now that he's there, and he knows that
I'm here. The first part of our task is done."

A yell of rage and disappointment came from the valley below. It was so
fierce that the air seemed to pulse with angry waves.

"What's the matter down there, I wonder," exclaimed Paul.

"Before I could get in here," replied Henry, "I had to choke the breath
out of one of their best warriors. I fancy he has just come to and has
told the others."

Then the war cry died away and there was nothing but the shriek of the
wind that drove drops of rain into the opening.

"How long have you been besieged here?" asked Henry.

"Today and tonight," replied Paul. "Either they struck our trail or some
one of them may have been in this grotto once. At any rate a band
started up here and we were compelled to fire into 'em. That's our
history, since. What have you seen?"

"The main army has gone south with the cannon, but Red Eagle, Braxton
Wyatt and Blackstaffe are here. If they can't rush us they'll at least
hold us three or four days, or try mighty hard. But I want a drink of
water I hear trickling over there. I'm thirsty from all the crawling and
creeping I've done."

He knelt and drank deep at the pure little stream.

"Now, Henry," said Silent Tom, "sence you've come I reckon you're mighty
tired. You've been trampin' about in the woods a heap. So jest stretch
out an' go to sleep while we watch."

"I don't mind if I do," replied Henry, who at last was beginning to feel
the effects of his immense exertions. "How are you fellows fixed for
food?"

"This ain't no banquet hall an' we ain't settin' dinners fur kings,"
replied Long Jim, "but we've got enough to last a good while. Afore they
found out we wuz here Tom went out one night an' killed a deer an'
brought him in. While he wuz gone I took the trouble to gather some
wood, which is in the back part uv the place, but 'cause o' smoke an'
sech we ain't lighted any fire, an' no part of the deer hez been
cooked."

"I brought a big piece of bear myself," said Henry, unhooking it from
his back, "and it was cooked by an Indian, the best cook in all these
woods except you, Jim. He wasn't willing for me to take it, but here it
is."

Long Jim deposited it carefully in a corner and covered it with leaves.

"Ef people always brought somethin' when they come visitin'," he said,
"they'd shorely be welcome ez you are, Henry."

But before he lay down Henry listened a while at the fortress mouth,