He held his paddle poised and stared fixedly out to sea. Anne followed his gaze. A motor boat was making her way in towards the beach, rapidly. There were two men aboard. The canoe lay still in the shadow of the trees while the boat disappeared around an island. Then, before it should reappear in the cove, Dick gave some swift strokes of the paddle that took them out behind another reef. Evidently they had not been seen. The steersman was busy threading the narrow, difficult channel. The other had seemed to be absorbed in a newspaper. Anne had had a chance to see both faces clearly.
“The tall man is the one who brought me home!” she whispered. “And the other one with the dark face must be the hunter who nearly shot Beverly!” The pair gazed at one another. They saw the mysterious boat re-enter the cove and disappear again. “They’re both moonshiners,” said Dick.
“One of the two is P. Leveen,” thought Anne, “and Father writes to him!”
The Round Robin was of course greatly excited when they told the story of their adventure. They could hardly wait to hear what Captain Sackett would say. But Tante declared they must not bother him that night. He was busy about something. Dick was disappointed also because Hugh and Victor had disappeared upon some mysterious errand, and he could not excite their envy with his tale. Indeed, even Tante seemed preoccupied, as if she had more important things upon her mind. But what could be more important than the arrest of these moonshiners?
“Any mail for me?” asked Dick, and was told No. Anne did not even bother to ask about mail for herself. She had quite given up hoping for a letter from home. And now she did not want one!
Soon after supper Tante excused herself and retired to her room with the daily papers and a packet of mail. Even the Twins could not help seeing that something was troubling Tante; but no one could tell Anne what it was.
“Ever since the Veterans brought the papers she has looked worried,” said Beverly. “We haven’t seen the news, so we don’t know what it may be. I hope it isn’t another war! Hugh and Victor went right back to the village, without waiting for supper. I wonder what it is?”
Anne sighed. “I always seem to be waiting,” she said. “I wanted to ask Tante something. But perhaps to-morrow will do as well.”
At that same moment Tante was reading the newspaper, open at a page where a black head line read—“Failure of Great Banking Firm! Treasurer flees to Canada! Involves thousands in ruin!” Below was the picture of a blonde, well-dressed man whom Tante had seen hundreds of times sailing in his yacht or riding in his automobile in this very neighborhood, but to whom she had never spoken a word.
Presently she came downstairs looking rather pale. “Let’s have a song before bed, shall we?” she said. So they sat quietly on the piazza while Norma sang a slumber song, to quiet their minds before sleep.