“You thinka well of him—yees. Now I tella you something. The man Pedro ’e no good. ’E wisha the reward—the money for Ramerrez. ’E and the woman—woman no good—tell Meester Ashby they thinka ’im ’ere.”
The Girl felt the colour leave her cheeks, though she made a gesture for him to proceed.
“Pedro not ’ere any longer,” smiled the Mexican. “Me senda ’im to the devil. Serva ’im right.”
“An’ the woman?” gasped the Girl.
“She gone—got away—Monterey by this time,” replied Castro with evident disappointment. “But Meester Ashby ’e know too much—’ees men everywhere searched the camp—no safa ’ere now. To-morrow—” Castro stopped short; the next instant with a joyful gleam in his eyes he cried out: “Maestro!”
“Castro’s right, Girl,” said Johnson, who had waked and heard the Mexican’s last words; “it is not safe a moment more here, and I must go.”
With a little cry of loving protest the Girl abruptly left the men to talk over the situation and sought the opposite side of the room. There, her eyes half-closed and her lips pressed tightly together she gave herself up to her distressing fears. After a while it was made plain to her that she was being brought into the conversation, for every now and then Castro would look curiously at her; at length, as if it had been determined by them that nothing should be undertaken without her advice, Johnson, followed by his subordinate, came over to her and related in detail all the startling information that Castro had brought.
Quietly the Girl listened and, in the end, it was agreed between them that it would be safer for the men not to leave the cabin together, but that Castro should go at once with the understanding that he should procure horses and wait for the master at a given point across the ravine. It was decided, too, that there was not a moment to be lost in putting their plan into execution. In consequence, Castro immediately took his departure.
The hour that passed before the time set for Johnson to leave the cabin was a most trying one for both of them. It was not so hard on the man, of course, for he was excited over the prospect of escaping; but the Girl, whose mind was filled with the dread of what might happen to him, had nothing to sustain her. Despite his objection, she had stipulated that, with Jackrabbit as a companion, she should accompany him to the outskirts of the camp. And so, at the moment of departure, throwing about her a cloak of some rough material, she went up to her lover and said with a quiver in her voice:
“I’m ready, Dick, but I’m a-figurin’ that I can’t let you go alone—you jest got to take me below with you, an’ that’s all there is to it.”