Linda Carlton, Air Pilot Read online

  CHAPTER X

  _In the Hospital_

  When Ted Mackay opened his eyes at the hospital the following morning,he did not know where he was. Although he had regained consciousnesswhen the orderlies brought him in from the ambulance the day before, ithad not lasted long. An anesthetic was immediately administered, forit was necessary to cut into his arm, and later a drug was given tomake him sleep. So, for the moment, he could not understand why he washere--in a ward, undoubtedly, judging from the long row of cots againstthe wall.

  A dull aching pain in his arm and shoulder made him glance suspiciouslyat his left side. They were bandaged, of course. And then suddenly heremembered.

  He had been sent out with a new plane, from his company in KansasCity, to make delivery to a purchaser in Buffalo. Just before heleft, a radio message had been received from the Spring City FlyingSchool, asking all pilots and mechanics to look out for a stolen Waco.Naturally, Ted remembered the plane.

  He had been flying quite low, to make certain tests with the plane hewas delivering, over the fields beyond Green Falls, when he suddenlynoticed a wreck. Complying with the regulations of the Departmentof Commerce, he descended in order to report the casualty and torender assistance, if possible. Smashed as it was, he recognized itimmediately as the old Waco, which he had so often piloted at SpringCity. He looked about for the pilot, dreading to find his shatteredbody in the cockpit.

  He had been leaning over, peering into the bushes, when a gun went offat his back, hitting him on the left arm, near the shoulder. Reelingabout sharply, he just had time to see a shabbily dressed man run forthe new plane. And then everything went black; he couldn't recall whathappened, or how he got to the hospital.

  "The company's new plane!" he suddenly exclaimed aloud, attempting tosit up in his cot. "It's gone!"

  He looked about helplessly for the nurse, for anybody, to verify hisfears. But nobody came, although down the hall he could hear footstepsof people busy on their early morning duties.

  Warned by the pain in his shoulder, he sank back on his pillow to wait,and as he lay there quietly, he went back over the events of the pastweek that had been so eventful for him. He thought of Linda Carlton, ofthe pride and joy in her beautiful eyes when she had won her license.And of her farewell! A farewell that might easily be forever! Yetthrough no fault of his own, merely because his father had disgracedhimself.

  It had always been like that with Ted; it seemed as if his father hadtried to spoil his whole life. Just when the boy was ready to enterHigh School, Mr. Mackay had been dismissed from his job for stealingfrom the cash-drawer of the store where he was employed. The judge hadlet him off, for he knew what a splendid woman Mrs. Mackay was, andTed and his older sister had gone to work to pay the debt. It was hardsledding after that; Mr. Mackay wandered off, working now in one placeand now in another, and Ted put off his hopes of study for a while.Then, just as the family were getting ahead, and Ted had started in atan aviation school, the man came back for more money. The last theyheard of him was a year ago, when he had written that he had a realjob on a ranch in Texas. But evidently he had done something wrongthere, or Mr. Carlton would not be so bitter against his son.

  Ted's shoulder was hurting him badly, and his thoughts were notpleasant, so he uttered a weary sigh.

  "Well! Well!" exclaimed a cheery voice at the door. "Is the world assad as all that?"

  Ted's mouth relaxed into a smile, the smile that had won him so manyfriends at the Spring City Flying School. He had not heard the nurse, apretty probationer, who just entered the ward.

  "How's the shoulder this morning?" she asked him brightly. "You'relooking better, Mr. Mackay."

  "I'm all right," replied Ted, wondering how she knew his name. "But canyou give me any news of my plane?"

  "Your plane was wrecked, wasn't it?" she inquired.

  "No--I hope not! That was the other fellow's plane. The fellow thatshot me."

  "Oh, I see. Then there were two planes?"

  "Certainly. Didn't you know?... You seem to know my name----"

  "There were some letters in your pocket--don't you remember? And theaddress of a company in Kansas City.... But I don't think anybodyrealizes that there were _two_ planes--that you didn't wreck yours."

