| Show BAREE Son C of T s Kazan Ty B py Ms 1 I r Chapter IX Continued IX Continued 17 17 It was then theD that Baree found him him him- himself self felt at the th side of ot She was panting her lier red rod tongue hung from her lIer open jaws but at hIs Ills presence pres pres- presence ence nce she brought her tier fangs together with a snap anil and slunk from from him Into the heart of ot the wind run and disappointed disappointed pointed pack The rhe wolves wol were In an ugly temper but did not sense the fact tact epe 1 e had trained him to take to water like an otter and he did not understand wh why this tills narrow riser r should stop them as It had tie fie ran down to the water and stood belly deep In n It facing for fur an nn Instant the horde of ot sa savage age beasts above e him wh why the they did not follow And lie he was WitS black hinck-black black black I I lIe He came aDlon among them again and for the firM time they noticed him hlin The restless movements mo of ot the wa waters wa- wa waters waters ceased now no noA A new and wonder wonder- wondering womer wondering ing In Interest held them rigid right fangs closed sharply A little in the open B ree saw with a big graywolf graywolf gray wolf standing near nar her lIe He went to her hr again and this time she remained with flattened cars ears until he lie was Ing sniff sniff- sniffIng log Ing her neck And then with a vicious narl narl she snapped nt at him Tier Her teeth sank deep In the soft flesh of ot his shoulder and at the tile unexpectedness and pain of ot her attack he lie let out n a yelp The next Instant the big gray graywolf graywolf ra wolf was at him Again caught unexpectedly Baree went down with the wolfs wolf's fangs tangs at athis athis athis his throat But lint In him was the lie blood ot of Kazan the and bone and sinew of Kazan and for the first time In his life lite he fou fought ht as Kazan fought on n that terrible day dar at the top of ot the Sun rock lie was young oung he had hod yet yetto yetto yetto to learn the cleverness and the strat strat- strategy strategy egy gy of ot the veteran but his Ills Jaws were like the Iron clamps with which Pier Pier- Pierrot rot tot set his bear traps raps and In his Ills heart was as sudden and blinding rage rag u n desire to kill that rose above e all sense of pain or fear far That fight If It It had been fair would have hae been a victory for tor Ilaree Baree even In his youth and Inexperience In fair fair- fairness fairness ness the pack should have waited It was a law of ot the pack to wait until wait one was done for But Hut Baree Ilaree was black he was a n stranger an Inter Inter- Interloper interloper Interloper loper n creature whom they noticed now in a moment when their blood was hot with the rage and disappoint disappoint- disappointment disappointment ment of killers who had missed their pre prey A second wolf sprang In striking strikIng striking ing Baree treacherously from the lank flank and while lie he was In the snow v jaws crushing the lie foreleg of ot his first foe the tle pack was on him en masse Such an attack on the young oung carl carl- caribou hou bou bull would have ha meant death Inless In inless less than a minute Every Io er fang would have ha found Its hold bold Baree by the fortunate circumstance that lint lie he was under his first two assailants and HilI pro pro- protected protected protected by their bodies was saved sa e from being heln torn Instantly Into pieces Tie lIe knew that lie he was fighting for or Ills hits life Over Oer him him the lie horde of ot beasts rolled and twisted and snarl snarled ell he lie felt the humin burning pain of or teeth sinking Into hits his flesh he was smothered a hundred d knives seemed ll cutting him Into InLo pieces yet et no not sound-not sound not a whimper or n a acry cry came came from hm him now in the horror null hopelessness of ot It all It would have ended coiled In another halt half ha had the time struggle le not pen been at the lie er very edge o of or the bank Under Under- Undermined Undermined mined h by time lie erosion of ot the floods a section of ut the bank suddenly gave jave way and with It went Baree Barel and the pack In a n flash Baree Bar e thou thought ht of the water rater and an the escaping caribou a bare hare Instant time the cave ln had sent him him free Cree of ot the lie pack and In that space lie he gave e a a single leap over o the gm gray backs hacks of ot his enemies into the deep water waLer of the stream Close lie he- he hind Ilind him halt half a dozen jaws shut on empty air As It had saved ell the caribou so this strip of ot water shim shim- shimmering shimmering merlI mering In the lie glow of ot the moon stars had saved saed Ban Barce Baree e The fhe stream was not more than a hundred f feet et In iii width but It cost lin- lin linree reo Ba-reo ree close to a losing struggle le to get et across nc It It Until he lie dragged himself out on the opposite shore the lie extent of his Injuries was not impressed upon full fully One hind lpg log for fill the time Ilme ur was ns as useless s his forward left t-houlder t was laid open to the bone Ills Ids h head licad ad and body were wIe torn and cut and as he lie dragged e