“Come, come, Le! My dear fellow, come!” called Mr. Force.
Leonidas broke away from the kindly arms that held him and hurried into the sleigh, which started off so suddenly that the young midshipman literally dropped into the seat that had been kept for him beside Odalite.
The sleigh sped over the snow-clad, moonlit ground, through the north gate of the lawn and into the forest.
Before reaching Chincapin Creek it turned off to the left and took the road to the railway station.
Their way lay through the forest for many a mile. Odalite and Leonidas sat in the back seat, covered with the same bearskin, and with their hands clasped together. Very few words passed between them. But the frequent hand pressures silently spoke.
Wynnette and Elva sat in front of them, and chattered incessantly to encourage themselves and their party, very much upon the same principle that boys are said to whistle in going through a churchyard at night, to keep up their spirits—for the children loved their cousin dearly and hated to part from him.
Mr. Force sat on the front seat beside Jake, who drove.
The horses went at full speed and fairly flew over the ground.
When they emerged at last from the forest they saw the lights in the railway station gleaming in the distance, and soon after heard the far-off thunder of the approaching train.
“Faster, Jacob! Faster!” cried Mr. Force. “Oh, Le, my boy, what a close shave this is! How much you have risked for the sake of spending a few more hours with us!”