Mrs. Gordon, who had listened, said, quietly: "Don't blame Curtis for that. That bloody affray at Beaver Canyon has made Cortez bitter against every one connected with the Heidlemanns."
"What about this blackmail?" said her husband, upon whose ear the word had made a welcome impression. "I don't understand what you mean by O'Neil's 'saving' the North Pass and his own road at the same time—nor Illis's being in hiding."
"Neither do I." Natalie confessed, "but I know you have made a mistake that ought to be set right."
"Why doesn't he come out with the truth?"
"The whole thing is secret."
"Why?"
Natalie shrugged hopelessly, and Gordon lost himself in frowning thought.
"This is amazing," he said, brusquely, after a moment. "It's vital. It affects all my plans. I must know everything at once."
"I'm sorry I paid so little attention."
"Never mind; try it again and be diplomatic. If O'Neil won't tell you, question Appleton—you can wind him around your fingers easily enough."