showed four-thirty, and he was just coming -back from the houseboat! - -"'Curiouser and curiouser,'" Arden said to herself as she climbed back to -bed. "Alice in Wonderland had nothing on me. I wonder, too." - - - - - CHAPTER XII - A Friend in the Deep - - -"Well, Sim," said Arden, stretching luxuriously, "I feel merry as a grig -this morning." - -"You don't say," Sim replied with sarcasm. "I guess you haven't looked -outside then. I think we're in for a storm. What is a grig, anyway?" - -"I don't know exactly," Arden continued, "but that's how I feel. It's -very merry. How do you feel?" - -"I feel like a chocolate nut sundae," Sim answered, making a wry face. - -"You're a little cross, too. What's the trouble?" Arden asked. - -"Oh, nothing. But I'm thinking, if we do get a northeaster, there won't -be any bathing for days. I think I'll go in today just to get a swim -before it comes," Sim answered. "Look at that," she continued, pointing -to the little weather vane on the garage roof. - -It was quivering in the wind and pointing due northeast. A brave morning -sun was trying to pierce the leaden clouds, but not making much headway. - -A week before, Arden had seen the second mysterious caller drive away in -his car after tying up their boat. Since then they had neither seen nor -heard from Dimitri, and in an orgy of swimming and sunbathing had almost -forgotten about him, so perfect had the weather been and so completely -had the girls enjoyed it. - -Now Sim and Arden were in their room making plans for the day, and Terry, -in gay bathrobe and slippers, strolled in to talk things over before -breakfast. - -"Don't go in today, Sim, there's bound to be a bad undertow; and besides, -I have to go to town," Terry remarked as she had heard Sim's decision. - -"But the tide will be coming in, and I'll only take a short dip. I'll be -ready when you want to go. Let's eat now, and by the time we have our -rooms in order I can go in for a swim. Then we'll drive to the village. -How's that?" Sim asked, smiling. - -"You seem to have it all planned. I suppose it's all right. It's nearly -ten now, so let's go down for breakfast," Terry suggested. "I'm hungry." - -Sim and Arden, donning bathrobes and slipping their feet into soft mules, -pattered downstairs after Terry. - -They ate and put on their bathing suits when they went upstairs again, a -habit they had fallen into since the lovely weather had begun. - -When they went out a little later, Sim wished she hadn't been so -insistent about swimming. The breakers were piling in, slapping down on -the beach and churning up a white sudsy foam. - -"I'm not going in _that_ sea," Arden decided, "and I don't think you -should either, Sim." - -"Nonsense, Arden," Sim said scornfully. "It looks a lot worse than it -is." - -"We'll have rain before night," Terry stated positively, "and the ocean -is getting rougher all the time. Go on in, Sim, if you're going to, but -be careful." - -In a moment of bravado, Sim flung off her sweater and ran down to the -water. She hesitated for a second as the cold water whirled around her -feet, then, running swiftly, she plunged in head first. She was lost to -sight immediately, but presently came up again and waved a hand to Arden -and Terry, who were watching. Then she turned and began to swim out into -the sea. - -"I wish she wouldn't go out," Arden worried. - -"Oh, she'll be all right. Sim's a good swimmer," Terry reassured her. - -As they watched they could see Sim's scarlet bathing cap bobbing in the -rough sea. She swam easily for a while and then floated on her back. Did -they imagine it, or was she having trouble? Arden and Terry strained -their eyes to see. Sim was swimming hard toward the shore but seemed to -be making no headway. - -"She's having a hard time getting back. Do you think she's all right?" -Arden asked anxiously. - -"Wait--" Terry cautioned--"I'm not sure----" - -Sim was still swimming but seemed to be tiring. She turned over on her -back for a brief rest and began again. But it seemed no use. Apparently -she was caught in a sea-puss and was still making no headway. - -Terrified, Terry and Arden looked at each other, unable to utter a word. -In that instant a figure flashed by them and disappeared with a splash in -the waves. Still speechless, they both knew---- - -It was Melissa! - -She was going to help Sim to safety. The girls watching on the beach felt -the relief so suddenly and so completely that each grasped the other. - -"Melissa!" breathed Terry. - -"She'll get her," answered Arden. - -What little they had done to make friends with the girl came now in a -rush of grateful memory. - -Yes, Melissa would help them. She was their friend. - -In almost no time at all Melissa and Sim walked out of the wild sea, a -little further down the beach. Arden and Terry ran down to greet them. - -"Sim, you idiot! I told you not to go in. Are you all right?" Arden asked -breathlessly. - -"Of course I'm all right," Sim panted. - -"She was caught in a sea-puss. There's a trick in getting out. It's -because the storm is coming and the inlet to the bay is so near," Melissa -answered modestly. - -"It was very brave of you to go out, just the same," Terry insisted. "It -was just fine!" - -Sim looked a little sheepish and pulled her sweater on over her dripping -suit. - -"Don't tell your mother, Terry; you know how she would worry," Sim said. -"Melissa, you were swell!" she exclaimed. - -Melissa smiled happily. It was seldom, indeed, that her actions pleased -anyone. Her whole day would be happy now, and at night she could lie in -her hard little bed and remember how the girls had praised her. It took -so little to brighten the dull life of Melissa. - -The girls thanked her again and cautioned her about telling Mrs. Landry. -Then, waving good-bye to Melissa, they left her, digging her toes in the -sand in embarrassment, with her confused thoughts. - -The three girls, a guilty little group, went back to "Buckingham Palace" -and dressed quickly, never mentioning the almost tragic adventure to -Terry's mother. - -Sim's feet and hands were still cold when she climbed into the car beside -Arden and Terry, a while later, as they started for the village. - -The storm was coming in rapidly now. The sun was obscured, and sudden -strong gusts of wind swerved the car as they drove along. It had not yet -begun to rain. But Chief of Police Reilly cocked his weather eye and -"reckoned" it would not be long in coming. He was filling the gas tank of -the little car and chatting with the girls as he worked. - -"How do you like your new neighbor, Miz Landry?" he asked, showing a -shining gold tooth. - -"We like him all right, but we don't see much of him," Terry answered, -smiling. - -"Funny feller," he chuckled as he wiped off the windshield. "Wrote to me -'long 'bout last April and rented my ole boat. Never even saw it." He -gave the windshield a grand swipe. - -"Do you know Melissa Clayton?" Sim asked, abruptly changing the subject. -Her adventure in the ocean was still fresh in her mind. - -"Sure; everyone knows Melissa," the chief answered. - -"How about her father? What kind of a man is he?" pursued Sim. - -"George Clayton? He's all right. None too smart, but he gets along," -Reilly answered indifferently. "Can't make a silk purse out of a sow's -ear, you know." - -But Sim was not satisfied. She wanted to find out if Melissa's father was -as cruel as they imagined him to be. The chief, however, in his -good-natured way, didn't see what Sim was driving at and gave her no -satisfaction. Finally she questioned him no further. They agreed on the -weather and said they'd see him soon again, just how soon, none of them -knew. - -Then they drove back home and unloaded the last of the groceries from the -car just as the first drops of rain showed on the windshield. Like all -bad news, it was better to have it started. The sooner begun the sooner -it would be over. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII - The Tragic Messenger - - -The wind increased in violence, and with the high tide of the afternoon -the surf pounded with wild fury. At Terry's home the rain lashed the -windows, and the awnings protested noisily against the gale. Arden -announced blandly that she no longer felt "merry as a grig." - -"Let's play rummy, the storm makes me restless," Sim suggested. - -"If you feel restless now, I hate to think how you'll feel after three -days of it," Terry reminded her. - -"Three days!" Arden exclaimed. "I'll have to get out my tatting to keep -me busy, I guess." - -"You can't tat, silly," Sim smiled. "Come on, let's play cards." - -Terry opened a painted card table, and they began a half-hearted game of -rummy. But Arden couldn't concentrate, so Terry and Sim told her to "give -up," whereat they abandoned the cards. - -"Listen to that old ocean," Arden remarked. "If you were out there now, -Sim, it would take more than Melissa to pull you to safety." - -"Wasn't she great?" Sim asked. "She knew just how to go about it. I -wasn't scared, but I was beginning to tire. Melissa took me out beyond -the current, and then we struck a stroke and got in easily. Were you -frightened?" - -"We were a little," Terry admitted. "We weren't sure whether you were all -right. I was ready to come out when Melissa dashed by us like a shot, and -then it seemed only a few seconds till you were back on the beach." - -"She's a marvelous swimmer," Sim said admiringly. "I wish she could lead -a more pleasant life, poor girl." - -"Chief Reilly didn't seem to think her father was so awful," Terry -remarked. - -"Oh, Chief Reilly!" Arden exclaimed. "He doesn't seem to think much -anyway." - -"He doesn't have to think much. There's nothing for him to think about -down here. I don't know what he'd do if he ever had a real case," Terry -went on. - -"The excitement would probably be too much for him. I'll bet he reads -detective stories and has it all planned out just the way he'd conduct a -murder inquiry," Arden laughed. - -"Yes," Sim agreed. "He'd probably go measuring footprints and looking for -clues. Do you suppose he'd use bloodhounds?" - -"Why not?" Terry asked. "None of our well-known detectives ever used -bloodhounds, so it's reasonable to suppose that Detective Reilly would." - -"We're not so bad ourselves at solving mysteries. How about the Apple -Orchard and Jockey Hollow?" Arden reminded them. - -"Of course--we're really very good," Terry agreed facetiously. "I could -do with a nice mystery. This is ideal weather for it. Angry sea, howling -wind and dashing rain, big black clouds----" - -"Do you ever have any murders or serious crimes down here, Terry?" Sim -asked suddenly. - -"Yes--we had a very important one about three years ago. Reilly saw a -headless tiny body floating in the bay," Terry said dramatically. - -"No, really?" Arden and Sim were all attention. - -"Really," answered Terry. "But when they picked it up, it turned out to -be a doll some youngster dropped in the water." - -"Oh, Terry," Sim said throwing a pillow at her. "You had me all worked -up." - -Terry laughed mischievously and threw the pillow back. A well aimed throw -from Arden caught Terry squarely in the face with such force that the -chair in which she was sitting went over backwards and Terry with it. In -the scramble that followed they did not hear the scratching at the door. -It was not until they took a little breathing spell that Arden cautioned -them to be quiet. - -"Ssh-sh a minute," she said. "Did you hear that scratching?" - -They listened. It came from the front door, and this time a bark also -could be heard. - -"It's a dog!" Sim exclaimed, and getting up from the pile of cushions on -the floor she went to open the door. - -"Why, it's Tania!" Arden declared. "The poor dog! Look at her!" - -Poor dog indeed! The silky, white fur clung to her thin frame, and a -piece of rope trailed from her collar. Like all dogs of her breed, she -was thin when in the best of condition, but now she looked worse than -that. She seemed really like a poor starved animal. - -"She looks terrible," Arden exclaimed, and disregarding the wet fur she -began to stroke the regally pointed head. - -"She's hungry. Look how thin she is. Let's give her something to eat," -Terry suggested, already starting toward the kitchen. - -Tania was extremely grateful for the food Terry put before her and ate -ravenously, while the girls murmured soothingly to the grateful dog. - -"But how strange that she should get like this," Terry reminded them. -"Dimitri always takes such good care of her." - -"And that old rope, the end looks frayed off. Do you suppose----" Arden -looked at her chums with terror in her eyes. This, coming directly after -their talk, joking as it was, about murders, gave them all a shocked, -sudden pause. It seemed horrible even to imagine that Dimitri---- - -"Oh, Arden! How awful! We haven't seen Dimitri for a week. Do you -think----" Terry was too frightened to put intelligible questions. - -Arden nodded her head solemnly. "I'm afraid so," she said in a quiet -voice. "Something must have happened on board the _Merry Jane_." - -For the first time the girls realized how interested they had become in -Dimitri. His charming manners, his accent, his appearance, and the almost -mysterious aloofness he maintained, all went to make him most attractive. -Now that they feared foul play might have overtaken him, it was dismaying -even to guess what had happened on the lonely houseboat. - -But poor mute Tania could not tell them her story. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV - Missing at Marshlands - - -"Oh, Tania!" Sim exclaimed, taking the intelligent head in her hands. -"What happened?" - -But the dog only wagged a bedraggled tail and blinked her eyes with -pleasure. - -"We must go over at once and see," Arden decided. "We'll have to walk, -too. We couldn't row in this wind." - -Quickly they got into old coats and heavy shoes, pulled soft hats well -down, and started for the _Merry Jane_. - -Outside the little cottage the wind tore at them fiercely, and the blown -sand mingled with rain stung their legs and faces. Carried through the -air by the gale, flakes of foam from the ocean were borne far up the -beach like a strange summer snowstorm. - -Tania slunk along behind them as they bent to the wind, clearly hating to -be out in such nasty weather when she apparently had hoped to remain in -the warm dryness of "Buckingham Palace." - -"Isn't this wild?" Sim said holding her coat close to her. "I do hope -nothing serious has happened." - -"We all do," Arden answered. "Terry, can you find your way through the -marsh?" - -"I think we'd better follow the shore line of the bay. It will be safer," -Terry decided. "There isn't much shore left now the water has blown in so -far, we'll have to walk single file." - -Terry took the lead, followed by Arden and Sim, with Tania picking her -way along daintily after them. - -They made good time, for the wind was at their backs and served to push -them forward. Just ahead, its sides slapped by the lapping waves, they -could see the old houseboat looming up darkly in the rain. - -Silently they went around to the land side, where the wooden steps led to -the narrow promenade that ran completely around the boat. - -There on the rain-swept deck they hesitated. Not a sound, except the -noise of the storm, reached them. They were a little afraid, yet they -knew they must go in. - -Arden went forward, found the door unlocked, and pushed it open. Her -companions followed her, and cautiously they entered the picturesque main -room. It was just as they had last seen it. The mysterious painting -covered on the easel, the jars of paint brushes on the table, and the -odds and ends Dimitri had left lying about, were all, apparently, -untouched. But the artist himself was not there. - -Terry pushed aside the faded curtains that kept the little kitchen -separate from the rest of the boat. - -"He's not here," she said simply. - -"From the looks of this place he hasn't been here for quite a while," Sim -amended. "See the grease on that pan." - -Arden, however, made a more important discovery. She pointed to a little -wall cupboard. The door hung crazily on its hinges, disclosing the empty -space within. - -"Look," she exclaimed. "That door has been broken open. I'll bet that's -where Dimitri kept the snuffbox!" The words came so suddenly, the girls -gasped involuntarily. - -"I believe you're right, Arden," Terry said quickly. "Then either Dimitri -left and took the box with him, or somebody broke in and stole it. But if -Dimitri took the box he wouldn't have had to break the cupboard open. He -had a key. Some thief has been here." - -"If that happened--where is Dimitri?" Sim asked excitedly. - -"That's what we've got to find out," Arden declared. "We'll have to look -very carefully in case there are any clues about. Come on." - -Systematically they went over the old boat, but after a careful search -they had learned no more. When they completed their tour, they assembled -again in the main room. - -There the covered canvas loomed up as large, in their disturbed -imaginings, as a forbidding specter. Sim touched a corner of the cloth. - -"Don't, Sim," Arden stopped her. - -"Perhaps we ought to," Sim suggested. But Arden shook her head. They -should not raise the cloth. - -In their search they had found nothing significant except the place where -Tania had been tied up; it was outside, near the stern of the boat. There -was no dust, of course, to tell them how long the place had been -unoccupied, but an open window through which the rain had come, soaking -cushions and the floor, gave evidence that at least no one had been there -since the storm had begun. Or, if they had, they had not troubled to -close the window. - -"These brushes are stiff with paint," Terry remarked, picking up a -long-handled one that lay near a color-filled palette. "And the paint on -the palette is hard too," she continued. "That's unusual; all the other -brushes are soaking in turpentine, and when we were here before, Dimitri -had just cleaned his palette." - -"He must have left suddenly, then," Arden guessed. "He was very neat in -his painting. It looks pretty serious to me," she concluded. - -Terry shook out her damp coat. They were all quite wet, but the day, -despite the storm, was warm, and they had given no thought to themselves -since they left home. Following Terry's example, the others now shook -their coats. - -Tania curled up in a dry corner and prepared to sleep. The adventure was -not to her liking; besides, though the girls did not know it, she had -been over the boat countless numbers of times looking for her master. It -was not until hunger had driven her that she left her home and sought out -her friends. Instinctively she went to them--trusted them. - -Sim, still standing by the covered picture, took hold again of the cloth. -Some power she could not resist made her pull it off before Arden had -time to stop her. - -"Oh, Sim!" Arden exclaimed reproachfully. "I asked----" - -A change came over Arden's expressive face. Her blue eyes clouded with -tears. Surprised and startled, the three girls stood looking at the -canvas, almost unable to believe their own eyes at what was revealed to -them. - - - - - CHAPTER XV - Downhearted; Not Discouraged - - -Spellbound they gazed at the revelation. - -It was a large picture, almost finished, and its bold strokes had been -laid on with a sureness that told of the joy the artist had put into his -work. - -But the subject was what held them so amazed. For there, instead of the -usual landscape, was a portrait of Arden, sitting on a mound of -warm-colored sand with Tania at her feet. One slim hand was almost buried -in the white fur. The sky back of her hinted at an approaching storm, and -a portion of sea showed the ocean that peculiar color which comes just -before a change. Arden in the picture was gazing wistfully out to sea, -her eyes dreamy yet questioning, as though she were wondering what life -held in store for her. - -"Oh, Arden," gasped Sim, the first to speak. "How lovely!" - -"And to think we never knew or even guessed," Terry added. "He must be in -love with you," she finished softly. - -"Don't be silly, Terry," Arden scolded, her face crimson with blushes. -"He just happened to use my face. It doesn't look much like me, anyway. -I'm not that pretty." - -"It looks exactly like you," Sim insisted. "There's no use being falsely -modest about such things. You know you're pretty." - -"Oh, stop!" Arden begged, and her friends saw that her eyes were filled -with tears. "He's gone now, and whatever happened to him, I'm afraid to -guess. But I know one thing. He never would have gone away without -leaving some word unless he was taken against his will." - -"What shall we do?" Sim asked, coming as usual straight to the heart of -the matter and for the moment disregarding the portrait. - -"I don't know," Arden replied helplessly. For a time the girls listened -while the storm howled outside and the waves slapped harder against the -fat sides of the _Merry Jane_. - -"We can't stay here very much longer," Terry reminded them. "The tide is -coming in, and there won't be any place left to walk on back home." - -Arden nodded grimly; then, without a word of explanation, she went out -the door and back to the stern of the houseboat. She returned as quickly -as she had gone. - -"I just wanted to see," she explained, "if Dimitri's rowboat was still -tied up. It is, and his old car is there, too." - -"Then, of course, wherever he went or was taken, he didn't go in his own -boat or car," Terry reasoned. - -"I don't know what we can do," Arden said again. "But I think we should -wait a little while before we spread an alarm. After all, he may have -stayed in town because of the storm." - -"Of course. Why didn't we think of that before?" Sim agreed, sighing with -relief. "We'd better lock Tania in and get back ourselves. Then we can -drive to town and look around for him there." - -They were relieved at having something definite to do, some real plan to -work upon. Terry with difficulty closed the open window. Arden coaxed -Tania out to the kitchen and left water for her to drink, besides two dog -biscuits she found in a box. Sim carefully covered the picture again, -still conscious of the thrilling surprise it had given them. - -Finding they could not lock the door from the outside, they pulled it -shut and, after one more look around the old boat, they wrapped their -coats tightly about them and set out for "Buckingham Palace." - -The discovery of Arden's portrait under such almost terrifying conditions -left the little group frankly bewildered. - -"How could he have drawn so well from memory?" Arden wondered. - -"What will Arden say or do about it?" Sim reflected. - -"Anyhow," Terry was deciding, "it's a perfectly swell picture." - -Then, as if voicing the unspoken words of her companions, Arden said: - -"Please don't let's say anything about--the picture--now." - -"All right," replied her companions, and they certainly meant it would be -"all right" to keep their newest secret. - -"I can't understand it," Arden remarked as they plodded along. -"Especially about Tania. He _was_ so fond of her." - -"_Was?