The owner of the boat was on hand to see him off, and collected the remainder of the ten dollars in advance.
There was a good steady breeze, and, after getting up the “leg-o’-mutton” sail, it was not long before Merry left the settlement behind.
The owner of the boat had whispered a last warning to him, asking him if he had a revolver, and telling him to keep clear of Dugan if possible.
The boat did not prove to be fast, but she was fairly satisfactory, and Frank enjoyed the sail thoroughly.
The shores of the lake were wooded, and there were numerous islands, but Frank watched for the one that had been described to him, and, after an hour’s sail, saw the blasted pine on a rocky bluff, telling him he was approaching his destination.
It must be confessed that Merry was not entirely without apprehensions on approaching the island, for he realized that Dugan was an unscrupulous ruffian, and was on his own stamping ground. It was pretty certain the man would not hesitate at any crime.
It seemed almost impossible to Merry that such a man could be the father of such a daughter, for Hilda seemed even more handsome and attractive as he remembered her than she had while he was in her society, and that is saying a great deal.
To Merry the girl was a marvel. He could not understand how such a girl could be reared under such circumstances. The only thing that seemed to offer the least explanation of it all was the fact that she had spent some years at a boarding school.
Remembering what she had said to him, Frank was convinced that Hilda thoroughly understood the desperate character of her father. And yet she had invited Frank to come to the island.
The only explanation to this seemed to be that she had believed Dugan would not be at home.