lines in his
face and his eyes were haggard. He recognized his injustice in
subjecting his friends to the dangers of jungle travel, especially when
their number was so small; but Dylara meant everything to him and he
could not give her up without a struggle.

"I beg of you," Tamar persisted; "give up the search that we may turn
about and rejoin the others. We are not equipped to follow this trail
all the way back to Sephar. Already we have lost two of our men--one of
them the only man among us who was qualified to track her down. For all
we know she may be dead--the victim of one of the numerous cats
infesting this section of the country."

"You may return if you like," snapped Jotan, stung by that last remark.
"I am going on--alone if necessary! Oh, I know why you want to call it
off," he went on, scowling. "You never had any use for her because she
is a girl of the caves instead of a nobleman's daughter. But whether you
like it or not, Dylara is the only woman I shall ever love and I am
going to find her--or give my life in the attempt."

Tamar, hearing, knew his friend meant exactly what he said. It was
useless to plead with him on the basis of not being able to pick up her
trail. But there was another way--and he bored into it, playing it up
for all it was worth.

"Your life is your own, Jotan," he said stiffly. "But do you have the
right to sacrifice the lives of the rest of us in a quest that is
completely hopeless? If we had found anything to indicate we were on the
right trail I would not for an instant try to dissuade you. It is true I
do not think the girl worthy of your love--but that is not important.
You do love her and I would fight against the world in defense of your
choice."

"But to go on this way without a single lead to show us we have even the
faintest chance for success, to throw away the lives of these three
men--and our own--is rank folly! Perhaps you regard it as some sort of
admirable determination; in truth it is sheer stubbornness."

For a long time Jotan sat there staring with unseeing eyes at the
sluggishly moving waters of the tiny river. There was no denying the
truth in Tamar's words. He knew his best friend meant every word of his
statement that he would back Jotan's choice of a mate against a world;
he had proved that back in Sephar by saving Dylara's life by a bit of
quick thinking, when he might as easily have let a plot against her go
on to its inevitable end. Equally as unde