INTO THE DRIFT
"That sure was him!"
"Yes, he's the old hermit!"
"I wonder what he's up to now?"
In turn Sammy, Bob and Frank spoke, as they looked toward the place
where the aged man had disappeared. They could still see the bushes
shaking as he forced his way through them.
"I wish it had been Mr. Jessup," said Sammy, and he could not help
sighing a bit.
"Yes, we need him," added Bob. "But we'll do the best we can. If he
doesn't come by night, I s'pose we'll have to go back home."
"And I sure will hate to do that," put in Sammy Brown. "Maybe there'll
be a way out."
For a moment the boys looked at one another, and then at the spot where
the hermit had vanished. Maybe barked once or twice, and then began
running about, as he had been doing ever since he came out with the
boys, hoping perhaps to scare up a rabbit.
Sammy was doing some hard thinking. His eyes blinked fast, as they
always did when he had several ideas going through his mind at the same
time. Suddenly he exclaimed:
"Fellows, are you with me?"
"With you? In doing what?" asked Frank.
"In following that old hermit? I want to see where he goes."
Neither Bob nor Frank answered for a moment.
"Well, he's probably going to his cabin, or cave, or whatever he lives
in," Bob finally said: "We know about where it is, and I don't see any
good in following him. He might get mad at us."
"He probably would," said Sammy. "But getting mad wouldn't hurt us. I'd
like to see where he goes."
"Why?" asked Bob.
"I have a certain reason," went on Sammy. "Do you know, fellows, the
hermit may be the--counterfeiter!"
"What!" cried Bob.
"Do you mean that?" inquired Frank.
"Well, I'm not sure, of course," went on Sammy. "But he might be, you
know."
"Yes, of course," laughed Frank, "and the time we thought we had struck
a bear here, it might have been one, only--it wasn't!"
"Oh, well, of course anyone can make a mistake," said Sammy. "And I'm
not saying I'm right. Only it's worth trying; isn't it?"
"Well, maybe so," replied Frank, slowly.
"All I want to do," went on Sammy, "is to follow the old hermit, and see
what he does. If he goes toward the place where we found the secret
room, and the queer things, we'll know he has something to do with
them."
"Maybe," put in Frank, with a laugh. He did not always agree with Sammy.
"Oh, of course, I'm not saying for sure," went on the other. "But will
you come?"
"I don't mind," spoke Frank, after a few moments' thought. "But we'd
better not go too close."
"That's what I say," added Bob. "He might try to harm us."
"We've got Maybe with us," said Sammy, boldly. "I'm not afraid."
And so the boys decided on Sammy's plan, little thinking what would come
of it.
They could no longer see the hermit, but they thought they could trace
which way he went by following the tracks in the snow.
"Besides, we have the dog with us," added Sammy, "and he can follow. He
can track the hermit just like he does a rabbit."
The boys went on cautiously. They did not want to get too close to Mr.
Addison, who, though he was an old man, might be one who was very easily
made angry, and who might work some harm to them. In fact they already
knew that he lost his temper easily.
For perhaps half a mile they followed the tracks of the aged man through
the snow. This was easy to do since he tramped over a place where the
white crust was unbroken by other footsteps. The dog, too, led them by
sniffing at the trail on the ground. But they had had no sight of Mr.
Addison since he had disappeared into the bushes after shaking his fist
at them.
"He isn't going toward the old house," said Sammy, after a bit.
"No, he's heading in the wrong direction for that," added Frank. "Maybe
he's going to his own cabin."
"If he does," spoke Sammy, "we won't follow him there."
The boys were now some distance away from Camp Mystery. They had
occasional glimpses of the frozen lake, but they had not seen any figure
bearing a likeness to Mr. Jessup, skating over it. The hunter was
probably still with his sick sister, they thought, and they did not
quite know what to do.
"Look out for yourselves here, fellows," said Sammy, as they came out
into an opening in the woods.
"What's the matter--did you see the hermit?" asked Frank.
"No, but there's a big cliff here, and we might slip over."
"Let's have a look," suggested Bob, pressing forward with Frank to where
Sammy stood on the edge of a cliff which was about ten feet high, going
down steeply into a little valley.
Suddenly, as the boys were looking over into a big drift of snow below
them, they heard a noise behind them. There was a rush of feet, and
Maybe, the dog, barked furiously. Then the harsh voice of the hermit
cried:
"Follow me, will you? I'll teach you to do that! You'll be sorry you
ever tried to find out my secret!"
Before the boys could defend themselves, or make a stand, the furious
old man rushed at them. With extended hands he pushed Bob over the cliff
into the deep bank of snow below.
"Look out!" yelled Frank, as he saw his chum disappear.
"Hey! What are you doing that for?" demanded Sammy.
"I'll show you! I'll teach you to follow me!" snarled the old hermit.
"Down you go! All of you!"
He pushed Frank over the cliff also, the boy struggling to keep his
balance. But over he went, head first.
[Illustration: He pushed Frank over the cliff also.]
"Don't you dare touch me!" cried Sammy, getting ready to defend himself.
Yet he knew he could do nothing against the angry hermit.
"I'll fix you!" cried the old man.
"You let me alone!" pleaded Sammy. "Sic him, Maybe!" he cried, to the
dog.
Indeed the hunter's dog needed no urging. At the first sign of the old
man Maybe had rushed at him. Now he was tugging at his coat-tails as
though to stop him from pushing the boys over the cliff. But the man was
strong, and paid no attention to the dog, dragging him along over the
slippery snow.
"There you go!" cried Mr. Addison, and with that he shoved Sammy down
into the big snowdrift.
"There!" muttered the hermit, with a hard smile on his wrinkled face.
"Now I guess them boys won't find out my secret!"
And he walked away into the woods, the dog barking after him.
As for the Fairview boys, they were more frightened than hurt. True,
they had been pushed down some distance, but they fell into a soft bank
of snow, and, except that it got down their necks, and up their sleeves,
as well as into their boots, they were in no danger. It was like falling
into a feather bed.
"Whew! What happened?" gasped Bob, floundering about.
"I guess we happened--or it happened to us!" said Frank. "Where's
Sammy?"
"Here I am," cried that small hero. "He pushed me, too."
"Say, he ought to be arrested!" exclaimed Bob, angrily, as he flopped
about in the snow. "What did he do it for?"
"Said we were following him," answered Frank, as he wiped the snow out
of his face.
"Well, I guess we were, all right," admitted Sammy. "But he had no right
to be so mean."
"Where did he go?" Frank wanted to know.
"I--I didn't stop to look," admitted Sammy. "It all happened too quick
for me."
"Same here," laughed Bob. "Now I wonder if we can get out of here?"
It was not as easy as it seemed at first, for the little valley into
which the boys had been pushed by the angry hermit was filled with snow,
and they sank in it above their waists.
But they floundered on, and were slowly making their way out. They were
getting quite tired, however, and might have sunk down in the snow, and
have taken severe colds, had their struggle lasted too long.
Suddenly Bob cried out.
"Hark!" he called.
"It's a dog barking," said Sammy.
"Yes, and it sounds like Maybe," added Frank.
"See, there he is!" cried Sammy, "and he's got someone with him!"
"It's Mr. Jessup! Hurray, now we're all right!" yelled Bob, with
delight. "Now we'll show that hermit what's what!"