_ Oh, Arden!" Sim wailed at the slip Arden had made. - -"Everything will be all right. I'm sure there is some simple -explanation," Terry said soothingly. - -"I hope so," Sim murmured, not quite so sure. - -They could still hear Tania howling mournfully at being left alone, but -Arden insisted they should not go back, for Tania was safe, she declared. -Soon the dog's howls could be heard no longer, with the noise of the wind -and the endless slashing of the breakers on the shore. - -The tide had risen just as Terry said it would, and in some places the -girls had to wade in water up to their knees as they trudged along. When -at last they reached Terry's house they were indeed a woebegone little -band, and there was no use denying it. - -Mrs. Landry was shocked when she saw them and sent them to change into -dry things at once. After which they gathered in the living room and told -Terry's mother all about their disheartening adventure, not, however, -mentioning the surprise portrait. - -"And, Mother," Terry pleaded, "can't we go to town at once to see if he -has been there?" - -"Terry, dear, you always rush so," Mrs. Landry reminded her. "Don't you -think the weather is too bad to go all that way now? Why not wait----" - -"We'll be all right," Terry interrupted. "I'm sure none of us could sleep -a wink if we didn't at least do everything possible to find out what has -happened to Dimitri." - -"Well----" Mrs. Landry was weakening. "If you dress warmly and promise to -be back before dark, I guess you may go. But drive carefully, and don't -do anything foolish." The vague warning meant more than the words which -conveyed it. - -They were not long in getting ready after receiving that permission. In a -surprisingly short time the little car was bouncing up the road with the -three girls huddled together in it bound for the village. - -"Where shall we go first?" asked Sim as they neared town. - -"We can get some gas and sort of ask Reilly," Terry suggested. "He's -always friendly and sees everything." - -"Of course, that's what we'll do first," Arden agreed. - -But when they had jokingly asked the Chief how his tenant was getting -along, he replied crisply: - -"I should think _you'd_ know about that. I haven't seen him in more'n a -week. Takes more'n two cats t' make a coop of chickens," he added. Mr. -Reilly's proverbs were sometimes queer. "Nope, ain't seen him." - -"You haven't!" Terry droned. - -More than a week! Disheartened, they tried to smile at the obliging -Reilly, but the attempt was by no means a success. - -He looked after them quizzically as they left. - -In the little drug store where they bought postal cards and stamps they -did not need nor even want, they asked the girl clerk if she had seen -"the artist" lately. - -She gave them a silly grin and shook her head. - -"Not him. He only came in here once for some stamps, weeks ago, but not -since. Queer duck. Friend of yours?" - -"Sort of," Arden replied indifferently, and they left the store with -their heads up but their spirits down. - -"Well, that exhausts the village, except for the food store. We can buy -some oranges and ask Mr. Gushweller," Terry suggested. - -The combination grocery and butcher store was without customers when the -girls entered, and the beaming owner, Mr. Gushweller, came forward -rubbing his hands and remarking how glad he was to see them. - -Arden looked expertly at the oranges, critically "weighing" them in her -hand. How should they ask about Dimitri without exciting Mr. Gushweller's -curiosity? - -But Sim saved the day. "Say, Mr. Gushweller," she said brightly, "what -kind of meat is good for a dog--that Russian wolfhound, you know? The one -that artist owns? He asked if we'd pick up something for her." - -"Wall, he gen'ally gits these." Gushweller indicated a prepared dog food -in cans. "I thought it was about time he got a new supply. He ain't -bought none for a couple weeks now." - -"I'll take three cans," Sim replied automatically, while one half of her -brain registered the disappointing fact that Dimitri hadn't been in that -store either. - -Loaded again with unwanted stuff, although Tania could use the dog food, -they were a serious threesome as they drove homeward in the early -evening. The storm continued violently to tear things up, and all were -thinking the same thing. Dimitri hadn't been to town even to get food for -Tania. Where was he in this awful storm? - - - - - CHAPTER XVI - That Dark Woman - - -"If he had taken his car, or even the boat, it wouldn't seem so--so -ominous," Arden reasoned as they drove homeward. "But to find them both -there, and Tania practically starving. Well----" - -"That broken cupboard, too," Sim said. "I feel sure that's where he used -to keep the snuffbox. Do you remember the day we came to tea? The sound -of a small door and a key in the lock?" - -"It certainly looked as though it had been forced open," Terry replied. - -"I hate to tell Chief Reilly. I'm afraid he'll get things all mixed up. -Let's wait a little longer, and we'll do whatever your mother advises," -Arden said, and Terry agreed, silently nodding her head. - -The storm was surely now at its height. In some parts of the road, where -there was not much distance to the ocean, the waves had been blown in so -that a curved white line of foam was left on the ground almost under the -wheels of the car. The sand came in sheets, blowing and sticking on the -wet windshield, making the driving difficult indeed. - -Mrs. Landry did not hide her relief when they put the car in the garage -and came tramping into the house. - -"Did you find him?" she asked brightly, and then at once knew they had -not, for they looked at her hopelessly and shook their heads. - -"No one has seen him for days," Terry said briefly. - -"He didn't even buy food for Tania," added Arden. "Do you suppose -something terrible has happened to him? That someone knew he had that -snuffbox and----" - -"I don't believe so," Mrs. Landry soothed, talking slowly and softly, as -one speaks to a frightened child. "I'm sure you will hear good news in -the morning. Come, get your damp things off and see how much better -you'll feel after you've had some of Ida's chicken pie." - -Later, when they ate the pie and apparently enjoyed it, wise Mrs. Landry -kept the conversational ball rolling as well as she could, but it was not -easy. There was so much worry in their serious young faces that smiles -were few and far between among the girls. - -They retired early, tired from their long walk through the rain and the -rough drive to the village and back. But healthy bodies make healthy -minds, and next morning they were surprised, and a little ashamed, at -having slept so well; in fact, at having overslept so well. - -"We must go and feed Tania," Arden decided after breakfast. "We'll look -more carefully this time for some clues and hope for the best." - -Tania was overjoyed to see them and ate greedily of the food Sim gave her -from one of the cans she had bought the day before. - -"Was that chair like that yesterday?" Terry asked indicating an -overturned rocker. - -"I don't remember," Sim answered. "I was so excited." - -"I don't, either, but Tania might have done it," Arden suggested. - -"Then it doesn't indicate a struggle or anything," Terry remarked. "I -guess it wasn't important, anyway." - -"Tania will be safer here than anywhere else, and she hates the rain so," -Sim said in fixing little things for the lonely dog's comfort. - -They left the _Merry Jane_ again, much the same as they had found her, -and returned to "Buckingham Palace," finally deciding to tell Chief -Reilly if they did not hear from Dimitri by noon. - -They were about to drive to town to deliver their doleful message when -the sound of a car coming down the muddy road filled them with sudden -hope. - -Surely this was Dimitri coming back safe and sound! If only it could -be---- - -"Oh, gosh!" Sim exclaimed. "I'm glad he's back! I was so worried." - -"Me, too!" said Terry ungrammatically. - -They waited at the back gate and watched the splashing approach of the -car. Mud-stained as it was, they could still distinguish the color. A -green roadster! - -It came to a sudden stop with screeching of brakes, and the door, with -grimy side curtains attached, was swung open. - -Then they could see that the dark Olga was behind the wheel, hesitating -before putting a black satin shoe on the muddy ground as she prepared to -step out. - -She smiled as she saw the three girls in a row looking at her in dismay. - -"A reception committee. Yes?" she asked. "Good-morning! Here I am again, -you see." - -"Good-morning," Arden replied mechanically, trying to look past the woman -into the car. Woefully there came to her the realization that it -contained no one but Olga. There was no sign of Dimitri. - -Suddenly, Arden feared that Sim or Terry might give away their discovery -about Dimitri's absence before she had a chance to question the woman and -learn if Olga knew of his disappearance. - -But Sim and Terry acted as if struck dumb. They had been so sure that -their artist friend would be in the car. Surely, Arden thought, Olga -could see surprise and dismay in their faces. Perhaps she did not notice, -or perhaps she was only concerned with herself, for when she spoke again -she asked if they could do her the very great favor of taking her over to -the _Merry Jane_. - -"Why, I guess----" began Arden and then decided on a bold question. "But -why didn't you take the road from the village? You must have come past it -as you drove out." - -"A road from the village!" Olga repeated. "I thought there was no way -except to go by boat from here." - -"Oh, yes," Terry explained. "There is a way. This road you are on now -branches off farther back and goes through the marsh, right to the -houseboat. Of course, it is not much of a road, but it is wide enough for -one car." - -"Really?" The dark woman raised black, curved brows. "I did not mean to -be such a great trouble." - -"Oh, it's no trouble," Arden exclaimed quickly. "If the bay were not so -rough, we would be glad to take you. But the storm----" It would not do -to make Olga antagonistic. They could learn nothing then. - -"I guess you will have to drive----" began Sim but a look from Arden -stopped her from continuing. - -"And if I meet Dimitri coming out in his handsome car, we will be like -two goats on the bridge. Yes?" Olga smiled as she still sat in the auto, -reluctant to put her dainty feet on the wet ground. - -"But you won't meet him," Terry said quickly. "He's not there!" She -waited to see what effect this statement would have on the mysterious -woman. - -"No? He often goes away, sketching. He is very strong. A sea such as this -wild one would delight him. However, I will go over and wait for him." -Olga decided and drew her slim legs back into the car as she prepared to -drive away. - -"But he won't come back; at least, we don't think he will. He's been gone -for days without taking the car or his skiff, and the houseboat was not -even locked," Arden stated and watched the woman closely for her reaction -to that statement. - -"What do you mean?" Olga asked shrilly and jumped quickly out of the car -to stand squarely in front of Arden. She looked straight into Arden's -eyes and repeated her question. "What do you mean? What are you trying to -tell me?" - -"Dimitri's gone," said Arden simply. - -"Gone?" Olga asked. "Come, we must go over at once! There is something I -must find out!" - -And then the excitement began all over again. - - - - - CHAPTER XVII - Olga Makes Light of It - - -"To find out something," was what Olga had said, her dark eyes flashing. -The girls, too, wanted to find things out. Did Olga know about the -missing snuffbox, and did she also know, or suspect, where Dimitri might -be? - -They eagerly accepted the invitation to get into the car. Olga drove -rapidly, scorning ruts and bumps. Once she spoke questioningly to Arden, -who was in the front seat with her. - -"My little friend, Melissa? Did she enjoy her ride?" - -"Very much," replied Arden. "But she got into trouble over it. Her -father----" - -"Ah, yes, she told me of him. Have you seen her recently, then?" - -"Not for quite a few days," Arden answered, and then she remembered, with -a start, that no one had seen Melissa or George Clayton for--she could -not recall how long. Three or four days, at least. - -"The dog!" Olga exclaimed suddenly. "Is she still on the boat? She cannot -bear me. I attempted to discipline her once, and ever since that I cannot -go near her. She never forgets." - -"She's still there, but I guess we can tie her up before you go in," -Arden said, wondering how they were going to do it. - -Then Olga drove without talking further. When they got to the end of the -narrow road leading to the houseboat the three girls sprang out and, -going on board, coaxed Tania to the stern of the craft, where they tied -her securely. They then called down that it was safe for Olga to come -aboard. - -"Watch her carefully," Arden cautioned Terry and Sim, indicating Olga. -"Notice just what she does." - -Terry and Sim agreed silently as Olga appeared at the steps. Tania barked -furiously at the sight of her and strained to get loose. Olga, casting -the merest glance in the direction of the animal, at once went inside the -houseboat. The three girls followed close behind her. She did not -hesitate in the living room. But, walking briskly, pushed aside the -curtains and stopped short as the broken cupboard caught her eye. The -mysterious covered canvas might not have been there for all the notice -she gave it. - -"Who did that?" she asked, angrily turning to the girls. "Who? Tell me at -once!" - -"We found it that way," Arden answered. "What's the matter?" - -"Matter?" Olga repeated. "Did you not know, then, that Dimitri had here a -gold box worth a fortune? Come! I see by your faces you did know. This is -where he kept it. I told him it was foolish. After all, one can get -around Tania with a piece of raw beef. Yes!" - -She was quite beside herself with rage. Her dark eyes flashed, and she -bit her lips impatiently. Then, apparently realizing how odd all this -must seem to the girls and shrugging her shoulders, she attempted to make -light of the incident. With another shrug of her expressive shoulders, -she said: - -"But of course he has removed his precious box with him. He can take care -of himself, that one. Ha! Yes! There is no use wasting time here. I must -get back to New York--quickly!" - -Olga fumbled in her bag and pulled out a gaudy compact. At the same time -a paper fell but, though she did not notice it, none of the girls -attempted to pick it up. The whole affair seemed to rob them of their -natural intelligence. Olga's personality was so overpowering. - -"But," Arden began, "why should he break open the cupboard? Surely he had -a key." - -"I have known him to lose things more important than keys. Don't worry -your pretty heads over it, Dimitri is not harmed, I am sure of it." Olga -used her compact vigorously. All that she did was vigorous. - -"And Tania," Sim reminded her. "He left nothing for her to eat." - -"About that I know nothing. Oh, you dear, foolish children! What do you -think has happened? Murder? Abduction? Come, I am going back!" Olga swept -out of the small space. She had succeeded in making the girls feel very -young and rather silly. They followed her almost against their wills, and -she drove them back to the cottage, where she stopped and, smiling -brightly, said: - -"Please don't distress yourselves. I tell you, Dimitri is very capable. -You believe me--yes?" - -"Yes, of course," Arden faltered. - -"Oh, and if you see my little friend Melissa, tell her I have been here, -will you?" - -The girls nodded dumbly, and Olga drove off up the muddy road, splashing -the brown water widely out from beneath the wheels. - -There was a temporary lull in the storm, a sort of breathing spell. The -rain had ceased, and the wind was less. The surf, though, was heavier -than ever, booming on and tearing at the beach. - -Arden stood in a little pool of rain water watching the car fade from -sight. She suddenly moved aside as the water soaked through her shoes and -wet her feet. - -"What next?" she asked of no one in particular. "She is the queerest -person I ever saw." - -"Do you think she really was disturbed about Dimitri and just pretended -she wasn't?" Sim inquired. - -"If you ask me," Terry began, "she doesn't care a snap about Dimitri. But -she did seem mad about the box and the broken cupboard." - -"That's just what I thought," agreed Arden. "I think she was surprised to -find it gone, and maybe I'm crazy, too, but she seemed to expect that, -somehow." - -"Why should we tell Melissa we saw her?" Terry reflected. "Anyway, we -haven't seen Melissa for days, and that's odd, too." - -"That's just Olga's manner: playing Lady Bountiful to the poor native -child," Sim sneered. "What does she know about Melissa, anyway?" - -"What does she know about this whole business?" Arden said firmly. "I'm -for telling Chief Reilly. Then, if anything should be wrong, our -consciences would be clear. What do you say?" - -"I think you're right, Arden!" Terry exclaimed. "There's more to this -than we realize. Wait till I tell Mother where we're going." - -Terry ran into the house and was out again almost at once. - -Arden backed the car from the garage, Sim shut