"Oh, dear! Father and Nails have gone!" exclaimed Horace as he counted the ponies in the corral while the others were unsaddling. "Now we can't go with them. I was afraid that was what father intended when he didn't wait for us."
"But Buster and Blackhawk are here, and there is one more pony than before," returned Larry.
"That doesn't prove anything. Ned told me Nails brought in three extra ponies with him," said Bill.
"Then you have known all the time that father and Nails were gone and never told us?" demanded Horace.
"It was because I didn't know for certain where they had gone that I said nothing," replied his brother. "Ned was away when they arrived and departed. Here comes mother; you can find out from her."
After returning Mrs. Wilder's greetings and giving her a brief account of the trip, Horace asked:
"How long have father and Nails been gone? I think it was mean of them to give us the slip like that."
"But they haven't gone to the hills yet," returned his mother. "Your father has ridden over to the Three Stars and Nails has gone to Tolopah."
"Oh, goody!" exclaimed Horace. "We may be able to go, after all.
Momsy, won't you try to make father take us?"
It was only with this last question that Mrs. Wilder understood the purpose of her son's eager inquiries, and the disclosure did not tend to quiet the anxiety she felt over the outcome of the pursuit. Yet she only said: