The Sky Detectives; Or How Jack Ralston Got His Man Read online

  CHAPTER II

  THE LUCK OF SCOTTY

  "Happen to have that pocketbook along with you, Scotty?" asked Jack, ina matter of fact tone; just as though he might be possessed of ordinarycuriosity concerning so amazing a visit; since never before had he heardof a night prowler leaving his own money behind him, when his intentionhad been to rob his victim.

  "Sure thing, Jack," promptly replied the air mail pilot; "here, take asquint at my Christmas present, dropped in by old Santa Claus a bitbefore the reg'lar holiday season," and with a laugh he chucked theobject in question into the hand of the other.

  "Old, just as you remarked, Scotty," observed Jack, "and used a longtime. It must have slipped out of his pocket when he worked your stuffover to mix it up like the devil."

  "Open it up and see what the blessed chump left me in place of hiscard," the other continued, looking exceedingly proud over his luckyfind.

  Jack did that with alacrity; in fact it was what he intended doing, forreasons of his own; something more than curiosity influencing him, itwould appear.

  "Gee whiz! a neat little bunch of the needful, I'd say, Scotty, oldhoss!" burst out the envious Perk, his eyes fixed full upon the contentsof the much worn pocketbook, which Jack was holding in his hand andapparently interested in counting, for there were a number of bank notesfor various amounts, and among them just three five-dollar bills,seemingly quite fresh, though a bit soiled, as though they had been incirculation.

  "Nineteen smackers in all," announced Perk, showing that he had alsobeen keeping tabs on the count. "Well, wouldn't that knock you coldthough? Huh? that same caller must've been looking for _me_, and justmissed connections by striking the next door. Well, here's wishing youthe same old luck every time a sneak thief pays you a visit, Scottyboy."

  Jack on his part was feeling of the three five-dollar bills, and holdingthem up to the light from the western sun that managed to come into thehangar by way of the open doors.

  "What ails you, Jack?" demanded the recipient of Fortune's smiles, as henoticed these strange actions on the part of his new friend.

  "Nothing much," he was told, "only I'm going to give you a bit ofadvice, partner, if you don't mind."

  "Go to it, boy; always willing to take it when it seems sound!" snappedthe mail carrier, briskly enough, still more than curious.

  "If you're wise, Scotty," went on Jack, smilingly, "you'll not try topass any one of these five-dollar bills until you've asked the opinionof some bank teller--it might get you into trouble."

  "Zowie! what's that you're saying, Jack--don't tell me they're off-colorbills, counterfeits in fact. Wouldn't that be a rotten deal to hand out,and me figgering how I'd spend them? Is _that_ what you mean?"

  "I reckon it's so, Scotty, much as I hate to knock your good luck," Jacktold him, with a shake of his head. "I happened to have a littleexperience in a small bank some years ago and they did say I showedsigns of being a clever detector of bad money. That's a clever job allright; but I'm afraid it won't stand the wash worth a cent. Go slow, anddon't count your chickens before they're hatched. Also I'd advise younot to go around telling about your windfall until you've shown thisstuff to some friendly bank official, whose advice you'd be willing totake. If he says it's good stuff why forget what I'm saying, and go thelimit. But we'd better be finishing our own job, Perk, and get off onour jump."

  Scotty hung around for a short time, looking puzzled, as though hehardly knew how much to believe. What Jack had said in his friendlyfashion had doubtless cast quite a damper on certain bright dreams inwhich he had been indulging. However, he finally decided to take himselfoff, evidently eager to know whether the laugh was on him or not, for hecalled out:

  "Goodbye, Jack, Perk; and be sure to look me up when next you drop in atCandler Field Airport; like as not I'll still be on my old job here,unless they decide to transfer me somewhere else. And say, Jack, I'mmeaning to take your advice, and get an opinion on this here stuff 'foreI try to pass it out on any old duffer. So-long boys and luck!"

  When the two comrades, adventure bound, found themselves alone theylooked at each other in silence for almost a full minute, when a grinstarted to travel over Perk's well bronzed face.

  "Say, wouldn't it jar you though, to have such luck knock at your door,and then give you a sly kick?" he demanded of his companion.

  "To tell the honest truth, Perk, I'm not thinking about Scotty and hisqueer windfall; it's our own great good luck that's making me suspectwe're bound to carry this job through with flying colors."

  "Eh? now what d'ye mean by saying that?" asked the other hastily.

  "Right in the beginning, Perk, we seem to have stumbled on a nice littleplum in the shape of a clue--flung directly at our heads, you might sayin the bargain."

  "Glory be! do you mean to tell me those bogus notes were off the sameplates we've been hearing so much about lately that I've been dreamin' Iwas tied hand an' foot, an' poked under a dozen bales of them?"

