There was evidently a display of some little excitement amongst the Indians in the shed as we took our first steps along a well-marked track.
“They saw it, Mas’r Harry!” exclaimed Tom. “Look at ’em.”
I did not answer, for my eyes were glued to the track, which now showed plainly that a body had been dragged along through the tender herbage in a perfectly straight line; and I was not long in perceiving that the track went in the direction of the little wood where Lilla had had her terrible adventure with the snake.
The affair began to show now in blacker colours each moment; and I shuddered at last as I stopped short, and pointed to a plainly-to-be-seen smear upon a broad frond.
“Blood, Mas’r Harry!” exclaimed Tom hoarsely; and then I heard him mutter to himself—“Poor Mas’r Landell!”
We pushed on, to find the same track still; the heavy body that had been dragged over the young plantation growth leaving it bruised and broken beyond the elastic power of the plants to recover themselves. Two or three times the track made a sudden turn, as if he who made it had sought to avail himself of an inequality in the ground; and then, once more, it went right away for the forest, in whose depths it disappeared.
Twice more we had both shuddered as we observed the faint smears of blood upon some leaf; but there was a stern determination in my breast to see the adventure to the end; for I felt that it was to a great extent due to me that my uncle had been stricken down—for stricken down he must have been, I now felt sure.
Following Tom’s example, I drew and cocked a pistol; and then we pushed aside the foliage, which grew densely as soon as we had passed through the plantation, moving forward cautiously, and expecting to see an enemy spring up from every tuft of thick growth.
“Why, the trail goes right down where the snake went, Mas’r Harry!” cried Tom suddenly.
“Towards the river, Tom,” I said huskily; for it was now plain enough; and my heart seemed to stand still, and my breath to come in gasps, as my imagination conjured up horror after horror that must have befallen the free, generous hearted man who had ever given me so warm a welcome to his home.