ly ended with placing her in a safe environment, and he felt
convinced that Mrs. Murphy, of the Occidental Hotel, would furnish room,
and, if necessary, companionship. The sole problem remaining--after she
had rather listlessly agreed to such an arrangement--was to so plan the
details as to permit the negro and himself to slip through the small
town clustered about the post without attracting undue attention. No
doubt, the story of their escape had already reached there, embellished
by telling, and serious trouble might result from discovery. Keith was
surprised at the slight interest she exhibited in these arrangements,
merely signifying her acquiescence by a word, but he charged it to
physical weariness, and the reaction from her night of peril; yet he
took pains to explain fully his plan, and to gain her consent.

This finally settled, they mounted again and rode on through the lanes
traversing the sand dunes, keeping headed as straight as possible toward
the river. The ford sought was some miles down stream, but with the
horses' thirst mitigated, they made excellent progress, and arrived at
the spot early in the evening. Not in all the day had they encountered
a living object, or seen a moving thing amid the surrounding desolation.
Now, looking across to the north, a few gleaming lights told of Fort
Larned perched upon the opposite bluffs.

Chapter XIV. The Landlady of the Occidentals

Keith had crossed at this point so frequently with cattle that, once
having his bearings, the blackness of the night made very little
difference. Nevertheless, in fear lest her pony might stumble over some
irregularity, he gave his own rein to Neb, and went forward on foot,
grasping firmly the tired animal's bit. It was a long stretch of sand
and water extending from bank to bank, but the latter was shallow, the
only danger being that of straying off from the more solid bottom into
quicksand. With a towering cottonwood as guide, oddly misshapen and
standing out gauntly against the slightly lighter sky, the plainsman led
on unhesitatingly, until they began to climb the rather sharp uplift of
the north bank. Here there was a plain trail, pounded into smoothness by
the hoofs of cavalry horses ridden down to water, and at the summit they
emerged within fifty yards of the stables.

The few lights visible, some stationary, with others dancing about
like will-o'-the-wisps, revealed imperfectly the contour of various
buildings, b