Page:Randall Parrish - The Red Mist.djvu/49

 Rh  likewise. If I could get safely away from the house that night, my escape unknown until morning, I might never encounter either of the two again. 'Twas likely Harwood had come from Charleston, where Ramsay was in command, and he would return there to make his report, while the mountaineer might be dispatched in any direction, but scarcely into the mountain districts of Green Briar, where my duty would take me. Nor would they waste much time in following me—for, at best, their suspicions must be vague, uncertain. Nothing had occurred to render them definite. I had said nothing, done nothing, which was inconsistent with the character I had assumed. They would most naturally suppose I was eager to get on, and preferred to complete the journey alone. No doubt they would dismiss the whole matter with a laugh when they discovered me gone.

I extinguished the light, and looked out of the window. It was quite a drop, though not necessarily a dangerous one, to the ground. Those dim outlines of buildings were probably the stables, where I would find my horse. With no guards the trick of getting away unobserved would be easy enough, and I knew the road sufficiently well to follow it safely. But I desired to learn first what these two men were actually up to. Such