"Ninety-four lives," Chet pointed out. "Eighty-five people, but ninety-four lives. The ship's cat was drowned too."
Joe snorted as he saw how neatly Frank had fallen into the trap. Frank looked foolish. Then Joe spoke, chuckling.
"And you were the only survivor!" he exclaimed. "How did you escape?"
Chet stood up and gazed out over the waves.
"I missed the boat," he explained gently.
Joe glared wrathfully at the jester, then jumped for the wheel. He bore down on it so suddenly that the nose of the Sleuth veered into the wind, and Chet was thrown off his balance, sitting down heavily in the bottom of the craft, with a yelp of surprise.
"That'll teach you!" said Joe grimly, struggling to suppress his laughter at Chet's melodramatic tale of the shipwreck. But the plump youth only grinned.
"Oh, boy, how you both bit!" he exploded. "How you gaped! You didn't know whether to believe it or not!" He roared with laughter. "Wait till I tell the others about this. 'How about the other nine lives?' 'How did you escape?' Wow!" He sat in the bottom of the boat and laughed until the tears came to his eyes. Frank and Joe joined in the laugh against themselves, for they were accustomed to Chet by now. Biff and Tony steered their boats over toward the Sleuth to learn the cause of all this mirth, but the boys refused to enlighten them as Chet wanted to reserve the yarn for a more convenient occasion when he might have some fresh victims.
For over an hour, the three motorboats raced about the bay, until the boys were aware that it was time to go home. The Sleuth reached the boathouse first, with the Napoli close behind, Biff Hooper's craft bringing up the rear. The launches safely in the slips, the six boys went up the street toward their homes.
"Going to try for the rewards?" asked Jerry Gilroy of the Hardy boys.