Rocks soon replenished his revolvers, and said:
"Thar, I kinder 'lows we kin make it interestin' fer them varmints ef they press us too hard. Dunno ez I kin find ther place whar I hid my rifle, but I reckons I oughter."
"If we escape."
"Ef we escape! Whut's ther matter with you, boy? Think we can't dodge them red whelps in ther dark?"
"We might alone; but the man ahead of us may make no attempt to do so, and we must stand by him. It would not do to let the child fall into the hands of those wretches again. They would surely murder her."
"They'd be likely ter, an' that's facts. Oh, we'll back up ther Hermit, an' thar won't be no trouble 'bout gittin' erway, 'less them varmints behind manages ter hit one o' us with a lead pill."
The flight and pursuit continued, the Blackfeet seeming to have the eyes of owls or the scent of hounds. They pressed the fugitives hard, and Old Rocks feared that some of the flying bullets which whistled around them would find a mark.
At length the guide gave an exclamation of satisfaction.
"Reckon I knows whar ther Hermit is headin' fer," he said.
"Where?" asked Frank.