“Did the Home Guards trouble my mother?” asked Marcy after listening to their story.
“No, sah; dey didn’t. But dey gobble up two of dem refugees so quick dey couldn’t fight, but dey don’t git Moster Hawkins kase he too mighty handy wid his gun.”
“Do you know whether or not he shot any of them?”
“We’s sorry to be ’bleeged to say he didn’t,” was the reply. “You want to watch out, Marse Mahcy, an’ don’t luf nobody round hyar know when you comin’ home nex’ time.”
Marcy had already decided to follow this course, but he did not say anything to the talkative darkies about it. If he had decided at the same time that he wouldn’t mention it in camp, it would have been better for him.
While Marcy was visiting his mother (and all the while he was in her presence there were four trusty negroes outside, watching the house), Tom Allison and Mark Goodwin were trying to learn what had become of the two refugees who had fallen into the hands of the Home Guards; and when they found that both Beardsley and Shelby were absent from home on business, they thought they knew.
“They have been taken to jail,” said Mark, who was delighted over the success of his plan, but angry at Beardsley because the latter did not wait a few nights and make sure of Marcy Gray, instead of capturing two men who were of no consequence one way or the other. “But between you and me, I don’t envy the Home Guards the task they have set for themselves. If all the refugees are like Hawkins somebody is going to get hurt.”
While Mark talked in this way he and Tom were riding toward Beardsley’s plantation, and now they turned through his gate, passed the ruins of his dwelling, and finally drew rein in front of the house in which the overseer lived when Beardsley thought he could afford to hire one, but which was now occupied by his own family. His daughter came to the door, and the boys saw at once that she knew all about it.
“Paw and Shelby has took them two fellers to Williamston,” she said in her ordinary tone of voice, as though there was nothing secret in it. “And they’re goin’ to bring some of our soldiers back with ’em, kase he ’lows, paw does, that it wouldn’t be safe for him and Shelby to fool with Mahcy Gray. He’s got too many friends, and paw ’lows that he aint got no more houses to lose.”
Tom and Mark turned away without making any reply or asking any questions. They did not want to hear any more. Beardsley had cautioned them not to say a word about it, and here he had gone and told it to his daughter, which was the same as though he had written out a full description of Mark’s plan and put it on the bulletin-board in the post-office. When Tom looked into his companion’s face he was surprised to see how white it was.