CHAPTER XIII.
FRIENDS IN TIME OF NEED.
A NERVOUS hand gripped the sleeve of Elmer's jacket.
Nat was trembling with suspense; and doubtless Toby, on the other hand,was almost as badly off. Elmer had come to a halt as the sound of thatvoice reached them; but it was for only a fraction of a minute. He knewthat it was policy on their part to creep up, foot by foot; because,when Lil Artha wanted help he would need it in a hurry. If they were toofar away perhaps those energetic Fairfield plotters might be able tothrow the tall lad into the car, and start going; when, as Nat mighthave expressed it, "the fat would be in the fire."
"Why, hello! Who's that?" they heard Lil Artha reply, in the mostnatural tone any fellow could display.
Of course he ought to show surprise at being suddenly hailed from thebushes so far away from home, and by some one familiar with his name.
Evidently the quartette at that came out of hiding and surrounded thetall lad; for his next exclamation seemed to announce this fact.
"Four of you, hey? Well, this is nice of you, boys, to come all this wayjust to give me a good word of cheer!" he remarked.
"Hold up, don't be in such a hurry to get along, Lil Artha," said onewho seemed to be the leader of the lot.
"But how do I know how close some other fellow may be on my heels!"remarked the tall lad; although he evidently did not make any furtherattempt to brush past them.
"Say, that's just it!" declared the unknown, who, no doubt, had his hatpulled down over his face, and depended on this, as well as thegathering gloom of approaching night, to conceal his identity. "There isa Fairfield fellow hot on your trail, and he's bound to beat you out,because he's got his second wind."
"Yes," spoke up another, quickly, chuckling at the same time; "that'swhat we're bothered about, Lil Artha. We just can't bear the idea of youbeing beat to a frazzle by Felix Wagner."
"But I don't mean to be, you know, boys," expostulated the tall boy."Little Falls ain't mor'n nine miles ahead; and if Felix has got hissecond wind, I'm in the same boat myself. Count on me to get there aheadof him, fellows!"
"But you might have an accident, stub your toe or something like that,"declared the leader of the opposition.
"So might Felix," remarked Lil Artha, cheerfully.
"Yes, that's so," came the reply; "but you don't know the luck of thatDutchman. Everything comes his way, Lil Artha."
"Well, this hike won't, bet you a cookey!" remarked the other,stubbornly.
"He's right behind you, and coming like a house afire."
"Then what in the dickens are you keeping me waiting here for?" demandedLil Artha, indignantly.
"I'll tell you," replied the leader of the four, mysteriously.
"Hurry up, then, and let me go ahead," ordered the tall lad.
"We've been talking it over, you see," began the other.
"It's plain enough that talking is something in your trade," commentedLil Artha, bitterly; and Elmer heard Toby alongside him chuckle softly,as though he might be enjoying these caustic remarks of their tall chummightily.
"And we've come to a conclusion, Lil Artha," went on the other, asthough he was not to be moved by any thrusts from the tongue of thecontestant.
"All right. Glad you've come to something. Hurry up and spit it out, andthen give me a clear road, won't you?" the one who was being held upremarked, sharply.
"The honor of good old Hickory Ridge is at stake," continued theunknown, in a solemn tone that suggested graveyards and all that sort ofthing, Chatz Maxfield would have declared.
"Sure it is, and if you don't let up on this business it'll goaglimmering. I want to walk, I tell you," declared Lil Artha.
"Hold on, now. Easy, Lil Artha. We represent a committee of the HickoryRidge boys, and have been sent out to make dead sure that you win thisbig hike; d'ye get on to that, now?"
"Well, it sounds all right, but for the life of me I can't place youamong all the fellows I know," returned Lil Artha, suspiciously.
"Never mind about that; it don't cut any figure in the matter at all.Fact is, none of us want you to know us. Then you won't be able to givethe game away."
"Game? What's that mean?" demanded the other. "Open up here, and showyour hand, won't you?"
"We want to help you on your weary way, Lil Artha."
"With cheery words and all that?" queried the one addressed, withsomething of a sneer showing in his tone.
"Shucks! Something that counts better than cheery words. We've got abully old car right here, Lil Artha. You can see it if you look."
"Well, I see it all right," returned the Hickory Ridge scout; "butwhat's that got to do with a fellow that's on a long walk, and anxiousto get to the end of his journey, tell me that?"
"Huh, a heap, Lil Artha; and you must be silly not to see through agrindstone that's got such a big hole in it. What's a car made for,anyway?" demanded the leader of the ambushing party, while his comradeslaughed harshly.
"Look here, what're you hinting at?" asked Lil Artha. "You don't want meto get in there with you, I hope?"
"Plenty of room for six, and there's only four along, Lil Artha."
"But I don't need any help that way," protested the tall boy, angrily."I tell you I'm good for hours of hard grind yet. Not one chance insixty of me losing out to that Felix Wagner. I don't care what sort of ahustle he's got on him. Just you clear the track, and watch my smoke,that's all."
"But we fellows of Hickory Ridge don't want to take the chances. Here'sa bully opening for you to be carried along five miles in as manyminutes. Then we'll set you down, and you can finish the hike intoLittle Falls as fresh as a daisy. You'll do it, Lil Artha, of course youwill?"