  "Oh, but I wouldn't wreck a plane in that way!" he protested. "Ithink too much of them!" His face lighted up with the enthusiasm healways showed when he talked about flying. "But I've got to get to atelephone!" he added. "I must notify my company immediately of theloss."

  "Probably your company knows all about it," she replied. "Anyway, youcan't do anything now--except lie still while I take your temperature.And then eat your breakfast. After your wound is dressed--if the doctoragrees----"

  "But I've got to get dressed right away! I want to notify them so thatthey can catch that bandit!"

  "Yes, yes. In due time. You must be patient."

  "You say they didn't know about that other fellow!" he cried,excitedly. "I tell you----"

  He stopped suddenly, for he saw that his nurse had gone off to anothercot. There was no use trying to argue with nurses, he learned, forthey had to follow the rules laid down by the doctors and the hospitalauthorities.

  So, for the next two hours he did exactly as he was told, not evenmaking an attempt to dress. For his nurse had informed him that he muststay there at least another day.

  He was dozing when a representative from his company called to see him.But the man urged the nurse not to disturb him, saying that he wouldcome again the following morning. She told him what she knew of Ted'sstory, and of his anxiety over the stolen plane, and he promised tosend out scouts in its pursuit.

  Ted's next two visitors were not so thoughtful of his welfare. Mr.Carlton and Ralph Clavering, who made the trip unknown to Linda,arrived about eleven o'clock, and asked that the young man be awakenedat once.

  "I think you had better come back tomorrow, if you want to talk to Mr.Mackay," said the nurse, noticing that the two men were not any toofriendly towards her patient, for they had not even inquired how hewas. "He mustn't be disturbed."

  "Then we'll wait until he wakes up," replied Mr. Carlton, firmly. "It'svery important that we speak with him as soon as possible."

  "You're from his company?" she asked.

  "No, we're not."

  "Just friends?"

  "No."

  "Then may I ask what reason you have for wishing to see Mr. Mackay atthis particular time?"

  "Business. Very important business. We think he is involved in thetheft of a very expensive necklace."

  "No!" cried the nurse, aghast. It couldn't be true! Why, she had neverseen anybody with franker eyes or a more truthful, honest face thanthis young man with the wounded arm! There must be some mistake.

  "Did he act as if he wanted to get out of the hospital as quickly aspossible?" asked Ralph, shrewdly.

  "Why, yes--but that was only natural. All men, especially young men,are impatient about staying here. Only last week, the day after a manwas operated on for appendicitis, he said he had to get back to hisoffice--he just had to! You should have heard him rave. We laughed athim."

  "Well, we'll sit down here in the reception room and read themagazines," announced Mr. Carlton. "And you send us word when he wakesup."

  There was nothing further she could do, but somehow she was againstthem. Already she was on Ted's side. She didn't believe he was one ofthose wicked gangsters you read about in the papers. Why, he was only aboy! A boy tremendously interested in aviation. She could see his eyesshine when he talked about flying, and the absolute tragedy he believedit to be because, a fine plane had been wrecked. It seemed worse to himthan being shot. Poor fellow! He would get well, of course, but wasthis going to cripple him so he wouldn't be able to fly?

  About twelve o'clock, when it was time for the lunch trays to bebrought in, he awakened. But the nurse had no intention of informingthose two men in the waiting-room.

  However, they did not wait to be informed. Perhaps Mr. Carltonsu
spected that the nurse was against him, or perhaps it was merely thathe knew that he hadn't much longer to stay--it was imperative that hereturn to his ranch that night. Anyway, he and Ralph strolled down thehall and found Ted eating his lunch. They walked right into the wardwithout asking the nurse's permission.

  "How d'do, Mackay," said Mr. Carlton, briefly. "How's your wound?"

