“I regretfully report——” he said, through the keyhole. “No milk. Wrong sex. Sorry.”
Ten of the eggs proving good, we placed two of them on a plate with three biscuits and a bowl of mush, and Tish carried it out, placing it on the floor of the porch, much as she would have set it out for the dog.
“Here,” she called. “And when you have finished you might go after that accomplice of yours. He’s probably asleep somewhere.”
“Dear lady,” said Mr. Culver, “I would, but I dare not. A fiery creature, breathing fury from its nostrils, is abroad and——”
But Tish came in and slammed the door.
It was after supper that we missed Tish. She was nowhere in the house, and the kitchen door, which had been bolted, was unlocked. Aggie wrung her hands, but Myrtle was quite calm.
“I shouldn’t worry about her,” she said. “She’s about as well able to take care of herself as any woman I ever saw.”
It was now quite dark, and our fears increased. But soon afterwards Tish came in. She went to the stove and pouring out a cup of hot water, drank it in silence. Then she said:
“I’ve been to the Knowleses’. The dratted idiots are all away, probably to the schoolhouse, registering. The car’s gone, and the house is closed.”
“And the policeman?” I asked.