earch the various passages where Eddie
thought it possible that Marian had turned aside. Bud saw that the trail
through was safe as any such trail could be, and he wondered at the
nerve and initiative of the girl and the boy who had explored the place
and found where certain queer twists and turns would lead. Afterwards he
learned that Marian was twelve and Eddie ten when first they had hidden
there from Indians, and they had been five years in finding where every
passage led. Also, in daytime the place was not so fearsome, since
sunlight slanted down into many a passageway through the blow-holes high
above.

"She ain't here. I knew she wasn't," Eddie announced when the final
tunnel let them into the graying light of dawn beyond the Peak.

"In that case--" Bud glanced from him to Jerry, who was blowing out his
lantern.

Jerry let down the globe carefully, at the same time glancing soberly
at Bud. "The kid knows better than we do what would happen if Lew met up
with her and Boise."

Eddie shook his head miserably, his eyes fixed helpessly upon Bud. "Lew
never, Mr. Birnie. I was with him every minute from dark till--till the
cashier, shot him. We come up the way I took you through the canyon. Lew
never knew she was gone any more than I did."

Jerry bit his lip. "Kid, what if the gang run acrost her, KNOWING Lew
was dead?" he grated. "And her on Boise? The word's out that Bud stole
Boise. Dave and the boys rode out to round him up--and they ain't done
it, so they're still riding--we'll hope. Kid, you know damn well your
gang would double-cross Dave in a minute, now Lew's killed. If they got
hold of the horse, do yuh think they'd turn him over to Dave?"

"No, you bet your life they wouldn't!" Eddie retorted.

"And what about HER?" Bud cut in with ominous calm. "She's your sister,
kid. Would you be worried if you knew they had HER and the horse?"

Eddie gulped and looked away. "They wouldn't hurt her unless they knew't
Lew was dead," he said. "And them that went to Crater was killed or
jailed, so--" He hesitated. "It looked to me like Anse was setting up
waiting for the bunch to get back from Crater. He--he's always jumpy
when they go off and stay, and it'd be just like him to set there and
wait till daylight. It looks to me, Mr. Birnie, like him and--and the
rest don't know yet that the Crater job was a fizzle. They wouldn't
think of such a thing as taking Sis, or Boise either, unless they knew
Lew was dead."

"A