“Naturally,” muttered Ned. “Very naturally! Those two frat brothers of Milt’s were doing it all. We recognized them and beat it pretty quickly. Nobody has any chance with the ladies when they are around!”
Miss Vaughn suddenly sat up very straight in her chair, twirling her rings excitedly.
“What? What was that?” she demanded, in her shrill voice.
Ned and Jo looked at each other in obvious amazement, as if they could not understand the cause of her disturbance, and both the Crowell boys laughed scornfully.
“Let me explain,” said Milton, a smile of amusement still playing about his mouth; “my aunt is giving these girls cars for reaching the coast, if they comply with certain conditions she has made. And one of the most important of these conditions is that they do not accept any assistance from men along the road. She believes that they lived up to their contract; now you two come along innocently with a different story, and knock down their house of cards. Well, that’s too funny!” His tone became cynical. “I knew the girls couldn’t do it, Auntie! And just think how near they came to putting it over on you!”
By this time Miss Vaughn’s anger had reached the breaking point; she rose from her chair and stamped her foot impetuously, in spite of her seventy-odd years.
“You are sure of what you say?” she demanded, hotly.
“Sure of everything except the identity of the girls—and we’ll know that when we see them,” replied Ned.
A sudden idea flashed into Miss Vaughn’s mind.
“You’re not in the boys’ fraternity—the one that profits by the Girl Scouts’ loss?” she asked shrewdly.