silent for a moment after the recital, then Rick blurted
out the question in his mind. "What's his wife afraid of?"

The captain stiffened. "Who says she's afraid?"

"I do," Rick returned positively. "I saw her."

"You did? Well, I reckon you saw right."

"Maybe she's afraid of Tyler's losing his way of making a living,"
Scotty guessed.

Rick shook his head. "It wasn't that kind of fear."

The sedan had left the town proper and was rolling along the sea front
on a wide highway. This was Million Dollar Row. In a moment Rick saw
the first of the huge hotels that had given the road its name. It was
called Sandy Shores. Once it had been landscaped, and probably
beautiful. Now, he saw in the dim moonlight, the windows were
shuttered and the grounds had gone back to bunch grass. The paint had
peeled in the salt air and there was an air of decay and loneliness
around the dark old place.

Extending up the drive were the Sea Girt, the Atlantic View, Shore
Mansions, and finally, the Creek House. All were in similar condition.
These hotels had been built in the booming twenties when the
traditional sleepiness of Seaford had been disturbed by a rush of
tourists. Then had come the business depression of the thirties and
the tourists had stopped coming. They had never started again. The
hotels, too expensive to operate and useless as anything but hotels,
had been left to rot. Briefly, during World War II, they had served as
barracks for a Coast Guard shore patrol base, but that activity was
long past now, and they had been left to decay once more.

There were a number of cars on the road, going both ways. Captain Mike
remarked on the fact. "They're curious about the wreck. Usually not a
car moves on this road."

As they approached Smugglers' Reef, the cars got thicker. Then Rick
saw lights in the massive Creek House. It was one of the biggest of
the hotels, and it had been the most exclusive. It had its own dock on
Salt Creek, and it was protected from prying eyes by a high board
fence. Two rooms on the second floor were lit up.

"It's occupied," Cap'n Mike affirmed. "Family name of Kelso is renting
it. Claim they need the salt air and water for their boy. He's
ailing."

"Must be a big family," Scotty said.

"Oh, they don't use all of it. Just a couple of bedrooms and the
kitchen. No one knows much about 'em and they don't seem to work at
anything. City folks. Keep to themselves."

Rick guessed from the note of irri