Intending to notify Captain Barker of the loss, the girls started up the companionway. Abruptly, Penny paused, her attention drawn to an object lying on one of the steps. It was a circular badge with a picture and a number on it. No name. Such identifications, she knew, were used by many industrial plants.
“Where did this come from?” she murmured, picking it up.
The face on the badge was unfamiliar to her. The man had dark, bushy hair, sunken eyes and prominent cheekbones.
Sally turned to examine the identification pin. “Why, this badge came from the Gandiss factory!” she exclaimed, and studied the picture intently.
“Did you ever see the man before?”
“I can’t place him, Penny. Yet I know I have seen him somewhere.”
“The man should be easy to trace from this picture and number. When I caught hold of his clothing last night, I must have pulled off the pin. That was how my finger was pricked.”
As the girls examined the pin, they heard a commotion on deck and the sound of voices. Before they could go up the steps to investigate, Jack Gandiss came clattering down to the lounge.
“I came to take you back to the island, Penny,” he informed. “Ready?”
Then his gaze fastened upon the beam where the brass lantern had hung.