The Penny Parker Megapack: 15 Complete Novels (174 page)

“You are my one and only, you know,” Jerry grinned. “Always were for that matter. Even in the days when we tracked down news stories together.”

Louise came hurrying up. Jerry turned to greet her and the conversation became less personal. But from the way Louise smiled, Penny knew she had seen the kiss and would demand lengthy explanations later on.

“Jerry!” she cried, noticing the decorations on his trim uniform. “They’ve given you the Distinguished Flying Cross! And the Purple Heart! You didn’t write a word about that.”

“Nothing to write.”

Indignantly, the girls pried the story from Jerry. He had piloted a Flying Fortress in a highly successful raid over the Romanian oil fields. To reach its target, the Fortress had flown through flaming refineries, so low to the ground that fire actually had leaped up through the bomb bay of the plane. Swarms of enemy fighter ships had been fought off. Jerry’s plane was one of the few to get back to its base safely.

“I was luckier than some of the other fellows,”Jerry said modestly. “That was all. Now they’ve sent me home to rest up for a while.”

“Oh, that’s marvelous!” Penny said, guiding him toward the waiting car. “You can spend all of your spare time with us!”

Jerry grinned down at her. “I’d like nothing better. But I’m not exactly on furlough.”

“I thought you just said—”

“I’m doing a special mission here at Sunset Beach for the Army.”

“Anything you dare tell about?”

Jerry helped the girls into the car, stowed the suitcases away, and then slid in beside Penny.

“I can’t tell you very much,” he replied quietly. “But I can give you a general idea of why I’m here. There’s a certain outlaw radio station that has been causing the government considerable annoyance. I’ve been sent here to try to trace its location.”

“And that’s why Dad’s here too!” Penny cried. “So you two schemers intended to join forces all along! A pity no one could let me know!”

“I didn’t want your father to tell you, because until the last minute I wasn’t sure I was coming,” Jerry explained. “The radio station assignment is only part of the reason why I’m here.”

“What’s the other?” Penny asked as she started the car.

“I’m on the lookout for an escaped German flier. The fellow escaped from a Canadian prison camp and was traced to this locality.”

“And you’re supposed to be taking a rest from flying!”

“This assignment will be a vacation.”

“I’d call it anything but one,” Penny said indignantly. Her face suddenly became grave. “Jerry!”

“Yes?”

“What does that escaped prisoner look like?”

“Oh, I can’t describe him. I have a photograph in my brief case. Why do you ask?”

“Maybe I’ve seen him.”

“Where?” Jerry could not hide a smile.

“Why at our camp in the woods!” Excitedly Penny told of the bearded stranger who had robbed the Parker stores of food and clothing. Her description of the man was so vague that Jerry could make little of it.

“I’m afraid your thief isn’t the man we’re after,” he said kindly. “After I get to a hotel and open my luggage, I’ll show you his picture.”

“And will you let me help you trail him?”

“Oh, sure,” Jerry answered, only half meaning it. “By the way, drive me to the Crystal Inn. I have a reservation there.”

Penny’s face fell.

“Anything wrong with the place?” Jerry inquired, observing her change of expression.

Penny shook her head. “The place is all right. It’s the people who stay there. Jerry—”

“Yes?”

“Are you susceptible to brunettes?”

“Never noticed it.”

“You’ll likely meet a Mrs. Deline at the hotel,”Penny warned. “Don’t have a thing to do with her.”

“Why should I?” Jerry was amused.

“She’s already made a jelly fish of Dad,” Penny went on. “Jerry, stop grinning! This is serious.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know I was smiling.”

“I need your help, Jerry. The truth is, I’m terribly worried about Dad.”

“If I know your father, there’s no need to worry about him.”

“But you don’t understand this Mrs. Deline,”Penny said desperately. “She’s a very clever, scheming woman. Jerry, will you promise to help me try to save Dad from her clutches?”

Jerry managed to keep his face straight. “I’ll do my best,” he promised.

Penny drew a deep sigh. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re here,” she murmured gratefully. “With you fighting on my side, the war’s as good as won!”

CHAPTER 10

HELP FROM MR. EMORY

With Jerry at Sunset Beach, the vacation already promised to take on a rosy hue. Penny was so thrilled to be with her friends again that she paid scant heed to her driving. Several times, enroute to the Crystal Inn, Louise had to warn her to steer more carefully.

“Oh, Jerry, now that you’re here the fun will start!” Penny declared happily. “You’ve no idea how dull things have been without you.”

“And that goes double,” Jerry said with emphasis. “How’s your father?”

“Oh, fine!” Penny laughed. “Camping has made him cross though. By the way, did he know you were coming?”

“Yes, I sent him a wire.”

“I thought so! Dad’s been keeping it from me. Why all the secrecy, I wonder?”

“Well, my trip here isn’t exactly a pleasure jaunt. And if I have luck, I’ll be gone again in a few days.”

“I certainly hope you have no luck then,” Penny said with a laugh.

The car drew up at the Crystal Inn and Jerry unloaded his suitcase. He was taller, Penny thought, or at least more filled out. The trim uniform set off his broad shoulders. As he bent to pick up his luggage, a group of women on the hotel veranda turned to stare at him.

“I’ll check in and clean up a bit,” Jerry said. “Then where can I meet you girls?”

“Oh, we’ll be somewhere on the beach,” Penny replied carelessly. “Do hurry, Jerry. We have a million things to talk over.”

The girls parked the car not far from the hotel. As they walked along, scuffing their shoes in the loose sand, they saw Mrs. Deline coming toward them from the direction of Crag Point.

“She’s evidently been at the lighthouse all this time!” Penny commented in an undertone. “Now how did she get in there for a visit when I couldn’t?”

Mrs. Deline saw that she would meet the girls. Frowning, she glanced quickly toward the boardwalk as if seeking an avenue of escape. However, she could not avoid meeting them without appearing to do so deliberately.

“How do you do,” she greeted Penny coldly.

Penny paused to introduce Louise. Mrs. Deline acknowledged the girl with an indifferent nod. Somewhat confused, Louise nervously twisted a silver ring she wore. It slipped from her finger and fell into the loose sand.

“Oh, how awkward of me!” she exclaimed, and stooped to retrieve it.

The ring buried itself deeper in the sand.

“You’ll lose it entirely if you’re not careful!”Penny warned. “Here, let me help you.”

Getting down on their knees, the girls sifted the sand with their hands. Mrs. Deline seemed amused by their difficulties and did not offer to help.

“Well, I must be getting on to the hotel,” she said casually. “I took a long walk this afternoon and I’m tired.”

“To the lighthouse?” Penny commented, before she stopped to think.

Mrs. Deline glanced at her sharply. “No, not to the lighthouse,” she replied in a tone meant to put the girl in her place. “I shouldn’t think of walking that far.”

“But I thought I saw you there.”

“You saw me?” Mrs. Deline laughed. “Well, my dear, you certainly were mistaken. I walked to the 12th Street bridge. No farther.”

Penny started to reply, then thought better of it. There was no point in arguing with Mrs. Deline. However, she was certain she had seen the widow at the lighthouse. Why the woman should deny it she could not imagine.

After Mrs. Deline had gone, Penny and Louise searched in vain for the missing ring. They knew it could not be many inches away, yet it kept eluding them.

“Oh, I can’t afford to lose the ring!” Louise wailed.

“How valuable is it?”

“It’s not worth much from a money standpoint. I drew it as a prize in a piece of wedding cake and I’ve always kept it as a good luck piece.”

“We’ll find it,” Penny said confidently. “That is, if the tide doesn’t catch us first.”

Just as she spoke, a wave came rippling up the beach. It broke only a few feet away, showering the girls with spray and wetting their shoes.

“If the tide flows over this spot, I never will find the ring,” Louise cried in vexation. “Such wretched luck!”

