ot make that mistake again. The gleam in his eyes revealed
that.

Harlan, too, divined what had happened. Purgatory was in the
stable--which was farther from the ranchhouse than the corral. And though
Harlan moved swiftly Morgan was already on his horse and racing toward
the timber when Purgatory emerged from the stable, saddled and bridled.

Harlan noted that Morgan had not stopped to saddle his horse, and that
omission revealed the man's intense desire for haste. Harlan, however,
headed Purgatory into the timber, but he was more than half a mile behind
Morgan when he reached the main trail.

He saw Morgan riding the trail that led up the valley, and he set out
after him, giving the big black horse the rein. He divined that Morgan
suspected Haydon had ridden in that direction; and while Harlan had never
seen the Cache, he had heard the Star men speak of it, and he had noticed
that when setting out for it they had always traveled the trail Morgan
was traveling. Therefore, it was evident that Morgan thought Haydon had
gone to the Cache. In that case he depended upon Deveny to assist him--if
Morgan followed; and Harlan was determined to see the incident through.

He sent Purgatory ahead at a good pace, but he noted soon that Morgan was
increasing the distance between them. He began to urge Purgatory forward,
and gradually the distance between the two riders grew shorter.

Both were traveling rapidly, however, and it seemed to Harlan that they
had not gone more than three or four miles when--watching Morgan closely,
he saw him ride pell-mell into some timber that--apparently--fringed the
front of a cave.

It was some time before Harlan reached the timber, and when he did he
could not immediately discover the spot into which Morgan had ridden.
When he did discover it he rode Purgatory through, and found himself in a
narrow gorge.

He raced Purgatory through the gorge, and out of it to the sloping side
of a little basin.

He saw a house near the center of the basin--and Morgan riding close to
it.

The distance to the house was not great--not more than a quarter of a
mile, it seemed; and Harlan felt some wonder that Morgan--who had been
quite a little in advance of him--had not reached the house sooner. That
mystery was explained to him almost instantly, though, when he saw that
Morgan's horse was walking, going forward with a pronounced limp.
Evidently Morgan had met with an accident.

Harlan was riding across th