CHAPTER 25 A SCOOP FOR UNCLE SAM

Penny opened her eyes and wondered where she was. For a moment she could remember nothing of what had transpired. Gradually, she realized that she was lying down, her head pillowed in someone’s lap. She seemed to be in a fast-moving motor boat for she could hear the wash of waves against the craft. In panic she decided that she must be a prisoner enroute to the German submarine. She struggled to sit up.

“Easy there, partner,” said a soothing voice.

Penny twisted sideways to look at the speaker. “Jerry!” she whispered.

“You’re all right,” he said, pressing her gently back. “We’ll get you to a doctor in a few minutes.”

“A doctor, my eye!” Penny protested with spirit.

“That was a nasty blow Mrs. Deline gave you on the head,” contributed another voice.

Penny turned again and saw her father. His shirt was half torn off and there was a long gash on his cheek.

“Dad, you’re hurt!”

“Nothing but a few scratches, Penny. Jerry took worse punishment than I did. But you should see the other fellows!”

“What happened?” Penny asked. “Where am I anyhow?”

“In a patrol boat bound for the hotel.”

“But what happened on the beach? The last I remember was when I tried to slash the rubber boat.”

“You not only tried, you did!” chuckled Jerry. “Mrs. Deline struck you on the head with something—maybe a rock—and you went down for the count. About that time, some of the Army boys arrived. Mrs. Deline and her crowd tried to make a get-away, but the boat couldn’t be launched.”

“Then what happened?” Penny demanded as Jerry paused for breath.

“The two members of the sub crew tried to swim. They were picked up by a patrol boat that had been drawn to the locality by the gun fire.”

“And Mrs. Deline?”

“She and her pal Emory, together with the escaped flier, struck off across the sand dunes.”

“They didn’t get away?”

“Not on your life. They reached the road and there found a nice reception awaiting them! Right now the three are lodged at Headquarters.”

Penny took a deep breath. Her head was throbbing but she scarcely felt the pain.

“What about Jim McCoy at the lighthouse?” she inquired.

“He was taken into custody earlier in the evening. A portable broadcasting outfit was found on the premises.”

“Then Mr. McCoy really was the man responsible for those mysterious broadcasts—the Voice from the Cave?”

“No doubt he had helpers,” Mr. Parker contributed. “We expect to track down most of the ring now that the leaders have been captured. At any rate, we’ve put an end to the broadcasts. Your other theory was right too, Penny.”

“What theory, Dad?”

“That the cave effect was produced by an echo chamber.”

“Then no broadcast ever originated in a cave?”

“Probably not. We know McCoy shifted locations frequently. Tonight was the first time he ever dared broadcast from the lighthouse.”

“And what of the old beachcomber, Jake Skagway?”

“Just a beachcomber,” Jerry answered. “He had no connection with Emory or Mrs. Deline.”

Penny lay perfectly still for a few minutes, gazing up at the dark sky. A few stars pricked the black canopy above her, and now and then a quarter moon peeped from behind a cloud screen.

“How did I get aboard this boat?” she presently inquired.

“Another patrol boat came by,” Jerry explained. “In fact, after all the fireworks, just about everyone in Sunset Beach arrived on the scene. We wanted to get you to a doctor so we took the first transportation that offered.”

“Almost there now too,” added Mr. Parker.

Penny sat up. The shore was dark but she could dimly see the dark Crystal Inn hotel.

“I don’t need a doctor,” she laughed. “I’m feeling better every minute. My, won’t Louise be green with envy when she learns what she missed!”

“I’d say she was lucky,” Mr. Parker corrected. “Penny, you don’t seem to realize what a narrow escape we all had.”

“That’s right,” added Jerry, “those men were desperate, and they’d have stopped at nothing. I guess we owe our lives to you, Penny.”

Penny loved the praise. Nevertheless, she replied with a show of modesty:

“Oh, I didn’t do a thing, Jerry. As a matter of record, I nearly messed up the show. When I threw that hand grenade I forgot to pull the safety pin.”

“I’m glad you did,” chuckled Jerry. “If it had exploded, we might not be here now.”

Penny sat very still, thinking over what had happened. Events were a bit hazy in her mind and many questions remained unanswered.

“The submarine?” she asked after a moment.

“Sunk,” Jerry replied. “One of our patrol planes scored a direct hit.”

“I guess that brings me up to date,” Penny sighed, “There’s only one thing that bothers me.”

“What’s that?” inquired her father.

“Did you know who Mrs. Deline was when you invited her to come with us to Sunset Beach?”

“No, but I had a healthy suspicion that she might be working against our country, Penny. I first met Mrs. Deline at the Club. However, she was rather transparent in making a play for my attention. In checking up I discovered that she never had been in China and never had written a newspaper story in her life. When she practically invited herself to ride with us to Sunset Beach, I thought I’d try to find out more about her little game.”

“I acted so silly about everything,” Penny acknowledged, deeply ashamed. “I’m sorry, Dad.”

“You needn’t be, Penny. At times you were rude to Mrs. Deline which was wrong. But your actions served a good purpose by keeping the woman so diverted that she never was on her guard.”

Shore was very close. As the powerful engines of the motor boat became muted, Penny said wistfully:

“Now that your work is done here, Jerry, I suppose you’ll be winging off to some far corner of the country.”

“Not for a few days at least,” he reassured her. “I’m expecting a furlough and I’ll spend it right here at Sunset Beach. We’ll cram those days full of fun, Penny. We’ll swim and golf and dance. We’ll make every minute count.”

The boat grated gently against the dock and a sailor leaped out to make the craft fast. Mr. Parker and Jerry helped Penny ashore. Though she tried to stand steady upon her feet, the boards rocked beneath her.

“Hook on,” invited Jerry, offering an arm.

Mr. Parker supported her on the other side, and thus they walked slowly toward the hotel.

“The Three Musketeers!” chuckled the editor. “‘One for all, and all for one.’”

“We do make a trio,” agreed Penny. “Tonight it seems just as it did when we were together in Riverview working on a big news story. There’s one difference though.”

“What’s that?” asked Jerry.

“Tonight we were actors in a little drama that should be page one on any newspaper. Yet neither of you news hawks so much as spoke of trying to get a scoop for the Riverview Star.”

“Good reason,” rumbled Mr. Parker. “The story of what happened tonight may never be published.”

“I understand, Dad. If the news were printed now it might give valuable information to the enemy.”

Penny paused to catch her breath. With Jerry and her father still supporting her, she turned to face the restless sea. The patrol boat had slipped away into the darkness. Far up shore, unmindful that her faithless master had gone, the bright beacon from the lighthouse swept the water at regular intervals. Nothing seemed changed.

“Curtain going down on one of the best adventures of my life,” Penny said softly. “Who cares that the Riverview Star missed the story? Why, this was an A-1 scoop for Uncle Sam!”