Pagina 182 di 439

It was scarce a minute later that the whistle came from the

hilltop. The mountaineer instantly swung to the saddle and set

his pony to a canter up the draw. Fraser could see him join his

daughter in the dim light, for the moon had momentarily gone

behind a cloud, but almost at once the darkness swallowed them.

Some one in the sagebrush called to a companion, and the Texan

knew that the attackers had heard the sound of the galloping

horses. Without waiting an instant, he fired twice in rapid

succession.

"That'll hold them for a minute or two," he told himself. "They

won't understand it, and they'll get together and have a powwow."