“Jack didn’t tell?”
“I don’t think so, but I don’t know,” Sally replied honestly. “Anyway, everyone learned why I was discharged. Pop is furious.”
“Your mother too, I suppose?”
“I have no mother. She died when I was ten. Since then, Pop and I have lived aboard the Queen. Pop always taught me to speak my mind, never to be afraid, and above all to be honest. To be accused of something one didn’t do and to be branded as a thief is the limit!”
Penny nodded sympathetically. “About the race,” she said, reverting to the previous subject, “you aren’t really serious about not entering?”
“It means everything to me,” Sally admitted soberly. “But I can’t race alone. The rules call for two persons in each boat.”
“You need an expert sailor?”
“Not necessarily. Of course, the person would have to know how to handle ropes and carry out orders. Also, not lose his head in an emergency. To balance the Cat’s Paw right I need someone about my own weight.”
“It has to be a boy?”
“Mercy, no! I would prefer a girl if I knew whom to ask.” Sally suddenly caught the drift of Penny’s conversation, and a look of amazed delight came upon her face. “Not you!” she exclaimed. “You don’t mean you would be willing—”