ose questions," laughed Colonel
Baxter. "I just arrived an hour ago, and I would have let you know if
I'd been sure that I could come. And then at the end, I decided to
surprise you. Are you glad?"

Bet laughed happily, her blue eyes glowing now with a very different
light. There was snap and joy in them as she held tightly to her
father's hand.

In her joy at seeing her father she had not paid any attention to what
the other girls were doing. Now as she heard the sound of happy voices
she turned and saw the boys, Phil and Bob and Paul.

"Oh, you boys! Why we didn't expect you until tomorrow afternoon," she
said, extending her hand to Phil Gordon.

"If you don't want to see us tonight, perhaps we could go back and sit
in the station at Benito."

"Don't be silly, Bob Evans. You're just the same as ever." Bet
laughed as she always did at Bob.

"What did you expect me to do in three weeks time? Get grey headed and
grow a beard?"

Bob had helped Joy to her feet when they heard the girls arriving and
he now stood supporting his sister while he laughed and teased.

"Isn't it good to see them?" cried Joy.

"Does that include me, too?" inquired Colonel Baxter.

"Of course it does! You don't know how often we've talked about you
and wished you were here," answered Enid, before Joy could reply.

There was a real change in Paul Breckenridge since the girls had seen
him the previous winter. The old brooding, shy look was gone, and now
he entered into the pleasures around him as the other boys did. One
could see that he liked to be near Enid, teasing her constantly as if
he had to make up for those years of separation.

Judge Breckenridge smiled around at his happy family, well pleased with
everything.

"The one thing that would make it perfect would be to have the old
professor here," he said. "But we'll find him before long."

Kit gave a little cry. "How terrible of me to have forgotten to tell
you, Judge! We know where the professor is."

"Where?" asked the Judge eagerly.

"Young Mary says that he is in the shack in Rattlesnake Creek."

"But Kie Wicks took us through that hut this afternoon," replied the
Judge. "He isn't there!"

The girls showed their disappointment.

"Maybe they just moved the old man out for an hour until you finished
your search," said Bet. "I wouldn't put that past Kie Wicks. Nothing
is too bad for him to do."

"We hunted inside and outside of that hut," insisted t