Cavalier County farmers press. (Langdon, N.D.) 1920-1921, 1921-02-10
CHAPTER XII.
The Attack on the Cabin.

by these words and alarmed by her
agitation. swiftly crossed the room.
The body was gone. actually gone! AS
he bent over. incredulous, %distrusting
the evidence of his own eyes, he could
perceive the stain of blood in which
the man had fallen. but that was all.
There was no semblance of a body
there.
Judas Priest!" he said soberly.
"This beats anything ever 1 saw. He
couldn't have been killed, but l never
saw him twitch a muscle after he
dropped. Gone. Darn if l know what
to make of it. Why, where could he
have gone to? There amt but one way
out from this shack an he sure didn't
go out there"
mo, he couldn't" her voice quaver-
ing. 1--WE would have seer him if he
had"
seen him! OF course, we would.
He must have revived and crawled
away. You bet. there amt no mystery
about it. Dead men amt movin'
around an there amt no angels comm
Town to carry that cuss off. What's
happened is. he got back strength
'nough to crawl. Likely he got into
mat back room out O. sight. Any
now I'm goin' to find out what's hap
pened. You keep an eye at that hole
m the wall yonder, while l scout around
A minute. If you see anything movin'
IN shootin' distance, just blaze away.
Don't hesitate Il moment"
She wenl forward as he told her
without a wore and stared out, yet
~nervously turning her head about at
the slightest sound. Shelby waited a
moment. listening, and then stepped
confidently forward across the thresh-
OLD OF the inner door. He had no
doubt that he would discover Macklin
dead or alive, Outstretched on the
floor. The fellow must be there: he
could have gone nowhere else. The
place was as black as night; a step
beyond the entrance and he had to
grope his way blindly, unable to dis
tinguish a single object. There was
something grim and CHASTITY in feeling
about with his feet for an unseen body.
Then the fellow might still be alive,
even dangerous. He stopped at the
disquieting thought and spoke sharply
into the gloom.
"Are you there, Macklin? Come,
speak up; nobody is going to hurt
you"
n was no response. no move
ment. no sound of a groan, no pulsing
of breath. The stiffness was intense.
horrible. Shelby gripped himself and
began to advance slowly. guiding his
passage along the wall. expecting ev-
cry instant to encounter some obsfa-
Gle. His cropping feet touched nothing.
Inc by inch he explored the floor of
the room. the perspiration beginning
to stand in drops on his forehead.
There was no body lying there. no
form of a man, either living or dead:
the place was absolutely u%noccupied.
He could hardly believe this true: his
mind refused to grasp the fact; he
came back to the door dazed and I'M
nerved. All nature. all reasoning told
him the man must be somewhere with
In the cabin; any other thought was
simply impossible vet where? He had
already explored. every inch of surface
to no result. SO bewildered and dunn
founded was he before this mystery
that he was vel startled at the girls
voice asking an eager question.
SIS he there? Did you find him?"
mo; he's gone as though he had
a pair of wings"
But how could he get out?"
That's what I say. Everything is
solid; no human could vanish through
these walls; there isn't a window not
boarded up and only that one door
We wasn't outside ten minutes. MOI
ten feet away from the step. A rat
couldn't have passed without bein'
seen. Blamed if it don't make me
shiver. for. by thunder, however it
happened, he amt here; he amt no.
where in this cabin. An" he added,
peering at the floor. 'there amt no
trail O blood to show that he crawled
d"dS J"St lidt niue poor NIldt lie
laid ill.,"
Gould he have got through the roof.
or the foor?"
Shelby laughed despondently.
Lord, I don't easily see how he
could it's fifteen feet to them rafters
an no opening, while, judging from
outside, the floor must rest plum on
the ground. Who shot him, anyhow?
Did you see?"
Eyes. I did," she explained excitedly.
II was looking that way, toward where
the board was ripped off the window.
1 just had a glimpse of a face behind
the muzzle of the gun. 1t was a wom-
an; I am sure it was a woman, with
black eyes. Then the smoke obscured
everything and she was gone" !,
"She must have been Pancha," he
admitted, struggling with the idea.
"Why. Of course. that's all plain
enough. She overheard what he said
and fired in mad passion"
what do you mean? What are you
talking about? This girl?"
Sure; I told you about her; she