The Demolition Mission Read Free Page B

Joe told Katie.
    â€œI’m not going to let an accident and a couple of dumb pranks scare me off,” Katie said to Stock.
    Felix Stock pointed to the note in Joe’s hand. “As far as I’m concerned, this is a death threat,” he said firmly.
    â€œIt’s also a clue,” Joe pointed out. “Do you mind if I hold on to it for a while?”
    Katie nodded. Then she said evenly, “Look, Felix, I drove race cars while I was in high school. I’ve driven for ten years. I’ve been in accidents and pileups, and as you can plainly see, I’m perfectly allright. I refuse to let some rival car manufacturer scare me out of one of the biggest races of the year. And I don’t think you should let yourself get scared off, either.”
    â€œOkay, okay,” Stock said with a sigh. “Maybe you’re right.”
    â€œWhy don’t you show us around your area here at the speedway?” Frank said. “I’d like to take a look at that hydraulic jack.”
    Stock got up from behind his desk and motioned for the group to follow him out of the office.
    â€œWere these the original Gasoline Alley garages?” Frank asked as they passed the three buildings that made up the Stock Motor Car Company.
    â€œThat’s right,” Stock replied. “The garages you see down this roadway were built back when the speedway was new.” He gestured toward the aging brick and wooden structures.
    Frank noticed broken panes in some of the windows. Many of the wooden frames and doors needed painting.
    â€œTicket sales haven’t been too good here at the track,” Stock told them. “If my company weren’t using these three buildings, they’d just be standing idle. The speedway’s newer garages are around the fourth turn and behind the starting line and viewing stands. They’re much more convenient for the drivers and their mechanics. They even have their own underpasses beneath the racetrack to the pit area.”
    â€œDo you pay Kiser for the use of the garages?” Joe asked.
    â€œFelix doesn’t pay any rent,” Katie said.
    As the group approached Building C, Chet stopped and gave a low whistle. “Look at all these Saurions!”
    â€œWe use a carbon fiber body,” Felix Stock explained, leading the group into the garage. “That means the Saurion’s frame is made out of a composite material rather than steel. It’s ten times stronger but a lot lighter.”
    â€œIt’s state of the art,” Katie said proudly.
    Frank counted a dozen cars in various stages of production. All of them had complete drivetrains, and several wore their finished body panels, ready for painting.
    â€œI have orders for all of these cars,” Stock told the Hardys and Chet. “In fact, if it didn’t take so much handcrafting to build each one, I could sell ten times this many.”
    â€œThat’s not the idea, though,” Katie said. “He’s not making hamburgers. Felix wants quality, not quantity.”
    â€œI see no one’s working on the cars today,” Frank noted. “Are you building these by yourself?”
    Stock shook his head. “I gave everyone except Marvin some time off while we got through race weekend,” Stock explained. “Marvin Tarpley’s my best mechanic. He’s the only one who can touch the car, except Katie, of course. He’s around heresomewhere. He also works for the demolition derby.” Stock led them over to a corner of the shop. “There’s the jack,” he said, pointing.
    Taking a small penlight from his pocket, Joe knelt down and examined the hydraulic jack. He recognized it as an old model. The red paint on the cast-iron body had long ago chipped and faded.
    â€œThere are fresh scratches on this oil coupling,” he said. “I’d say someone disconnected the tube and bled the system.”
    â€œHow about the people who work for