CHAPTER VII
MOLLIE FOLLOWS THE TRAIL
"Mollie have you seen my red sweater?" called Grace a few days later. "Ican't find it anywhere; yet I am sure I left it out here on this benchlast night. Naki and Ceally haven't seen it. Horrid thing! It has takenwings and flown away just when I wanted it. Do come with us. Ruth, Baband I are going over into the forest to try to learn to shoot. Naki is toteach us."
"Does Miss Sallie know?" asked Mollie, who was not in a good humor. Babhad been lecturing her for her sudden dislike of Reginald Latham. Itseemed to Mistress Barbara unreasonable that Mollie had taken such anunaccountable prejudice against a young man whom they had barely met.
"You talk, Mollie, as if he were a villain in a play," Bab protested.
Mollie knew she had been obstinate. All she had answered was: "Well, hewould probably be a villain, if he had the opportunity. I hope I shan'tsee him again. I don't see, Bab, why you should be so interested in him.He's lots older than you are."
"I am not interested in him," Bab retorted indignantly. And the twosisters had separated.
"Of course, Miss Sallie knows we are going to practise shooting?"mimicked Grace. "What is the matter with Miss Mollie Thurston thismorning? Don't you know Mr. Stuart sent us a rifle. He told us learningto shoot might prove a useful part of our education. _Do_ come on with usMollie."
"No, thank you," Mollie declared. "I hate the noise of a gun. Oh, I amnot afraid, Grace Carter, so you needn't tease; but I prefer moreladylike amusements. I am going for a walk."
"Don't go too far by yourself, Mollie," pleaded Grace, who didn't mindMollie's tantrums. "You don't know your way about these hills, yet, andit isn't safe to wander any distance. How I wish I could find my coat."
"Here, take Aunt Sallie's," cried Ruth, appearing suddenly in thedoorway. "It is not such a charming color as your scarlet one, and it maybe a trifle large, but it will keep you warm. Coming, child?" she askedMollie.
Mollie shook her head. Without waiting for Bab to join them she startedon her walk. The child wanted to be alone. Besides being in a bad humorshe had several things to think about. She certainly would not tell Baband the other girls, just to be laughed at; but again that morning shehad heard a light noise outside their window. It didn't sound like ananimal. Mollie wrinkled her pretty forehead, and a puzzled expressioncrept into her blue eyes. How absurd even to dream of a thief, here ontheir beautiful hillside far away from the rest of the world. And, she, agreat girl of fourteen, knew better than to believe in ghosts.
Mollie slipped down the path and crossed the gully that divided thenearer hill from the higher one back of it. Already her bad humor wasdisappearing. She had no idea of going far from their cabin; another dayshe might persuade the girls to explore this mysterious hill, with itslost Indian trail; but she should not attempt it alone. This morning shewanted only to creep away for an hour or so into the woodland quiet.
Mollie Thurston had a curious passion for the woods. When she was alonein them she would stand still a long time, calling to the birds, and shedelighted in having them steal near and shyly listen to the sweet soundsshe made in return for theirs. No one knew of this accomplishment ofMollie's, not even Bab.
Up the steep hillside Mollie clambered. Below her she could hear the pop,pop, pop, of a rifle. The girls were evidently taking their lesson intarget practice from Naki.
"I suppose I am fairly safe up here," Mollie chuckled, "but I wouldn'tcare to be too near those shooting experts. I know they will hiteverything near them except their target."
She sat down on the root of an old tree that jutted out from anoverhanging bank, and drew a sheet of paper from her pocket. She wouldwrite to her mother of their rescue of an airship. Mollie bit the end ofher pencil--she was not in a writing mood. Why had she taken such adislike to Reginald Latham? He had been polite enough, and was rathergood-looking. It was Bab's habit to feel prejudices, not hers. Shewouldn't say anything to her mother about him, but certainly Bab seemedto like him unusually well.
Crack! Crack! The sound came from the bushes! She looked quickly around.It must have been a gust of wind that stirred. In another minute theretumbled over her head a shower of leaves and acorns, that for an instantblinded her. But she could hear plainly this time; light feet wererunning along the bank above the ravine where she sat.
Without pausing a moment she jumped to her feet and ran up the path thatled from the bottom of the ravine to the hilltop. Nothing was in sight;but further on through a thicket of trees, she caught the distant soundof flying footsteps. She could see the underbrush move, as though shakenby something in passing.
A shivering sense of mystery possessed the girl. Could it be the ghost?
Without stopping to think Mollie flew in pursuit; determined to discoverwhat had disturbed her. Once she saw a bright object flash ahead of her,brown and scarlet, through the trees. It was gone in an instant. Surelyit was but a shadow from the autumn leaves.
For some distance Mollie had been following what seemed to be a pathwaythrough a tangled thicket of bushes and trees. Suddenly she stopped. Sofar as she could see the path ended abruptly. Yet, at this very moment,she heard a faint hallo!
