The Sleuth was gone!
CHAPTER V
Dancing Gorillas
FOR A moment Frank and Joe stared at the empty boathouse unbelievingly. "I'll bet the bank robbers stole the Sleuth!" Joe exploded.
"If they did," Frank said with a grim smile, "they may be surprised. That rudder is only temporarily repaired. It won't last long."
"Let's go after them!" Joe urged. "We'll call Tony to bring the Napoli."
"Okay," Frank said. "He'll be at Callie's now."
The Hardys hurried to their motorcycles and headed back toward town. When they reached the
piers, they stopped at a public telephone booth outside a warehouse. Joe dialed the call and
returned after a short conversation.
"Tony will meet us at the Coast Guard station," he reported to Frank. "Come on!"
When the Hardys walked in they found that Chief Collig had turned the place into a temporary
headquarters. He was questioning three bank tellers who had been brought there at the chief's
request.
One teller was giving his account: "The four men must have hidden in another part of the bank.
Just after we closed tonight, the robbers rushed into the main room together. Three came to
our cages and forced us at gun point to put all the money into their sacks, while the fourth
went to the side door. Then they warned us to keep still, and backed out the door. Our vault
custodian fired after their car, but had no luck."
"Can you describe just one of the gang?" Collig asked wearily. "Any one that sticks in your mind? Was he short or tall? Fat or skinny?"
"I already told you," the man said doggedly. "They were all the same size."
"But blast it, man, that's impossible!" the chief exploded. "I don't have four identically built men on my whole force!"
"They were all the same size," the teller repeated, growing sullen. "They wore masks."
Shaking his head, Chief Collig turned from the teller. His eyes fell on Frank and Joe. "Back so soon?" he asked, surprised.
Frank told him about the stolen Sleuth. "The bank robbers used a speedboat for their getaway,"
Joe added. "It might have been ours."
"Has the cutter had any luck on the bay?" Frank asked.
"Nothing yet," the radio operator spoke up. "They've been calling in every ten minutes."
While Joe reported the theft of their boat to a Coast Guardman, Frank asked whether any clues
had been found in the thieves' car.
"Not even a fingerprint," was Chief Collig's answer. "We checked on the vehicle, of course. It had been stolen in Northport."
Just then Tony Prito entered the crowded station, exclaiming, "It looks like a police convention outside, with all those prowl cars!"
"Hi, Tony," Joe greeted him.
"Thanks for getting here so fasti" Frank said.
The three boys left the station at once, ran across the pier, and scrambled down a ladder into the Napoli.
Tony started his motor, switched on his running lights, and throttled cautiously into the bay.
The surface of the water was smooth and the air was warm. The fog, however, was thicker than
ever.
Tony tried his spotlight but even this did not penetrate the murk for any great distance.
"Suppose we zigzag along shore about half a mile out," Joe suggested. "The Coast Guard will cover the middle of the bay."
The Napoli moved steadily through the night. The boys could see nothing.
"We need our ears for this job," Frank said finally. "Shut her off a minute, Tony."
The steady purr of the motor ceased and the craft drifted noiselessly. Far to seaward, outside the harbor's mouth, a deep-voiced foghorn rasped its warning at regular intervals.
"Nothing," Joe muttered disgustedly. "Start her again, Tony!"
"Wait!" Frank ordered. "There-another boat!"
"I don't hear it!" Tony whispered.
"It's very high-pitched-just a tingle. Turn her out into the bay, Tony. Run full throttle until I say stop."
The Napoli shot forward, roaring through the fog.
"Stop!" Frank cried out.
Again came the sudden, hushed silence. Only the wake of the Napoli washed audibly behind
them. But now all three boys heard the sound of a boat engine.
"You were right," Joe whispered. "I think it is the Sleuth. Listen!"
The high-pitched whine drew slowly closer, then gradually receded. Soon it approached again.
"She's going in circles!" Joe chortled gleefully. "Head toward her, Tony."
"Sure. But which way?"
"To the right," Joe said promptly.
"Straight ahead!" Frank countered.
Tony started his engine and headed midway between the two directions. He drove steadily
forward until Joe signaled to cut it again.
The other craft was very near them and over the motor's purr they could hear angry voices.
"It won't work!" one cried out. "Try it yourself!" Another shouted, "Move over, then!"
Frank, Joe, and Tony listened, grinning, while the men argued about the disabled boat.
Suddenly the Sleuth's motor was silent.
"They're drifting away," Frank said quietly.
Although Tony followed in the direction he thought the other boat was taking, the voices grew
faint.
Desperately Tony opened his throttle wide, then shut off the motor again to listen. The voices had ceased.
"The men must have heard us," Joe whispered. "They probably know they're being chased."
For a time the eerie pursuit continued, but at last Frank said, "It's no use. They could have drifted a mile away by now."
"Or they could be five feet from us," Joe whispered. "We'll never find them in this fog."
"Besides, we're low on gas," Tony added, and turned the Napoli toward Bayport.
"Joe and I will come to the party later," Frank told Tony. "I think Dad would like to hear our account of the bank robbery."
After dropping Frank and Joe at the Coast Guard pier, Tony returned his boat to its mooring and went back to Callie's house. Meanwhile, the brothers, dejected, cycled home. Opening the front door, they found their father in the hall taking his hat from the rack. Mr. Hardy stopped short.
"Tell me what you know about the bank holdup," he said crisply. His sons stared in surprise.
Then Frank grinned. "I guess Chief Collig told you about us, didn't he?"
"Yes," replied Mr. Hardy. "He just phoned to ask my help. I'm on my way downtown. Brief me quickly."
The detective listened with keen interest while his sons poured out the story of the robbery and the missing Sleuth.
"One thing is odd," Frank added when they had finished. "The tellers swear the thieves were all the same size and build."
Fenton Hardy smiled. "That's not so strange."
"You mean the men were identical in size?" Frank asked.
"Not at all," their father answered. "But a large mask will make a person's body seem smaller. A tiny face mask can make him look bigger."
"So the robbers used the masks to disguise their builds as well as their faces," said Frank.
"Exactly," his father answered. "It sounds like a very clever gang."
At that moment Aunt Gertrude came into the living room. "Fenton," she said, her voice sharp with disapproval, "there was a special news bulletin on the radio just now saying that you've taken on the Bayport bank robbery case."
"So I have," Mr. Hardy replied mildly, though the boys knew he was an expert at this. "At least to help the local authorities," he added.
"But why do they announce it?" his sister asked tartly. "The bank robbers may hear it, and who knows what those dangerous men might do to make you drop the easel"
"Don't worry, Gertrude," Mr. Hardy replied kindly. "I'll be careful. Thanks for the information, boys," he added, and hurried off.
Aunt Gertrude eyed Frank and Joe suspiciously. "What are you two going to do now?" she demanded.