"It seems the chief has an idea that Mr. Robinson was in league with this man Jackley, the man your father got the confession from. He told Mrs. Robinson last night that he was sure Mr. Robinson had the stuff hidden somewhere and that he was going to find out. He was perfectly mean and nasty about it, and Mrs. Robinson doesn't know what to do."
The Hardy boys looked at one another. The affair had suddenly assumed more serious proportions.
"If Mr. Robinson is brought back, he'll lose his job, and he had a hard time getting it, anyway," said Iola.
"The worst of it is," said Frank slowly, "that the case looks pretty bad against Mr. Robinson."
"You don't think they'll send him to the penitentiary?"
"It looks bad. The thief said he hid the stuff in the old tower. When we looked for it, the stuff wasn't there. About the only person that could have found it and taken it away, was Mr. Robinson himself."
"He wouldn't do it!" declared Iola indignantly.
"We're sure he wouldn't. But a jury mightn't be so easy to convince."
It was time to go into school at that moment and they went to their classrooms, Frank and Joe deeply worried by what they had just heard. At recess that morning they met Jerry, Phil, Tony and Chet Morton, and told them the news. All the boys were highly concerned over this sudden turn in events.
"This will be tough on Perry," said Phil.