As he turned the corner and came on the main street, he heard a step behind him, and glancing quickly around he caught sight of a figure hurrying off in the darkness. He needed no second glance to enable him to recognize that stooping figure, and slow, shuffling gait as belonging to his own father, and a desire to know where he could be going at that time of night led him to turn and follow slowly along behind him.
He had not far to go, for his father turned up the first side street leading toward the mills, and soon stopped before a small building. Ray knew it was a low groggery, but the shutters were down, and the place seemed to be deserted. He found a moment later, however, that such was not the real case, for at his father's knock, the door quickly opened, and he entered.
"That means a night of wild carousing, with companions as reckless as himself," said Ray, bitterly, as he turned to retrace his steps. "O Lord," he then cried, "wilt thou not bring him soon to a knowledge of thyself?"
As he turned on to the main street again, he glanced back along the passage way. The door of the saloon was now open, and in the light that streamed forth he recognized the four men who suddenly came out and went on up the alley toward the mills. They were his father, a man named Smith, and Blake and Hyde, the leaders of the strike. He also heard some one in the groggery call out to the men as they hastened away: "Come back here, boys, as quick as possible."
What could the men be going to do? A dark foreboding of some great evil came to Ray's heart, as he noiselessly followed on after the four men. Were they about to commit some crime? He did not dare approach too closely, lest his presence should be discovered. And when he reached the tall fence forming the mill yard he had lost sight of them. He listened, but heard no steps; he could not even tell which way they had now gone. He remembered that a ways down that side of the fence on which he was standing there was a small door leading directly to the mills, but it was seldom used. He would go down as far as that, and see if it was closed. He soon reached it, and found that it was firmly fastened. He breathed easier. Perhaps the men were only out on some drunken frolic, after all; and provoked at himself for his needless apprehension, he hurried back to the main street, and went almost on a run up town. When he reached the hill he went more slowly, and at its top he turned and looked down upon the village below.
Silence and darkness reigned everywhere. The wind blew terribly, and sent the chilly night air to his very bones. He could not tell why he lingered there, but he did with his eyes fastened upon that part of the darkness which he knew hid the great mills from his sight.
Suddenly he gave a great start. He had seen a glimmer of light down near the largest mill. It grew in brilliancy, and then lights flashed forth from three other buildings in the mill yard, and streamed up into the air, fanned by the fierce wind. He could not be mistaken. The Black Forge Mills were on fire, and in that high wind no human power could save them.
CHAPTER XV.
FIRE AT THE MILLS.
Ray acted instinctively, and so did the most natural thing under the circumstances. Screaming "fire" two or three times at the top of his voice, he ran swiftly down the hill toward the mills. Nor did he keep upon the street up which he had just come; but, jumping over the nearest fence, he took the most direct line for the burning building. In three minutes he had reached the east fence of the mill yard, and ran along it, looking for some place to climb over. He had a vague notion that if he could only reach those flames before they got under too great headway, he might subdue them.