The boy's shout of triumph mingled with Star's squeal of delight as out of the darkness rode Quannah on Running Deer, while back of the chief dashed the rest of the warriors.
Circling about the white horses the Comanches urged them rapidly over the low rolling hills until they were completely hidden in thick undergrowth, where they halted.
The white horses showed plainly how hard the pace had been, for they stood with heads hanging low, their sides drawn and nostrils dilating rapidly. Many of them lost no time in lying down where they stood, without even seeking a comfortable soft spot.
"They tire easily," Star said to his mother who was near him. "Hawk and I could have left them far behind and it would not have made us puff like these white ponies. They must belong to squaws and children. They are too fat and too slow for fighting men."
"No herd can run as fast as the ponies of the Quahadas," replied his mother. "Come, lie down and rest while there is time. When we are out with the warriors it is our duty to rest and feed whenever we have time, for when we travel we cannot tell when we will stop. Only Quannah knows that."
Star glanced at the warriors who sat on the ground and talked together, while still others, on their ponies, guarded the captured white animals. Two days and a night of fast travelling made Star feel that he had earned a good rest, so he slipped to the ground and soon was fast asleep.
But in his dream he was racing again. This time he was trying to reach Songbird who was calling to him that the white men were taking her away, as they had taken Quannah's mother and sister, so that she could never come back again to her people. He was running faster than any Comanche pony had ever run before—twice as fast as Running Deer could run, for he thought she was trying now to keep pace with him and was falling behind. Only the storm wind could travel that fast. Star found that no matter how swiftly he raced Songbird was always beyond him. He could not see her, but her voice came back to him.
"I am coming," he whinnied shrilly.
Her voice grew more faint and at last it ceased altogether while he whinnied despairingly, hoping to hear her answer.
Then he felt his mother touch him, and opened his eyes to see her lying beside him.