CHAPTER XVII
KIDNAPPED
If Hiram Dobbs had not pronounced so serious a warning only a few hoursprevious, Dave would not have paid much attention to the incident of themoment.
Hiram had spoken of two rough looking characters in the company of JerryDawson. Here were a couple who filled the bill, strangers to Dave, andyet speaking his name in a way that was sinister.
“They’re gone, whoever they are,” said Dave a few moments later, anddismissed them from his mind for the time being.
He walked down the row of automobiles and other vehicles lining the mainentrance road. There was quite a crowd. General admission to the groundswas free to any one respectable that day and evening.
Outside of the curious visitors who had gone the rounds of the hangars,there were groups of airmen and others discussing the features of themorrow’s flights.
Dave passed along through the crowds, interested in all he saw. When hegot to that part of the broad roadway where the booths and crowds weresparser, he deviated to cross towards the hangars at one side of thegreat course.
He met a few people and here and there came across tents given to theexhibiting of some new model, or occupied by employees who worked aboutthe field. Most of those who ate and slept on the grounds, however, weredown at the center of animation near the big gate, and Dave’s walk was arather lonely one.
“It’s going to be the week of my life,” thought the youth. “I wonder ifthere’s any hope at all of my taking a flight, as Hiram hinted. Not butthat I believe I could manage a biplane as well as any amateur. Hello!”
Dave was rudely aroused from his glowing dreams as he passed a tentwhere a man with a lantern was tinkering over a motorcycle. Happening toglance back, Dave saw two stealthy figures in the dim distance.
“They are the men I noticed at the entrance,” decided Dave. “There,they’ve split up. One has gone out of sight around the tent, and theother has made a pretence of stopping to watch the fellow mending thatmotorcycle.”
Dave hastened his speed, making straight for the hangars. The row inwhich Mr. King housed his machine was quite remote from the others. Itwas bright starlight, and glancing over his shoulders several times Davewas sure that he made out the two men he was suspicious of following inhis tracks.
They neared him as he passed a row of temporary buildings. Dave had amind to stop at one of these until his pursuers, if such they were, hadmade themselves scarce. Then, however, as he glanced around, he caughtno sight of them.
“Pshaw!” said Dave, “what am I afraid of? Perhaps I’m making a mysteryout of nothing. If those fellows intended to do me any harm, they’d havegot at me long since. They’ve had plenty of chances. I’ll make a beeline for home and forget all about them.”
Dave put across an unoccupied space. At its edge were three temporarybuildings. Two he knew held airships. One was quite famous. It belongedto a wealthy man named Marvin, who made aeronautics a fad. His machinewas a splendid military monoplane of the latest model, and was listed todo some heavy air work in the next day’s programme.
All the buildings were dark. Nobody seemed in their vicinity until Daveneared the larger one of the three where the military machine washoused. Then suddenly around one corner of the canvas house two men cameinto view.
“We’ve run him home, I guess,” spoke the quick voice of one of them.
“Yes, there he goes, making for the tent,” was the retort given in abreath.
Dave recognized the men as the fellows who had been so persistentlyfollowing him. They had run ahead, it seemed, and waited for his coming.As they made a move towards him, showing that they intended to reach andseize him, Dave started running around the other side of the building.At this the men separated. One circled the building and headed him off.Dave ran back ten feet out of sight. Then, hearing the other fellowrunning on from the opposite direction, Dave crowded through a half opensliding door.
“He’s gone,” sounded on the outside, a minute later.
“No, he’s slipped into that shed. I tell you we’ve run him home, and ifnobody else is around we can soon finish up our business neat andquick.”
Dave did not know what that “business” was. He stood still in thedarkness and listened. His hand had touched the bamboo edge of a machinewing. He was thinking of seeking a hiding place, or some other door orwindow outlet from the shed, when a sudden flash blinded and confusedhim.
His pursuers had followed him into the place. One of them carried aportable electric light. Pressing its button, and focussing its raysfirst on one spot and then on another, its holder soon rested a steadyglare on Dave.
“There he is,” sounded out.
“Yes, grab him.”
“All right.”
“Got him?”
“Sure and safe.”
Dave’s captor had great brawny hands and handled the youth as he would achild. The men had come prepared for rough and ready action. The ruffianhad felled Dave with a jerk and a slam, kept beside him, and in atwinkling had his hands and feet bound tightly. Dave set up a sharpoutcry.
“We’ll soon settle that,” said his captor grimly.
Dave’s lips were muffled with a gag so tightly fastened that for a fewminutes he could scarcely breathe. The man who had dealt so summarilywith him arose to his feet.
“What now?” asked his companion.
“Go out and see if the coast is clear.”
“I know it is—our way. We’re to make direct for the high fence behindthe hangars. Near the freight gate, you know. We can open it from theinside.”
“Let’s be in a hurry, then. Remember there’s something else to do.”
“I haven’t forgotten it. The job’s easy this far. Come ahead.”
“We’ll have to carry him?”
“Yes.”
Dave was lifted up and swung along by the two men as if he were a bag ofgrain. They made straight for the high rear fence of the grounds. Thisthey followed for a few hundred feet.
“Here’s the gate,” announced one of the men, and they dropped Dave tothe ground.
There was a jangling of chains and hasps. From where he lay Dave couldsee the open country beyond the gateway. He was carried through. Severalvehicles were in view, and the horses attached to most of them werehitched to trees or the fence supports. Their owners, Dave judged, wereup at a place some distance away. Here there were lights and animation.Dave knew that the building was located there, outside of the grounds,where the supplies from farmers and by rail were received.
“Say,” spoke one of the men carrying him, “there’s half a dozen horsesand wagons here.”
“Well, it’s a light wagon with a white horse we were directed to.”
“There it is—see that white horse yonder?”
“I guess you’re right. Toddle along. This is no light lump of ayoungster.”
The men reached a light wagon. Its box was littered with straw and a lotof empty bags. It looked to Dave as if its owner had brought a load ofpotatoes to the aero meet.
“Give him a hoist,” ordered one of the men.
Dave was lifted, swung, and dropped. He sank down among the bags and thestraw almost out of sight.
“Now where’s the man we were to meet, the driver of the wagon?” inquiredthe fellow who had bound and gagged Dave.
“Oh, he’ll probably be here soon. You stay and wait for him and give himhis orders. I’ll go back and finish up the job.”
“You can’t do it alone. It won’t take but a few minutes. You may want meto hold a light, or something.”
“Got the tools?”
“Yes”—and the last speaker jangled something metallic in his pockets.
“All right. Let’s waste no time. This is pretty neat, I call it—the ladsettled, and the machine no good. I’m thinking old King will do somestorming, when he tries another flight.”
“I think so, too. Come on,” was the retort, and the two men di
sappearedthrough the gateway of the aviation field.
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