CHAPTER XVII--BILLIE ON GUARD
From this remark of Laura's it may be easily seen that she was still alittle grouchy about having to give up five dollars' worth of sodas andcandy. But away down in her heart she derived more real pleasure fromthe thought of what her gold piece would buy for the Haddons than shewould out of a great deal more than five dollars' worth of pleasure forherself.
"Billie," spoke up Vi suddenly after they had walked some little way insilence, "what did you ask Mrs. Haddon about that lost invention for?"
"Yes, it sounded as if you really knew something about it," Laura tookher up eagerly. "You don't, do you?"
"Not a thing in the world," Billie replied quickly. "Only," she addedslowly, the same thoughtful look in her eyes that had been there before,"so many queer things have happened to me lately that I'm getting sortof queer myself, I guess. I can't help thinking about that cave Teddyand I found."
"Well, I don't blame you for thinking of it," said Laura, lookingcuriously at her chum. "I think of it myself--quite often. But what hasthat to do with the stolen machinery models?"
"Nothing, of course," said Billie, adding as the three towers of thegrand old Hall loomed into view. "But I would like to have a look at theinside of that cave again. Maybe the models were taken there and brokenup. The cave was full of junk."
Laura, really curious by this time, was about to put a question when shesaw Amanda and the "Shadow" approaching, and the question died in herthroat.
The three classmates, who never deliberately "cut" anybody, nodded tothe two girls in a friendly enough manner, but the latter lookedstraight at them and never so much as winked an eye.
"Whew!" whistled Laura, softly, as the chums stopped and looked backafter the unmannerly girls. "Cut, by jinks!"
"And by Amanda, of all people!" added Vi, in the same tone.
"Well, come on," said Billie, and she turned and led the way up thesteps. "There's no use standing there and looking after them like a lotof wooden Indians. I'd like--" she added, her temper getting the betterof her for the moment, "I would like to wring that girl's neck."
"Do you know," said Vi a few minutes later when they were washingthemselves in the dormitory, "that Amanda has entered for thecomposition prize?"
The girls looked at her unbelievingly.
"Amanda!" cried Billie, laughing at the absurdity of the thing. "Why,Amanda can hardly write her own name. You know that."
"Of course I know it," agreed Vi, scrubbing her face vigorously. "That'swhy it seems so silly. Unless she has something up her sleeve," sheadded meaningly.
"How did you find out?" asked Laura, curling up on the bed and regardingher chum severely. "Did she tell you?"
"Tell me!" repeated Vi with a chuckle. "That _is_ a good one. No, I justhappened to overhear her telling Eliza that she had entered for thecomposition prize and that she was going to give Billie Bradley thesurprise of her life."
"She surely does love me," sighed Billie, as she pulled her pretty curlsinto place. "I don't see why she doesn't pick on somebody else for achange."
"Well, you'd better look out, that's all," said Vi, wrinkling herforehead seriously. "I'm almost sure she is planning some crooked work,and it's up to us to double cross her."
"Hear, hear!" cried Laura delightedly. "And Vi is the one who is alwayscalling me down for using slang. Fine for a beginner, Vi darling. Keepit up."
The result of this revelation of Vi's was to make the girls watch Amandaand the "Shadow" more carefully than ever before. And if it had not beenfor just this watchfulness there is no telling what might have happenedto Billie Bradley, and through her, to her classmates.
And this was the way it happened.
Luckily for the three North Bend chums, Amanda and her "Shadow" sharedthe dormitory with them and Rose Belser. And so it was that Billie,coming in unexpectedly one day heard the very end of a sentence spokenin a loud whisper by Amanda. And though it was only the end of thesentence, it told a great deal to Billie, whose suspicions had alreadybeen aroused.
"--at ten to-night, in Miss Race's room," were the words she caught. Thefact that Amanda stopped speaking at sight of her and grew an unsightlybrick red, gave Billie further proof that the girl was plottingmischief. Very probably the scapegoat was to be--herself.
