"I see the smoke a while back," said she unemotionally, nodding and gazing out of the window toward the distant landscape. "Died, did he? Did you bring him down?" "The wind has changed," said Nels sententiously. "Before night, won't be nothing to bring down. We left him in his tent." "Who set that fire, Nels?" she demanded of her husband after a time. "The same people that burned out Sim Gage and Wid Gardner. All of 'em had cleared out but that one." "How about that woman, Nels?" "We brung her down with us. She'd spent the night in the woods alone. Doctor's got her in bed over at Sim's place now." He turned his heavy face upon her frowningly, apparently passing upon some question they earlier had discussed. "I say it's all right, Karen, about her." "Well, are they going to be married?" she demanded of him. "That's the question. Because if they ain't----" "If they are or they ain't," said Nels Jensen, "she's not no common folks like us." "A lady--huh!" "Yes, if I can tell one. Such being so, best thing you can do, Karen, is to get some eggs together, and like enough a loaf of bread, and go over there right soon." "If they wasn't _going_ to be married," began Karen, "people in here wouldn't let that run along." "Karen," said her husband succinctly, "sometimes you women folks make me tired. Go on and get the eggs." "Oh, all right," said his wife; and already she was reaching for her sunbonnet. When she and her sturdy spouse had made their way by a short cut across the fields to Sim Gage's house, Karen Jensen had melted, and was no longer righteous judge, but simply neighbor. "Where is she?" she demanded imperiously of Wid Gardner, whom she found standing outside the door. Wid nodded toward the interior of the half-ruined cabin. As she passed in she saw Doctor Barnes, sitting on a box, quietly watching the pale face of a woman, young, dark-haired, flushed, her eyes heavy, her hands spread out piteously upon the blanket covering of the rude bunk bed. Karen's first quick glance assured her that this young woman was all that Nels Jensen had called her--a lady. She looked so helpless now that the big ranchwoman's heart went out to her in spite of all. "You'd better get right out, Doctor," said she; and that gentleman followed her orders, exceeding glad to welcome a woman in this womanless wreck of a home. Doctor Barnes stood outside, hands in pocket, for a time looking across the meadows lined with their banks of willows, silvering as usual in the evening breeze. "Come here," said he at length to the three men. They all followed him to one side. "Now, Gage," said he, "I want you to tell me the truth about how this woman came out here." Wid Gardner, taking pity on his friend, told him instead, going into all the details of the conspiracy that had now proved so disastrous. Doctor Barnes frowned in resentment when he heard. "She's got to go back East," said he, "as soon as she's able to travel."