the doors after her, and -the three were ready for the drive to the village. - -"Let's go!" called Terry hopping into the moving car. "Hurry, Arden! It's -beginning to rain again." - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII - Reilly on the Case - - -The rain was coming down in torrents by the time the village was reached, -and, going at once to Reilly's garage, the girls found him seated in his -narrow little office reading a newspaper. - -He smiled jovially as she saw them, his little blue eyes almost hidden -behind many wrinkles. - -"Afternoon, ladies!" he exclaimed. "How's this for weather? A cat can -look at a king." - -But Arden had no time for polite preliminaries. - -"Mr. Reilly," she began, "we have something very important to tell you." - -"Have you, now? What's happened? Rain leakin' through into your dinin' -room table? It never pours but the salt gets damp." - -"Please, I'm serious," Arden said firmly, and taking a deep breath she -announced: - -"Dimitri Uzlov has disappeared!" - -"Disappeared! What do you mean?" - -"He's been gone from the houseboat for days, and nobody has heard from -him. You said, yourself, you hadn't seen him lately. Remember?" - -"Yes, I remember," agreed the chief. "But what makes you think he's -disappeared?" - -"His dog came over to our house, starving, with a piece of frayed rope on -her collar," Terry burst out. - -"The door of the houseboat was open, and the rain was pouring in," -volunteered Sim. - -"Both his car and rowboat are there, and there's a cupboard broken open -on the houseboat," Arden added excitedly. - -"But perhaps he's just gone for a day or two," suggested the chief, -obviously not wanting to start on a "case" in the riotous weather. - -"Oh, you must believe us!" Arden exclaimed. "It takes more than a day or -two to starve a big dog. And we inquired all around the village. No one -has seen Mr. Uzlov." - -"Have you told anyone else about this?" Reilly asked professionally. "How -many people know he's gone?" - -"Just us and my mother and that woman who came to see him," Terry -answered. - -"Oh, Terry!" Arden exclaimed. "And we don't even know her last name or -her license number. We let her go away without asking." - -"How stupid! That's just what we did, and I'm sure she knew more than she -let on," Sim said in dismay. - -"Mr. Reilly," Arden pleaded, "won't you come with us to the _Merry Jane_? -We'll feel better if you take a look around, because we'd never forgive -ourselves if anything was wrong." - -"Why--" Reilly rubbed his chin thoughtfully--"yes, I'll come. Might as -well go right now. Just in case----" - -"Good! You follow us in your car, as we won't be coming back this way -again," Arden decided as Chief Reilly slipped into his warm uniform coat -whereon a large shiny badge was prominently displayed. - -He followed them back along the road in his ancient flivver, his fat -cheeks shaking as he bounced over the ruts and puddles. - -He slung one plump leg over the door without opening it and slid, rather -than climbed, out. The girls waited impatiently as he stood surveying the -lonely stretch of Marshlands from all angles. - -Terry fidgeted. "What does he think he's going to see, looking around -like this? White pebbles as in the fairy tale?" she hissed. - -"Shsh-h! he'll hear you," Arden cautioned. - -Chief Reilly, having had his look around, mounted the wooden steps at the -rear side of the houseboat and asked, in his most businesslike manner: - -"Everything just as you found it last?" - -"Everything; except for the closed window," Arden replied. - -Tania, delighted at seeing her friends again, "woofed" happily, and -apparently Chief Reilly was her friend, too, for she allowed him to rub -her silky ears. - -"We came over here the day Tania ran to us, begging for food. And we -found the place deserted and this cupboard broken open," said Arden. - -"Huhm-um," Reilly grunted, peering into the small compartment with its -shattered door. - -"These paint brushes," Sim said, showing him one, "were never left by Mr. -Dimitri to harden up like this. They were scattered about when we first -came over." - -"That so?" the chief asked. "I wouldn't know about that. I'm no painter." - -"There's something else that's very odd," Arden stated. "Dimitri Uzlov -had in his possession a very valuable gold box. Besides ourselves, we -don't know just how many people knew about it, but we think the woman -Olga did. Anyway, it's gone, too." - -Reilly raised his eyebrows. The case was beginning to be interesting. -What he had imagined to be the silly idea of excitable "summer folks" -seemed now to have something to it after all. - -"Did this artist have many visitors?" he asked. - -"Two that we know about," replied Terry. - -"The woman Olga, and a man who rowed over here in our boat a few nights -ago. He came back toward morning," said Sim. - -"The woman came first and asked the way over here. Terry rowed her over. -Dimitri and she seemed to be very angry about something. We rowed her -back again, and she took Melissa Clayton for a ride in her car, a green -sport roadster," supplied Arden. - -"Funny I never saw it go through town," Reilly remarked at this point. -"But what you don't know can't set the river on fire." He grinned. - -"It's more than that," Terry agreed. "That woman didn't seem to want to -be seen in town at all." - -"And something very queer about the whole thing," Sim interrupted, "is -where has Melissa been all this while? She usually hangs around our -house." - -"Oh, I wouldn't consider that," Reilly suggested. "This bad weather -probably accounts for it. She's home." - -"Well, then, after that," Arden went on with her story of events, "a man, -dark, tall, and somewhat like Dimitri, drove up one night and he, too, -asked the way to the _Merry Jane_. He wouldn't let us row him over. He -was very polite about it, and he took our boat. Toward morning I saw him -drive away in his car that he had left parked at Terry's house, -and--and--" Arden faltered as she realized another surprising -fact--"that's the last time we heard from Dimitri!" - - - - - CHAPTER XIX - Tania Howls - - -This startling announcement held them all speechless. They had completely -overlooked its significance. And yet it was so obvious. The dark stranger -had evidently come over to the houseboat that night and---- Surely he was -responsible for Dimitri's disappearance. - -Terry wandered over to the combination bed and couch and sank down upon -it. She looked in a bewildered fashion at the floor and almost -immediately was galvanized into action. At her feet lay a white paper; -something they had not noticed before. She snatched it up and spread it -out on her knee. It was part of an envelope torn partly across and -lengthwise. Written on it in ordinary blue ink was this: - - _Ser_ - _Ninth S_ - _New Y_ - -"Look!" excitedly exclaimed Terry. "Here's part of an address!" - -They all crowded close to see, and Chief Reilly, as befitted one in his -station, held out his hand for the paper. Terry meekly gave it to him. - -"You're right!" he exclaimed and turned the paper over. Then, as the -surprised girls watched, he drew out from the inside of the envelope a -second small piece of paper. "This seems to be some kind of a map," he -announced, turning it around in an effort to decide which was the top. - -"Let's see!" Arden asked. The chief gave it to her. "It is a map!" she -agreed, "and it shows the road from the city and the branch one to the -village. See, it has part of the word Oceanedge." - -"Perhaps we can find the rest of it," Sim suggested. But a most careful -search failed to reveal more of the paper. - -"Olga dropped that!" Arden announced suddenly. "I remember seeing it fall -from her bag, but I was too stupid to do anything about it." - -"Oh, no, Arden," Terry said. "If you had noticed it and called it to her -attention, she would have picked it up again. As it is now, we're -reasonably sure she knew the way to the _Merry Jane_ all the while, -though she tried to make us believe she didn't." - -"And to think we let her go without even finding out her name or who she -was," Sim moaned. - -"Now I'm sure there's something queer about Dimitri being away," Arden -said convincingly. "Why should Olga pretend to be ignorant about the -road? Why didn't she worry about Dimitri? How did she know about the -snuffbox? She went straight to the cupboard as if to get it." - -"You girls may have stumbled on something at that!" the chief exclaimed -with a faint note of admiration in his voice. "Yes, indeed!" - -They stood in the untidy living room wondering what might be the solution -to all this mystery. Tania rubbed against Sim's slim legs. The girl -gently pulled the silky ears, something forming in her mind. - -"I've got an idea!" Sim cried out. "Perhaps Tania could trace Dimitri if -she had something of his to sniff at. After all, she's a wolfhound, and -the hound part of her name must mean that she can trace missing persons." - -"We can try," Arden admitted. Somehow, despite the chief's presence, the -girls regarded the "case" as their own and did not dream of consulting -him on matters such as this one. - -Momentarily the discovery of the piece of letter and the map was -forgotten in the excitement of the new suggestion. Sim found a battered -old felt hat and held it before Tania's nose. - -The dog sniffed at it disdainfully and then sat back on her haunches -looking at Sim. - -"Go find him!" Sim urged. "Find Dimitri!" - -The tone of her voice may have done it, or else it was a game of dog and -played before, for she sprang up again and dashed toward the door. -Standing on her hind legs and pushing with her forepaws, she opened it, -for it was not fully latched. - -Tania galloped down to the water edge and ran back and forth excitedly, -her nose to the ground. The cat-tails in the marsh bent before the strong -wind, which whistled eerily through the tall sedge grass. As is usual -with nor'easters, the rain had temporarily ceased again, and the -afternoon sky seemed a little brighter. Tania turned to look -questioningly at the girls as she raced back and forth along the little -strip of ground. At last she stopped and, sitting down, facing the -storm-swept bay, she howled mournfully. - -"Tania!" Arden called. The dog came slowly to her, tail between her legs, -a picture of despair. - -"What does that mean?" Terry asked of Reilly. She did not dare to -interpret the performance for herself. "Do you think he may -have--drowned?" - -"Naw," Rufus Reilly replied scornfully. "It probably don't mean a thing. -That dog couldn't follow no scent in the wet weather. Just the same," he -continued wisely, "this here is a mysterious case, all right, all right! -I'm glad you called me in. It's the first time I've had any real work to -do in years. Now, what in thunder did I do with that paper? I've got to -study it a bit." He began to search in his numerous pockets. - -"Here it is, Mr. Reilly," Arden said handing it to him. "You let me look -at it." - -"Oh, yes, so I did! Well, I guess there's not much we can do around here, -is there?" he asked the girls. "Out of sight makes the mare go." Another, -of his silly, joking proverbs. - -They shook their heads silently. Arden took Tania back to the houseboat -again and shut her inside. Food and water had been left for her. Then, -after a quick look around, they all left. - -"I'll work on the case," Rufus Reilly announced as he climbed into his -car, "and let you know about it sometime tomorrow. Don't worry, though. -It'll all come out in the wash." And chuckling at his poor joke he drove -away in the early twilight. - - - - - CHAPTER XX - Mrs. Landry Helps - - -"Great help _he_ is," Sim remarked disdainfully as they watched the old -car bump along. - -"We don't know any more now than we did before," Terry said, agreeing -with Sim. - -"Yes, we do," Arden contradicted. "You're forgetting about that paper. -While you two were watching Tania perform her little trick, I was -memorizing the words on that torn piece." - -"Good for you, Sherlock!" Sim exclaimed. "And what do we do next? Go home -and work out the cryptogram?" - -"Something like that," Arden answered. "I've got a plan. Let's get going, -and we'll see how it works out. Terry, is it too late to go to town for -just a few minutes? What I'm going to do won't take long." - -"What are you going to do?" Terry questioned. "Tell us." - -"I thought of going to the drug store and trying to trace the writer of -this note by getting information of the New York telephone company," -Arden told them. - -"Good idea, Ard! Of course we have time for that. And, anyway, we'd -better do it while you still remember the words," Terry said. - -"Oh, don't worry, I won't forget them," Arden replied with the first show -of relief they had felt in some time. "A Blake never forgets!" - -They piled into the car and rode along the deserted road to the village. -The drug store was fortunately empty except for a rather stupid-looking -boy clerk. - -Arden entered the phone booth, and her chums crowded around her. They -waited impatiently for the really short interval it took to make the -connection with the New York office. As the clear sharp voice of the girl -sang out "Information," Arden explained the difficulty. - -"We are trying to get the phone number of an address in New York," she -said, "but we've torn the paper. I'll give you as much as I can. Do you -think you can help us?" - -"Sorry, madam," came the voice, "but I can't possibly trace the name." - -Arden hung up and turned sorrowfully toward her friends. - -"I might have known it," she said. "Of course we couldn't do anything -that way. It was a desperate chance at best." - -"Too bad, Arden," Terry soothed. "I still think it was a good idea. But -let's get out of here; our young friend," she indicated the curious -clerk, "is awfully interested in us." - -"We'd better be starting for home, anyway," Arden suggested. "Your mother -might worry." - -So they left the little village, which was quite deserted now in the late -afternoon, and wearily put the car away for the night in the garage of -the little white house. - -Mrs. Landry was interested to learn all that had happened, and urged them -to keep up their spirits. Somewhat woefully, the girls smiled at her and -agreed at least to try further. - -After the evening meal, when they gathered in the living room, Arden and -Sim decided to write letters home but thought it best not to mention the -new "mystery." - -Arden sat at the small wicker desk, pen and paper before her, and got as -far as "Dearest Mother." But her mind was far away and after this -auspicious beginning she looked up from the paper dreamily. - -Poor Dimitri! Where could he be? And Olga--and the paper and the -snuffbox. Then Arden, drawing a line through the beginning of her letter, -wrote down the queer words from the envelope. - - _Ser_ - _Ninth S_ - _New Y_ - -What could that possibly be? What man's name began with the letters S E -R? - -"Terry," Arden said suddenly, "have you a dictionary here? One that would -have proper names in it?" - -"I have one that I brought down with some books from Cedar Ridge. Will -that help you?" Terry replied. - -"Get it, will you, please," Arden continued. "I'm going to try and work -out this puzzle and send a telegram to an address. If it isn't delivered, -we'll know it's no good. I'd rather spend the last of my allowance that -way than on candy." - -"Swell plan, Arden!" Sim exclaimed. "Get the trusty dictionary, Terry, -and let's start to work." - -Terry dashed up the stairs and rummaged hurriedly in the pile of almost -forgotten college books in her room and at length returned carrying the -volume. - -Arden flicked back the flimsy pages and ran her hand down the line. - -There were biblical first names as well as Greek and Latin ones, and -Arden was somewhat at sea as she murmured: - - Serah - Seraphim - Sered - Seres - Sergia - Sergius - Seriah - Seron - Serug - -"Do you like any of them, or does any one sound logical?" she asked her -chums. - -"Sergius!" exclaimed Sim. "That sounds Russian to me." - -"Sergia," Terry voted. "That's also Russian, but one may be a woman's -name. How can we get around that? There's no way of finding out from this -list. It's very impartial." - -"We can get around it this way," Arden declared. "Just use Serg. Then -we'll be safe if it's a man or woman. You know a boy's name could be Ted, -and they call some girls Ted. I'm in favor of just Serg." - -"It sounds good," admired Terry. - -"I'm for it," added Sim. "But what about a last name?" - -"There's going to be a rub," said Terry. "We took the easiest part -first." - -"It seems almost impossible, doesn't it?" sighed Arden. - -"Yes, it does. It might be Smith or Brown or Jones," Sim remarked. "This -is quite an undertaking, I'm afraid." - -"Well, there's no harm in trying," Arden protested. "Working with Dimitri -in mind, it's logical to suppose that, being Russian, he'd have Russian -friends or relatives, isn't it?" - -Sim and Terry agreed silently. - -"I guess relatives, Arden," said Sim suddenly. "I think that man who came -here looked like Dimitri." - -"Maybe you're right, Sim. Shall we try Uzlov?" Arden looked to them for -agreement. - -"Yes!" exclaimed Terry. "Serg Uzlov! That's a good start." - -"Of course, we may not gain anything by this, and besides, perhaps we -should have told Rufus Reilly what we intend to do. Do you think so?" -questioned Arden, chewing the little ring on the top of the fountain pen. - -"Not at all!" Sim protested. "If Dimitri was a brother, or something, I -think we'd do just this, and I think we're perfectly justified in doing -it." - -This outburst gave them new courage, and they puzzled for some time over -the address. Then Terry finally called in her mother. - -"What would be the Russian quarter in New York, Mother?" she asked, -explaining what they were trying to do. - -"Let me try to remember," said Mrs. Landry. "Perhaps if I looked again at -the address as you have it, something might suggest itself to me." - -They showed it to her, Arden writing it out from memory again. - -"There seems to be no question but what this address is in New York," -Mrs. Landry went on, after several seconds of obvious concentration. -"Now, as to the street. From the way the address is written it must be -Ninth Street. It cannot be Nineteenth Street for there was no part of a -word before the Ninth, was there?" - -"No." The girls were agreed on that point. - -"And it cannot have been Twenty-ninth, or Thirty-ninth or any of the -higher numbered streets in the pines. Because the word Ninth was too near -the left side of the envelope. So I think it is safe to assume that Ninth -Street was intended." - -"Splendid!" exclaimed Arden. "Terry, your mother should be in entire -charge of this mystery investigation." - -"Oh, no, my dear. None of that for me, if you please," Mrs. Landry -laughed. - -"But you're helping us so!" murmured Sim. - -"This may be no help at all, as it turns out. But I'll go on to the end -as far as I can. We'll decide on Ninth Street. That, as you know, is at -least partly in what is, or was, the Greenwich Village section of New -York. - -"I think it safe to say there are Russians there. You know there are -artists and writers living there and all sorts of odd tearooms, some -undoubtedly of Russian character." - -"Oh, we are coming on!" cried Arden. "What next, Mrs. Landry?" - -"Well, I should say, from looking at this, that no house number was ever -put in front of the street. Whoever wrote this must have known that the -letter would go to its destination without a house number on it. The -writer must have sent other letters in the same way, trusting to the mail -man knowing where to leave it." - -"Some mail man!" commented Terry admiringly. - -"But then Ninth Street may be a short one," said Mrs. Landry. "I can't -just recollect about that, though I have been on it. At any rate, I -think, in such a desperate case as this," and here she smiled slightly, -"you would be justified in sending the telegram to the name you have -selected, with just Ninth Street, New York, as its destination. Those -telegraph messenger boys are clever. One may know just where to take it -or he may inquire of some Russian in the Village. The Russians are -clannish, like all foreigners, and this person may be well known." - -"Oh, I'm sure it's going to succeed now!" declared Arden. - -"Of course!" murmured her chums, Sim adding: - -"You write the telegram out now, Ard." - -Arden wrote and read: - - _"'Serg Uzlov. Ninth Street, New York City. Can you give us any - information concerning Dimitri Uzlov? Very important. Anxious to get in - touch with him. Telegraph my expense.'"