CHAPTER XV CONSTERNATION
It may have been the drowsy charm of the day, the soothing murmur of thebrook, or the satisfying quality of the lunch, or perhaps a combinationof the three, that made the little party under the trees so content tosit still or lie still for a considerable time after Cora left them.
"This is _dolce far niente_ for fair," murmured Jack lazily.
"I'd agree with you," drawled Paul, "if I only knew what you meant. TalkUnited States."
"Why, it means something like 'the happiness of doing nothing,' Ibelieve," explained Jack.
"It seems to make a hit with you," remarked Belle.
"It does," admitted Jack brazenly.
"I declare, you boys are like so many stuffed anacondas stretched outthere," observed Bess.
"We're members of the Amalgamated Order of the Sons of Rest," saidWalter.
"Come along, Belle," said Bess, rising. "If we stay here much longerwe'll grow to be as lazy as they are. Let's go and find Cora. She's theonly real live wire in the whole party."
"You do yourselves an injustice," Jack called after them.
The girls went off in the direction that Cora had taken, keeping a sharplookout as they went along.
"It's queer that she hasn't come back of her own accord by this time,"remarked Belle.
"She's probably gathering flowers," replied Bess. "There are so manybeautiful varieties around here." But Belle grew more uneasy everysecond.
"I'm going to call her," she said, and gave the familiar yodel on whichCora herself had relied in vain.
But no answer came back, and the girls looked at each other with unrestin their eyes.
"Do you think she's teasing us by pretending not to hear?" asked Belle.
"No," replied her sister, "that wouldn't be like Cora. She knows how thatwould worry us."
"Let's try both together," suggested Belle, and they gave out a call inunison.
Again there was no response, and thoroughly frightened now, the girls ranback to their companions.
"Oh, Jack," exclaimed Belle, "we can't find Cora!"
"What!" cried the boys, leaping to their feet.
"It's true," confirmed Bess. "We've called her again and again, and wecan't get any answer."
Jack grew pale beneath his coat of tan.
"It can't be!" he cried. "You didn't call loud enough. Cora, oh, Cora!"he shouted at the top of his voice.
Paul and Walter joined in with stentorian yells, but their united effortshad no result.
"There's got to be some quick work here, fellows!" cried Jack, a coldperspiration breaking out all over him. "You girls stay right here," hecommanded. "Don't stir from this spot. We three fellows will spread outin a semicircle, and beat up the woods in the general direction that Corastarted out in. We'll spread out as widely as we can, but we mustn't getso far apart that we can't hear each other shout. We'll keep calling outall the time, so as to keep in touch with each other. If at the end ofhalf an hour we haven't found any trace of her, we'll know that she isn'tin this section and we'll hurry back to the girls here. Then we'll raisea hue and cry and get the whole district out searching for her. Comealong now and keep your voices going. And keep your eyes open, too. Shemay have met with an accident. Work, fellows! Work like mad!"
The others needed no urging, for they were wild with fear for Cora'ssafety.
For the next half-hour they yelled until they were hoarse, and covered asmuch territory as they could. They peered into every bush and thicket.Not one of them but thought of the ugly monster they had seen in the roadthat morning. Suppose one of this tribe had attacked the girl who was sodear to all of them? Suppose at that very moment she were lying somewherehelpless and dying?
They looked everywhere in an agony of apprehension, but Cora's wanderingfeet and her fall down the mountainside had already carried her farbeyond sound or sight.
At the appointed time they rejoined the girls.
"No use," announced Jack, in a voice that he tried to keep firm, despitethe working of his features. "I'll tell you what we'll do. You stay here,Paul, until further notice. If Cora comes back, you have an easy trailfrom here to the mill. There's a telephone there, and of course you'dcall up Kill Kare at once with the good news. Walter and I will go backwith Bess and Belle to the mill. Then Walter can drive the girls to KillKare in one of the cars, leave them with Aunt Betty, and bring Joel backwith him to the mill. I'll get all the men that I can at the mill to joinin the search. Those lumberjacks know the woods thoroughly. Then, too,I'll telephone to all the neighboring towns and camps and call forvolunteers. We'll comb these woods all day and all night until we findher."
He and Walter hurried off with the girls, leaving Paul behind. Theyreached the sawmill in record time, and leaving Jack there to explain thesituation and carry out the plans agreed upon, Walter drove the girlshome.
It had been thought at first that it would be well to leave Aunt Betty inignorance of the affair, in order to spare her misery. But on secondthought this idea had been dismissed. It would not be fair to her, in amatter of such moment, to treat her as a child, even with the best ofmotives. Besides it was morally certain that the girls would not be ableto conceal their grief from her, no matter how hard they tried.
She was waiting for them as they drove up and greeted them with her usualkindly smile.
"Where are the others?" she inquired. "And what on earth is the matterwith you two girls?" she added in quick alarm as she saw their eyes redand swollen with weeping.
"Don't be alarmed, Aunt Betty," said Walter, as lightly as he could. "Thegirls are a little worried because Cora strayed off a little way into thewoods and we haven't found her. But she can't have gone very far, andwe'll find her and have her back to Kill Kare in a jiffy. Jack and Paulare looking for her now, and I'm going back to help them."
Aunt Betty gave a frightened exclamation and put her hand to her heart.
"Cora lost!" she ejaculated. "And in those awful woods! Oh, why did youlet her get away from you? The poor darling girl!"
"We boys ought to be kicked from here to Jericho for letting her out ofour sight," said Walter in savage self-reproach. "But the mischief's donenow, and we've got to remedy it as best we can. You take care of thegirls, Aunt Betty, while I go and hunt up Joel. I'm going to take himback with me."
He hurried away, leaving the three to condole with each other. He waslucky enough to find Joel in the barn, and hastily explained the state ofaffairs.
The big backwoodsman was thoroughly alarmed. Better than any one else atKill Kare, he knew the dangers that threatened any tyro that venturedinto that wilderness. There had been cases within his own knowledge wherehapless wanderers had perished, even while the woods were alive withsearching parties.
He put his hunting knife in his belt, grasped his rifle and hurried backwith Walter to the sawmill.
Meanwhile, Jack told his story to the foreman, and received his instantsympathy and promise to help. He called for volunteers, and a number ofthe men who were working in the mill responded promptly. Some of them hadalready started out when Walter arrived, and others quickly followed.
Baxter too was stirred by the story and came out of his shell ofreticence. He volunteered to take charge of the telephoning, leaving Jackto go out with the searching parties.
"I know personally the authorities in the nearest towns," he said, "andthey'll be glad to oblige me in this. You're too excited and on edge tostay here, and I don't wonder. You go ahead and look for your sister andleave this to me. Before long I'll have a dozen parties out on thetrail."
Jack gladly availed himself of the offer, and, in company with Walter andJoel, hurried with feverish haste up the hillside and plunged into thewoods.