CHAPTER V
A SHOT IN THE DARK
In the minds of each of the young people in the canoes, one word keptrepeating itself over and over again: "Spy, spy, spy!"
Since the war had begun, the country had been overrun with them, thatthey knew; but out here on this remote island... Yet there wassomething about the very posture of the man, his hunched-up figure,the nervous twitching of the fingers that held the document, thatbranded him.
As they watched, he started to fold up the paper, glancing stealthilyabout meanwhile; then, as though satisfied that no one was watching,he picked up the heavy bag that lay beside him, evidently preparingfor flight.
Betty, a little tense figure in the bottom of the boat, uttered agasp of dismay, as Allen began carefully to lower himself into theshallow water.
The man on shore heard the slight sound and turned swiftly, staringsuspiciously into the thick shadows of the foliage. Then did the boysand girls literally hold their breath.
After a few seconds, which seemed an eternity to the taut nerves ofthe watchers, the man turned with a guttural growl, and startedcautiously to make off into the denser woodland beyond.
In a second, Allen was out of the boat, and lending a hand to thegallant Little Captain, who would not be outdone in any adventure, nomatter how perilous.
The other boys and girls followed, silent as ghosts, their trainingin woodcraft standing them in good stead. For an instant, they stoodin a tense, excited group on shore, Mrs. Irving in their midst.
"I'll tell you what we'll do," Allen was saying, and they had to leanclose to catch the words, which were barely above a whisper. "Theremust be a guard around this mill somewhere. We'll get him, and headthat fellow off."
"I'll take you to a guard," said Will suddenly. "We'll find him atthe other end of the mill."
Without another word, he turned and led the way, careful of thebetraying snap of twigs, along the shore, toward the mill. Even inthat moment of tense excitement, the girls and boys looked at hissuddenly stiffened back in surprise. It was the first time since hehad come ashore that morning, that his comrades had been able todiscover anything of the old Will.
However, they had little time for the solving of riddles. There waswork to be done, work, which in these stirring times, might perhapshelp to make history.
As they neared the mill, Will motioned to them to stay where theywere, and ran ahead to intercept a guard. A moment later he returnedwith the latter, and the whole party made its way hurriedly andstealthily in a roundabout direction, which would almost certainlyintercept the spy--if spy he were.
"Oh, Betty," whispered Grace, close to the Little Captain's ear."I've always been horribly afraid of spies. Do you suppose he's got agun?"
"I never heard of a spy that didn't," returned Betty grimly. "Butdon't worry--we have one, too."
"Better not talk," warned Roy, close at their side. "A whisper maymean a bullet."
Grace almost screamed, but Betty's firm little hand across her mouthsmothered it into something between a sob and a squeak.
"Hush," whispered Betty fiercely. "You'll spoil everything."
At that moment, the sharp crack of a twig somewhere to the left ofthem in the woods, made them stop suddenly and stand motionless,listening.
Then with a shout, Will rushed forward, followed by the other boysand the home guard man.
"Hands up!" shouted the latter, leveling his pistol at something thatmoved among the bushes. "Stand where you are."
Like a flash of lightning the man wriggled out from his cover, andmade a dash for liberty. With a yell, the guard ran forward, firingas he went, with the boys close at his heels.
"Oh, oh, they'll get shot!" wailed Amy, her hands before her face. "Idon't see why we couldn't have left the old thing alone, anyway."
"That's a nice thing to say!" cried Mollie, trembling withexcitement. "Is that your idea of patriotism, to let a spy get awayright under our very noses?"
"It's a good deal better than having the boys shot right under ourvery noses," retorted Amy with spirit.
"We'll be lucky if we don't get shot ourselves," said Grace, almostin hysterics. "Oh, there goes another one. I wonder who got shot thattime."
"Let's go and see," said Betty, pale, but determined, "It isn't likeus to stand in the background, when there may be something to do."
"But, Betty," wailed Amy, "we may get shot."
"Well, then, we shall," cried Betty, turning upon her fiercely. "Thatmay have been the spy that was shot, or it may be one of our boys.Are we going to stay here, or are we going to find out?"
"I--I'm sorry, Betty," quavered poor Amy. "Of course, we'll go."
Without another word the Little Captain turned and, with Mollie ather side, made off in the direction the boys had taken. Amy andGrace, arms entwined about each other, followed a little lingeringlyin the rear of their bolder companions.
They had not gone far, when they heard the welcome sound of masculinevoices in excited altercation, and the heavy tramp of feet comingtoward them.
"Oh," sighed Betty, her lip quivering, now that the need of couragehad passed, "they never sounded so good to me before."
"Thank heaven you're safe," cried Allen, while relief banished thefear in his eyes. "I don't know what we could have been thinking of,to leave you all alone--"
"But did you get him?" cried Mollie impatiently.
"No, worse luck," responded Will disgustedly, while the guard moppedhis perspiring forehead. "That spy was a slippery customer. We didget something out of it, though."
"What?" they cried eagerly.
"This," said Will, holding up something that gleamed white in themoonlight. "It's a letter, and it ought to tell us a number of thingswe want to know about Mr. Adolph Hensler."
"Oh, is that his name?" cried Betty eagerly. "That tells us a gooddeal without even opening the letter."
"It's German enough," agreed Will. "But, gee! I'm sorry we didn'tcatch the fellow. The government needs him."
"But we're so glad you didn't get shot," Amy ventured mildly. "Weheard that last one back there in the woods, and we thought--"
"We'd gotten ours?" grinned Roy. "Well, we hadn't--not yet."
"It was too near for comfort, just the same," Frank added. "I couldalmost hear the wind from it as it whizzed past me."
Here Betty, who had been watching Allen closely, uttered a sharpexclamation, and all turned to her.
"Allen," she cried, for he had swayed a little and rested his handagainst a tree as though to steady himself, "why didn't you tell us?Oh, Allen! It's blood!"
"Nothing at all," said Allen, laughing a little unsteadily, as Mrs.Irving and the girls and boys gathered about him anxiously. "A littlething will bleed like a shambles sometimes. It's nothing--Betty--"
But Betty, with a little catch in her breath, was tearing aside thesoft shirt, which was clotted with blood at the shoulder.
"Oh, Allen, Allen!" she was murmuring over and over in a way thatsent the blood pounding madly to Allen Washburn's head, and made thewound a blessing. "Why didn't you tell me? Oh, your poor shoulder!Some one get some water, quick," she ordered imperiously, turning tothe anxious group. "I don't think it's serious, but we must stop thisbleeding. Please hurry."
And hurry they did, bringing water from a near-by spring in cups theyexpertly improvised from leaves as they had done so many times justfor the fun of it.
Then the boys produced some spotless white handkerchiefs, whichserved as a makeshift bandage, till they could reach the cottage. Thebullet, as Betty had said, had not much more than grazed theshoulder, yet the wound had bled profusely, and Allen was beginningto feel a little sick and dizzy, from the loss of blood.
When at last all had been done, that it was possible to do, Allen washelped down to the canoe, and they paddled home, a very much soberedgroup of young people.
"Never mind," said Allen, in an attempt to lift the generaldepression, as they neared the cottage. "We found the letter anyway,which may be of con
siderable help to the government. And what's oneshoulder more or less in the cause?"