“I think she’s coming!” he cried. “Put another dose in.”
Tim did so, and the water came pouring up, bringing with it a mixture of ice and rust flakes. The brothers worked the handle vigorously, and soon a stream of clear water flowed out.
“Hurrah, we made it,” Tim exulted. “Thought we weren’t going to, though.”
“So did I. That water looks good. Wait until I get a glass from the kitchen, and we can have a good drink of it.”
They filled some pails with the water and then returned to the house. Darkness was beginning to settle, and their spirits became more and more depressed. It was close to five o’clock, and the blackness of night soon closed entirely over the lodge. Tim lighted a lamp, and they were comfortable as far as light and warmth were concerned. But their minds were far from easy.
“No use talking, the boys have either stayed at Fox Point or they are lost,” Mac sighed, as they looked out of the window into the thick blackness.
“I don’t believe they stayed,” Tim shook his head. “I’m afraid that they started on the return trip and got caught. The tough part is that if we go out to look for them, we would probably be lost in a short time, too!”
CHAPTER XV
Mysterious Knocking
For a moment after Tim’s discouraging words the twins stood and stared helplessly out at the darkness of the night. From every angle the situation was a serious one. If the country had been familiar to them, they would have attempted to go out and look for Barry and Kent, but they had only a sketchy notion of the hills and valleys. The wind was blowing the snow around in such a way that even the stoutest woodsmen might have been confused and lost on such a day. To the Ford boys it seemed anything but cheering that their chums were somewhere abroad in the storm and darkness.
“I wish I knew what to do,” Mac confessed, after they had stared out into the night for some time.