Chloe leaned toward him eagerly and placed a hand upon his arm, while
her eyes seemed to search his very thoughts. "Then you will go with me
to Snare Lake--to carry our war into the heart of the enemy's country?"

"To Snare Lake!" gasped the man.

"Yes, to Snare Lake. I shall never rest now until MacNair's power over
these poor savages is broken forever. Until they are free from the
yoke of oppression."

"But it would be suicide!" objected Lapierre. "No possible good can
come of it! To kill a lion, one does not thrust his head into the
lion's mouth in an effort to choke him to death. There are other ways."

Chloe laughed. "He will not harm us," she answered. "I am not going
to kill him as one would kill a lion. There has been blood enough
spilled already. As you say, there are other ways. We are going to
Snare Lake for the purpose of procuring evidence that will convict this
man in the courts."

"The courts!" cried Lapierre. "Where are the courts north of sixty?"

"North of sixty, or south of sixty, what matters it? There are courts,
and there are prisons awaiting such as he. Will you go with me, or
must I go alone?"

Lapierre glanced toward the flaring fires, where the endless line of
canoemen still toiled from the river to the storehouse. Slowly he
arose from his chair and extended his hand.

"I will go with you," he answered simply, "and now I will say good
night."

CHAPTER XIV

THE WHISKEY RUNNERS

When Lapierre left Chloe Elliston's cottage after promising to
accompany her to Snare Lake, he immediately sought out LeFroy, who was
superintending the distribution of the last of the supplies in the
storehouse.

The two proceeded to LeFroy's room, and at the end of an hour sought
the camp of the canoemen. Ten minutes later, two lean-bodied scouts
took the trail for the Northward, with orders to report immediately the
whereabouts of MacNair. If luck favoured him, Lapierre knew that
MacNair accompanied by the pick of his hunters, would be far from Snare
Lake, upon his semi annual pilgrimage to intercept the fall migration
of the caribou herd, along the northernmost reaches of the barren
grounds.

If MacNair had not yet started upon the fall hunt, the journey to Snare
Lake must be delayed. For the crafty Lapierre had no intention
whatever of risking a meeting with MacNair in the heart of his own
domain. Neither had he any intention of journeying to Snare Lake for
the purpose of se