CHAPTER XXI
THE BOYS ARE INTERESTED
For a moment the girls were too terrified to speak. And the next momentthey could not have spoken if they had wanted to, for _The Shelling_collided so suddenly with whatever it was that had risen out of the mistthat they had all they could do to keep from being thrown to the deck.
Then Paul gave a cry of joy and sprang wildly to the side of the boat.
"Say, how's this for luck, fellows?" he cried. "I thought it was anotherboat and that we were bound for Davy Jones' locker sure, and here it'sthe dock instead. Say, talk about luck! I'll say it's grand!"
"The dock!" the others echoed wonderingly. The sudden relief was so greatthat they were feeling rather dazed.
"You mean it's our dock--Lighthouse Island?" Connie asked stupidly, andPaul's answer was impatient.
"I guess it is--looks like it," he said. "But then it doesn't matter muchwhat dock it is as long as it's _a_ dock. What do you people say to goingashore?"
What they said was soon shown by the eagerness with which they scrambledon to the dock. And when they found that it was really Lighthouse Islanddock their thankfulness was mixed with awe.
"Why, it's a miracle!" said Vi, staring wide-eyed about her.
"That's just about what it looks like," agreed Chet soberly.
"A miracle!" exclaimed Ferd derisively. "It's just that the wind and thetide happened to be going in the right way, that's all."
"Well, it's a miracle that the wind and the tide did happen to be goingthe right way," retorted Laura.
"Yes, and it's another miracle," said Billie softly, "that even with thewind and the tide going the right way we didn't run into something beforewe got here."
"I guess we did come pretty close to it," said Teddy soberly, staring outinto the heavy mist that still showed no sign of lifting. "I don't knowabout the rest of you, but I do know that I'm mighty glad to be on thegood old ground again. It beats the water, just now."
"You bet," said Paul fervently, as he made his boat fast to the dock. "Itwould have been a hot note if I'd had to lose my boat that way afterworking all year to earn it."
The girls and boys stared at him in surprise for a moment. Then theylaughed, and the laughter broke the tension that they had been under andmade them feel more natural.
"Never mind us as long as you saved your boat," said Ferd with a chuckle."Come on, folks. It's mighty damp out here. I'll be glad when we can getunder cover and dry out a bit. Gee, but I'll say I'm some wet."
"And Mother will be just worried to death," cried Connie penitently, forthis was the very first minute she had given her mother a thought. "Oh,let's hurry."
They were starting off almost at a run when Billie called to them.
"Do you know we forgot something?" she asked. Then she pointed to theuntouched lunch hamper which Mrs. Danvers had heaped high with goodthings. This was still standing close to the railing on the deck of _TheShelling_ where the boys had put it when they climbed aboard.
"We forgot all about eating," she said in an incredulous voice. "Now Iknow we were scared."
"Say, what do you know about that?" asked Ferd weakly. "I'd have said itcouldn't be done."
"And it must be away past lunch time, too," added Chet.
"Oh, gosh! why did you go and remind me I was starving?" groaned Teddy,and with a quick movement he leaped into the boat and caught up thebasket. "Come on, who's first?" he cried.
But Billie stopped him by pressing a determined hand down on the lid.
"Not here," she begged. "We're all wet and uncomfortable, and we'll enjoyit ever so much more if we wait till we get to the house. Please, Teddy,now mind."
Teddy looked longingly at the basket, then at Billie, and gave in.
"All right," he said. "Only we'll have to walk fast!"
When they reached the cottage they found Connie's mother almost besideherself with anxiety and Connie's father doing his best to soothe her. Sothat when the young folks came in the door looking rather damp andbedraggled but safe, Mrs. Danvers cried out joyfully, ran to them, andhugged them one after another till she was completely and rapturously outof breath.
"You precious kiddies!" she cried, standing back and regarding them withshining eyes. "You will never know how horribly worried Dad and I havebeen. You poor children, why, you are soaked through! And," as her eyesfell on the basket, "you don't mean to tell me you haven't had any lunch.Oh dear, oh dear! Run into the library, the lot of you. Daddy made a firethinking if we ever did get you back you'd need some drying out--and youcan be starting in on sandwiches while I make you some hot chocolate. Nowrun along--quick." And she disappeared into the kitchen while the youngfolks went on into the library.
Connie would have run after her mother to offer her help, but Mr. Danversstopped her.
"I'll help Mother," he said. "You run along with the others, dear, andget warmed through. I don't want my little girl to catch cold. It mightspoil your whole summer."
So Connie went on into the library and found that the boys had arrangedthe chairs in a semicircle around the fire and were already opening thelunch basket.
Mrs. Danvers came in a few minutes later with the chocolate, and, oh, howthat hot drink did taste! She demanded to know all about everything. Theytold her, speaking one at a time, two at a time, and all at once, till itwas a wonder she could make any sense out of it at all. But when she andher husband did realize how terribly close the young folks had been todisaster they looked very sober and in their hearts thanked Providencefor guiding them back to safety.
After they had eaten, the girls and boys felt very lazy and lingered inthe pretty library before the open fire till the shadows began to fall.
"I hope we have half-way decent weather to start out on to-morrow," saidPaul suddenly as he gazed out of the window.
"Oh! must you go _to-morrow_?" asked Billie, with such genuine regretthat Teddy looked at her sideways.
"I'm afraid so," said Paul, also turning to look at her. "We've had abully good time and we'd like to stay longer, but you see I promised DadI'd pick him up a little farther along the coast and I can't do it unlesswe start to-morrow."
"But suppose it isn't a nice day?" Connie put in. "Will you go anyway?"
"Oh, of course, if it was really stormy we couldn't. We would have towire Dad or something. But I think it's going to be clear to-morrow," hefinished cheerfully.
Connie shook her head.
"I don't know about that," she said. "Uncle Tom says that a terriblyheavy mist like this generally forecasts a storm, and a pretty bad storm,too."
"Well, we don't have to worry about that now, anyway," said Teddy,stretching his long legs out contentedly toward the fire. "Let's enjoyourselves while we can. By the way," he added, turning to Billie, andBillie thought that Teddy was getting better looking every minute--or wasit the firelight? "What did you girls mean by speaking of a mystery? Wehaven't heard a word about any mystery."
"Of course you haven't. You don't suppose we tell you _everything_, doyou?" said Laura, with a sisterly sniff.
"Well, but what did you mean?" asked Ferd, adding his voice to Teddy'swhile the other boys seemed interested.
The girls looked at one another and then at Billie.
"Shall we tell them?" asked Vi.
"I don't see why we shouldn't," Billie answered, her eyes on the fire."Of course we don't know that there's any mystery about it. It only looksqueer, that's all."
Then with the help of the girls she told the boys all about the man wholived in a hut in the woods and called himself Hugo Billings, and alsoabout Miss Arbuckle and the album she had been so overjoyed to recover.The boys listened with an interest that fast changed to excitement.
"Well, I should say there was something queer about it!" Ferd Stowingbroke out at last. "Especially about the man who lives in the woods andmakes fern baskets. He's either crazy or he's a thief or something."
"Gee, I wish you had told
us about it while we were there!" said Chetregretfully. "We might have been able to find out something--landed himin jail maybe."
"Then I'm glad we didn't tell you," said Billie promptly.
"Why?" asked Chet, amazed.
"Because I felt awfully sorry for him," his sister answered softly. "AndI'd rather help him than hurt him. I'd like to see him smile again."
"Smile?"
"Yes, for he looked so awfully downhearted."
Billie Bradley on Lighthouse Island; Or, The Mystery of the Wreck Page 21
