Grace Harlowe's Overland Riders in the High Sierras

Stacy was making for the shore at full speed, creating considerable disturbance in the water as he progressed. Tom Gray and Hippy, concluding that safety first was the motto for them, were hitting up a rapid gait. The bullets, however, did not cease falling about them. All at once reports of other rifles, apparently fired close at hand, reached the ears of the swimmers.

“The girls are shooting!” cried Tom.

The Overland girls had run to camp for their rifles, and with them were trying to search out the hidden mountain marksmen, trusting to drive the mountaineers off, or at least to check their fire until their three companions could reach shore.

Hippy and Tom were swimming for the shore in the direction of the mountain cave. Observing this, the Overland girls ran forward to meet them.

“Hurry! Oh, hurry!” shouted Nora in great distress.

“They can’t reach us with their bullets now,” answered Hippy. “We are protected by the overhang of the mountain on their side.”

“Hippy is right. They have stopped shooting,” announced Grace.

At this juncture Stacy Brown floundered ashore and ran dripping towards the cave.

“Here, here! Where are you going?” called Elfreda.

“Into my bomb-proof shelter; that’s where I’m going,” flung back Stacy.

“You had better hide,” reminded Elfreda.

“Where’s that boy?” cried Hippy as he, too, floundered ashore.

“Never mind Stacy now. We have other and more important matters on hand,” answered Grace. “Hurry, Tom. I have sent Woo up among the rocks to act as lookout while we consider what to do next.”

“This is a fine mess. Here I am drenched to the skin, shivering like a man with the ague, and a band of scoundrels trying to shoot me up. Hospitable country, I must say,” complained Tom Gray.

“It might be worse. You and Hippy had better go into the cave and change your clothes,” suggested Grace.

“Change to what?”

“That’s so. It might be imprudent for any of us to go to camp for fresh clothing.”

“Come, girls, let’s gather wood and build a fire,” urged Miss Briggs. “We can build a small fire in the cave and let our men dry out in there and we will stand guard on the outside.”

“Good! That is real headwork,” agreed Tom. “Give me a handful of sticks and I’ll start a fire if you will provide the matches. Mine are soaked.”

Hippy had already started in search of Stacy Brown, but Stacy was not in sight. He had fled to the farther end of the cave, whence he was gazing apprehensively towards the opening.

“You may come out,” offered Hippy. “I’m too wet to have my interview with you now. When I get dried out I’ll have a friendly conversation with you. Come out!”

Stacy sidled out, watching Uncle Hip narrowly. Tom came in at this juncture, with an armful of twigs that the girls had gathered, and started a small fire.

“I don’t want to be smoked out,” complained Stacy.

“There is worse than that coming to you, young man,” reminded Tom. “At present, however, we have other things to attend to. Strip and dry out.”

“I don’t want to dry out. I want to be soaked,” retorted Stacy.

“Don’t worry. You’re going to be,” warned Lieutenant Wingate.

“If it hadn’t been for me you folks never would have discovered anything,” Stacy declared, turning a reproachful gaze on his two companions.

“And if it hadn’t been for you, I should not have been dumped into a lake of ice water twice in one day,” returned Hippy. “Tom, what is your idea of this shooting?”

“We have interfered with someone’s business, that’s plain,” replied Tom. “When we hauled up that box of plunder, or whatever it may be, they let go at us with their rifles. Nor is that the worst of it – we are in for more trouble, and I should not be at all surprised to see it break at any moment, I – ”

“Tom!” cried Grace Harlowe with a rising inflection in her voice.

“Yes?”

“Woo is running towards the cave, waving his arms. I think he has discovered something.”

Hippy nodded at Tom and began drawing on his wet clothing.

“May the girls go inside now?” called Grace.

“No! Keep out! We will be ready in a moment,” answered Hippy.

A shot, followed by a howl from Woo Smith, caused the two men to redouble their efforts. Hippy finished dressing first and ran out, rifle in hand, just as the guide came running up.

“Me savvy tlouble. Plenty men come ’long.”

“How many?” interjected Tom.

“Sees.”

“Six, eh? We ought to be able to handle them,” answered Hippy.

“There probably are more than six. What shall we do?” questioned Grace.

“All hands get inside the cave. From there we can watch the lake, and at the same time be fairly well protected,” directed Hippy.

Acting upon a hail from Tom that he was ready, the Overlanders hastened into the cave, where Woo was questioned in detail as to what he had observed. Having obtained all the information that the guide had to give, Hippy and Tom crept out, and lay secreted in the bushes in front of the cave to guard against surprises.

They had been there but a short time when Lieutenant Wingate discovered a man on the rocks about a hundred yards to the right of them. At almost the same instant Tom Gray nudged his companion.

“Two men are over in our camp,” he whispered.

“Don’t shoot. Time enough for that. They don’t know where we are. They – ” Hippy paused abruptly.

“They don’t, eh?” jeered Tom Gray as a bullet flattened itself on the rocks just above the opening into the cave. “Keep down in there!”

“I think they are merely trying to smoke us out,” answered Hippy calmly.

A scattering volley of bullets was fired at the cave opening as he spoke, but there was no response from the besieged Overland Riders. Elfreda called softly to know if the two men needed assistance, but both said all the assistance they needed just then was to be let alone.

“There go the ponies!” exclaimed Tom Gray.