by Ross Kay
CHAPTER IV--FLIGHT
There had been a moment of intense silence which was sharply broken by along whistling sound, that seemed to come from some place directlybehind the spot where the boys were standing. This sound was followed bya prolonged sigh and this in turn was abruptly ended when out of thedarkness there came a call, "F-r-e-d! Fred Button!" The call was in alow tone but coming as it did after the startling events which hadoccurred was almost more than Fred was able to bear. His nerves wereunstrung and without a word he turned and swiftly made for the door,which fortunately had been left open.
Nor had Fred been long out of the house before he was joined by hiscompanions. George, who previously had gone around to the rear door,came as quickly as John and Grant.
For a brief time the boys assembled under the branches of a huge cherrytree that was growing in one corner of the yard.
"What do you make of that?" demanded George. "I told you you might hearsomething about Fagan and the Cowboys if you went into that old MeekerHouse."
"It wasn't what I heard about them that troubled me," retorted Fred. "Itwas when I heard my own name called."
"Honest?" demanded George.
"Yes, sir. You ask the other fellows. Somebody right behind me called'Fred.' 'Fred Button.' I was standing where I could see straight throughthe window and I am perfectly sure there wasn't anybody there. If you'lltell me how the thing was done I'll be much obliged to you."
"It wasn't done at all," laughed George. "You were just dreaming. It'sone of those attacks of nightmare that you have some times. Don't youremember when we were at Mackinac,[1] how one night we had to throw somecold water in your face to make you wake up?"
"I guess that was the same night," retorted Fred, "when I had toadminister condign and physical chastisement to you, you were kicking soin the bed."
"Yes, I have a very vivid recollection of that part of that night."
"Almost as vivid as you have of to-night," laughed George.
"I don't see anything to laugh at," said Fred sharply. "You ask theother fellows if somebody didn't call my name."
"It did sound like it," said John, "but then we were ready to believealmost anything and when Fred said there was somebody calling him we allheard 'Fred' on every side of us. What are we doing out here, anyway?Why don't we go back there and look into it?"
"I'm going to look into it," said Fred quickly, "but I'm not going tolook when I can't see. It's so dark to-night that you can't findanything."
"You seem to have found some things that made you leave the room fasterthan George goes when he runs the hundred in ten flat."
"Maybe I did," admitted Fred, "but if I did I want to tell you I neverran a race in which I was so hard pushed as I was to-night. There wasn'troom to put a sheet of paper between Grant and me."
"That's all right," spoke up Grant. "I didn't take any part in yourfoolish conversation, but what I want to know is how you can account forthese things."
"If you ask me," said George, "I'm not accounting for them."
"But there's some way to find out what these things mean. There isn'tone of us a big enough fool to believe that there is such a thing as aghost and yet we got into the old Meeker House,--"
"If there isn't any ghost," spoke up George, "then I don't see where thetrouble is. You can't be afraid of something that isn't, can you?"
"I don't suppose you can," admitted Grant, "but sometimes you can beafraid of things you think are when they are not."
"You're getting too deep for me," said Fred. "What I want to know isabout those wings. That room seemed to be just full of something thatwas flying all around."
"I'll tell you what it was," spoke up John.
"What was it?" inquired Fred quickly.
"Cherubs."
"What?"
"Cherubs. Don't you know what cherubs are? They are just heads withwings. You can find them on old tomb-stones and in the pictures of someof the old books. I have always thought that a cherub must be almost ashappy as the people said he used to be. He didn't have to bother aboutany clothes except neckties and a hat. It doesn't take him very long toget from one place to another. In fact I think if Fred here was a cherubhe would have had less trouble getting out of that house to-night thanhe did."
"You seem to be greatly troubled about my leaving that house," spoke upFred testily. "I noticed that I wasn't alone."
"Except when you started," suggested Grant. "We thought you were introuble and came out to see if we could help."
