Biff laughed. “Isn’t Dr. Weber the famous scientist? I’m sure I’ve heard you speak of him.”
“That’s right, Biff. He’s a staff consultant for Ajax. I’ve worked with him before.”
Thomas Brewster was the chief field engineer for the Ajax Mining Company, headquarters Indianapolis, Indiana. His job took him all over the world, to many of the strangest and least known spots on the globe. Whenever it was possible, he took sixteen-year-old Biff along.
“One of my reasons for going to Hawaii is to meet Dr. Weber,” Biff’s father continued now.
“You mean the Engineers’ Conference isn’t the main reason?” Biff asked.
Thomas Brewster shook his head. “No. Oh, the meeting is important, all right. But I doubt if I would have gone out there for that alone. Dr. Weber wrote me over a month ago. Said he wanted to meet with me and Jim Huntington. He said it was very important. But he didn’t go into details. I imagine he didn’t want to put too much information on paper. Afraid it might be seen by eyes other than my own.”
Biff was thinking. “It seems to me, Dad, that I’ve heard you mention this Mr. Huntington before, too. Am I right?”
“Probably. I hadn’t heard from Huntington for a long, long time. But he did some work for me in the past.”
“What’s going on, Dad? And what was all that about a letter?”
Thomas Brewster sighed. “Oh, the letter. Forget you _ever_ heard about it. Dr. Weber told me Jim Huntington was lost at sea sailing up to Hawaii from New Zealand. Got caught in a terrific storm, and his sloop sank. He was able to send a radio signal of his position, but Weber said a sea and air search has failed, so far, to discover any trace of Huntington or his sloop.”
“Gee, that’s really too bad. Do you know why he wanted to see you and Dr. Weber?” Biff asked.
“I have an idea. And if what I think is true, then Jim Huntington’s loss is a very real one for the whole world.”
“I heard you mention there might be danger—” Biff stopped. A spark of excitement flashed across his face. His blue eyes lighted up.
“Danger, Biff? Well, we’ve been in tight spots before. You, in China, and with me in Brazil.” Tom Brewster paused, then said slowly, “There’s always an element of danger in the work we do for Ajax.”
Biff, his face serious, nodded his head. He was thinking of Hawaii, our fiftieth state. What danger could there be there?