As the canoes began to drift away from shore, the sound of a sudden splash caused Hawk Eye to exclaim in a low voice, "Ohitika is swimming toward us."
Laying down his gun, he picked up his paddle and noiselessly dipped it in the water to check the canoe's progress.
CHAPTER XVII
THE TRADING POST
There being neither moon nor stars, Hawk Eye could no longer make out the shore line, but as he softly dipped his paddle, his ears caught the sound of a faint wheeze close at hand, followed by a muffled bark. Dropping the paddle, he leaned over the side of the canoe and lifted in his faithful dog. As he laid the animal down, the feathered end of an arrow brushed his cheek. Gently feeling with his fingers, he found that the barb had only slantingly penetrated the fleshy part of the dog's thigh. A short, deft stroke of his knife made it easy to pull out the arrow. Picking up his paddle, he turned the canoe midstream, and after a few strokes came alongside Raven Wing who had been holding his canoe from floating away with the current.
"Come in with me," said Hawk Eye in a low voice. "We must keep together or we may become separated in the darkness."
Raven Wing climbed into Hawk Eye's canoe and held on to his own while Hawk Eye bent to his paddle. In a short time they were far down stream.