It was the voice of temptation to Mollie, and she let her curiosity getthe better of her. Without in the least knowing where she was going shepushed on. Ducking her head through an opening in one place, turning andtwisting wherever she found it possible to make her way, the child cameat last into a thick forest. On every side of her stretched endlessavenues of trees. Now no sound of flying feet urged her on; no voicecalled her.
Poor Mollie was entirely alone.
"What an utter goose I am!" she declared out loud. "I don't believe Iever heard anyone, or saw anything. It was just my imagination that ledme on. Now, I hope," Mollie gave a rueful smile and sat down to pull thebrambles out of her dress, "I hope my imagination will kindly show me theway home again!"
Which way should she go? There were half a dozen different directionsopen to her. Which was the right one?
"I wonder," thought Mollie, "if, somehow, I have struck the famous 'LostMan's Trail?' It is a lost girl's trail all right!"
She turned this way, then that. In front of her between the sumach andthe holly trees was an open space, which might lead somewhere towardhome. Mollie pushed her way through. There were trees, trees, trees! Nopath was visible between them.
For half a mile Mollie walked on blindly, feeling sure that, at anyminute, she would catch a glimpse of their familiar hillside. A sense ofsinking warned her that luncheon time had passed. High overhead she couldsee by the sun that noon had passed.
Several times she called aloud. But Naki had warned her. This hill wasentirely deserted. No one ever walked or rode over it.
"I don't wonder," the little girl thought, with a lump in her throat. "Noone except myself would be such a goose as to try to find her way aboutup here, or be silly enough to go on a ghost hunt."
She called again. "Hello! hello! I am lost! Is anyone near?" There was noanswer. Once Mollie thought she heard a strange sound, half-wild,half-human, and called more loudly. This time there was no reply.
After several hours of walking, Mollie found her way out of the woods. Asshe came again to an open hilltop she thought she could see the smokecurling out of the chimney of their little, brown cabin, but far andnear, there was no familiar object. She had followed the wrong trail, andwas in an entirely different part of the country. There was nothing to dobut to return to the woods.
Wearily she walked back. "I am sure the girls must be looking for me,"she said, trying to revive her courage. "When I wasn't home in time forlunch Bab would know I was lost."
On and on, Mollie wandered. Finally, toward dusk, she found herself againin the heart of the forest where she had lost her way in the morning. Shewas so tired, there was nothing to do but to sit down and rest, but shehad not given up. Of course, she would find her way out of this labyrinthof trees somehow. However, just for the time, she must wait.
Mollie sank down on a pile of leaves that had been blown in a heap underthe shelter of a great cedar tree. It was growing cold, and the Septemberday was closing. All morning and afternoon the little girl had wanderedalone in the woods. How many miles she had traveled she did not know.
The child shivered, as she dropped on the ground. Tired as she was, shehad plenty of courage left. Not a tear had been shed in these miles ofweary tramping; indeed she had often laughed at her own mistakes, thoughthe laughter had sometimes been close to tears; but Mollie knew that shemust not lose her head.
"Suppose, I do have to stay in the woods all night?" she reflected. "Itwouldn't kill me. I have wanted to have adventures in a forest; here ismy opportunity. I wish, though, I knew how to make a fire; I'm so coldand hungry; but I haven't a sign of a match, so there is no use ofthinking about it."
If Mollie could but have kept awake a little longer! No sooner had shedropped on the soft leaves than fatigue overcame her, and she was fastasleep.
Suddenly a figure came out of the underbrush--a strange young figure allbrown and scarlet. It moved so softly that scarcely a leaf trembled. Fora minute it paused and gazed down on the sleeping child. The little girlstirred in her sleep. With a bound the wood sprite vanished. It need nothave hurried; Mollie was too utterly weary to awaken soon.
What had happened at the log cabin, meantime?
All morning Ruth, Bab and Grace had been practising under the instructionof Naki. Bab was growing into a clever shot, and Ruth was playing her aclose second, when the luncheon gong sounded. The girls had given nofurther thought to Mollie, supposing she had grown tired of her walk, andwas at home with Miss Sallie. The latter naturally was not worried, asshe thought Mollie was with Naki and the others.
When the girls filed into the living room for their lunch Bab askedcarelessly: "Where's Mollie?"
"Where's Mollie?" repeated Miss Sallie. "Hasn't she been shooting withyou? Perhaps she is somewhere near. Here is Ceally; I will ask her."
At this moment Ceally entered with a great bowl of vegetable soup thatlooked most inviting to the hungry girls.
"I haven't seen Miss Mollie all morning," she explained. "Not since shestarted for a walk up that hill over 'yond'."
