“You know where his gold is hidden!”
“I don’t think he ever had any!”
“Oh, yes, he did. When the government passed a law that it was illegal to keep gold, Kippenberg decided to defy it. He had over half his fortune converted into gold which he expected to re-convert into currency at a great profit to himself. His plans went amiss when government men listed him for investigation.”
“You seem to know all about his private affairs,” Grant Atherwald said sarcastically. “Strange that you haven’t learned the hiding place of the gold—if there ever was any!”
“It will do you no good to pretend, Atherwald! Either you tell the hiding place, or we’ll bring your bride here to keep you company!”
“You wouldn’t dare touch her, you fiend!”
“No? Well, unless you decide to talk, she’ll share your fate, and I promise you it won’t be a pretty one. Now I’ll leave you to think it over.”
The door closed with a bang.
“We’ll have to get the police here right away,” Jerry advised Penny in a whisper. “No telling what those scoundrels may try to do to Atherwald. We haven’t a moment to waste.”
“It would take us hours to bring help here,” reasoned Penny. “And if we try to use the motorboat the gang will be warned and flee while we’re on our way down the river.”