"Go home. It's quittin' time." Ted was surprised to find that long evening shadows were slanting across the valleys. They had worked hard, and perhaps that had made the day seem so short. Only when they climbed back into the pickup for the ride home did he realize that he was very tired. He tickled Tammie's silken ears. "Tomorrow's another day," he murmured. "Yep," Al agreed somberly, "and another day brings more work. Reckon I'll take after that coyote. He's got to be caught. You want to saw wood?" "Sure thing." * * * * * Early the next morning, Al let Ted and Tammie off at the camp and turned back, with traps and rifle, to get on the trail of the marauding coyote. While the collie renewed his acquaintance with the chipmunks, Ted laid a chunk of wood in the sawbuck and sawed off a twelve-inch length. He sawed another ... and worked until noon. After lunch, he started splitting the wood he had sawed. It was the right way to do things. If hunters cut their own wood, they might injure valuable trees. Evening shadows were long again when Al came to pick him up. "Get your coyote?" Ted greeted his father. "No, but I will. I found where he's runnin' and I put traps in the right places. See you got a sizable pile of wood." "I haven't been loafing." "Not much anyhow." Ted said tiredly, "What a refreshing sense of humor my old pappy's got." They turned into the driveway of their own house, to see Loring Blade's pickup truck already there and the game warden waiting. With him was Jack Callahan, Sheriff of Mahela County. Al's voice was weighted with surprise as he welcomed them. "Hi, Lorin'. 'Lo, Jack. Been waitin' long?" "Not very long," Loring Blade said. "We figured you'd be in about now. We have to ask you some questions, Al." "Well, come in and ask." They entered the house and Ted snapped on the lights in the living room. He started into the kitchen to prepare supper. Al swung to face their guests. "Ask away," he invited them. "We came to find out," said Jack Callahan, "what you can tell us about the shooting of Smoky Delbert." 4 THE FUGITIVE The words brought Ted to a shocked halt, just as he was entering the kitchen. He turned to stare in disbelief and Tammie, sensing that something was wrong, searched his master's face as though this would show him what he must do. Failing to find any guiding sign, the collie turned toward the two strangers. He did nothing and would do nothing until Ted or Al told him to. But he was ready for any part he must take. In his turn, Ted looked to his father for a clue and found none. Whatever Al might feel, he was successfully hiding it, and his voice was neither raised nor lowered when he spoke. "Somebody finally got him, huh?" Jack Callahan challenged, "What do you mean by that?" "Where you been the past twenty or twenty-five years, Jack? Smoky's been askin' for it at least that long."