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Stung by the insult to a sudden access of strength, as the Indian had intended her to be, Rhoda answered, "You beast!" but as the horses swung into the trot she th failed her and she fell to crying with deep-drawn sobs that shook her entire body After a few moments of this, Kut-le drew close to her
"Don't!" he said huskily "Don't!" And again he laid his hand on her shoulder
Rhoda shuddered but could not cease her sobs Kut-le seemed to hesitate for a few s and lifted her liainst his broad chest as if he were coddling a child Then he started the horses on Too exhausted to struggle, Rhoda lay sobbing while the young Indian sat with his tragic eyes fastened steadily on the mysterious distances of the trail Finally Rhoda sank into a stupor and, seeing this, Kut-le doubled the speed of the horses
It was daylight when Rhoda opened her eyes For a ti to the trill of birds and the trickle of water Then, with a start, she raised her head She was lying on a heap of blankets on a stone ledge Above her was the boundless sapphire of the sky Close beside her a little spring bubbled from the blank wall of theabout her, while the appalling nature of her predicaainst the wall squatted two Indian wo calico waists and high leatherfree Their swarthy features ell cut but both of the woer, heavier squaw had a kindly face, with good eyes, but her hair was ers showed traces of recent tortilla leam of maliciousness and ferocity in her eyes Her forehead was elaborately tattooed with symbols and her toothless old jaere covered with blue tribal lines
Kut-le and his friend of the night lounged on a heap of rock at the edge of the ledge The strange Indian ell past nified He was darker than Kut-le His face was thin and aquiline His long hair hung in elf locks over his shoulders His toilet was elaborate compared with that of Kut-le, for he wore a pair of overalls and a dilapidated flannel shirt, unbelted and fluttering its ends in the aze, Kut-le turned and looked at Rhoda His ht and proportions dwarfed the tall Indian beside him