“That might not be such a bad idea. Then if Trinidad ever comes home we’d be able to see who rode him!”
“You’ll have to get another idea!” Louise retorted. “That old barn has rats and mice. I wouldn’t sleep there for a million dollars.”
Penny circled the house, searching for a way out of the difficulty. She could find no ladder. A rose trellis rising along the front wall suggested that if they could use it to reach the second story, they might creep along the porch roof to their own room. There at least, the window had been left unlocked.
“It looks flimsy,” Penny said, testing the structure. “I’ll try it first.”
Gingerly she climbed the trellis, trying to avoid the thorns of a withered rose plant. She reached the porch roof and skillfully rolled onto it. From there she motioned for her chum to follow.
Louise was heavier than Penny and less adept at climbing. The rose bush tore at her clothing and wounded her arms. Just as she was reaching for Penny’s outstretched hand one of the cross pieces gave way. Startled, Louise let out a scream of terror.
“Now you’ve done it!” Penny muttered, pulling her by brute force onto the porch. “Mrs. Lear’s deaf if she didn’t hear that!”
Tiptoeing with frantic haste across the porch roof, they tested the window of their bedroom. It raised easily. But as they scrambled over the sill, the girls were dismayed to hear Mrs. Lear’s door open farther down the hall.
“She heard us!” Louise whispered tensely. “Now what’ll we do?”
“Into bed and cover up!” Penny ordered.