Then came another thought.
Where could he go?
Surely he could not return to Elreno, for, now that he had been carried away by Black Harry's Braves, he was branded in that town as the youthful outlaw beyond the shadow of a doubt.
He did not know which way to turn, and the thought that his situation was most remarkable forced itself upon him. If he remained among the outlaws, they were liable to discover how they had been fooled, and that would make them furious. If he escaped and hastened to any of the nearby towns, it was pretty certain that he would be taken for Black Harry and lynched.
"This is a real jolly scrape!" thought the boy, ruefully. "What can I do?"
Well might he ask himself the question.
He walked a short distance down the canyon, and thought it over. The impulse was on him to get away as soon as possible, but his sober judgment told him that he would leap from the frying-pan into the fire.
Frank did not care to be lynched. He seemed helpless for the time. Although he longed to fight for his honor, he was unable to strike a blow.
The result of his walk was a determination to stay with the outlaws and keep up the deception as long as he could.
Black Harry himself must appear sooner or later, and Frank longed to see the young rascal whom he so much resembled.