ll.

"Miss Burton, are you really Richard's betrothed?"

Nell's tremulous lips framed an affirmative, but never uttered it. She
held out her hand, showing the ring Dick had given her. Miss Gale's
recognition was instant, and her response was warm, sweet, gracious.

"I think I am going to be very, very glad," she said, and kissed Nell.

"Miss Burton, we are learning wonderful things about Richard," added
Mr. Gale, in an earnest though shaken voice. "If you have had to do
with making a man of him--and now I begin to see, to believe so--may
God bless you!... My dear girl, I have not really looked at you.
Richard's fiancee!... Mother, we have not found him yet, but I think
we've found his secret. We believed him a lost son. But here is his
sweetheart!"

It was only then that the pride and hauteur of Mrs. Gale's face broke
into an expression of mingled pain and joy. She opened her arms.
Nell, uttering a strange little stifled cry, flew into them.

Belding suddenly discovered an unaccountable blur in his sight. He
could not see perfectly, and that was why, when Mrs. Belding entered
the sitting-room, he was not certain that her face was as sad and white
as it seemed.

XV

BOUND IN THE DESERT

FAR away from Forlorn River Dick Gale sat stunned, gazing down into the
purple depths where Rojas had plunged to his death. The Yaqui stood
motionless upon the steep red wall of lava from which he had cut the
bandit's hold. Mercedes lay quietly where she had fallen. From across
the depths there came to Gale's ear the Indian's strange, wild cry.

Then silence, hollow, breathless, stony silence enveloped the great
abyss and its upheaved lava walls. The sun was setting. Every instant
the haze reddened and thickened.

Action on the part of the Yaqui loosened the spell which held Gale as
motionless as his surroundings. The Indian was edging back toward the
ledge. He did not move with his former lithe and sure freedom. He
crawled, slipped, dragged himself, rested often, and went on again. He
had been wounded. When at last he reached the ledge where Mercedes lay
Gale jumped to his feet, strong and thrilling, spurred to meet the
responsibility that now rested upon him.

Swiftly he turned to where Thorne lay. The cavalryman was just
returning to consciousness. Gale ran for a canteen, bathed his face,
made him drink. The look in Thorne's eyes was hard to bear.

"Thorne! Thorne! it's all right, it's all right!"