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hands in his pockets, and flashed his usual teasing smile.
    “Was that you shooting?” Laura turned and confronted Thomas.
    “Yes, doggone it! I missed a rabbit.”
    “You might have hit me,” Elizabeth said hotly.
    Thomas brushed his straight brown hair back from his forehead and, still smiling, said, “Awful sorry. I sure didn’t mean to frighten you.” He walked over to the girls with his musket over his right shoulder and his powder horn and ball dangling over the other one.
    Elizabeth’s frown relaxed as she smiled back. “We’ve come to pick flowers from your woods, Thomas.”
    “I’m afraid it’s a little early. But next month there’ll be plenty.” He turned to Laura. “See anything of Red?” he mumbled.
    “No…not since he left.”
    “Who’s Red?” asked Elizabeth, stepping between Laura and Thomas.
    “A friend of Laura’s, from out of town.” Thomas smirked at Laura.
    Elizabeth stared at Thomas and missed Laura’s glare. She turned to Laura and said, “You never told me about your beau.”
    “He’s not a beau. He’s just a…” Laura was furious with Thomas, for he knew how curious Elizabeth would be, and that Laura couldn’t explain about Red. She could see that Thomas was enjoying himself immensely. She had to stop him from saying more.
    “Would you like…to join us for lunch?” she stammered. Bett had packed more than enough.
    “Don’t mind if I do,” Thomas answered speedily. He was familiar with Bett’s picnic baskets.
    Thomas and Elizabeth walked ahead together through the grass and underbrush, back toward the woods. Laura held on to Mira, who said she needed Laura to protect her from snakes. In a few minutes, they stopped at the spot where Laura had dropped the picnic basket, but it was nowhere in sight.
    “I thought it was here, too, but maybe it was a little over there,” Laura said, stepping a few feet nearer to the trees. A trail led to the woods.
    “Maybe Levi is playing a joke on us. Maybe he took it,” Thomas replied.
    Elizabeth looked up surprised. “I didn’t see Levi. Was he hunting rabbits, too?”
    “He was still cleaning out the stables, the last I saw of him,” said Thomas. “But you never know. He could have started out later. The land’s not quite dry enough to cultivate. So maybe Dad let him go.”
    “I can’t think of anywhere else the picnic basket could have gone,” said Laura, “and I don’t think it’s very nice of Levi to snitch our food.”
    “Oh, for crying out loud, Laura, if Levi took it, he’ll bring it back any minute now. And I don’t really think he did. You two stupid girls probably just lost your own picnic basket.”
    Laura’s eyes narrowed into slits. “Thomas Mayo! You have no right to say that.”
    Mira ran over and gave him a kick in the shin.
    Elizabeth looked down her nose at Thomas. “That was a horrible thing for you to say.”
    “Well, I can see I’m not wanted here.” Thomas turned away, his powder horn hanging against his side. The three girls watched him disappear into the woods.
    The sun was high now as the girls looked back across the meadow. “I had planned on eating down by the river bank,” said Elizabeth. “But let’s go and sit awhile, anyway.”
    “I’m hungry,” shouted Mira.
    “We’d better look some more,” Laura said, as she wandered back to the place where she had last seen the basket. In the trampled grass, Laura spotted a piece of blue cloth that looked like the handkerchief she’d given Red. Was Red nearby? Her pulse was starting to beat a little faster. It would be just like something Red would do.
    “Well if we’re going to spend all our time looking for the stupid basket, I’m going home,” said Elizabeth.
    Laura could barely hide her pleasure. If Red were in those woods, he would never come out with Elizabeth there. The sooner she left, the better. “How would you like to take Mira with you?” she asked. “She’s hungry.”
    “No. I’m staying with you,” said