FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   >>  
in her face when they had been confronted by great danger, and as his fingers worked swiftly in refilling the magazine of his rifle he saw it there again. It was not fear, even now. It was a more wonderful thing than that. Her wide-open eyes glowed with a strange, dark luster; in the center of each of her cheeks was a vivid spot of color, and her lips were parted slightly, so that he caught the faintest gleam of her teeth. Wonderful as a fragile flower she stood there with her eyes upon him, her splendid courage and her faith in him flaming within her like a fire. And then he heard Anderson's voice: "They're behind the ridge. We got eight of them." In half a dozen places Philip had seen where bullets had bored the way through the cabin, and leaning his gun against the wall, he sprang to Celie and almost carried her behind the bunk that was built against the logs. "You must stay here," he cried. "Do you understand! HERE!" She nodded, and smiled. It was a wonderful smile--a flash of tenderness telling him that she knew what he was saying, and that she would obey him. She made no effort to detain him with her hands, but in that moment--if life had been the forfeit--Philip would have stolen the precious time in which to take her in his arms. For a space he held her close to him, his lips crushed to hers, and faced the wall again with the throb of her soft breast still beating against his heart. He noticed Armin standing near the door, his hand resting on a huge club which, in turn, rested on the floor. Calmly he was waiting for the final rush. Olaf was peering through the gun-hole again. And then came what he had expected--a rattle of fire from the snow-ridge. The PIT-PIT-PIT of bullets rained against the cabin in a dull tattoo. Through the door came a bullet, sending a splinter close to Armin's face. Almost in the same instant a second followed it, and a third came through the crevice so close to Philip that he felt the hissing breath of it in his face. One of the dogs emitted a wailing howl and flopped among its comrades in uncanny convulsions. Olaf staggered back, and faced Philip. There was no trace of the fighting grin in his face now. It was set like an iron mask. "GET DOWN!" he shouted. "Do you hear, GET DOWN!" He dropped on his knees, crying out the warning to Armin in the other's language. "They've got enough guns to make a sieve of this kennel if their ammunition holds out--and the lower logs are he
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   >>  



Top keywords:
Philip
 

bullets

 

wonderful

 
Calmly
 

rested

 

expected

 

warning

 

rattle

 

peering

 

language


waiting

 
breast
 

beating

 
crushed
 
ammunition
 

resting

 

noticed

 

kennel

 

standing

 

breath


fighting

 

hissing

 

crevice

 

emitted

 

uncanny

 
convulsions
 

staggered

 

comrades

 

wailing

 

flopped


rained

 

shouted

 
tattoo
 

dropped

 

Through

 

bullet

 

instant

 

sending

 

splinter

 

Almost


crying
 
smiled
 

parted

 

slightly

 

caught

 
faintest
 

center

 
cheeks
 
courage
 

flaming