“Yes. I heard him say he was coming over in this direction in his car. He and Walter might have driven up, and, seeing my car and guessing that we were inside, may have gone off in it just for a joke.”
“It’s possible,” assented Belle. “Anything is possible for Jack and Wally. But if they came here they must have left their car near by. Turn about is fair play—let’s annex theirs.”
“Let’s find it first,” said Cora.
They hurried out to the road. A quick look up and down showed no automobile in sight—not even Cora’s.
“They must have speeded up,” murmured Belle. “Oh! why weren’t we quicker?”
“It doesn’t amount to anything if those young men were really Jack and Walter,” Cora said. “But we can’t be sure of that; can we, Belle?”
“No, I can’t. I only had a glimpse of their backs, and all backs look alike to me.”
“It can’t have been Jack,” declared Bess, “or his car would be somewhere in sight. He wouldn’t know we were in the tea room until he came up close, and then there wouldn’t have been time to run his car back.”
“You can’t tell what they would do,” said Cora. “Come on, we’ll walk as far as the turn in the road, and see what’s down there.”
“Hadn’t you better report your loss to the proprietor of the tea room?” suggested Belle. “He might send a man out to look for the machine.”