CHAPTER XXIII
THE WRECKED AEROPLANE
The girls never remembered very clearly what happened after that. Theyhad a vague and confused recollection of seeing the boys gathered aroundsomething in the bushes at the brook that groaned a little and made queersputtering noises.
Then the boys bent down and began extricating the groaning thing from thewreck of something.
"Chet, what is it?" cried Billie, with an impression that she was livinga dream. She tried to push past him, but her brother stopped her.
"Stay away, Sis," he ordered. "The poor fellow's hurt--we don't know howbadly--and I'd rather you would go back to the house."
"But if he's hurt, there's all the more need for us," insisted Billie,sudden decision in her voice. "We know first aid. Let us past, boys."
Not exactly knowing why they obeyed her, the boys drew aside and she ranto the side of the prostrate figure on the ground, the other girlsfollowing half reluctantly.
The boys had succeeded in removing the man from the wreckage--oneglance about them told the girls that the wreck had once been anaeroplane--and the man, who was elderly, lay quite still, looking up atthem with sick eyes.
"Oh, can't we get him up to the house?" cried Billie, clasping her handsin pity and looking appealingly at Mrs. Gilligan. "Then we can send fora doctor--"
But it was the hurt man himself who interrupted.
"I--I'm all in," he said, speaking with great effort. "It won't do anygood to move me--"
"But it might," cried Violet, coming down and leaning compassionatelyover him while her eyes filled with tears. "Do you think--it wouldhurt--too much--"
"Come on. Let's try it, fellows," said Teddy, speaking with suddendecision. "We can't leave him here to die, perhaps," he added softly. "Wecan at least make an attempt to save his life."
He bent down, and, putting a hand under each of the man's arms, liftedhim slightly, eliciting a moan of pain.
"You take his feet, Chet, and, Ferd, you support his back," he directed."Now then--"
The boys started to obey, but at the first touch the man cried out insuch pain that they were forced to put him down again.
"It's something in here," said the old fellow, while the girls and boysstood looking helplessly at him, not knowing what to do. He put a handover his left side. "Something's broken. I--I was trying to--invent a newkind of aeroplane," he went on jerkily, and in spite of the tragiccircumstances the young folks felt a thrill of excitement as theyrealized that here perhaps was the secret of that strange humming noisethat had so badly frightened and bewildered them.
"The second ghost," murmured Teddy softly, as though to himself, butBillie, standing close beside him, heard.
"A new kind of aeroplane," Chet prompted, gently but with an unusuallight in his eye.
"Yes. And this was its--trial flight," the old man said with a world ofbitterness in his voice. "The engine exploded. I guess it shows that I'mpretty much of a failure--in every way."
"I don't see why," cried Billie, her warm heart eager to give himcomfort. "There may have been just some little thing the matter thatyou--What's that?"
"That" was the sound of running feet and a crackling of bushes, and thenext minute two men burst out into the clearing. They were red of faceand breathless, and when they saw the old man and the wrecked machinethey stood stock still and stared in consternation.
With a start the girls and boys recognized the men as those whom theyhad met in the woods that other day not so long ago--the men who had socurtly ordered them to "go the other way."
So the corn story was a fish story after all, and the old inventor'svain attempt to make a new kind of flying machine was the key to allthe mystery!
"Are you very much hurt, Dad?" cried the younger of the two men, leaninganxiously over the old man. Again the young folks were startled. So oneof the bearded men was the old man's son!
"All in, Son, I guess," answered the old man. With a sigh he laid hishand over his left side and whispered: "I'm all smashed to pieces. Theengine exploded."
"Well, let's see about that," said the second of the two men, pushing theyounger aside and beginning to rip open the old man's shirt.
Up to that time neither of the men had thrown a glance in the directionof the wondering boys and girls--in fact they gave every impression ofnot having seen them at all.
The older of the two men was working feverishly--he seemed to be adoctor, judging from the skill with which he tapped here and pressedthere, evidently trying to find out what bones were broken, if any.