She gave no sign that she had heard anything out of the ordinary, butwhen she had found the book she had come for and was out in the hallonce more, her heart was pounding heavily and her face was hot.
Ever since they had come to Three Towers Amanda had done her best todiscredit Billie. She had not succeeded so far, but some time she might.Was this the time? thought Billie, a dull rage taking possession of her.
No! She would not let Amanda get the better of her. She would outwither, now that she had been warned. Then a dreadful thought came to her.
Suppose Amanda, thinking she had given her secret away, postponed hermiserable plot, whatever it was, until another time? No wonder Billieanswered questions queerly that afternoon, so queerly, in fact, that oneteacher asked her if she were ill and would like to be excused!
But Billie did not want to be excused--that would mean more time toherself to think. And so she blundered through the miserable afternoonand her heart jumped with relief when the last gong sounded that meantliberty.
Connie and Laura overtook her in the hall on the way to the dormitoryand Laura looked actually anxious.
"What was the matter with you this afternoon?" she asked. "Why, youanswered 'no' three times when it should have been 'yes,' and it soundedso silly I'd have had to laugh if I hadn't been scared to death!"
"What is it, Billie?" added Connie, putting an arm about her friend."You look dreadfully white. Aren't you feeling well?"
Then, pulling them into a secluded corner of the dormitory, Billie toldthem what she had heard, and as Vi came in just as she had finished, shehad to tell it all over again, just for her benefit.
Of course the girls were all angry, and Laura wanted to go and have itout with Amanda at once, but Billie, who had had all the afternoon tothink out the best thing to do, commanded her to say nothing about it toany one.
"Listen," she said, tensely. "Somebody's apt to come in at any minute,and then I can't say it. This is what we will do to-night.
"We'll pull our nighties on over our clothes, get into bed and pretendto go to sleep. Then we'll wait till Amanda starts whatever she's goingto do, and we'll follow her and see what she's up to."
"And then," said Laura, driven to more forceful slang by the necessityfor emphasis, "we'll just about _settle_ her!"
True to their plans, they retired to the dormitory that night beforeAmanda or the "Shadow" or Rose Belser arrived there, and they hurriedlyslipped their nightgowns over their clothes and got into bed.
"Poor Connie's wailing her heart out," chuckled Laura, "because she's inanother dorm and can't be in at the death. I say, Vi, push the collar ofyour dress down. It shows outside your nightie."
"Sh-h," warned Billie. "I hear somebody coming----"
The somebody proved to be no other than Amanda and Eliza, and when theyentered they found Billie and Laura and Vi sleeping peacefully with acherubic expression of utter innocence on their faces.
It seemed to the girls that they had never lived through an hour so longas that between nine o'clock and ten that night. And it was with morethan relief that they heard a slight stir at last and saw a shadowyfigure slip out of bed and make noiselessly for the door. And while theyheld their breath for fear their breathing might betray them, they saw asecond shadow flit after the first one. "The Shadow," in fact!
They waited till the conspirators had had time to get well down thehall, then they too slipped quietly out of bed, pulled their nightgownsoff, and started in pursuit.
"Sh," whispered Billie. "Take your time. We want to let them do itbefore we catch them at it."
When they reached Miss Race's door they were surprised to see a light inthe room. Was it possible Amanda had been brazen enough to t
urn on thelight herself?
Cautiously Billie peeped into the room and saw that Amanda and Elizawere busily at work doing something to the teacher's desk at the otherend of the room. They were alone, so it must have been Amanda who hadswitched on the light. The girl was bold with the courage of stupidity.
Laura uttered a stifled exclamation, and would have pushed past Billiebut the latter held her back. For still another minute she hesitated,then called to the girls softly.
"Now," she said, and ran swiftly into the room, Laura and Vi beside her.So quickly and silently did they come that they were almost upon the twogirls before either of them looked up. Then----
"Amanda Peabody!" cried Billie, her voice choked with anger. "We'vecaught you this time! Now let's see what you were doing!"