t. It is drier than the earth, and, for the
forepart of the night at least, will be warmer." With a strong arm about
her shoulders he drew her into a sitting posture.

Her eyes were becoming accustomed to the darkness. "What's wrong with my
foot?" she demanded. "My boot's off."

"I'm afraid you turned your ankle getting free from your stirrup," he
explained. "I had to do a little surgery. I could find nothing broken.
It will be painful, but I fear there is nothing to do but bear it."

She reached down and felt her foot. It was neatly bandaged with cloth
very much like that which she had used to blindfold Quiver. It was easy
to surmise where it came from. Evidently her protector had stopped at
nothing.

"Well, are we to stay here permanently?" she asked, presently.

"Only for the night," he told her. "If we're lucky, not that long.
Search parties will be hunting for you, and they will doubtless ride
this way. Both of our horses bolted in the fire--"

"Oh yes, the fire! Tell me what happened."

He hesitated.

"I remember riding into the fire," she continued, "and then next thing I
was on this rock. How did it all happen?"

"Your horse fell," he explained, "just as you reached the fire, and
threw you, pretty heavily, to the ground. I was behind, so I dismounted
and dragged you through."

"Oh!" She felt her face. "But I am not even singed!" she exclaimed.

It was plain that he was holding something back. She turned and laid her
fingers on his arm. "Tell me how you did it," she pressed.

The darkness hid his modest confusion. "It was really nothing," he
stammered. "You see, I had a leather coat, and I just threw it over your
head--and mine--and dragged you out."

She was silent for a moment while the meaning of his words came home to
her. Then she placed her hand frankly in his.

"Thank you," she said, and even in the darkness she knew that their eyes
had met.

"You are very resourceful," she continued presently. "Must we sit here
all night?"

"I can think of no alternative," he confessed. "If we had fire-arms
we could shoot a signal, or if there were grass about we could start a
fire, although it probably would not be noticed with so many glows on
the horizon to-night." He stopped to look about. Dull splashes of red
in the sky pointed out remnants of the day's conflagration still eating
their way through the foothills. The air was full of the pungent but not
unpleasant smell of burnt grass.

"A pretty