“Then come along with me and I’ll write it down so as to have it when I send out the alarm.”
“Then we’ll get back to your house, Phil,” suggested Blake. “We’ll tell your mother and sister about it.”
“All right. I’ll come as soon as I can.”
It needed but a look at the faces of the two lads, as they entered the house a little later, to tell the four girls, and Mrs. Anderson, that their errand had been fruitless.
“Oh mother!” cried Mabel. “It’s all my fault!”
“Nonsense!” declared her mother, though there was a dull ache in her heart at the loss of her beautiful ring.
“We’re going to get on their trail the first thing in the morning!” declared Jack fiercely. “They can’t get far away—a Gypsy tribe is too conspicuous to hide away very long.”
The boys told of their chase, and explained Phil’s absence, though before they had finished he came in. Then it all had to be gone over with again, so that it was quite late when the five left Mabel’s house.
“Wo-he-lo!” chorused Alice, Natalie and Marie, as they waved good-night to Mabel and Phil. “Wo-he-lo!”
“What’s that?” demanded Jack, rather surprised at the musical intonation of his sister and her two chums.