"So I see," grumbled Mr. Hedson, "but I thought maybe you flew some kind of a distress signal."
"We were only too anxious to talk to him," put in Andy. "But he's afraid of us."
"Afraid; why?"
"Well, there's some mystery about him," went on Frank, "and we'd like to discover it. It's connected with a boy whom we saved from a gale." And he told about Paul, and how the man had hastened away that day on the beach. "Do you know anything about him?" finished the elder Racer lad.
"Only this," spoke the boatman, not quite so angry now. "He come to see me yist'day, and asked if I had a sailboat I could hire out for a few days. He said he wanted to go cruising out to sea to bring in a boat of his that was disabled."
"A boat!" interrupted Frank eagerly. "Did he say what kind? Was it a damaged motor boat?"
"He didn't say, and I didn't ask him. I arranged with him to take my Spray and he was to come to-day and get her. Now you see what happened."
"We're sorry to have spoiled your business," spoke Frank regretfully, "but perhaps it's just as well you didn't hire that man your boat. I don't believe he's to be trusted," and he told about the suspicion they had that the stranger had already been seen towing a disabled motor boat with a gasolene craft.
"The question is, where has he left the damaged boat—Paul's boat?" went on Andy. "This thing is getting more and more complicated. Why should he want a sailboat to go out and tow in the motor craft, when he was seen in power vessel yesterday?"
"Maybe whoever owned the power vessel took it away from him," suggested
Frank.