hould they warn you?" asked Colina.

"Some man among them probably has compunctions," said Strange.
"Watusk, the head man is a decent sort. Perhaps this is his way of
letting me know that he cannot keep his people in hand."

"What do you expect will happen?" she asked.

"I think there will be an attack to-night," he said quietly. "It is my
duty to tell you. If it doesn't come, no harm done."

Strange's quiet air was terribly impressive. Colina sat pale and
silent, letting the horror sink in. She was no weakling, but this was
a prospect to appal the strongest man.

"We are so helpless!" she murmured at last.

A spark, one would have said of satisfaction, shot from beneath
Strange's demurely lowered eyelids. "We cannot depend on our breeds,"
he went on soberly, "and Greer has gone over to the other side."

Colina winced.

"That leaves us four men and yourself and your father. If we had a
stone building we could snap our fingers at them but everything is of
wood. And fire is their favorite weapon. There are two courses open
to us. We can go before they come, or we can stay and defend
ourselves."

Colina stared before her, wide-eyed. "Father would never let us take
him away without an explanation," she murmured. "And if we told him
what we feared, he would flatly refuse to go--"

Strange maintained a discreet silence.

Colina suddenly flung up her head. "We stay here!" she cried.

Strange's dark eyes burned--but with what kind of a feeling Colina was
in no state to judge. "You're brave!" he cried. "That's what I wanted
you to say!"

"What must we do to prepare?"

"There is little we can do. We must abandon the store. There is no
way to defend it. Perhaps they will be satisfied with looting it. We
will all take up our station in the house. At the worst, I do not fear
any harm to any of us, except perhaps--"

"Father?" murmured Colina.

"They have been wrought up to a high pitch against him," Strange said
deprecatingly.

"Oh, why did that man have to come here!" murmured Colina.

They were silent for a while, Colina looking on the ground, and Strange
watching Colina with his peculiar limpid, candid eyes, which, when one
looked deep enough, were not candid at all.

He finally looked away from her.

"There is something I want to say," he began an low tones. "Your
father--he shall be my special care to-night. They can strike at
him--only through me."

"Ah, you're so good to me!"