“Having trouble?” inquired a deep masculine voice.

Penny and Louise raised their heads. Unnoticed by them, a stranger had approached. The man wore a wet bathing suit plastered with sand. He had on glasses and a moment elapsed before Penny recognized him as the same fisherman who had warned her about the tide at Crag Point.

“I’m George Emory,” he introduced himself. “Have you lost something?”

“My ring,” Louise explained.

The man helped the girls search for the missing trinket. By now waves were creeping higher and higher on the beach. A particularly big one sent Penny and Louise scurrying for safety.

“It’s no use looking any longer for the ring,”Louise gave up. “Perhaps I can find it after the tide turns.”

“By then it will be washed away,” replied Mr. Emory. “Ah! What’s this?”

He stooped to pick a shiny object from the sand.

“It’s my ring!” Louise cried in delight. “Oh, thank you for finding it!”

The three retreated to higher ground. As Penny and Louise were about to start for the hotel, Mr. Emory suggested that they might like to share a picnic lunch with him. Neither of the girls was hungry, but to offend the man after he had found Louise’s ring was unthinkable. Accordingly, they accompanied him to one of the gaily painted wooden umbrellas along the beach. Beneath its shade Mr. Emory spread a paper tablecloth and produced ample supplies of sandwiches, fruit and lemonade.

“Were you expecting to eat all this food yourself?”Penny asked in amazement.

“No, I was hoping to find a companion who would share it,” replied Mr. Emory. “The truth is, I’m a pretty lonely old fellow.”

Penny and Louise stole a quick look at the stranger. By no stretch of the imagination could they call him old. Judging from appearances, he was not yet forty years old.

“My wife died a few years ago,” Mr. Emory explained sadly. “Since then I’ve been like a ship without a rudder. I have plenty of money, but I don’t get much enjoyment out of life. I go wherever it suits my fancy, stay until I weary of it, then move on.”

“Oh, I see,” Penny murmured with a show of sympathy.

She felt ashamed of herself that the story did not move her more deeply. Mr. Emory evidently was a lonely fellow, deserving of companionship. Yet for some reason, he failed to interest her.

“Have you been at Sunset Beach long?” she inquired politely.

“Oh, about a month. I know every nook and cranny along the shore.”

“You do?” Penny asked, and her interest revived. “Are there many caves near Sunset Beach?”

“Plenty of them, though none very close. There are several near the lighthouse, back among the rocks. Crystal Cave probably is the most interesting. Then there are half a dozen scattered on up the shore. Interested in caves?”

“Oh, in a general way,” Penny replied carelessly.

“Penny is interested in anything that suggests mystery,”Louise volunteered with a grin.

“Mystery?”

“Lou’s joking,” Penny said quickly. She gave her chum a hard look which was not lost upon Mr. Emory.

“Why, Penny!” Louise refused to be silenced. “Only a few minutes ago you were telling me about a radio broadcast said to come from a cave!”

“That was just my idea,” Penny said, confused. She jumped hastily to her feet. “We really should be going, Lou.”

“Oh, don’t hurry away.” Mr. Emory offered Louise another sandwich. “Speaking of mysterious radio stations, I’ve heard of one that is said to be located in a cave somewhere along these shores. Fact is, I’ve searched for it.”

“You have?” Penny asked, sinking back into the sand. “Any luck?”

“None. But I did manage to kill quite a few afternoons. I take it that your father came to Sunset Beach to help the authorities search for the station. Right?”

“Why, whatever made you think that?” Penny asked, instantly on guard. “Do you know my father?”

“I regret I haven’t the honor. I chanced to overhear a conversation at the hotel.”

“Oh,” Penny murmured. She was certain that the information could have leaked out in only one way. Her father had told Mrs. Deline, who in turn had spread the news about the hotel.

“I trust I’m not inquiring into secrets,” Mr. Emory went on cheerfully. “Fact of the matter is, I might be able to help your father.”