“Yes,” returned his cousin, pausing to look, “and they’re going to take something of the same trip we made. Puss evidently don’t want the Bird boys to get ahead of him, if he can help it. And I must say he’s doing far better handling that biplane of his than I ever dreamed he could.”
Ten minutes later they fastened the doors of the shed.
“Elephant says he’ll hang around while we go to town,” remarked Andy, who did not want to miss the treat of seeing the pompous chief, when he learned that after all his labor in trying to locate the hiding rascals it was the two Bird boys who had found out where they were in concealment.
“That’s all right,” Frank went on. “I was a trifle uneasy about leaving things alone here, though, of course, it’s ridiculous to think any harm could come to the shed in broad daylight.”
“Well,” remarked the doubting Andy, “there’s a crowd that has little use for us, you know, and some of them are thick with Sandy and Puss. I feel dead sure there are one or two among the lot so low down, that if they had the chance they’d just like to throw a lighted match in our shed and watch things burn from the woods over yonder. I hate to say it, but that’s a fact.”
“Well, I’m not disputing you, because I’ve known them to do some mighty mean things myself. But get your wheel, Andy. I’m glad now you brought mine over yesterday when you dropped in to carry my message to father. He thinks it just the boss thing for me to be sleeping outdoors every night. You know his fad, though; and it’s pie for me.”
It took them but a short time to arrive in the heart of the town. Dropping off at police headquarters they entered the building. The chief was there luckily, and at sight of the Bird boys he showed sudden signs of interest. Somehow, people had of late awakened to the fact that things were generally moving when Frank and Andy were around. There was “something doing,” so to speak. And so people began to expect more or less of them.
“Glad to see you, boys,” said Chief Waller, unbending his dignity enough to extend a hand to each and even smile. “Dropped in to have a talk about those clever rascals who tried to do you out of your new aeroplane? Sorry I can’t say they’re in the cooler. My men have several clues they’re running down, and we hope to be able to report something soon.”
It was always “something doing soon” with the chief. He had a way of forever being on the point of making a grand coup, but singular to relate, no one could remember of past successes that had rewarded his vigilance. Still, he was useful in his way and had a pull with the town fathers that kept him his job year after year.
“Oh!” burst out the impulsive Andy, “we just dropped in to say that we believe we know where those bad men are hiding!”