Crazy Jane explained what she had been able to hear when she was observing the Tramp Club's camp. She had seen Larry pick up Harriet's handkerchief, though she was not aware that it was Harriet's.
"That is where I lost it, is it?" laughed Harriet. "It is all right. That will encourage them. If they go on beyond here they will find other evidences that will lead them still further on. You see I wanted to get them as far away from home as possible so as to keep them out after dark."
Hazel manipulated the rowboat until they were in the deep shadows of the rocks, after which they climbed aboard the "Red Rover." Harriet explained her plans to her companions and directed them to keep as quiet as possible in case any of the searchers should come that way. The girls had pulled the houseboat into the secret retreat on the previous night. They had kept a watchful eye on the boys all the morning, to see what they were planning to do, and Jane had given the lads the creeps by uttering wild, weird cries in the depths of the forest.
Harriet and Jane cooked themselves something to eat. They had been out for a long time and were hungry. Their companions and guardian were sitting about chatting with them. Miss Elting was of the opinion that they were much better off in their hiding place than at an anchorage out in the lake, always provided that their enemy did not find them out. Harriet agreed with her, but thought they would be in a serious situation if their unknown enemy were to find them. He had shown evidences of keenness that made the finding of the "Red Rover" appear to be a simple task for him. That he would annoy them further, the girls were positive; that he already had located them was more than possible.
Splash!
Their conversation was suddenly checked. A stone had dropped but a few feet from the rear end of the "Red Rover," falling into the creek. Harriet laid a finger on her lips. Tommy had started to speak, but checked herself in time. Harriet and Jane crept to the door of the houseboat and peered out. As they did so a second splash startled them. This time they saw the stone. It was a good-sized rock. It fell some feet below the rear end of the "Red Rover." Some one was sounding the thick growth there. Who it was, they discovered a moment later.
"There's water down there, but it's shallow. I can tell by the splash," announced a voice above them.
"It's George," whispered Jane.
"I'll take a look along the shore on my way back. There may be an inlet that we haven't seen," continued George Baker, talking to himself.
Jane gripped an arm of her companion.