“I will be here early in the forenoon with my lady, ready to accompany you. You will wait for me?”
“Yas; of course.”
And the next moment Hammond had disappeared in the darkness.
It was only fairly daylight when our hero climbed a small tree, near the base of a spur of the Black Hills, that commanded a view of the Meagan village. Carefully concealing himself from view, he made a waving motion of a branch in his hand, repeated it several times, intently watching the result, and then descended to the ground and impatiently awaited the coming of Lamora.
Only a few minutes had elapsed, when a light step was heard, and the beautiful girl stepped timidly to view before him.
The delighted lover rushed toward her and clasped her in his arms.
“My own loved one!” he exclaimed, as he kissed the white forehead and pink cheeks, “are you ready to go with me?”
“Yes,” was the faint, but immediate reply.
“We are all prepared, and only await your coming.”
After some affectionate love-passages, they began to discuss their course of action in a sensible, practical manner.