And all the time the old inventor kept up a feeble moaning.
"He must be very much hurt indeed, or very, very old," thought Billieas, with one hand clasped tightly in Laura's and the other grippingViolet's arm, she watched intently.
"Why, this isn't so bad after all," announced the man at last, looking upfrom his patient with a light in his eyes that made him look very boyishin spite of the beard on his face. "Your father's terribly bruised andbattered up, Stanton," he said, addressing the old man's son, who hadbeen looking on with strained attention, "but as far as I can see theonly bones broken are a rib or two. We'll soon fix you up as good asnew," he went on, turning again to the old man.
The latter looked surprised and left off moaning.
"You mean I'm going to live?" he asked incredulously, adding with a faintlittle attempt at a smile: "Why--why, I was sure I was--done for!"
"No indeed," said the "doctor-person"--as Billie had already dubbed him,rising briskly to his feet. "You'll live to fly many another aeroplane,Mr. Parsons. Now will you let your son and me take you home?"
Such is the power of mind over matter, the inventor hardly made anyoutcry at all when his son and the "doctor-person" lifted him betweenthem and started off through the woods.
As he turned about, the doctor's eyes rested on the boys and girls and hestopped short, apparently really seeing them for the first time.
"Hello," he said. "I beg your pardon, but I scarcely noticed you,"adding, more by way of explanation than excuse: "You see I was very muchoccupied."
"Oh, we don't mind," said Billie truthfully, adding as the doctor turnedtoward her: "Is there anything we can do to help the--the inventor?"
"Oh, so he told you then," said the doctor, with a vexed frown. "No,thanks, there's nothing you can do. We'll be back for the pieces of theaeroplane later."
And without another glance the strange trio disappeared into the woods.
For a long minute the boys and girls stood staring after the strange mendazedly, then they turned to each other with a sigh.
"Well!" said Laura explosively, "if everything isn't happening to us atonce, then my name isn't Laura Jordon. To think that our ghost turned outto be an inventor after all!"
"You look as if you were disappointed," gibed Ferd, beginning to recoverfrom his bewilderment. "We'll manufacture a brand new ghost if you sayso, but it may take time--"
"Goodness, you needn't bother," said Violet, going over to the wreckedmachine and regarding it wonderingly. "We've had enough of ghosts to lastus a lifetime. My, that poor old inventor must have had a terrible fall."
"It's a miracle," said Teddy, who had joined her and was looking down atthe wreck soberly, "that he ever came out alive. I agreed with him atfirst, that he was all in."
"Well, let it be a lesson to you," said Chet with mock gravity, "never tolet your ambitions soar to aeroplane inventing."
"If that's meant to be a joke," said Laura bitingly, "I must say it's asmuch of a failure as our old inventor himself. Well, girls," she added,turning back to them, "I don't suppose there's any use staying aroundhere any longer. Let's go back to the house."
It was not till they were entering the grim old door of the grim oldhouse that they thought again of Billie's new discovery--the trunkthat jingled.
"Goodness! how could we ever have forgotten it?" cried Billie as she,with Violet and Laura, fairly flew up the stairs, leaving the bewilderedboys to follow them.
/> "Now what's up?" asked Teddy, as he came into the room where the girlshad left their treasure. "So many things are happening all at once thatit's enough to make a fellow's brain reel."
"It all depends on the brain," said Billie, looking up at him with atwinkle in her eye. And all Teddy did was to look sad and reproachful.
"Say, what shall I be doin' with this?" asked Mrs. Gilligan, and theyturned to see her great bulk looming in the doorway. In her hand sheheld the rat trap with the dangling rat.
"Gee, where did you get it?" cried Chet, jumping to his feet from wherehe had been kneeling with Billie, examining the shabby trunk.
Mrs. Gilligan paused a moment and a gleam of humor shot into her eyes.
"You've been askin' to see ghosts, Mr. Chet," she said, with a chuckle,"and you sure have got your wish this day. That airman was the first.Here is the second one!"