A smile which was more brave than merry was on John’s face, but Ree’s brow was wrinkled by deep thought.
“There’s a chance that Fishing Bird has stretched this thing—that it’s not half as bad as he makes out,” Kingdom returned at last. “But the worst of it is, we don’t know. Hang it all, why did he have to rush off so after telling just enough to make us want to know more? Yet we’ve got to give him credit for what he has done, and the only safe thing is to take full account of all he said,—take full account of all of-it till we find out just what it’s worth, at least.”
“What d’ye say to going across to their town and finding out just what that Seneca’s up to, Ree? Pretend, of course, that we haven’t heard a thing unusual; just dropped in to look at the Festival and say ‘howdy.’”
But Kingdom shook his head to this proposal at once.
“If there’s going to be trouble it will catch us soon enough without our setting out to hunt it,” he said. “Fishing Bird was in dead earnest and afraid lest he be caught or suspected of giving warning. That’s the reason he left so quickly. No, John, the thing for us to do is to make tracks in good order toward the little log house and keep our eyes open every minute.”
“And I killed Big Buffalo—just to think that I killed that ugly, prowling, malicious old rascal! Faith, ’twould make me laugh if—if—”
John’s musing exclamation was unfinished. With a swift stroke of the paddle Kingdom sent the canoe sweeping through the water with sudden liveliness and the lad who, under the name of “Little Paleface,” must answer to the charge of witchcraft, could only seize a paddle, also, to use as a rudder and likewise assist in hurrying the light bark craft onward.
Heading into a long arm of the lake extending northward, the boys touched shore at last at a little point of high ground which projected through the mass of rank grass, reeds and bushes bordering the water at this point, and continued on foot among trees and underbrush. Kingdom shouldered the canoe while John carried their rifle, paddles and goodly string of fish.
There was not much opportunity to talk and each lad was busy with his own thoughts. However, when after a long walk overland they reached a considerable’ stream, by the aid of which they could complete their journey in the more comfortable manner the canoe afforded them, John was not long in breaking the silence.
“Ree,” he said, with rather more earnestness and show of temper than was usual with him, “I shouldn’t be surprised if they come for me tonight. Confound the ignorant beasts!”