_ - -"That's a lot more than ten words," remarked Sim. - -"Who cares?" laughed Terry. "This may mean a lot. But you'll have to sign -some name to it, won't you?" - -"Could we use yours, Mrs. Landry?" asked Arden. - -"Yes, I think so," Terry's mother answered after a moment of thought. "It -will do no harm." - -"Then we'll do it," decided Arden. - -"I can hardly wait!" Sim cried excitedly. "Of course we couldn't go to -town tonight?" she looked beseechingly at Mrs. Landry. - -"Of course not, my dear young Watson," Terry's mother smiled as she -replied. "You sleuths have done quite enough for one day. Besides, think -how silly you'll feel if you find out nothing has happened at all." - -"I suppose so," Terry reluctantly admitted. "But somehow, Mother, I think -there's something in this." - -"You may be right," her mother agreed. "Nevertheless, your commanding -officer orders you all to bed." - -Somewhat petulantly they kissed the jovial lady good-night and went -upstairs, but not to sleep till some time later, when, unable to stay -awake any longer, they at last succumbed to the call of Morpheus. - -But sleeping though they were, it was a fitful rest. Filled with dreams -of gold boxes, strange dark women, and telegrams. Once Arden cried out, -"Tania! Tania!" and Sim gave her a sleepy nudge to wake her from her -dream. - -Arden sighed and rolled over. Morning was so long in coming. At length -the smiling sun climbed up over the edge of the ocean and announced the -beginning of a new day. - - - - - CHAPTER XXI - Melissa Has a Pin - - -As soon as they possibly could after breakfast the next day, the three -girls rowed over to the houseboat and fed Tania. They let her romp for a -while and reluctantly locked her up again. They feared the townspeople, -ever on the watch for something to talk about, would find some choice -gossip if they were seen in the village with the "Russian's" dog. - -The storm was over, and the sun, almost a stranger, broke through the -clouds, blinding in its brightness. The day promised to be hot, so -dressed in cool "semi-back" dresses the girls left the houseboat and went -home first to report to Mrs. Landry that there was no news. - -Then they got the car out and went to the village to send the telegram, -which they all hoped would bring good results. - -"You'd better shut the door of the phone booth," Terry suggested to Arden -as they entered the drug store. "You never can tell who'll be listening, -and the whole town would be excited if they heard the message." - -"Yes, I think that would be best," Arden agreed. - -Trying to appear nonchalant, as though this was an ordinary call, Arden -sent off the message. She requested an immediate answer. To make doubly -sure, she informed the operator who took the telegram that she must know -as soon as possible if it was delivered and left the number of the -drug-store phone. - -The telegraph company had an arrangement with the drug store so that -messages could be telephoned in and payment made to the clerk. When Arden -had completed the dictation, at the request of the operator, she got the -drug clerk into the booth, and he was informed as to the toll, which -Arden paid him. - -"It will take a while, even if it is delivered," Arden told her friends. -"So we might as well do the shopping and come back." - -"Oh, I do hope we get a reply," Sim said earnestly. "I couldn't sleep -last night thinking about Dimitri." - -"For a person who couldn't sleep, you gave a marvelous imitation," Arden -answered sarcastically. "Three or four times I could have sworn you were -dead to the world." - -"Me-ouw--me-ouw," Terry squeaked. "Don't be catty! The time will go -quicker if we keep busy." - -They did all the shopping they had to for Terry's mother and walked once -around the block to kill more time before returning to the drug store. - -Arden could no longer be diplomatic. She marched up to the dull-looking -soda boy and asked in clear tones: "Did a message come for me?" - -"Haven't had a call today," replied the youth behind the counter. "Were -you expect----" - -The phone bell rang sharply. Arden almost ran to answer it, slamming the -door shut behind her. - -Terry and Sim could see her face, bright with anticipation for a few -seconds, then with dismay saw her expression change. They couldn't hear -what she was saying, but in a short while she was out again and beckoned -them to follow her outside. - -"That was one of the managers of the telegraph company in New York," -Arden reported. "He's in the office nearest Ninth Street. He said they -couldn't send a boy out to deliver a message without a street address--it -would lose too much time. But if we are willing to pay extra for -messenger service, he says he'll have a boy sort of scout around and try -to locate the party." - -"What did you tell him?" asked Terry. - -"Told him to go ahead and we'd pay anything in reason. He said it -probably would not be much more than a dollar." - -"We'll chip in," declared Terry. - -"I thought you would; that's why I authorized him to go on. So now we'll -have some more waiting. They're going to try again." - -"Oh, I hope we have some luck this time," Terry remarked. "But whatever -shall we do with ourselves while we're waiting?" - -"That's a problem," Arden said thoughtfully. "Let's get our hair washed -and waved. Mine could stand it. It's full of salt water." - -"Great!" Sim exclaimed. "Of course, we know the beauty parlor here is -nothing to write home about, but it will serve." - -"It will serve us, little one," Terry declared, and they walked three -abreast down the sunny street. - -The girl operators were glad to have some new customers, and city folks -at that, so they asked innumerable questions. The three girls were -guarded in their answers, afraid they would give away their secret. - -A none too gentle girl rubbed Arden's scalp with stubby fingers, keeping -up her barrage of questions the while. What was the latest coiffure in -the city? Was the long bob going out? What kind of a permanent did she -have? Wearily Arden answered, wishing the girl would keep quiet. - -But at last it was over and they went back to haunt the drug store again. - -No, the clerk told them, no message had yet come. - -The girls sat down on the steps outside. This was not an unusual thing to -do. In a small village one could sit for hours by the gas station, post -office, or drug store without being thought queer. - -In an agony of suspense, they waited fifteen minutes--twenty minutes. -They reached a point where they were sitting silently, each busy with her -own worrying and wondering thoughts. - -An answer was almost too much to expect of the most kindly fate. But it -was true there was no harm in trying. Dimitri was gone, and the snuffbox -too. The situation, despite Chief Reilly's jovial acceptance of it, was -taking on a serious character. - -Sim was just about to ask if the state police should not be notified, -when the phone in the store rang shrilly. They could hear it, for the -booth door had been left open. - -Arden jumped up. For a fleeting second she looked at her companions as -though to plead with some unseen force that this call should bring -results. Then she dashed inside with no thought of appearance. When she -emerged from the booth this time her chums knew she had met with some -success. Her face wreathed in smiles she burst out: - -"We've got an answer!" - -"Oh, what?" - -"Tell us!" - -"It was the telegraph manager again," Arden reported. "The boy finally -located our man, and we owe a dollar and a quarter. It took a little -longer than was expected." - -"Pooh! Only an extra quarter!" exclaimed Sim. - -"But did they deliver the telegram?" asked Terry. - -"Yes, of course. To Serge Uzlov, and he wired an answer." - -"Oh!" Sim and Terry exclaimed in unison. "What did he say?" - -"'Leaving at once for Oceanedge,'" quoted Arden. - -"How wonderful!" Terry almost shouted. "Then he was some relative of poor -Dimitri?" - -"It looks that way," admitted Arden. "Wait, we must pay that dollar and a -quarter," she said quickly, for Sim and Terry evinced a desire to hasten -away. They made up the money, though it rather taxed their purses after -the beauty parlor treatment. But they didn't mind in the least. - -"Now let's go and tell your mother, Terry," suggested Sim. - -They started out of the drug store and almost bowled over Melissa -Clayton, who was on the point of entering. - -"Oh, Melissa, how are you?" Sim asked. "We haven't seen you for a long -time." - -"I'm all right," the girl replied noncommittally. - -"Weren't sick, were you?" Arden asked. - -"No, just a cold," Melissa replied. - -"All better?" Terry inquired. They were anxious to be on their way, yet -they could not pass by the poor child for whom they had so much sympathy. - -"What a pretty pin," Arden remarked next, looking at a stick pin with a -deep red stone which Melissa had thrust through the collar of an old -middy blouse. "Where did you get it?" - -Sim and Terry pressed closer; they could tell from Arden's tone that this -was no idle question, and as they looked they started, for the pin, a -man's, they had all seen Dimitri wearing the day of the little tea party. - - - - - CHAPTER XXII - The Policewoman - - -"I found it," Melissa replied without hesitating. - -"How lucky! Where?" Arden continued. - -"On the beach," Melissa went on. Then she pushed past the girls and -entered the store. - -Arden did not question her further, fearing to make the girl suspicious. -But on the way home the three discussed the remarkable coincidence. - -"Now, where on earth could Melissa have found that pin?" Sim asked. "Of -course, it belonged to Dimitri, and I don't for a minute believe she -found it on the beach." - -"Nor I," Arden agreed. "My guess is that, if she found it at all, she -found it on the houseboat. And that means she was there before we were, -because we went over it pretty thoroughly by ourselves, and the chief -didn't miss anything when he came with us." - -"I suppose we ought to ask if he found out anything, just to keep up -appearances," Terry suggested. "What do you think, girls?" - -"Oh, of course, it would never do to let him think we had forgotten about -him. We can stop in now and ask how the case is coming," Arden replied. -"But we don't need to mention the telegram." - -The chief, when they pulled up by the garage, crawled out from under a -car. With a comical show of secrecy he came toward them, glancing over -his shoulder as he came. - -"I ain't had a chance to do nothing yet," he said, wiping some grease off -his hands. "My car broke down. But I'm a-studyin' it, and I'll let you -know this afternoon. You heard anything?" - -Arden hesitated before replying. After all, she had _heard_ nothing. That -they had an answer to their telegram was just a bit of luck, and she -thought it just as well if the chief did not know of it. - -"No," she answered. "We haven't heard a thing." - -"Well, don't worry," Reilly said, smiling. "Remember, a murderer always -returns to the scene of his crime." - -"And you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear," Sim flung back at -him. He did so annoy her! Imagine "studyin' it." What good would that do, -and what nonsense was that about a murderer? - -"That's right!" chuckled Reilly. "You know, young ladies, the whole -trouble with cases of this kind is haste. Haste is what gums things up. -Go slowly, and you have much better results. You ain't told anyone in -town, have you? These here people are powerful talkers." - -"Not a soul, Mr. Reilly," Arden assured him. - -"You keep on studying it and let us know when you learn something, will -you?" suggested Sim. - -"'Deed I will, and I'll have some news soon, sure. In the meantime don't -forget. Look before you leap," the chief said, smiling. - -"Yes," Sim said as the car pulled away, "that's good advice, and 'he who -hesitates is lost' is good, too." - -Reilly looked after them with a puzzled expression on his face. Was that -little snip making fun of him? Then he shrugged and crawled back under -the car he was trying to fix. - -"Sim, you cheerful idiot, were you trying to make him mad?" Terry asked -as they drove home. - -"No, but he annoyed me so I couldn't help it. I don't believe he'll be a -bit of good. I know more about mysteries than he does." - -"But it wouldn't do to antagonize him. After all, he's the strong arm of -the law down here," Arden reminded her. - -"Not such a very strong arm, in my opinion," Sim answered, and she -slipped deeper down in the car seat. - -"Oh, well, don't let's argue," Terry soothed. "We've got too much to -think about now." - -Sim was instantly alert again. "I remember distinctly seeing that pin in -Dimitri's tie the day he showed us the snuffbox. Melissa knows more than -we think," she said. - -"We don't know very much when you come right down to it," Arden reminded -her. "If a real detective questioned us, there's very little we could -tell him." - -"How long will it take that Serge Uzlov to get down?" Sim asked of no one -in particular. "I wish he'd take a plane." - -"There's no place here at Marshlands for a plane to alight," Terry -answered. "Unless he took a seaplane and landed on the bay. Think what -excitement that would cause!" - -"I suppose so," Sim admitted as they turned in the driveway. "We'll just -have to wait. I won't have a fingernail left by evening. I chewed them -nearly all off waiting for that phone call." - -Terry whistled for her mother. At the sound of that shrill call, Mrs. -Landry, try as she did to appear rather uninterested in the whole -baffling case, came out of the house quickly and listened with great -interest to the story of the message. - -"And, Mother," Terry finished, "as we left the store we met Melissa -coming in, and she was wearing a tie pin of Dimitri's. What do you think -of that?" - -"Did you say anything about it?" Mrs. Landry asked. - -"We didn't let her know we recognized it, and she said she found it on -the beach," Terry answered. - -"Perhaps she did. Surely you don't think Melissa had anything to do with -all this?" Mrs. Landry questioned. - -"That's just it. We don't know _who_ had anything to do with it," Terry -moaned. - -"Well," Sim stated firmly, "I'll feel better when that man from New York -gets here. I'll bet he knows something." - -The others had nothing to say to that, and they all went indoors for -luncheon. - -The meal was nearly finished when there was a knock at the front door. -Bells in seashore cottages never seem to ring. They may at the beginning -of the season, but almost always, before it ends, there appears over the -push button a little note stating: "Please knock." - -Now, in answer to that invitation, a knock sounded. - -"I'll go," said Ida, who had just brought in the dessert. - -The three girls glanced eagerly at one another. - -Was it Serge? - -But in another moment they knew it was not, for they heard the murmuring -of a woman's voice talking to the maid. Presently Ida came back, a -frightened look on her face, to announce: - -"It's a policewoman." - -"A policewoman!" exclaimed Mrs. Landry. "Are you sure, Ida?" - -"Oh, yes'm. I've seen 'em in New York. They all dress the same, and they -have a queer look on their face, and they wear heavy shoes. It's a -policewoman all right." - -"But what does she want?" Terry asked. - -"Melissa Clayton," said Ida. - -"Oh!" murmured Arden. "If they arrest that poor child----" - -"Perhaps we'd better have this policewoman in," suggested Mrs. Landry. - -"Oh, yes!" said Sim. "We've got to find out about this. Perhaps she may -know something about Dimitri." - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII - On the Water Trail - - -Mrs. Landry told Ida to invite the visitor to sit on the front porch -while the dessert was being eaten. - -"If I asked her into the front room she would probably hear what you -girls talk about," said Terry's mother, "and you are sure to talk, I -know." - -"You can't blame us in these circumstances," said Sim. - -"No, I can't." Mrs. Landry smiled understandingly. "But why should a -policewoman come here for this child?" - -"We're going to find out very soon," declared Arden. - -The dessert was eaten in record time, and then, after a whispered -conference, it was decided that Mrs. Landry should first interview the -caller alone and, if necessary, call in the girls. - -"Though, if she wants us to help her catch poor Melissa, what shall we -do?" whispered Terry. - -"We won't tell her a thing," decided Sim. "Why should we make more -trouble for the poor child?" - -"Even if she took Dimitri's pin?" suggested Arden. - -"We don't know that she took it--we don't even know, for sure, that it is -his pin," said Terry while her mother went out on the porch. "We couldn't -prove it in court." - -"I suppose not," agreed Arden. "Though I, myself, believe it is his. Now, -be careful," she warned. "Don't let on that we know anything about -Melissa, or have just seen her, unless we have to." - -The others agreed to this. They could hear the murmuring talk between -Mrs. Landry and the caller. Presently Terry's mother came into the dining -room, where the girls were still sitting, to say: - -"It isn't anything to worry about. Good news, rather than bad." - -"About Dimitri?" asked Arden eagerly. - -"No. It's all Melissa. You had better hear this woman's story. She -doesn't want to arrest the poor child, so you can talk freely to her. And -she isn't a policewoman. She is from a private detective agency, though." - -"It's almost as bad," said Terry. "Why is a detective agency interested -in Melissa?" - -"You had better hear the whole story," suggested Mrs. Landry. "Come, and -I will introduce you." - -The three girls trailed after her out to the porch. The woman was as Ida -had described her. She looked determined and efficient but not unkind, -nor like one who would, as Arden remarked later, "hound a poor girl to -death." - -"This is my daughter," said Mrs. Landry, presenting Terry, "and her two -college chums who are spending the summer with her. Miss Blake and Miss -Westover." - -"Pleased to meet you. I'm Emma Tash, and I'm from the Torrance Private -Detective Agency in New York. I was sent down here by my chief to find -out something about a girl named Melissa Clayton. As we always do in -these cases, we make some inquiries of friends and neighbors before going -directly to the parties themselves. - -"I stopped in the village, and I found out that you people are friendly -with this girl. Do you mind telling me something about her?" - -"With the understanding," put in Mrs. Landry, "that there is no harm -intended to Melissa." - -"Oh, now," Emma Tash was quick to say, "I told you that at the start." - -"Perhaps you wouldn't mind repeating it for the benefit of my daughter -and her friends," suggested Terry's mother. - -"Not at all. I'll put my cards on the table, so to speak, and you can -judge how much you want to tell me. This Melissa Clayton, according to -the case as it comes to me, has an elderly aunt, her mother's sister, who -is quite wealthy. This aunt, a widow named Mrs. Lulu Benlon, has for a -long time wanted to befriend this girl, but Melissa's father refuses to -let anything be done for her." - -"Just like him!" murmured Arden. - -"I heard something like that in the village," went on Emma Tash. "But -we'll come to him later. Anyhow, the firm I am with has been hired to see -if something can't be done now. It seems that several times, in years -past, Mrs. Benlon tried to do something for Melissa but was prevented. -After being turned down more than once, she gave up. Now Mrs. Benlon is -ailing. She's afraid she is going to die soon, but before that she wants -to make another effort to help Melissa." - -"Couldn't she leave her money in a will?" asked Sim. - -"Yes, that was talked of, but Mrs. Benlon is queer," said Emma Tash. "She -wants to be sure Melissa will get the benefit of her help, and if she -left her money