“We’re goin’ with you,” Farley returned coolly.
“You cannot,” Ross said firmly. “Take the dog and return to the fort.”
But Joe and the Wyandot stubbornly shook their heads; and Duke, dropping upon his haunches, looked appealingly into his master’s face.
“Take Duke and go back to the fortification,” Ross repeated, with difficulty repressing a smile at the childlike pertinacity of his friends.
“We ain’t a-goin’ back,” Farley answered sullenly.
“Ugh! No go back—go with Fleet Foot,” the Indian muttered.
“Why?” the young man asked impatiently.
“You may need us,” Farley explained. “We don’t over an’ above like the company you’re keepin’.”—With a jerk of his thumb toward John Douglas.
Ross dropped his eyes to the ground. His face flushed hotly. He was in a quandary; he did not know what to do or say.
The soldiers had launched a boat, and were scrambling into it.