"But what was he doing back here?" demanded Amy, while the rest stared at Grace excitedly. "That's only a rutty old wagon road, and—"
"Well, he was bumping and bouncing like everything, and when he caught sight of me he sent his machine ahead so fast I thought surely he'd have a smash-up."
"Wish he had," said gentle Amy, and at the unusually vindictive expression on her face the others had to laugh.
"Well, there's nothing more we can do now," said Frank practically. "Let's go back and finish our lunch. Probably," he added, as they thoughtfully retraced their steps, "he took the wagon road for fear of running into one of you girls."
"Big coward!" cried Betty, with clenched hands. "I wish I had been with you, Grace, we might have stopped him."
The boys shouted.
"Such a chance!" crowed Roy, but Betty turned on them with flashing eyes.
"Well, we might at least have tried," she cried hotly. "That is more than you boys would have done. You don't seem to be even interested," she continued indignantly. "If I were a man in uniform I'd show that coward that he can't knock old helpless women down and then run away. I'd show him that in insulting an old woman he was insulting the whole United States army—"
"Hurrah!" cried Will irrepressibly, jumping to his feet. "Now you're talking, Betty. How about it, fellows? Shall we do as she says?"
"You bet we will!" they cried, and at the ring in their voices, even Betty's ardent little heart was satisfied.