“Well,” Jimmie promised, “you go to Toombs and stay with him until you get Ned out of the mess you got him into, and you can come and live with us, all right.”
The boys sat together under a scraggly pine for a long time, talking about New York and the Wolf Patrol. Norman had joined the Wolves during Jimmie’s absence, and so they had not chanced to meet.
“Well,” Norman said directly, “I’ll have to be getting back to camp. They expect me to build the fire and get the meals.”
“Where is the camp?” asked Jimmie.
“It’s on a shelf not far off,” was the reply. “I’m not to tell anybody where it is, but you can find it for yourself if you care to.”
“If I care to?” repeated Jimmie. “Don’t you suppose I’m going there and help Ned out of the trouble you got him into?”
“Go as far as you like,” Norman replied, “only I advise you to keep away from there. Those men are dangerous.”
“Then will you help Ned away?”
“I’ll do what I can,” answered Norman gravely. “I can’t tell you, just now, all about the situation I’m in, but you’ll probably know sometime that I didn’t play crooked.”
“I’m going to tag along when you go back to camp!” warned Jimmie.