The Secret of Skull Mountain (16 page)

The Hardys slipped on the gas masks which were still slung over their shoulders, and started up the shaft after the four men. The passage was smooth and wide, so that they quickly reached the fork, and hurried onto the low-roofed tunneL By the time they had crawled halfway up it, the air was filling with smoke and they could hear coughing and strangled cries for help. In a few minutes their flashlights revealed the men clutching at their throats as they gasped for breath.

Helpless, the four were dragged by the Hardys up through the tunnel and out the opening in the mountaintop. After disarming the men and tying them up, the boys took off the gas masks. It was several minutes before any of the rescued men could speak. Then Kleng glared at his captors. “You!” he sputtered.

“Look who's coming!” Frank exclaimed.

Climbing the mountainside were Bob and Dick. A few steps behind them came Chet Morton, Fenton Hardy, and several policemen.

“Dad!” Frank exclaimed in delight as the party reached the top of the trail. “When did you get back?”

“Not long ago,” Mr. Hardy said, and grinned when he saw the captured men. “Too late for the action, though!” He told them that he had wound up the Chicago end of the case sooner than he had expected and had been in Chief Collig's office when Chet's call came.

“When Dick and I got to the mouth of the tunnel,” Bob spoke up, “your dad already had Hawkins in handcuffs!”

“I left him at the foot of the hill in care of the police,” Mr. Hardy explained. “Several officers went into the cavern to escort Dr. Foster and the hermit out.” The detective turned to Kleng and Stoper. “The law especially wants you two,” he told them, “for holding Dr. Foster against his will. Your pals are already in jail!”

The four men glowered but said nothing. The police hauled them to their feet and marched them down the trail.

Chet grimaced. “I'm glad that's all over!”

Fenton Hardy laughed and threw his arm around the boy. “Chet, you did your part well!”

“You bet he did!” Frank said sincerely.

Joe sighed. “Well, I guess this winds up the mystery!”

“Don't take it so hard,' Frank comforted him with a grin. “Another one will turn up soon!”

Although he did not realize it at the time, Frank was speaking the truth. The Hardy boys were closer than they knew to the mystery connected with
The Sign of the Crooked Arrow.

Now, standing on the crest of Skull Mountain, the young detectives, their father, and their friends stared down Tarnack Valley. Soon the mouth of the prehistoric tunnel would be walled up forever. Then the thin sheet of water which now covered the valley would become a deep lake.

Bob and Dick smiled happily as they visualized it, while Frank and Joe exchanged grins.

“Guess we're thinking the same thing,” said Frank.

“We sure are,” Joe replied. “Now we'll have plenty of water in the swimming pool!”