himself slowly awn from time the stream the trail ball he left in inthe ma mathe the snow now was a red re d path of blood It trickled from his panting jaws be between lie lie- between tween which Ills his tongue was bleeding It ran down iris his legs and an Hank flanks and Lell belly antI and It dripped from from his Ills carsone ears one of which was slit silt clean for two Inches as us though cut with 1 J knife Ills His Instincts were dazed his Ills of things clouded as If It h by n It veil 11 drawn dOle close over O his ees eyes Half dead deall he hedra dra dragged gd himself on until liy by chance cliance he carne to a cl clump ump of dwarf dwart spruce into nto this tills he lie d d 1 and then he dropped exhausted All that night and until noon the next nest day la lay without moving The fever burned burne d In his blood blond It flamed hl high h an and swift toward death then It ebbed slowly and life conG conquered con con- conquered 00 At noon non he came forth Ile He G C was weak and tie lie wobbled on his Il legs s Ills hind find leg still dragged dra ell und and he was racked pain But It was n It splendid fid did 1 day da The sun was warm the snow Enow was thawing the tl sly sky was like hike liken n a great blue sea ea and the he floods of at life coursed warmly tl ugh niree's Baree's arees aree's veins Ins ins Hut ut tut for all nil time lime his Ills de- de were wre changed d and his great i quest at an end A red ferocity f grew In Ilaree BarEe s 8 eyes ens f 8 8 he snarled In the direction ot at last tl with the wolves They J f t tf a By fly JAMES OLIVER CURWOOD Doubleday Doubled daT P Page Pae c tt a C Co NU service S were no longer lon er his Ills people They were no longer of longer ot his Ills blood Never eyer again again- coul could the he hunt call lure him or the voice olce of ot the he pick pack rou rouse e the old long lon long ng In lag In him there was wag a n thing new orn born an undying untied hatred for the the- the wolf n a hatred that was to grow Irow In him until It became like a dl disease cn e In his vitals a thin timing tiling ever present and Insistent tie tie- de demanding manding vengeance on their kind Last nl night ht he lie had to them gone eone a n com corn comrade comrade rade made Today II lip he was yas an outcast Cut and maimed with him scars cars for all nil time line lie Ie hind learned his lesson of the lie wilderness Tomorrow TUI and the next neAt cia day and for fOl days dus after that lint with with- without without out number lie he would remember er the lesson vv well ell ell Chapter X At the lie cabin on the Gray Loon on the fourth night of ot Baree's iree's absence Pierrot was smoking his Ills pipe after a great rat supper of or caribou tenderloin he hail brought ht In from the he trail and X peee was listening to his Ills tale of the lie remarkable shot he had hud made when a n sound nt ot the door Interrupted them e opened It and Baree came In Three da days and nl nights ot of hunger In which he lie coul could not hunt runt be- be because be because cause of the leg that dragged ed had put on him burn the marks of ot starvation Bat flat scarred tle-scarred and covered with dried clots clots blood that still cl clung ung tenaciously to his long hair he was a sight that drew at lit last a long breath from A queer smile was grow grow- growing v ro rovIng ing fag In Pierrot's face as lie he leaned for for- forwar forward for forward ward war In his Ills chair and then lien slowly rising to his feet and an looking closer he said to Vt Ventre Saint Gris Out he has been to the lie pack and the pack turned turne on him It was vas not a II m I II I iJ i 1 I Y I Lb aRr 1 r rI I Over Went Baree and Half the Pack wolf two f tight non non ht-non non l I It was the pack lIe Ile Is cut and torn In fifty places And mon mon DIcu Dieu he lie Is alive In Pierrot's voice there was growing wonder ondel and amazement lIe He was WIS in- in incredulous In Incredulous credulous and yet t lie he could not lie Ile e what his Ills e eyes es told Lolli him What had happened was nothing short of ot a miracle and for a time he uttered nota not nota nota a word more but remained staring In silence while 1 woke from her astonishment to give a doctoring ani and food After the lie pain and hunger nail aUlI treachery of ot his Ills adventure It wasa was wasa wasa a wonderful for Ilaree Balee He lIe slept that nl night ht at the foot of the Willows Willow's bed Tile The n next mom morning morning In It was the cool caress o-f o of his tongue on her Iler hand liand that awakened her 1 this tills da day the they I resumed the comradeship Interrupted It by temporary desertion The attachment was greater reater than ever cel on Ilaree's part It he lie who had run 11 ii m ay a from from the Willow who hind had desert deserted d her at the call of the pack and It seemed eem d ot at lines as thou though h he en sensed the depths of his Ills perfidy and was striving to tomake tomake make amends There was Indubitably a very er great change in ill him lIe He hung to like tike a shallow shadow Instead of sleeping at lit night lil ht In the spruce shelter made for him lie ire made him him- himself himself self a little hollow In the earth earthm close to