"And so," said the voyageur with a note of exultation in his voice, "Godin got revenge on those men who had killed his father."
For a moment his listeners were silent, suffering from a sense of bewilderment, not so much at the story, as at Zavier's evident approval of Godin's act.
It was Susan who first said in a low tone, "What an awful thing to do!" This loosened Bella's tongue, who lying in the opening of her tent had been listening and now felt emboldened to express her opinion, especially as Glen, stretched on his face nearby, had emitted a snort of indignation.
"Well, of all the wicked things I've heard since I came out here that's the worst."
Zavier shot a glance at them in which for one unguarded moment, race antagonism gleamed.
"Why is it wicked?" he said gently.
David answered heatedly, the words bursting out:
"Why, the treachery of it, the meanness. The chief carried the pipe of peace. That's like our flag of truce. You never heard of any civilized man shooting another under the flag of truce."
Zavier looked stolid. It was impossible to tell whether he comprehended their point of view and pretended ignorance, or whether he was so restricted to his own that he could see no other.
"The Blackfeet had killed his father," he answered. "They were treacherous too. Should he wait to be murdered? It was his chance and he took it."