She had strapped the weapon around her waist, by now, so she didn't attempt to put it in his hands. From her pocket she procured a small box of shells, and these she passed to him. He examined them with a great show of interest, balancing their weight in the palm of his hand; then he carelessly threw the box down among the duffle in front of the stern seat. Presently he started to push off.
"You're not taking the other paddle?" the girl asked curiously.
"No. I don't believe in letting young ladies work when I take 'em on an outing. You are just to sit in the bow and enjoy yourself. Fenris, sit still and don't rock the boat!"
Just one moment more he hesitated. From his pocket he drew a piece of paper, carefully folded and sealed with tallow. This he inserted into a little crack in the blade of the second paddle—the one that was to be left at the landing.
"Just a little note for your father," he explained, "to tell him where we are, in case he worries about you."
"That's very considerate of you," the girl answered in a thoughtful voice.
She wondered at the curious glowings, lurid as red coals, that came and went in his eyes.