But the lawyer did not appear so hopeful.
“This gang, or rather the agents of the rich men who are trying to secure this invention, appear to have a far better organized and desperate plan of campaign than we imagined,” he said; “however, I will engage detectives and, in the meantime, we must notify Mr. Peregrine. The news can be kept from him no longer.”
Tom agreed to this, although he knew that the inventor would be driven almost frantic by the news that his vanishing gun model was in the hands of his enemies.
“Now, while I get Mr. Peregrine on the long-distance ’phone,” said the lawyer, “suppose you go over to the garage where you left your machine and bring it around here. We have a lot of ground to cover if we are to get on the track of those rascals, and that will be the quickest way to get about.”
And so it was arranged. While the lawyer got into communication with the inventor Tom fetched the Flying Road Racer around from the garage where they had left it. He found Mr. Bowler waiting for him with the information that Mr. Peregrine had taken the news of his loss more calmly than he had expected.
“By the way,” he went on, “Mr. Peregrine informed me also of something that you should know. It appears that your young friend, Ralph Ingersoll, is being eagerly sought for by the circus men from whom you took him. They seem to have some strong reason for wishing to get him back, and even went to the length of offering a large sum for his recovery, which Mr. Jesson of course refused. He told them, so he informs me, that if they had a legal right to the boy they could obtain his custody through the proper channels.”
“I doubt if they could find him through any channels now,” said Tom, with a grim smile that ended in a sigh as he thought how Jack, too, was now mysteriously missing.
Mr. Bowler, who knew quite a good deal about autos, tried to divert Tom’s mind from his troubles during the ride to police headquarters by discussing the points of the Flying Road Racer with the young inventor. But Tom only replied listlessly. His thoughts were centered on his missing chum and cousin.
There was no news of the yellow auto or of its two operators at police headquarters. This hardly surprised Tom, who had concluded that such clever rascals as Rook and Radcliff had shown themselves to be, would surely have had sense enough to cover up their tracks.
As they were leaving the building one of the two policemen who had helped Tom in his search the night before was coming in. He stopped Tom and spoke to him.