Byrd said with finality in her tone.
“That’s what you think,” a man said sneer-
ingly. “You’re going to lose this farm and I can
buy it cheaper from the bank. Why don’t you sell
it to me and make a little profit? Then you can go
to the city and take life easy.”
“We don’t want to go to the city,” Joanne spoke
up. “We’re getting along all right here. More
boarders are coming soon and we are paying off
our back mortgage interest. So we don’t have to
sell.”
Outside, Nancy, Bess, and George looked at
one another. The insistent buyer again! Fer-
vently they hoped that Mrs. Byrd would not
weaken in her decision. A moment later they
felt relieved.
“I will say good afternoon, Mr. Kent,” Mrs.
Byrd said. “Thank you for your offer, but I can-
not accept it.”
“You’ll be sorry! You’ll regret this!” the caller
stormed. He came out the screen door, slamming
it viciously behind him.
Nancy stared in surprise. Mr. Kent certainly
was one of the most ill-mannered men she had
ever seen! And also, she thought wryly, one of the
most tenacious! Why was he so determined to buy
the Byrd home?
Mr. Kent, his face red with anger, stepped into
his car and sped off, but not before he gave Nancy
and her friends a baleful look. “Nice disposition,”
George commented sarcastically.
“I hope he never shows up again,” Bess said
firmly.
The girls found Mrs. Byrd and Joanne quite
shaken. “I can’t understand that man’s persist-
ence,” the woman said.
Nancy was sure the matter was tied in with the
cult on the hillside but did not mention this
theory. She merely said, “Try not to worry
about Mr. Kent. I doubt that he’ll return.”
Soon the incident was forgotten as preparations
for supper were started and the farm animals
were fed. George elected to take care of gathering
eggs from the henhouse. Bess gave the horse hay
and water.
“I’ll get the cow,” Nancy offered, and went off
toward the pasture to drive Primrose in.
But the cow was not there. Nancy walked
around the fence surrounding the field to see if
there was any opening through which the animal
might have wandered. Finally she found one, and
saw hoofprints leading toward a patch of woods.
Nancy dashed off among the trees. She had
never been that way before, but there was only
one path to follow. Several times she paused to
listen and thought she heard the faint tinkling
of a cowbell somewhere ahead of her.
It was rapidly growing dusky in the woods and
Nancy hurried on. Again she stopped to listen.
She could hear the cowbell distinctly now.
“Primrose can’t be far ahead,” she thought in
relief, and went in that direction. Nancy finally
caught sight of the Jersey contentedly munching
grass on the hillside beyond.
Nancy stopped short and gave a gasp of as-
tonishment-the sound of the cowbell had
brought her to the mouth of the cave!
“I can hardly believe it!” she almost exclaimed
aloud. This must be the other opening near the
nature camp Jo told me about!”
Eagerly Nancy rushed toward the cave. But no
sooner had she peered into the dark entrance
than she was startled by the crackling of a twig
behind her. Nancy wheeled to find a man stand-
ing not three feet away from her!
He seemed to have risen from the bushes
which half hid the opening of the cave. Instantly
it flashed through Nancy’s mind that he had been
stationed there to see that intruders did not
enter.
“What’re you doing here?” he asked, his voice
as cold as steel.
Nancy recoiled. The man stood in the shadows
of the shrubbery so that she could not see his
face distinctly. But at the sound of his voice she
knew instantly she was in danger.
“I must persuade him I wasn’t spying,” she
thought desperately.
“Better speak up!” the man snarled. “What’re
you doin’ here, girlie?”
“I was hunting for that cow,” Nancy replied as
casually as possible. She pointed to the Jersey,
which was grazing a short distance away.
She held her ground defiantly. There was a