“After them!” roared Slim, and Shorty took up the pursuit. But his indecision had given the Hardy boys the opportunity they needed. They had a good start on their pursuer and Shorty was but a clumsy runner at best. Frank gained the path and there his progress was swifter because he was not handicapped by the impeding snow. Slim finally abandoned his search for the weapon and also took up the chase, but by this time he was far behind.
The boys gained the main road, with Shorty ploughing along in pursuit. Even yet they were not safe, but chance came to their aid in the shape of a stage that ran from Lucky Bottom to one of the neighboring camps. It rattled along, with sleighbells jingling, the driver muffled to the ears, and when Shorty and Slim caught sight of it they slowed up and abandoned the chase. The open road was a dangerous place. They did not wish any interference from the stage driver or his passengers.
When Frank and Joe saw that their pursuers had turned back they slowed down to a walk. Hank Shale’s cabin was already in sight.
“We gave them the slip, all right,” declared Frank jubilantly.
“I’ll tell the world we did. Black Pepper and the other fellow will be hopping mad when they come back and find that we’ve escaped.”
“We’ll have to be on the lookout for them from now on. They won’t stop until they do lay their hands on us.”
“Perhaps it’s just as well. We can be on our guard. If we weren’t expecting anything wrong we’d be liable to walk right into their arms.”
When the boys reached the cabin they found their father and Hank Shale greatly worried by their prolonged absence. They told of their descent into the abandoned mine, of the cave-in, and of their subsequent escape, of their capture by Black Pepper’s men and of their getaway. Mr. Hardy looked grave.
“I think we’d better drop the case,” he said finally. “It’s too big a risk to take.”
“Why?” asked the boys, in surprise.
“You might have been buried alive in that mine, in the first place. I would never have forgiven myself. And now that you have run up against Black Pepper’s gang they’ll be out to get you. I don’t want to be responsible for making you run those risks.”
“We won’t drop the case,” laughed Frank. “It’s just getting interesting now. We’ll find that gold for you, Dad.”
“Don’t worry about us,” chimed in Joe. “We can look after ourselves. We probably won’t be up against any worse dangers than the ones we faced today.”
“Well,” said Mr. Hardy, reluctantly, “you’ve come all the way out here, and I suppose you’ll be disappointed if I don’t let you go ahead; but I don’t want you to take any unnecessary risks.”
“I’m thinkin’ they’ll pull through all right,” said Hank Shale solemnly. “Let the lads be, Mr. Hardy.”
So, with this encouragement, Mr. Hardy consented to let his sons continue their activities on the case. Both Frank and Joe promised to take all due precautions and next morning they resumed their search for the missing gold.
During the days that followed they explored several abandoned workings, but the hunt was fruitless. They succeeded only in getting themselves well covered with dirt and grime and would return to the cabin hungry and weary. There had been no sign of any members of Black Pepper’s gang. But finally Hank Shale, who had been down to the general store at Lucky Bottom one day, had news for them.
“They be sayin’ down town,” declared the old miner, “that Black Pepper and his gang have broke up camp.”
“Have they left Lucky Bottom?” asked Mr. Hardy quickly.
Hank Shale shook his head. “Nobody knows. They had a camp somewheres back in the mountain, but they’ve all cleared away from it. Maybe the two lads here scared ’em.”
“They’ve likely just moved to a new camping place,” remarked Frank.
“I hope so,” said Mr. Hardy. “If they’ve gone away it means that the gold has gone with them. If they’re still around we have a chance yet.”
Frank and Joe said nothing, but when they went to bed that night they talked in whispers in the darkness.
“What’s the program for tomorrow?” asked Joe.
“We’re going to find out if any of that gang are still around.”
“Do you mean we’ll go out looking for them?”
“Sure! It’s just as dad says—if they’ve gone away the gold has gone with them. If they’re still hanging around we’ll know there’s still a good chance of finding it ourselves.”
“Where shall we look?”
“Up in the mountains. We can look around for trails in the snow.”
“Suits me, as long as they don’t catch us.”
“That’s a chance we have to take.”
So next morning, without revealing their plans to anyone, the boys started out into the mountains. It was a gloomy day and the sky was overcast. The lowering, snow-covered crags loomed high above them as they headed toward a narrow defile not far from the abandoned mine where they had been captured by Black Pepper’s men some days previous. It was toward this defile that the man called Jack had gone on his way to summon Black Pepper, and the boys judged that the outlaws’ abandoned camp was probably somewhere in that direction.
They discovered a narrow trail through the snow. It was a trail that had evidently been much used, for the snow was packed hard by the tramp of many feet.
“I think we’re on the right track, all right,” said Frank. “Even if we only find the deserted camp we may get some clues that will help us.”
The boys went higher up into the mountain and at last they came to a protected spot beneath an overhanging
