Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1934-05-02
CHAPTER w

one SInlIeO dS sue Itdu THEM, AUu
for the first time It seemed as II
there might be a charm or two In
the great city he depicted so color
fully.
She rode over to Chez wash to see
Two Fingers and Little Moon the
next day and found the Indian wom-
an up, and about the simple mat
tiers of her hogan, her rug, and her
family.
1t gave the girl a thrill to see her
so, the flush of Joy that such
vindicatIon of her work always
brought. She was poor as the goods
of this world went, they we're all
fairly so, Serge and Lila and little
Babs, but she felt very rich inside
her, arrogantly rich, and she could
smile up at the blue heavens with
a secret sense of fellowship.
SO she left her last instructions
with the little family at the hogan,
patted the cheek Of the youngest
round-eyed child. and rode away
erect In her saddle and pretty we'll
satisfied with herself and the world
at large.
1t was In this mood that she came
under the tall face of Lone Mesa.
AS she swung round its southeast
ern side, she decided to go up. The
trail, cut into the sheer face by
those long dead Inhabitants Of the
pueblo, went up from here. angling
sharply, and SO steep that none but
the level headed dared to make 1t.
She was such, and so was the good
horse under her, though they had
both sweated In a cool day the first
time they had attempted 1t.
1t was a stiff and slow climb, but
presently they gained the top and
scrambled up through the small de-
file that was the steep trails end.
AS they went forward Sonya felt
the surge and thrill she always felt
at sight of the vast reach of the
| world about her. spread out so far
below. Taking off her hat, she sat
long In contemplation, her hands
and the hat resting on her pommel.
For a long time she sat so, then
refined away toward the right. She
would circle the mesa, look at the
silent white houses with their fiat
roofs, still amazingly intact, look at
the great stone basin which was
| nearly always sweet with water
caught In the yearly rains.
Presently she left the ancient
tank and went on toward the north,
| circling the huddled houses, and was
| turning eastward around them when
she stopped dead still.
A horse stood there In the blue
shadow Of the silent walls and a
man sat ON his launches smoking
a cigarette. The horse vas golden
as a raw ingot, and the man was
bronzed and lean. The light of his
bare head shone In the cool shade.
He looked up, and Sonya looked
down, and the girls eyes dilated
with swift excitement.
"Sol" she said coldly, her lips
suddenly tight. you come here
again?"
The man arose, a single motion
beautifully correlated.
Sonya, not conscious of what she
was doing, sat looking at him, and
presently he looked up at her, q
straight look, humble and still.
"T-like the mesa" he said. "It's
SO high and ~austere, so far from
from everything"
At the contact of his glance this
strange tense feeling which this
mans presence had caused at every
meeting took hold on Sonya. II wal
not fear-lt had never been-nor re
pugnance, o the anger which hat
stirred her, but a little OF all sho'
through with something which sh'
could not define, a sense of proph
ecy, a forecast Of destiny.
II chilled her within and sent
wave of fire across the chill, ant
for a wild moment she felt as II thu
solid rock were falling away be
meath her. Then she caught hSrsel
together severely and lifted Dark
ness rein, and the man spoke again
please" he said, please, Mis-
Savarin. don't go away. I'll g
right gladly"
He reached for the bride OF tn
golden horse and drew 1t to him
h~esItating.
81 know I've got no right even t
speak to you" he said. "or look a
you after-after-that day up here
but If I was to be hung for II mex
second / couldn't help 1t. And
don't want to cause you anothe
minutes trouble or unhappiness. !
this here mesa's a ~favorite place o
yours, I'll never come again. Don
stay away yourself. It's too swee
to be lost"
"But you'd lose It," Sonya sal
against her will.
eTd lose my right hand II II woul
help" he said doggedly, lookin
down and fddling with his latlgo
Him." said the girl through he
nostrils, a sharp and cynical SOUND
81 would" he repeated, IAN a
you've got to do is set a mark t
prove 1t. Is there anythIng-an
single thing that a man can do t