"Miss Madge," he said, after a pause, during which he had smoked in
silence, "if it is all the same to you, I'd like to know what you intend
to do with me to-night. I'm an old man, and I'm sorter 'customed to
going to bed rayther early, so, if you don't mind, and you'll tell me
where I'm to sleep, I think I'll turn in."

Instead of replying directly to him, Madge turned to Handsome.

"What shall we do with him?" she asked. "You are responsible for his
being here. I think I will turn him over to you."

"All right," said Handsome, rising. "I'll take him to my own cabin.
He'll be safe enough there. I'll be back in a minute, Madge."

Nick followed him across the floor of the little valley to a hut that
was at the opposite side of it, and close to the cliff--and Nick knew at
once, from his recollection of the plan he had studied, that he was
quite near to the entrance to the cavern.

The cabin consisted of only one room, in which two bunks had been
roughly built, and, after lighting a candle, Handsome indicated one of
these, and said:

"You can sleep there, Turner. Turn in when you like. To-morrow we will
explore the caves together."

"Right you are," said Nick, yawning widely. "I shan't need any rocking
this night. My old legs are tired out for sure."

Two minutes after the departure of Handsome, Nick blew out the candle,
and for a time he stretched himself in the bunk, lest Handsome should
return to see that all was right. But it was speedily evident to the
detective that Handsome had no suspicion whatever of him, and had,
therefore, left him to his own devices.

But Nick knew that it could not be very long before the outlaw would
return to seek his own rest and repose, and that he must, therefore,
determine upon what he was to do before he should return.

Ten minutes he lay there, and then he rose slowly and cautiously from
the bunk and crept to the door which had been left open, and peered out.

The fires were still blazing merrily, and many of the men were gathered
around them. Some of the men were playing cards, and the others were
engaged in various ways. At all events, they one and all seemed to have
forgotten his existence, and that was what he chiefly desired.

Nick knew in which cabin Patsy was a prisoner. He could see it from the
doorway where he was standing, almost opposite him at the other side of
the valley. The distance in feet from his own position was about the
distance of a city block--two