the screeching puma locked in a death grapple on top of him.

[Illustration: "Then the second puma pounced."]

Horrified, and yelling for help, Kane tore at the bars, but there was
no way of getting in, the door being locked. He saw that the wolf had
secured a hold upon the puma's throat, but that the great cat's claws
were doing deadly work. Then the second puma pounced, with a screech,
upon the Gray Master's back, bearing him down.

At this moment Biddell rolled out from under the raving, writhing
heap, and staggered to his feet, bleeding, but apparently uninjured.
With his fork and his booted foot he threw himself upon the combatants
furiously, striving to separate them. After what seemed to Kane an age
he succeeded in forcing off the second puma and driving it through the
gate, which he shut. Then he returned to the fight.

But he had little more to do now, for the fight was over. Though no
wolf is supposed to be a fair match for a puma, the Gray Master, with
his enormous strength and subtle craft, might perhaps have held his
own against his first antagonist alone. But against the two he was
powerless. The puma, badly torn, now crouched snarling upon his
unresisting body. Biddell forced the victor off and drove him into a
corner, where he lay lashing his sides with heavy, twitching tail.

The keeper was sober enough now. One long look at the great wolf's
body satisfied him it was all over. He turned and saw Kane's white
face pressed against the bars. With a short laugh he shook himself,
to make sure he was all sound, then pushed the body of the Gray Master
gently with his foot. Yet there was respect, not disrespect, in the
gesture.

"I wouldn't have had that happen for a thousand dollars, Mr. Kane!"
said he in a voice of keen regret. "That was a great beast, an' we'll
never get another wolf to match him."

Kane was on the point of saying that it would _not_ have happened but
for certain circumstances which it was unnecessary for him to specify.
He realized, however, that he was glad it had happened, glad the long
pacing, pacing, pacing was at an end, glad the load of his
self-reproach was lifted off. So he said something quite different.

"Well, Biddell, he's _free_! And maybe, when all's said, that was just
what he was after!"

Then he turned and strode hurriedly away, more content in his heart
than he had felt for days.

THE SUN-GAZER

THE SUN-GAZER

CHAPTER I

To Jim Horner it see