THE LONE RIDER
After Running Dog had left them, Sun Bird made preparations to resume their advance toward the distant Blackfeet camp. Profiting by the warning which the scouts had brought, the cautious young war leader determined to make every provision for the safety of the war party. In addition to the two expert scouts riding along each flank, Sun Bird appointed a strong rear guard under command of Sitting Eagle. Then, as a further precaution against blundering into a trap, he asked White Otter and Little Raven to accompany him on a reconnaissance far in advance of the war party.
"My brothers, you must wait here until we are far ahead," he told the Minneconjoux, as he rode away.
Once beyond sight of their comrades, the three young scouts realized that their mission was a perilous one. They had little doubt that foes were on both sides of them, and it was possible that the Sioux war party had already been discovered. In that event there was great probability that crafty foes might circle around behind them, and separate them from their companions.
"We must watch sharp," cautioned Sun Bird.
He hoped to lead the war party within an easy day's travel of the Blackfeet camp. Then he planned to go into hiding and send scouts under cover of the darkness to locate the Blackfeet ponies and reconnoiter about the village. In the meantime Sun Bird realized the constant peril of colliding with his enemies. However, he relied upon the skill and daring of his scouts to give him timely warning of an approaching war party. As they were riding cautiously across the plain they again saw the war eagle circling high up toward the eastward. They stopped and watched it with great interest.
"See! our brother, Huya, has come down out of the clouds," said Sun Bird. "I believe he is flying around over there to show us where our enemies are hiding."
Soon afterward they saw a solitary horseman ride over a distant rise of the plain. He quickly discovered them, and immediately stopped his pony. For some moments he continued to watch them. Then he turned about and galloped from view. The Sioux also had stopped at sight of the stranger, and now that he had disappeared Sun Bird was at a loss to determine just what to do. The rider had been too far away to be identified, but his actions made it plain that he was neither Feather Dog nor Proud Hawk.
"Perhaps he is one of the scouts that Feather Dog told about," suggested Little Raven.
"Yes, that may be true," said Sun Bird. "White Otter, what do you make of it?"
"I do not know what to make of it," acknowledged White Otter. "That man saw us. If he is a scout he will go to tell his people about us. It is bad. We must watch sharp."
"We are scouts," said Sun Bird. "We must tell our brothers about this thing."
"It is the best thing to do," agreed White Otter.
"I will go back, and tell them about it," Little Raven volunteered.
As the others agreed, he immediately turned his pony, and rode back to warn the war party. The main company of Minneconjoux had not come in sight, and Sun Bird and White Otter felt somewhat anxious for the safety of the youthful scout who had gone to meet his tribesmen. If a strong force of foes were loitering in the vicinity, it would be easy for them to intercept the solitary Minneconjoux. In spite of his youthfulness, however, Little Raven was an experienced warrior, and Sun Bird felt certain that he was competent to look after himself in an emergency.
"Sun Bird, I believe that warrior is watching over the top of that hill," White Otter declared, suspiciously.
"How do you know that?" Sun Bird inquired, anxiously.
"I do not know it, but I believe I saw him peeping over the top of that hill," replied White Otter.
They looked anxiously toward the grassy knoll, and strained their eyes to discover the skulking foe. The thought that he was watching made them uneasy, and they were eager to learn if their suspicions were true. It was some moments before White Otter finally became convinced.
"Yes, I see him," he declared, positively. "He is peeping over the top of that hill. I see his head over there near that little bush. Watch sharp."
"Yes, yes, I see his head," Sun Bird declared, a moment later.
Convinced that the mysterious horseman really was watching them, they believed that he was waiting to learn if they were followed by a larger company. They had little doubt that he was a scout reconnoitering in advance of a force of their foes.
"It is bad," White Otter said, uneasily. "That man saw Little Raven ride away. He will know that some one is following behind us. He will watch until our friends come. Then he will tell his people about it."
"Yes, I see that it is bad," said Sun Bird. "Perhaps if we ride over there we can chase him away."
"Come," White Otter proposed, recklessly.
As they cantered briskly toward the knoll, the scout withdrew from sight. They felt quite sure that he had merely slipped farther down the opposite side of the ridge, and was still peering cautiously over the top. As they felt convinced that the horseman was alone, they had little fear of running into an ambush. When they got within arrow range, however, they approached with great care. As a precaution against attack, they separated and rode forward several arrow flights apart. Once at the foot of the slope they rushed their ponies to the top, and prepared to attack whoever confronted them. The scout, however, was nowhere in sight. They searched the plain in vain; the mysterious stranger had entirely disappeared. For a moment or so they were completely baffled. Then White Otter suddenly smiled, and nodded understandingly.
"I know about it," he told Sun Bird.
"Tell me," Sun Bird asked, eagerly.
"That scout is very sharp," declared White Otter. "He has thrown his pony, and he is hiding over there in that high grass."
"Yes, I believe that is where he is hiding," agreed Sun Bird.
The spot where they believed the scout had concealed himself was many arrow flights away, and they knew it would be difficult to discover him at that distance. They felt almost certain, however, that he was still watching them from his new hiding place. The thought disturbed them. His persistence made them suspicious. They wondered if he were trying to fool them with some wily bit of stratagem.
"Well, we will ride over there and chase him out," proposed Sun Bird.
They had not gone an arrow flight, when a pony suddenly rose to its feet in the long grass. An instant later the rider sprang upon its back and raced away toward the south. He was too far in the lead to be easily overtaken, and besides, the Sioux realized that it would be perilous to follow him. They watched, therefore, while he sped across the plain.
"We have chased him away—it is good," said Sun Bird.
"Perhaps something bad will come of it," White Otter warned him. "If that man is a Blackfoot, he will tell his people about us. Then it will be hard to get near the camp."
"Perhaps he is a Crow," Sun Bird suggested, hopefully.
"Lean Wolf has told us that the Crows are over there," White Otter reminded him, as he pointed toward the west.
"That is true," agreed Sun Bird. "But perhaps they sent scouts over here to look for the Blackfeet."
White Otter remained silent. The appearance and the actions of the unknown scout had made him wary. He feared that the Sioux war party was in imminent danger of being surrounded and attacked by a superior force of foes. The possibility distressed him. There seemed little chance of avoiding the peril.
"Sun Bird, I believe the best thing to do is to find our people," White Otter declared, finally. "Perhaps Lean Wolf and Feather Dog have told them something."
"Yes, we will go to find our brothers," agreed Sun Bird.