Leaning against a waggon-wheel, lazily puffing at his pipe, his faithful Winchester ever ready to hand, the scout watched their approach as imperturbably as though he had parted with his friend but half-an-hour back, instead of nearly a month ago, when he had watched the latter ride off with Mahto-sapa's band into what looked perilously like the very jaws of death. But he could not restrain a covert guffaw as he marked in what company he now met his friend again. "Hello, Bill! Any news?" cried the latter, as they rode up to the waggon corral. "By the way, I must call round and collect that twenty dollars from Seth Davis." "Guess you'll have to trade his scalp to raise it," was the grim reply. "And you'll find it drying in the smoke of an Ogallalla _teepe_." "That so?" "It is. Couple o' nights after War Wolf was run off, a crowd of 'em came along and shot Seth in the doorway of his store. Then they cleared out all the goods and burnt down the whole shebang. They couldn't nohow get rid of the idea that he'd had a hand in giving War Wolf away." "Well, we've just stood off a handful of reds." "Sho! With the young lady too! Say, stranger"--he broke off, turning to Geoffry--"are you the `tenderfoot' them reds was after?" "Er--yes. But--how did you know?" answered Geoffry, staring with astonishment. "Struck your trail. But jest before, I'd struck the trail o' them painted varmints. Knew they'd jump you, but reckoned you'd make camp 'fore they got within shootin' distance." "You're out of it this time, Bill," said Vipan. "He'd have been roast beef by now if we hadn't happened along. It was a very pretty chase, though," he added, with a laugh. "Our friend here covered the ground in fine style." "Bless your heart, stranger, that's just nothing," laughed the scout, noting the offended look which came into the young man's face at this apparently unfeeling comment on the frightful peril from which he had barely escaped. "Why, me and Vipan there have had many and many such a narrow squeak when we've been out scoutin' alone--ay, and narrower. Haven't we scooted for a whole day with a yellin' war-party close on our heels, and no snug corral like this handy to stand 'em off in!" "Really!" exclaimed Geoffry, open-mouthed. "You bet. Them devils were just a lot of young Cheyenne bucks out in search of any devilment that might come handy. But you were in luck's way, stranger, this time."