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Show KAZAN SAVES THE LIFE OF HIS MISTRESS AND THEN DECIDES DE-CIDES TO BID HER FAREWELL FOREVER Kazan is a huge and vicious Alaskan sledge dog, one-quarter gray wolf. lie saves his master's life and is taken along when the master goes to civilization to meet his bride and return with her to the frozen fro-zen country. Even the master is afraid to touch the. dog, bnt Isobel, Kazan's new mistress, wins his devotion instantly. On the way northward McCready, a dog-team driver," joins the party and Kazan tries to attack him. Even Isobel finds It hard to quiet the dog. Kazan knows that McCready is bad all through. The others do not. yond inui sledge, hidden In the darkness dark-ness of the trees, was the bod.of the man he had killed, covered with, a blanket. Thorpe, his master, had dragged It there. lie lay down, with his nose to the warm coals and his eyes leveled between be-tween his forepaws, straight at the closed tent-flap. He meant ro keep awake, to watch, to be ready to slink off rr.fc tir? forest at the first movement move-ment there, bnt a warmth was rising from out of he gray ash of the fire-bed, fire-bed, and his yes closed. Twice three times he fought himself back into watchfulness; but the last time his eyes came only half open, and closed heavily again. In his sleep he was leaping again at the end of his chain. His Jaws snapped like castanets of steel and the sound awakened him, and he sprang to his feet, his spine as stiff as a brush, and his snarling fangs bared like ivory knives. He had awakened just In time. There was movement in the tent. His master was awake, and If he did not escape; He sped swiftly Into the thick spruce, and paused, flat and hidden, with only his head showing from behind a tree. He knew that his master would not spare him. Three times Thorpe had beaten him for snapping at McCready. The last time he would have shot him if the girl had not saved him. And now he had torn McCready's throat. He had taken the life from him, and his master would not spare him. Even the woman could not save him. Kazan was sorry that his master had returned, dazed and bleeding, after he had torn McCready's jugular. Then he would have had her always. She would have loved him. . She did love him. And he would have followed her, and fought for her always, and died for her when the time came. But Thorpe had come In from the forest again, and Kazan had slunk away quickly for Thorpe meant to him what all men meant to him now: the club, the whip and the strange things that spat fire and death. And now Thorpe had come out from the tent. It was approaching dawn, and in his hand he held a rifle. A moment later the girl came out, and her hand caught the man's arm. They looked toward CHAPTER III. Continued. 3 Later, after 'xnorpe and his wife had gone into tii ;Ir tent, it began to snow, and the eflvct of the snow upon McCready puzzled Kazan. The man was restless, and he drank frequently from the flask that he had used the night before. In the firelight his face grew redder and redder, and Kazan could see the strange gleam of his teeth as he gazed at the tent in which his mistress was .lccping. Again and again he went close to that tent, and listened. Twice he heard movement. The last time, it was the sound of Thorpe's deep breathing. McCready hurried back to the fire and turned his face straight up to the sky. The snow was falling so thickly that when he lowered his face he blinked and wiped his eyes. Then he went into the gloom and bent low over the trail they had made a few hours before. It was almost al-most obliterated by the falling snow. Another hour and there would be no trail nothing the next day to tell whoever who-ever might pass that they had come this way. By morning it would cover everything, even the fire, if he. allowed it to die down. McCready drank again, out in the darkness.- Low words of an Insane joy burst from his lips. His head was hot with a drunken fire. His heart beat madly, tut scarcely more furiously than did Kazan's when the dog saw that McCready was returning with a club I The club he placed on end against a tree. Then he took a lantern from the sledge and lighted It. He approached Thorpe's tent-flap, the lantern In his hand. "I Io, Thorpe; Thorpe !" he called. There was no answer. He could hear Thorpe breathing. lie drew the flap aside a little, and raised his voice. "Thorpe !" Still there was no movement inside, and he untied the flap strings and tnrust in his lantern. The light flashed on Isobel's golden head, and McCready stared at It, his eyes burning like red coals, until he saw that Thorpe was awakening. Quickly he dropped the flap and rustled it from the outside. "Ho, Thorpe Thorpe !" he called again. This time Thorpe replied.. "Hello, McCready is that you?" AlcCready drew the flap back a little, lit-tle, and spoke in a low voice. "Yes. Can you come out a minute? Something's happening out " In the woods. Don't wake up your wife !" He drew back and waited. A minute inter Thorpe came quietly out of the tvnt McCready pointed Into the thick on his back. A second and a third time he sprang the length of the leash ifito the night, and the bablche cord about his neck cut Into his flesh like a knife. He "stopped for an instant, gasping for breath. The shadows were slill fighting. Now they were upright ! Now they were crumpling down! With a fierce snarl he flung his whole weight once more at the end of the chain. There was a snap, as the thong about his neck gave way. In half a. dozen bounds Kazan made the tent and rushed under the flop. With a snarl he was at McCready's throat. The first snap of his powerful jaws was death, but he did not know that. He knew only that his mistress? was there, and that he was fighting for her. There came one choking gasping cry that ended with a terrible sob; it was McCready. The man sank from his knees upon his back, and Kazan thrust his fangs deeper into ' his enemy's throat ; he felt the warm blood. The dog's mistress was calling to him now. She was pulling at his shaggy neck. But he would not loose his hold not for a long time. When he did, his mistress looked down once upon the man and covered her face with her hands. Then she sank down upon the blankets. She was very still. Her face and hands were cold, and Kazan muzzled muz-zled them tenderly, ner eyes were closed. He snuggled up close against her, with his ready jaws turned toward the dead man. Why was' she