She did not wait to see her directions obeyed, but walked firmly towards the savages.
Those three females made their way to the floating timber! Mary and Jane forced the old grandmother on it first, then placed themselves firmly on either side of her, and with a branch of driftwood, which Jane snatched from a thicket, pushed out on the deep river. The current, swift and strong, bore them onward, and with a terrible sense of vastness, they floated off into the night, leaving shrieks, the rattle of shot, and red flames, roaring and quivering where that old home had been.
The night had set in, but that red conflagration kindled up the waters and the dense woods with its lurid glare, which played about the bridal garments of the young girl, and that beautiful head, crowned with flowers, in fantastic contrast. The battle was over, but the yell of some savage, as he sprang on his victim, sounded horribly through the gathered stillness, and made those hapless females shrink closer together on their frail support.
Shuddering, and half-paralyzed by these horrors, and those they had just escaped, the little group drifted hopelessly on. But now a new fear crept over Mary, for she alone noticed the danger. As the pores of the timber gradually filled, its size became insufficient for their weight; every moment it was sinking lower and lower in the water. At first she was appalled, but after a moment the sublime bravery of her soul came back. The timber was heavy enough for two—the old granddame and that beautiful sister should be saved—as for her——
She looked down into the waters—deep, deep; the crimson of the distant fires warmed them up like blood; she could not give herself to them there; it was like bathing in a new horror. But soon the log floated nearer the shore, and carried them into deep shadows.
“Grandmother—Jane!”
“What, Mary, dear—are you frightened?” said the old woman.
“You speak strangely—has the cold chilled you through, sister?” questioned Jane, shivering herself in the chill night air.
“Grandmother—sister—you know where to go; when you come opposite Kingston, do your best to get on shore; run to Aunt Polly Carter’s tavern, and hide till there is some chance of escape over the mountains. Do you listen, Jane?”
“Yes, yes; but you are with us—you will tell us how to act then.”