The Ghost of Mystery Airport

, clinging to the roll of tracing paper that was his evidence of that betrayal, Chick faced Doc Morgan in the dark

k fumbled on it, and in the draw

card of pap

ng up the wick, Chick ignited a match, appl

osture, groaned again and then took up his own refutation of Chick's

its wick burned with a queer, fitful light, Ch

rgan, he may be 'queer' but he ain't

at t

d the roll

tle that reeked of alcohol of the cheapest ki

teful to Chick. The man had been allowed to stay around the aircraft building plant and the new airport because he was a harmless sort of scatter-brain, able to do simple chores, willing

oning with the paper he clutched, keeping the table between hi

is feet. He fell back, groaning, and Chick, in some surprise, noted t

eminded him of heavy cannon balls rolling along on cleats fastened to an inclined trough,

Here I come in the swamp, I do, for salt water weed to mix my

ood!" sco

e lantern, and the contrasting glare of intermittent lightning showing through the door, looked

tention wa

"'See what you wouldn't see outsi

, that I can't! I

tary dismay. The man was trying to div

ure toward the

see whatever you think

come in here, I did, I declare-to shelter. Then I saw-It. It was in the corner, and I saw it, I did so! Terrible, it was! Green i

s tendency to believe

t!" he insisted, gesturi

so. I hit the table, and I must either of got upset stumbling over my own feet or-It

, realizing that he had more important thing

he wind was rising. His chums were off in the

snapped. "Tell it to Don's u

by resting a hand on the wall, holding

e ruse of a push against it to upset him, Chick opene

cture of the fuselage inked in heavily, with the wide-spanning, thin, speedy "slotted" wings sketched in more

e nor be dropped out by folding it over, jamming it down as far as he could, and snapping a safety pin he

ou say I'm what I declare I ain't no such a thing-a trait

braced for a ru

e c

ut. Following him, Chick saw him, picked out by the flas

was t

hovel from the wharf, made his presen

bottle, and he had some tracings. I guess I forgot and left them out on

don't say? Le

gerly. "You ought to go and help

ass, across the water, there.

dory. They scanned the water. The dory, invisible, hidden and held

If I don't get back to the Dart she'll never get above the storm in time. The same for the Dragonfly. Get those b

selage, and as he saw them set and ignited Scott hurried off to get his own lighter ship out of the danger area

ght have tried to hide them, stopped to celebrate, got too 'tight' to know what he was doing, and struck his head when he

gating by the flicker of the lantern, wi

y the least important plan-the sketch? Maybe he has the others

d. Had something struck the hovel? A blown limb, crashing against

locate the source of the crash,

s-the Man Who Never Lived! Go-or I ta

yet surprising. Green, dull and glistening, as if of plastered seaweed or wet rubber was its head. Heavy, glistening, ooze-covered w

to his tracks, Ch

llow lantern flicker and the dull refracted red from the b

advanced toward him, its long, glistening, weed-spattered arms outst

e room: the signals and the brighter light outside the cabin wo

ht the youth. Terror chilled his blood but he struggled. Then his courage came welling to him. If those hands could grip they must

exploring fingers while he tried to hold the squir

elt his inner pocket ripped open, and the Thing-or man-was away over

k, into the twistin

turn until lo