the uneasy feeling that she was never
long out of his sight.

But at length Wanda risked coming to him, choosing a time when the
danger was least. Johnson, the deputy sheriff, had said in the morning
that he was going to take a run over to the Bar L-M, to look things
over. It was by no means the first time he had said this, and the girl
felt that he had no particular reason to suspect her to-day. It was
still snowing, not too heavily for one to venture out, but steadily
enough to obliterate ski tracks entirely in less than an hour. Johnson
left the house, and a little later Wanda set forth, her preparations
swiftly made. Johnson was out of sight. She drove on swiftly to a
hilltop due east of the house from which she would be able to see him
before he came to the bridge.

She waited anxiously there until she saw him, pushing steadily onward.
One sharp glance at the way she had come showed her that unless Johnson
returned very much faster than he had gone out there would be no sign
to tell him where she had gone. And then, her eyes suddenly brighter
than they had been for many a day, she hastened on, still eastward, not
daring even now to turn directly toward the cliffs until she had passed
into the deeper forest.

It was like bringing new life to Wayne Shandon. He swept the girl up
hungrily into his arms, crying out softly as she came through the snow
blocked entrance to the cave. And she, when he brought a candle and
her eyes caught sight of his face, bearded and worn, must shut her lips
tight and fight hard to keep back the tears.

It was only a brief half hour allowed them, leaving them both happier
and sadder at the parting. But she had brought the few little things
she could smuggle out to him, had assured herself from a close
examination of his store that he was in no danger of freezing or
starving; and he had entrusted to her the carrying out of the work he
had hit upon.

"I have scribbled a letter in your little note book, dear. It is to
Brisbane, a lawyer in San Francisco. He is a friend of mine and I can
trust him. It tells him everything, about the mortgage and the
foreclosure, about the trouble I am in. He's the man to advise us now.
There's not a keener criminal lawyer in the State. I'm going to give
him my power of attorney. I'll take chances on slipping down to the
city, somehow, if it's necessary. Or I can get down into White Rock at
night, meet him there, and get back here before m