there is no telling that Melissa would ever get it. Mrs. -Benlon, it seems, wants the satisfaction of knowing, herself, that what -she does will really benefit the girl." - -"She's probably wise there," said Mrs. Landry. - -"Yes, I guess so," the detective investigator admitted. "So that's why -I'm here. Mrs. Benlon has offered to take Melissa out of what, from all -accounts, is a poor sort of a home and give her a good one--even send her -to school to be educated. But Mrs. Benlon doesn't want George Clayton to -have anything of her bounty. It seems that he wasn't kind to his wife, -who was Mrs. Benlon's younger sister. - -"As I get the story, it was a sort of runaway match; marry in haste and -repent all the rest of your life. Anyhow, Melissa's mother died soon -after the girl's birth, and she had been brought up in a hand-to-mouth -sort of way ever since, according to Mrs. Benlon. But if it can be -brought about there is a happier time ahead for Melissa. Now that you -know what I want, will you help me?" - -"Yes!" exclaimed Arden, and her chums nodded in agreement. - -"What do you want us to do?" asked Terry. - -"Tell me all you can about this girl and her father and, if you can, -suggest how I can best get in communication with them," said Emma Tash. - -"That last part isn't going to be easy," said Terry. "George Clayton is a -queer man; ugly too, I'm afraid." - -"That bears out what I have heard," said the investigator. "But there -must be some way. Perhaps you can help me. But first tell me all you -can--that is, all you want me to know." - -This last clause was a saving one for the girls. They felt, under it, -that they need not mention the pin nor any possible connection Melissa -might have with the houseboat. Dimitri Uzlov need not be brought in, nor -the fact that he was not to be found. The girls could still keep to -themselves, as far as Emma Tash was concerned, the secret of the man -missing at Marshlands. - -With this in mind, Terry, Arden, and Sim, by turns, assisted with a word -from Mrs. Landry now and then, told about Melissa Clayton and her father. - -"They live in a sort of shack on the edge of the bay, not far from the -marsh," said Terry. "You can get to it by a long winding road out of the -village, but the best way is to go by boat." - -"Then I'll go that way," said the woman detective determinedly. - -"I don't believe you'll get very close to the Clayton shack if you -approach openly by boat," said Terry. "George Clayton is a suspicious -man, and if he's home he'll probably order you off his premises." - -"He may not be home," said Emma Tash. "If he isn't, so much the better. I -can talk to Melissa alone. She ought to be old enough to make up her mind -to leave her poverty for a better home with her aunt." - -"That's just it," said Arden. "I think Melissa is rather simple-minded, -to state it gently. Do you think you would be justified in inducing that -sort of a person to do something her father would oppose?" - -"Oh, no, I wouldn't do that for anything," was the quick answer. "If I -find her that kind of a girl I will report back to my office and we'll -get legal advice. But Mrs. Benlon thinks she owes a duty to her niece, -and she wants to carry it out as soon as she can." - -"Here's an idea," said Sim suddenly. "What about going crabbing?" - -"Going crabbing!" exclaimed Arden, not seeing the relevancy of the -remark. "What in the world for?" - -"We have to take the water trail to the Clayton shack," went on Sim. -"Now, if we pretend to be crabbing we can gradually work our way toward -it without exciting suspicion. Melissa may be outside or even out in a -boat herself, crabbing or fishing. Her father may be out lifting his -lobster pots. In that case Miss Tash can see the girl and talk with her. -Melissa won't be afraid if she sees us." - -"Say, that's a good idea!" declared Terry. - -"But you know," said Arden, "we have to wait here for----" - -She did not finish, though her chums knew whom she meant. - -"Oh, I don't want to take you away," Emma Tash hastened to assure the -girls. "I could go by myself." - -"I think it would be better if some of the girls went with you," -suggested Mrs. Landry. "Melissa would feel much more confidence." - -"I suppose she would, as I'm a stranger to her. But I hate to be a -bother." - -"No bother at all," said Terry. "One of us can go with you, and the rest -of us can stay here to receive our expected visitor. He may not come -after all," she added. - -"Oh, I think he will," said Arden. - -"Then you two stay here," suggested Terry quickly. "I will go in our boat -with this lady. We'll do some crabbing. It will be the best way." - -"And if our friend comes," said Sim, "we'll hold him until you get back, -Terry." - -"Yes, do that." - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV - The Man Arrives - - -Emma Tash was a very efficient woman. No sooner had the crabbing plan of -approaching the Clayton shack been decided upon than she lifted up a -small black bag which she had set beside her chair. - -"If we are going crabbing," she said with a smile, "I have my disguise in -here." - -"Disguise!" repeated the girls in a chorus. - -Truly things were developing fast at Marshlands. - -A detective woman! - -A disguise! - -Arden's eyes sparkled. - -"It isn't much of a disguise," went on Emma Tash. "We women investigators -don't go in much for that sort of thing. Some of our men do, though. But -when I knew I had to come down to the seashore, naturally I thought of -bathing, fishing, or crabbing. - -"Now, I'm not very fond of ocean bathing, so I passed up that suit. I -don't know how to fish, but I do know how to crab, and I used to do it -when I was a girl. So I brought my crabbing disguise with me." - -"What in the world is a crabbing disguise?" asked Terry, as their visitor -laughed. "George Clayton doesn't wear one." - -"It's just an old dress I don't care what happens to," said Emma Tash, -"and an old-fashioned sunbonnet. With that on, I defy anyone who sees me -in it to recognize me afterward if I dress as I am now." - -"Oh, that sort of a disguise," laughed Terry. "Well, I guess that will be -all right. And we had better start," she added. "Time is passing, and I -want to be back here to help receive our visitor." - -"I will be as quick as I can," Emma Tash said. "If I could go somewhere -to change my dress----" - -"I'll show you," offered Mrs. Landry. "Come with me, please." - -While the visitor was upstairs, the girls, in breathless whispers, -discussed her and her errand. They agreed that the plan they had adopted -was the best one possible in the circumstances. - -"Only," sighed Terry who, in a sense, was offering herself as a -sacrifice, "I do hope Serge Uzlov doesn't arrive until I get back." - -"We'll keep him for you," promised Arden. - -Emma Tash certainly was a very different person in her crabbing disguise. -She looked the part of a back-country native to perfection. She and Terry -were soon off in the boat, provided with a net, a peach basket to hold -the crabs, and some old pieces of meat, on strings, for bait. - -Sim and Arden watched Terry row away in the direction of the Clayton -shack. - -"And now we'll just have to sit here and wait," sighed Arden as Terry and -her passenger disappeared around a point. - -"We could go in swimming," suggested Sim, ever mindful of her ambition to -become an expert in aquatic sports. - -"Then let's. It will make the time pass quicker. After all, I don't -believe he can get here until late afternoon. There aren't many shore -trains out of New York until near the commuting hour," said Arden. - -So Sim and Arden put on their suits and went in for a dip. But it was -rather too cool for real enjoyment in the water, and they soon came out -and sunned themselves on the sand. - -Meanwhile Terry, with her usual skill at the oars, was sending the boat -along at good speed toward their objective. - -"Mustn't row too fast now, though," she told Emma Tash when she was near -the Clayton shack. "Crabbers usually just anchor, put the bait over the -side, and wait for bites." - -"I know," said the detective woman. "I've done it often enough. But -crabbers often haul up the anchor and go from place to place looking for -better luck. In that way we can gradually approach without any -suspicions." - -"I think so," Terry agreed. - -She rowed on until they were within view of the place where Melissa -lived. There was no sign of life about the shack or its outbuildings. -Whether Melissa had returned home after meeting the girls in the drug -store, Terry had no way of finding out. - -"Perhaps we'd better stop here," suggested Emma Tash. "I can make an -observation while you put some bait over the side." - -"Observation?" questioned Terry. - -"Yes. With these. We find them useful on cases." - -Emma Tash produced from a pocket in her crabbing dress a binocular, and -as Terry threw the little anchor over, Emma Tash focused the glass on the -Clayton shack. - -The boat had drifted the length of the anchor rope with the incoming -tide, which is always best for crabbing, and Terry was putting over the -first bit of bait when the detective woman lowered the binocular and -said: - -"Not a sign of life. I guess there's nobody home." - -"Melissa would hardly have had time to get here since we saw her in the -drug store," said Terry. "And very likely her father is out in his boat." - -"Then we'll just have to wait and trust to luck," was the decision of -Emma Tash. "I'd like to see the girl alone." - -They began to crab in earnest now. For, after all, George Clayton might -be lurking about his place and see them. For a time Terry really entered -into the enjoyment of their occupation, for the crabs were biting well -and she landed a number of big blue-clawed ones, while her companion did -likewise. - -Now and then they would net a "mammy," her apron bulging with a cluster -of yellow eggs ready to be deposited in some clump of the lettuce-like -seaweed. These "mammy" crabs were always thrown back to aid in the -propagation of future generations. - -"I think we had better move a little--a little closer," suggested the -detective in a low voice after a half hour of good luck. "I want to take -another look." - -"Yes," Terry agreed. She pulled up the anchor, but this time the -policewoman did the rowing, and she rowed well. Terry envied her skill. - -Again they anchored, but this time they had picked a poor location and -caught nothing. Inspection through the glass still revealed no sign of -life about the place. It appeared silent and deserted. - -"I think we can chance going a bit closer," said Emma Tash after another -half hour. "If I don't see anything then, I believe I'll take a chance -and land. I'll walk up to the place. Melissa may be asleep in there." - -"I hardly think so," said Terry. "But you can try." - -They hoisted the anchor again, moved nearer the place, and once more the -glass was used. - -"I can't see a sign of anybody," Emma Tash declared. "I'm going up -there." - -Once more Terry pulled up the mud-hook, and again the oars were used by -the detective. But just as she was easing up, in preparation to letting -the boat glide up the mucky beach, a man's voice called: - -"Keep away from here! I don't let nobody land!" - -George Clayton suddenly appeared in front of his shack, holding a long -pole. - -"Get away!" he cried. "This is a private beach! You can crab all you want -to out there, but don't land. I've warned you!" - -"Well, that's that," said Terry in a low voice. She held her head down. -In spite of the fact that she was wearing a big straw hat, she feared the -man might recognize her. - -But Emma Tash did not give up so easily. - -"Can't we land and get a drink of water?" she called. - -"No! Keep off!" - -"Very well." - -There was nothing for it but to row away, and this they did. - -"But I'm not giving up," said the detective when they were on their way -back to "Buckingham Palace." Terry wondered if Serge were there. "I'll go -back to New York and suggest a different method," Emma Tash said. "The -girl's aunt is anxious to do something for the child, and her brute of a -father shouldn't be allowed to stand in the way." - -"Of course not," Terry agreed. - -She rowed fast back to the little dock, and her first unasked question -was answered, as Sim and Arden who came down to meet her, with Arden's -remark: - -"He hasn't arrived yet." - -"Well, I'm glad I didn't miss him," Terry said. - -Emma Tash changed back into her regular dress, put the crabbing disguise -into her bag and, thanking them all for the help, started for the -village, saying she would take a train back to New York. - -"But I'm coming here again," she said. "And if you get a chance I wish -you would let Melissa know that her aunt wants to help her." - -"We will," Terry promised. - -It was now late afternoon, and the girls, nervous with the tension, sat -on the porch, waiting. Not for anything would they now go far away from -the house. The "man from New York" might arrive any minute. - -"Oh, dear," Sim wailed. "Isn't this suspense awful? If that man doesn't -come soon, I'll----" - -"It's almost five o'clock," Arden said, looking at her watch. "He ought -to get here soon." - -"You youngsters will be nervous wrecks," Mrs. Landry remarked as Terry -paced restlessly up and down the front porch. "Can't you find something -to do?" - -"I can't sit still long enough to do anything," Terry replied. - -"Listen!" Arden cautioned. "Isn't that a car?" - -Instantly there was quiet. They all strained their ears to hear the sound -of bumping wheels. - -"Yes!" Terry exclaimed. "Come on!" - -Flinging open the screen door of the porch she raced around to the back, -where the yellow sand road stretched. Sim and Arden followed close behind -her. - -They stood like pointers, immobile, while the car approached. It reached -the gate and stopped. The side door was opened, and a polished shoe was -thrust out. Then the whole man appeared, and the girls gasped audibly. It -was the dark young man who had rowed himself over to the houseboat when -they last heard from Dimitri! - - - - - CHAPTER XXV - The Man in the Marsh - - -"Then it was you!" Arden burst out impulsively as she saw him. - -"I beg your pardon?" the young man replied, somewhat puzzled. "I am Serge -Uzlov. I received a telegram this morning which brought me down here. Did -you----?" - -"I sent it," Arden replied. "We guessed at your address and sent it -because we thought you might know something about Dimitri." - -"Know something--about my own brother? I'm afraid I don't understand." He -looked from one to the other of the girls, his face showing wonderment -and some fear. - -"Of course, how could you?" Terry remarked. "Please come up on the porch, -and we'll explain." - -There, while he sipped a cool drink Sim got for him, Serge Uzlov heard -the queer story of Dimitri's disappearance. - -"So you see," Arden went on, "we got worried and took a chance on the -telegram." - -"It was a very lucky chance, as it turned out," Serge agreed. "I cannot -imagine what could become of Dimitri. He's a lonely fellow, yes. But he -always keeps in touch with me. I had a long talk with him when I was down -before, and he seemed in good health and the best of spirits." - -"He didn't say anything about going away, then?" Arden asked. - -"Not a word. In fact, he told me how much he liked it down here," the -young man went on. "Could we not go over to the boat? I am anxious to -look around." - -"Yes, we can go over at once," Arden replied. "We shall go by boat, it is -quicker." - -They all got into the faithful little rowboat, and the young man took the -oars. He could row with quite some skill, being an athletic type. His -tanned face showed he was no stranger to outdoor life. Arden looked -searchingly at him. Just what did he know? - -Sim and Terry were curious, too. They were suspicious of everyone now. -The fact that this man claimed to be the brother of Dimitri proved -nothing. - -The boat moved quickly through the quiet evening water. - -"We did tell the chief of police about your brother," Arden admitted, -"but you have nothing to fear from him. He's studying the case, as he -says, and the last time we saw him he was working on his old car." - -The young man smiled. "I am sure Dimitri will be found all right," he -said. "And I'm very grateful to you for sending for me. It was indeed -fortunate that you found the paper. From your description of it, I think -it must have been from my sister Olga. She has been here, she tells me, -to see Dimitri." - -"Olga! Your sister!" Sim exclaimed unbelievingly. - -"Yes," Serge Uzlov replied. "There are just the three of us, now. Olga, -Dimitri, and I. We are a queer family, I suppose, each one living alone; -each one having his own friends and always trying to make ends meet." - -"I don't know just what we imagined about you and your sister," Arden -said slyly, "but it never occurred to us, I'm sure, that you two were -related." - -"And you were too well mannered to ask," Serge suggested, smiling. - -"Or perhaps we just didn't think about it," Sim said modestly. - -The young man pulled vigorously, and the little rowboat plowed through -the bay. To their right, as they approached it, lay the _Merry Jane_, -looking as they had last seen it. - -When they were close to the houseboat, Tania began to bark: sharp, -staccato barks and deep growls in her throat. - -"Tania must have heard us coming," Sim suggested. - -"I think, Sim," Arden corrected her, "that Tania's barking at something -else. She sounds pretty angry to me." - -They listened again. Tania was snarling and barking furiously. - -"Tania!" called Arden as they came alongside the houseboat. "Tania, we -are your friends!" - -As she called they all heard the sound of running footsteps on the part -of the deck farthest away from them. - -"There's somebody here!" Serge cried, and hurried to make fast the -rowboat. - -Leaving the girls still seated in the skiff, Serge leaped from it to the -deck of the _Merry Jane_ just in time to see a man jump over the side -into the deep marsh grass. - -Serge looked after him, but the intruder was completely hidden by the -tall growth. - -"He got away!" Serge called to the girls. He was about to follow the -runaway man when Arden stopped him. - -"There's no use in following him, you could never catch him in that -marsh," she said and Serge was forced to agree with her as he saw how -dense were the tall cat-tails and sedge-grass in the swamp. - -"What did he look like?" Terry asked. - -"I couldn't see his face. He was just going over the side when I -approached. But I saw black rubber boots." - -"That might have been anyone," Arden said. "Half the natives in Oceanedge -wear boots around the marsh." - -"Let's go inside," suggested Sim, "and see what he was after." - -"Yes," agreed Serge. "That's the only thing to do now." - -He led the way and, not pausing for a moment in the outer room, parted -the curtains and, as the girls could see, went straight to the shattered -cupboard. - -"It's gone!" Serge exclaimed. He turned to face the girls, his hands -spread wide in a gesture of despair. "It's gone!" - - - - - CHAPTER XXVI - Melissa Again - - -Sim smiled a little bitterly. "If you mean the snuffbox," she said, "we -know it's gone. It has been for some time." - -"Then you know about it?" Serge asked. - -"We knew Dimitri _had_ it, if that's what you mean," Arden went on. "But -we don't know where it is _now_." - -"Of course," the young man breathed a sigh of relief, "Dimitri has it -with him, wherever he is." - -"He may have. We can't prove he hasn't," Terry said explaining. "But why -should he have broken open his own cupboard?" - -"You're right!" exclaimed Serge. "He would never have done that." - -"I wonder what that man who jumped overboard was doing," Sim mused. "I -don't see that he has touched anything in here." - -After a look around, they all agreed that, whatever was his mysterious -reason for coming, he apparently had left in a hurry. Several books that -had been on the table now lay on the floor, but that was all in evidence. - -"We're just as much in the dark as ever," Terry remarked sadly. "We'll -have to start all over again." - -"Tell us about Dimitri," Arden said to Serge. "You were, as far as we can -tell, the last person who saw him a----" she started, she