Andy at Yale Part 41

"All right, I will after this. Just give me the high sign when you see me transgressing again."

"There isn't likely to be any 'again,' Andy. They're going home to-morrow."

"I've got her address, anyhow," laughed Andy.

"Whose?" asked Dunk, suspiciously.

"Kittie Martin's. She's the one you picked out for me; isn't she?"

"Yes, and I wish you'd stick to her!" and with this Dunk tumbled into bed and did not talk further. Andy put out the light with a thoughtful air, and did not try to carry on the conversation. It was as near to a quarrel as the roommates had come since the affair of Burke's.

But matters were smoothed over, at least for a time, when, next day, came notes from the girls saying they had decided to prolong their visit in New Haven.

"Good!" cried Dunk. "We can take them out some more."

And this time Andy was careful not to pay too much attention to Miss Alice Jordan, though, truth to tell, he liked her better than he did Kittie Martin. And it is betraying no secret to confess that Alice seemed to like Andy very much.

The boys hired a carriage and took the girls for a drive one day, going to the beautiful hill country west of the new Yale Field.

As they were going slowly along they met a taxicab coming in the opposite direction. When it drew near Andy was somewhat surprised to find it contained Miss Mazie Fuller, the actress. She laughed and bowed, waving her hand to Andy.

"Who was that?" asked Dunk, who had been too busy talking to Alice to notice the occupant of the taxi.

"Miss Fuller," answered Andy.

"Oh, your little actress. Yes."

Andy blushed and Miss Martin, who sat beside the youth, rather drew away, while Alice gave him a queer, quick look.

"An actress?" murmured Miss Martin. "She looks young--a mere girl."

"That's all she is," said Andy, eagerly. Too eagerly, in fact. He rather overdid it.

"Tell 'em how you saved her life," suggested Dunk, laughing.

"Forget it," returned Andy, with another blush. "I'm tired of being a hero."

"Oh, I heard about that," said Miss Jordan. "There was something in the papers about it. She's real pretty, isn't she?" and again she looked queerly at Andy.

"Oh, yes," he admitted, taking warning now. "Say, tell me, shall we go over that cross road?"

"To change the subject," observed Miss Martin, with a little laugh, and a sidewise glance at Andy.

He was beginning to find that jealousy was not alone confined to Dunk.

The ride came to an end at last and Andy wondered just how he stood with Dunk and the girls.

"Hang it all!" he mused, "I seem to get in Dutch all along the line."

The girls left New Haven, having been given a little farewell supper by Dunk and Andy. The two boys had hard work to resist the many self-invited guests among their chums.

Several days later there came some letters to Dunk and Andy. One, to the latter, was from Miss Fuller, the actress, telling Andy that she expected to be in New Haven again, and asking Andy to call on her.

"You are going it!" said Dunk, when Andy told of this missive, and also mentioned receiving one from Miss Martin, thanking him for the entertainment he and Dunk had given to her and her chum. "You sure are going it, Andy! Two strings to your bow, all right."

"Never you mind me," retorted Andy. "I'm not on your side of the fence _this_ time."

There was the sound of running feet in the corridor, and someone rushed past the room, the door of which was open.

"Did you see anyone pa.s.s?" cried Frank Carr, who roomed a few apartments away from Andy and Dunk. "Did someone run past here just now?"

"We didn't see nor hear anyone," answered Dunk. "Why?"

"Because just as I was coming upstairs I saw someone run out of my room.

I thought of the quadrangle robberies at once, and took a look in. One of my books, and the silver vase I won in the tennis match, were gone.

The thief came down this way!"

CHAPTER XXVIII

THE BOOK

Andy and Dunk, who had jumped up and come to the door of their room on hearing Frank's explanation, stood looking at him for a second, rather startled by his news. Then Andy, realizing that this might be a chance to discover who had been carrying on the mysterious quadrangle robberies, exclaimed:

"Come on down this way! The hall ends just around the corner and there's no way out. It's a blind alley, and if the fellow went down here we sure have him!"

"Good for you!" cried Dunk. "Wait until we get something to tackle him with in case he fights."

"That's so," said Andy. "Here, I'll take our poker, and you can have the fire tongs, Dunk."

From a bra.s.s stand near the fireplace Andy caught up the articles he mentioned.

"Where's something for me?" asked Frank.

"Here, take the shovel," spoke Dunk pa.s.sing it over. "Say, what sort of a fellow was it you saw run out of your room?"

"I didn't have much chance to notice, he went so like a flash."

"Was it--er--one of our fellows--I mean a college man--did he look like that?" asked Andy. He was conscious of the fact that he had rather stammered over this. Truth to tell, he feared lest Link might have yielded to temptation. Since the episode of Dunk's watch Andy had been doing some hard thinking.

"Well, the fellow did look like a college chap," admitted Frank, "but of course it couldn't be. No Yale man would be guilty of a thing like that."

"Of course not!" agreed Dunk. "But say, if we're going to make a capture we'd better get busy. Are you sure there's no way out from this corridor, Andy?"

"Sure not. It ends blank. The fellow is surely trapped."