oof, had any other
purpose than to assail him, he was holding his revolver pointed,
reflecting at the same time on the blind folly of the red man in rushing
to his fate, when he dropped through the scuttle and closed it after
him.

With a muttered exclamation of chagrin the Texan leaped to his feet,
reaching the spot in a couple of bounds, and let fly with two chambers
of his weapon. The bullets skimmed over the door, the inimitable
dexterity of the Indian saving him as by a hair's breadth.

Thus the fellow had entered the cabin after all, by a piece of strategy
as brilliant as it was daring, and the only man who was a defender of
the place found himself shut out and a prisoner, as may be said, on the
roof.

Unwilling to believe the astounding logic of facts, the captain stooped
down and tried to lift the door; but it had been placed there with the
view of being raised only from below. It was impossible to get anything
but the slightest hold upon it, and when he tried to lift it upward, it
could not be moved.

The Comanche was either holding it, or had fastened it in place by means
of the iron hook.

Thinking only of the safety of his wife and servant, the Texan bent
over, and, putting his mouth as close to the edge as he could, shouted:

"Look out down there, Edna! There's an Indian on the upper floor, and I
am fastened on the roof."

Provided his wife heard the warning, this particular Comanche was
liable, after all, to find that, in undertaking his contract, he would
be unable to deliver the goods. But, if the warning reached the ears of
the women, would they comprehend its significance? _That_ was the
question which must soon be answered.

The meaning of the peculiar strategy of the Comanches was now fully
understood by the victim. With a humiliation beyond description, he
comprehended how he had fallen into the trap that had been set so
cunningly for his feet.

All this trifling at one corner of the roof was intended to hold his
attention, while one of the warriors stealthily climbed over the eaves
at another portion and reached the inside by dropping through the
scuttle.

The plan, simple as it might seem, had worked to perfection.

The moment the captain comprehended that he was shut out as effectually
as the miscreant was shut in, he glared around in quest of others who
might be trying to work his own death by a continuation of their
cunning. Aware, too, of his exposure to their shots, he quickly