Penny reached the great bell just as the clapper struck against the metal. The sound was deafening. "Now!" she thought excitedly. "This is the moment, and I dare not fail!" Balancing herself precariously, Penny raised a hammer high above her head. With all her strength she brought it down hard against the bell. CHAPTER 23 _A TRAP SET_ To Penny's sensitive ears, the sound which resulted from the hammer blow, seemed weak and lacking in resonance. She sagged back against the iron railing, feeling that she had failed. "That was swell!" a low voice said in her ear. "A perfect thirteenth stroke!" Turning around, Penny saw that Jerry Livingston had followed her into the belfry. "Did it really sound all right?" she inquired anxiously. "It was good enough to fool anyone. But the question is, will it bring the Hoods here?" In the room far below, Mr. Parker had lowered the blinds of the circular windows. Making certain that Charley Phelps was securely bound and gagged so that he could make no sound, he opened the front door a tiny crack and left it that way. "How about the lights?" Salt Sommers asked. "Leave them on. Shove that sound apparatus under the daybed. Now I guess everything's set. Upstairs, everyone." Mr. Parker, Salt, and the two reporters, joined Penny and Jerry on the iron stairway. "We may have a long vigil," the editor warned. "In fact, this whole scheme is likely to turn out a bust." Few words were spoken during the next twenty minutes. Penny stirred restlessly, and finally went to join Jerry who was maintaining a watch from the belfry. "See anyone?" she whispered, scanning the street below. "No sign of anyone yet." At intervals automobiles whizzed past the tower, and presently one drew up not far from the building. Immediately, Jerry and Penny focused their attention upon it. The headlights were turned to parking, then a man alighted and came toward the Hubell Tower. "Who is he?" Jerry whispered. "Can you tell?" "I'm not sure," Penny said uncertainly. "It may be Hank Holloway." As the man stepped into the light, they both saw that her identification had been correct. The man rapped on the door several times. Receiving no answer, he finally entered. "Charley!" those on the iron stairway heard him call. "Where are you?" The brilliantly lighted living room combined with the absence of the caretaker, seemed to mystify the newcomer. Muttering to himself, he moved restlessly about for a few minutes. Finally seating himself, he picked up a newspaper and began to read. From their post in the belfry, Penny and Jerry soon observed two other men approaching the tower. One they recognized as a workman who had sorted melons at the Davis farm, but his companion was unknown to them. Without rapping, they too entered the building. "Where's Charley?" inquired one of the men.