by Edith Lavell
CHAPTER X
_The Arrow in Flames_
Although no definite results had yet been accomplished, Linda andLouise felt when they left the little French Convent in Canada thatthey were on the way to victory. All that was necessary now was to getin touch with Linda's father, who, through his lawyer and detectives,would bring Bess Hulbert to justice.
The facts as they saw them were surprisingly clear and simple, andcould not fail to convince the police.
First of all, the firm of J. W. Carwein had declared that they hadbought the goods in the belief that they were made in the United States.
Secondly, the firm had been deceived. The goods were not made in thiscountry, but in Canada, as the girls had just proved by their visit tothe Convent.
Thirdly, they had been bought by a girl in an airplane, who representedherself as an agent of Mr. Carlton.
The only missing link in the chain was the actual proof that the girlin the airplane was Bess Hulbert.
Yet all the evidence pointed that way: her visit to Plattsburg, hertaking the Moth to Canada, her conversation with her brother, at thehotel, in which she referred to her business as dangerous and liableto end in disgrace, and finally her interest in Linda's handkerchief amonth or so previous.
Surely no one would doubt such evidence as this! But if the policerefused to arrest Miss Hulbert, it would be easy enough to send apicture to the Convent for identification. That would prove everythingconclusively.
So both girls felt certain, as they stepped into the Arrow, thatthey had been successful, that they were about to save Mr. Carlton'sbusiness. And this fact meant joy to themselves. Now they could planagain on their flight across the Atlantic; now it would surely be safeto put in the order for the Bellanca which Linda had set her heart uponhaving.
"Let's don't bother to go back by way of Montreal," said Linda,exultantly, as she started the motor and taxied along the frozen field."Let's head straight for Spring City!"
"But do you know the way?" inquired Louise, as the plane rose into theair.
"Yes, I guess so. I have a map--oh, not the kind Ted makes, but goodenough. We'll fly across country, and stop when we get tired."
"But it's getting dark, Linda," objected her companion.
"We can't help that, Lou! It would be getting dark anyway, even if wewere headed for Montreal."
"But this is strange country. So many woods, too. A forced landingwould be terrible, Linda."
"Who said anything about a forced landing?" laughed the other girl. Shefelt thrilled and exhilarated; the cold, fresh air against her cheekswhipped them to a lovely color, and her eyes were shining. She was inthe mood for adventure tonight. But when she realized that her chum wasdubious, she decided to go easy. Perhaps Louise was tired.
"Lou dear," she shouted, "if you're nervous, we'll go to Montreal, andput up for the night. Say the word--but say it quickly!"
"No! No! I'm for the quickest way home. And I have a lot of confidencein you, Linda."
"You better have, if you mean to cross the ocean with me. We'll haveto get used to night flying, Lou, if we hope to succeed!"
"I know," agreed the other, as she settled down into her seat to try tokeep warm.
Darkness came on, but the sky was cloudless, and the stars shone outbrilliantly. Linda kept her eye on her chart, but although she did nottell Louise, she was not sure where they were. Had they crossed intoNew York state--were they flying in the northern part, or were theystill in Canada? Her goal was Syracuse; she hoped to reach it beforemidnight.
The trees were still thick everywhere, and they were flying aboutfifteen hundred feet high. All of a sudden, without any warning, theengine missed and sputtered, and stopped dead!
Louise, who for the last five minutes had been peacefully dozing,awoke with a start at the abrupt cessation of noise. Just as a Pullmantraveler will sleep while a train is moving, and wake up at a station,so the silence affected Louise. It was positively uncanny.
"What's the matter, Linda?" she whispered, hoarsely.
"Out of gas," replied the pilot, grimly.
"Then--then--" She clutched her companion's arm, desperately--"Then wejump?"
Before Linda could reply, the motor took hold again.
"No! Not yet!" she shouted, above the welcome noise. "I have turned onthe reserve supply--it's good for about twenty minutes. We'll try toland."
She circled about and came lower, but the prospect was disastrous.Nothing but woods! Trees everywhere! She remembered bitterly theoccasion when her father had presented her with the Arrow, as agraduation gift, and had remarked shrewdly that she would get to hatetrees. How right he was!
But she must not lose track of the time--the precious twenty minutesthat might be all that were left to her in this world. Louise, with theglasses, was peering down towards the ground. But there were no lights,no towns, no signs of civilization anywhere. Nothing but trees.
When only eight minutes remained, Linda decided in desperation to climbagain. If they were to use their parachutes successfully, they mustattain a comfortable height.
The ascent only served to make Louise more panic-stricken. She grabbedLinda's arm, and held to it like a death-clasp.
"Where are you going, Linda?" she shrieked. "Are you crazy?"
Linda shook her head. It was surprising how calm she felt.
"Get ready to release your parachute," she commanded. "When we get highenough, we are going to jump. Have you your flashlight handy?"
"Yes. All right, Linda." Her voice shook with emotion.
"It'll be all right, Lou dear! I've jumped before--it isn't bad. Andyou've been taught just what to do."
At four thousand feet up in the air, Linda gave her the signal, andLouise stepped out over the right side of the plane.
Then Linda turned the nose of the Arrow up, and stepped off herself,falling about a hundred feet, head downward, before she pulled therip-cord which opened the parachute, and jerked her into an uprightposition. Off to one side of them, the plane was falling rapidly, ina series of spirals; for a moment Linda had the tense fear that itmight strike her companion or herself. Holding out her flashlight, andwatching the ground below, she floated gently away from the plane,landing finally in a clearing perhaps fifty yards away from Louise.
"Lou, are you safe?" she shouted, gasping.
