As the horse shot across the field and among some short brushwood, the three boys left behind headed in that direction. Each had his gun ready for use, thinking that possibly the mountain lion or some other wild beast might show itself.
Never had Randy had a rougher experience than the present. Several times he was all but flung from the horse as the animal swung around to avoid hitting one rock or another. Once he dropped the reins and held on to the horse’s mane. Then the animal stumbled and the lad went up in the air and it looked for a moment as if he might go over the horse’s head. But he came back safely, and at last brought the horse down to a walk.
“Whoa there, Charley Boy,” he said as soothingly as a panting breath would permit. “Good boy now! Keep quiet!” And then he managed to bring the horse to a standstill.
When the others came up Randy dismounted and all saw that the horse had received several deep scratches on the flank, and from these the blood was still flowing. Randy and Jack attempted to wipe the blood away, but the horse would not have this and acted as if he meant to “kick them into kingdom come,” as Andy expressed it. So then they let him alone.
“What became of the wildcat?” questioned Randy.
“It wasn’t a wildcat. It was a young mountain lion,” declared Jack. “Fred and I tried to get a shot at it, but it got away up the mountainside before we could get our guns around to taking aim.”
“Didn’t the mountain lion hit you at all, Randy?” questioned his brother anxiously.
“No, he missed me by a couple of inches,” was the reply. “I saw him coming and I dodged. He went right over my shoulder and then struck the horse. Of course Charley Boy wouldn’t stand for that, and he swung around as if hit with a red-hot whip. That threw the mountain lion to the ground, and what happened to the animal after that I don’t know because I had my hands full with the horse.”
“Gee, I’m sorry we didn’t get a crack at that beast!” said Fred regretfully.
“Well, there’s one thing sure,” returned Andy, and something of a grin showed on his face. “We know that there’s one kind of game around here. In fact, two kinds, if you’re going to count the fish.”