The Dragon's Secret

  CHAPTER XIII

  A TRAP IS SET

  They went indoors at last and tried to settle down to reading, but it wasvery difficult to distract their minds from disturbing thoughts. MissMarcia retired early, as the ride had tired her, and they were left totheir own devices. At length they gave up the attempt to read and sattalking in whispers over the dying fire. When there was nothing left butashes, Leslie suggested, with a shiver, that they go to bed, and theywithdrew to Leslie's room.

  Needless to say they did _not_ go to bed at once, but sat long by theside window, staring across at Curlew's Nest. And it was then thatPhyllis suddenly had her great idea.

  "Now, see here, Leslie Crane, I have an idea and I'm going to dosomething, and I don't want you to interfere with me. Do you understand?"

  "What do you mean?" whispered Leslie, looking alarmed.

  "I mean just this. You're going to stay right where you are, with Rags,and keep watch. And I'm going to get out of the window and go over andexplore Curlew's Nest by myself!"

  "Phyllis, are you crazy?" implored Leslie. "I think that is one of themost dangerous things you could do!"

  "Nothing of the sort. It's safer to-night than it would be almost anyother time. Because--can't you see?--some one has evidently been here allthe afternoon, when the coast was entirely clear, and no doubt they'vedone all they wish to do there for _this_ day, anyhow! There couldn't_be_ a better time than this very night, for there's not one chance in ahundred that they'll be back again."

  "But just suppose the hundredth chance did happen, what would you do?"argued Leslie in despair.

  "Do?--I'd shout like everything to you to turn Rags loose and call up thevillage constable and Father. Or better yet, I'd blow this police whistlewhich Father always insists on my carrying so that I can call them in tomeals when they're down on the beach. If you hear _that_--just startthings going. That's why I'm leaving you and Rags here on guard."

  "Oh, I don't like it--I don't like it at all!" moaned Leslie. "Itwouldn't be so bad if you only met Eileen there--but you can't tell whomyou might encounter. I believe there's something more dangerous anddesperate about this affair than either of us have guessed. I don't knowwhy I think so--it's just come to me lately. It's a sort of--presentimentI can't seem to shake off!"

  "Nonsense!" declared Phyllis, not to be balked. "If I met any one there,it could only be Eileen, and she's the one I'm crazy to encounter. Afterthe way she has treated us, I'd have a few things to say to that youngperson for trespassing on Mrs. Danforth's property. Mrs. Danforth hasalways asked that we keep an eye on these cottages of hers while we'rehere,--it's an understood thing between us--so I'd be entirely within myrights in going in there to look the place over, especially if Isuspected anything queer, and the other person would be quite in thewrong. Don't you see?"

  "Oh, yes, I see that, but it doesn't lessen the fact that it may bedangerous!" sighed Leslie, wearily.

  Phyllis ignored this. "If the hundredth chance should happen and Iencounter Eileen, or if I come across anything very unusual and think youought to see it, I'll let you know. Only in case of the hundred and_first_ chance of real danger will I blow this whistle. Hold on tight toRags and don't let him try to follow me. By-by! See you later!" Andbefore Leslie could expostulate further, she had slipped out of thewindow, her electric torch in her hand, and was out of sight around thecorner of the neighboring cottage.

  Leslie remained half hanging out of the window, in an agony of suspense.The night was moonless and very dark. Added to that, a heavy sea-misthung over everything like a blanket, and, out of the gloom, the steadypounding of the surf came to her with ominous insistence. The chill ofthe foggy air was penetrating, and she wrapped a sweater about her almostwithout realizing that she had done so. Rags was on the seat beside her,ears alertly cocked.

  There was not a sound from the next house, nor could she even see asingle gleam of light from the chinks in the shutters. Where couldPhyllis be? Surely there had been time enough for her to have entered theplace, looked about, and come out again. What could she be doing?

  Then her brain began to be filled with horrible pictures of all thepossible and impossible things that might have happened. So beyond allbearing did this feature become at length that she came to the suddenconclusion she would endure it no longer. She would get out of thewindow, herself, and go in search of her friend. If the worst came toworst, Rags could do some one a pretty bit of damage!

  She had actually got as far as to put one foot over the low sill, whenshe quickly pulled it back again. A dark form had slipped around thecorner of the other house and was hurrying toward her.

  "Leslie! Leslie! Quick!--can you come here with me?"

  Leslie almost collapsed, so swift was the reaction of relief at hearingPhyllis's voice, after all her terrible imaginings.

  "What is it? What have you found?" she managed to reply.

  "I can't explain to you here," whispered Phyllis. "It would take toolong. Come along with me and see for yourself. It's perfectly safe.There's not a soul around. I've been in the house. Bring Rags along--itwon't hurt. There have been queer doings here to-day--evidently. You cansee it all in five minutes. Do come!"

  In spite of all her previous fears, the temptation was too much forLeslie. If Phyllis had examined the ground and found it safe, surelythere was no need for fear, and her curiosity to see what her friend hadseen was now stronger than she could resist. She crept softly out of thewindow, speaking to Rags in a whisper, and the dog leaped lightly outafter her.

