The spell was broken in the
same instant by a stream of profanity floating up from the rear. It was
Lew Hervey approaching and swearing his mightiest.
"But I dunno," said Bud Seymour softly. "I feel kind of glad that Lew
missed."
He glanced sharply at his companions for fear they might laugh at this
childish weakness, but there was no laughter and by their starved eyes
he knew that every one of them was riding over the horizon in
imagination, on the back of the chestnut.
CHAPTER IX
THE STAMPEDE
The grey mare made no effort to draw away when Alcatraz sprinted up
beside her. She gave him not so much as a toss of the head or a swish of
the tail but kept her gaze on the far Western mountains for she was
still sick with the scent of blood; and she maintained a purposeful,
steady, lope. It was far other with the stallion. He kept at her side
with his gliding canter but he was not thinking of the peace and the
shelter from man which they might find in the blue valleys of yonder
mountains. His mind was back at the slaughter of Mingo Lake hearing the
crackle of the rifles and seeing his comrades fall and die. It was
nothing that he had known the band only since morning.
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