Part 46 (1/2)
The white signal had gone, but Ellerey's eyes re black line until a fold in the hills hid it froone out of his life, suddenly as a candle is blown out in a room Then he turned and held out the paper to the soldier
Stefan read the pencilled lines, turned the paper over ain The words seemed to burn their way into his brain as they had burnt into Ellerey's, but the effect was somewhat different
”It is not like a woman, is it?” said Stefan
”Very like, I think”
Stefan shook his head, as though he regretted his coosie,” he said ”I saw the osie I can understand his doing this kind of thing, but not a woman”
”The fact remains that she is a woman,” said Ellerey
”Wonderful,” answered the soldier, as he handed back the paper ”It would appear that the ood conized that he was a man, hidden by a cruel mistake in the shape of a woood ht beside I wish you a better fate than theirs”
”This does not look like treachery,” said Ellerey It was evident that he had not been attending to his coht of his own, and now put his decision into words
”We're standing here like two fools, at any rate,” Stefan said ”We ought to know the value of precaution by this ti, or for crossing theup our minds that is needed if we are not to starve”
Ellerey was still following his own thoughts
”What can her plan be?” he said ”What hope for her cause is there in these hills? What osie, none; as a wo,”
Stefan answered ”Soosie at once?”
”It is a terrible thought, Stefan, but eance? Did they not cry to us that we iven up? She heard that; she argued with us, you remember She has sacrificed herself for us”
”Well, Captain, shall we follow? Give et on friendly terms with my stomach I care not which road we take, nor to what it leads us”
”We will follow her,” said Ellerey
”I'd never leave so good a coht place,”
ather up e take with us, and fill our flasks at Grigosie's fairy fountain yonder”
When Stefan returned, he found Ellerey standing on the edge of the plateau looking down into the pass
”What is it, Captain?” he called out as he came ”They have not kept their pro down into the valley
A savage oath burst from Stefan's lips ”They've played the lad false in this, they'll play him false in all,” and the tone in which he said it revealed for a moment the real heart of the h exterior