throw off his blanket, for some
minutes, and then roused himself with a jerk. He imagined he heard
voices out on the lake. He glanced at Father Lucien, but the latter was
fast asleep. Thirlwell wondered whether he himself had gone to sleep
again and dreamed, but half-consciously fixed his eyes on the opening
that commanded a view of the lake. He could see it indistinctly; a
smooth white plain running back into the dark. The snow caught a faint
reflection although the moon was hidden, but nothing broke the even
surface.

Then Thirlwell got up abruptly, for he heard a shout. It sounded as if
somebody had given an order, and he felt disturbed. There was, he knew,
no ground for this. The few white trappers and prospectors who now and
then entered the wilds were, for the most part, good-humored, sociable
men; the _Metis_ and Indians were friendly. Indeed, the proper line was
for him to invite the strangers to share his camp, but he hesitated. He
had got suspicious since he promised to help in the search for Strange's
silver, and trappers and Indians did not travel at night.

As he pondered the matter, a dark object came out of the misty
background on the lake. It was indistinct, but by its height and slow
movements he knew it was a man. It vanished presently where the pines
cut off his view, but three others followed after an interval, two
apparently hauling a loaded sledge. They crossed the stretch of ice that
Thirlwell could see, and when the trees shut them out he forgot to
gather wood and lighted his pipe.

The hazy figures had an unsubstantial, ghostly look; he might have
imagined he had not really seen them had he not heard the leader's
shout. Then it was hard to see why they were traveling in the dark,
since they must leave the ice soon and the trail was rough. He thought
their leader knew the country, because their coming down the lake
indicated that they had taken a short but difficult line from the
settlements. But one would expect a man who knew the country to make for
and stop at the mine, which was not far off. Thirlwell hoped to reach it
next day, and wondered whether the others meant to pass it at night. If
so, it would indicate that they did not want to be seen.

When he had smoked out his pipe he gathered some wood, and then, as
Father Lucien had not wakened, thought he would look for the others'
trail and see which way they had gone. They were traveling north, but
two routes the Indians used started fro