“And ski all she likes,” urged Penny. “I really can’t see the harm in it.”
“I been thinkin’ about that lease, too,” the old man added, not looking directly at the girl. “When I see Mrs. Downey tonight I’ll tell her I’m ready to sign.”
“Oh, I’m so glad!” Penny exclaimed. “With the Fergus-Maxwell hotel out of the running, she ought to have a comfortable time of it here on Pine Top mountain.”
“Thanks to you,” grinned Peter Jasko. He offered his hand again and Penny gave it a firm pressure.
“I must hurry now,” she said. “This is a tremendous story, and I want to telegraph it to Dad before Francine Sellberg beats me to the jump.”
“Sellberg?” repeated the old man. “She ain’t that girl reporter that’s been stayin’ here at the hotel?”
Penny nodded.
“Then you better step,” he advised. “She’s on her way to the village now.”
“But how could Francine have learned about it so soon?” Penny wailed in dismay.
“I saw her talking with one of the deputies. She was writing things down in a notebook.”