A ray of light flickered upon some object directly in the path of the flying car. It was impossible to stop and the road was too narrow for Nat to swerve aside and in this way escape the collision.
“Low Bridge!” he shouted, and they all crouched down. The next instant the car struck the creature standing in its path.
“A deer!” yelled Ned, as the car came to a jarring stop, some yards beyond the point of collision.
He hopped out and ran back to see if the poor animal was really dead. His mother’s car meanwhile halted where the deer lay beside the road. The Fire Bird had thrown the creature some distance away, and it was quite dead, its neck being broken.
“Killing game out of season is a misdemeanor, Nat,” said his brother, returning to the automobile. “Lucky you are going to get out of the state to-night. The game warden might be after you.”
“I don’t think it is a thing to laugh over,” said Tavia. “The poor deer!”
“Thank you,” Nat said. “I never expected to hear you call me by such a tender name.——”
“Don’t flatter yourself, Mr. Nat!” snapped Tavia, scrambling out of the front seat and joining Dorothy in the tonneau. “I don’t want to risk being in front if you are going to run down all the livestock in the country.”
“It’s too bad to leave perfectly good venison behind,” Ned said. “I suppose he was dazzled by the lights. You must have a care how you drive, Nathaniel. Mother says so.”
“Huh! I couldn’t see the deer until we were right on top of it.”