pital, and to the
hills, and--and--I have obliged to tell you."

"Yes, I know," returned Johnnie passively. "They sent me word last
night. I'm sorry, but I can't do anything about it. Maybe he won't come
to any harm out that way. I can't imagine Uncle Pros hurting anybody.
Perhaps it will do him good."

"Hit wasn't about your Uncle Pros that I was meaning. At least not about
his gettin' away from the hospital," amended Mavity. "It was about the
day he got hurt here. I--I always aimed to tell you. I know I ort to
have done it. I was always a-goin' to, and then--Pap--he--"

She broke off and stood silent so long that Johnnie turned and looked at
her.

"Surely you aren't afraid of me, Aunt Mavity," she said finally.

"No," said Mavity Bence in a low voice, "but I'm scared of--the others."

The girl stared at her curiously.

"Johnnie," burst out the woman for the third time, "yo' Uncle Pros found
his silver mine! Oh, yes, he did; and Pap's got his pieces of ore
upstairs in a bandanner; and him and Shade Buckheath aims to git it away
from you-all and--oh, I don't know what!"

There fell a long silence. At last Johnnie's voice broke it, asking very
low:

"Did they--how was Uncle Pros hurt?"

"Neither of 'em touched him," Mavity hastened to assure her. "He heard
'em name it how they'd get the mine from him--or thought he did--and he
come out and talked loud, and grabbed for the bandanner, and he missed
it and fell down the steps. He wasn't crazy when he come to the house.
He was jest plumb wore out, and his head was hurt. He called it yo'
silver mine. He said he had to put the bandanner in yo' lap and tell you
hit was for you."

Johnny got suddenly to her feet.

"Thank you, Aunt Mavity," she said kindly. "This is what's been
troubling you, is it? Don't worry any more, I'll see about this,
somehow. I must go back to Mother now."

Laurella had said to Pap Himes that she wanted to sleep, and indeed her
eyes, were closed when Johnnie entered the room; but beneath the shadow
of the sweeping lashes burned such spots of crimson that her nurse
was alarmed.

"What was Pap Himes saying to you to get you so excited?" she asked
anxiously.

"Johnnie, come here. Sit down on the edge of the bed and listen to me,"
demanded Laurella feverishly. She laid hold of her daughter's arm, and
half pulled herself up by it, staring into Johnnie's face as she talked;
and out tumbled the whole story of Gray Stoddard's disappearance.