“Now I guess we’re even for all the insults you’ve heaped upon my unoffending head in days gone by, Jet,” Phil gibed. “Routing you up at six o’clock evens up for a lifetime.”
“You needn’t take so much credit to yourself, brother, dear,” Lucile countered. “We were going to get up, anyway, weren’t we, girls,” to which the girls agreed shamelessly.
“It’s a compliment, anyway,” said Jessie, philosophically. “They were so eager for our society that they even had to resort to tricks.”
“Right you are,” laughed Jack. “Now that we have some time, let’s make good use of it. Come on; we’ll hike,” and, taking Lucile’s arm, he started down the drive.
“Where to?” called Phil.
“Makes no difference to me where we go,” Jack flung back, recklessly. “Let the girls decide.”
“Make Lucile take the lead,” Jessie suggested. “Maybe she can unearth some more mysteries.”
“No, she won’t; she’s through,” said Phil, decidedly. “If there are any more clues floating around loose, it’s 172 going to be her brother that will find them. I want that distinctly understood.”
Meanwhile, Lucile and Jack had swung off into a narrow and much more difficult road than the one they were on, and Phil shouted a remonstrance.
“Why not stick to the road we know about?” he shouted, and they stopped and looked back. “That looks like a pretty stiff climb.”