"No, I do not believe it," declared Red Dog. "They saw that we were not strong enough to fight them. They do not expect any one to follow them."
"They cannot keep running those ponies," White Otter told them. "They must stop to rest."
At dawn White Otter became more cautious. He stopped the war party and made known his plans.
"The light has come, we must look for the Pawnees," he said. "I am going to send out some scouts to find the tracks of those ponies. I will send Sun Bird, and Little Raven, and High Eagle. Now, Red Dog, you must send three of your people with my brothers."
"It is good," said Red Dog. "I will send Running Crow, and Painted Weasel and Standing Bull."
"Now, my brothers, I will tell you what to do," said White Otter. "I will ask Sun Bird and Little Raven to go ahead. I will ask the rest of you to ride out on both sides of us. Look hard until you find the tracks of those ponies. I believe they are close by. If you find them, make the signal. We will keep watching. If we find those tracks, we will make the signal. Perhaps scouts are watching on the high places. Look out for them."
The six scouts went away. Then the war party rode ahead. Eager to prevent the Pawnees from increasing their lead, they rode at a stiff pace. It was not long before they saw Standing Bull riding rapidly in a circle, some distance to the westward.
"It is good," said White Otter. "Standing Bull has found the tracks. We will go over there."
Standing Bull and Painted Weasel had found the trail of the Pawnees. A close examination of the tracks convinced White Otter that the Pawnees were traveling at a moderate pace.
"They made those tracks before the last sun went away," he said.