"He isn't here just now," said Zee faintly.
So the man drove slowly away, looking back now and then. The girls, in spite of the dust, did not sit in the car. They would not trust themselves alone in that car under any circumstances. Instead they went soberly up the bank and sat down again, side by side. Once in a while Zee wiped her pale brow wearily.
"Such a life," she muttered once.
"Here comes something now," said Treasure, looking hopefully down the road toward town. "Maybe it is father."
"Horseback rider."
"I hope he does not offer to tow us home."
"If he does, I shall tell him to mind his own business."
As the rider drew near, the girls leaned forward and studied his features.
"He will laugh at us," said Treasure sadly. "That is worse than offering to tow us home. It is that horribly sarcastic Curious Cat that kept the Crab from arresting us when we trespassed on his ugly old ditch."