Ruth made the introductions in a laughing manner that helped to put the two girls at their ease, and before she rode away with Tom and Chess and Layton Boardman, Ruth made the two sisters promise that they would get one of the friendly old miners to take charge of the mine and the cabin long enough for them to run down once or twice and watch motion pictures in the making.
As the two girls turned to go Ruth was surprised and amused to catch a look of admiration in the eyes of Layton Boardman as they rested upon the elder of the Chase girls.
She spoke of this to Tom as she rode before him in the saddle.
“Did you see Layton Boardman look at Mary?”
“Which was Mary?” asked Tom indifferently. At the moment he was so glad to get Ruth back safe that all the Marys in the world held small interest for him.
“The older girl—the tall one, you know, with the grave face,” Ruth explained. “Our actor looked at her as if he really saw her. And since he is such a woman hater, you must admit that’s unusual.”
“I admit nothing of the sort,” Tom laughed. “Even a cat can look at a king!”
“Only this time it happened to be a queen,” said Ruth, with a chuckle.
She fell silent after that, trying to recall all that Mary Chase and her sister Ellen had told her about Max Lieberstein and Sol Bloomberg.
Was it true, as the two girls seemed to think, that these rascals were working together to get the Chase claim for themselves? If so, Ruth vowed that she would defeat Sol Bloomberg, and Lieberstein, too.