"It is enough. Sassacus is a great chief, and my brother will obey him for one night."
"In all things, save deserting thee."
"Let my brother come, then," said the chief; "the arrows of the Taranteens shall pierce my bosom before they reach his."
The two now returned together, and upon re-entering the wigwam, Sassacus again invited Arundel to repose, but not before he had removed the skins on which his guest had been lying, into the back part of the lodge, while he made his own couch near the entrance. Determined to see the adventure, if there was to be one, to its termination, Arundel laid himself down to wait for what should happen, while the chief stretched himself out, with his face to the opening. Some brands were smouldering in the ashes, and they threw an obscure light into the wigwam.
As they were thus lying, Arundel thought that he could hear once in a while a faint rustling, but whence it proceeded he was unable, with all his attention, to discover, and at last concluded it was caused by the wind among dry leaves.
He had now become so accustomed to this state of things, that the anxieties which he felt in the first part of the night were gone, and he began to fancy that the expectation of Sassacus was unfounded. The face of the chief was turned away, so that it was impossible to determine whether he were sleeping or not; from the manner of his breathing, however, Arundel judged that he was awake. But suddenly the respirations became long and deep, and he exhibited the indications of a profound slumber. An instant afterwards Arundel, whose eyes were constantly turned to the opening, beheld the face of an Indian peering in. His first impulse was to cry out, but before he could make a sound, he saw a naked arm emerge from behind some skins which hung from the upper part of the lodge quite down to the ground, and bury a tomahawk in the head of the intruder, who fell dead upon the spot. At the same instant, the dreadful war-whoop rung through the air, and the chief leaping to his feet, and accompanied by the warrior, who had been concealed, the two sprung into the open space in front. Arundel too, hastened after them. In the star-light no objects were clearly discernible, but dark figures could be dimly seen, engaged in hand to hand contests, and the cracking of dry branches under trampling feet could be heard. These sounds were mingled with thick panting breaths, and occasionally the fall of a body on the ground. They lasted but a few moments, and then a silence succeeded, as deep as if no living thing were in the forest. As the eyes of Arundel became more accustomed to the darkness, he beheld a tall form near by, which he recognized for that of Sassacus, and immediately approached him.
The chief was standing near the body of a huge Indian, who was lying prostrate on the earth. He was in the last agonies of death, and while Arundel was looking on, the sinewy limbs quivered into immobility. Nor had Sassacus escaped without a wound. The blood was streaming from a gash in his side, indistinctly seen by light from the fire, but he paid no heed to it, and the result proved it not to be dangerous.
When the dusky warrior had breathed his last, the chief uttered a peculiar cry, and immediately half a dozen stalwart men, several of whom had each a fresh scalp hanging at his girdle, surrounded him. He addressed them in their own language, and from his gestures, and the looks of his companions, Arundel supposed that he was speaking of him. He next pointed to the dead body, and seemed to be giving orders concerning it. One of the Indians stooped down, and with his knife made a motion as if to take off the scalp, but being rebuked by the chief, he desisted, and then lent his assistance to two others in bearing away the corpse. Arundel had the curiosity to follow. The three bore the body to the bank of the river, where, binding it with withes to several large limbs of trees, they thrust it into the stream, and left it to find its way to the ocean. A few earnest words, unintelligible to the young man, were on their return spoken by Sassacus, who had meanwhile had a styptic applied to his wound. When he had finished speaking, the Indians dispersed in various directions in the depths of the dark wood, and the chief beckoning to his friend, they entered the wigwam, and disposed themselves to sleep, which delayed not long to close their eye-lids.
CHAPTER XIV.
They spake not a word,