Now that they had decided what to do it seemed as though it was already half done, and they began to feel a great deal more hopeful. They almost forgot that they had been half frozen a little while before, but the thought of wading ashore now reminded them of it. How they hated to get off that log into the cold water.
“Are we ready?” Scott asked, preparing to slide from the log.
“Sure,” Murphy replied cheerfully. “I’d feel a little more like it if I had something to eat, but I guess I can make it.”
They slid quietly off the log into the water and made their way cautiously back toward the creek, keeping a sharp lookout for any one who might have come back to have a last look for them. There was no one in sight on the beach. Keeping just inside the brush on the edge of the swamp, they worked their way up to the point where Qualley and Roberts had disappeared a while before. They could see for quite a distance here and the coast seemed clear.
They could not find any log which would take them out of the creek on the opposite side and clear of the bank, but they selected a large clump of bunch grass for a landing place, took one more look to make sure that no one was watching, and made a dash for it. It seemed to Scott that he had been putting in most of his time lately tearing around the country with the expectation of being shot in the back. They half expected it now. Scott stepped on a stick which broke with a loud crack and Murphy jumped three feet in the air.
“Begorra, I thought they had me that time!” he grumbled as he ran the faster. “I wonder if it would really feel as mean to be shot in the back as a fellow thinks it would?”
“Shut up,” Scott growled. “Think of something pleasant to say, can’t you?”
They had not realized how thin that pine woods was till they tried to hide themselves in it. It seemed as though you could see through it for half a mile. They had run all of that before they felt at all safe and sat down on a log to catch their breath.
“Well, we have passed the worst of it,” Scott panted, “but I’ll feel a lot better when we have crossed that railroad and gotten into a country where we are not likely to run into any one who will be looking for us. It would be just our luck to meet some one on that railroad track.”
They were anxious to have the suspense over and soon started again, traveling in the edge of the woods where they could keep an eye on the beach. They crossed the trail the men had taken the night before and were soon in sight of the track. They reconnoitered before they ventured into the open, but the place seemed completely deserted. The schooner was gone and the bay was empty. They listened a long time, but could hear nothing save the monotonous lapping of the water on the beach.