"Can I git up the tracks, Eli?" inquired Lem presently.
"Ye'll have to wade in mud to yer knees fer a spell after ye leave the boat."
"I can take the hill over the tracks for a way. Will ye row me up as far as ye can?"
"Yep, I'll row ye up," replied Eli, proceeding with his work.
Late in the afternoon, Lem Crabbe, wet to his knees and covered with mud, entered the scow. He had stopped at Screechy's hut, knocked, and, having received no answer, clicked down the hill to the boat.
He made up his mind to stay there until Scraggy came back; then he would go back to Tarrytown and bring the twins to Ithaca. Every morning Lem mounted the hill, only to find that Screech Owl had not returned. But one day, just at dusk, as he appeared before the hut, he saw the flickering of a candle. He did not wait to knock, but entered, and found Scraggy stretched out on the old bed. She looked up as if she had expected him, noted his dark face, and lowered her head again.
"Black Pussy's gone, Lem. I've got a cold settin' on me here," she whispered, wheezing as she laid her hand on her chest.
"I hope it'll kill ye!" grunted Lem. "What did you leave the toolhouse fer, when I told ye to stay?"
"What toolhouse, Lemmy?" The dazed eyes looked up at him in surprise.