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"If he were here, I'd knoas to tuht Then with a relance at DeWitt's patient back, "What a selfish beast you are, Rhoda Tuttle!"
She reached John's side and together they paused at the top of the trail Black against the sky, the e flat-topped building Night birds circled about it Fros in its front owls hooted But otherwise there was neither sight nor sound of living thing The desert far below and beyond lay like a sea of death Rhoda unconsciously drew nearer to DeWitt
"Where are the dogs? At Chira the dogs barked all night Indians always have dogs!"
"It s are asleep!"
"And at Chira," went on Rhoda, whispering as did DeWitt, "owls didn't hoot froested John
Rhoda thrust cold little fingers into his hand
The doors were empty and forlorn The terraced walls, built with the patient labor of the long ago, were sagged and decayed Riot of greasewood crowned great heaps of débris A loneliness as of the end of the world came upon the tanderers Sick and dismayed, they stood in awe before this relic of the past
"Whoo! Whoo!" an owl's cry sounded fros
DeWitt spoke softly
"Rhoda, it's one of the forgotten cities!"
"Let's go back! Let's go back to the spring!" pleaded Rhoda "It is so uncanny in the dark!"
"No!" DeWitt rubbed his aching head wearily "Iis better than another night in the open desert Co," begged Rhoda "I'm so cold and shivery"
"Dear sweetheart, that's just the point You will be sick if you don't have soh Will you sit here and let me look about?"
"No! No! I don't want to be left alone"
Rhoda followed John closely up into the mass of fallen rock
DeWitt smiled It appealed to the tenderest part of his nature that the girl who had led hih the terrible experiences of the desert should show fear now that a haven was reached
"Coirl," he said
Painfully, for they both eak and dizzy, they claray wall Rhoda clutched John's arm with a little screa DeWitt scratched one of his carefully hoarded matches The tiny flare revealed a small adobe-walled room, quite bare save for broken bits of pottery on the floor John lighted a handful of greasewood and by its brilliant light they examined the floor and walls