“I thought you must be coming this way,” he said in his usual quiet and rather mysterious manner.
“But what does this mean, Hopwood?” Scott asked in bewilderment. “I heard that you had taken an oath to wear your iron hat till this feud was settled.”
Hopwood was serious at once. “I don’t need that old hunk of iron any more. I’ll explain it to you soon, but I haven’t time now. Where are you going?”
“I suppose you know what has happened. I am going up there to find that still. I ought to have done it long ago. I found the trail one day and I don’t know why it never dawned on me what it was. I had heard there was a big one somewhere, too. Of course, Foster gave those fellows that whisky, didn’t he?”
Hopwood nodded. “Yes, and I was just coming down to warn you to keep out of his way. He has been celebrating his success and he’s crazy. He would shoot you on sight.”
“Where is he?” Scott asked sullenly. He did not like this business of running away from a man, and yet he knew it was the only wise thing to do.
“He was up at the house a little while ago. Keep your eyes open and take to the woods if you see him. I’ll come down to see you to-morrow if I don’t have to go away for a day or two.”
“I may have to go away for a day or two myself,” Scott replied. “By the way, where have you been? I have not seen you for a long time.”
“I’ve been too busy,” Hopwood replied lightly and disappeared in the woods with a backward smile.
Scott did not understand Hopwood. Some mysterious change seemed to have come over him. But he did not have time to figure it out now. He was too anxious to see that still. He had Hopwood’s assurance that it was there, but he wanted to see it for himself.