“Hark! What was that?” asked Ned.
“Sounded like thunder,” replied Jerry.
There was no doubt of it a minute later, for the distant rumble of the sky-artillery could easily be distinguished. The wind, which had died away, began to blow stronger, and the clouds spread over the heavens and were blacker.
“It won’t break for half an hour,” was Ned’s opinion. “We can ride on through a little rain, but if it gets too bad we can turn into some barn.”
In less than fifteen minutes the first drops splashed down. The rumble of thunder grew louder, and there were vivid spurts and tongues of lightning leaping across the black vapor masses.
Crack! sounded a report so loud that it seemed as if lightning had struck near by. For a moment there was no apparent increase in the fury of the storm. Then came a flash so bright that it seemed as if the whole heavens had been lighted up. It was followed by a terrifying crash that fairly shook the earth, and then came a deluge of water that almost hid the three boys one from another as it poured down from the clouds.
“We’d better get out of this!” cried Jerry. “It seems to be getting worse. Put on full speed! I saw a house a little way ahead. We’ll stop there until this is over!”
Ned and Bob could just hear Jerry through the noise the storm made, though the boy was shouting at the top of his voice.
The storm was at its height now. The lightning seemed incessant, and the thunder claps followed one after the other so closely that it was a continual roar. The wind was a regular gale, driving the rain with stinging force into the faces of the riders.
“Here we are!” yelled Jerry presently. “Turn in!”