Page:Cornelia Meigs-The Pirate of Jasper Peak.djvu/66

 has happened. And the only person to go is you."

“I?” cried Hugh in amazement, “I? Why, that’s impossible.”

“All right,” said the other briefly, “I was afraid maybe you would take it that way. Of course, after all, you oughtn’t to try it. Well, good-night.”

He shambled off into the dark, leaving Hugh still staring in astonishment. He wished that he had not said quite so decisively that the plan  was impossible, so that at least he might have  heard more of it. How strange it was that, after leading up to the subject so long, Jethro should  have dropped it so quickly. Probably he himself knew that it was impossible as well as did Hugh.

Very slowly he went up to bed, still wondering. It was in vain that he tried to compose his mind to sleep: he could not, for thinking of what  Jethro had said. For an hour he tossed and turned and puzzled and pondered. At last he got up and went to the window, thinking that he  might feel sleepy if he sat there for a while.