“Let me get there.”
Scrambling to his feet, Dale flattened out against the rock and Ranny took his place. Two or three times the latter shouted Parker’s name, but only the echo answered. Then he stood up, and, squeezing past Tompkins, pressed through the crowd of boys gathered about the entrance to the crevice. His face was a little pale, but his jaw was square and he held a scout whistle in one hand. A moment later three long shrill blasts resounded through the woods.
It was the scout danger-signal–a call for help. The boys stood motionless, listening intently for an answer. Presently it came, two short blasts, rather faint and far off, from over the top of the hill.
“That’s Mr. Reed, I guess,” said Ranny. “I hope he’ll bring that coil of rope along. But of course he will. He’s not the kind to forget any–”
The words died on his lips; his eyes widened in startled surprise. The others, following the direction of his bewildered gaze, gasped and stared. Bennie Rhead, returned from a fruitless trip to the old foundation, cried out sharply, an undercurrent of fright in his voice.
Around the corner of the great rock Court Parker had stepped quietly into view. He was bareheaded and dirt-streaked, but his face nevertheless wore a broad grin, and after the first shock of surprise had passed, Bob Gibson started forward angrily.
“By heck!” he exclaimed irately. “If you think this sort of thing is funny, Court Parker, it’s about time somebody taught you–”
“Shut up, Bob!” cut in Ranny, curtly. His quick eye had taken in the streak of blood on Parker’s cheek and noted a slight twitching at the corners of the boy’s smiling mouth. “You’re not hurt, are you, Court?” he added quickly.
Parker shook his head. “Not to speak of.” He drew a long breath. “Well, we’ve found the mine,” he went on in a voice which failed to be quite as matter of fact as he evidently tried to make it.
In an instant he was surrounded by the excited boys and fairly bombarded with questions: “Did you fall down the hole?” “What’s it like down there?” “How did you get out?”