  "Just that, as sure as you live, partner," said Jack, composedly; but ifhe could take it so coolly, not so his right bower who showed signs ofextreme excitement and satisfaction, for he thrust out his hand, thathad so often been an object of vast respect on the part of some welterweight boxer, and insisted that Jack accept a gentle shake.

  "We're sure Fortune's favorites," Perk was saying, striking an attitudeas he thus proudly spoke; "an' with such luck hoverin' over our heads Ivow all the Lower Regions with its devils can't prevail against us. Butsee here, old hoss, there's more than chance in this break o' the partywho broke through Scotty's door, and panned all his traps--I guess nowhe must have missed a cylinder, an' jest passed us by in a ground loop."

  Jack was accustomed to the other's quaint way of expressing himself, forhe lost no time in adding:

  "About that way, I take it, Perk. And if what we suspect turns out to betrue, it stands to reason there's some sort of big combine back of itall."

  "With this same Slippery Slim Garrabrant pulling the wires for the wholebunch, is that what you mean, Jack?" demanded the other flyer quickly;for when once set on the right track Perk's mind could travel speedilyenough.

  "It's certainly his brain that's built up this wide flim-flam trade inthe make believe green stuff that's been fooling a whole lot of banktellers, it's so near the genuine article. To smash the combine we'vegot to check up on Slim; after he's caged the entire arrangement's boundto fall through."

  "I get you, partner; and them's my sentiments every time," admitted theeager Perk. "And here, when we're starting out to pull off our freshstunt, I'm wishing all the luck that's going to our little game. Meaningto give her a last checking over, eh, Jack?"

  "It's a habit of mine, as you know, Perk; and you might amuse yourselfstowing the cargo we've taken aboard, so's to let us have room for ourfeet when we take off. From the looks of the junk you picked upanybody'd reckon we planned to go into camp for a week or two."

  "Well, mebbe that's what'll happen to us before we strike pay dirt inthis ticklish job," asserted Perk, stoutly. "You know we figgered thingsout, and made up our minds this same slick article of a Slim might havehis hangout over the line in Old Mexico, where he prints his bad bills,and then comes across the line with a big bunch in his ship, so's toscatter the stuff around to his agents in Texas and Arizona, or it mightbe all through Southern California. If that guess turns out to be abullseye we might be away off the line of travel for days at a stretch,and a grub stake'd turn the trick okay, I'm thinking, boss."

  Jack made no reply, for he was already busily engaged in looking overhis crate. This was, as he had mentioned, an old habit, contracted inthe early days of his career as an aviator of sorts; and most likelysuch extreme caution had saved his life more than once.

  As he too worked close by, Perk was thinking more or less aboutsomething that had caught his ever watchful eye just before they enteredthe hangar to make these last preparations for their southern flight. Asusual h
e was unable to keep his speculations entirely to himself, sincehe always liked to compare notes, and find out whether his companion'sviews coincided with his own.

  "Say, Jack, did you happen to notice that Ryan ship they'd just takenout of the shed before ours?" he demanded, while still lifting packagesof various supplies, and stowing them away in a shipshape fashion; sothey would not be likely to shift, and thus imperil the safety ofhimself and comrade, should they chance to encounter rough weather lateron.

  "Not particularly," came the answer. "I was too busy over my own affairsto bother with anything that didn't concern me in the least. What of it,Perk?"

  "Nothing much, old hoss, only it was a next to new bus, and hadn't beenflown more'n a few thousand air miles, I'd guess. Couple of fellersseemed to be the crew, one of 'em lookin' like he might be a pilot; andthe other a chap that was out to have a jolly good time sportin' forsport. I saw him handlin' some sort of gun, which made me guess he wasdown South for the shootin' season--mebbe after bear in the Louisianacanebrakes."

  Jack laughed as if amused, for he had noted the way in which the othermade this stab at what might be the designs of the unknown parties.

  "Feel a bit envious I take it, Perk," he observed, laconically. "Alwaysdid yearn for the day to come when you'd have a ship of your own, andcould spend all your spare time jumping about the country, enjoyingyourself with rod and gun. Cheer up, old sport, you may live to see thatday yet, if things break right for us in a few big games like this onewe're running down."

  "Thanks for your good luck wishes, Jack," the other was saying; "I c'njust picture the bully times that pair'll like enough have sitting bytheir camp-fire, living on game they've knocked over, and not caring adarn whether school keeps or not. Oh! well, if I live long enough mebbeI may have a whiff of that kind of life before I kick off for keeps;they say everything comes to the man who waits, and that's me. There,that finishes my job, with everything stowed away as slick as youplease. When you're ready, Jack, we'll be on our way."