XX HUGH CLIMBS THE RIDGE
The small island was scarcely a half mile in circumference, and it didnot take Hugh and Blaise long to explore it. Its only inhabitantsappeared to be squirrels, hares and a few birds. Breakfast had beenlight, and by mid-afternoon the boys were very hungry. The lighting of afire involved some risk, but they could not eat raw fish. On a bit ofopen rock at the extreme upper or southwest end of the island, they madea tiny blaze, taking care to keep the flame clear and almost smokeless,and broiled the fish over the coals. The meal put both in better spiritsand helped them to await with more patience the coming of night.
The evening proved disappointing. The sun set behind black clouds thatcame up from the west. The water was calm, the air still and oppressive,and above the ridges lightning flashed. The prospect of making a startacross the open lake was not good. Yet in one way the threatening weatherserved the lads well. The night was intensely dark. The lightning was toofar away to illuminate land or water, and this black darkness furnishedgood cover. When they pushed off from the little island, they could seescarcely a boat's length ahead.
Close to the shores of the islands and the long point, they paddled,avoiding wide spaces, which were, even on this dark night, considerablylighter than the land-shadowed water. As he sat in the stern trying todip and raise his paddle as noiselessly as his half-brother in the bow,Hugh felt that the very bay had somehow changed its character. Thatmorning the place had seemed peaceful and beautiful, but to-night it hadturned sinister and threatening. The low hanging, starless sky, the dark,wooded islands, the towering ridge, its topmost line of tree spires ablack, jagged line against the pale flashes of lightning, the still,lifeless water, the intense silence broken only by the far-away rumble ofthunder and the occasional high-pitched, squeaking cry of some nightbird, all seemed instinct with menace. The boy felt that at any moment aswift canoe, with the gigantic figure of Ohrante towering in the bow,might dart out of some black shadow. Frankly Hugh was frightened, and heknew it. But the knowledge only made him set his teeth hard, gaze keenlyand intently into the darkness about him and ply his paddle with theutmost care. What his half-brother's feelings were he could not guess. Heonly knew that Blaise was paddling steadily and silently.
In the thick darkness, the older boy was not quite sure of the way backto the hidden pond, but Blaise showed no doubt or hesitation. He foundthe channel between the point and the chain of islands, and warned Hughjust when to turn through the gap into the inner channel. When it came tofeeling the way past the round islet and through the narrow passage, Hughceased paddling and trusted entirely to Blaise. The latter strained hiseyes in the effort to see into the darkness, but so black was it on everyhand that even he had to depend more on feeling with his paddle bladethan on his sense of sight. It was partly luck that he succeeded intaking the boat through without worse accident than grating a rock. Hedid not attempt to cross the little pond, but ran the bateau up on thepebbles just beyond the entrance.
Hugh drew a long sigh of relief. They were back safe in the hidden pondnear the cache of furs. The sense of menace that had oppressed him wassuddenly lifted, and he felt an overpowering physical and mentalweariness. Blaise must have had some similar feeling, for he had not aword to say as they climbed out of the bateau and pulled it farther up.In silence he lay down beside Hugh in the bottom of the boat. In spite ofthe rumbling of the thunder, and the flashing of the lightning, the twoboys fell asleep immediately.
The storm passed around and no rain fell, but the sleepers were awakenedtowards dawn by a sharp change in the weather. The air had turned cold,wind rustled the trees, broken clouds were scudding across the skyuncovering clear patches. The morning dawned bright. The little pond wasstill, but it was impossible to tell what the weather might be outside.The only way to find out was to go see. Their adventure of the day beforehad made the boys more than ever anxious to get away from Isle Royale atthe first possible moment. Yet the thought that Ohrante might be lurkingsomewhere near made them cautious. They hesitated to leave their hidingplace until they were sure they could strike out across the lake. To loadthe furs and start out, only to be obliged to turn back, seemed a doublerisk.
"If the lake is rough it is likely that Ohrante and his band have notgone far," Blaise remarked. "They may be in this very bay."
"That does not follow," Hugh replied quickly and with better reasoning."There was a long interval between the time when we saw them and thecoming of the storm-clouds. Because the lake was rough in the morning isno sign it was rough all day. They must have come in here from somewhere,and we know that the wind changed. The water in the bay was as still asglass last night. Ohrante was surely well frightened and I have littledoubt they made good speed away from the Bay of Spirits." Hugh was silentfor a few moments. Then he asked abruptly, "What would happen if weshould encounter Ohrante? He can't know what brought us here, and we havedone him no harm. Why should he harm us when he has nothing against us?"
"He has this against us, that we are the sons of Jean Beaupre."
