and," said Duane, easily.

"It's good enough," replied Bland, shortly. "Will you consider the
idea?"

"I'll think it over. Good night."

He left the group, followed by Euchre. When they reached the end of the
lane, and before they had exchanged a word, Bland called Euchre back.
Duane proceeded slowly along the moonlit road to the cabin and sat down
under the cottonwoods to wait for Euchre. The night was intense and
quiet, a low hum of insects giving the effect of a congestion of life.
The beauty of the soaring moon, the ebony canons of shadow under the
mountain, the melancholy serenity of the perfect night, made Duane
shudder in the realization of how far aloof he now was from enjoyment of
these things. Never again so long as he lived could he be natural. His
mind was clouded. His eye and ear henceforth must register impressions
of nature, but the joy of them had fled.

Still, as he sat there with a foreboding of more and darker work ahead
of him there was yet a strange sweetness left to him, and it lay in
thought of Jennie. The pressure of her cold little hands lingered in
his. He did not think of her as a woman, and he did not analyze his
feelings. He just had vague, dreamy thoughts and imaginations that were
interspersed in the constant and stern revolving of plans to save her.

A shuffling step roused him. Euchre's dark figure came crossing the
moonlit grass under the cottonwoods. The moment the outlaw reached
him Duane saw that he was laboring under great excitement. It scarcely
affected Duane. He seemed to be acquiring patience, calmness, strength.

"Bland kept you pretty long," he said.

"Wait till I git my breath," replied Euchre. He sat silent a little
while, fanning himself with a sombrero, though the night was cool, and
then he went into the cabin to return presently with a lighted pipe.

"Fine night," he said; and his tone further acquainted Duane with
Euchre's quaint humor. "Fine night for love-affairs, by gum!"

"I'd noticed that," rejoined Duane, dryly.

"Wal, I'm a son of a gun if I didn't stand an' watch Bland choke his
wife till her tongue stuck out an' she got black in the face."

"No!" ejaculated Duane.

"Hope to die if I didn't. Buck, listen to this here yarn. When I got
back to the porch I seen Bland was wakin' up. He'd been too fagged out
to figger much. Alloway an' Kate had gone in the house, where they lit
up the lamps. I heard Kate's high voice, but Alloway never chirped. He's
not