“You must be hungry, Mr. Holden.”
“Yes, get me something as quick as possible.”
“Have you seen anything of Herbert?” asked the housekeeper.
“No,” snapped Abner.
This was a falsehood, of course, but he felt rather ashamed to confess that he had seen Herbert, and that the latter had got the better of him. Mrs. Bickford perceived that he was out of humor, and did not press the question. She concluded that he was angry because his quest had been unsuccessful.
CHAPTER XVI
JUST TOO LATE
Leaving Abner Holden bound in his cabin, Ralph led Herbert, by a short path, out of the woods.
“Your best course,” he said, “will be to take the cars for Columbus at Vernon. At Columbus you will go to Wheeling, and from there, over the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad to Baltimore, and thence to New York. But all this will cost money.”