light, close enough to see Rosalie waving at them. High
up in the tower they could note Mr. Haley and his helper cleaning the
great lantern and lens.

They reached the other bay in due time, but the gathering clouds grew more
menacing, and Cora was for putting back.

"No," urged Jack. "Let's stay and eat our lunch. If it gets too rough we
can leave our boats here and walk back over the point. It isn't far."

So the girls consented. The clouds continued to gather.

CHAPTER XX

THE STORM

"Jack Kimball, I knew we stayed too late! Now look over there!" and Cora
pointed to the west, where a bank of dark and angry-looking vapor piled
up in contrast to the lighter-hued clouds that had caused apprehension
earlier in the day.

"That's right--blame it all on me--even if it rains!" protested Jack. "You
wanted to stay as much as we did, Sis."

"Well, perhaps I did," admitted Cora. "But really we should not have
stayed so long. I am afraid we will be caught in the storm."

"Do you really think so, Cora?" asked Belle, and she could not keep a
quaver out of her voice.

"If I'm any judge we're in for a regular old----"

"You're it, old man!" and Walter interrupted Ed, who was evidently on the
verge of making a dire prophecy concerning the weather. "Don't scare 'em
any more than you have to," went on Walter in a low voice, nodding at the
girls in the _Pet_. "We may have our hands full as it is."

"Do you think so?"

"Look at those clouds!"

It was enough. Indeed all were now anxiously scanning the heavens that
seemed to grow blacker momentarily. The little party, after having had
lunch on the beach of the smaller cove, around the lighthouse point, were
now on their way back in the two motor boats, and Cora, with a look aloft,
had made the observation to Jack that opened this chapter.

"Well, turn on all the gas you can, Sis, and we'll scud for it," called
Jack to his sister. "We may beat it out yet. If not, we can go ashore
almost any place."

"Except on the rocks," spoke Cora. "The worst part will be round the
point, in the open sea."

"Oh, we'll do it all right," asserted Norton, confidently. "The wind isn't
rising much."

The boats were close enough together so that talking from one to the other
was easy. They were headed out toward the open sea, and as Cora guided
her craft she could not help anticipating apprehensively the heavy rollers
that would be encountered once they were out of the land-locked