“Your home is,” replied Jim. “Mine’s more than a thousand miles away.”
“You old sardine!” cried Joe, throwing a book at his head. “Isn’t my home yours? Do you think I’d dare show my face there without bringing you along? Clara would never forgive me. Neither would Mabel. Neither would Momsey nor Dad. Get a wiggle on now, old man, and hunt up a time-table.”
Jim, with his face jubilant at the thought of soon seeing Joe’s pretty sister, hustled about for the time-table; and with heads close together the young men were soon poring over the schedules. At last Joe straightened up with a vexed exclamation.
“Of all the roundabout ways!” he ejaculated. “We’ll have to change three or four different times with all sorts of bad connections, and can’t reach Riverside until to-morrow afternoon.”
“Wait a minute,” said Jim, running his pencil along a column. “Here’s a line that will get us to Martinsville early to-morrow morning, just before daylight. How far is Martinsville from Riverside?”
“About fifty miles more or less,” replied Joe. “But crickey, Jim, that gives me an idea! What’s the matter with going to Martinsville and hiring an auto there? I know Hank Bixby who keeps a garage there and has autos for hire. He used to live in Riverside, and played with me on the old school nine before his folks moved away. I’ll send him a wire telling him what time we’ll get there and asking him to have a first-class car ready for us.”
“You know the road all right, do you?” asked Jim. “Remember it will be dark when we get there.”
“I know it like a book,” replied Joe. “I’ve been over it many a time. I could travel it in the dark. It’s as level as a table until you get to Hebron. Just beyond that there’s a steep hill that will give the car something to do. But Hank will give me a machine that can climb it, and, besides, it will be just about daylight by the time we get there. It’s a cinch that we won’t have any trouble. I’ll bet a hat—what’s the matter, Jim?”
For Jim had risen and moved quickly toward the door, which had been standing partly open. He put out his head and looked down the corridor. Not satisfied with that, he went down the hall to the head of the stairs. Then he slowly retraced his steps.
Joe, who had followed his chum to the door, looked at him with open-mouthed wonder.