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Show (Continued I'roni l ast Iksiip.) 1. xho battle was Short thereaftoi fT Harold waa ntcr a match Hill. I The tatter's bard nuts loaned Into I his Imam, blow after blow With grim I reports in the ilehca. Harold s re- i alstrince ceased. II BOdy tpdvered I and lay still Remembering Virginia J Bill leaped to lub fe ' r! But Harold iru not oulte uncon- SI aiious. Hut one impulse WM loft - ' to eacApS; and dumldy he raw lod to I the door. ! Xo weapon remained In hla nana ( I'll gut you et. jfOu devil!" he creajnrd. fiiiii".sl 1 1 1 i i ' 1 ni I;. 'II! I lay In wait and kill you you dan t ' get away'' ' And out he xtuKered. Virginia,' Bill oalled. Where I .ire you " h"r0m the dark, far end of tne cabin ho heurd llio anwer a Void low and treniuluim audi as Is sometime some-time herd from the lion of u BioM I ohlld "Here i am, Bill ' "he re plied. "I'm hit With a elruy shot." XXVII Hill groped hit way to Virginia's I side. , . I jiik bunds told lllm she wiu? lylni M"" middled against Uie wall, u siiniu. pa- thetlc figure that broke tne heart within the man He knelt besbu b r, rhen felt fOr -i n.atch But beiorc ho struck the match he remembered hie foe without; he would be u.ulek to fire through the window if a light showed him hie target. Even now he might be reached In the snow, his rifle, in his arms wait- ing for just this chance. Hill Matched a Idunket from the ot, shielded them with it. and lighted the match behind It. "He can t see the lifht through j 1 his," he tOld her He groped for the fallen candle. 1 lighted It, and held It close. "You 11 h4Ve to look and sec yourself, Vlr- ! itlnla," he told her "You remember ! of course " res, she remembered his blindness. She looked down at the little stain , of red on her left shoulder. "I can t tell ' she told him. "It went In right hero give mo your hand " She took his Warm hand and retted it against the wound. Someway It comforted her. "Cl'-se to the tOp ( r " the shoulder, then ho commented I "But there's nothing 1 can do It's , not a wound I run dress. It n cleaner now than anything wo vo got to j clean it with. The only thing is to j ll still so It won't bleed " "Do you think I'll die"'' she asked lilm tjulctlv "I don't think the wound Is serious In itself If we could get you down ' to a doctor" he told her "It Isn't bletdlnf mdOh now, because you are j lying still, but It has been bleeding I pretty Freely. It's Just a flch WOtind, really But you see " Her mind leaped at Ohoe. t" his thought 'You mean It's the same, either wa ?" she riuetloned. "It means death that's all it , means. I don't care on my own ac- ; count " "Then don't caio on mine, either." All at oner her hand went up and OAfeeted his face. "Hold me. BUI WOtt't you? ' she asked "Hold me In your arms ' H The man's arms tightened around I n her. He lowered his lips eloso to Ntiuf hers, aw "I !"e you." She drew his head down and dovn UAtil her own Hps halted the flow of j--' his words. "And I love you, Bill." W . ''.'Ill i im ' ' X ' ' lie but you " M i inly once during the nicht did Bin ES leave her to cover the crack of the j iL. door and build up the firi-. When HH returned, her warm little flood of , Hfl kisses was as If he had been absent ; Jf for weary hours. flj But her thoughts had been busy. even In this moment All at once Efl the drew his ear closo to her Hps. "Bill, will you listen to me a minis! min-is! ute 7 ' she asked. EB "Listen! I'll listen to every W -word " m "I think I know the way fit least 41 a fighting chanee to life and BSe- I XXVIII I "Everything depends first " Vlr- I I glnla said, "whether or not you can I r crawl through the little window of the 1 tB cabin" EM Bill remembored his experience In I f the smoke-filled hut and he kissed i 1 her. whispering that would be eoiiy. I J "The next thing are Hn fold's I j snowshoes in this room?" j "So it depends on Harold, does It? 1 I believe, his snowshoes are here. ; I Harold left rather hurriedly and 1 don't think he took them." I "What eorythlng defends on Is' setting out. The longer we itjaS BSt, gflf iiere. without tood, the inure oertaln death Is I know I can't wall; a rid f you can't sec Bill, Harold is wait ing. right now probably In the little I cabin where ho sleeps for a chance to got those shoes. He's helpless 1 "without them. As Boon as It gets ' SP light enough for him to soo, I want you to go out the cabin door. Turn "J at once into the brush at your I I so ho can't shoot you with the rifle. Then come around to the side ot the M cabin and re-enter through the win- fj "Tho moment he thinks you ure )i gone, he'll come not only