Barbara, Grace and Ruth stared at each other with white, frightenedfaces. They remembered Mollie had gone off for a walk early that morning;but she had promised not to go far up the hill.
"Call Naki, at once," said Miss Stuart hurriedly. "He will probably knowwhere Mollie is."
"No, auntie." Ruth shook her head. "Naki doesn't know. He has beenteaching us to shoot all the forenoon."
Bab jumped up from the table. "Please, Miss Sallie," she cried hastily,"may Naki and I go out to look for Mollie? I am afraid she is lost on thehill."
"Sit down, Bab," quietly said Miss Sallie, in the voice the girlsrecognized as final. "You and the other girls must each eat a plate ofthis soup. You are not to start out to look for Mollie when you are tiredand hungry. Ceally, see that Naki has some food at once, and bring thecoffee to me."
Barbara was almost crying. "Oh, Miss Sallie," she pleaded, "I can't eat.Don't make me wait. I must go at once."
"Eat your soup, Barbara," was Miss Sallie's reply.
Poor Bab obediently choked it down, while Ruth and Grace followed herexample. Then they each drank a cup of coffee.
It was Miss Sallie who ate nothing. She was more frightened than thegirls; for the woods were more terrible to her than to the young people.Then, Mollie was the youngest of the party, and Miss Stuart felt she wasless able to look after herself. Besides, Ceally had hinted strange talesof the haunted mountain back of them. At the time, Miss Sallie hadrefused to listen; it had seemed utter nonsense, that tale of a ghostwhich haunted a lost Indian trail. Now, the idea came to Miss Stuart,that perhaps the ghost on the mountain was some criminal, a fugitive fromjustice, who made his home on the deserted hill.
It was Bab who led the way up to the top of the ravine. But there shestopped and waited for Naki and the girls to join her.
Looking for lost people in the woods was an old business with the guide.He did not take the fact of disobedient Mollie's disappearance any tooseriously. Once up the hill, he blew on a great horn which he carried.Once, twice, thrice! There was no response. He blew again, then waited.Evidently the young lady was out of earshot.
Then Naki made a mistake. Instead of going into the woods, where Molliehad pursued her will-o'-the-wisp, he turned in the opposite direction. Itdid not dawn on him that she had been led astray by a forgotten Indiantrail.
"You must keep close to me, young ladies," Naki insisted. "None of yeknow your way about up here. If we should separate, I should soon besearching for the whole lot of ye, instead of just one."
All afternoon they searched and searched for the lost one, yet all invain.
If Mollie shed no tears while she was lost, Barbara shed plenty in theeffort to find her. Poor Grace and Ruth tried vainly to comfort her.
"If only we hadn't quarreled this morning over that horrid ReginaldLatham!" Bab sobbed, running on ahead of the others. "I told Mollie shewas foolish to say she hated anyone whom she did not know. Yet I do itall the time myself."
"Oh, do cheer up, Bab," said Grace, choking back her own tears. "Youdidn't quarrel with Mollie. I never saw two sisters who fussed so little.I know we shall find her soon."
"There's nothing up here can harm your sister, Miss," Naki explained tofrightened Bab. "The country around here is perfectly peaceful."
At dusk Naki and his searching party returned alone to the top of theravine from whence they had started. Looking down, they could see theirlog cabin, where Miss Sallie and Ceally stood at the open door. There wasno sign of Mollie.
"It is harder work than I expected to find the young lady," Nakiapologized to Ruth. "I am sorry, but you had better go back to your aunt.I must go down to the farm for help. It will take a number of people tomake a thorough search of this place to-night. The underbrush is so thickthat it is hard work traveling about."
"Oh, I can't go home without Mollie!" sobbed Bab. "I am not a bit afraidto stay up here alone. Leave me, Ruth, you and Grace. I'll just sit atthe top of this ravine and call and call! Then, if Mollie comes anywherenear me, she will hear. You and Grace go and have supper with MissSallie. You can bring me something to eat afterwards, if you like."Barbara smiled feebly.
Ruth and Grace both turned on her indignantly. It was a relief to pretendto be offended. "Oh, yes, Bab, we are both delighted to go down andcomfortably eat our supper! It is so pleasant to think of your sitting uphere alone, like a stone image, and poor little Mollie lost--goodnessknows where!"
Ruth kissed Bab for comfort. Then she turned to Grace. "Grace," sheasked, "will you be a perfect dear? I know Naki is right; he must getsome one to help him search for Mollie, and one of us must go to AuntSallie, who is terribly worried. See! she has already seen us, and iswaving her hand. But if you will go tell her what has happened, I shallstay up here with Bab, and Ceally can bring us some dinner. You can comeback afterwards. By that time Naki will have returned with assistance andwe can go on with our search again."
"I hate to leave you," Grace protested, "but I will go."
"Wait for me," Naki cautioned. Both girls nodded. They were too tired tospeak.