"I am beginning to think we are all crazy," laughed Stevens.

After having again inquired for Mollie, and shaken hands with Barbara
and Ruth, Bob went home. Barbara had stuffed the slip of paper into the
pocket of her blouse on her way to Mollie's room. Mollie now lay wide
awake. Her face was pale. There was a livid mark on her forehead, where
she had come violently in contact with the chimney side on her tumble
into the hole in the gable floor.

"Oh, Mollie, dear," soothed Bab, throwing her arms about her sister. "It
had to be you who got the worst of the bump. Were you leaning against
the wall, too?"

Mollie nodded weakly.

"What happened?" she asked.

Barbara explained as well as she could from the brief description of the
panel mechanism that Mr. Stevens had given to her, to which Mollie
listened wide-eyed.

"You dear 'Automobile Girls,'" cried Ruth. "Will you never stop picking
up horseshoe nails with all four tires?"

"But we manage to wriggle our way through the broken glass, don't we,
Molliekins?"

Mollie nodded and smiled. The wind was still howling without. In the
pause of conversation the girls listened. Suddenly Ruth sprang up.

"I have forgotten two things," she exclaimed. "I must go out and put the
storm curtains on Mr. A. Bubble and telephone father that Bubble must go
to the shop."

"You didn't have another accident?" inquired Barbara anxiously.

"No. I blew up the two rear tires and came in on the rims. Oh, girls, I
wish you might have been along. No, I don't, either. I'm afraid the car
wouldn't have stood up under that additional weight. It was great!"

"Did--did you go some?" questioned Mollie.

"Did we? Ask Tom! I'll wager that young man's head is whirling still. I
never thought we should make it, but I was bound not to set back the
spark a single notch until I either turned turtle in the ditch or got
Mr. Stevens here to help find you, Bab. We made it, didn't we, Tommy
boy?" Tom had just entered the room to see what was going on.

"You bet we did," answered Tom.

"Would you like to ride so fast as that another time?" questioned Ruth
merrily.

"Well, maybe in a railroad train," answered Tommy.

"I'll take you out again when the car is repaired," said Ruth.

"Not when I'm awake you won't."

"You say you came home on the rims?" wondered Barbara. "I should have
thought it would have crushed them. Yours is a heavy car, Ruth."

"It would have crushed them, only the rims didn't to