“Well, are you two all set to go?” asked Sandy gaily.
“Go where?” said Bud.
PURSUIT ON THE LAKE 83
“Why, Tom, didn’t you tell him?” Sandy turned to her brother with a puzzled frown.
“Gosh, Sandy, I’ve been so busy that it slipped my mind!”
Bud looked from brother to sister. “Well, don’t keep it a secret. What’s this all about?”
“Sandy cooked up a double date for us,” explained Tom. “We were all supposed to go sailing on the lake this afternoon in the Mary Nestor.”
The Mary Nestor was Sandy’s sleek new sailboat, named in honor of Mrs.
Swift.
“I want to try it out for speed,” she said, turning to Bud. “You see, the final yacht club race of the season is next Saturday, and this’ll be my last chance for a trial run before the race.”
“Wonderful!” Bud exclaimed. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go!”
The dark-haired young flier, whose parents lived in San Francisco, loved all forms of outdoor sports but was especially fond of sailing.
Tom, however, held back. “I’m sorry, gang, but I have a million things to do!
I’m afraid I’ll have to beg off this time.”
The girls let out a wail of protest.
“Tom, you can’t let us down like this, after Phyl and I have been counting on you!” Sandy protested. She hastily pulled a copy of the racing announcement out of her shoulder bag and added:
84 TOM SWIFT AND HIS ATOMIC BLASTER
“Just look at all the people who’ve signed up for the race! We won’t stand a chance against competition like that unless you figure out the angles for us!”
At that moment Tom whistled sharply. He had been idly scanning the entry list.