"He has a broken arm?" cried Puko, leaping up in delight. "Well, no. But he would have, had he not persuaded me to let go by turning temporarily honest." Yorgh's laugh trailed off when Vaneen gave no sign of being amused, but Puko continued to crow for some minutes. "Then we can go tomorrow," he said at last. He sobered at the expression on Yorgh's face. "Don't say it was just one of your stories, Yorgh! That the sand blew in till it filled the gully again!" The big hunter nodded sadly. "This morning, on the crest of the hills, I even climbed a tree to look back, but the sand is like waves of the sea." The firelight glinted in Vaneen's hair as she laughed scornfully. "You don't believe me?" he asked. "There are over three hundred men, women, and children in the tribe," said the girl, stretching nonchalantly and smoothing the blue dress over her hips, "and even the tiniest babes in their mothers' arms will tell you that Yorgh seldom speaks in earnest!" "That was unkind!" said Yorgh, pulling down the corners of his mouth. "But you always were too proud to be considerate, as is common with beautiful women. Will you bet a kiss that I lie?" "A hundred!" Vaneen waved a hand contemptuously. "And that is a bet I would not make lightly with an honest man!" Yorgh fumbled in his pouch for the shiny metal stick and held it up. Puko watched eagerly. "Well?" challenged Vaneen, watching him warily. "As I told you, I picked up the thing that lay shining between the feet of the skeleton. After chasing the wolly, I found it still in my hand. Here is my proof!" Vaneen peered at it suspiciously, being careful not to come too close to Yorgh. "Where did you really get it?" she asked. "Have you no ears, woman? I just now told you that--" "It's one of your tricks," said Vaneen, putting the fire between them. "Look, then!" said Yorgh. "Come around a little, so you can watch the stick against the dark." She moved reluctantly, and Yorgh twisted the end of the metal cylinder. The other end suddenly glowed blue-green, bringing breathless exclamations from Puko and Vaneen. With an air of mastery, Yorgh turned the light off and on several times before yielding to Puko's awed plea to be allowed to touch it. Even when the boy, at Yorgh's instructions, also worked the light, his sister remained dubious. "Enough!" declared Yorgh, grinning in anticipation. "You questioned me once too often, Vaneen. Come here!" He reached out one huge arm and swept her to him, but it suddenly seemed he had taken hold of an untamed wolly. A hard little elbow thudded into his stomach and he let go. That was his second mistake, he saw a second later as he staggered back with his left ear ringing from a man-sized slap. Vaneen, with a swirl of blue skirt about her tanned knees, reached for the woodpile. Yorgh changed his mind about grabbing her again to exact his "winnings" when he saw the billet of wood in her hand.