ext morning.

They did not protest very much, for they were tired and the prospect of
bed was very alluring. To-morrow--well, to-morrow they would go
exploring. Perhaps they might even be permitted to visit the lighthouse
and Uncle Tom. Speaking of Uncle Tom made Billie think of the clam
chowder, and although she could not have eaten another scrap if she had
tried, her mouth watered at the memory.

The girls left the connecting door open between the two rooms so that
they could talk to each other if they wanted to, but they did not do very
much talking that night.

"Oh, this feels good," sighed Billie, as Connie turned down the covers
and she crawled thankfully into bed. "I didn't know I was so awfully
tired. And that dinner! Connie, does your mother always serve dinners
like that?"

"Yes," said Connie, flinging her thick braid over her shoulder and
crossing the room to turn out the light. "Mother's an awfully good cook,
and although we have a maid to do the heavy work Mother does all the
cooking herself."

"Well," said Billie, snuggling down under the covers luxuriously as
Connie joined her, "I'm mighty glad I came."

"Even if we don't solve any mysteries?" asked Connie, a trifle wistfully.

Billie turned over and tried to see her face, a thing impossible, of
course, in the dark.

"What a foolish thing to say," she cried. "I'll shake you, Connie
Danvers, if you ever say a thing like that again. We could have stayed at
Three Towers if we had wanted to solve mysteries more than we wanted to
come here, couldn't we?"

"Y--yes," said Connie doubtfully. "Only, of course, we didn't know
anything about the mystery when I asked you to come here. So you couldn't
have backed out very well, even if you had wanted to."

Billie turned over impatiently and caught Connie by the shoulder.

"Connie Danvers!" she cried, "now I know you want to be shaken. Are you
really trying to say that we didn't want to come with you and only did it
to please you?"

"No," said Connie, with a shake of her head. "Of course I didn't mean
just that. Just the same," she added longingly, "I am awfully anxious to
find out about Miss Arbuckle and her album and--that strange
man--everything."

It was then that a horrible thought struck Billie, and it was so horrible
that it sat her straight up in bed.

"Connie--I just thought--could it--were you sorry you asked us to come?"
she stammered. "Would you rather have stayed at Three Towers yourself?