ust have been!"

"You ought to have seen them! It made us very late getting here, of
course, and we missed the train we were to take to Green Cove. But I
think we would have waited here, anyhow, until you came. I was very
anxious about you, Bessie. What a clever trick that was! If it hadn't
been for you, we would have been caught without a chance to do anything
at all."

"Bessie's made friends with Jake Hoover, too," said Dolly, disgustedly.
"Tell Miss Eleanor about that, Bessie."

"You did exactly the right thing," said Eleanor, when she had heard the
story, much to Dolly's disgust. "I agree with Dolly that we will have to
look out for him, just the same, but there is a chance that he may do
what he promised. Anyhow, there's a lot to gain and very little to
lose."

CHAPTER XII

PLUM BEACH

On the way to Plum Beach, on the little branch line that carried the
girls from Bay City to Green Cove, Eleanor was very thoughtful, and
Bessie and Dolly were kept busy in telling the other girls of their
experiences. They wanted to hear from Zara, too, just how she had
escaped.

"I don't see how you kept your face straight," said Dolly. "I know I
would have burst right out laughing, Zara."

"You wouldn't think so if you knew Farmer Weeks," said Zara, making a
wry face. "I can tell you I didn't want to laugh, Dolly. Why, he was
within a few feet of me, and looking straight at me! I was sure he'd
guess that it was I."

"He always looks at everyone that way--just as if they owed him money,"
said Bessie. "Nasty old man! I don't blame you for being nervous,
Zara."

"Oh, neither do I," said Dolly. "But it was funny to think of his being
so near you and having no idea of it. That's what would have made me
laugh."

"It seems funny enough, now," admitted Zara, with a smile. "But, you
see, I was perfectly certain that he did have a very good idea of where
I was. I was expecting him to take hold of me any moment, and tell the
constable to take me off the train."

"I wonder how long this sort of thing is going to keep up," said Margery
Burton, angrily. "Until you two girls are twenty-one?"

"I hope not," laughed Bessie, and then she went on, more seriously, "I
really do think that if Jake Hoover sticks to what he said, and takes
our side, Mr. Jamieson is likely to find out something that will give
him a chance to settle matters. You see, we've been fighting in the dark
so far."

"I don't see that we've been fighting