He wondered if a war party of Shawnees had slipped from the camp during the night, and turned eastward to intercept the Delawares when they left the ridge. The possibility caused him great uneasiness. He knew that if a large company of Shawnees were scouting about the vicinity it would be difficult to avoid them. Then the lynx cry was repeated on their right.
"It is bad," said Crooked Foot. "We are running into a trap."
"The Shawnees are trying to get ahead of us," declared Painted Hawk. "If they turn us back their friends will come up behind us."
"We will watch out," said Running Fox.
They advanced more cautiously. Convinced that a force of their foes was somewhere in the vicinity, they feared blundering into an ambush. Running Fox believed that the Shawnees had separated into several companies, and he realized that it would be difficult to avoid them. The day passed without an encounter, however, and as darkness fell the Delawares felt encouraged. They had reached the wooded ravine where they had spent a night on their way to the Shawnee village. Fearful that Spotted Deer would be unable to continue traveling through the night, Running Fox determined to remain there until daylight.
"We have seen nothing of the Shawnees," he said. "We have come fast. We will rest here until it gets light."
"No, no," cried Spotted Deer. "Running Fox, I see that you are trying to make it easy for me. I will not listen to your words. We must keep going. If we stop here, the Shawnees will come up with us. Perhaps some of you will be killed. Come, my friends, listen to my words. I will keep going."
"Spotted Deer, you are a great warrior," Running Fox told him. "You are as strong as Machque, the bear, and as brave as fierce Quenischquney, the panther."
"Listen," cautioned Yellow Wolf.
The call of Gokhos, the owl, sounded a short distance away. It carried a sinister warning to the Delawares. Their mad flight seemed to have been in vain. The Shawnees were close behind them. There was not a moment to lose.