tree while the other passengers walked around to settle their nerves.
âI hope those bandits are caught and spend the rest of their lives in prison!â Marigold said.
âThey ought to hang!â said Petunia. âIâd tie the noose myself.â
Emily and Jackson walked over to the shade of a straggly tree, and stood staring at each other.
âThatâs about as scared as Iâve ever been,â Jackson told her.
Emily had been frightened too, but she was not thinking about the bandits.
âHe
saw!â
she said to Jackson, her voice trembling. âUncle Victor saw Rufus!â
âMaybe heâs forgotten Rufus,â Jackson told her.âHeâs thinking about that ten million dollars; thatâs whatâs on his mind.â They turned as they saw the others getting into the coach again.
Something behind them moved. Uncle Victor grabbed Jackson by the back of the neck and Emily by the arm. And before either of them could speak, he looked down at Emily and said, âYou fooled me once, Emily Wiggins, but you wonât fool me again. Thereâs not a soul in this carriage who will help you if I say youâre my runaway niece. Either you come with me when we get to Redbud, or you wonât get to Redbud at all. Iâll deal with the boy later.â
Now what in a
devilâs doughnut
should Emily do?
T rapped! As Emily crawled into the coach with Uncle Victor behind her, she felt as though the man with the tiger tattoo had chained the door after them. Jackson was shaking too as the stagecoach moved off again.
They crawled onto the backseat with Mr. Muffit as they had before, but Uncle Victor was on the first seat, facing backward, guarding the door. There were only a few more rest stops between here and Redbud, the driver had said. And now, instead of running into AuntHildaâs arms, Emily would have to go with Uncle Victor.
Strangely, her uncle did not announce to the others that Emily was his niece and had deceived everyone into believing that she was a boy who could not talk. Perhaps he felt that if he did, he would also have to explain to the others why she was hiding from him.
How Emily wished that Mrs. Ready, Mrs. Aim, and Mrs. Fire were here to advise her!
Mrs. Ready might say, âThe problem is that many grown-ups think children should be seen and not heard.â
And Mrs. Aim would say, âWhat if Emily tries to explain and no one believes her? Wonât that just make things worse for her?â
And Mrs. Fire might say, âShe musnât say a word. Even if they do believe her, Uncle Victor might promise them a share of the ten million dollars just to keep quiet about it.â
So Emily was to remain Eli for the rest of the journey, but now that Uncle Victor knew who Eli really was, what would happen next?
Jackson was taking no chances. That night, all thepassengers stretched out on the sleeping platform while the stagecoach bounced along in the dark. Emily lay behind the elderly gentleman and Jackson lay behind her. As the others snored, Jackson whispered in her ear:
âListen, Emily, weâre got to have a plan. Your uncle could do away with you before we get to Redbud, just to get your fortune for himself. I heard the driver say weâll make the next change of horses about midnight. Itâs not a rest stop, so no one will be wakened to get off. Youâve got to climb out and hide. Leave everything but your turtle behind. Iâll cover your carpetbag with my jacket, and theyâll think weâre both here asleep. Stay hidden long enough that the station man canât put you on a horse and catch up with the coach when he finds you.â
Emily turned her head and stared wide-eyed into the darkness.
Jackson continued, âIâll ride on to Redbud and look for your aunt at the station. Iâll give her your bag and tell her Victorâs here too, trying to find you to get your money.â
âBut Uncle