"Doctor!" Harry exclaimed, "did the lads of Lunda ever fail to carry out their schemes, or squirm out of the ugliest fix in creation?"
"I must own," laughed the Doctor, "that collectively you have a wonderful faculty for emerging with eclat from every adventure; but I can't say as much for you individually."
"One for you, Tom," whispered Bill.
"And one for yourself," retorted Tom.
Meantime Signy had crept into Yaspard's arms, and was coaxing him to tell her the secret; but he put her off with a promise of telling it when they were on the way home. "And, Mootie," he added thoughtfully, "I believe we ought not to stay here very long to-morrow, just that Uncle Brüs may see that we aren't anxious to take the greatest advantage of his permission. Besides, we don't want him to feel that we like being away from Boden so awfully much."
She squeezed his hand. She understood him perfectly, and Yaspard, laughing into her upraised eyes, said aloud, "Here is a little girl who wouldn't contradict me for worlds, and is agreed with me in stating that the Osprey must be on wing to-morrow morning."
But when to-morrow morning came there had been a breeze in the night which had raised the sea a bit, and Dr. Holtum would not permit them to leave until it had subsided, notwithstanding the Viking's declaration that he never minded such a small thing as that.
"My boat and I go out in rough weather," he declared; "and even Signy would laugh at the idea of calling this a 'rough morning!'"
The Doctor was firm, however, and the morning slipped happily away in the pleasant companionship of so many new and agreeable friends.
It was arranged that the Lunda boys were to run across to Boden on the evening of the following day, to carry out the mysterious plans of Tom and Yaspard. They were to wait at the geo for Yaspard and his chums, and the mighty deed was to be done at the witching hour of night. So they planned, and put aside with unwonted impatience the Doctor's declaration that there was going to be unsettled weather, and that they must not count upon being able to carry out their scheme in such an expeditious way.