Miss Randolph listened gravely to Cathalina’s story, sandwich and all. “The first thing to do,” said she, “is to find out if the horse Betty was on came in. I can’t see, though, if the groom was riding according to orders, how Betty could have been left behind. It was a new groom, however.”
“Oh, yes, Miss Randolph, I remember that he was called up front to fix one of the girls straps or saddle or something, and Betty said she was just going to gather that one flower and for me to hurry on. I supposed she was coming and I don’t remember a thing but hurrying to get to the Hall. There was such a crowd of us at the pavilion.”
“I’ll call up the stables. It is possible that with the horses turned into the pasture, the absence of one would not be noticed. What horse did you say Betty had?”
“Calico,” replied Cathalina with a smile. “Betty was talking about his being part Arabian.”
There was some delay. Miss Randolph called again and several men went out into the pasture to see if the spotted horse were there. It would not have been hard to see in the moonlight, but Calico was not in the pasture. Cathalina was waiting for the report. When it came, Miss Randolph’s voice shook a little, as she told Cathalina to go up and put on a wrap. “You will have to go with us to show us the place where you saw Betty last,” she said. “Don’t alarm the girls, or tell anybody but those who already know. Tell them to go to bed. The bell for lights out has rung, so only your suite-mates will have to know about it. Perhaps Betty is all right. I hope so.” Miss Randolph turned again to the telephone and Cathalina flew upstairs as fast as her feet could carry her.
Miss Randolph had too much faith in her girls’ keeping the rules, or pretended to have, though pretence and Miss Randolph were scarcely acquainted. When Cathalina got upstairs, out of breath and excited, the room was full. Hilary and Lilian were fully dressed. Pauline, Helen, Eloise and Juliet were still in their usual study-hour habiliments. Isabel’s slippered feet peeped out from her white night-robe, and her kimono was only gathered around her shoulders.
“We went down, Cathalina, as we said we would, but Miss Randolph was telephoning and we did not dare knock. What is it? Any news? Hilary and Lilian were both speaking at once, while the other girls, in hushed silence, waited for Cathalina to get her breath and reply.
“Calico isn’t in. I’m to go at once and show them where I saw Betty last. Miss Randolph said for me to get a wrap and come down, and for everybody to go to bed. I guess she meant for me to think that Betty is just lost in the woods. Oh, girls, if I just hadn’t gone on! Here we have been having a good time and maybe Betty——”
“Hush, Cathie,—it wasn’t your fault,” said Hilary. “Come, now, let’s not imagine the worst. I’ll go downstairs with you, Cathalina, even if we do get scolded. Here is your coat. You’d better have a scarf or something on your head, too. Miss Randolph is right; everybody ought to go to bed. Come over in the morning, girls, and you will probably find Betty here.”
Such was Hilary’s influence that the girls, Isabel and Virgie shivering with nervousness, departed at once to their rooms to crawl into bed, and after declaring that they should not sleep a wink, to fall sound asleep not to waken until the rising bell should wake them.