Too young to graze, the calf was gaunt from lack of food and made no effort to escape when Harry began to drive it. Instead, it merely stumbled forward a few steps and stopped.
"Go on," she ordered. "I couldn't let you lie out here and starve, even if Ludlum can. How any man can turn a herd of cattle into the hills and not know or care what happens to them for weeks and months is more than I can comprehend. Come! Move along there."
Thus adjured, and helped by an occasional flick of the rawhide, the calf moved ahead until within sight of the gate. Harry was just about to get down and open it, when the pony gave a jerk and looked sidewise, and Harry had a glimpse of an old felt hat moving behind a ledge of lava that had jutted from the scab land. Riding forward, she came face to face with Joe Biane. He had climbed up through one of the fissures and stood leaning carelessly against the rocks, with his hands behind him. A mischievous smile curled his lips.
"Morning, Joe!" she said. "Will you open the gate for me?"
Joe did not move. Astonished, she waited a moment. Then she noticed that he was hiding his hands. Her lips curved in a comprehending smile.
"You needn't be afraid!" she exclaimed. "I won't look at the birds you're hiding. I realize it's useless to try to protect them from you."
Joe neither answered nor moved. His derisive grin widened; he looked at the calf and inquired, "Lost another critter, have you?"
"Another calf? This isn't ours that I know of. I found it starving outside, and I'm bringing it in to feed it."
"Sure. Of course you want to save it." Joe snickered, and then, to her astonishment, he burst into a rude laugh and moved back among the lava ridges out of sight.
Harry watched him. He had shifted his hands quickly; nevertheless, she had caught a gleam of something. "His shotgun, of course," she decided. She felt oddly irritated by his impudent stare and laughter. What did he mean by saying "of course" she wanted to save the calf?