CHAPTER XVIII
THE RICH MAN
"What's the matter?" cried Teddy. "There aren't any snakes here, I tellyou!"
"'Tisn't a snake," answered Janet. "But did you see the bushes move? Andthere's something black in 'em! Look!" She pointed. Teddy could see ablack animal moving along behind the screen of bushes. "Oh, maybe it's abear!" murmured Janet.
"There aren't any bears here!" declared the Curlytop boy. He was notaltogether sure of this, but he felt it best to tell Janet so, anyhow.
And, truly enough, this did not prove to be any fierce animal at all. AsJanet and Ted stood there waiting, with fast-beating hearts it must besaid, there came out from the bushes a dog with black, curling hair.
The black dog barked once or twice on seeing the Curlytops and then,wagging his tail in a friendly fashion, he frisked about them. They knewat once he was a friendly dog, and the dog seemed to know, in aninstant, that here were children who loved animals.
"Oh, you darling dog!" exclaimed Janet, patting his head.
"He is a good one," agreed Ted, pulling his ears, which the dog seemedto like.
"If there's a dog here there must be people," Janet said. "I meansomebody must live here."
"Yes," Ted admitted. "Unless, maybe, they're having a picnic. But we'llsoon find out. Go on, Fido, or whatever your name is," he said to thedog. "Show us where the house is. Home, Fido!"
Fido, or whatever his name was, seemed to understand. He looked firstinto the face of Ted and then into the face of Janet. He wagged his tailto show that everything was all right, and then started off along a paththat led up out of the dark dell.
"Come on, we'll follow him," Teddy decided.
This seemed to be just what the dog wanted, for, after going on a littleway, he stopped and looked back as if saying to the children:
"It's all right! Come on! I'll lead you where you want to go."
"I hope he leads us where we can get something to eat," murmured Janet,as if understanding what the dog was saying. "I'm terribly hungry;aren't you, Ted?" she asked.
"Yes," he replied, "I am. All right, Fido, we're coming!" he told thedog.
This seemed to satisfy the animal, for, without further looking back orbarking, he trotted on along the path which, every minute, became moreand more open and plain.
"Now we're coming to something," declared Ted, in a few minutes. "Theseare regular grounds like around a big cottage." For they could see lawnsand beds of shrubbery and flowers.
"I see the house!" suddenly cried Janet. "There it is--in among thetrees!"
She pointed to a large mansion--a white house with green shutters.Plainly it was the home of some one with money, so large was the placeand so well kept up and with such large grounds around it.
The dog, too, Fido or whatever his name was, seemed to know that he wasnear home, for he began to bark as if giving a signal that he wascoming.
Ted and Janet hurried along after the animal, who barked louder and moreoften the nearer he came to the house. Suddenly a voice called:
"Quiet, Nero! What are you making all that fuss about? Quiet!"
Instantly the dog stopped.
"His name's Nero--not Fido," whispered Janet.
"Yes, I guess it is," assented her brother.
The dog had run on farther ahead now, and the children could see,through the trees and bushes, that Nero was leaping about a tall man ina black suit, who was walking with a cane. The man appeared a triflelame. But he seemed as glad to see the dog as the dog was to meet hismaster.
"Where have you been, Nero? Running away again?" the Curlytops heard theman ask the dog.
As if in answer, Nero looked back to where he had left Ted and Janet. Hebarked once or twice and then ran on to the bush behind which stood theboy and his sister. It was as if the dog said:
"Come on out, children, and show yourselves. Show yourselves to mymaster. Then he'll know I didn't run away. He'll know that I went intothe woods to get you to bring you safely out. Come, children, showyourselves!"
This Ted and Janet did, stepping from the shadow of the shrubbery intothe sunshine on the curving gravel walk that led up to the big, whitehouse.
"Oh, hello there! Where did you come from?" exclaimed the man, insurprise, as he saw the children. "Nero, where did these two come from?"
Nero barked in answer, as much as to say:
"I brought them. That's why I have been away so long."
The man with the shining, black, gold-headed cane, leaning slightly onit as he walked, approached Ted and Janet. He looked at them with moreof a frown on his face than a smile, and asked, rather sternly:
"What are you two doing here on my island? Don't you know there aresigns up forbidding trespassers?"
"No, sir, we didn't know it," answered Teddy.
"And we couldn't help coming!" added Janet. "We are shipwrecked!"
