I should say he has taken to the road. There
were a brace of pistols in the holsters. That is how it is that we
have not found him before. Well, at any rate, there is no use
trying to make his acquaintance here. The first question is, will
he stay here for the night or not--and if he does not, which way
will he go?"
"He came from the north," Harry said. "So if he goes, it will be
towards town."
"That is so. Our best plan will be to pay our reckoning and start.
We will go a hundred yards or so down the road, and then lie down
behind a hedge, so as to see if he passes. If he does not leave
before nightfall, we will come up to the house and reconnoitre. If
he does not leave by ten, he is here for the night, and we must
make ourselves as snug as we can under a stack. The nights are
getting cold, but we have slept out in a deal colder weather than
this. However, I fancy he will go on. It is early for a man to
finish a journey. If he does, we must follow him, and keep him in
sight, if possible."
Two hours later they saw, from their hiding place, Nicholson ride
out from the lane. He turned his horse's head in their direction.
"That is good," Charlie said. "If he is bound for London, we shall
be able to get into his company somehow; but if he had gone up to
some quiet place north, we might have had a lot of difficulty in
getting acquainted with him.
Pages:
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413