CHAPTER XI
"WHERE'S JACK?"
Ralph Merrit explained his unexpected appearance to Ruth in a far moreconventional fashion than Jean had required. He was a native of Chicago,a graduate of a mining school, and had come west to see if he could makehis living by testing the gold deposits in the mining camps in thenorthwest states. Two miners had induced him to go with them to an oldmine not far away to see if their discoveries of gold deposits were ofvalue. When the find turned out to be no good, the men had slipped away,leaving him, and not only refusing to pay what they had promised for hisservices, but stealing all the money he had with him. For the past twodays the young man had been scouring the country for the thieves, but henow believed they had gotten to some town and were safely out of hisreach.
"I should be awfully grateful to you, Miss Drew, if you would tell methe way to the nearest village," Ralph Merrit said at the end of hisstory. "I am green about this part of the country and don't know in whatdirection to move on."
Ruth shook her head. "I am afraid I don't know either," she confessed,"but if you will spend the day here with us until our guide, Mr. Colter,comes back, he will tell you anything you wish to know."
Ralph accepted the invitation gratefully, although he hardly guessedwhat a concession it represented. A year before, when Ruth Drew leftVermont, she had never spoken to a man in her life without a formalintroduction, and now she was inviting a stranger to spend the day withher and the three girls in the woods. But Ruth never doubted the storyRalph Merrit had told her for a moment, although it was an unusual one.No one who was a judge of character ever doubted Ralph. He was astraightforward, manly, determined fellow, with a strong will and asense of humor--one of the most delightful combinations in theworld--and from the first hour of their acquaintance he was a specialfavorite with Ruth and later with Jim Colter.
For several hours, Ralph made himself a useful visitor, insisting onbringing in fresh stores of wood, as he assured his hostesses theirstock would never last over night, and they would desire to keep up aparticularly brilliant fire as a beacon light to the wanderers fromcamp.
About four o'clock in the afternoon Ruth suggested that the five of themtake a walk to find out the source of the little stream, which made sucha wonderful oasis in the stretch of sandy desert. After a few miles,Ruth, Olive and Frieda sat down to rest, while Jean and Ralph carried ontheir explorations. They had caught a splendid lot of fish, but Ralphhad his gun with him and hoped to get some game for their supper. Theyoung man and girl had talked to each other for the past few hours, butnow they seemed to feel well enough acquainted to keep silent and enjoythe exquisite beauty of the scenery. They had wandered to the source ofthe brook. Trickling down from the base of a low hill, it was circled bya grove of cottonwood and spruce trees. Jean and Ralph hid in theunderbrush and got softly down on their knees so as to make no possiblenoise, for they saw a few yards ahead a delicate, dappled fawn, with itsnose deep in the clear water. Its sides were of a light gray and brown,its legs like slender staves, and its long ears as soft and sensitive asany created thing. The scene was so beautiful that Jean's eyes grewsuddenly misty with tears.
Ralph also felt a quiver of excitement stiffen his arm. His companionwas behind him and out of any possible danger, the fawn was in directrange of his gun and as yet unconscious of his presence.
The young man lifted his gun, took direct aim, and his fingers pressedthe trigger. At the same instant the gun kicked up in the air, explodedand the shot went wide of its mark. For one quivering instant the fawngazed at the hunter, its big brown eyes full of terror and reproach, andthen with a bound was off through the trees and out of sight.
"How could you, Miss Bruce?" Ralph demanded indignantly, turning onJean. "If you hadn't struck the butt of my gun I should have gotten thatdeer and we would have had fresh meat for a week." He stopped abruptly.Jean's eyes were as wide open and brown and frightened as the fawn's andher body trembled just as delicately.
"HOW COULD YOU, MISS BRUCE?" RALPH DEMANDED INDIGNANTLY.]
"How could _you_?" she replied brokenly. "I couldn't bear to have youkill that lovely, gentle thing. I can't help it, I hate people who killthings. But if you think you will be hungry because of what I did, I'llget Ruth and Jim to let me give you some of my share of our food in thecaravan," and Jean marched back to her friends and would have nothingmore to say to her companion for the rest of the day.
Just before tea time, the storm that had overtaken the travelers to thedeserted mine gathered over the little party, who were resting near thetent. Ruth and the girls tried their best to fight down their fears, buttheir lips and eyes asked the same question: "How were Jim and Jack andCarlos to fight their way back to them through the darkness and rain andwind with only the light of the small lantern Jim had taken with himwhen they set out?"
Jean and Olive got a hasty supper, while Ralph Merrit lashed the tentropes more closely to the ground, found what shelter he could for thehorses, and made a canopy of pine branches over the fire, so that thedownpour of rain should not put it out. It was about dusk when he foundRuth and Frieda standing outside their tent door watching with white,nervous faces the big clouds roll together in a black mass.
"Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable, Miss Drew?"Ralph asked. "You have been awfully good to me, and I can't tell you howI appreciate it. Why, this day with you has been almost like runningacross my own people here in this wilderness. But if there is nothing Ican do, I had best move on to find some sort of shelter for the nightbefore the storm gets worse."
Ruth put out her hand, impulsively clutching Ralph's coat sleeve."Please, please don't leave us until Mr. Colter and Jack and Carlosreturn," she begged. "I told them I would not be worried if they did notget back until quite late, but this storm makes us feel so much morelonely and frightened."
