"What do you want here?" asked the old fellow in a harsh voice. "Who are you?"
CHAPTER III
A Queer Old Man
"My name is Penelope Nichols," the girl introduced herself after she had recovered from astonishment. "Are you Mr. Crocker?"
"I am," replied the old man grimly. "What do you want here?"
"Why, my father and I rented your cottage," Penny told him quickly. "Would you mind calling off your dog? He acts as if he'd enjoy chewing me to pieces."
"Rudy has been trained to attack anyone who tries to come up the lane," Herman Crocker said evenly.
He stepped through a gap in the hedge and spoke sharply to the hound. Rudy went reluctantly to the side of his master.
Penny could not help but stare at the old man. He was short and stooped and his clothes were not very clean. She saw that he was carrying a shotgun.