ns of adding to that fear, he made a little half-spring toward
the girl.

Voicing a half-mad sob of absolute despair, Alurna sank to her knees and
closed her eyes to wait for a horrible death.

There followed an agonizing few moments of silence. Why did death delay?
Alurna fought to keep her eyes tight shut; but terror plucked at the
lids, forcing them open. Hardly more than a yard away was the cat's
sleek, savage head!

[Illustration: A rope hissed through the air and Tarlok reared high]

And then something hissed through the air between the girl and the
beast. Emitting a shrill scream of surprise and anger, Tarlok reared
high above the kneeling figure. That awful sound was more than Alurna's
taut nerves could withstand, and she toppled forward into merciful
unconsciousness....

* * * * *

Her next conscious sensation was that of flying, and she shuddered,
believing it the brief delirium preceding death. But as the floating
feeling endured, she slowly opened her eyes and saw that she was being
borne through the forest top in the arms of a half naked man.

"The leopard?" she said weakly. "What happened? How--"

A slight smile touched the man's strong, finely-shaped lips, lighting up
his handsome, tanned face. "Tarlok is dead," he said. "It was very
close; my rope caught him just in time."

He halted and placed her in a sitting position on a strong branch, then
sat down beside her. "I was beginning to think you would never open your
eyes again," he continued. "We have come a long way since I picked you
up in the trail."

Alurna was staring intently at him as he talked. "I have seen you
somewhere, before."

Again the man smiled. "Yes," he said. "You have seen me before. It was
only a few nights ago that I entered your room while the palace guards
were hunting me."

"Of course!" Alurna exclaimed. "I remember. But you were caught and
sentenced to the Games. Have you escaped from Sephar? And how did you
happen to find me?" She broke off, laughing. "Not that I'm sorry you
_did_ find me. If you hadn't--" She shivered, leaving the sentence
unfinished.

"Your father sent me to take you from the Hairy Ones," Tharn explained.
"It was Katon's idea."

Whereupon he told of the agreement reached during his talk with Urim.
The princess was secretly elated by one particular provision of the
pact--the promised return of the Cro-Magnard girl to this man for
succeeding in his mission. With