The ease with which this was done astonished her. Those were not strong arms. They seemed to be the arms of a woman.
Norma’s escape was, she discovered, not to be so easy. Her opponent was surprisingly fast. No sooner were her arms free than she was gripped by both ankles and thrown with a crash to the ground.
At last, struggling to a sitting position, she pushed the creature away and sprang up.
Leaping like a panther, her enemy landed on her back to send her crashing once again.
“I’ve got to be cool,” the girl told herself. “This may be a fight to the death.”
When once again she found herself on her feet she began sparring like a boxer.
Then, seeing an opening, she seized her opponent by one arm. Hanging on desperately with both hands, she started whirling. Finding her assailant surprisingly light, she at last swung her off her feet. Three more dizzy turns, then she let go.
The white figure crashed into the bank ten feet away. Without looking back, Norma seized her bike, mounted, and rode away at terrific speed.
In the meantime Tom and Rosa were out over the sea. First they headed for the spot where the plane had last been heard. They circled in an ever growing spiral but discovered nothing.
Switching on a light, Tom looked back at Rosa. The look on her round face betrayed no sign of fear. Instead there was a look of grim determination.