War and Willie soon had a fire going which enabled them to dry out other wood for use during the night. Damp clothing was hung on a quickly constructed rack near the heat.
By the time supper was ready, everyone felt quite comfortable. Jack and the guide looked after the pack animals, while the other Scouts cleaned up the camp for the night.
Returning to the fire, Jack stood for a moment with his back to the flames. The night had closed in dark and with a hint of more rain.
“Y’know, I’ve had an uneasy feeling the last hour or so,” he confessed in a low voice.
Ken, busy laying out his eiderdown sleeping bag, quickly raised his head. “Uneasy?” he repeated. “About going on to the mine, you mean?”
Jack kept his voice low. “It’s not that, Ken. I’ve had an odd feeling that someone has been trailing us, even before we made camp.”
He expected Ken to laugh, but the other accepted his remark seriously.
“I’ve had the same feeling, Jack. The foliage is so dense here that one gets that closed in sensation. But who would follow us? Not Mrs. Rhodes?”
“No, she couldn’t have doubled back because there’s no other trail.”
“I’ve thought several times in the last hour that I’ve heard a rustling among the foliage, Jack. Wild animals probably. All the same, I think I’ll look around.”