"You did?" laughed Fred derisively. "I'll tell you what I'll do, Grant,if you'll go back into that house with me right now I'll go too."
"I'm going back there," said Grant slowly, "but as has been said I amgoing back when I can see something."
"That's what I thought," retorted Fred tauntingly.
"It's all right, fellows," spoke up George. "I guess we have had enoughfor one night. I don't suppose there really is anything in the things wehave heard to-night, and we'll find out pretty soon just what it is, butuntil we do I think it's great fun to go into the old house and stir upthe spooks."
"Do you know, I have an idea what those flying creatures were?"suggested John.
"What were they?" inquired George.
"Bats probably."
"Bats?" exclaimed Fred scornfully. "Bats? Why those things had wings atleast two feet long. You could hear them flapping over your head."
"That's about on the scale that you heard and saw everything to-night,Fred. That is, everything except the length of the steps you took whenyou were leaving. I would like to understand how a fellow who is onlyfive feet four can take steps that are ten feet long."
"There's only one answer to that," said George, "and that is, hedidn't."
"You don't know what you're talking about," retorted Grant. "You didn'tsee him. I did."
"See me?" exclaimed Fred. "See me! Why his hands were right on myshoulder all the while. I couldn't shake him off. He almost had me theretwo or three times. I'm not sure that I wouldn't rather have Fagan'sspook get hold of me than Grant's hands when he is as scared as he wasto-night."
"Well, fellows, what shall we do?" inquired George. "Do you want to giveit up or go back?"
"Both," said Fred quickly. "We're not going back again to-night andwe're not going to give it up. We're going ahead and find out what thereis in that tomfoolery."
"Well, I see you have a little piece of nerve left yet," laughed George."I told you what was coming but you wouldn't believe me."
"Was that the reason why you went outside, George?" demanded John. "Youremember, fellows," he added, turning to his companions, "George wentaround to the back of the old house. He was outside where he could get afine running start if he had to."
"That may all be," said George slowly, "but my running start wasn't muchcompared with the one you fellows had. If you didn't get a running startI am wondering what time you would make if you had one. My, what a thingit would be at the track meet to have one of these ghosts to start thefellows off. I think the next time I see Grant on the track I'll yellFagan at him. I think he will break the record if I do. Especially ifFred is just ahead of him. If you're not going back into the house," hecontinued, "I think we had better go back to the machine and start forhome."
The boys all agreed and soon were seated in the car, riding swiftly backtoward the farm.
Their confidence returned in proportion to the distance that intervenedbetween them and the house which they had just visited. Indeed, when atlast they arrived at the farmhouse every one was loud in his declarationthat he had not been frightened by what had occurred and was strong inhis determination to go back and investigate the things which had seemedso mysterious.
Nevertheless, in spite of their boasting, it was plain that Fred wassomewhat chagrined by the quickness and rapidity of his departure fromthe old Meeker House. Several times that evening a sly allusion to hisspeed brought a quick retort.
The following morning, however, the courage and good spirits of the boysh
ad returned in full measure. Even Fred was not afraid to acknowledgehis fear of the night before and laughed as heartily as any of hisfriends when they described his antics in his flight from the house.
"That doesn't make any difference," he asserted strongly. "I'm still oneof the Go Ahead boys and I haven't given up the plan I spoke about."
"What's your plan, Freddie?" laughed John.
"I'm going to look into the old house by daylight."
"I wouldn't do that yet," suggested George soberly. "It seems to me thebest plan will be for us to go down there again to-night and find outwhether or not there really is anything in what we thought we heard andsaw last night."
"We might take a gun," suggested Grant.
"What would you shoot?" said Fred scornfully. "Suppose you did find aspook and shot it, what good would it do? I suppose they aren't likeother people."
After a long consultation it finally was agreed that another visit tothe mysterious house should be made that evening and then if anythingstrange occurred the boys would make further investigation the followingday.
-----[1] See "The Go Ahead Boys on Smugglers' Island."
