CHAPTER XII

DISAPPOINTMENT

“What do you suppose his game is?” asked Bob, as the auto containing Noddy and two others shot around a curve in the main road, leaving a cloud of dust behind.

“His game was to delay us long enough to catch up to us, I think,” explained Jerry. “You see he lost time when he had to stop to fix his tires, and he’s depending on us to show him the way to Snake Island, since he failed to get any clews as he sneaked around. But he spoiled his own chances. We’re behind him now, and he’ll have his own troubles tracing us.”

“Are you going to let him get a long way in advance?” asked Ned.

“I think so. The more trouble we can give him to pick us up the better--for us. I’m even going to get off the main road, if I can, and take a less-used route.”

“The nerve of him charging us with assault and battery, just because he happened to run over a few tacks!” exclaimed Bob, with an air of virtuous indignation.

“Well, I suppose it did batter them up a bit,” remarked Jerry with a smile. “The auto stopped rather suddenly, you remember.”

“It sure did,” agreed Ned. “But say, I wonder who that other chap is with Noddy. I saw Bill Berry plainly enough, but I can’t imagine who the other fellow is.”

“I had a glimpse of his face,” said Professor Snodgrass, looking up from his note book. “I have seen him before, somewhere, but I can’t recollect where. I never forget a face, but the association sometimes escapes me. However, I may recall it later. I think--hold on, Jerry, don’t move!” he exclaimed suddenly, for the tall lad had reached forward to start the car. “There’s a fine, big yellow-backed toad at the foot of that stump. I must get it. It isn’t as valuable as the two-tailed one, but it is a very good specimen,” and the scientist leaped out and was soon in possession of the toad, which he clapped into a box.

“All ready now?” asked Jerry, with his hand on the gear lever.

“All ready--unless I see something else,” answered Uriah Snodgrass, and the auto rolled slowly forward. Noddy had been given enough start so that there was no danger of catching up to him unless he halted, and he was not likely to do that, Jerry thought. At the first farmhouse they stopped to inquire their way on some less frequented road, and, learning it, they took another highway, which, while not so good to travel on, made it less likely that they would meet or pass the bully.

For three days they traveled on, having fine weather on all but one--the day after their “arrest.” Then it rained from morning until night, and they progressed through water and mud, which cut down their speed.

They were dry and fairly comfortable, however, for the closed car was as snug as a bungalow, and they could cook and sleep inside. Then the weather cleared, and, save for muddy roads, there was no discomfort.

“And we seem to have given Noddy the slip,” remarked Jerry, one day, for they had neither seen nor heard anything of their enemy or his companions. “We’re having fine luck.”

They had been traveling by auto over a week, and were getting close to Denver, whence they would make the rest of the trip by airship, when there came a turn in the good fortune that had, so far, accompanied them.

They were going down a hill, one evening into a little town when the foot brake unexpectedly broke, and they started off at a rapid pace. Jerry, however, quickly threw in the emergency, and brought the car up before any harm had resulted.

“Hum! This is a nice pickle!” exclaimed the tall lad. “Now we’ve got to lay over until this is fixed.”

“Maybe we can have it fixed over night,” suggested Ned. “There’s a combined blacksmith shop and garage just ahead,” and he pointed to it. “If we pay extra we can have the man work all night on the brake, and have it ready for us in the morning. There must be some sort of a hotel here, where we can put up.”

“Fine!” cried Bob. “Then I won’t have to cook supper.”

“No, but you’ll eat it,” said Jerry. “But I guess Ned’s plan is a good one.”

The blacksmith, who also did auto repair work, agreed, for an extra fee, to put in the night fixing the brake, and the car being left at his shop, the boys went to the only hotel in the village of Lafayette.

“Here’s the register,” spoke the landlord, handing over the book to the boys and the professor. “Supper’ll soon be ready.”

“That’s good,” murmured Bob, and his chums laughed as they advanced to sign their names. As Jerry put his down first, he uttered a cry of surprise, and pointed to the signatures just above where theirs were to go.

“Great Scott!” exclaimed Ned, looking over his chum’s shoulder. “Noddy Nixon, and Bill Berry! They were here a couple of days ago!”

“And that must be the mysterious man who was with them,” added Jerry, pointing to the signature of Dr. Kirk Belgrade.

“Kirk Belgrade! Kirk Belgrade!” murmured Professor Snodgrass, as he saw the signature. “Where have I heard that name before? Where have I seen that face?” He was in deep thought for a moment, and then he exclaimed:

“Oh, I have it! Belgrade. Yes, he was an instructor at my college a few years ago. A smart man, but he did some underhand work, and he was asked to resign. The last I heard of him he had started a sort of mushroom correspondence school. Poor Belgrade! He was a brilliant scholar, but he wanted to live by his wits, instead of working.”

“What can he be doing with Noddy?” asked Ned.

“Give it up,” murmured Bob. “I wonder when supper will be ready, and what we’ll have to eat?”

Jerry was in deep thought.

“Professor Snodgrass,” he asked suddenly, “what branch of science did this Dr. Belgrade teach in college?”

“Well, his specialty was electricity, and I remember when radium was first discovered that he took a great interest in it. He even wrote a paper on it, that was considered very good. Another thing, though perhaps I should not speak of it. Our college had a small specimen of radium, that one of the founders bought, and presented to the laboratory. One day it disappeared, and it was the same day Belgrade was asked to resign.