  They stole around the corner of the next house, three black shadows inthe enveloping mist, and not till Phyllis had closed the side door ofCurlew's Nest behind them was a word spoken.

  "Follow me into the living-room," she ordered, "and if you don't seesomething there that surprises you, I miss my guess!"

  She switched on the electric torch, and Leslie and Rags followed afterher in solemn procession. From what she had said, Leslie expected to seethe place in a terrible disorder, at the very least, and was considerablysurprised, when she came into the room, to observe nothing out of itsplace. In some bewilderment she looked about, while Phyllis stood by,watching her.

  "Why, what's wrong?" she whispered. "Everything seems to be just as itwas."

  "Look on the center-table!" commanded Phyllis, and she turned the torchfull on that article of furniture.

  Leslie tiptoed over to examine it. Then she uttered a littlehalf-suppressed cry. On the table was a slip of paper--not a very largeslip, and evidently torn from some larger sheet. And on this paper were afew words, type-written. She bent to read them. It ran:

  It is advisable that the article stolen from its hiding-place be returned to it as speedily as possible, as otherwise, consequences most serious to all parties concerned will result.

  Leslie turned deadly pale as she read it and seized Phyllis spasmodicallyby the arm.

  "Oh, come out of here this moment!" she exclaimed. "I will not stay inthis house another instant. I told you it was dangerous!" and she draggedher friend, with the strength of terror to the side door.

  Outside, as the chill mist struck her, she breathed a great sigh ofrelief.

  "What a little 'fraid-cat you are!" laughed Phyllis. "What in the worldwere you frightened about?"

  Leslie shivered. "Oh, the whole thing strikes me as too uncanny forwords! Some one has been in here and left that warning. They may bearound here now, for all you know. Who do you suppose it can be?"

  "I've a very good notion who it was, but it's too chilly to explain itstanding here. Go over to the house with Rags and I'll be there directly.I want to go back a moment."

  "Phyllis, Phyllis, _don't_ go back there again!" implored Leslie, almostbeside herself with an alarm she could hardly explain. "What do you wantto do?"

  "Never mind! Go back! I'll be there in two minutes." And tearing herselffrom Leslie's grasp, Phyllis ran back into the dark bungalow.

  But L
eslie would not return to her own house and desert her companion,though she could not bring herself to enter again that fear-inspiringplace. So she lingered about outside in a state of unenviable desperationtill Phyllis once more emerged from the dark doorway.

  "So you couldn't leave me, after all!" Phyllis laughed. "Well, come backto bed now, and I'll tell you all about it."

  They were chilled through with the drenching mist by the time theyreturned, and not till they were enveloped in the warm bed-clothing didPhyllis deign to explain her ideas about the newest development in theirmystery.

  "You were mightily scared by that little piece of paper, and I confessthat I was startled myself, for a minute. But after I'd thought it over,it suddenly dawned on me that there was precious little to be scaredabout, and I'll tell you why. I'm perfectly convinced that that thing waswritten and placed there by my brother _Ted_!"

  Leslie sat up in bed with a jerk. "You can't possibly mean it!"

  "I certainly do, and here's my reason: You yourself convinced me, earlierthis evening, that there was a chance of Ted's being mixed up in thisthing somehow. I can't imagine how he got into it--that's a mystery pastmy explaining. But it looks very much as if he knew this Eileen, and thathe was poking around here this afternoon while we were away. Now hesuspects that _we_ are mixed up in it, too, for he saw us come out of thebungalow that day. Well, if Eileen has told him about the Dragon's Secretand its disappearance, perhaps he thinks we know what happened to it. Atany rate, he's taken the chance, and written this warning for ourinspection the next time we happened in. He thinks it will scare us, Isuppose! He'll presently find out that we don't scare for a cent! And Ihave thought of a scheme as good as his!--Do you know what I did when Iwent back there? I took a pencil and _printed_ on the bottom of thatpaper just this:

  "'_The article will be returned to its hiding-place_.'

  "Now here's what I'm going to do next. In my trunk I have a littlejewel-case, very much the size and shape and weight of the Dragon'sSecret. It's one of those antimony things you've often seen, covered witha kind of carving that might easily pass for what's on that other one, ifit weren't _seen_. I'm going to-morrow to make a burlap bag, just likethe one we found, and sew the jewel-case in it, and it will be a sharpperson who can tell the difference between them till the bag is opened.Then we'll bury it in the place where Rags dug up the other, some timeto-morrow when the coast is clear. After that we'll wait and see whathappens next! Now what do you think of my scheme?"

  "It sounds splendid to me," admitted Leslie, then she added uneasily:"But there's something you haven't explained yet. You think Ted wrotethat thing, yet it is _type-written_! How do you explain _that_?"

  "Oh, that's simple enough! We have an old typewriter down here thatFather uses occasionally, and Ted frequently practises on it."

  "But did you notice the paper?" Leslie insisted. "It was queer, thin,almost foreign-looking stuff. Do you folks use that kind, or happen tohave it about?"

  "Oh, I don't know. I suppose he got it somewhere. What does it matter,anyway?" answered Phyllis, sleepily. And in two minutes more she was inthe land of dreams.

  But Leslie, still unconvinced, tossed the night through without closingher eyes.