CHAPTER XIII
THE MISSING PIECE
"Say, this is no fun!" exclaimed Will, when ten minutes had passed, withno cessation of the fury of the wind and whirling white flakes.
"It is keeping up," spoke Mollie in a low tone. "Can we ever get back tocamp?"
"Of course!" cried Betty quickly. It was no time now to have anyone'snerves go to pieces. "Certainly we can get back, if we have to walk;can't we, boys?" and she gave Allen a look that made his eyes sparkle ashe answered:
"Certainly. It will be more fun walking, anyhow."
"Spoken like a true hero," said Will in his ear.
"The boat can't go if the snow gets very deep," observed Frank.
"And it is getting heavier every minute," declared Amy, looking over theside of the cockpit of the ice boat, and brushing some of the whitecrystals from the frozen surface of the river. "There's nearly half aninch now," and she shivered slightly.
"Are you cold, dear?" asked Betty, passing over a spare blanket, forthey had brought along plenty of coverings and wraps.
"No, not exactly cold, Betty, but----"
"Don't say you're worried, my dear," whispered Betty, as she tucked somestray strands of hair under her Tam-o'-Shanter. "Grace is so nervouslately," went on Betty, under pretense of wrapping the robe around Amy."I don't know what is the matter with her, but she seems to fly topieces if you look at her."
"Perhaps it's worry about this lumber camp business."
"It may be. Anyhow we don't want to get her alarmed. We may have hardenough time as it is."
"Oh, Betty! Do you think--anything will--happen?"
"Of course--lots of things will happen!" laughed Betty, Grace and Molliehaving gotten out of the boat to stroll about a bit. "We'll have a nicewalk home, and a good hot supper, and then we'll sit about the fireplaceand roast apples and marshmallows, and talk about this."
"That listens good," observed Will rather sarcastically, "but it may bea long while before you're sitting before your own fireside, or we infront of ours."
"Well, you don't need to make the announcement of that fact; do you?"asked Allen, as he straightened out some of the running tackle of thesail.
"So that's the way the wind lies; eh?" asked Will in a queer tone."What's the answer, old man?"
"Just this," replied Allen. "We may not be able to go on in the boat. Ithought this was only a snow squall, but it seems to be turning into aregular blizzard. You know we can't glide over the ice when it's coveredwith snow. We may have to walk back to camp, and it's no small stretch.What I mean is that we've got to keep up the courage of the girls.That's all."
He and Will and Frank were out of the boat now, fixing one of the ropesthat had gotten out of place, so Betty and Amy, who remained cuddled upin the soft and warm robes, did not hear the talk.
"So that's the game--bluff?" asked Will.
"Somewhat--yes. I'm going to try to start off again, but I don't knowhow far we'll get. Where's Grace and Mollie?"
"Hey--Grace!" cried Will, raising his voice. "We're going to start!"
"All right!" floated back the answer through the storm.
Soon the girls came running up to the ice boat. They had been racingabout, they said, to get warm, and Betty and Amy, sitting amid the fursand blankets, rather wished they had done the same, for they were quitechilly in spite of their coverings.
"I'm going to make a try for it," explained Allen. "We may not be ableto go far, for the snow is rather wet and heavy, and it may clog therunners. But we'd better make a start, anyhow. It seems to be slackeningup a bit."
They piled into the ice boat, and the sail was hoisted. The _Spider_darted off, after a moment's hesitation.
"Hurray!" cried Will. "We're moving."
"And that's about all," said Allen in a low voice. "Don't crow untilyou're out of the woods. This snow is worse than I thought it was."
For a time the ice boat went along well, halting occasionally as massesof snow clogged the runners. Then there came a jolt, and a puff of windnearly upset it, as the craft did not properly answer the helm.
"Oh, my!" screamed Grace, as she clutched Betty. "We are going toupset."
"No, we're not!" declared Allen, as he loosed the halyards, letting thesail come down on the run. "I guess we'll have to abandon the _Spider,"_he went on, "and tramp it. The snow is too heavy. We may upset."
"Well, the girls are good walkers," observed Frank.
