The Clue of the Broken Blade (16 page)

Frank and Joe subdued their quarry without any further resistance. After they turned him over to the police, they drove back to the motel.

They found their father, mother, and Chet waiting. Quickly they told what had happened.

“Great job!” Mr. Hardy praised his sons. “Now let's have a look at that saber.”

He examined the hilt under a powerful magnifying glass. Nothing besides the letters A-N-T-E and the inscription was on either side of the stubby blade.

“Can I see it, Dad?” Frank asked. He studied the hand guard carefully. It had a leather protective lining. Frank pulled it out. Nothing was hidden beneath it.

Suddenly Joe said, “Hey, what's that?”

“Where?” Frank asked.

“Something's written on the underside of that piece of leather.”

Frank examined it. “It's the will! Dad, we've found it!”

Mr. Hardy took a close look. “It sure is,” he confirmed. He read the tiny inscription. It left three-fourths of Russo's fortune to his first grandson.

“That's Ettore Russo!” Chet exclaimed. “We've solved our case!”

The boys sent a cable to the fencing master, telling him the good news. They included the information that Mr. and Mrs. Hardy would personally deliver the saber to Russo in Bellinzona, Switzerland.

“You haven't finished your vacation,” Frank said to his parents. “This way you can tour Switzerland.”

Mr. Hardy smiled. “We might just do that!”

“There's still one loose end that bothers me,” Joe said. “I wonder if it was June Fall who tore those pages from the book about Giovanni Russo.”

“Why don't you phone the college library and ask if they know the pages are missing?” Mr. Hardy suggested. “Now that the big mystery is solved, you've got plenty of time.”

Joe went to the telephone, little knowing that more excitement would soon come their way in
The Flickering Torch Mystery.
When he had finished the call, he grinned.

“Guess what?” he said. “Those pages have been missing for three years!”