The loud, incautious voices did not reach his ears again for some moments, and when he next heard them it was evident that the pair had started off.
Dick scarcely dared to stir from the obscurity, but, taking courage, he peered out, to see Pete and Jimmy some distance away moving slowly toward the valley.
"Now what's to be done?" murmured Dick, elated at his success, yet at the same time much disturbed by the thought that their plans were so rudely threatened.
His first impulse was to hurry back and arouse the boys; the second to continue investigations unaided, find out where the gang was encamped, and have all the glory of a brilliant bit of detective work to himself.
It was a reckless plan, but Dick Travers' eyes brightened as he thought of it; the lines about his mouth tightened, and, without further hesitation, the boy crept cautiously from the sheltering shadow of the trees and began moving after the slowly retreating forms.
In the bright moonlight, his task was not difficult. He took advantage of bushes and clumps of trees, sometimes bending almost double, or dropping to his knees when the two figures in advance came to a halt.
Pete and Jimmy, totally unsuspecting, scarcely ever took the trouble to look behind them. Their course was far to the east, where the rolling slopes were more free from vegetation. Many times they disappeared from sight, but the eager trailer never failed to catch a glimpse of them as they reached the top of ridges and walked along their crests.
In three-quarters of an hour Dick saw a dense mass of timber not far ahead, forming a dark, irregular line against the sky. But what presently brought a stifled cry of exultation from his lips was a glimmer of light showing faintly between the trees.
"Hooray!" he murmured. "It must be their camp. This is the dandiest piece of luck. Great Scott! Won't the fellows open their eyes? And Jacky?—Gee! Bet he'll nearly flop over."
Paying little further attention to Pete and Jimmy, Dick steered straight toward the orange glow, scarcely stopping an instant until he was crouching well within the shadow of the timber.