"He doesn't know we are."
"He knows me. He has seen me more than once and knows me for the son ofmy father. Ohrante forgets not those he has seen."
"I didn't know he knew you. He can't know me. Probably he doesn't evenknow that father had another son. I'll go alone in the bateau, Blaise,down the channel, and see how the lake looks."
"No, no," Blaise objected. "You must not take such a risk. If you go outthere, I will go too."
"That would spoil the whole plan. If Ohrante catches sight of you, itwill be all up with both of us. He doesn't know me. If he glimpses me, hemay even be afraid to show himself. He may think me one of a party ofwhite men, and he is a fugitive from justice."
Blaise shook his head doubtfully.
"Well, at any rate," Hugh protested, "I shall have a better chance if youaren't with me. I don't believe I shall see anything of Ohrante or hismen, but I run less risk alone. I will be cautious. I'll not exposemyself more than I can help. Instead of going out along the point bywater, I'll paddle across the channel and then take to the woods. I canclimb to the top of the ridge, under cover all the way, and look outacross the lake. It can't be very far up there. I shall be back in anhour. You must stay here and guard the furs."
The expression of the younger lad's face betrayed that he did not likethis new plan much better than the first one, but he voiced no furtherobjection.
Hugh pushed off the bateau, waved his hand to the sober-faced Blaise, andpaddled through the narrow waterway and out of sight. After his brotherhad gone, Blaise picked his way along the shore of the pond and into thewoods to the cache. He found no signs of disturbance around the oldbirch, and, climbing up, he looked down into the hollow. The rotten woodand dead leaves he and Hugh had strewn over the bark cover seemedundisturbed. Satisfied that the furs were safe, Blaise climbed downagain. He was reminded though that Hugh still had the packet. He wishedhe had asked his elder brother to leave it behind.
The half-breed boy waited with the patience inherited from his Indianmother. But when the sun reached its highest point he began to wonder.Surely it could not take Hugh so long to cross to the point, climb to thetop and return. From experience of untracked woods and rough ridges,Blaise knew the trip was probably a harder one than Hugh had imagined,but the latter was not inexperienced in rough going. Unless he hadencountered extraordinary difficulties, had been obliged to go fararound, or had become lost, he should have been back long before. Thepossibility that Hugh had become lost, Blaise dismissed from his mind atonce. With the ridge ahead and the water behind him, only the verystupidest of men could have lost himself in daylight. That he had come tosome crack or chasm he could not cross or some cliff he could not scale,and had been compelled to go far out of his way, was possible. Blaise hadcome to know Hugh's stubborn nature. If he had started to go to the topof the ridge, there he would go, if it was in the power of possibility.
There seemed to
be nothing Blaise could do but wait. Even if he hadthought it wise to follow his elder brother, he had no boat. Sunset cameand still no Hugh. The lad felt he could delay action no longer.
The pond was in the interior of a small island. Blaise made up his mindto cross to the shore bordering on the channel that separated the islandfrom the long point. Through the woods he took as direct a route as hecould. The growth was thick, but there was still plenty of light. In avery few minutes he saw the gleam of water among the trees ahead. Heslipped through cautiously, not to expose himself until he had takenobservations. His body concealed by a thick alder bush, he looked acrossthe strip of water, studying the opposite shore line.
The shore was in shadow now and the trees grew to the water. Letting hiseyes travel along foot by foot, he caught sight of the thing he sought, abit of weather-stained wood, not the trunk or branch of a dead tree,projecting a little way from the shadow of a cedar. That was the end ofthe bateau. Hugh had crossed the channel, had left his boat and gone intothe woods.
Slipping between the bushes, Blaise glanced along his own side of thechannel, then made his way quickly to the spot where a birch tree hadtoppled from its insecure hold into the water. With his sharp hatchet,the boy quickly severed the roots that were mooring the fallen tree tothe shore. Then, with some difficulty, he succeeded in shoving the birchfarther out into the channel and climbing on the trunk. His weight, as hesat astride the tree trunk between the branches, pulled it down a little,but the upper part of his body was well above water. The channel wasdeep, with some current, which caught the tree and floated it away fromshore. Like most woods Indians and white voyageurs, Blaise was notskilled in swimming, but the water was calm and, as long as he clung tohis strange craft, he was in no danger of drowning. Leaning forward, hecut off a branch to use as a paddle and with it was able to make slowheadway across. He could not guide himself very well, and the currentbore him down. He succeeded with his branch paddle in keeping the treefrom turning around, however. It went ashore, the boughs catching in abush that grew on the water's edge, some distance below the spot wherethe bateau was drawn up in the shelter of the leaning cedar.