when he ducked and whirled in his tracks. He ran,
and she could not stop him, pull hard as she might. If he had only
run towards home! But instead, he ran down the valley, because then he
need not face the wind; and he tried to outstrip the wind as he went.

It was when they topped a low knoll and darted under the wide,
writhing branches of a live oak, that Jack glimpsed them and gave
chase; and his heart forgot to beat until he saw them in the open
beyond, and knew that she had not been swept from the saddle by a
low branch. He leaned lower over Surry's neck and felt gratefully the
instant response of the horse; he had thought that Surry was running
his best on such uneven ground; but even a horse may call up an
unsuspected reserve of speed or endurance, if his whole heart is given
to the service of his master; there was a perceptible quickening and a
lengthening of stride, and Jack knew then that Surry could do no
more and keep his feet. Indeed, if he held that pace for long without
stumbling, he would prove himself a more remarkable horse than even
Dade declared him to be.

He hoped to overtake the girl soon, for in the glimpses he got of her
now and then, as she flew across an open space, he saw that she
was putting her whole weight upon the reins; and that should make a
sufficient handicap to the gray to wipe out the three-hundred-yard
distance between them. It did not seem possible that Tejon could be
running as fast as Surry; and yet, after a half-mile or so of that
killing pace, Jack could not see that he was gaining much. Perhaps it
was his anxiety to overtake her that made the chase seem interminable;
for presently they emerged upon the highway which led south to Santa
Clara and so on down the valley, and he saw, on a straight, open
stretch, that he was much nearer; so near he could see that her hair
was down and blowing about her face in a way that must have blinded
her at times.

Tejon showed no disposition to stop, however; and Jack, bethinking him
of the trick Dade had played upon the Vigilantes with his riata, threw
off the loop that held it. If he could get close enough, he meant
to lasso the horse unless she managed by that time to get him under
control. Now that they were in the road, Surry's stride was more even,
and although his breathing was becoming audible, he held his pace
wonderfully well--though for that matter, Tejon also seemed to be
running just as fast as at first, in spite of that stead