d Helen hotly. "He had spoken to her only twice in
his life."

"He was scarcely likely to own to anything more, to you," answered
Ainley, "and in any case I am giving you the Indian girl's version;
that it accords with my own belief is of little moment. What I do know
is that she cared nothing about the reward your uncle offered, and that
her sole purpose seemed to be to remove you from Stane's company."

"And when you heard?" asked Helen prompting him as he fell silent.

"When I heard, I did not waste time. I made a bee-line for the cabin on
the lake, taking the girl with me. I arrived there last night----"

"How long were you on the way?" interrupted Helen suddenly.

"Four days."

"And Miskodeed was with you all the time?"

"Of course!" answered Ainley a trifle uneasily. "She was our guide."

"I see," answered Helen quietly. She made no further comment on the
Indian girl, but she knew now that Ainley had departed from whatever
truth there was in his narrative, for Miskodeed, on the sure evidence
of her own eyes had been at the Indian encampment when he claimed she
had been with him. She listened quietly whilst Ainley continued:

"As I was saying, I arrived in the neighbourhood of the cabin last
night, to find you gone----"

"And Mr. Stane?" she asked almost breathlessly. "Did you find him? Did
you see him?"

Ainley shook his head. "No, I did not see him myself, but one of my men
turned a body over that was lying in the snow. It was that of a white
man, who could be no other than Stane!"

Helen flinched at the answer which confirmed what the half-breed had
said to her about Stane being dead. She looked away, not wishing Ainley
to see her face at that moment, whilst the hot tears welled in her
eyes, and the man, choosing to disregard her manifest sorrow, continued
his story. "We found an Indian in the snow, who had been wounded in the
fight, as he told us, and on pressure he gave me the information that
you had been carried away by a half-breed of the name of Chigmok, who,
as the Indian averred, was making for the lake of the Little Moose,
that is the lake where we rescued you. This wounded man also informed
us that Chigmok had a camp on the lake, gave us instructions how to
find it; and volunteered the further information that Chigmok was
taking the longest route to the lake, since that was the easier way for
a heavily-loaded sledge. There was a shorter way, as he informed us, a
way which if we travelled