"You'd hardly think it of _it_, would you?" Judd grinned, water trickling down his forehead. "If I hadn't hit that rock....! Somehow I made a grab as I went by an' caught it. Then I hung for dear life with one hand an' untied my feet with the other. You know, Cateye, I always did grip pretty hard. But just the same I thought that current would rip my arm right off at the shoulder before I got my feet loose! After I'd got free I hung on for a few minutes more till the fellows went on down the river searchin' for me. Then I struck out for shore an' believe me, I hit the high spots comin' home!" "And doesn't anyone know but what you're drowned?" "Only you, ... an' I!" "Good! We'll teach the guys a lesson. Here, let me give you a good rub down. Darn this injured knee, anyhow. Just when a fellow needs help the most I can't be of much assistance. Now listen, you lay low when the bunch comes back. Get under the bed or somewhere. I'll pretend I don't know where you are. We'll teach them to play any more practical jokes!" Judd grinned. "That 'ud kind of be turnin' the tables, eh?" "Kind of, you bet! I hear somebody coming upstairs now! Take this alcohol bottle and rub yourself good to keep from catching cold. Get into the closet out of sight. Quick!" Cateye waited until the footsteps reached the head of the stairs, then flung open the door and limped into the hall on his crutch. He met face to face with Benz. "Rather late turning in, aren't you? Say, ... do you know where Judd is? I'm getting rather anxious. It's two o'clock and after, ... and he never kept very late hours!" Benz's face was a pale white; his lips were trembling; he seemed near collapse. "He's, ... he's, ... I think he's drowned!" "What!" Cateye's concern was extremely realistic. "Drowned!" "Shss!" warned Benz, glancing about nervously, "Don't wake the whole dorm! Step in your room here and I'll tell you the whole story." Cateye backed in and sat down, turning on the light. Benz seated himself on the edge of the bed and clutched the bed sheets despairingly. "Great heavens, man, don't keep me in suspense!" groaned Cateye, "Judd drowned! How'd it happen?" "Well, ..." began Benz, "It all came out of a little joke!" "So it was one of your pranks, eh? Drowning a man!" Cateye's voice was hard and cruel. "I didn't mean it, Cateye, honest! I mean, ... the joke to go so far," Benz hastened to add, realizing that he had almost confessed. "We broke up a celebration the second team was having; captured Rube and McCabe and planned on giving 'em a good scare. So we carried 'em down to the bridge an' held Rube over the rail. I, ... we never meant to drop him, _honest_, but, ..." "Why did you tie his feet?" As soon as Cateye asked the question he realized that he had pulled "a bone." "Why did I? ... Did I tell you that?" Benz asked, wild-eyed. "You sure did!" insisted Cateye, seeing a way out.