time the lie cabin door dool Pierrot drought that lint he lie understood mid and 1 ese thought ht that she understood still I more but In reality the key to the mystery remained with Barce Baree lie Ile no longer played as he had played jed before he lie went off ocr alone Into the for for- forest forest est He lIe did not chase sticks or run I until lie he was winded for the pure Joy of running Ills His was wasI I ions lon In n Its place was a great wor wor- worship wor- wor worship worship I ship and a rankling rankling- bitterness a love lo for Cor the girl and a hatred fc for the pack and all that It stood for I Whenever er he heard the wolf howl wolf It brought nn an angry snarl Into his throat and he lie would bare his fangs I until even Pierrot would draw v a little away anay from him But a touch of the girls girl's hand liand would quiet gimlet him I In a n week or two the lie heavier snows came and Pierrot began making hula his I i the hind had trips over o trap lines 1 entered Into n a thrilling har bargain aln with hint tills this winter Pierrot had taken her Into partnership part Every ery fifth trap I eer every fifth deadfall and ond every ery bait fifth polson-I polson poison bait was to be her own and I what they the caught or killed was wa to bring n bit nearer to realization a aI I wonderful dream that was growing In InI Inthe inthe the Willows Willow's soul Pierrot had prom prom- promised promIsed promised I If It they had great reat luck that win win- winter winter I ter they the would go down together on the last snows to Nelson House and onI I buy the little old organ that was for sale there and If It the organ was sold sol I they would work another winter and andi get a new one ThIs Tills plan gave an nn enthusiastic enthusiastic enthusiastic and tireless Interest In the trap trap- trap line line Pierrot Impressed on her that lint It made a comrade and ond worker co-worker ot of other her on the lie trail That was his Ills scheme to keep her with him when he was away from rom the cabin He Ile knew that wasI I flush Bush art would come again to toj j the Gray Loon probably more than I once during the winter He had swift 1 I dogs and It was a short Journey And AndI I when came must not be at the cabin cabin alone alone mustI I Pierrot's trap line swung Into the I north and west covering co In all a mat mat- matter matter ter of fifty miles with an average crage ot of two traps one deadfall and a poison bait poison polson I bait to each mile halfway over oyer this line Pierrot had built a small log logI I I cabin and at the end of ot It another so that a days day's work meant twenty twenty- twenty five five Dalles elles This Tills was easy for and not hard on 1 after the first few days All through through October and November they made the trips regularly making I the round every six days which gave n e one day of ot rest at the cabin on the I Gray Loon and another day In th the cabin at the end of ot the trail tralL The They were splendid months Furvas Fur was vas thick and It was steadily cold without bad storm not only carried aI a small pack on her shoulders In order that Pierrot's load might be lighter I but Lut she trained Baree to bear panniers tiny shoulder panniers which she manu manufactured In these panniers carried the ball bait ballIn In at nt least a third bird ol o the total num num- number number I ber of ot traps set there was always what Pierrot called trash rabbits trash owls jacks whisky Jays and squirrels These with time the skin or feathers strIpped off oft made up the bulk of ot time the bait for the traps ahead One afternoon early In December as they were returning to the Gray Loon Pierrot stopped suddenly a aI I dozen paces ahead of ot and stared at the snow A strange snow snow- snowshoe snow shoe Dow I shoe tralL traiL hind joined their own and ancl was heading toward the cabin For I half a minute Pierrot was silent a and 1111 scarcely mo moved a muscle as he lie stared The trail came straight out of ot the I north and and off ocr there was vas Lac Also they were the lie marks of ot large snowshoes and the lie stride Indicated was that of ot a tall man Before Pier Pier- Pierrot Pierrot Pierrot rot hind had spoken had guessed whim what they meant the Factor from Lac Bain I she said Baree farce was sniffing suspiciously at atthe atthe the stran strange e trail The They heard the low I Jowl growl In his Ills throat and Pierrot's shoulders stiffened Yes the he hc sale said The Willows Willow's heart beat more s s ly Iy as the they hey w went nt on She was not afraid of not ph physically I afraid and yet t something ruse rose up In her breast and clicked her at thought I of his Ills presence on the time Gm Gray Loon Why was lie he there It was not I necessary necessary essary for Pierrot to answer the lie ques ques- question question I tion even hind had site slie given hen voice oke to It She knew The Factor from Lac Pain I had no business there there except except to see I her r The fhe blood burned red re In hN her I cheeks as she thought ht again of ot that 1 minute on the tile edge ed e of the chasm when he hud had almost almo t crushed her In Ills his arms Would he lie try tr that again n aln TO UE DE CONTINUED |
