Small wonder! Their faces were flushed, their clothes covered with brambles from their search, while he showed no sign of discomfort. His hair, worn longer than was usual, was of a bright gold, his skin pallid and his cheeks slightly sunken, making his long, curiously shaped gray eyes more conspicuous. “Yes, one can see you have not disturbed yourself,” Gill returned. “Yet if you wish to be out of the woods before twilight, you had best make _some_ effort. Fortunately I discovered the trail we were seeking while looking for you. Please follow me.” She turned sharply and moved off, her figure vanishing between the trees, every inch of her body alert, vigorous, almost boyish, with her rifle and game over her shoulder. Nevertheless the newcomer glanced at her with an expression of disapproval, while his eyes sought Bettina for sympathy. “I am a stranger in this locality,” he explained. “I intend spending the winter at a cabin in one of the clearings. ‘Long, long is the autumn dream in these corridors of heaven’,” he quoted. “Yes, I know,” Bettina answered; “still, I think it might be just as well not to discuss the beauty surrounding us for a short time and follow our guide. You cannot depend on me and I am sure you appear to be an equally unreliable woodsman. Gill,” Bettina called, realizing that Gill was walking more rapidly than usual and that they might be forced to run rather than lose sight of her. Out of breath they both were when finally they caught up. A few yards farther on, the path broadened, leading between an avenue of sugar maples raining golden leaves. “You have been hunting,” the young man remarked in an effort to induce Mary Gilchrist to behave as if she were aware of his existence. The fact was too obvious to require an answer, notwithstanding Gill nodded. “Do you actually mean you have shot and killed those pretty little things yourself, those gentle, furry rabbits with their soft eyes and cotton tails and the quail one can hear calling to one another with their sweet, throaty notes? The wild animals one might be willing to destroy, although I scarcely think that fair in their own haunts. Surely a portion of this world should be reserved to them as well! But even when one reconciles oneself to the idea of a man hunting, the thought of a woman or girl being willing to kill is beyond my conception.” Bettina saw the hot color flood Gill’s cheeks, saw her bite her lips.