so still, he wondered? A long time passed, and then she moved. Her eyes opened. Her hand touched him. Then-he heard a step outside. It was his master, and with that old thrill of fear fear of the club he went swiftly to the door. Yes, there was his master in the firelight and In i his hand he held tne club. He was coming slowly, almost falling at each step, and his face was red with blood. But he had the club ! He would beat him again beat him terribly for hurting hurt-ing McCready ; so Kazan slipped quietly quiet-ly under the tent-flap and stole off into the shadows. From out the gloom of the thick spruce he looked back, and a low whine of love and grief rose and died softly in his throat. They would beat him always now after that. Even she would beat him. They would hunt him down, and beat him when they found him. From out of the glow of the fire he turned his wolfish head to the depths of the forest. There were no clubs or stinging lashes out in that gloom. They would never find him there. HUM w W( ) It Was Kazan's Farewell to the Woman. the thing covered by the blanket. Then she spoke to Thorpe and he suddenly straightened and threw back his head. "n-o-o-o-o Kazan Kazan Kazan Ka-zan !" he called. A shiver ran through Kazan. The man was trying to Inveigle him back. He had in his hand the thing that killed. "Kazan Kazan Ka-a-a-a-zan !" he shouted again. Kazan sneaked cautiously back from the tree. He knew that distance spruce. "I'll swear there's someone nosing around the camp," he said. "I'm certain cer-tain that I saw a man out there a few minutes ago, when I went for a log. It's a good night for stealing dogs. Here you take the lantern! If I v.nsn't clean fooled, we'll find a trail in Ihe snow.' He gave Thorpe the lantern and picked up the heavy club. A growl rose In Kazan's throat, but he choked it back. He wanted to snarl forth his warning, to leap at the end of his leash, but he knew that if he did that, they would return and beat him. So he lay still, trembling and shivering, rnd whining softly. He watched them until they disappeared and then waited wait-ed listened. At last he heard the crunch of snow. He was not surprised to see McCready come back alone. He had expected him to return alone. For he knew what a club meant ! McCready's face was terrible now. It was like a beast's. He was hatless. Kazan slunk deeper in his shadow at the low horrible laugh that fell from his lips for the man still held the club In a moment he dropped that, and approached the tent. He drew back the llap and peered In. Thorpe's wife was sleeping, and as quietly-as a cat he entered and hung the lantern on a nail In the tent-pole. Ills movement did not awaken her, and for a few moments mo-ments he stood there, staring starln;'. Kazan watched McCready as he entered, en-tered, and suddenly the dog was on his feet, his back tense and bristling, his limbs rigid. lie saw McCready's huge f liadow on the canvas, and a moment Liter there cam. a strange piercing cry. In the wild terror of that cry ho recognized recog-nized her voice and he leaped toward the tent. The leash stopped him, choking the snarl In his throat. He saw the shadows struggling now, and there came cry after cry She was calling to his master, and v.lth his master's name e wao calling him I "Kazan Kazan " Ho i.-aped again, and was thrown up- i - For another moment he wavered. And then, as silently as one of the wild creatures whose blood was partly his, he stole away Into the blackness of the night. CHAPTER IV. Free From Bonds. There was a low moaning of the wind in the spruce tops as Kazan slunk off Into the blackness and mystery of the forest. For hours he lay near the camp, his red and blistered eyes gazing gaz-ing steadily at the tent wherein the terrible ter-rible thing had happened a little while before. He knew now what death was. He could tell It farther than man. He could smell It in the air. And he knew that there was death all about him, and that he was the cause of it. He lay on his belly In the deep snow and shivered, and the three-quarters of him that was dog whined in a grief-stricken way, while the quarter that was wolf still revealed itself menacingly In his fangs, and in the vengeful glare of his eyes. - . Three times the man his master came out of the tent, and shouted loudly, loud-ly, "Kazan Kazan Kazan!" Three times the woman came with him. In the firelight Kazan could see her shining hair streaming about her, as he hud seen it In the tent, when he had leaped up and killed the other man. In her blue eyes there was the same wild terror, and her face was white as the snow. "Kazan Kazan Kazan!" and all that part of him that was dog, and not wolf, trembled joyously joy-ously at the sound of her voice, and he almost crept in to take his beating. Hut fear of the club was the greater, and he held back, hour afler hour, until now it was silent-again in the tent, and he could no longer see their shadows, shad-ows, and the fire was dying down. Cautiously he crept out from the thick gloom, working his way on his belly toward the packed sledge, and what remained of the burned logs. Be- meant nothing to the cold thing of death that Thorpe held in his hand. He turned his head once, and whined softly, soft-ly, and for an instant a great longing filled his reddened eyes as he saw the last of the girl. ne knew, now, that he was leaving her forever, and there was an ache in his heart that had never been there before, be-fore, a pain that was not of the club or whip, of cold or hunger, but which was greater than them all, aud which filled kirn with a desire to throw back his head and cry out his loneliness to the gray emptiness of the sky. Back In the camp the girl's voice quivered. "He is gone." The man's strong voice choked a little. lit-tle. "Yes, he is gone. He knew and I didn't. I'd give a year of my life if I hadn't whipped him yesterday and last night. He won't come back." Isobel Thorpe's hand tightened on his arm. "lie will!" she cried. "He won't leave me. He loved me, If he was savage sav-age and terriole. And he knows that I love him. He'll come back'' "Listen !" From deep In the forest there came a long wailing howl, filled with a plaintive plain-tive sadness. It was I'jizan's farewell to the woman. Kazan's rea'j life story begins j with the next Installment. Just I as the nood and bad in man are I constantly in conflict, so the j dog ar.d wolf strains are con-! con-! stanMy In conflict in Kazan. j (TO BE CONTINUED.) |