“That’s why you kept pestering me about my folks and friends?”
“Zactly. Trying to catch you in a lie, but you rung true. Now, this is what we must do. I’ll jump this feller and git the drop. You ties his hands behind him when I give the word. We’ll take him through to Massie’s. If he’s all right he won’t feel hard for the way we’ve used him. If he’s a bad one Massie’s men will settle him.”
The plan repelled Knight, but he could think of nothing better. He bowed his head in agreement.
Kinsty stirred uneasily and whispered:
“We got to have light. He could kill both of us in this darkness. Light to see to work by.”
He tore the cover off the fire-hole and threw in dry branches and piled on dead limbs until he had a companionable blaze which brightly lighted the small opening where they had camped. In a short time careless steps sounded in the woods and soon Daniels burst through into the light and harshly demanded:
“What be you trying to do? Call down on us all the northwest tribes?”
“No danger,” replied Kinsty. “Younker was in a bad way along of the darkness.”
Daniels squatted on his heels, his rifle on the ground beside him. On the opposite side of the fire Kinsty sat cross-legged, his rifle across his knees.