"Of course I won't, and you hear me warble at that!" roared the tallboy, furiously. "What's more, I don't believe a single one of you livein Hickory Ridge. Just let me strike a match and have a look at yourfaces. Then perhaps I'll believe you mean honest, even if I can't takeup your offer."
There was a slight scuffle at this. Evidently Lil Artha had attemptedto put his suggestion into practice; but a ready hand had knocked thematch out of his grasp just as he struck it. There was a sudden gleam oflight, and then darkness again.
"No, you don't, old fellow," said a voice that was now tinged withanger. "None of that funny business goes with us, does it, boys?"
"Nixey, not this time," replied one.
"Quit kidding, and make him be good," growled another, who plainly hadtired of the game as far as it had gone and wanted to be on the move.
"What's this mean?" demanded Lil Artha, just as though he could not asyet get the true facts through his fuddled brain.
"The bird that can sing and won't, must be made to sing, they say,"growled the fellow who seemed to take the lead in the abduction game.
"Grab him, boys, and jam him in the car; that's the only way!" burst outa second of the quartette.
"Hold on here, do you know what this means?" asked the one who was beingthreatened in this fashion. "It's an outrage to stop me like this. Andwhen you say you're from Hickory Ridge, you lie, that's what! You're abunch of Fairfield cowards, and you're only trying to make me break therules of the game so that I can't win! I'm on to your dodge, and don'tyou forget it!"
A series of scornful laughs greeted these words. Evidently the hold-upfellows felt so very sure that they had things in their hands that theycould afford to delay a little; just as the cat, not feelingparticularly hungry, will play with the mouse that has been maimed.
"Listen to him, will you?" jeered one.
"He's on, all right, fellows," exclaimed another; "he sees through thedodge, does Lil Artha. Oh, ain't it a great thing to be a scout, and useyour brains! But all the same, we don't expect to let our big friendhave his way, do we, boys?"
Of course they were clustered around the Hickory Ridge scout, cuttingoff all avenues of escape, even if Lil Artha should conceive the idea ofrunning away.
"Not much, we don't," echoed another.
"Keep
your hands off me now, I warn you all!" shouted the tall boy,aggressively; but in reality his words were intended to inform Elmer,Toby and Nat just how far events had progressed, so that they mightarrange their movements accordingly.
"Are you going to get aboard?" demanded the leader, harshly.
"You mean of my own free will?" asked Lil Artha, fighting for a littletime, so that he could make sure of having his chums come up for thecrisis.
"Yes, climb in, Lil Artha!"
"I refuse; and defy the whole bunch of you. I'm going to stick to therules of the game; and you can't make me change my mind. Bah!" the tallscout shouted.
"Tackle him, and if he fights back, don't be too gentle with the bigcub. He's going to be carried five miles and more, whether he wants togo or not!"
As the leader snapped this out there were heard sounds of a scuffle. Noneed of daylight to tell those who were crouching so close at hand whatwas taking place.
Grunts and low exclamations told that Lil Artha was doing his level bestto resist the onslaught of the four Fairfield rowdies.
Still, the tall scout from the Ridge was only a boy after all; and ifthose opposed to him were less lengthy, that was no reason they lackedin physical powers. And left to himself, there could have been no doubtin the world but that after a gallant resistance Lil Artha would havefound himself bundled into the car, possibly bearing numerous cuts andcontusions on his body as mute witnesses to the fight he had put up.
And once they had him in the tonneau, three could hold him tight whilethe other fellow started the machine. After that it would have been"one, two, three," in the language of Lil Artha himself, so far as hisright to claim the prize of the great hike was concerned.
There could be no doubt but that the boy who was thus attacked wasfollowing out the suggestions given by his patrol leader. This was madeevident by the loud cries of the fellow whose voice proclaimed him asbeing the leader of the attacking squad.
"Pull him off, there, can't you?" he yelled. "He's hugging me like fun,and got his long arms twisted around my neck. Hi, there! somebody givehim a jerk before he chokes me! Knock him in the ribs, and make him letgo, fellows!"
Nothing could hold Nat Scott back after that. The sound of battle actedon him just as the smoke of burnt powder is said to affect a horse thatis accustomed to the roar of mighty conflict.
Nor did Elmer have the slightest idea of trying to keep either of hischums in restraint longer. The crisis had arrived, and Lil Artha neededtheir help, lest he be bodily kidnaped and carried away in that car.
So they swiftly bore down upon the scene of the fracas. In the gatheringdarkness they could just manage to distinguish a group of wildlystruggling figures; for Lil Artha had one of the ambushing party in hisembrace, and the other three were vainly endeavoring to make him breakhis hold.
"Remember, one apiece!" Elmer said, as they arrived on the spot.
Up to that second none of the Fairfield fellows had the slightestsuspicion that their miserable game had reached a snag. One happened todiscover the coming of a single figure, and apparently the only thoughtthat flashed through his mind was that the next nearest contestant hadsomehow managed to arrive on the spot ahead of scheduled time; for heimmediately began to shout aloud:
"Keep your hands off, Felix; this is our job, and you don't want to knowanything about it. Go right along the road now, and close your eyes andears. You've got a snap, and a soft one at that. Here, let go of me, youfool! We're your friends, d'ye hear! Quit it, I tell you! Wow! What'sthis mean, fellows?" And the one who was making all this outcry suddenlychanged his tune from indignation to fright, as he noticed othervigorous forms attacking his companions.