to got his snowshoes but to gloat over mo. I U Know him now! i can t understand Hi why I didn't know him before And then we've got to take, him by BUT- l prlso" I "And then ?" j fli Quickly, with few words, she told J lilm the rest of her plot, jt- M Harold walked Intu the trap by ) "I'm coming for my snowshoes. Virginia 1 tie told her. Then I'm going to go away." He tried to draw I his battered, bloody lips Into v smile "Come in und get them." she replied. Her voice was low and lifeless. Harold Har-old stopped through the door And 'then she uttered a curious cry. "Now"' she called Sharply. There I was no time for Harold to dart back, even to be alarmed. A mighty force desi nded upon his body In lean than a minute 1t was boUrtd t helpless. ' .My Qod, what urc you going to do Mo me V" he risked. I 'Why. Harold, you are to be our little truck horse." Virginia replied I us she handed Hill more thongs. "You are going to pull tho sled ami show ithe nraj down into Bradleyburg," XXIX I When the dawn came tull and bright ovef lenrwater, Bill and his i party WOPS ready to start i When Harold had been thoroughly cowed and his full instructions given I him, the thongs had been put about his ankles and removed from his wrists, and he was permitted to do the packing That procedure was exceedingly simple; all available blankets were plied on the sled and made into a bed for Virginia, and the ax. candles, anil such cooking utensils as were, needed Were packed in front. And then they had a short but decisive interview with Harold, "1 won t go I'll die first." he cried to Virginia. "Bosldou. you don I dare to use force- on me; you don't know the way and Hill can't see. You know If vou kill me you II die yourself." your-self." "Ealr enough, ' Virginia replied sweetly. "But lake Just this little awaVaVsar .bmIHbHbP! "Ml .od What You (.olnc t Dr. A itli Mi'"" Hi Aski rl. word of advice. Bill and I Wore all reconciled to dying when we thought of you und WO won't mind it now If we're sure you are going along. And Bill will tell ou that I can shoot straight Herhaps you learned that fact last nluht. " The lengthened the thong that tied his ankles together, giving him room for a full walking slop but not enough to leap or run. They put on his hnnds a pair of awkward mittens that had been stiffened by mud and water, and laahed them to nil wrist? Then they slipped the thonf of the Sled across his shoulders and under his arms like the loops of a kyack. They were ready to go. "I haven't much hope." Hill told Virginia when she was tucked Into tho bod on the sled. "But It's the only chanco we have." She smiled at him "At least. Hill, we'll have done cverthlnjr we could. Qoodby, little cabin where I found happiness. Sometimes, perhaps, we'll come hack to you!" The man bent and kissed her, and she gave the word for Harold to start At the end of three bittor days, Bill Bronson stood once more on the hill that looked down upon Bradleyburg Bradley-burg The twilight was growing In the glen beneath; already It had cast shadows In Virginia's eyes She sat dpskji mm on ine siea. It had been cruel hardship, the three days' journey. But fortune had play-d them well In this they had found the food Vosper abandoned. Virginia was on tho rapid road toward to-ward recovery from her wound. It had not been severe; w-hlle nhe was lying still on tho sled It had had every chance to hMii Bill's sight had grown steadily better bet-ter as the days had passed; already the Spirits of Mercy had permitted him. at closo range, to behold Virginia's Vir-ginia's face. A half-mile back, Just before they approached the first fringe of the spruce forest, they had met a trup-per trup-per Just starting out on his line; and he had gladly consented to take Harold Har-old the rest of the w:iv Into town He was to be lodged In prison to face n charge of attempted murder a crime that in the northwest provinces Is never regarded lightly, "And you weren't drowned'" the trapper marveled, when he had got his breath "We've heen mournln' you for dead for months." "Drowned not a bit of It," Vlr-glna Vlr-glna answered gayly "And don't mourn any more," Bill felt wholly able to follow the broad snow-shoe track the half-mile farther into town. The footsteps of the men had grown faint and died awaj and Virginia and he were left together on the hill They saw tho church spire, tall and ghostly In the twilight, ami Bill's strong arms pressed the girl cloe, She understood and smiled happily, "Of course, Bill," she told him. There Is no need to wait In a few days I'll bo strong enough to stand beside vou at tho altar." THE KND. New story begins on Monday. |