Ralph patted Ruth's hand reassuringly. "Of course I won't go if youwould like me to stay," he answered cheerfully. "And you mustn't bealarmed. I'll watch the fire to keep it from going out, and when yourfriends return, I'll roost in a tree, like 'Monsieur Chantecler,' andwake you first thing in the morning."
Ruth smiled, and Olive, who had come out of the tent with Jean, lookedless forlorn; but Jean, although she was devoutly glad they were not tobe left alone, could not cheer up. She walked apart from the others, notwishing them to guess how uneasy she felt about Jack. Of course nothingwas going to happen, but she wished she had not accused Jack of beingselfish the day before.
Ralph Merrit came over and stood silently at Jean's side for a moment.He felt twice her age and was actually eight years older.
"I did not know you would mind my shot this afternoon," he began stifflyin the fashion in which a man usually apologizes. "If you had beenbrought up in a city and were unused to hunting I might have understoodyour feeling. As it was I----"
Jean's cheeks flushed in the somber twilight. Already the first drops ofrain were falling. Ruth was calling them inside the tent.
"I hope I have not been rude," she said. "I ought to have explained toyou that I can never bear to see anything killed. My cousin, JackRalston, and the overseer of our ranch, Jim Colter, both think I amawfully silly because I never go hunting with them even when they areafter wild game, though I can shoot pretty well. But when a bird oranimal is full of motion and maybe joy, why, to see it stiff and coldall of a sudden and to know you can never make it alive again----"Jean's voice broke off abruptly. She did not care to show emotion to astranger.
"I understand," Ralph answered slowly. "I believe I would like to havemy sister feel that way. I know you have not asked it of me, and we maynever meet again, but so long as I live I shall never kill anythingunless I positively need it for food, or am trying to protect some one."
For several hours Ruth, the girls and their guest huddled inside theirtent waiting for the storm to pass and the wanderers to return. The rainbeat in until their waterproof cloaks were hung over the slits andopenings, and then, in spite of the coldness of the nig
ht outside, theair in the tent grew close and heavy. Ruth did her best to keep up aconversation with Ralph, but Jean and Olive sat on a pile of sofacushions with their arms about each other, waiting, listening for somesound that would tell them the wayfarers were almost home. Frieda hadfallen asleep in a weary lump on a cot, with a tear of sheerlonesomeness for Jack not yet dry on her pink cheek.
Suddenly the girls jumped to their feet and Frieda rolled off the cot.From afar off they heard Jim's familiar whistle and long, cheerful call.Ralph Merrit rushed out to pile the fire with the pine cones and logsthey had been keeping dry inside the tent. Jean and Olive lit the extracandles they had been saving all evening. The rain having almost ceased,Ruth flung a mackintosh about her and ran forth to follow the sound ofJim's voice.
"Home at last!" thought Jim Colter happily, his worry and uncertaintyslipping from him as he caught the distant gleam of the camp-fire. Formany miles after leaving the mine he had hurried on, expecting eachmoment to overtake Jack and Carlos. Then fearing they might have losttheir way, he turned aside at every doubtful place along the trail,searching and calling their names until he was hoarse. Not only was hetorn with anxiety at the loss of his fellow-truants, but uneasy aboutRuth and the girls alone in a tent in a fierce summer tempest. Now hisjourney was almost over, he believed Jack and Carlos had traveled fastand were safe within their own shelter. The vision of Ruth's prettyfigure battling toward him through the wind seemed a good omen.
Both of them stretched out their hands. "Where's Jack?" they cried inthe same breath. And Ruth was glad she had caught Jim's big hands in herwarm ones, for the great, self-controlled overseer of the Rainbow Ranchshook like a child in a chill. "Aren't Jack and Carlos with you?" hequeried hoarsely. And Ruth shook her head, drawing him, stumbling like ablind man, to their camp-fire.
All night long she sat by the fire with him while the girls and RalphMerrit made coffee and walked back and forth from the tent to them. Noone thought of going to bed. Jim wished to be off at once to recommencehis search, but Ruth persuaded him to wait till daylight. For his sakeshe pretended to believe that Jack was too clever not to have found arefuge for herself and Carlos for the night. They were glad that thelittle Indian boy had run away with Jim and Jack to the mine, for it wasbetter that Jack should not be alone.
At the first streak of dawn a light footfall sounded some distance away.Jim and Ruth and Ralph Merrit sprang up from the smouldering fire. "It'sJack!" Ruth cried happily, so that Jean and Olive and Frieda heard her,and came running pale and breathless from the shelter of the tent.
Stealing up the pathway of light made by the first streak of rose colorin the sky was little brown Carlos, but he walked alone.
"Where's Jack?" called everybody this time. And Carlos shook his headuncertainly. He could not understand. There stood "The Big White Chief,"and certainly he must have brought their companion back with him. Whydid they ask _him_ about "The Girl Who Was Never Afraid"? He was only alittle boy, even though an Indian; he was hungry and cold and tired andhad found his way all alone through the darkness of night in a strangecountry, and no one, not even "The Princess," seemed glad to see him.Carlos blinked, but his bronze, statuesque face showed absolutely noemotion. He dropped a little gray ball of fur on the ground, whichFrieda picked up with a cry of pleasure.