“I haven’t any. I started on foot and got lost.”

“From where?”

“From Mammoth.”

Sharply her keen eyes fixed him. How could a man have got lost near Mammoth and wandered here? He would have had to cross the range, and even a child would have known enough to turn back into the valley where the town lay.

“How long ago?”

“Day before yesterday.” He added after a moment: “I was looking for a job.”

She took in the soft hands and the unweathered skin of the dark face. “What sort of a job?”

“Anything I can do.”

“But what can you do?”

“I can ride.”