But most she thought of the fate of her lover, whose body, as she believed, had been left in that gully in the midst of the burned grasslands.
What the future held for her she shuddered to think, but she knew that death would be preferable to continued captivity with these savages.
The Blackfeet watched the shores of the stream and the cañon a while, and also stationed warriors on the tops of the hills to report the approach of any one. They were waiting the arrival of Crazy Snake.
When he did not come as soon as anticipated, they made hasty preparations for departure, intending to ride farther down the stream to the Indian village. The white prisoner was to be placed there, and there were other reasons which now induced them to make this retreat. So far, no white men had been sighted by them.
Lena Forest had been anxiously hoping to learn that white men were coming, but her hope of that died away when she was placed on the back of a pony and was again borne away.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE WILD RANGE RIDERS.
The men whom old Nick Nomad gathered about him in the town were a wild-looking lot, yet typical of the border, particularly in the old days when Nomad was younger and was noted as one of the most fiery of the frontier Indian fighters.
Luck favored him, for there had come into the town of Crystal Spring, at the base of the mountains, a band of old-time bordermen, hunters, trappers, and wild-horse catchers, with whom he was personally acquainted.
It had been Nomad’s intention to pick up a company of men in the town, merchants, clerks, school teachers, stage drivers, bartenders, gamblers, anything he could get, even though he had small faith in the fighting spirit of a company thus collected.
But that intention was set aside when he saw Lawler and his wild range riders; and when they enrolled under him, as they did as soon as they understood his need and heard his appeal, the confidence of the old trapper rose many degrees.