"Which is a blessing," spoke Will. "Out of the _Spider_ intothe--frying-pan. Don't you ask me to carry you, Sis," and he looked athis sister.
"No danger!" she retorted, haughtily.
The storm, though continuing steadily, had so far lessened in severitythat the shores of the river could be made out, standing grim and darkwith their fringes of trees.
"We'll just run the _Spider_ over to shore," said Allen, "and leave itthere. We can come for it to-morrow, or whenever the storm lets up."
"What about the blankets and robes?" asked Will.
"Take them with us. We--oh, well, take them along. They may blow away,"and Allen corrected himself.
The girls and boys climbed out of the boat, loaded themselves with thewraps after the craft had been tied close to shore, and started off downthe river.
"What were you going to say about the blankets and robes?" asked Will,when he got a chance to speak to Allen alone. "Was it that we might needthem--in case we didn't get back to camp?"
"It was."
"Don't you think we have a very good chance?"
"Not extra good--to-night. Of course we'll get there to-morrow, but itwill be too bad if the girls have to stay out all night. Perhaps theywon't, but if they do we can make a shelter of the robes and blankets."
"That's so," agreed Will.
On they tramped through the storm. It was hard work, for the snowclogged their steps and the wind made the carrying of the heavy blanketsan additional burden. But no one murmured.
They kept to the river, and thus were assured of a straight road tocamp. It was not like being lost in the wood. The only danger was thatthey were quite a distance from their cabins, and that night was comingon, and that a big storm was raging. Long since it had passed from theclass of a mere squall, in which it seemed to be at one time.
"Did anyone bring the sandwiches we left?" asked Grace, when they hadgone on for perhaps a mile.
"I did, and your chocolates, too," said Allen. "Will you have them now?"
"Divide the candy up," said Grace. "They say that persons lost in thesnowy Alps eat chocolate."
"You eat it--lost or not," laughed Will. "But pass it around, Allen."
There was a sandwich each, and also a few pieces of candy for each one,as Allen divided them, and the eating of the bread, meat and sweets didreally put new energy into them. They trudged on in better heart now.
"But we're still a good way from camp," said Allen, as he peered as besthe could at the landmarks on the shore. "It will take us another hour."
"And it will be dark then," said Amy in a low voice.
"Never mind," advised Betty. "The snow on the ground will make it light,and we can't miss the river. We'll be all right."
Darkness did not bring them in sight of their camp, and they werebeginning to lose heart, when Will cried:
"I see a light! It's Franklin's cabin. We're at camp! We're all rightnow!"
"Are you sure?" asked Grace.
"Certainly. I knew we were near it some time ago."
He gave a hail, which was answered, and soon the young people heard thewelcome call of Mr. Franklin, who demanded to know where they had been,and what had happened.
"There's a light in our cabin!" exclaimed Will, as he saw the gleam inthe window. "Who's there, Mr. Franklin?"
"A friend of yours--he says."
"A friend of ours!" exclaimed Allen. "Is it Mr. Jallow, masqueradingunder that name, and trying to get possession of this land as well asthe other valuable strip?"
"No, it isn't Jallow," replied Mr. Franklin
. "I know him. This is ayoung fellow you've been expecting, he says. He come up in a hired rigfrom the village. Blackstone--Blackrock--some such name as that hegive."
"Oh, Mr. Blackford, yes. We were expecting him. So he has arrived? Ihope he made himself at home."
"I told him to," said Mr. Franklin, "and I guess he did. He had quite atime of it in the storm, and I reckon you folks did, too."
"We did!" exclaimed Will. "But we're all right now. Come on, girls, getin and make yourselves comfortable, and we'll bring Blackford over assoon as we feed him."
The girls went to their cabin, the boys to theirs. The latter found Mr.Blackford making himself perfectly at home.
"Well, what brings you up here?" asked Allen, when greetings had beenexchanged.
"Boys, I've got good news!" cried the young business man. "I've foundthe missing piece of paper that tells me what sort of a birth mark mysister has--the sister I have been searching for so long. I could hardlywait to tell you!"