CHAPTER XVI
_The Accident_
At seven o'clock the following morning, after eating the heartybreakfast upon which Mrs. Stillman insisted, the girls entered thePursuit, and taxied off, waving farewell to Elsie, Roger, and theirhostess. Of the large family, only these three--and the cook--hadrisen in time to say good-by. Even David had overslept; but his eldestbrother was on hand to help the girls get their start.
Fortunately, the rain was over, and both Linda and Roger believed that,barring mishaps, the flyers should reach their destination early in theafternoon. With this hope, both girls kept their spirits high; theyrefused to worry about Linda's father until they saw for themselves.For Miss Carlton was likely to look upon the dark side of things, andit was probable too that the help at the ranch were frightened by theaccident to their employer.
Tears of gratitude came to Linda's eyes when she saw the enormous lunchwhich Mrs. Stillman had been able to provide at such short notice, andshe did not know how to thank the kind woman or her son. So she merelysmiled gratefully, and waved good-by.
Louise kept the map of their course in her lap, and for two hours theyflew on, making no attempt to talk, but every once in a while pressingeach other's hand in sympathy and affection.
As the sun was growing hotter and higher in the sky, Linda wasbeginning to wonder whether they were not somewhat off their course.She examined the map.
"We ought to be nearing that town!" she shouted, pointing to a spotwhich Roger indicated by a large dot on the map. "And I don't believethat we are."
"Fly lower!" suggested Louise. "Let's see!"
Cautiously the young pilot descended, but though both girls lookedeagerly, there were no roofs or other evidences of a town. An almostcontinuous expanse of shrubbery seemed to cover the ground, and Lindadid not care to land.
So she went higher again, and pointed her plane south, trusting thatthey were right.
For two hours more they continued to fly without seeing any of thelandmarks for which they were so eagerly watching. Afterwards Lindaremarked that she believed they had been going in a circle.
The sun was almost directly overhead now, and both girls were feelinghungry, for their breakfast, though substantial, had been an early one.They were just considering opening their box to eat, when Linda noticeda queer noise in the motor.
"Something's wrong, Lou!" she shouted, trying to smile as if she werenot worried. "We'll have to land."
"Here?" gasped Louise, in horror.
"Yes. Watch the ground! We must find a good place."
Louise was gazing about at the sky and the horizon, when, turningaround, she happened to glance at her companion's face. A set look hadcome into Linda's eyes, her lips were rigid. Uneven, yet deafening,was the threatening sound of the motor. Suddenly it let off a terrificexplosion.
"Will we be killed?" screamed Louise, hoarsely.
Linda did not try to answer. She needed every ounce of brain power, ofenergy for the test that was ahead of her. She was working franticallywith the joystick. So Louise too, kept quiet, and looked over the sideof the plane--and prayed.
At first it seemed they were dropping terrifically; but gradually,frightened though she was, she could feel that some safety device wastaking hold. The speed was lessening. Down, down they went, but moregradually now.
And then they were close enough to the ground to see it. A woods ofstumpy trees stretched under them, but over to the right was a field.Would Linda be able to guide the plane there, or must they be dashedagainst the tree-tops, to meet a sickening death?
How would it feel to be dead, Louise wondered. And oh, her poor motherand father! Even in those few seconds, it seemed as if her whole lifeflashed before her, and although she was really a very sweet girl, shebelieved herself a monster of ingratitude. Not a bit like Linda--whowas always thinking of her Aunt Emily and her father!
Linda, on the other hand, had no time for any such thoughts. She wasworking as she had never worked before, guiding her stricken plane.And--miracle of miracles--they were passing the tree-tops! They wereover a field of weeds.
"Thank God!" cried Louise, reverently.
"Wait!" whispered Linda, not sure yet that they were safe.
The landing was not easy. The plane came down and hit the ground andbounced up again. Suppose it should pancake? Linda held her breath,suffering greater agony than Louise, who knew less of the dangers. Butin a moment the valiant little Arrow came to a stop, in the shrubbery.
In a rapture of relief and thanksgiving, Louise grasped Linda andkissed her, while the tears ran down the young pilot's face. For amoment the girls sat thus in silent embrace, each too filled withemotion to speak.
"Come, let's get out, Lou," said Linda, finally, and shakily they bothstepped from the plane.
"I wonder where we are," remarked Louise, trying to make her voicesound natural.
"We'll get out our maps and study the situation. But first let's eat.I'm simply famished. It must be noon at least."
They found upon consulting Louise's wrist-watch that it was ten minutesof one.
Resolutely deciding to be cheerful, they opened the hamper whichLouise's Aunt Margaret had packed. What a delicious lunch!
There was a whole roast chicken, and tiny dainty lettucesandwiches--at least a dozen of them. Pears and cherries, and lemonadein a thermos bottle. And a beautiful little layer cake evidently bakedjust especially for them, though how the cook had managed it, theyhad no idea. They spread out the paper cloth and attacked the foodravenously.
"It looks pretty desolate around here," remarked Louise, as she nibbledat a chicken leg. "I don't see a house in sight."
