I mounted the seat again, and we drove forward. The road was scarcely distinguishable, but the horses followed it without hesitation as it led behind a tall hedge and among scattered oaks.
My heart beat fast. What if the enemy were before us?
“Have you got your revolver handy?” I whispered to Dicky.
“Two of 'em,” he chuckled. “There's a double dose for the man that wants it.”
On a sudden turn the house loomed up before us, and a wild clamor of dogs broke the stillness of the night.
“I hope they are tied,” I said, with a poor attempt to conceal my misgivings.
“We'll have a lively time in a quarter of a minute if they aren't,” laughed Dicky, as he followed me.
But the baying and barking came no nearer, and I helped Mrs. Knapp out of the carriage. She looked at the house closely.
“This is the place,” she said, in an unmistakable tone of decision. “We must be quick. I wish something would quiet those dogs; they will bring the whole country out.”
It seemed an hour before we could raise any one, but it may not have been three minutes before a voice came from behind the door.