The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1919-07-01
he was going in the right direction.

An hOur-but what seemed thrice as
long-passed and they had not come to
the edge of the forest. Her feet were
beginning to drag; he could tell that
by the effort she made to keep up with
him. From time to time he paused to
allow her to rest
'You are plucky," he once said to
her.
II am afraid could not be so plucky
II you were not so strong" she sighed,
and he loved the tired, whimsical little
twist she put into her reply.
To his dlsmay they came abruptly
upon a region abounding in huge rocks
This was new territory to him. His
heart sank.
"By Jove, II believe we are farther
away from the road than when we
started. We must have been going up
the slope instead Of down"
"In any case, Mr.. Barnes" she muir
INJURED, I'VE have found something to
sit down upon."
He chuckled IF you can be as
cheerful as all that, we sha'n't miss
the cushions" he said, and, for the first
time, risked q flash Of the electric
torch. The survey was brief. he led
her forward a few PAGES to fiat boul.
der, and there they seated themselves.
II wonder where we are" she said.
sT am inclined to suspect that we
are above Green Fancy, bnt long
way OF to the right of it. Admitting
that to be the case, am afraid to re
trace our steps. The Lord Only knows
what we might blunder into"
II think the only sensible thing to
do, Mr.. Barnes, is to make ourselves
az snug and comfortable as we can
and wait for the first signs Of day.
break"
He scowled-and was glad that 1t
was too dark for her to see his face.
He wondered If she fully appreciated
what would happen to him If the pur-
suers came upon him in this forbid
ding spot. He could almost picture his
own body lying there among the rocks
and rotting, while she-well, she
would merely go back to Green
Fancy.
T fear you do not realize the e1-
treme gravity of the situation. We
must get out of these woods II 1 have
{r
st shall try to keep going" she said
quickly. "Forgive me If I seemed to
falter a little. Liam ready to 60
on when you say the word"
"You poor girl! Hang it all, per-
haps you are right and not I. Sit still
and will reconnoiter bit. If can
find a place where we can hide among
these rocks, we'll stay here till the sky
begins to tighten. Sit"
mo! shall not let you leave me
for a Second. Where you go. 60"
She struggled to her feet, suppressing
a groan, and thrust determined arm
through his.
'That's worth remembering" said
he, and whether it was a muscular
necessity or an emotional e1action
that caused his arm to tighten on hers,
none save he would ever know.
After a few minutes prowling among
the rocks they came to the face OF
what subsequently proved to be a
sheer wall Of stone. He flashed the
light, and, with an exclamation. start
ed back Not six feet ahead OF them
the earth seemed to end; a yawning
black gulf lay beyond. Apparently
they were on the very edge Of clih.
"Good Lord, that was close call"
he gasped. BE explained In Few
words and then, commanding her to
stand perfectly still, dropped to the
ground and carefully felt'his wayifor-
ward. Again he flashed the light. ln
an instant he understood. They were
on the brink of a shallow quarry.
Lying there, he made swift calcula.
lions. The quarry. no longer Of use to
the builder, was reasonably sure to be
abandoned. In all probability some
sort Of a stone-cutter's shed would be
found nearby. 1t would provide shelter
from the fine rain that was falling and
from the chill night air. He remern'
bered that O'Dowd, in discussing the
erection of Green Fancy the night be-
fore, had said that the stone came
from a pit two miles away. where a
fine quality Of granite had been found.
Two miles, according to Barnes quick
calculations, would bring the pit close
to the northern boundary Of the Curtis
property and almost directly on a line
with the point where he and Sprouse
entered the meadow at the beginning
of their advance upon Green Fancy.
That being the case. they were now
quite close to the stake and rider fence
separating the Curtis land from that
of the farmer on the north.
"Good," he said. more to himself
than to her. II begin to see light. Are
you afraid to remain here while 60
dopun thare for a look arOund2 /