He left Garton a few minutes later, promising to return and spend the
night with him, to talk at length with him in the morning, and went
down the street to the Crawford cottage. He knew that since Argyl's
father had left for Denver Mrs. Ridley, the wife of the proprietor of
the lunch-stand, had been staying with her. It was Mrs. Ridley who
answered his knock.

"Miss Argyl ain't come back yet, Mr. Conniston," she told him. "She
went out this mornin' an' ain't showed up since. I reckon, though,
she'll be back real soon now. It's after supper-time already."

"Do you know where she went?"

"No, sir. She didn't say. Won't you come in an' wait for her?"

"No," he answered, after a moment. "I'd better not. If Miss Crawford
has been all day in the saddle she will be tired. I'll drop in in the
morning."

"Maybe that would be better," Mrs. Ridley nodded at him. "We're up
early--breakfast at five. You might run in an' eat with us?"

Conniston promised to do so, and returned to the office, more than a
little disappointed at not having seen Argyl, wondering whither her
long ride could have taken her. Until late that night he and Garton
talked, planned, and prepared for the work of to-morrow. It was barely
five the next morning when he again knocked at the cottage door. Again
Mrs. Ridley answered his knock.

"Am I too early?" Conniston smiled at her. "I noticed your smoke
going. Is Miss Crawford up yet?"

"Miss Crawford--" He saw that she hesitated, saw a nervous uneasiness
in her manner as she plucked with quick fingers at the hem of her
apron. "She ain't come in yet!"

"What!" cried Conniston, sharply. "What do you mean? Where is she?"

"I--I don't know, sir. She ain't come back yet."

"You mean that Miss Crawford left yesterday morning and that she has
not returned since that time? That she has been gone twenty-four
hours--all night?"

"Yes, sir." The old woman was eying him with eyes into which a
positive fear was creeping, her lips trembling as she spoke. "You
don't think anything has happened--"

"I don't know!" he cried, sternly. "Why didn't you let me know last
night?"

"I didn't know what to do." The tears had actually sprung into her
eyes. "I thought she must be all right. I thought mebbe she'd gone to
Crawfordsville or to the Half Moon."

Conniston left her abruptly and hastened to the office.

"Tommy," he called, from the doorway, "do you know where Miss Crawford
is? Where she went yesterday?"