agged echoes through
the shaft, had not brought back the others. Now she was trapped and
there was no conceivable possibility of escape. At the touch of
unclean fingers she had seen red and struck out--and the rest had
followed as an avalanche follows a slipping stone.

At last when the breathless stillness could no longer be borne, she
cautiously stooped and raked her hand back and forth until it came in
contact with a loose stone. She must force those silent antagonists to
some sort of action so she tossed the missile outward and as it struck
with a light clatter, a waiting pistol barked and Alexander's own
roared back at the tiny spurt of flame.

Instantly, too, three others spoke, aimed at her flash and she heard
the spatter of lead against stone nearby. In the confined space the
fusillade bellowed blatantly, and slowly diminishing echoes lingered
after the firing itself ceased. Then once more the silence which was
more trying than gunnery settled.

Slowly an idea dawned in the girl's mind, and strengthened into
conviction. If the main group who had trailed out with torches had
been anywhere nearby, that crescendo of noise must have recalled them
in hot haste. That they had not come back must indicate that they had
never meant to return. They had permanently departed, leaving her in
the hands of a quartette selected as a robbing party, and an execution
squad. With that realization the matter resolved itself into a new
phase. She would eventually be murdered here in this rat-hole unless
she could, one by one, shoot to death the four unseen men who were her
companions there. Four enemies stood between herself and freedom--and
four cartridges were left in her weapon.

At last she crept cautiously out and made her tedious way to the center
of the place again. She must do something and the audacious plan born
of necessity involved the need of a light. If her hand felt flesh
instead, her pistol was ready.

But after much noiseless groping she came upon the overturned lantern
and she had encountered nothing else.

Back in the lee of the rock she boldly struck a match, kindled the
wick--and still as she reached up and set the thing on the boulder's
top the unbroken silence held.

She had hoped to draw their fire and account for some of them at least,
but now as she peeped cautiously out she found to her astonishment that
except for herself the cavern was empty.

She also became sure of another thing.