Page:Ritchie - Trails to Two Moons.djvu/247

 The girl sensed that this enemy of hers was playing with her—letting her run like an injured mouse, as it were, only to follow with the smiting paw. But up through her consuming rage at his cruelty pushed once more that great fear of the night before; the fear that had sent her blundering through the willows seeking to lose the shadow of a jail behind her. Now he spoke of horse stealing. To be sure, in her desperation of the night before she had determined to steal a horse in order to put town behind her, but she had not expected to be caught. That it was Original's horse she had stolen and Original himself who now had her helpless here in the wilderness of a sudden seemed terrible beyond endurance.

The instinct of woman, old as Eve, came to her rescue. When in a tight place take the offensive.

"I might have counted on seeing you out here. I might have known you could n't keep yourself from fighting a woman." Original was a fair mark for the barb. He flushed angrily, and the hint of humor about his eyes sped on the instant.

"That 's my little hoss Tige you 're ridin', let me remind you. I followed my property.