'And I don't believe we ever shall,' continued Marjorie, 'we don't seem to have set about it the right way, somehow.'
The boys looked so downcast that Marjorie judged it inadvisable to pursue the subject further and they mounted their ponies and rode slowly in the direction of Ardnavoir.
Half-way down the hill they discovered Tricksy sitting on a clump of heather, with Hamish beside her and Laddie curled at her feet.
'You are nice, kind people,' said Tricksy reproachfully, 'going away like that and leaving me all alone!'
'Why, Tricksy,' began Marjorie, 'why didn't you go with the others?'
'Go with the others!' echoed Tricksy, 'do you think I could run up the hill as they did? If it hadn't been for Hamish I shouldn't have seen anything. Then leaving me all alone too.'
'But, Tricksy, where are Harry and Gerald?'
'I don't know, I'm sure. Gone off somewhere by themselves, and I came to meet you with Hamish. I think you might have let me come with you.'
'Don't be a little silly, Tricksy,' said Reggie irritably; 'you are too little to go all that distance.'
'Too little!' cried Tricksy, exasperated; 'I'm not too little to be sent messages for the others, and I'm not too little to dig in the garden and carry stones for the Pirates' Den; I'm only too little when it's a jolly piece of fun that you want to keep to yourselves. Oh, Laddie, dear,' to the dog who had jumped up and was licking her face, 'you are the only nice ones, you and Hamish'—and she threw her arms round the collie's neck to hide a tear. 'Don't lick my face though,' she added, with a change of manner that forced a laugh even from the tired and weary adventurers.