Free Leppard, Lois Gladys - [Mandie 03] by Mandie, the Ghost Bandits (v1.0) [html] Page B

for her. She pushed her plate away and stood up.
    “I’se done,” she said. “Let’s git our things and go.”
    Mandie looked at the girl’s plate. “But, Liza, you hardly ate anything at all,” Mandie objected.
    Liza turned to her and spoke softly. “To be honest ’bout it, Miss Amanda, I jest didn’t wanta eat in here with all these people. It’d be like you eatin’ with Mr. McKinley in the White House.”
    “You really mean that, don’t you, Liza?” Mandie replied. “I’m sorry if I spoiled your breakfast. I won’t do it again.”
    “That’s all right, Missy. Next time I eat in the kitchen where I belongs,” Liza replied.
    When they got outside, Uncle John had horses and ponies tethered at the front gate, loaded with blankets, rope, lanterns, and food. The adults stood waiting on the front porch. Elizabeth caught Mandie by the arm.
    “Amanda, you haven’t put on your riding outfit,” she reprimanded.
    “But, Mother. Sallie doesn’t have one on, and neither do Polly and Liza,” Mandie protested.
    “I told my mother we were riding in a wagon,” Polly explained. “I didn’t know we were going to ride ponies. But it’s all right. She won’t mind.”
    Elizabeth frowned at her husband. “John, we need to teach Amanda some proper manners for young ladies,” she said.
    John laughed. “Why don’t we let it go this time? It’ll be quicker and safer in that rough mountain terrain if they all ride astride. Seems like I remember
you
saying the same thing not too long ago.” He kissed Elizabeth on the cheek.
    Elizabeth gave in. “It seems like I always come out on the losing end,” she said with a little laugh.
    Mandie took her mother by the hand. “Please tell Uncle Ned we’ll be back soon,” she said. “I didn’t want to wake him this early in the morning to tell him good-bye.”
    “Of course, dear,” Elizabeth answered. She gave her daughter a squeeze. “Be a good girl.”
    “Everybody ready?” Uncle John asked. “Run and find yourselves a pony.”
    Mandie picked up Snowball and rushed out to the road with the others to claim her pony. Mandie knew she had to help Liza feel comfortable with them. “Liza! Here! Get this pony next to mine!” she called.
    Liza gratefully did as Mandie said.
    Waving good-bye to Elizabeth, Aunt Lou, and Jenny, the group took off down the road.
    A long time later, they approached the place in the railroad tracks where they knew the wrecked baggage car would be. As they drew rein and looked down the ravine, they spotted the wrecked baggage car still hanging onto the side of the mountain.
    “We walk from here,” Uncle Wirt told them.
    Dismounting, they followed him carefully down the slope.
    “Watch for trail marking,” he said.
    “Here is where we went down to the wrecked car,” Dimar said, pointing to the spot. “Then we split up, and Sallie and I went over this way,” he continued. “Tsa’ni took Mandie and Joe over that way and we all met at the river where we found Uncle Ned.”
    “When we came in answer to your call, we must have taken almost the same path then, Dimar,” Uncle John replied. “That’s a lot of shoes making prints in the dirt.”
    Suddenly, Uncle Wirt stooped to examine the ground. “Boot make this mark,” he said, pointing to a firm print in the dirt. “We no wear boot!”
    Uncle John bent to look at it. “You’re right. That’s the print of a hard heel and pointed toe, like riding boots.”
    “Him go this way.” Uncle Wirt walked closer to the baggage car. “Then on. All way to train car.”
    “Great!” Joe said.
    Mandie started looking around, holding Snowballtightly in her arms. “Now if we can find the same prints going
away
from the car …”
    The group fanned out and soon Dimar called, “Here is the same print going toward the river.”
    Uncle Wirt found more. “Horses been here. Go up riverbank,” he said.
    “Yes,” Mandie told him. “There were three of them. They came from all different