The Masked Monkey Read Online Free PDF

anybody. I thought we were all alone at the bottom of the falls. Anyway, it proves something.”
    â€œLike what?” Frank asked.
    â€œSomebody wants us off the Retson case. And he’ll stop at nothing!”
    â€œWhich means we must be getting warm,” Frank said. “Let’s go back to the mansion. Perhaps Mrs. Retson has returned by now.”
    They retraced their steps. As they approached the east wing, a figure way ahead of them ran across the lawn.
    â€œA woman!” Frank exclaimed.
    â€œMust be Mrs. Retson!” Joe dashed off at top speed. Frank followed at a slower pace. But they were too late! The woman reached the building and began climbing up the side.
    â€œShe’s going up the rope ladder!” Joe moaned.
    â€œNo doubt she’s used to that contraption, the way she handles it,” Frank said.
    â€œHey, what’s this?” Joe said, picking up a piece of flimsy material torn from a scarf. He examined it for a moment, then put it in his pocket.
    Since Frank was feeling exhausted from his ordeal in the whirlpool, they decided to call it a night. At the guesthouse Frank promptly fell into a deep sleep.
    Joe lay in bed with his hands clasped behind his head, trying to make sense of the Retson riddle. “I wonder if Nurse Hopkins is in cahoots with Mrs. Retson and knew where she went,” he said to himself. Gradually he dozed off.
    A hard pounding on the door snapped Joe wide awake. He looked at his watch. It was eight o’clock in the morning. Frank sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “What’s all that noise about?” he asked groggily.
    Joe got out of bed, opened the door, and confronted Harris the butler. He waved a cablegram wildly in Joe’s face.
    â€œIt came this morning,” he blurted out. “Now we know where Graham is!”

CHAPTER V
Away to Brazil
    J OE seized the paper and read the message.
“Help,”
the cablegram said.
“Come Excelsior Grao Para. Do not reply. Just come. Graham.”
    â€œYou see,” the butler remarked, “Graham must be in that hotel.”
    â€œWhere is it?” asked Frank, who by now was wide awake.
    â€œThe cable was sent from Belem, Brazil. It’s on the Amazon River, I believe.”
    â€œThat’s a strange place for him to be. Well, we’d better speak to Mr. Retson right away.”
    â€œYes, sir. He is waiting for you in his den,” Harris said.
    The Hardys found the tycoon looking very much relieved. “It’s obvious what’s happened,” he chortled. “Graham has learned the error of his ways. He’s got over all his nonsensical ideas and is ready to come home. The mystery is solved!”
    â€œLooks as if there’s nothing more for us to do,” Joe observed.
    â€œWrong!” Retson retorted. “I hired you for an assignment, and it’s still your case. Go to Brazil and escort my son home. Judging by his cablegram, he’s in some kind of trouble. Get him out of it, even if it’s only an unpaid hotel bill.”
    Frank rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “That’s okay by us, sir. But before we leave for Belem, we would like to talk with Mrs. Retson.”
    The tycoon frowned. “Ordinarily I’d say no. But this new information about Graham is sure to cheer her up. Only make it short. I won’t rest till I know you’re on the plane to Brazil.”
    When Frank and Joe appeared at Mrs. Retson’s apartment, Miss Hopkins greeted them in stony silence. Had she told Retson about the incident the night before? Did she think the Hardys had? Her face showed nothing. She swung the door open and invited them in with a wave of her hand.
    Mrs. Retson was sitting in an armchair, a shawl over her shoulders and a blanket across her knees. Her head was tilted to one side and her eyes were half-closed. She seemed completely listless.
    Frank suspected the woman was under sedation.
    â€œMrs. Retson,