ance that was half fear, and had the "King" taken
notice it would have filled him with deep pain, but Harley, who alone of
the three retained his self-possession, spoke lightly of passing things.
The feeling of exulting strength was not yet gone from him; in the
presence of this man of great achievement he was not afraid, and,
moreover, the desire to protect Sylvia, to turn attention from her, was
strong within him.

For these reasons Harley carried the whole burden of the talk, and
carried it well. Neither of the others wished to interrupt him; Sylvia
being full of these new emotions, half joy and half fear, that agitated
her, and Mr. Plummer trying to evolve from chaos a way to act.

Although the "King" had suppressed the muscular manifestation, he was
none the less burned by internal fire. Sylvia was his: it was he who had
found her in the mountains; it was he who had given her the years of
care and tenderness, and by every right, including that of promise, she
belonged to him. Nor was he one to give her up for a fancy. He had seen
the look of love on her face when she spoke to Harley, but she was only
a girl--from the crest of his years the "King" thought that he saw the
truth, and knew it--and as soon as this campaign was over, and the
Eastern youth had disappeared, she would forget him.

Mr. Plummer regarded this youth out of the corner of his eye, and while
he pitied him for his ignorance of life, he was bound to admit that
Harley was a handsome fellow, tall, well knit, and with an air of
self-reliance. Evidently there was good stuff in him, and he would
amount to something when he was trained and mature, although the "King"
concluded that he needed a great deal of training. But he could not fail
to feel respect for Harley's presence of mind, his calm, and his ease.
The youth showed no fear of him, no sign of apprehension, and the
mountaineer gave him credit for it.

Sylvia was glad when they stopped in one of the lower glades to rest and
eat of the food which had been so amply provided for them. But she was
proud of Harley and the manner in which he had taken upon himself all
the burden. His conduct went far to justify in her eyes his confident
prediction, and, secretly approving, she watched the ease with which he
bore himself among the blunt mountaineers and the handsome manner in
which he affiliated. She noticed that they seemed to think of Harley as
one like Jimmy Grayson--that is, one of themselves--and