Page:Barbour--Metipoms Hostage.djvu/95

Rh face and chest. Doubtful, David raised a hand.

“Wait!” he said. “Who sends this message?”

The Indian paused and his gaze, leaving David, shot for an instant past the boy’s  head. In that instant David knew, and his heart leaped into his throat. He loosed his hands and the buckets fell to the ground, but  ere he could turn, the foe was upon him. Strong arms twined about him and he was borne backward in a welter of snapping  branches and came to earth with the breath  jarred from his body.