Penny Nichols and the Mystery of the Lost Key Part 6

"Rosanna, I shouldn't have forced you into this," Penny said apologetically.

"I've slept in far worse places than this," Rosanna laughed. "We have a comfortable bed and a private bath. I didn't fare half so well at Mrs.

Bridges."

"You're a good sport anyway, Rosanna. That's more than could be said for Mrs. Leeds or her daughter."

"I wonder how old the girl is? She looked about our age."

"I'd guess she was two or three years older," Penny returned. "She had so much paint on it was hard to tell."

Both girls were tired from the long day's drive. Rosanna immediately began to undress. Penny sat on the edge of the bed, thoughtfully staring into s.p.a.ce.

"Did it strike you as queer the way Mrs. Leeds acted when I mentioned we were going to Raven Ridge tomorrow?" she questioned her companion.

Rosanna kicked off her slippers before replying.

"Well, come to think of it, she did look a little startled. She put on such a scene downstairs that I didn't pay much attention."

"We'll probably never see her again." With a shrug of her slim shoulders Penny arose and began to unpack her overnight bag.

According to the plan which they had worked out with Mr. Nichols, the girls expected to leave for Raven Ridge the next morning directly after breakfast. It was their intention to motor to the mountain resort, inspect the Winters' property and see if they could learn anything concerning Rosanna's uncle. They intended to return either the next night or the one following.

Few guests were abroad when the detective joined the girls at breakfast.

It was only a little after seven o'clock.

"Sleep well?" he inquired, looking over the menu.

"Not very," Penny admitted truthfully. She might have added more had not Mrs. Leeds and her daughter entered the dining room at that moment. The two bowed slightly and selected a table in the opposite corner of the room.

"Social climbers," Mr. Nichols said in an undertone. "I can tell their type a mile away."

Breakfast finished, the girls prepared to leave for Raven Ridge. Their bags were already packed and downstairs.

"Now drive cautiously over the mountain roads," the detective warned as he accompanied the girls to the waiting car. "If you can't get back by evening send me a wire."

As Penny took her place at the steering wheel she observed that Mrs.

Leeds' automobile had been brought to the hotel entrance by an attendant.

Apparently, she too was making an early morning departure.

"You're not listening to a word I am saying!" Mr. Nichols said severely.

"Yes, I am." Penny's attention came back to the conversation. "I'll drive carefully and deliver your precious car back to you without a scratch."

"I wasn't exactly worried about the car."

"Well, there's no need to be uneasy about Rosanna or me. We'll have no trouble."

With a laugh of careless confidence, Penny started the car and drove slowly away. It was not the first time she had driven over mountainous roads. She handled the wheel exceptionally well and used due caution on all of the sharp curves. The brakes were good but she dared not apply them too steadily on the steep inclines.

"We'll have to rush if we get back to Mt. Ashland this evening," Penny announced, slowing down to read a signpost. "I declare, a mountain mile seems to be three times the length of an ordinary mile."

They had gone only a short distance farther when a tire went down. Penny knew it instantly by the feel of the steering wheel. She pulled off at the side of the road.

"Now we are in it," she said in deep disgust. "At least ten miles from a garage. I can change wheels on my own car, but I doubt if I can on Dad's automobile."

The girls waited for a few minutes hoping that someone would come along to help. When no one did, Penny dragged out the tools, and after considerable trouble succeeded in jacking up the rear axle.

"I see a car coming," Rosanna reported hopefully.

"Let's flag it," Penny suggested. "I could do with a little masculine help."

In response to her signal of distress, the approaching automobile slowed down. The driver was a man and there were no pa.s.sengers.

"He's stopping," Penny said in relief.

There was a screech of brakes as the automobile came almost to a standstill. Then surprisingly, it speeded up again. But not before Penny had caught a fleeting glimpse of the driver's face.

"Well, of all things!" Rosanna exclaimed indignantly. "I call that a mean trick."

"I believe he was afraid to stop," Penny announced excitedly. "I think I recognized him. It was the same man who stole the ring from Bresham's Department Store!"

"Are you sure?" Rosanna demanded incredulously.

"I couldn't be absolutely certain, of course. He was traveling too fast for me to catch more than a pa.s.sing glimpse of his face. But if he didn't recognize us, why did he slow down and then speed up?"

"He did act suspiciously. But what can we do about it?"

"Nothing, I'm afraid. We may as well devote our energies to this wheel."

Rosanna was more than eager to help but she had never even seen a tire changed and had no idea how to go about it. After a little annoying experimentation, Penny got the wheel in place and tightened the lugs.

"There, it's done," she said in relief, "but my dress is a mess. I'm afraid we'll have to stop at the first garage and have the old wheel fixed, for I don't carry another spare."

A signpost at the next bend in the road advised them that Simpson's Garage was located only six miles away. They made it in a few minutes.

There was no town, only a post office, one general store, and the garage which obviously was a remodeled blacksmith shop.

"I'm glad it's nothing more than a tire which needs repairing," Penny commented as the garageman came to learn what they wanted.

He promised that the tire would be ready in half an hour. Glancing at her wrist watch, Penny saw that it was already past lunch time. She inquired if there was a cafe nearby.

"Not in Hamilton, there ain't," the garageman told her. "Ma Stevens, across the street in the big white house, serves meals to tourists now and then."

Rather than spend an unpleasant half hour in the garage, the girls walked over to the rambling white house. They were rea.s.sured to see that the yard was well kept and that everything appeared orderly and clean.

"Let's take a chance on the food," Penny decided. "I'm hungry enough to eat a fried board!"

Mrs. Stevens, a motherly looking woman in a blue checked gingham dress, opened the door. She looked slightly troubled at their request for food.