The prints of the man’s feet were plainly to be seen, and, it being no more than a foot wide at that point, he had crossed the brook at a stride. On the western side the trail again led northward, and before long the boys paused within plain sight of the house of the Sages.
“Ah! ha!” breathed Sleuth, with an intonation of deep exultation. “Now you can see what he was doing. I’m sorry indeed for our mutual friend, Fred Sage; but duty is duty, and we must not falter.”
“It does look as if he made straight for the Sages’ place,” admitted Roy.
“No question about it,” nodded Sleuth, grasping his companion’s arm and drawing him back. “Let’s preserve proper caution. We might be seen.”
“I don’t see anyone stirring around the place.”
“No, but you can see that the front door of the stable is standing open a bit. That door was not left thus all night long, you can bet on it.”
“I suppose they were woke up by the racket.”
“But why should they go to the stable? If we locate our man there, Hooker, I’ll stay and keep watch while you go for the officers.”
“I don’t see how we’re going to——”
“We’ll have to retreat a distance, cross the road out of sight of the house and approach the buildings from the rear. That’s the proper trick.”