rath was
not the sort of man to regard any death as serious, unless it were
his own.

By this time the stranger had covered the intervening two miles of
river and was within thirty yards of the Point. He was slowing down.
He had halted. His exhausted dogs were already curling themselves up
beneath a snow-bank, wisely snatching a moment's rest as soon as it
was offered them. Careless of their welfare, leaving them as they were
to tangle up their traces, he was commencing to ascend the mound
towards the store. Despite the clamour of welcome which raged within
him, Granger did not stir; the influence of the North Land was upon
him, compelling him to self-repression, making him stern and
forbidding in his manner as was the appearance of the world without.
From his hiding by the window he watched the man; as he did so a vague
sense of fear and loathing took the place of gladness.

His approach was slow and hesitating; continually he paused to gaze
back along the river as if in search of a pursuer, then suddenly
forward toward the shack as if for spying eyes which were reading his
secret. Before he had come near enough to be recognised, he had pulled
the hood still further forward, holding it together above his mouth
with his right hand, so that of his face only his eyes were visible.
With his left hand he fumbled in his breast, and Granger knew that he
grasped a loaded weapon. "Does he mean to kill me?" he wondered; yet
he made no effort to bar the door, or to reach for the rifle which
hung on the wall above his head. He only smiled whimsically; amused
that anyone should waste so much care over robbing a man of a
possession which he himself so little valued--his life. Personally
he would welcome so easy a method of departure from Keewatin--one
which was quite respectable, and would attach no responsibility to
himself. When all has been said, there remain but two qualities of
fear: the fear of life, and the fear of death. Granger was only
conscious of the first, therefore he could afford to be amazingly
daring under the present circumstances. Now he could no longer see the
man, for he was standing beneath the walls of the shack; but he could
hear that he was listening, and could hear him gasp for breath. One,
two, three slow footsteps, and the latch was raised and the door flung
wide. He waited for his guest to enter, and then, because he delayed,
"Come inside," he cried; "confound you, you're letting in the cold
air."