Sandy wouldn’t do that, Mike thought to himself. He’d head for the near shore. It must be the other boy! He swung around and squinted at the lone raft floating safely in the middle of the river. Whoever was in it was trying to fish something out of the water.
“He made it!” Doug yelled, dancing in excitement. “It’s Sandy! He’s all right!”
Suddenly Mike was laughing. Despite the dirty trick at the end, Sandy had won out. It was the other boy who had fallen in—not Sandy. It was a lucky thing he escaped with nothing worse than a thorough soaking.
“Come on!” Mike yelled. “He’s coming in for a landing!” Together, Mike and Doug sprinted down the bank of the river to meet the raft before it touched shore.
“Hey!” yelled Doug, breaking stride for a moment. “What’s he got in his hand?”
As Sandy guided his raft toward them Mike saw him grin and wave something in the air. Then all at once he knew what it was.
“It’s your paddle, Doug,” he chuckled. “Sandy picked it up out of the water. Don’t you remember? That’s what this whole thing was supposed to be about. Your paddle!”
Laughing as they ran, the two of them splashed out into the river to welcome Sandy.
CHAPTER FOUR
Eagle Plume
“Well, Mike,” Mr. Cook said as he settled down on a porch chair in front of the cabin the Hendersons had rented them. “Think you can last till dinner?”