  "Better, thank you, sir," replied Ted, smiling. He had recognizedLinda's father instantly, and a feeling of joy surged through him.What a decent thing for the man to do! Probably Linda had heard of hisaccident, and asked him to come to inquire for him. Of course he wastotally unaware of the loss of the pearls; he had no idea that thethief who had taken the two planes had done so for the sole purpose ofstealing a necklace.

  Remembering Ralph, too, he managed to smile at him also.

  "You certainly managed to wreck your plane," remarked Mr. Carlton, notknowing exactly how to begin. "You're in luck that you weren't killed!"

  "I didn't wreck _my_ plane, sir," corrected Ted, quietly. "It was thefellow who shot me that wrecked his--or rather the school's, for he hadstolen it from the Spring City Flying School, you know. Then he shot atme, and flew off in my plane."

  "Oh, is that so?" Mr. Carlton, raised his brows, and his eyes narrowed.He didn't believe a word of it.

  "And--er--how did you and this thief happen to be together?" heinquired.

  "I was taking a new plane to Buffalo, and flying low, making sometests, when I spotted the wreck. So I brought mine down."

  "You knew, then, that he had stolen Miss Clavering's pearls?"

  "What?" cried Ted, starting upright in bed, and then, shocked by thepain from his sudden movement, dropping back to his pillow.

  "You never heard of a valuable pearl necklace that this young man wascarrying from Spring City to his sister, by my daughter's plane?"persisted Mr. Carlton. His tone was mocking, insulting.

  "On my honor, Mr. Carlton----"

  "Come now, Mackay," interrupted Ralph. "Why not make a clean breast ofit? We know you--or this other fellow--heard Linda and me discussingit at the field, and we know you used him as an accomplice. We saw himhanging around outside----"

  "You are making a big mistake, Mackay," put in Mr. Carlton, "if youdon't confess everything now. I'd be willing to give you anotherchance--if you tell us how you can get a hold of that fellow, andget the necklace back. I know you weren't brought up right--it's notexactly your fault if you don't know right from wrong----"

  But this was too much for Ted to bear. The man was insulting hismother! If he hadn't been Linda's father, Ted would have struck him,crippled though he was. Instead, overpowered by nervous exhaustion, helet out a terrific scream that at least stopped the abuse.

  "I do know right from wrong!" he cried. "My mother is the finest womanthat ever lived, and she knew what to teach her children! What you sayis a lie!"

  By this time everybody in the ward was looking and listening inbreathless interest, and the head nurse, attracted by the noise,stopped in the corridor.

  "You men will leave at once," she commanded, from the doorway, and Mr.Carlton, who was so used to giving orders to others, found that foronce he had to obey. He and Ralph picked up their hats and were gonewithout another word.

  After that, Ted was quite ill. His temperature went up, and he becamedelirious. The little nurse was both angry and remorseful. It was herfault, she thought, for not keeping those dreadful men out. Accusing aninnocent boy like her patient!

  The visitors, however, went away dismayed. They hadn't proved a thing.

  "Unfortunately I have to leave tonight right after dinner," said Mr.Carlton, as Ralph drove him back to his sister's. "I guess we'll haveto turn the whole thing over to the detectives."

  "Well, we'll see what Greer and his men can do," replied the other."One good thing, Mackay can't get away from us, crippled as he is. Andthe other fellow is such a poor pilot that he'll crash sooner or later."

  "If he doesn't get out of the country first," muttered Mr. Carlton,dolefully.

  "What does Linda think about the affair?" inquired Ralph, for he hadnot seen the girl since her aunt helped her to go to bed the precedingafternoon.

  "I don't know. I haven't seen her. She was still asleep when I leftthis morning."

  "I imagine she believes Mackay guilty. That's what knocked her over soyesterday."

  "Well, she'll get over that," returned her father, briefly. And heinvited Ralph to come into the house for luncheon.

  The young man, however, had the good taste to decline. It would be aticklish situation at best--and besides, Linda ought to have some timeto be alone with her father, if he were leaving so soon.

  "But tell Linda I'll be over after dinner," he added. "The bunch isplanning a canoe party."