"I raced 'em, but I didn't beat 'em!"

"Couldn't you?"

"Couldn't I? Say, you know what the _Pickerel_ can do when she's pushed to it. I held back the throttle."

Cora started. Her suspicions were unexpectedly confirmed.

"You can see them from over here," whispered Belle, pulling Cora's sleeve. Cora moved to where an opening in the bushes afforded a glimpse of the strangers.

She saw three men, and one of them she knew in an instant to be the young chap who had raced with her. His boat, too, was on the beach. It was from her that the men had come.

"Well, you know how fast the _Chelton_ can go now, that's sure," spoke a voice.

"Yes," answered the young man, "I know. We needn't fear her if it comes to a chase. That's what I wanted to make sure of."

"Then all we have to do is to get the rest of the evidence, and the property is ours."

"Yes. We can turn the widow and the daughter out, all right, if we get the necessary papers. Then we can go ahead and build the dam across the brook."

"That's going to arouse a lot of opposition!" exclaimed the third member of the trio. "It will spoil the park."

"Well, we can't help it. We need the dam for power for our factory, and the people don't really need the park. We'll do it."

"You mean we'll make Shane do it!" exclaimed the young man who had raced with Cora.

CHAPTER XX

THE NIGHT PLOT

The girls looked at one another with startled glances. Cora bent forward eagerly in order to better hear what else was said. She had no compunctions as to eavesdropping, feeling that it was justified under the circ.u.mstances.

"They must mean Denny Shane, the old fisherman," whispered Bess.

"Hush!" cautioned Cora. Not only did she want to listen, but she was fearful lest the men on the other side of the hedge discover the presence of herself and her chums.

"Yes," resumed the speaker, "we must make old Shane do it. Once we get him in the proper frame of mind he'll testify just as we want him to.

And we need some testimony to offset that of the widow and her girl.

Otherwise we'll never get the property without a long delay."

"But how can we get Shane in the proper frame of mind to testify as we want him to?" asked another of the trio.

"Leave that to me," answered the one who had been in the fast motor boat. And Cora started as she noted the difference in his tone now. It was hard and cruel, while, in speaking to her, his accents had been those of a cultured gentleman, used to polite society. There was a metallic ring to his voice now that boded no good to Denny Shane.

"Yes, I guess we'll leave it to you, Bruce," said a voice, "though maybe Kelly could put it over him with a bit of blarney. You know Shane is Irish."

"Hush! No names, and not so loud!" cautioned the one who had been addressed as Bruce.

"Who'd be listening?" asked the other.

"You never can tell, Moran," was the retort.

"There you go!" exclaimed Bruce, fretfully, and the girls knew it must have been the one called Kelly who spoke that time.

There was a movement on the other side of the bush, and Cora, with a sudden motion, crouched down, signalling the others to do the same. It was only just in time, too. Fortunately for the girls they were in a sort of depression, and by crouching down they got out of sight, as one of the men came forward to peer through the underbrush. He saw nothing, as was evidenced by his report a moment later.

"There's not a soul here," he said. "There's been some picnic party around, but they've gone. It's as deserted as a graveyard."

"I'm glad we came away from our luncheon," whispered Cora, as the men resumed their talk. The wind sprang up, for a moment, and carried their tones away from the girls, so that only an indistinct murmur could be heard. Then there came clear talk again.

"Well, what's the program, then?" asked one whom the girls could tell was Moran. He was the same man they had seen before in the drug store.

"Get at Shane first of all," decided Kelly. "I'm willing to let Bruce do it, even if I am Irish."

"We'll all have to call on him," said Bruce, grimly, "but only one need actually do the business. We've got to deal with him in two ways.

We've got to make him tell what we want brought out in court, and we've got to scare him so that he won't tell what we don't want known.

And there are two ways of doing that."

"How?" asked Kelly.

"First we can offer him a reward. It will be worth it, even if we have to pay something to have him testify as we wish. The committee allowed us a certain sum for--well, let us say for witness fees. I'd rather pay him a hundred dollars and have it all over with. It's better to have a friend than an enemy, and you never can tell which way a thing like this is going to swing."

"Sposin' he won't take the cash?" asked Moran.

"Then I have another plan," and Bruce laughed bitterly. "I guess I don't need to say what it is."

"I'm wise," remarked Kelly. "Only--not too rough, you understand. He's a feeble old man."

"No rougher than's necessary," agreed Bruce.

Cora clasped her hands, and looked with fear in her eyes at her chums.

"We----we mustn't let them harm dear old Denny!" whispered Belle, shivering with nervousness.

"Hush!" cautioned Cora. "Don't talk--think!"

There was a movement on the other side of the screen of bushes, as indicating that the men were about to leave.

"Well, we'll let it go until to-night then," said Kelly.

"Until to-night," agreed Bruce. "And we know, in case of a slip-up, that there's no motor boat around here that can catch us when we make our get-away."

"There's the _Dixie_," suggested Moran.

"She's out of commission, I heard," responded Bruce. "And she won't be in shape for a day or so. The _Chelton_--well, I gave her a try-out a while ago, and I know what she can do."