As yet Derrick could not realize that they had escaped nor did he until he felt a pair of arms thrown about his neck and heard Paul's voice saying,
"Derrick, dear Derrick! you have saved my life, and as long as it lasts I shall love you. If ever I have a chance to show it, you shall see how dearly."
Then Derrick stood up and looked about him. A crowd of men and boys were running along the top of the dump towards them. In another minute they had both been placed in the car, and amid the joyous cries and exultant cheers it was being rapidly rolled back towards the village.
When Mrs. Sterling began to recover consciousness she smiled at the boy whom she saw standing beside her, and said, faintly,
"I've had an awful dream, Derrick, and I thank God it was only a dream."
And Derrick said, "Amen, mother."
CHAPTER III
THE MINE BOSS TAKES DERRICK INTO HIS CONFIDENCE
In a mining community serious accidents, and even terrible disasters, are of such frequent occurrence that in Raven Brook the burning of the old breaker soon ceased to furnish a topic of conversation.