"Shipwrecked! Bless my soul! Shipwrecked!" exclaimed the man. "You don'tmean it! I didn't hear of any ship being wrecked around here. Besides,the bay is too shallow for any ship. Come now, no nonsense!" and hespoke sternly. "What are you doing on my island?"
"We--we didn't know it was yours," faltered Ted.
"And we wouldn't have come here, but we got adrift while we werecrabbing," explained Janet. "We lost our oars and the anchor stoneslipped out and--and--we'll give you a basket of crabs if you give ussomething to eat!" she finished, with a sigh.
"Crabs? You'll give me crabs for something to eat? Bless my--" began theold gentleman.
"Yes, sir!" broke in Janet, anxious to tell everything at once. "We'vegot a whole basket of crabs in the boat at the other end of theisland--your island," she added.
"They're big crabs, too," put in Ted.
"And I caught the biggest one!" continued his sister. "It's got blueclaws!"
"Crabs! Crabs! What do I want of crabs?" asked the man in rather atesty, cross voice.
"You can boil them and make a salad," volunteered Ted. "That's what myfather does with them. We caught the crabs for him, but we'll sell 'emto you, cheap. My sister's hungry, and thirsty too, I guess, and I am,too, and----"
"Yes, I'm awful thirsty," sighed Janet.
"Do you mean to say that you go around catching crabs and getting adriftand then you trade the crabs for something to eat?" asked the gentleman.
"Oh, no, sir!" Ted hastened to explain. "This was an accident. This isthe first time we have been crabbing in the bay. I borrowed Jimmie'sboat, and I lost his oars. I guess I'll have to pay for them. Generallywe crab off the dock near our cottage, but this time----"
"Oh, you're summer visitors, like myself!" exclaimed the man, and, forthe first time a smile appeared on his wrinkled face. "I thought youdidn't look like natives. Hum--well--so you're hungry and thirsty, areyou?"
"Yes, sir," said Janet.
"I'll go get you the crabs," offered Ted, for he seemed to think the manwas going to bargain with him.
"No, don't do that!" called the man after him. "I don't want your crabs!I never eat them! They give me indigestion. They're bad for me. Savethem for your father."
"My father will pay you if you give us something to eat," said Janet.
"Um! We'll talk about that later," chuckled the old gentleman.
"Here, Peter," he added, as a colored man-servant appeared along anotherpath, "take these children up to the house and see that the cook givesthem something to eat--and drink, too," he added. "They're thirsty. Givethem lemonade or milk--whatever they want."
"Yes, sah, Mr. Narr," answered the colored man, and at that name Ted andJanet started in surprise. "Did yo' say I was to hab de cook gib 'emlemonade an' milk, sah?"
"Lemonade and milk? The idea! Of course not! Don't be stupid, Peter. Isaid lemonade _or_ milk--not both! Whatever they want, though. They'vebeen ship-wrecked, Peter, and cast away upon this island. It isn'texactly a desert island, though," he added, with a chuckle, as he lookedat the beautiful large house where he lived.
"But they were shipwrecked,Peter, and we must feed the shipwrecked ones."
"Shipwrecked, sah?" and the colored man looked at his master in astrange way.
"Well, their boat drifted away. It's much the same thing. Now take themup and feed them, and let me know when they've had enough. You'll findme here with Nero," and he patted the dog's black head.
"Yes, sah, Mr. Narr! Yes, sah!" murmured Peter. "Come along ob me,chilluns," he added, with a kind smile.
Ted and Janet liked Peter at once. He had a kind way about him. Perhapsthis had something to do with the magic words of food and drink.
The colored man led Ted and Janet up toward the rear of the large house.He took them in at a side entrance, where a big sun parlor was filledwith lovely wicker furniture--books on the tables, and near the easychairs were more tables with vases of flowers. Through the sun parlorPeter led the two into a small dining room.
"Sit right down yeah, chilluns," he directed, "an yo' all kin be fedright soon."
Somewhat in a daze at the rapidity with which it had all happened, theCurlytops sat down. Peter went from the room and presently came backwith a kind-looking colored woman, who smiled at the boy and girl.
"Dere dey am, Sarah!" announced Peter, also smiling. "Dey is deshipwrecked chilluns whut is to be fed and drinked, Mr. Narr done say."
"Shipwrecked! Whut yo' mean?" demanded the colored woman.
