“Say good-bye to Doctor Ring for me!” Belle exclaimed.
Teddy and Roy turned to look at her.
“So-o-o!” Teddy drawled. “That’s the way the land lies, does it?”
“Well, well,” Roy mocked. “Our icicle sister going to be a nurse! Hm! Did you notice the doc’s eye-lashes, Teddy? Such nice, splendid ones!”
“And he’s got a wonderful voice,” Teddy went on. “It’s thrilling! It makes you feel—oh, just like—”
“Oh, hush up!” Belle cried, her face a fiery red. “I could tell plenty about you two, if I wanted to! Curly, Teddy told me the other day that you—”
“So long! Got to be going now! So long! So long! Sorry to rush away like this!” Teddy seized Belle’s bronco by the bridle and led him out of the yard. The boy was talking loudly, trying his best to drown out his sister’s voice, but she managed to shout, “were the prettiest girl he’d ever seen!” before he succeeded in taking her so far away that her words would not carry to the interested listeners.
The bout was declared a draw, and the two brothers and the sister went on their way with grins on their faces. The talk naturally veered to the happenings of yesterday, and Belle told what had occurred while she was helping Doctor Ring.
“Mr. Decker talked a lot,” she declared. “Mostly about Nugget Camp. He spoke about—”
“Then it was Nugget Camp!” Teddy interrupted. “Maybe he made a real strike!”