By this time they were all bunched close together and Bob could see that the leader was pointing out to the others the signs by which he knew that someone had been over the trail.
"Not an hour ago," he heard him say.
"Then why didn't we meet 'em?" a man asked.
"Because they must have turned off the trail," the leader replied.
"Maybe they hide," another of the party suggested.
"Just what I was thinking," the leader said quickly. "And it's up to us to find out who they are and where they went. You stay here and I'll scout a bit."
Bob waited to hear no more but crept softly back the way he had come.
"There are eight of them and they're a pretty rough-looking crowd, but none of them has red hair," he told Sue and Jack as soon as he reached them.
"Have they gone on?" Sue asked.
"No, the leader saw our tracks and is coming to look for us."