"What's that?" gasped Ruth.
"I—I don't know," whispered Alice. But she did know—it was that same strange sound, as of a heavy body falling. And this time there was a groan—the girls were sure of this.
Without another word they ran out of the barn, hand in hand toward the farmhouse, intending to give an alarm. And, as they got outside, they saw, running off in the dusk, across the fields, a man who limped as he sped onward.
CHAPTER XI
THE RUNAWAY MOWING MACHINE
"Look!" gasped Ruth.
"It was that man—hiding in the barn! Who can he be?" asked Alice, pausing a moment.
"Don't stop! Come on!" commanded Ruth, in fear.
"But we ought to see who it is," insisted the younger girl. "Or at least watch where he goes. Sandy ought to know."