l mechanic, but dad had to
discharge him because he drank fearfully. He swore at the time that he
would get even with us in some way. But we never heard any more of him.
Yet if that really was him with Fanning Harding yesterday I'm awfully
afraid that there is some mischief stirring."

"What you say, my dear, makes me also very anxious," responded Miss
Prescott. "Perhaps we had better communicate with the police at once."

"Not yet, aunt," breathed Peggy; "you see, Roy may turn up in time for
the race, and if he does, everything will be all right."

"But, Peggy----"

"On the other hand, if we spread an alarm that he is missing we shall be
declared out of the contest."

"I see what you mean, my dear," was the response, "and I suppose that
what you say is best. I feel positive, somehow, that we shall have news
of Roy before long, and that no harm has come to him."

But the morning wore on, and no word came. In the meantime, every
available source of information had been canvassed thoroughly without
result. Roy Prescott had totally vanished; or so it seemed.

Peggy, as in duty bound, spent all she could spare of the morning at the
aviation field, putting the finishing touches on the Golden Butterfly.
The big contest was not to be held till the afternoon, and in the
meantime, some of the smaller events were flown off. But Peggy was too
heartsick to watch the aeroplanes thunder around the course, which was
marked out by red and white "pylons" or signal towers.

Instead, she remained in the hangar and kept a watchful eye on Fanning
Harding, who, with some mechanics and the same man she had noticed about
the hangar the day before, was very busy over his machine, apparently.
But no one obtained even a glimpse of Fanning's air craft, for it was not
wheeled out, and, except when one or the other of his party dodged in or
out, the doors of his hangar were closed.

In the course of the morning Fanning's father arrived, and not long
after, to Peggy's unbounded delight, Jess and Jimsy and a party of
friends drove up to the Prescott hangar.

"Why, Peggy, what is the matter with you? You look
positively--er--er--dowdy!" exclaimed Jess, gazing at her friend after
first greetings were over.

"And Roy, where is Roy?" demanded Jimsy.

"Yes, where is he? We want him to explain the points of this gasolene
turkey-buzzard to us," cried Ed. Taylor, one of the gay party.

"I expect him here any minute," rejoined Peggy, and then dr