"Yes. I thought it was the air-mail."
"So did I. But I believe now it was the Pursuit—with Dan piloting!"
"Dan Stillman?"
"Yes. He's a regular daredevil. And you know Roger won't let him fly his plane."
A pained look came into Linda's eyes, as if she herself had been mistreated.
"Oh, Lou, that seems awful," she said. "He wouldn't do a thing like that, would he?"
"He must have. Remember, he went out right after supper. And he's so conceited. He wouldn't think he could hurt it. But I'll tell you how to find out—look at the gas. You remember you had her filled at that airport."
Holding their cake in their hands, both girls dashed excitedly back to the plane and looked at the dial which indicated how much gasoline was left. And, sure enough, the supply was running low! Too low to be accounted for by the flying they had done that morning. In fact, it was almost gone.
"You're right!" cried Linda. "Oh, Lou, now we're in a worse pickle than ever. We'll never get to Daddy!" The tears ran down her cheeks.