“There was talk that he might know something about it, but the faculty considered that he had disgraced our school enough by something else he did, so they did not press the radium matter. Belgrade sold examination papers to some of the students. He was too brilliant, I’m afraid, for his own good. And now to think he is in with Noddy Nixon!”

“Yes, and I believe I know what for!” exclaimed Jerry. “Noddy has taken him along as an authority on radium, for Noddy wouldn’t know it from a lump of clay. I begin to see things now. Fellows, we’ve got to be on our guard. I wish Noddy was behind us instead of ahead of us!”

“Why, do you think he’ll get to Snake Island before we do?” asked Ned.

“He may,” replied Jerry grimly. “But he’ll have his work cut out to beat us. I wish that brake hadn’t smashed. I’d like to be traveling now.”

But there was no help for it. They had to wait until morning, and then they took to the road again. For two days more they traveled on and then, unexpectedly running out of gasolene one night they had to lay over again for a half hour while the garage dealer supplied them. He was out, too, but the tank wagon, with a supply was on its way, he said.

“Had another auto here, a while ago, and they took my last gallon,” explained the garage attendant. “Fellow by the name of Blixen, or something like that. Mighty fresh, too. He wanted to beat me down on my price.”

“Wasn’t it Nixon, and not Blixen?” asked Jerry quickly.

“Well, that might have been it. I didn’t pay much attention. His auto was badly in need of repairs, and I sort of asked if he didn’t want me to fix it. He said he didn’t as they were only going on a little farther.”

“A little farther,” remarked Jerry, for it was still some distance to Denver, where Noddy was undoubtedly headed for. It was common knowledge that the _Comet_, the airship of our heroes, was in Denver, for the papers had contained many accounts of how it had broken records at the big meet. Noddy could not have helped seeing them, and, naturally, he would suspect that the motor boys were going to pick up their craft.

“Well, he said he and his crowd were going to take a train the rest of the way,” went on the garage man. “They were going to Belmont station, and take the train there. Here comes the gasolene. I’ll soon have your tanks filled.”

“Fellows, we’ve got to do something!” exclaimed Jerry to his companions, as the gasolene was being put in. “Noddy may get ahead of us after all, and reach Denver first, if he takes a train.”

“What can we do?” asked Ned.

“Leave the auto, and take a train ourselves,” replied the tall lad.

“That’s it!” cried Bob. “Beat him at his own game!”

“Then we’ll do it,” decided Jerry. “How far is it to Belmont?” he asked of the garage man, as he paid for the gasolene.

“About twenty miles.”

“Can you get a through train there for Denver, Colorado?”

“No, only locals stop there. But if you want to go to Denver, I can tell you a better way. Why don’t you go to Meldon station. That’s only ten miles farther on, and the Denver Limited stops there. You can make it I guess,” and he looked at his watch. “She leaves there at nine o’clock to-night, and it’s one of the few stops until she hits Denver. You can only get locals at Belmont. The Limited beats them all to pieces.”

“We’ll do it!” cried Jerry. “Come on, fellows! On to Meldon!”

“You’ve got to travel pretty fast,” the man warned them. “And the roads aren’t very good--especially at night.”

“We can do it!” cried Jerry. “Meldon for ours, and we’ll beat Noddy on his local!”

They were soon chugging down the road, in the gathering darkness. Bob started to get supper, when Jerry stopped a little later to light the powerful gas lamps, and then they went on at increased speed. Jerry drove the car as fast as was safe, but their bad luck pursued them, for they took the wrong turn at a point five miles from Meldon, and went eight miles out of their way.

“Oh hang it!” cried Ned when they were set right by a truck farmer on a load of produce. “Can we make it, Jerry?”

“I guess so,” and the tall lad threw the gasolene lever over a couple more notches, and advanced the spark full.

The big car fairly bounded along, and it seemed as if they would get to Meldon in time to catch the Limited. But they struck a stretch of sand that held them back. However, Jerry drove on like mad, and soon the lights of the station came into view.

“What are you going to do with the car?” cried Ned above the noise of the motor.

“Leave it with the agent, and have him store it for us,” replied Jerry. “I guess we’re in plenty of time, fellows,” he cried with a look at his watch. “I thought it was later.”

He stopped the car with a screech of brakes at the station, and jumped out.

“You fellows get out the baggage, and I’ll see to the tickets!” he cried.

“Don’t leave any of my specimens!” cried the professor.

Jerry rushed up to the ticket agent behind his little barred window.

“Four tickets through to Denver!” exclaimed the tall lad. “On the Limited! We’ve got quite some baggage and I’d like to leave our auto in your care. We’ll pay you well.”

“The Limited pulled out of here about an hour ago,” said the man. “You’re too late.”

“Too late? Why it isn’t nine o’clock yet!” and Jerry looked at his watch.

“Guess you must be wrong, friend,” spoke the agent. “That clock is standard time for this section of the country.”

Jerry looked at his watch and gave a low whistle.

“By Jove! She’s stopped,” he cried. “That’s it. I forgot to wind my watch last night. Oh, what a chump!”

“Then we’ve missed the Limited,” said Ned.

“And Noddy Nixon is ahead of us,” added Bob.

“I’m afraid so,” admitted Jerry, a look of disappointment on his face. “Has the local from Belmont gone?” he asked.

“Some time ago,” replied the agent. “She doesn’t stop here. The Limited will have passed her by now, though.”

The boys said nothing. They did not know what to do. Their enemy was ahead of them, and they were stranded. The professor was calmly looking for bugs on the wall of the depot.