"What's the matter, Pete?" asked the pitcher.

"Some girl up there must have bright b.u.t.tons on, or a hat pin made of diamonds, for they're flashing in my eyes," complained Pete. Then the flash vanished and Tom was about to pitch a ball for Ed Felton, who was up, when, as he gave a comprehensive look at first and second, he again saw the dazzling gleam in Pete's eyes.

"We'll have to stop that!" exclaimed the captain. "I'll ask Kerr or Mr.

Leighton to speak to whoever's wearing such bright adornments."

"Funny it should hit me in the eyes all the while," complained Pete, changing his position, but the beam of light followed him.

"Some one's doing that on purpose," declared Tom, and he fairly ran toward the grand stand. But before he got there he saw something happening.

The beam of light came from that section of the stand near where Tom had noticed Langridge and Miss Harrison sitting. Then, as he raced on, he also remembered that Sid sat there too. A terrible thought came to him.

Could Sid be trying to disconcert the player who was taking his place, by flashing a mirror in his eyes?

"Of course he wouldn't do such a dirty trick!" said Tom to himself, a moment after he had entertained the thought.

The captain reached the stand, in company with Dutch, who had run back in response to the pitcher's motion, in time to see Sid leap to his feet, reach forward toward Langridge, who sat in front of him, while the deposed second baseman exclaimed:

"You mean sneak!"

"What's the matter?" asked Langridge coolly, as he turned an insolent stare on Sid. "Mad because I'm with Miss Harrison?"

"No, you cur! But I see what you're doing! Hand over that mirror!" and before Langridge could protest Sid had yanked him backward, partly over the seat, and had grasped the right hand of the former Randall student--a hand containing a small, circular mirror.

"You were flashing that in the eyes of our second baseman, you sneak!"

cried Sid hotly. "I was watching you! You held it down, where you thought no one would see. You ought to be kicked off the stand!"

"I did not!" declared Langridge brazenly, yet there was fear in his manner, and the mirror was mute evidence. "I was just going to hand it to Miss Harrison," he went on. "To let her see if her hat----"

The girl turned her blue eyes on him, and shrank away from the notice attracted to her escort. Langridge did not complete his lie.

"I saw what you were doing," went on Sid. "Wasn't something flashing in Pete's eyes?" he asked, as Tom and Dutch, with some of the other Randall players, stood on the ground, in front of where the scene had taken place.

"That's what I came in to see about," declared Tom.

"I--I didn't know it was shining in his eyes," stammered Langridge. "Let go of me, Henderson, or I'll make you!"

Sid did not want to make a scene, and released his hold of Langridge.

Tom, by a motion, signalled to Sid to say nothing more, but it was princ.i.p.ally on the score of not wanting to further subject Miss Harrison to embarra.s.sment, rather than to save Langridge from punishment. Then, too, there was only slim proof against Langridge. Sid grabbed the mirror away from the bully, and the latter dared not protest. There were some hisses, and Miss Harrison blushed painfully.

Langridge tried to brazen it out, but, with a muttered excuse that he wanted to get a cigar, he left the stand, and the blue-eyed girl, after a frightened glance around, went and sat with Ruth and Madge. Sid looked as if he wanted to follow her, but he did not dare, and after Tom, Ed Kerr and Mr. Leighton had consulted together for a few minutes, it was agreed to take no action against Langridge, who had sneaked off.

"He did it, all right," decided Tom. "He wanted to rattle Pete and make us lose to Fairview, but we're not going to do it."

"Indeed not," a.s.serted the coach. "Hold 'em down now, Tom. One run will do the trick."

There were two men on bases, and none out when Ed Felton resumed his place at home, and Tom was inclined to shiver when he remembered what Ed had done to the ball before. But the pitcher took a strong brace, and struck out Ed, much to that worthy's surprise.

Then, by some magnificent pitching, in the face of long odds, Tom retired Puder and Lem Sellig with an ease that he himself marveled at.

His arm seemed to have gotten back some of its cunning.

A zero went up in the tenth frame for Fairview.

"That looks good to me!" cried Holly Cross, dancing about. "If we can't get in one run now, Tom, we ought to be put out of the league."

"Well, it's up to you, Holly," remarked Tom. "You're up first."

"By Jove, you'll not be ashamed of me!" declared the big center fielder.

He rapped out a nice bingle that took him to second base. Then came Dan Woodhouse, and he struck out, amid groans.

Bricktop walked up with an air of confidence, amid encouraging comments from his chums. The Fairview pitcher was getting a little rattled, and threw so wild that the catcher, though he jumped for the ball, missed it, and had to run back while Holly, who had stolen to third, came in with a rush. There was a mixup at the plate, as Holly slid in, accompanied by a cloud of dust, but the pitcher, who had run up to a.s.sist the catcher, and make amends for his wild throw, dropped the ball, and Holly scored the winning run.

There was a moment of silence until the big crowd and the players appreciated what it meant to pull out a victory in the tenth, and that after an exceedingly close game. Then came a burst of cheers, and applause that made the grand stands and bleachers rattle.

"Wow! Wow! Wow!" yelled the exultant Randallites, and they capered about in very joy, like wild Indians, slapping each other on the back, punching and being punched, cheering for themselves and for Fairview by turns.

CHAPTER XXII

SID DESPAIRS

"Wasn't it great!" demanded Dutch Housenlager, as he waltzed up to Tom, and tried to lead him out into a dance on the diamond. "Immense, eh?

Pulling it out of the fire that way?"

"Yes, that's what we did--pulled it out of the fire," agreed Tom, with a smile. "We needed this victory, and I'm glad we won, but we've got to play better--and that includes me--if we're to have the loving cup this year. Our batting and fielding could be improved a whole lot."

"Oh, of course," agreed Dutch, "but aren't you a bit proud of us, captain?"

"Oh, sure--of course," answered the pitcher heartily. "Let joy be unconfined," and with a yell of pure enjoyment he joined in the impromptu dance.

Fairview was glum, but not cast down. They had cheered the winning team, and Ted Puder, the captain, came up to Tom.

"You certainly beat us fair and square," he acknowledged. "I hope you don't think we had anything to do with Langridge using that mirror to dazzle the eyes of your second baseman."

"Never thought of such a thing," declared Tom with emphasis. "The cad worked that trick up all by his lonesome. I guess he thought maybe Sid was playing there, and he has a grudge against Henderson--yet that couldn't have been it either, for Langridge knows Sid is suspended, and anyhow, Sid was sitting directly back of the sneak, where Langridge could have seen him."

"Yes, it's a good thing Sid detected him. Well, we'll beat you next time."

"Forget it," advised Tom with a laugh.

"Come on, cap," called Phil to him a moment later. "Let's look up Sid, and, incidentally, the girls."

"Sure," agreed the pitcher, and a moment later he and Phil were greeting Madge, Ruth and Mabel. But Sid had hurried away.

The little group strolled past the grand stand, Tom and Phil excusing themselves while they went in to get on their street garments, the girls promising to wait for them.

"Wonder where Sid went?" asked Tom.