"Or a road either, for that matter," returned Linda. "I wish we couldget to a telephone--and send a call for assistance."
They ate silently for a while. How good the food tasted! In spite oftheir distress and worry, both girls enjoyed that lunch.
"Have you any idea what is wrong with the plane?" asked Louise, as shebroke off a piece of chocolate cake. "It was all right yesterday."
"Yes. That mechanic at the airport gave it a hasty examination. Funnyhe didn't notice anything so serious as this.... Louise, do you supposethat Roger could have done anything to it?"
"No," answered Louise, thoughtfully. "No; I think Roger knows what he'sabout. But I have an idea, Linda."
"What?"
"Do you remember hearing a plane very close to the house when we wereplaying ping-pong last night?"
"Yes. I thought it was the air-mail."
"So did I. But I believe now it was the Pursuit--with Dan piloting!"
"Dan Stillman?"
"Yes. He's a regular daredevil. And you know Roger won't let him flyhis plane."
A pained look came into Linda's eyes, as if she herself had beenmistreated.
"Oh, Lou, that seems awful," she said. "He wouldn't do a thing likethat, would he?"
"He must have. Remember, he went out right after supper. And he's soconceited. He wouldn't think he could hurt it. But I'll tell you howto find out--look at the gas. You remember you had her filled at thatairport."
Holding their cake in their hands, both girls dashed excitedly backto the plane and looked at the dial which indicated how much gasolinewas left. And, sure enough, the supply was running low! Too low to beaccounted for by the flying they had done that morning. In fact, it wasalmost gone.
"You're right!" cried Linda. "Oh, Lou, now we're in a worse pickle thanever. We'll never get to Daddy!" The tears ran down her cheeks.
"Don't!" urged her chum, putting her arms around the other girl."Don't give up yet! We'll find somebody--on some road--who will send amechanic to us. And we'll be at the ranch before night!"
"I hope so!" replied Linda, bravely trying to keep up her courage.
They went back to the spot where their lunch was spread--luckily therewas plenty left for supper, in case they needed it--and packed theremainder again. Then, arm in arm, they set out in quest of a road.They walked in an easterly direction; th
at much they knew from the sun.
What they saw appeared to be a flat country, without even any fences orsigns of cultivation. Gazing off in the distance, they could faintlydistinguish the outline of a house--but it might be five miles away, orit might be fifteen. Or it might not be a house at all; perhaps justsome abandoned building or mill.
For half an hour they walked aimlessly onward, till they finallyreached a dirt road.
"This is encouraging," said Louise, hopefully. "Let's drop down andwait here till something passes. We don't want to get too far from theplane--if we get out of sight, we might not be able to find our wayback."
They sat down on some moss by a small tree and consulted the time. Itwas half-past two.
Everything was extremely still. No noise of motor or traffic anywhere.No voices. So strange after the places they were used to, for evenGreen Falls was noisy. And the birds were quiet, too--or perhaps thereweren't many, for there were no big trees.
Linda yawned. "I'm so sleepy."
"Take a nap," suggested Louise. "You deserve one!"
"Hardly fair," returned the other. "Aren't you sleepy too?"
"Not so sleepy as you are. Go ahead! I'll wake you if anything comesalong."
"And suppose nothing does?"
"Then I'll wake you anyway at three o'clock. We'll have to strike outin some other direction."
So Linda curled up and went to sleep, and Louise, yawning, wondered howshe could possibly manage to keep awake. The whole atmosphere was sodrowsy--and there was nothing to do.
"If only there were a place to swim," she thought, regretfully. "Coldwater would make me a different girl!"
But there wasn't any water at all, as far as she knew; indeed, she andLinda didn't dare wash in the small supply they carried with them. Forthey might need it for drinking.
She never knew how it happened, but soon she too was peacefully asleep.For two whole hours both girls slept the dreamless sleep of fatigue.Then, at a quarter of five they were suddenly awakened by the rattle ofan old, tumble-down cart, pulled by a haggard horse. The girls sat upwith a start, and looked at each other and laughed.
Jumping to her feet in an instant, Louise ran hastily towards thedriver. He was staring at them with great curiosity.
"We have been in an airplane accident, and we want to get to atelephone--" began Louise.
But the man only shook his head and grinned.
"Nicht versteh'," he replied, helplessly.
"He's a foreigner," said Louise, turning back to where Linda wasstanding. "A German, who doesn't understand English."
"I can speak German," said Linda. "At least, I had some, Freshman year.Let me try him!"
But already he was driving away.
"Wo ghen Sie?" called Linda. "Warte!"
He stopped driving, evidently amazed at her words, and pointed to theroad ahead of him.
Encouraged by this display of intelligence, Louise jumped up on thecart, and waved her arms in the direction of the airplane, in the fieldhalf a mile away.
"We want _help_!" she cried. Then, turning to Linda, "What's the Germanword for help?"
"I don't know," answered the other girl. "But I think he understands.If he does meet anybody, I think he'd send them to us."
So Louise climbed down again, and waved good-by to the man as hecontinued on with his cart, and, faintly encouraged, the girls wentback to the plane to eat their supper.