Part 34 (1/2)

”Cut it out!” he said peremptorily. ”I will get to the bottom of this.” To Bela he said harshly: ”What do you expect us to do for you, girl? You promised us a fair answer yesterday morning, and in the night you skipped with the cook.”

Bela raised an innocent-seeming face.

”What you mean, skip?” she asked.

”Lit out, eloped, ran away,” said Jack grimly.

”I never did!” she cried indignantly. ”He carry me off.”

They stared at her open-mouthed again.

”What I want wit' a cook?” she went on quickly. ”I want marry a man wit' something. He is a bad man. He tak' me away. Now he say he done wit' me!” Tears threatened again.

They were only half convinced.

”How did it happen?” Jack demanded.

”In the afternoon he find my cache where I stay by the little creek,”

she said. ”Talk to me lak a friend. I think all right. But in the night he come back when I sleepin' and tie my hands and my feet and my mouth, and throw me in my boat and tak' away! I hate him!”

”Then it was you we heard cry out?” exclaimed Joe.

”Sure!” she a.s.sented readily. ”The handkerchief come loose. But soon he stop me.”

”He did it just to spite us!” cried Joe furiously. ”He didn't want her himself! I always said he had too proud a stomach for a cook. Worked against us at night like a rat! I warned you often enough!”

”Hold on!” said Big Jack, scowling. ”There's more to this.” He turned to Bela accusingly. ”You were paddling the dugout when you came to the river yesterday. I saw you plain.”

”Soon as the wind begin to blow he cut me loose,” she said. ”He can't mak' the boat go. He tak' my gun and point to me and mak' me paddle.”

”The d.a.m.ned blackguard!” muttered Shand.

Jack was still unconvinced. ”But to-day,” he said, ”when my oar busted you laughed. I was lookin' at you.”

Bela hung her head. ”He tak' me away,” she murmured. ”I t'ink he marry me then. I good girl. I think got marry him.”

This convinced them all. They burst out in angry exclamations. It was not, however, for what they thought Bela had suffered. Each man was thinking of the wrong Sam had done him. Toward Bela their att.i.tude had subtly changed. She was now a damaged article, though still desirable. Their awe of her was gone.

”I'll grind my heel in his face for this,” snarled Joe. ”I'll kill him slow!”

”Come on!” cried Shand. ”We're losing time. He can't have got far.”

Bela scrambled out of the dugout. ”I tak' you where he is,” she said eagerly. ”I can track him in the gra.s.s. I can't catch him myself. But you got give him to me for punish.”

”We'll attend to that for you, my girl,” said Jack grimly.

”No blood!” she cried. ”If he is kill for cause of me I get a bad name around. A girl can't have no bad name.”

They laughed with light scorn. ”You're done for already,” Joe said.

”n.o.body knows him,” said Jack. ”He'll never be missed. We'll take good care he ain't found, neither.”