"Our boat just drifted away; that's all," explained Ted. "We sort ofpretended it was a shipwreck."
"Well, yo' all is hungry, isn't yo'?" demanded Peter.
"Yes," admitted Janet.
"An' yo' all is thirsty, isn't yo'?"
"I should say so!" exclaimed Teddy.
"Well, den, dey is to be eated and drinked," explained Peter. "And denMr. Narr wants to see 'em!"
Still in somewhat of a daze, Ted and Janet ate the food that was soonset before them--bread and butter and jam, lovely little cakes, and someglasses of milk. Peter had spoken about the choice they were to have, oflemonade or milk, and the Curlytops had selected milk.
Peter had gone out while the children were eating, but he came backbefore they had quite finished. In the meanwhile Ted and Janet had beentalking together in low tones.
"Did you hear the name of this man that owns the island?" asked Ted ofhis sister.
"Yes--Mr. Narr."
"Do you know who he is?" whispered Ted.
"I guess he's the man that Mr. Keller works for," said Janet. "The onehe lost the keys of and----"
"Hush-s-s-s!" exclaimed Ted, quickly clapping a hand over his sister'smouth, for they were alone in the small dining room just then. "Don'tspeak of the--well, you know what." He didn't want to mention keys.
"Why not?" asked Janet.
"'Cause Mr. Keller doesn't want Mr. Narr to know they're lost. Mr.Keller thinks he can get another set made, maybe, without Mr. Narrknowing it 'cause if Mr. Narr knows Mr. Keller lost the keys he maydischarge him and Mr. Keller wouldn't have any job."
"Oh, now I 'member!" murmured Janet. "I 'most forgot."
"Mr. Keller said Mr. Narr lived somewhere on an island in the bay," wenton Ted. "But I didn't think we'd visit him."
"I didn't, either," said Janet.
The meal over, Peter appeared again and led them out into the grounds.
"Hello, children!" exclaimed the gentleman with the gold-headed cane, ashe caught sight of the boy and girl. "Let's see--did you tell me yournames?" he asked.
"We're the Curlytops!" exclaimed Janet, almost before she thought.
"The what? Curlytops!"
"That isn't exactly our _real_ name," put in Teddy. "It's just what theycall us on account of our hair."
"Oh, I see," laughed the gentleman. "Well, I'm glad to meet you,Curlytops. My name is Narr."
"Yes, we heard Peter call you that," said Janet, as she stole a look ather brother.
"Now tell me where you live, and I'll see about getting you twoshipwrecked ones home," went on Mr. Narr. And when the Curlytops toldhim they were spending the summer at Sunset Beach Mr. Narr exclaimed:
"Sunset Beach! Why, that's where my secretary is staying! Mr. Keller!Perhaps you know him?"
"Yes--yes--we know him," admitted Ted, his heart beating rather fast.Somehow, as he said afterward, he felt as though something was going tohappen.
"You do, eh?" exclaimed Mr. Narr, in surprise. "So you know my Mr.Keller, do you? Well, that's good. I wonder if you could take him amessage for me?"
"We'll be glad to," said Teddy, politely.
"Very good. Tell him, please, that I'm stopping here--I guess he knowsthat, though. And tell him I'm coming over to see him in a day or so.Just tell him Mr. Narr is coming to see him."
"Yes, sir," murmured Teddy. "Is that all?"
"Well, if you think you can remember it, I'll give you a bit more of amessage," went on Mr. Narr. "Do you think you can?"
"I'll remember it all right," Teddy said, his heart beating faster thanever.
"I'll help him," offered Janet. And she, too, felt that something wasgoing to happen.
"Well, just tell Mr. Keller the reason I am coming to see him," went onMr. Narr, "is that I want to get his bunch of keys. I've left mine at mytown house, and I want to get in my safe deposit box in New York City,without going all the way back to where I live to get my keys. I don'twant to have them mailed, for they might be lost. It's a bad thing tolose keys--especially safe deposit box keys. Just tell Mr. Keller thatI'll be over to the mainland in a day or so, to get his bunch of keys.They're really my keys, but he keeps them for me. Do you think you canremember that message, Curlytops?"
"Yes--yes, sir," almost whispered Teddy.
The worst had happened!
Mr. Keller's sad loss was going to be found out, and by the very man hedidn't want to know.
What could be done?