not have
thought so much of this. Now it hurt. Josephine had given him her love,
yet in spite of that she was placing greater confidence in the
half-breed than in him. This was what hurt--at first. In the next
breath his overwhelming faith in her returned to HIM. There was some
tremendous reason for her being here with Jean. What was it? He stepped
out from behind the tree as he stared after them.

His eyes caught the pale glow of something that he had not seen before.
It was a campfire, the illumination of it only faintly visible deeper
in the forest. Toward this Josephine and Jean were hurrying. A low
exclamation of excitement broke from his lips as a still greater
understanding dawned upon him. His hand trembled. His breath came
quickly. In that camp there waited for Josephine and Croisset those who
were playing the other half of the game in which he had been given a
blind man's part! He did not reason or argue with himself. He accepted
the fact. And no longer with hesitation his hand fell to his automatic,
and he followed swiftly after Josephine and the half-breed.

He began to see what Jean had meant. In the room he had simply prepared
Josephine for this visit. It was in the forest--and not in Adare House,
that the big test of the night was to come.

It was not curiosity that made him follow them now. More than ever he
was determined to keep his faith with Jean and the girl, and he made up
his mind to draw only near enough to give his assistance if it should
become necessary. Roused by the conviction that Josephine and the
half-breed were not making this mysterious tryst without imperilling
themselves, he stopped as the campfire burst into full view, and
examined his pistol. He saw figures about the fire. There were three,
one sitting, and two standing. The fire was not more than a hundred
yards ahead of him, and he saw no tent. A moment later Josephine and
Jean entered the circle of fireglow, and the sitting man sprang to his
feet. As Philip drew nearer he noticed that Jean stood close to his
companion, and that the girl's hand was clutching his arm. He heard no
word spoken, and yet he could see by the action of the man who had been
sitting that he was giving the others instructions which took them away
from the fire, deeper into the gloom of the forest.

Seventy yards from the fire Philip dropped breathlessly behind a cedar
log and rested his arm over the top of it. In his hand was his
automatic. It covered