The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1933-12-27

| stop him. Rosalie would have taken
I,pride in having another scalp at her
belt.
The more he thought about her
joining Karakhan, the m ore 1T
seemed to clash with all that he had
Iseen OF her during two weeks II In
Inmate association. In Helen Mathie.
son one could understand such .
flight: Helen was blinded and en-
tirely dominated by passion.
But Sonya was not Helen Mathie-
son. Sonya had gone through more
| in her life; she was more mature,
deeper Of insight. far more thought
i full. For all the fire in her. she did
not seem a girl who would ever let
passion override her sense OF right.
Her association with Karakhan
was simply out of harmony with all
| the rest Of her nature.
When they got up to go on, he
saw that Ralph had drifted back to
the borderline Of consciousness: his
leyes half open. his lips moving. He
was too far gone to talk. but he rec
ognized his friends and understood
what they said to him. Curt bent
down. encouraging:
Don't let go. Ralph. We're leav.
ing the Lilluars ard taking you out.
Tomorrow at this time you'll be in
Prince Rupert, "nd there they'll fix
you up"
Twice more during the rest Of the
night Ralph came out of his stupor
for a few moments. The second
time he tried hard to tell Curt some
thing. Curt believed 1t was some
thing about Sonya. for her name
was distinguis' able in the broken
whispers. But whatever 1t was. it
went unsaid.
MORNING came at last. with the
w gray smoke-mist curling up
and trout breaking the surface in
silvery flashes.
They stopped ten minutes to rest,
and then hurried on all the faster,
now that they had light to travel by.
With enn.Og In the PROV. guiding
them down the river that he knew
so intimately. they shot over dan.
gerous white water without pausing
to scout a course. Their hands were
blistered from the paddle work,
their arms ached intolerabiy. but
for Ralph's lake they drove them
selves to the limit.
One hour of merciless padding,
then i've minutes of rest: another
hour and another five minutes on
the sand-in that steady relentless
fashion they reeled off the long
miles Of the flight south.
At noon they came to sluggish
lake Of reed patches and sloughs
where ducks and geese and teal in
countless numbers had their. sum.
mer rookeries. As they were thread
ing a shortcut channel. Curt glanced
back toward the lake head and hap
pened to see a colony Of little black
terms rise out Of slough and ex.
plode like a pun OF feathers. with
shrill cries OF alarm.
Evidently something out of the or.
binary had flushed them. As he kept
watching he saw scattered ducks
and teal go up. lower down the
slough. indicating that the cause OF
the alarm. whatever 1t might be. was
coming down stream.
Suspicious. be and Paul stopped,
backed into = thick clump OF flags
and waited. A minute later two ca.
noes came skimming around reedy
point and headed down toward
them. Travelling light. three stall.
wart men to boat. they had come
south even faster than his party.
To let them go past would only
have meant an ambush and fight
further down river. They had 10
be stopped. Waiting till they were
within easy range. he and Paul
opened on them with a sudden blast
The ricocheting bullets. smashing
through the wind.water lire of the
craft, sank them before the thnn.
derstruck Klosohees could realize
that ambushing was a game which
two could PLAY at. Nth their canoes
laundering under them. the six
leaped out and swan for the near.
est flags.
Mnddied and bedraggled. they
stood on their bit OF quivering bog
and stonily waited to be shot, as
Curtis canoe nosed across toward
them. Curt looked them over. Like
Tenn-og they were tall rugged men,
hardy mountalneers as virile q
type OF Indian as he had ever seen.
Tell EN- we're not going to kill
en- be bade Tenn-og. Find out
where the main band Is and what
they're doing. and where the white
girl is
He listened closely as Tenn.og
talked with the six. but he could
not understand a word OF the clicks
and grunts except the names Of
Siam.Klale and LeNoir.
When the palaver was over and
he had made sure that the six men
could ger across TO the shore, he
backed the canoe on and headed his
party down stream again.
fcopsrtoAf. 1873. WIiiam D. nererrJ
With their tragic eurden. Curt