Page:The trail of the golden horn.djvu/99

Rh the trail, upon his hands and knees, creeping, so it seemed to her, back to the fire. She breathed a sigh of relief, and tucked the revolver away in the bosom of her dress. A smile of triumph overspread her face as she thought of Bill’s defeat, and the unexpected outcome of his plans. She was glad, though, that she had not killed him. But she must have wounded him severely to cause him to cry out as he did, and give up the pursuit.

The smile of triumph, however, passed swiftly from her face as she realised the difficult position in which she was placed. She must get back to the white woman as soon as possible. But she did not dare to return by the trail, for that would mean passing close to the man she had defied and wounded. He would make short work of her, she was certain, should she come within range of his revolver. The only plan left was to leave the trail, and circle around toward her own camping-place. She believed that she could do this without great difficulty, for most of the time she could travel among the big trees where the snow would not be so deep. If she only had her snow-shoes it would be an easy matter. She knew how anxious the nurse must be about her, so she was anxious to get back as soon as possible.

With another glance to make sure that Bill was not following her, she left the trail, plunged through the snow, and headed for the big trees beyond. It took her some time to do this, for the snow was deep and at times she was forced to stop and rest. But when she at last reached the heavy timber she breathed a sigh of relief. She felt safer now, being certain that it would not take her long to make her way to the camp. The walking was much easier here, and she sped on her