"O.K.!" was the laughing reply, that brought a warm surge of relief toher heart.
With the aid of their flash-lights the girls disentangled themselvesfrom their cords, and ran towards each other. Suddenly they stopped; ablaze of light flashed in the sky, and they saw the beloved Arrow inflames!
"Oh, poor Linda!" cried Louise, rushing to her chum in sympathy. "Whatrotten luck!"
Tears came into the young aviatrix's eyes, and she hugged her chumtightly in her grief. It was as if she had lost a very dear friend. Fora breathless moment they watched the blazing plane, fearful lest itwould drop on them, or set the woods on fire. But gradually the lightdied, and what was left of the Arrow dropped to the ground at least amile away.
"I guess we're lucky at that," Linda finally said, shivering.
"I was sure we'd be killed," Louise admitted. "It seems so much worseto have an accident at night--so much more terrifying."
They stood still for a moment and looked about them. A light coveringof snow was on the ground, and on the leafless branches of the trees.In every direction the woods stretched out in desolation. The girls hadnot the faintest idea where they were.
"Oh, I'm so cold!" complained Louise. "If only we had a fire!"
"My matches!" remarked Linda, regretfully. "My matches that I packed socarefully! A whole box.... Well, next time I'll see that they are in mypocket. Lucky we have our flash-lights--and no sprained ankles. Comeon, Lou, we must walk, or we'll freeze to death."
"But where are we going?"
"Anywhere--to keep warm with the exercise, and maybe happen on somehut or house. We daren't sleep tonight, Lou! Oh, if, we only had thoseblankets!"
&
nbsp; "And those baked beans!"
"Shucks!" exclaimed Linda. "Why didn't I think to throw some stuff outbefore we left the plane! All the mail carriers do. If they have tojump, they drop their mail bags first."
"Too late now to think of that. But wasn't it lucky we had something toeat at the Convent?"
"It surely was. I wish we had eaten twice as much."
With their arms tightly linked together, the girls were pressingforward now at an even pace, as if they had cheerfully made up theirminds to walk all night long. Sometimes they would step into thickpiles of dried leaves, but otherwise the ground was hard, except foran inch or so of snow. Often they encountered ice, and their feet grewnumb with the cold.
Louise, who had not wanted Linda to take the unknown course, had saidnothing about the cause of the accident, for fear of hurting her chum'sfeelings. But Linda's mind had been busily working on the explanationever since the tank went dry.
"Lou," she said finally, as they walked on through the darkness, "Ithink I have the explanation."
"What explanation? How to get out of these woods?"
"No, no. Of the reason why our gas ran out. I should have had enough toget to Syracuse. But do you remember hearing a plane land near to ours,while we were in the Convent?"
"Yes, of course. We both saw it."
"Well, do you know what I believe? I think that was Bess Hulbert, inthe Flying Club's Moth--and it was she who was following us all the wayto the Convent."
"Linda!" cried Louise, in amazement. "But how could she ever know wewere here? Not that I'd put it past her--but how could she possiblyfind out, or guess what we were up to?"
"I don't know, except that she may have seen us--or our names on thehotel register at Plattsburg. People who are committing crimes arealways on the watch, you know, expecting to be caught."
"How could she ever dump out our gas, in so short a time?"
"She didn't. She put a little hole in the gas tank, probably, so thatthe gas would leak out slowly. That would be a much meaner thing to dothan to cut a strut, or injure the propeller, because either of thosethings would keep us from going up in the air without discovering it,and we wouldn't learn our danger from a leak without flying a while.Besides, whatever happened would happen when we were some distanceaway--so that she couldn't possibly be blamed! And it would be too lateto do anything."
"The sneak!" denounced Louise, feeling almost hot for a second in heranger. "You're right, Linda--I'm sure you are! But really, it wasintended murder!"
"Probable murder--if we couldn't make a landing or jump. But she thinkswe are so inexperienced that we couldn't do either.... Yes, I reallybelieve Miss Hulbert thinks we're dead now!"
"And won't she get fooled!" exulted Louise. "Once we get back tocivilization, we'll do plenty to her!"
"If we get back to civilization," said Linda, with the first note ofdespair creeping into her voice. Their feet were so cold, they began toache dreadfully, and the woods were as dense and as hopeless as whenthey first began to walk. They slackened their pace, until Louise'sfeet fairly seemed to drag. She stopped abruptly.
"I just can't go on, Linda," she sighed. "My feet hurt so terribly!"
"I know," answered her companion, sympathetically. "We might take offour shoes and rub them with snow. But if we once stop, we'll never beable to start again--and then we'll surely freeze."
It was a gruesome alternative; they looked at each other in dismay.
"Let's go very slowly, and hang on to each other," urged Linda. "Thenight can't last forever, and the sunshine will bring warmth."
"It's the longest night I ever knew," said Louise, drearily. "Butmorning will be worse, because we'll be that much hungrier."
Linda pressed her hand; there was no use trying to cheer the othergirl with hopes, that she was in no mood to believe. So they went ondoggedly.
For perhaps half an hour they continued in silence; then once againLouise stopped abruptly, her hand rigid in Linda's. There werefootsteps behind them!
"A bear!" she whispered, in fright.
Pulling her cautiously aside, Linda broke off a stick from a tree, andturned about to face the enemy. There was no use trying to run--whythey could hardly hobble. And in the darkness, what hope was there offinding a tree to climb?
To her intense amazement, she saw nothing, and she dared not turn onher flashlight. Tensely she waited, until a shot rang out in the woodsand broke the stillness of the night. A gun at least meant a humanhand, and both girls immediately let out a piteous cry of "Help!"
"Yo--ho!" came the welcome, answering reply!