had almost said -"alive." So she began again. "Was he all right when you saw him last? Did -he say anything about going away?" - -"We sat talking and eating all evening," Serge explained. "Russians are -great eaters, you know. But Dimitri didn't mention going away, and I left -him in the best of spirits. Then I rowed back, got into my car, and drove -on to New York." - -"That doesn't help at all," Sim wailed. "It only proves that Dimitri left -very suddenly and probably against his will. He would have told you if -he'd planned leaving, wouldn't he?" she asked the young man. - -"I am sure he had no thought of going," Serge hastened to assure her. "He -was too much interested in the portrait he was finishing." - -"You mean the one of me?" Arden asked simply. - -"Yes; you've seen it?" - -"We looked--after Dimitri----" Arden said sadly. "Do you think he would -mind?" - -Serge shrugged. "Don't worry about it. We have something more important -to think about." - -"But the worst of it is," Sim complained, "that we're so helpless." - -"We can do nothing here, at any rate," agreed Serge. - -"You will come to dinner with us, won't you?" Terry asked. "Mother -expects you. There is no place in town where you can get anything worth -eating." - -"You are sure it won't be too much trouble? I did not expect it, you -know," Serge answered, smiling. - -"Of course not," Terry insisted. "You have to get your car, anyway." - -After another look around, the little party left the houseboat once more. -Tania seemed used to these comings and goings, for she took no notice of -them as they departed. - -The water of the bay was as smooth as glass as they rowed away, the girls -looking back wistfully as they left the houseboat behind. - -Terry's mother had a delicious meal waiting, and after so much excitement -and activity the girls felt very hungry. - -The conversation naturally centered about the disappearance of Dimitri. -They discussed it from all angles. It was during a lull in the talk that -Terry gave a little scream. - -"What's the matter?" Arden asked at once. - -"Nothing," Terry answered. "I saw a face at the window, and it made me -jump. But it's only Melissa again." - -"See what she wants, Terry," Mrs. Landry told her daughter. "Perhaps the -poor child is hungry." - -Terry left the table and hurried outside. She could see Melissa running -down the path in the late summer twilight. She was wearing black rubber -hip boots and her old gray sweater, but surely, Terry thought to herself, -it couldn't have been Melissa whom they had seen on the houseboat. Terry -felt she must stop the girl, at any rate, to find out. - -"Melissa! Melissa!" Terry called. "Wait, I have something for you." - -Melissa stopped and faced Terry. "What?" she asked abruptly. "What've you -got?" - -"Something nice," Terry assured her, and then, because she could think of -nothing else, she asked the frightened girl, "Do you like chocolate -cake?" - -"Sure do," Melissa replied shyly. "Heaps!" - -"Come on back, then," Terry coaxed, and Melissa came towards her. - -Terry took her into the bright little kitchen and gave her a large glass -of milk and a big piece of chocolate cake. Melissa ate greedily, and -Terry spoke gently to her to gain her confidence. - -"That certainly is a lovely pin," Terry remarked. "Would you mind if I -showed it to my mother? She's in the other room, but I'll bring it right -back." - -"I guess so," Melissa agreed reluctantly, and taking the stick pin from -her collar she handed the ornament to Terry. Her rather pale blue eyes -were questioning her benefactor, and she looked not at all sure that she -liked the situation. - -Terry took the pin and pushed in the swinging door that led to the dining -room. - -"Come, finish your dinner," Mrs. Landry said. "What happened to Melissa?" - -"She's out in the kitchen," Terry replied and put a warning finger to her -lips. "Don't let her hear you. I just wanted to show this to Mr. Uzlov." -She held the pin out to Serge. "Isn't this your brother's?" - -Serge took it and examined it closely. - -"I gave it to Dimitri years ago," he said. "He always liked it. I don't -believe he would have parted with it willingly." - -"We didn't think so, either," Arden remarked, taking what small -satisfaction there was in the fact. - -"Go back to her, Terry," Mrs. Landry directed, "and talk to her a bit. -See if she will tell you anything. But don't frighten her," she -cautioned, and then to Serge she explained, "Melissa is like some -woodland creature. She runs at the first hint of danger. Poor child! The -girls have done all they can to help her, but she doesn't trust anyone." - -Terry, taking the pin, they all having decided it would excite Melissa if -they kept it, returned to the kitchen. - -Ida, the maid, was rattling pans and knives in the sink, but Melissa was -gone. - -"Where's Melissa?" Terry asked. - -"She went," Ida answered briefly. - -"Why? Did you say anything to frighten her?" Terry wanted to know. - -"Never said a word," Ida insisted. "She et the cake and got up and walked -out." - -Terry clenched her fists. Melissa gone again, and just when they thought -they would learn something. If the girl really wanted to hide, they could -never find her. There was only one thing to do. Follow her at once before -she got too far away. - -"I'll be back in a minute," Terry flung over her shoulder, and still -holding the pin clutched in one hand she slipped out the back door after -the elusive Melissa Clayton. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVII - Terry's Tactics - - -Melissa was just about to push off in her old rowboat when Terry, without -asking permission, hopped in and sat smiling at the startled girl. - -"You're in a great hurry, Melissa," Terry said in an effort to be -friendly. "You forgot your pin." - -Without saying a word Melissa held out her hand. But Terry, holding up -the piece of jewelry, teased Melissa. - -"I'll give it to you when you tell me where you really got it," Terry -said. - -"I found it, just like I told you," Melissa insisted. - -"Come, now, Melissa, that's hard to believe. But don't let me stop you -from having your sail. I'd be glad to have someone row me for a change. -I'm always giving other people a ride." - -"Well, I ought to be gettin' home. Pa will wonder about me," Melissa -said. - -"Don't forget that piece of cake I just gave you. And you left before I -got back to you. Why? Is anything worrying you?" - -"No, I just thought I'd better go," Melissa murmured sulkily. "Thanks for -the cake." - -"That's all right, I'd give you something a lot better than that if you -could help me," Terry said. Perhaps if Melissa thought she could be of -some definite use she would tell where she really got the pin. - -"What? What would you give me?" Melissa asked craftily. - -"What would you like--jewelry?" Terry questioned with a quiet sort of -emphasis on the last word. - -"Jewelry?" Melissa's eyes lit up greedily. "I got some jewelry now that'd -be better than any you could give me. No, you better not come along. I -got to be goin' home." - -"How could you have?" Terry asked, deliberately trying to antagonize the -girl. "The only jewelry you ever got was that old bracelet Sim gave you -weeks ago and that your father made you give back." - -"It is not," Melissa insisted. "I've got----No, I won't tell you; you're -just jealous." - -"Come on, Melissa, be a sport. You tell me about the secret you know and -I'll tell you something I know about you. Something fine. You'll love it. -What do you say, is it a bargain?" - -Terry waited. It would never do to rush things. If Melissa got stubborn -it would be hopeless, and Terry was almost positive, now, that the queer -girl was in possession of something. - -Melissa looked at her uninvited guest in the boat distrustfully. There -was no reason for not trusting her. The three girls had been very kind to -her this summer and had tried to give her the bracelet. Still, she -hesitated. Her father was also to be reckoned with. What would be his -attitude? Oh, well, Melissa mentally shrugged. - -"I did take the pin, but no one was there, and I knew the man wouldn't -care," Melissa said, watching Terry closely. - -"When, Melissa? When did you take it?" Terry asked, hoping that the girl -could throw some light on Dimitri's disappearance. - -"One day when the man was out with his dog, painting," Melissa replied. -"I sneaked in just to have a look around. Some of the village people said -he might be a spy, so I went over to see what a spy was. What is a spy, -anyway?" Melissa asked, forgetting for the minute that she had just told -Terry that the pin had not been found after all. - -"Never mind that. Dimitri's not a spy. That's foolish. Tell me the secret -you know." Terry was becoming impatient. - -Melissa hedged. This girl was too wise. Melissa's father might punish her -severely, send her away, even, where she'd have to dress up and wear -shoes in hot weather and do other uncomfortable things. - -"You won't tell my father?" Melissa begged Terry. - -"Not if you don't want me to," Terry replied. - -"Well," Melissa began, "over at my house I've got the prettiest box!" - -Terry jumped. The snuffbox! But she mustn't seem too surprised. - -"You have? Tell me about it. I won't tell your father," Terry said, -smiling confidentially. - -"I got it on the houseboat. It was in a little closet on the wall and I -broke the door open to see it," Melissa confessed, now trusting Terry -completely. - -"But how did you know it was there?" asked Terry. - -"The pretty lady told me about it. She gave me a dollar to bring it to -her, but after I found it, I liked it so much I couldn't bear to give it -up," Melissa explained. - -"But don't you know, Melissa, that you shouldn't take things that belong -to other people?" Terry said gently. - -"This was only a yellow box, and the lady said it was hers, anyway." - -"It wasn't, Melissa. It was Dimitri's, and the lady had no right to it. -Where is it now?" - -"I've got it safe," the girl said briefly. - -"Melissa," began Terry in a tone that commanded attention, "that was a -very wrong and dangerous thing to do, to take that box. I want you to -come back with me, while I explain to my friends and the Russian man's -brother just what happened. Then I want you to go over to your house with -us and give back the box." - -"Oh, no," pleaded Melissa. "I won't do it. My father would do something -awful to me if I did." - -"You've got to. If you don't," threatened Terry, "you'll probably be -arrested, and then what will become of you?" - -Melissa's eyes widened with fright. "Arrested?" she echoed dully. - -Terry nodded her head. - -"You better come back with me," she said quietly. Slowly Melissa began to -turn the boat. She was cornered, and she knew it. Terry spoke quietly as -they rowed back to the cottage, explaining to the worried girl that she -and her friends would see that no harm came to her. So well did she plead -that by the time they docked the boat, Melissa had grown confident, and -even eager to do Terry's bidding. - - - - - CHAPTER XXVIII - Driven Away - - -A great deal of tact was necessary to keep Melissa in a helpful frame of -mind. One careless word, and Terry knew Melissa would run. So, hoping her -chums would understand, she walked back to the house, talking cheerfully -to the girl as they went. - -"Melissa is going to help us find the snuffbox," Terry announced to the -astonished group that awaited them on the porch. "She knows where it is, -and she's going to take us over to her house for it." - -Frantic looks and powerful concentration seemed to do the trick, for -Arden fell in with Terry's plan. - -"That's fine, Melissa," Arden complimented her. "Let's start at once, -before it gets too dark. Terry, you and Melissa go together, and the rest -of us will follow in our boat." - -"Give her back the pin, at least for a time," suggested Arden. "It will -make her trust us more." - -"Not a bad idea," agreed Terry. "I will." - -"Yes, do," said Serge in a low voice. - -Terry slipped the pin back to Melissa, and she and the girl started for -the boats. - -"All right, Mother?" Terry asked. "Do you want to come too?" - -"No," replied Mrs. Landry. "I might be of some use here. Come back as -quickly as you can, and good luck to you." - -They needed no urging, and with Melissa leading and the others following, -they crossed the peaceful bay and landed close to the pitiful shack that -Melissa called "home." - -"It's in my room," the girl told them, proud in her simple way to be the -center of so much excitement. - -"You show us," Arden urged. - -Melissa entered the solitary house, the door of which swung loosely on -its hinges. The front room, furnished with an unpainted wooden table and -three rickety chairs, was dreary and uninviting. The girl, clumping along -in the boots which were much too large for her, entered a small room to -one side. It was little bigger than a large closet with a white-painted -bed and an old bureau topped by a cracked looking glass. - -After much shaking and pulling, Melissa succeeded in opening the top -drawer. She rummaged under some old clothes and thrust her hands far back -in the bureau. - -Suddenly, with an unbelieving look on her face, she turned to the little -group crowded in the narrow doorway. - -"It's gone!" she exclaimed. "The box, the pretty yellow one that I put -there myself, is gone!" - -Was it a trick that Melissa had played on them? Or had Terry argued so -successfully that the girl had actually come to believe she really did -possess the box? - -"Are you sure you had it?" Arden asked gently. "When did you see it -last?" - -"This morning I took it out to look at it," Melissa replied slowly. - -"What did it look like?" Terry asked, not quite believing that Melissa -ever had it now. - -"It had a little bird on and the prettiest shiny stones all around the -edge," Melissa answered woefully. "Oh, I did like it so much! It was so -pretty!" - -The girls fell silent. They had met another stone wall. They had neither -Dimitri nor the snuffbox. They were as much in the dark as ever. - -"But, Melissa," Sim began, "what could have happened to it?" - -"I don't know," Melissa replied slowly. - -They looked curiously at the bare little room. Poor child, it was not -surprising that she loved bright shiny things so much. In a place such as -this was, anyone would crave relief from its drabness. - -Arden turned to go, and the others were about to follow when they were -halted by the sound of heavy footsteps hastening up the wooden steps that -led into the house. - -The three girls drew together. Serge stepped forward as though to protect -them. - -"It's Pa," Melissa said, looking fearfully at them. - -"What's going on in here?" an angry voice was heard before they saw the -owner of it. - -Melissa shrank back to the wall between the bed and bureau. - -"What are you people doing here? Who let you in here?" It was George -Clayton, wildly angry at this invasion of his property. - -"We came by ourselves," Terry said, boldly anxious to keep her pledge -with Melissa. - -"You did! Well, I advise you to go by yourselves before I run you off!" -Clayton bellowed, reaching for a shotgun on the wall. - -"Now, see here, Clayton," Serge began, standing fearlessly before the -angry man. "Be careful how you handle that gun. You don't want to do -anything you might be sorry for later." - -"I know what I'm doing," Melissa's father insisted. "You people get out -of here! This is my property. You've got to get a warrant before you can -come snooping around my place!" - -"All right, we'll go," Serge said in a low voice. "But you watch your -step. I've heard you're not very popular in these parts." - -Clayton made an angry motion as though to strike Serge, but with an -effort controlled himself and, spluttering and fuming, literally drove -them from the shack. - -They all piled into the little rowboat and made their way slowly back -across the bay, disappointed and defeated, hardly knowing what to -say--what to believe. - -Serge decided to go at once back to New York. - -"Dimitri might have gone to my place. I will get in touch with you -tomorrow and let you know," he said and, not going into the house again, -he thanked Mrs. Landry, who was anxiously waiting at the small dock and, -climbing in his car, drove quickly out of sight. - -For a little while there was silence among them. Even Sim, who often -could find humor in matters where others could not, had nothing to say. -Mrs. Landry looked at the faces of the girls, and, guessing their -thoughts, said: - -"Never mind, my dears. It isn't your fault." - -"But I did so hope something would come of this," said Terry. "After -getting Melissa to admit she had the box, then not to find it!" - -"Do you really think she had it?" asked Arden. - -"That's hard to answer," Terry replied. "I don't see why she would want -to deceive us. She described the cupboard, told how she slipped aboard -the houseboat while Dimitri was out in the marsh, painting, and we all -know she's crazy about such objects as that bright and beautiful -snuffbox." - -"And to think it may be gone forever," sighed Sim. - -"We're not going to let it be lost forever!" suddenly declared Arden. - -"What are you going to do about it?" challenged Terry. - -"I'm going to see to it that a thorough search is made of that shack, in -spite of George Clayton!" Arden's head went up bravely, and there was a -determined look in her eyes. - -"How?" questioned Terry. - -"With the help of the police or that detective woman, Emma Tash!" - -"I think it is time you got the authorities more actively interested, my -dears," said Mrs. Landry, who had heard, with some alarm, the actions of -the crabber in the matter of the shotgun. "That man must be curbed. He is -standing in the way of good to his daughter. If we could get in touch -with Emma Tash she might bring some man with her who would proceed in -spite of Clayton and his gun. This father of Melissa's may be just -'bluffing,' as the boys say." - -"Didn't Miss Tash leave you her address?" asked Arden. - -"Yes," Mrs. Landry answered, "she did. But it may take a few days to get -in communication with her and get her down here. Instead of her, I would -suggest our local chief." - -"Rufus Reilly?" asked Sim. "Oh, my goodness, he and his duck that can't -fly on one leg!" - -"Besides," added Terry, "he claims to have been working on the case, but -all he does is to tinker with that old car." - -"Still," decided Arden, "I think we should go to him again. It is up to -him to do something. If we bring another officer here, he would first go -to Mr. Reilly. I believe that is police law. So let's go see our -proverb-splitting chief and tell him what happened today. We can say we -feel sure the stolen snuffbox is in the shack, and he can get a search -warrant if he needs to." - -"I am coming around to your way of thinking, Arden," admitted Sim. -"Perhaps, when the chief hears about Clayton's gun, it will stir him up -to something like fighting rage, and we'll get some action." - -"Well, then, let's," agreed Terry. "It's too late now, but we'll get the -chief to go to the shack the first thing in the morning." - -However, when morning came, after an anxious night in which no news came -of the missing artist, Mrs. Landry decided it might be well to wait for -another day. - -"Dimitri's brother may learn something in New York," she said, "and that -may make it needless to go and beard this Clayton boor in his shack." - -"Yes, I suppose waiting another day will do no harm," Arden agreed. "But -I don't believe Dimitri is in New York or has his box. He would not be -where he is, a free agent, without sending some word to his brother -Serge, at least, about himself. No, Dimitri is where he can't get word to -his friends." - -"And where do you think that place is?" asked Sim. - -Arden shrugged her shoulders in a hopeless negative. - -Time hanging heavy on their hands, the girls paid another visit to the -houseboat but did not go on board. There was no sign of life about the -_Merry Jane_ save for Tania. She was shut up in what amounted to a kennel -on the outside narrow deck, where the girls had put her on their last -visit. There was plenty of food and water. - -Poor Tania whined pitifully when she found that her friends were not -coming to see her