George A. Warren - The Banner Boy Scouts Mystery

“Shall I turn around and see if we are being followed?” asked Ken.

“No, don’t do that,” warned Paul. “He might catch on that we know we are being followed. I have a better plan.”

“What?”

“When we get to Main Street, you, Ken, will turn right, wave to us, make believe as though you are saying goodbye. Jack and I will turn left and pretend that we are going home. But instead of actually walking off, Ken, you will dash into a doorway and watch to see if anyone is following us.”

“And if there is?” asked Ken.

“Then you will follow him, naturally,” was Paul’s answer.

“And if there is not?”

“Then you will take a roundabout route and meet us in my house in about half an hour.”

“All right. I’ll do that.”

At Main Street, the group parted, one boy walking off in one direction, while the other two headed in the opposite direction. Ken, just as soon as he parted from his companions, walked to the second store from the corner, a haberdashery, and stared at the window display. Actually, however, his eyes were roaming elsewhere and he was carefully watching the corner. Some people came out of Water Street, but by the look on their faces, by their general appearance and by the fact that they seemed to know exactly which way their direction lay, Ken knew that it was not any one of them. Suddenly he caught his breath. A robust man of medium height emerged from the street and paused at the corner. He wore a light jacket and a Panama hat, the brim pulled down over his forehead.

After standing hesitantly on the corner, he turned left, seemingly bent on following Paul and Jack. Ken crossed the street and followed. The chase continued for several blocks, the man increasing his pace and Ken doing likewise. The two boys were just ahead, crossing Chestnut Street. As the man came to the corner, he turned. Ken stopped at a corner store and looked at the window display. He watched the man walk to the middle of the block and then turn into the yard of a private house. Ken scratched his head and wondered.

The two boys were awaiting him. As Ken came up the walk to the porch, Paul asked, “Well?”

Ken nodded meaningfully and the two boys were re-assured of their suspicions. Joining his companions, he muttered, “This man hunt is getting me. I’m afraid that before it is all over I am going to go crazy.”

“Why? What’s the matter?” inquired Jack.

“Do you know who was following us?” Ken put the question very gravely and looked from one boy to the other.

“Who?”

“Captain Bob.”

The announcement came as a shock, almost overwhelming them. Each boy searched the face of the other for some meaning or understanding. But all of them were just as puzzled. Paul repeated the name, “Captain Bob! But why should he follow us?”

Ken shrugged his shoulders. “Are you sure it was he?” questioned Jack, his demeanor grave and serious.

“I am absolutely positive. After all, I know the man. It’s true I didn’t see his face—”

Paul jumped. “You didn’t see his face!” he exclaimed. “Then how do you know it was he? You might be mistaken.”

Ken shrugged his shoulders. “Very possible,” he said, “but I am pretty sure I am not mistaken. To begin with, I know the man and I can recognize him without seeing his face. And secondly, I watched him walk down Chestnut Street and enter a house at about the middle of the street. That is where he lives, isn’t it?”

“Yes, but are you sure he walked into his own house—that is, Captain Bob’s house?” demanded Paul.

“Well, no, I didn’t follow him all the way to his home; I watched from the corner. But just the same I am pretty sure that it was Captain Bob.”

There was silence. The boys could not understand why the Captain should follow them. “Well, I’ll be!” exclaimed Jack. “This thing is getting beyond me and I am losing my patience.”

“Now don’t get excited,” cautioned Paul. “And keep quiet for a couple of minutes. I am trying to think of something.”

“Think of what?” asked Ken.

“Of what he said to us when we were over to see him,” was the answer.

“What about it?”

Paul leaned over toward his two companions. “Now look, fellows,” he began. “There is one particular thing he told us that comes back to me now very distinctly. You remember how just as we were leaving, he said to us, ‘Don’t you go around talking about a pyromaniac; it may get you into trouble.’ Remember him saying that?”

Jack nodded. “Yes, I remember.”

“Same here,” added Ken, “now that you call our attention to it. But what about it? He meant it for our own good.”

“Of course,” said Paul, “I am not doubting his sincerity. But, Captain Bob is much shrewder than we give him credit for, that’s the point.”

“How do you mean?” inquired Jack.

“We came over to talk over with him the fire, didn’t we?” continued Paul. “Well, remember that he didn’t seem to have a very definite opinion though he did feel that there was something odd about the cause or origin of the fire.”

“Well, what’s your point?” demanded Ken, his curiosity aroused.

“Only this,” said Paul, “that since we told him of our own doubts about the fire and that since we told him we suspected a pyromaniac, he immediately came to the conclusion that we knew more than we were telling him. And in order to find out what we may know about the fire, he is following us.”

“Sounds logical to me,” muttered Jack.

Ken shook his head. “It may sound logical,” he said, “but somehow I am not convinced. How should he know we were going out to Water Street this morning? And he would have to watch the house of any one of us three all morning to follow us. And why should he pick this morning to follow us?”

Paul smiled at his friend’s naive questions. “To begin with,” he said, “how do we know he has not been following us since that night we spoke to him? But I am under the impression that his following us is just an accident.”

“An accident!” echoed Jack. “Explain yourself.”

“I will if you don’t interrupt. My impression is that he was coming to Water Street this morning also to search for some clues to the fire. But when he saw us there, he naturally watched us to see what we were up to and then followed us.”

Ken shook his head in a gesture of disbelief. Jake, on the other hand mused quietly, trying to untangle the whole situation, but unable to find a starting point. Finally he asked, “Do you think he will continue to follow us, Paul?”

“Can’t tell. He may and he may not.”

After a short time of silence, Jack rose and suggested, “Well, let’s go home for lunch.”

“That’s a bully idea,” cried Ken. “I didn’t realize how hungry I am.”

“All right, I’ll see you boys later,” said Paul.

That evening, immediately after supper, Paul went across the street to call for Ken. As the two boys walked down the street, Paul whispered, “We are being followed.”

Ken gasped. “Captain Bob!” he exclaimed in a hushed tone of voice.

“Don’t know. But for the last half hour I noticed that someone was hovering about the house. And as we came out and walked away, I noticed a form slink out of the shadows and follow us.”

“What do you think we ought to do?”

“I have an idea.” And he whispered some instructions to his friend.

Ken nodded. “And then what?” he asked.

“Leave the rest to me.”

When the two boys arrived in front of Jack’s home, Paul spoke up rather loudly, “I guess I’ll walk down the block and call Nuthin’. I’ll be back in about five minutes.”

“All right,” answered Ken just as loudly. “Jack and I will wait for you.”