Enid hastily straightened her rumpled hair and hurried out upon deck. Rex already had come aboard after tying up the recovered boat.
“Where did you find it?” Enid questioned eagerly.
“Out near Culver’s Island. I figured that if it had been left to drift, the current would carry it that way. I cruised around in my amphibian until I sighted it and then notified the Coast Guard. By the time I had gone home for my own motor boat they had recovered it, so I merely towed it out here.”
“Did you examine it, for possible clues?” Madge inquired.
“Yes, I looked it over. If those kidnappers used the boat they were smart enough not to leave any thing behind that would identify them. However, it’s my guess they made their get-away in their own boat and merely cut this one adrift as an additional precaution against being followed.”
“I don’t see how they figured I could follow them when I was tied hand and foot and locked in that stifling closet,” Enid said bitterly, “and to know that Father is in their power! They may mistreat him!”
“Not if they are after a large ransom,” Rex suggested, in an effort to cheer her. “You may be sure of that.”
“The police said probably we would receive some communication within twenty-four hours,” Enid declared, more hopefully. “I wonder how much they’ll want?”
Rex met Madge’s eyes and he read the thought that had flashed through her mind. She had begun to wonder if a communication ever would be received. From the first, it had seemed unlikely to her that the kidnapping had been committed for the sole purpose of securing ransom. She felt there might be a more sinister motive behind the crime.
Before the conversation could be resumed, the sound of a boat grating against the side of the yacht, drew the trio to the railing. Unobserved by them, a craft had made fast to the yacht, and now they saw they were to entertain representatives of the press. The reporters swarmed aboard without waiting for an invitation, bombarding the girls with terse questions. A photographer insisted upon taking their pictures. Likewise, he photographed the yacht and Mr. Burnett’s cabin. Only the arrival of a second boat, containing Mr. Randall and two other detectives, brought the ordeal to an end.