and departed without taking her with them. - -"She misses Dimitri terribly," said Arden. - -"Yes," agreed Sim. - -The day passed and no word came from Serge. Later it developed that he -was so frantically going from one to another of the friends of his -brother in New York, a fruitless search, that he forgot all about his -promise to communicate with the girls. - -"Well, this settles it!" declared Arden as they were at breakfast the -second day after the visit of Serge. The morning mail had come but -brought no news. "I'm going to get the chief and visit Melissa and her -father again." - -"Do you mean you're going with him?" asked Terry. - -"Yes. I think we should all go, I mean we three, don't you, Mrs. Landry?" - -"Well, if there's danger--but then I hardly believe there will be if you -have the chief with you. Yes, go, by all means." - -"This is going to be a real expedition!" declared Terry as she drove her -chums over to the village, parked their car near the chief's garage, and -walked to where they found the officer still tinkering with his old auto. - -"Good-morning, girls," he greeted them, wiping a smudge of oil off his -face. "You see I'm busy as usual, time and tide in a long race, you -know," and the gold tooth grinned at them cheerfully. - -"Mr. Reilly, can you come with us at once?" asked Arden in businesslike -tones. "There may be an arrest to make." - -"An arrest?" The chief showed new interest. - -"Yes. Over at the Clayton shack. It's quite a story." - -The chief, when he heard it, could not but admit it was. There was a new -air about him now. He seemed much more in earnest than at any time since -Dimitri Uzlov had been missing at Marshlands. - -"I'll be with you in a few minutes, girls," the chief said. "Just as soon -as I can wash up and pin my badge on. Then we'll get in my motorboat and -ride over to see this Mr. Clayton." - -"How would it be," suggested Terry, "if you took us back to our dock in -your boat and then we picked up our rowboat? You could tow us in that to -the Clayton shack." - -"Yes, I could do that," the chief agreed. "It's a little ways from here -to where my motorboat is docked, and my car isn't running yet, but a walk -won't hurt none of us." - -"We can all go to your dock in our car," Terry said. - -"Sure enough. Didn't think of that. Well, we'll go see this Clayton. So -he was going for his gun, was he? I'll see about that! Don't give up the -ship and keep your powder dry. Be with you in two shakes of a lamb's -tail." He was as good as his word, soon coming out of his garage office -with a clean face and a badge on his coat. It did not take long to drive -to the dock where the chief kept his motorboat tied. The girls got in and -were soon chugging on their way to "Buckingham Palace." Mrs. Landry was -rather surprised to see them back so soon, but agreed, after an -explanation had been made, that it would be wise to take two boats. - -"You never can tell what may happen," she said. - -"True enough, as the old lady said when she kissed the cow," chuckled the -chief. "My boat isn't very good to look at, and we might get stalled. In -which case a rowboat would be as handy as a pocket on the end of a dog's -tail." - -His craft, if not very presentable, had speed, and they went along -rapidly. As they passed close to the _Merry Jane_, Tania either saw, -heard, or scented them, for she began to bark in a friendly way. - -"Oh, that poor dog!" exclaimed Arden. "Let's take her with us!" - -"We could," agreed Sim. - -"It might be a good thing," said Terry. "She's a sort of hound, you -know." - -"And you think maybe she can smell out where Melissa has hid the -snuffbox!" chuckled the chief. "But a dog is always a good thing to have -on a case like this. Two strings to your rubber boot, you know. We'll get -her." - -Tania was frantic with joy to be among her friends again and curled up on -the stern seat with Arden as the chief again started his boat across the -bay. - -They were not long in coming in sight of the Clayton shack. The chief -wasted no time in preliminaries but steered at once for the ramshackle -old dock where he made his craft fast. Then he assisted the girls to tie -theirs, and they got out, Tania following them and sniffing with her -pointed nose in the direction of the gloomy house. - -"Perhaps we had better be a bit cautious," suggested Terry somewhat -timidly. "This man may rush out at us." - -"What puzzles me," said the chief, "is why he hasn't hailed us before -this. Accordin' to what you told me, he ordered you off before, without -you havin' a chance to set foot on his land." - -"Yes, he did," said Terry. "It is rather strange no one appears." - -The shack showed no sign of life in or about it. - -"I'll give him a hail," suggested the chief. And he roared out: "Clayton, -where are you? Here's company! Come out, but if you bring a gun it won't -be healthy for you!" - -There was no answer to this challenge. - -Tania barked. Still all was silent about the place. - -"I'm going in," the chief suddenly decided. "You girls wait for me here." -He looked to make sure that his badge of office was conspicuous and -pushed open the door. It was not locked. - -The girls were a little nervous as the chief disappeared inside. But -still there was no sound. The silence was almost terrifying. The chief -came out in a few minutes to say: - -"I can't seem to find anybody." - -"I think you had better look again and go in every room," said Arden. Her -voice was firm. "There must be someone." - -"All right, I'll take another look," assented the chief. "No trouble to -show goods and some pitchers go to the well too often." - -Again he disappeared inside the place. - -Again portentous silence held them all in its grip. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIX - The Barking of Tania - - -Chief Reilly came out of the poor little house, a veritable shack it was, -shaking his head. - -"I suppose," remarked Sim in an aside to Arden, "he is going to say 'it's -a long road without a cat in the attic,' or something equally brilliant." - -"He might," remarked Terry, "propose that the race is not always to the -swift but there are none so blind as those who won't eat." - -"Meaning what?" asked Arden. - -"That we've drawn a blank," said Sim. - -She was right. For the first impression, gathered on arrival at the home -of the Claytons, that no one was there, was borne out as the chief -emerged a second time from an inspection of the premises. - -"Can't find anybody," he announced with a flourish of his big red hands. - -"You mean there's nobody home?" asked Terry. - -"That's about it," said Mr. Reilly. "Nobody home. You can't get anything -out of an empty bag except dust, you know." - -"And I suppose there was plenty of dust?" suggested Sim. - -"Well, not so much as you'd think for," said the officer and garage -owner. "Melissa must have humped herself, for the old shack was pretty -clean. Case of pot calling the kettle black, you know." - -"Poor kid! I guess she had her own troubles," remarked Arden. "I wonder -where her father took her and why?" - -"Maybe we'll know that when we find Dimitri," suggested Terry. - -"If we ever do," voiced Sim. - -"Oh, don't be Mrs. Gloom!" exclaimed Arden. "Of course we'll find him." - -"And find out why he painted such a lovely picture of you," said Terry. - -"Silly!" murmured Arden as she blushed beneath her tan. But it was -obvious that she was as curious as were her chums about the mysterious -portrait. - -"Well, I guess we've found out all we can here, which is about less than -nothing with a hole in the middle," said the chief, as he came back from -a walk about the place. "None of the Claytons are here. Not that there's -many in this branch of the family--jest Melissa and her dad. But they're -gone." - -Suddenly Arden had a thought. She expressed it to Sim and Terry while the -chief was looking into a rain-water barrel, as if he might find the -missing Dimitri there. Arden said: - -"I think we ought to tell him about the policewoman." - -"Emma Tash," murmured Sim. - -"Yes," said Terry. "I think we had." - -"Mr. Reilly," began Arden, after receiving this confirmation, "we have -something to tell you." - -"You ain't got that Russian stranger hid away with that there gold -snuffbox, have you?" chuckled the chief. "Like a hen on a wet griddle, -you know." - -"Oh, he'll be the death of me," sighed Sim. - -"It's about Melissa," said Arden, and then, much to the astonishment of -the chief, the girls told him about the visit of the detective woman and -the happier prospects for the unfortunate girl. - -"I always knowed there was something more than met the eye in them -Claytons," said the chief. "Hum! Melissa with a rich aunt that wants to -send her to school and make her into a lady. Well, I hope she does. -Melissa is a good girl in spite of being a bit queer. She's the champion -swimmer around here." - -"Maybe she might give me points," said Sim. - -"Oh, yes, she's a natural swimmer," went on the chief, taking no notice -of this aside. "And a good girl. Loves bright things--birds and flowers. -More than once I've seen her sitting on a fence where somebody had a -garden full of red poppies, looking at 'em to beat the band. Her old man, -though--there's a case! All he cares about are crabs, lobsters, and -fish." - -"Did you ever hear," asked Arden, thinking to confirm what Emma Tash had -said, "that Melissa's mother came of a good family?" - -"It wouldn't have to be very good to beat the Clayton end of it," said -Mr. Reilly. "Yes, Mrs. Clayton was a different breed. Give a dog a bad -name and throw him a bone," he chuckled. "Yes, Melissa's mother made a -bad match of it. I hope this here detective woman can do something for -the poor kid." - -"Maybe she has," said Terry suddenly. - -"What do you mean?" asked Sim. - -"Maybe Emma Tash has been here without us knowing it and has taken -Melissa away," explained Terry. "That detective woman was smart. She may -have come here, met George Clayton and Melissa, and have prevailed on him -to let her take the girl. That would account for their being gone now." - -For a moment they were inclined to accept this theory. Then Arden, as -usual putting her finger on the critical point, said: - -"It wouldn't account, though, for the barking of Tania." - -For the first time they all realized that the dog was barking with an -unusual note in the tone and that she kept it up almost continuously. Up -to this moment they had been so engrossed with approaching the shack -without inciting George Clayton to the point of desperate resistance that -they had not paid much attention to Tania. - -Now they noticed that the dog was running about the shack in a most -excited manner, scarcely ceasing her growls and barks. And, now that -their attention was fixed on her, they saw that she stopped at a certain -cellar window and barked there with unusual vigor. - -"The barking of Tania," murmured Sim. "No, the taking away of Melissa by -the detective woman, with her father's consent, and his desertion of his -home, would not account for the barking of Tania. Arden, I think we are -going to make a discovery--a big discovery." - -"What do you mean?" faltered Terry. "Do you think Dimitri----" She could -not finish. She dared not finish. But the others knew what she had in -mind. - -"Now you speak of it," said the chief, "that dog is making quite a row. -Barking dogs, you know, catch no cats. But we'll see what's up." - -"You think, don't you, Sim," said Arden, "that there is something in the -cellar?" - -"I can't help but think that, from the way Tania acts. Look at her now, -barking into the window." - -It was as Sim said. The dog was trying almost to thrust her pointed -muzzle into the glass. - -"Maybe Clayton and Melissa are hiding there," said Terry. "You didn't go -down cellar, did you, Mr. Reilly?" - -"No, I didn't. Didn't see any use. But if you think we'd better, why, I -got a flashlight in my boat." - -"I think we had better," said Arden. - -"Then we will. Nothing like eating your cake and having your bread," the -chief declared. "Wait a minute." - -He tried to run down to his motorboat but made a bad job of that, for he -only waddled. However, he soon came back with the flashlight. Meanwhile -Tania had not ceased her barking. She no longer ran frantically about the -shack. She remained at the one window and barked continuously. - -"Now, girls," said the chief as he again started into the house, "there's -no use of you running into any danger. I don't say there _is_ danger but -if it's _there_ I ain't going to let you run your pretty necks into no -noose. I'm paid for this work and I'll do it. Nobody can ever say Rufus -Reilly let anybody else pull his pancakes out of the ice box. I'll go -down in that cellar alone." - -"But if Clayton is there," said Arden, "and starts to fight you----" - -"I've got a gun," said the chief, showing an automatic. "I can fight as -good as the next one if I have to, but I don't think I'll have to. If I -do, well, you're outside here to go git help. You know what I mean." A -gold-toothed smile. - -"Yes," said Terry. "If we hear shooting, or any calls for help from the -cellar, we'll take your motorboat and go get assistance. I can run a -boat." - -"That's the idea," said the chief. "You go right back to town and get -Henry Doremus and Ike Tantker. They're deputy constables, and you can -generally find 'em around my garage. If they ain't there, Ted Rollaby, my -mechanic, will tell you what to do. Now I'm goin' in." - -There was an outside slanting door leading down into the cellar. The -chief pulled this up, hooked it into place, and then, with his flashlight -in one hand and his automatic in the other, started down the half-rotten -wooden steps. - -He had no sooner started down than Tania, deserting her barking post at -the window, rushed past him and was into the dark musty cellar ahead of -him. - -"Oh," murmured Arden, "I'm glad the dog went down." - -"So am I," said Sim. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to the funny old -chief, even if he does drive me crazy with his proverbs." - -"What do you think he'll find?" asked Terry. - -Before either of her chums could hazard a guess they all heard, above the -frantic barking of Tania, the chief's voice shouting: - -"I've got him! I've found him! Here he is, tied up like a bag of potatoes -in the cellar. I've found Mr. Uzlov!" - - - - - CHAPTER XXX - All Is Well - - -Gazing with fear-widened eyes at one another, the three girls waited for -what might happen next. - -The chief had found the man missing from Marshlands; but in what -condition? The worst might have happened, for it was now obvious that -Dimitri had been the prisoner of George Clayton ever since the mysterious -disappearance from the _Merry Jane_. - -"Oh," murmured Arden, "if he is----" - -She could not finish. - -"I--I feel sort of funny," said Terry. - -"Girl, if you pass out on us now I'll never speak to you again as long as -I live!" threatened Sim. - -"Oh, I'm all right--I guess," Terry said. "But----" - -She was interrupted by the voice of Chief Reilly coming, muffled, from -the cellar. - -"Guess maybe you girls had better come down here," he called. "I might -need your testimony for evidence." - -"Oh!" almost shouted Arden. "Is he----" - -"Mr. Uzlov is all right. He's alive, though I can't say he's very well," -went on the chief. "He's bound and gagged and all knocked out, but I -can't see anything very wrong. There's so many ropes on him I'll need -help in getting them off quick. But I want you to see him so you can -testify against this rat of a Clayton. Nasty piece of business, if you -ask me." - -The girls could hear Tania now joyously whimpering. The dog no longer -barked fiercely. It was evident she was with her beloved master whom she -found to be alive, at least. - -Thus reassured, the three descended the outside cellar steps. The chief -held his torch for them to see, and by its light they noted that he had -already started on the work of rescue. A cloth that had been bound around -the Russian's mouth had been taken off. But he was still trussed up. - -With a slash of his knife, while Arden held the light, the chief released -the roped hands. And as Dimitri rubbed his numbed lips he said weakly: - -"So you've come at last." - -"Oh, if we had only guessed this before!" exclaimed Arden. - -"Still, you are in good time. I am not harmed," said Dimitri. Then he -could talk no longer, for Tania was frantically licking his face. - -With the help of the girls, one of whom held the light while the chief -and the others loosed the binding strands, Dimitri Uzlov was soon set -free. He was a little weak in his legs, but after stamping about managed -to regain the use of them and was able to leave the cellar. - -He had been found in a sort of closet in one corner, small and dark, with -only the cracks around the sealed window for ventilation. - -"I seen that shut closet door as soon as I got down here," said the chief -as they all went into the upper sunlight. "I'd 'a' knowed somebody was in -that closet even if the dog hadn't rushed for it like--well, like a mouse -goin' for cheese in a trap," he finished. - -"It is good to be out again," said Dimitri as he paused at the top of the -steps and took a long deep breath. "I have been in the dark too long." - -"But what happened?" - -"How did he get you?" - -"Did he harm you?" - -"Where is he now, and Melissa?" - -The girls' questions came trippingly. - -"I think it is best if I go back to my houseboat and there tell you the -story," said the artist. "Perhaps there is even left some tea--and I -should dearly love a cup of tea. This Clayton jailer gave me nothing but -coffee. I am so sick of it!" - -"There is tea left," said Arden. - -"That is good. I suppose," and his voice faltered, "that my precious box -is not left. They must have taken that." - -"I'm afraid they did," said Arden. - -"Well, it is fate! I am glad at least to be alive," and Dimitri shrugged -his shoulders with resignation. - -"You all better get in my boat and leave yours here until later," said -the chief when it was found that Dimitri, after a long drink of water, -was able to walk with more ease. "We'll make better time that way. More -haste the quicker you get over it." - -Sim shook her fist at him behind his back. - -They all piled into the motorboat, Tania never leaving her master's side, -and in a short time they were at the _Merry Jane_. After it was seen that -Dimitri, though obviously suffering from neglect, was not seriously -harmed, it came to Arden's mind that she and her chums must make a -confession. - -They had looked at the forbidden picture. It was very likely that -Dimitri's trained vision would detect that the cloth had been removed and -put back. Of course, he might think Clayton had done it, but it was -better to tell. So Arden said: - -"We discovered your secret." - -"My secret?" He appeared not to understand. - -"That picture," she added. "We looked at it." - -The whiteness of Dimitri's face, blanched by many days of confinement in -a dark cellar, was changed to a deep red as he murmured: - -"I hope you do not think me too presumptuous." - -"It is lovely!" declared Sim. - -"A beautiful picture," said Terry. - -"And you--have you nothing to say in forgiveness?" He was looking -straight at Arden. - -"Oh, I think it is wonderful," she said. "There is no need of pardon. But -it is too beautiful! I never----" - -"It is not half good enough!" he interrupted. "It was only from memory. -Perhaps you will do me the honor to sit for me that I may properly -complete it." - -"If Daddy and Mother consent," she said. - -"As if they wouldn't!" said Sim. - -They were at the houseboat now. It seemed silent and deserted, but the -chief said: - -"Might as well take precautions. Nobody ever yet died of a broken neck by -drinking milk. I'll go aboard first." - -"And if he utters another of his famous sayings I'll choke him with my -handkerchief!" hissed Sim. - -The silence of Tania as they approached close to the _Merry Jane_ was -fairly conclusive evidence that no strangers were aboard. They walked -confidently up the little gangplank and, allowing Dimitri to take the -lead, followed him into the living room. - -He went through the curtains to the broken cupboard, and as they all -stood grouped behind him they saw him, after a moment of hesitation, put -his hand in and take out an object. Then they heard his delighted cry: - -"Here it is! My box! And not harmed in the least. Wait!" - -Quickly he pressed the spring, took out the key, and wound up the -mechanism. Suddenly the jeweled bird began to sing. A fairy hymn of -victory. - -"But how did it get here?" asked Arden. - -"The mystery is solved--but how?" questioned Terry. - -"This has got my goat," admitted the chief. "There's no fool like a -spring chicken," he added, showing his gold tooth in a wide grin. - -"I think this may explain matters," remarked Dimitri as he again put his -hand into the shattered cupboard and brought out several sheets of paper. -He glanced over them and said: "It is a confession from this George -Clayton--he who caught me and held me prisoner. It perhaps tells -everything, my friends." - -It did. George Clayton, crabber, lobsterman, and fisher, proved to be -more of a scholar than anyone had ever suspected. He wrote a good hand, -though some of the words were rather shaky. - -_"'First of all,'"_ the written sheets revealed, _"'I want to let the -girls, who were kind to my Melissa, know that she is in good hands. -Melissa had nothing to do with me catching Mr. Uzlov. After I got him she -wanted me to let him go, but I wouldn't. Melissa is a good girl. I'm -going to let her aunt have her and bring her up right. A woman named Emma -Tash came to my place the other day, though I told her to get out, but -she didn't.'"