Clue of the Silken Ladder.

by Mildred A. Wirt.

CHAPTER 1.

DOUBLE TROUBLE

"Now I ask you, Lou, what have I done to deserve such a fate?"

Jerking a yellow card from beneath the windshield of the shiny new maroon-colored sedan, Penny Parker turned flashing blue eyes upon her companion, Louise Sidell.

"Well, Penny," responded her chum dryly, "in Riverview persons who park their cars beside fire hydrants usually expect to get parking tickets."

"But we were only inside the drugstore five minutes. Wouldn't you think a policeman could find something else to do?"

"Oh, the ticket won't cost you more than five or ten dollars," teased Louise wickedly. "Your father should pay it."

"He should but he won't," Penny answered gloomily. "Dad expects his one and only daughter to a.s.sume her own car expense. I ask you, what's the good of having a weekly allowance when you never get to use it yourself?"

"You _are_ in a mood today. Why, I think you're lucky to have a grand new car."

Louise's glance caressed the highly polished chrome plate, the sleek, streamlined body which shone in the sunlight. The automobile had been presented to Penny by her father, Anthony Parker, largely in grat.i.tude because she had saved his newspaper, _The Riverview Star_, from a disastrous law suit.

"Yes, I am lucky," Penny agreed without enthusiasm. "All the same, I'm lonesome for my old coupe, Leaping Lena. I wish I could have kept her.

She was traded in on this model."

"What would you do with that old wreck now, Penny? Nearly every time we went around a corner it broke down."

"All the same, we had marvelous times with her. This car takes twice as much gasoline. Another thing, all the policemen knew Lena. They never gave her a ticket for anything."

Penny sighed deeply. Pocketing the yellow card, she squeezed behind the steering wheel.

"By the way, whatever became of Lena?" Louise asked curiously, slamming the car door. She glanced sharply at Penny.

"Oh, she's changed hands twice. Now she's at Jake Harriman's lot, advertised for fifty dollars. Want to drive past there?"

"Not particularly. But I'll do it for your sake, pet."

As the car started toward the Harriman Car Lot, Louise stole an amused glance at her chum. Penny was not unattractive, even when submerged in gloom. Upon the slightest provocation, her blue eyes sparkled; her smile when she chose to turn it on, would melt a man of stone. She dressed carelessly, brushed a mop of curly, golden hair only if it suited her fancy, yet somehow achieved an appearance envied by her friends.

The automobile drew up at the curb.

"There's Lena." Penny pointed to an ancient blue coupe with battered fenders which stood on the crowded second-hand lot. A _For Sale_ sign on the windshield informed the public that the auto might be bought for forty dollars.

"Lena's value seems to have dropped ten dollars," commented Louise. "My, I had forgotten how wrecky the old thing looks!"

"Don't speak of her so disrespectfully, Lou. All she needs is a good waxing and a little paint."

The girls crossed the lot to inspect the coupe. As they were gazing at it, Jake, the lot owner, sidled toward them, beaming ingratiatingly.

"Good afternoon, young ladies. May I interest you in a car?"

"No, thank you," replied Penny. "We're just looking."

"Now here is a fine car," went on the dealer, indicating the coupe. "A 1934 model--good mechanical condition; nice rubber; a lively battery and fair paint. You can't go wrong, ladies, not at a price of forty dollars."

"But will it run?" asked Louise, smothering a giggle.

"There's thousands of miles of good service left in this little car, ladies. And the price is only fifteen dollars above the junk value."

The thought of Leaping Lena coming to an inglorious end in a junk yard was disconcerting to Penny. She walked slowly about the car, inspecting it from every angle.

"Forty dollars is too much for this old wreck," she said firmly.

"Why, Penny, such disrespect!" mocked Louise.

Penny frowned down her chum. Sentiment and business were two different matters.

"What _will_ you give?" inquired the car owner alertly.

"Not a cent over twenty-five."

Louise clutched Penny's arm, trying to pull her away.

"Have you lost your mind?" she demanded. "What could you do with this old car when you already have a new one?"

Penny did not listen. She kept gazing at the coupe as one who had been hypnotized.

"I'd take it in a minute, only I don't have twenty-five dollars in cash."

"How much can you raise?" asked the dealer.

"Not more than five dollars, I'm afraid. But my father is publisher of the _Riverview Star_."

Jake Harriman's brows unknitted as if by magic.

"Anthony Parker's daughter," he said, smiling. "That's plenty good enough for me. I'll sell you the best car on the lot for nothing down. Just come inside the office and sign a note for the amount. Will that be okay?"

Disregarding Louise's whispered protests, Penny a.s.sured the dealer that the arrangement would be perfectly satisfactory. The note was signed, and five dollars in cash given to bind the bargain.

"I'll throw in a few gallons of gas," the man offered.

However, Jake Harriman's gasoline did not seem suited to Leaping Lena's dyspeptic ignition. She coughed feebly once or twice and then died for the day.

"You have acquired a bargain, I must say!" exclaimed Louise. "You can't even get the car home."

"Yes, I can," Penny insisted. "I'll tow her. A little tinkering and she'll be as good as new."