He involuntarily gave a low chuckle as some pleasing thought entered his mind. This scared him. He listened for a moment. Then he closed his eyes, and began to snore.
The three men were up at the first streak of dawn on Thursday morning. After a hastily-prepared breakfast Raikes said good-by to his companions; and started for Wytopitlock.
An hour later the boys were roused and fed. If the previous days had seemed long, this one was ten times longer. Bogle and Sparwick looked forward to evening just as impatiently as the boys. They passed the time in smoking and talking, and appeared to be on the best of terms. Dinner time came, and the long afternoon dwindled slowly by.
After supper the evening seemed comparatively short. At ten o’clock all were in bed. Bogle did not chain himself to Brick, as he had always done heretofore. He allowed the lad’s arms to remain tied behind his back.
“I need a good rest to-night,” he explained to Sparwick, “and I won’t get it with that confounded bracelet on my wrist.”
“I reckon the lad’s safe enough,” muttered Sparwick, in a drowsy tone. He seemed to be half-asleep already.
Bogle stretched himself on the opposite side of the bed, so that the boys were between the two. He made no effort to keep awake, since he did not intend to carry out his instructions until toward morning. He dropped off to sleep in a very contented frame of mind. He straightway dreamed that the half of fifteen thousand dollars was already in his possession, and that he was enjoying life in a great city.
In the midst of his revels he awoke, and opened his eyes. For a moment he did not remember where he was. The embers of the fire shed a dim light, and showed him a man bending over him. He felt a strange hand groping in his pocket.
Then the situation suddenly flashed upon him. He recognized Kyle Sparwick, and knew intuitively that he must have heard the conversation on the previous night. Now he was seeking the vial of chloroform.
With a husky cry, Bogle pushed his enemy aside, and sprang to his feet.