_ - -"Emma Tash just wouldn't do that a second time," said Terry, recalling -the crabbing party. - -_"'So I had a talk with her,'"_ Dimitri read on from the letter, _"'and I -decided it wasn't right to Melissa to keep her here with me. Not that I'm -going to be here any more. I'm leaving. But before I left I told this -Emma Tash she could take Melissa and bring her up the way her aunt wants -her brought up. So that woman took her off.'"_ - -"Then the poor child will have something in life after all," murmured -Arden. "I'm so glad!" - -"She may even become a champion swimmer," suggested Sim. - -"Oh, you and your swimming," laughed Terry. "Let's find out about the -snuffbox." - -"That's right here," said Mr. Uzlov. He read on: - -_"'Melissa has always been different from other girls. Mrs. Landry and -the three young ladies know that. One day Melissa came home to me with -this gold box that I'm leaving back in your cupboard. She told me she had -broken open your cupboard and taken it from your houseboat, Mr. Uzlov. -Melissa always loved bright things. Well, I was struck all of a heap when -I saw she had it. I didn't know what to do. In a way it was stealing, but -not for Melissa. She didn't mean to steal it. She just couldn't help -taking it once she saw it. I love my daughter. Nobody shall ever say I -don't. Anyhow, here's your gold box back and I'm going to clear out and -Melissa has gone with that good detective woman. That's all. From George -Clayton.'"_ - -There was a little silence following the reading of the strange letter. - -"But it isn't all," said Arden, looking at Dimitri. "How did he get you -and hold you a prisoner?" - -"I suppose that is my part to explain," said Dimitri. "Well, it shall not -take me long. First we shall begin with Olga." - -"Who is she?" burst out Sim impulsively. - -"She is my talented but spendthrift sister," said Dimitri with a little -embarrassed laugh. "She always claimed to have an interest, and right, in -the snuffbox, which once belonged to the late lamented Czar, but that was -not so. I mean she had no interest in it. That box was mine alone. That -is what we often quarreled about. My brother Serge, with whom you say you -got in touch, can bear me out in this. I sent for him when Olga -became--well, rather troublesome," he said with a smile. - -"So," he resumed, "one day I came back here, after having been out in the -marsh sketching, to find my cupboard broken open and my box gone. I was -thunderstruck. Of course I suspected my sister. But before I had time to -do anything, this Clayton man came on board with the box. He said his -daughter had taken my treasure, as she often did with bright things, not -knowing their value, and he had come to restore it. He asked me not to -have her arrested or to prosecute her as he would give me the box back. - -"But there I made a mistake." Again Dimitri shrugged his expressive -shoulders. "I was naturally resentful at being robbed, even by poor -Melissa, who, I understand, is not wholly responsible. So I flared up and -said the guilty must be punished; that the law must take its course. Yes, -we Russians are too temperamental--I admit that. I said I would see that -no real harm came to the girl but that she must be sent away and taught -to do the right." - -"He didn't like that, not for a cent, and it takes ten shillings to make -a pound," interpolated Mr. Reilly. - -"You are right," agreed Dimitri, evidently not bored by this cross -quotation. "At once Mr. Clayton, what you call, flared up. Before I could -avoid him, he had attacked me. He is a big man. He had me at a -disadvantage, and before I could do anything he had put part of a fish -net over my head, for all the world like the old Roman gladiators." He -laughed a little, for he had brewed some tea in his samovar, and the -sipping of it appeared to revive him more than anything else. "So he had -me helpless." - -"But Tania," interrupted Sim. "Where was she?" - -"He must have suddenly planned his attack," resumed Dimitri, "for when he -carried me away, half unconscious as I was, I dimly saw Tania tied and -lying on the deck. He must, a little while before, have given her some -drugged meat. He didn't take time to make friends with her and entice her -away." - -"But just what did Clayton do to you?" asked Terry. - -"He threatened after the net was over me, to take me away and keep me -away if I did not promise to let Melissa go unharmed. I would not -promise. I felt it was for the girl's own good that I be instrumental in -sending her to some institution. I was stubborn. He grew very angry. I -tried to hit him. He hit me. It all went black before my eyes, and when I -awoke, I was bound and my mouth was tied, in the place where you found -me." - -"Oh, how terrible," said Arden. - -"Such a brute!" declared Terry. - -"You should have shouted for help," argued Sim. - -"I tried to, dear young lady, but one cannot shout with one's mouth -bundled up like a muff. So I remained a prisoner. At times the man came -down to me and opened my mouth that I might eat, but he stood over me -with a gun so I dared not shout. But his place is so isolated that it -would have done no good if I had. Each time he said he would let me go if -I would promise. But I would not promise. I assure you we Russians are -very stubborn." Even now he seemed proud of it, and the girls rather -liked him for it. - -"You couldn't trick him out of it?" asked Mr. Reilly. - -"Trick?" Dimitri questioned. - -"I mean promise and then get out and later do as you pleased." - -"The Uzlovs never do that, sir! I beg of you! Yes!" - -"Oh, well, all right. You can't go two ways at the same time," said the -chief, grinning. "What else happened?" - -"Nothing. I stayed in the cellar closet. Clayton maintained me bound and -gagged as you saw. Once he came to me to say he had gone back to my boat -to restore my beautiful box. But, as he was about to put it in the broken -cupboard, he was surprised by you girls and my brother Serge coming on -board. So Clayton leaped over the rail in great haste. I suppose you did -not then see him or my box?" - -"We heard a noise," said Terry, "and saw a man jump off your boat, but we -didn't even guess who was leaving the _Merry Jane_ in such a rush. And to -think at that time the snuffbox was on the point of being given back. If -we only had known!" - -"Perhaps it is as well," said Dimitri with rather a wan smile. "If the -box had been put back then, and my sister Olga, she of the so spendthrift -habits, had paid another visit, she might have then taken it. And if she -knew this Clayton had it, without doubt she would have so raged at him -that she would have secured it. So it is all well as it is. Also Mr. -Clayton told me something else. It seems my beautiful but desperate -sister tried to bribe poor Melissa, with auto rides and some money and -trinkets, to get the box for her. But that plot did not quite come off. -It may have been Olga's talk, speaking of my box in the cupboard, that -caused Melissa to take it for herself." - -"And she got your tie pin, also," said Arden. - -"Oh, yes, but I have that back." He showed it to them. "Mr. Clayton gave -it to me. He said his daughter had picked it up off the floor in my paint -room. It is very possible. Poor Melissa!" - -"But how did Clayton and his daughter come to go away and leave you tied -in the cellar?" asked the chief. "If it hadn't been for the way your dog -barked, we might never have found you." - -"Oh, yes. That I can explain. Good Tania!" He pulled her silky ears. -"Only last night," Dimitri went on, "Mr. Clayton came to my prison cell -and told me he was then leaving to go to the _Merry Jane_ and, under the -cover of darkness, restore my box." - -"And he did!" exclaimed Sim. "Some virtue in him, anyhow." - -"Yes," agreed the artist. "Also he told me that matters were all now -settled. He did not require any promise from me, for he told me his -daughter was going away with her aunt and he would separate from her. -Perhaps that is not so?" He looked questioningly at the girls. - -"Oh, yes, that part is true," said Arden. - -"I am so glad. The poor child! Well, Mr. Clayton went on to say that he -was shuffling off, as he expressed it, though why shuffle, I do not know. -Nevertheless, he said he and his daughter were going away. But he felt he -had to protect himself. So he said he would not release me then. But when -he was safely far enough away, he would telephone to you, sir, the head -of the Metropolitan Police here, and tell you to come and unbind me." -Dimitri bowed to Mr. Reilly. - -"First I heard about that," said the chief. "I didn't get no telephone -call. Out of sight sours no cream." - -"Maybe a message has come since you started out with us," suggested Sim. - -"Maybe it has; better late than never get to the fair." - -"Oh----" Sim began, but she repressed herself. - -"So you see how it all happened," concluded Dimitri. "I was taken -unawares, kept prisoner even when my lovely box was restored, and all -because I was such a stickler for a principle. Yes, we Russians are very -stubborn. But, to say the truth, I was on the point of agreeing to what -Mr. Clayton wanted me to, about not being instrumental in having his -daughter sent away, when he told me he had arranged for my release, so it -is just as well. I have my pride left." - -"But you must have suffered," said Terry. - -"One must always suffer for one's pride. Yes?" - -There was little else to tell. The _Merry Jane_ seemed like her old self -again with Dimitri and Tania on board. The Russian drank more tea and -offered glasses to his guests. - -"What are you thinking of, Arden?" asked Sim, noticing that her chum was -scarcely sipping her tea and had a dreamy far-away look in her eyes. - -"I was wondering," came the answer, and Arden addressed Dimitri, "if you -were down in the cellar of the Clayton shack the time we went to it, with -your brother and Melissa, to get the box she said she had. Did you hear -us talking or moving around up above you?" - -"No, I can't say I did," the Russian replied. "But that is easily -accounted for. I dozed or slept much of the time. More than once I think -Clayton put some quieting potion in my food or drink, for I seemed always -to have a heavy, sleepy feeling. No, I didn't know how near you were." - -"If we had only known then," said Terry, "we could have made a thrilling -rescue. But we didn't. Or if we had taken Tania she would have discovered -you. A pity we didn't." - -"Yes," agreed Arden. - -"Please do not reproach yourselves," said Dimitri. "I am too much in your -debt to allow that. It is all over now." - -"Another thing I wonder about," said Arden. "You know when we went to the -shack with Melissa after she promised to restore the box, and it wasn't -where she said she had hidden it, she was, or appeared to be, greatly -surprised. I wonder if she was acting or if she knew her father had taken -the treasure?" - -"I don't believe Melissa could act that much, though she is very clever -at times," said Terry. "I don't believe she suspected her father had -taken the box from where she had concealed it. And it would be well -within reason, considering her character, for her to have thought that -perhaps she had forgotten where she had put the box. You know, when we -first talked with her father, after he wouldn't let her keep the -bracelet, he said she often took trifling bright objects and hid them all -around the house. He said she often forgot where she had hidden her -simple treasures and would go looking for them day after day. Then she -would suddenly recall the place and be happy again. So in this case -Melissa might have thought that, after putting the box in her poor little -bureau, she herself had removed it and couldn't recall where it was." - -"Yes, that would account for it," Sim said. - -"It's very possible," Arden agreed. "It is all very strange. The poor -girl certainly needs careful and regular training. I'm so glad this aunt -of hers remembers her in time." - -"I wonder if Melissa knew you were down in the cellar?" asked Sim. - -Dimitri shrugged his shoulders, answering: "It is difficult to say. I -don't know just when her father told her what he had done. I believe, -though, it was only a short time before they both left." - -"It's queer Melissa didn't discover you," spoke Arden. - -"No, not when you consider what sort of a girl she is," replied Sim. "She -was always coming and going, wandering like a wild spirit. I don't -believe she saw much of her father. He could easily keep his secret from -her." - -"I believe he did," said the Russian. "It is strange to think that once -you were all so close to me, and again so near to getting the box when -Clayton brought it back but was frightened away. Very strange. But, Mr. -Reilly, I am neglecting you. Let me give you some more tea, if you -please." - -"Not for me," said the chief. "Coffee sets me up better. It is the cup -which cheers but doesn't give you the jitters." He laughed. "And now, if -there's no arrests to be made, I guess we might as well call it a day, -wind the clock, and put the cat out." He laughed again. - -"Your brother will be anxious about you," said Arden. "You should let him -know, Mr. Uzlov." - -"I shall. At once." - -"We are going back," said Terry. "We could send him a telegram. In fact, -we did." - -"You did?" - -"I mean before we found you," and Arden's ruse was detailed. - -"Oh, how clever of you, my dear young ladies. Yes, I must let Serge know. -If you will be so good. His address----" - -He fumbled in his pocket and brought out a paper with the house number in -Ninth Street. - -"That will save time," said Arden. "We will wire him. You must need a -rest." - -"Oh, a rest will be most delightful," said the artist. "I must get in -condition to finish--that." He waved toward the covered canvas. - -"I haven't yet thanked you," murmured Arden. - -"It is I who must thank you, dear young lady," and he murmured something -in Russian, translating: "It is the subject, not the picture, to whom the -artist is indebted." - -The chief showed a desire to be gone. Doubtless to learn if that -telephone from Clayton had come into his garage. - -"We must be going," said Terry. - -"But we shall see you again," added Sim. - -"Marshlands will be a place for a real vacation, now that there is no -mystery to solve," said Arden, laughing a little. - -"I thank you." Dimitri bowed very formally. "And, if you will be so good, -include in your telegram to my brother the fact that I am going to sell -the snuffbox and give Olga the share she thinks she ought to have. Poor -girl! She must not suffer because of my love for a relic. I shall sell -the box." - -"Oh," murmured Arden. "That lovely box!" - -"It will still be lovely, no matter who possesses it," said Dimitri. "And -now I must rest." - -Truly he was very weary, for his imprisonment in the dank cellar had told -on his nerves. But he said he needed no attention; that he and Tania -would be all right for the remainder of their stay on the _Merry Jane_. -He did need a little fresh food, however, and Chief Reilly promised to -bring some back in his motorboat. - -So, with bows from Dimitri, tail-wagging from Tania, and hand-flutterings -from the girls, while the chief demonstrated his gold-tooth grin, the -visitors came away. They went back to get Terry's boat, and then the -girls, being towed by the chief to the dock of "Buckingham Palace," -hastened to tell Mrs. Landry the news. - -"Well, fancy that!" she exclaimed. "I hope it is all true about Melissa." - -It was true, as they learned a few days later, for a letter arrived from -Emma Tash confirming everything, and with it there was a little note from -Melissa. Of course Emma Tash knew nothing about the prisoner in the -cellar, and Melissa was forced into silence by her father. She did not -know, as a matter of fact, until the last few days of the imprisonment, -that her father had captured Dimitri. If she had known, she probably -would have told the girls. - -"But everything is all right now," said Arden as she and her chums sat on -the warm sands after a dip in the ocean. - -"Yes," said Terry, "the mystery is over." - -"And it was a good one while it lasted," declared Sim. "See what Arden -gets out of it." - -"What?" asked Arden, letting sand flow through her tanned fingers. - -"Lovely picture." - -"Oh, that!" - -"Will your folks let you take it?" asked Terry. - -"Oh, yes. They didn't make any fuss at all when I told them." - -"I don't know what Dimitri would have done if they had," laughed Sim. -"Oh, he _is_ such an interesting character." - -"So is the chief, if you come to that," spoke Terry. - -"It's a long lane that has no back door," chuckled Arden. And then she -ducked to avoid a clam shell tossed at her by Sim. - -"In a way it's rather sad," said Terry dreamily, after a long, thoughtful -pause. - -"What?" asked Sim. - -"Having a mystery end. I wonder if we'll ever be involved in another?" - -"Maybe," said Sim. - -And the girls were. In the succeeding volume, _The Hermit of Pirate -Light_, will be told what happened when the girls spent another summer -together. - -Several times during the remainder of the season at Marshlands, Arden and -her chums visited Dimitri at his houseboat. He finished Arden's portrait, -which was later exhibited in New York, and the fact was made the occasion -for a little party attended by Olga and Serge. Olga seemed a much -different person, now that she had some money from the sale of the Czar's -snuffbox, which brought a very large sum. Dimitri also gave his brother -part of the price. As for himself, he never seemed to care about money. - -"My art is everything," he said. Truly it seemed so. - -Chief Reilly, who was a guest at the "picture party," as it was called, -admitted that George Clayton had left a telephone message telling about -his prisoner and urging that he be released. - -"But, shucks," said the chief, "you can't make a silk purse out of a -sow's ear." - -"If he says that again," threatened Sim, "I'll run home." - -But the chief didn't. - - - THE END - - - - - Transcriber's Notes - - ---The book's actual title is "Missing at Marshlands", not "Missing at the - Marshlands" as on the cover. - ---Silently corrected a few typos (but left nonstandard spelling and - dialect as is). - ---Rearranged front matter to a more-logical streaming order. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Missing at Marshlands, by Cleo Garis - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MISSING AT MARSHLANDS *** - -***** This file should be named 40666.txt or 40666.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/0/6/6/40666/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson, Dave Morgan and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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