“And will you obey any command given you during the next week by any illustrious member of Skull and Crossbones?”
“I will,” Cara promised, visions of many detested tasks passing before her eyes.
“And now, one last test of your courage remains to be made,” Madge continued impressively. “It lacks twenty minutes of midnight. Exactly upon the hour you must go to the old boarded-up Swenster mansion, bringing back some token to prove that you have accomplished your mission.”
For a minute Cara looked as though she intended to refuse, and in truth, the others could not have blamed her. The old Swenster mansion was several doors away, adjoining a grove of pine trees which at night was not the most pleasant place to pass. The Swenster grounds were surrounded by a high fence and hedge which hid the house from view of the street. The place had been closed for years.
“I don’t know how I can get into the grounds,” Cara protested.
“You can go in the back way,” Madge informed, forgetting her pose and speaking in a natural voice. “It will take you some time to reach there, so you had better start now.”
Cara looked very unhappy but she knew that to refuse might mean her dismissal from the organization to which she aspired. Reluctantly, she made her way down the dark stairs. The outside door closed behind her.
“That was an inspiration!” Enid praised after Cara had gone. “Madge, you have such clever ideas! I didn’t think she’d do it, did you?”
“Cara’s game,” Madge laughed. “I’d not enjoy going to the Swenster mansion myself at this time of night.”
“You couldn’t hire me to go near there,” Edna added feelingly. “I can just see poor Cara shaking in her boots. I wonder if she’ll be able to get into the grounds.”