Then, suddenly, he started. His face grew white. Unconsciously his hand slid to his belt and seized the butt of his gun.
“The Pup!” Teddy gasped. “The Pup, or I’m a ring-tailed doodle bird! And he’s got our pony with him! Come on, Roy! Let’s get him!”
CHAPTER XI
A Night in the Woods
“To the shore, Pop!” Roy yelled, realizing that The Pup had seen them and it would be useless to hope to catch him unawares. “Wait, Teddy—” He saw that the boy had drawn his gun and that his eyes were blazing. “Don’t shoot! You may hit the horse! And, anyway, we don’t want to kill the skunk! We want to capture him, if we can.”
Unfortunately their craft was almost directly in the middle of the stream, some two hundred feet from the shore. The figure on horseback had disappeared, but Roy hoped that, due to the tangle of brush, Marino might not be able to retreat before they could land. Pop set his teeth and leaned on his paddle, and Teddy did the same. But they were not working together, and the boat started to swing crazily.
“Wait till I get in with you, Pop!” Teddy gasped. “This blame current! It sure is strong!”
Gradually the canoe neared the shore. But by that time all four realized that their attempt was doomed to failure. The Pup had surely seen them and had got away.
“I guess we lose,” Roy sighed, while he mopped his face with his handkerchief, for Teddy’s efforts had splashed him considerably. “Let up, boys. No use to land now. Besides, those rocks would make hash of the boat.” He pointed to some sharp-edged boulders along the bank. “No soap. What a fine time to be in the middle of a river! Bet The Pup is snickering up his sleeve by this time. It’s a wonder he didn’t wave good-bye at us,” and Roy laughed bitterly.
“Merry Christmas!” Bug Eye remarked, and looked about him comically. “I am still among those present. Now, if it ain’t too much trouble, will you kindly explain this muddle to a poor man what ain’t got his right health?”
“Do you mean to say you didn’t see him?” Teddy asked in amazement.