While thus they stood, the signal--the hoot of the night-owl--was thrice repeated, now in an imperative and half-angry tone, and a cry of astonishment mingled with the darkly mysterious, parted the chief’s lips. Why did not the others show themselves, and cease repeating the signals which had been obeyed? Were they to fight the She-wolf alone, or had Turkey-foot and his white friend wandered off into other dark passages in which the twain believed the earth overhead to abound? Suddenly the peculiar scream of the white heron came to their ears, and a few minutes later a footstep faintly sounded in the main corridor. Leather-lips clutched his companion’s arm, and drew him back into the niche, where they crouched with eyes fixed upon the main passage. Presently a head--a human cranium--no further from the ground than the head of a cur, became visible in the corridor, and the two chiefs almost uttered a cry when they recognized it as the head of _Kenowatha_! It appeared to them but for a moment--just long enough for the keen eyes of the white Indian to take a quick survey of the cave--then was withdrawn. The red watchers held their breath, and waited further developments, believing that fate intended to play the boy into their hands. If he had not encountered the Girl Avenger, he would become more bold after a spell, and enter the cave. For this they waited, and in their eagerness to secure the boy, forgot their brethren wandering about in unexplored passages, which might lead to death too horrible to contemplate. At length the head again appeared, and this time it was followed by the entire figure of Kenowatha. He crept forward on all fours, his rifle clutched in his right hand, and dragging at his side his tomahawk in his left. Presently, seemingly satisfied that no foes lurked near enough to take his life, the White Fox rose to his feet and stood over the dead Indians. He had gazed upon them long enough to see the scarlet crescent upon their brows, when the two chiefs darted forward. The great hand of the red sorcerer gripped the boy’s arm; but with an agility and strength entirely unexpected by the savages, he tore himself away, sprung to the further side of the cave, and threw his rifle to his shoulder. Instantaneous with this latter action on the part of the youth Leather-lips darted forward; but the rifle broke the demi-silence and the sorcerer measured his giant length on the stones.