Meg of Mystery Mountain

  CHAPTER XXIII. JANE HUMILIATED

  The next morning Jane arose early with the determination to walk up themountain road and meet Meg Heger on her way to the Redfords school. Andso, directly after breakfast, she started away alone. She asked Dan todetain the children in the kitchen that they might not see her go andperhaps wish to accompany her.

  The older lad, recalling the incident of the mountain lion, wondered ifhe ought to permit her to go alone, but the trapper had assured him thatthe occurrence had been a most unusual one, that the lions, and otherwild creatures usually remained far from the haunts of man, and that inthe ten years that Meg had ridden up and down that mountain road to theRedfords school, she had never encountered a dangerous animal of anykind.

  The sun, even at that early hour, was so warm Jane was glad that most ofthe mile she was to climb was in the shadow. She found herself scanningthe roadside with great interest, stopping to watch a scaly lizard thatwas lying on a rock gazing at her intently with small back eyes,believing himself to be unseen because his coat was the color of hissurroundings. He had not stirred, even when she started away.

  It was a still morning and out of many a cool green covert a bird-songpealed. Again and again Jane paused to listen to some clear risingcadence. She wondered why she had never before heard the singing ofbirds. Of course, she must have heard them many, many times. They hadoften awakened her in her home, and at Highacres, but she had feltdisturbed rather than pleased. She never before had listened to a singlesong, like the one which some hidden bird was singing. It would beinteresting to know what kind of a bird it was. She would ask Meg Heger.Surely the mountain girl would know. Jane Abbott had not been in sosusceptible a mood, at least not since her long ago childhood, and it waswith a sense of eager anticipation that she at last drew to one side ofthe road to await the coming of the small horse and rider that she couldhear approaching.

  Meg Heger was indeed surprised to see the sister of Dan Abbott in theroad so evidently awaiting her, but she experienced no pleasure from themeeting. She well knew that the city girl, who had snubbed her on the daybefore, would again do so, if it were not that she considered it her dutyto express gratitude for what Meg had done.

  She drew rein, merely because Jane Abbott had stepped forward and hadheld up her hand. The expression in the dusky eyes of the mountain girlwas at that moment as proud and cold as had been the expression in theeyes of Jane on the day previous. Before the girl in the road couldspeak, Meg said: "Miss Abbott, I know that you have come to thank me forhaving ridden to Scarsburg, but let me assure you at once that I did notdo it for your sake. I did it for Julie and Gerald, chiefly, because theyare my friends. You owe me nothing. Good morning!"

  The pony, feeling the urging of his mistress' heel, started away sosuddenly that Jane found herself standing in a whirl of dust. Her facegrew crimson as her anger rose. She, Jane Abbott, had actually beensnubbed by a halfbreed. It had been only natural that she, a city girl offamily and culture, should have snubbed Meg Heger. But she had supposedthat the mountain girl would be pleased, indeed, when she condescended tobe friendly. As she walked slowly back toward their cabin, she did nothear the song of the birds, nor see the beauty that lay all about her.She was wrathfully deciding that she would pack at once and leave a placewhere it was possible for her to be snubbed by a halfbreed Indian.

  Then that persistent voice, deep within her, asked: "Didn't you deserveit, Jane? Would you admire a girl who would fall upon your neck after youhad been rude to her?"

  And Jane had to acknowledge that the soul-voice was right.

  But, though Jane had seemed to have a change of heart toward Meg Heger,she still felt most irritable toward Julie. Nothing that small girl coulddo pleased her. She had at once retired to her room, wishing to be alone.True, she had decided to try to win the friendship of the mountain girl,but after the first few hours she found herself questioning if she reallywanted it. Of course she did not. She wanted only friends of her ownkind. She flung herself down on her bed and in her heart was a growinganger at herself and at everyone. Dan had gone for the daily climb whichhe believed would aid the recovery of his strength, as indeed everythingseemed to be doing in a most miraculous manner. Julie and Gerald werecleaning house and were dragging the heavy pieces of furniture about inthe living-room with shouts and laughter. Jane sprang up and threw openher door.

  "I do wish you children would try to keep quiet," she blazed at them.Gerald faced her defiantly. "Come and do the cleaning yourself if youwant it done different. There's no reason why we should do it at all,only Julie said, being as it hadn't been done right since we came, we'dought to get at it."

  "You're just hateful, both of you! I wish you would clear out of my sightand never come back!" With this angry remark, Jane closed her door with abang.

  With a dark glance in that direction, Gerald caught Julie by the hand."Come on, sis," he said. "You'n I'll clear out and we'll stay away tillthat Jane Abbott goes back East, that's what we'll do." The boy snatchedup his small gun and put the cartridges in his pocket. He took his capand handed Julie her hat and then led her out of the door.

  "Why, Gerald Abbott, where are we going?" the small girl held back,feeling sure that they ought not to leave their cabin home in thismanner.

  "First off we're going to find Dan and tell him just what happened. Then,second off, I don't 'zactly know what we will do, but I just won't stayhere and have that horrid old Jane saying mean things to you all the timeand us waiting on her and doing the work she ought to be doing. That'swhat."

  The boy led his small sister along so rapidly that she tripped and wouldhave fallen had he not turned and caught her. "Gee, I guess we'll have togo slower," he confessed as they started to climb the steep rocks thatformed the outer edge of the mountain brook which tumbled in a series oflittle waterfalls, now and then tossing a mist of spray over them.

  Julie began to glow with the pleasurable sense of adventure, supposing,of course, that Gerald knew where Dan had gone. At last she inquired.

  "I sort o' think we'll find him up at the rim-rock," Gerald said stoutly."I'm pretty sure we will. He told me that's where he goes for hisconstitootional. That means a hike to make him get strong,constitootional does."

  The girl's freckled face was aglow. "Oh, goodie!" she cried. "I'd love toclimb 'way up there." Then she asked, a little anxiously: "Aren't youskeered we might meet a wildcat or a lion or a bear?"

  Her small brother's courage was reassuring. "I hope we will. That's what!I'm a sharpshooter, I am, and the wildcat that meets us will wish hehadn't." Julie clung to his hand with a secure feeling that she was wellprotected. "Oh, look-it, will you?"

  Gerry pointed ahead and above. "There's a tree that has fallen rightacross our brook. That's a nice bridge and if we can get up there we cango across on it."

  "Is the rim-rock on the other side of our brook?" Julie inquired. NowGerald had never climbed that high on their mountain before, and so hehad no real knowledge of the exact location of the rock about which Danhad told them, but since it was on the very top, the small boy knew thatif they kept on climbing, in time they would surely reach it.

  The fallen tree was lying across the brook at a very steep ascent and itwas with great difficulty that Gerald boosted his sister to the narrowledge on which it rested. "Don't be scared," he said. "I'll get youacross all right and then we'll begin calling for Dan."