e reached a country
offering limitless possibilities for eluding pursuit, or before he was
given such ample time to employ them--for Tusk, deficient as he was,
possessed a certain type of mentality capable of embarrassing any
bloodhound if given half a chance.

Yet even Tusk had been slow in getting started. He had caught Jane's
bridle to ask her when Brent was going to give him that hundred dollars.
Then Mac had dashed at him, and Jane had ridden at him. He had knocked
the horse down, then dropped his club to tear away the dog. Time after
time he had torn him from his legs and slammed him violently to the
ground, but each time Mac was back at him with greater fury; and at
last, when the airedale, not whipped but wise, dashed off on the trail
of his mistress to see that she met no other perils, Tusk sat down
cursing savagely. His legs were smarting from their wounds, and one
gash, deeper than the others, was bleeding freely; so he tore a strip
from his shirt and rudely bound it up. It felt better now and he arose,
knowing that both man and beast would soon be coming like a swift
pursuing vengeance.

This country at night offered no mysteries for Tusk, who traveled it as
confidently as he would have in the day. He even laughed as the thrill
of the chase tingled through his powerful frame; then plunged into the
wood and for an hour held a course due east.

His first halt was at the entrance of a tunnel-like formation in the
rock which opened out to the bank of a rushing stream. Here, on this
side, away from the noise of water, he must listen well. No sound, no
bay; nothing but the hoot of an owl somewhere in the black forest
reached his attentive ears. Yet an enemy would surely follow, and it
must be baffled before he could lie down in peace to sleep.

So passing through the natural tunnel he waded across the stream,
openly, without artifice, and followed up the opposite shore; purposely
leaving a trail so simple that dogs could not miss it, and men would
believe him unsuspicious of pursuit. Half a mile on, where it seemed the
obvious thing for one to do who might be making all speed to the nearest
county line, he recrossed. Several times he did this in the same simple
way, always heading east; but now the stream turned sharply north. He
knew that it would, and he had planned to leave it here, continuing
straight and boldly through the forest in order to emphasize the idea
that he was taking the shortest route to safe