“White boy sleep good,” said one of them, as a joke, and then both stalked over to the fire once more. But the rain and the mist were not to their liking and presently they, too, retired. Then the fire died down gradually, and the Indian village became as quiet as a graveyard. CHAPTER V THE FLIGHT TO THE RIVER “Henry!” “Dave! How did you manage——” “Hush! Don’t make any noise, or the Indians may hear you. Stand still until I untie the ropes. They took my knife away from me.” No more was said just then. Henry’s heart gave a great bound of joy. Dave was alive and well, after all. The discovery was almost too good to be true. With dextrous fingers Dave undid the rawhide which held his cousin a prisoner. Henry was so stiff that he staggered, and Dave had to support him for the moment. “Come with me to the river—we can take to the canoe,” whispered Dave into his cousin’s ear. He was fearful that one of the Indians might awaken at any moment and stop their flight. “All right, Dave, but——” Henry hesitated, and tried to look through the darkness and the rain. “Are you armed?” “No.” “Neither am I—they took everything I had. We ought to try to get at least one rifle and a knife.” “Yes, but the risk?” “Is the canoe ready for use?” “Yes,—all we have to do is to jump in and shove off.” “Then keep still until I take a look around. At the first sign of an alarm make for the canoe as tight as you can.” Henry’s wrenched ankle still pained him, but in the excitement of the occasion he paid no attention to the injury. With the wiliness of the red warriors he was trying to outwit, he crawled forward in the darkness until he was close to one of the wigwams. This he knew held several Indians and also his own weapons and those belonging to Dave. With bated breath the young hunter raised the dirty flap to the wigwam and tried to pierce the darkness inside. He could see next to nothing. He crawled in a little further, and his hand came in contact with an Indian’s foot. He felt further, and touched the barrel of a gun. He raised the weapon and drew it towards him. One of the red men gave a deep sigh and a grunt, but did not awaken. Encouraged by his success so far, Henry crawled forward again and this time obtained the second rifle, the powder horns, and also one of the hunting knives. His eyes were now becoming accustomed to the darkness, and finding a tomahawk he took that too, and then a bow and a quiver full of arrows. At that instant one of the Indians turned over, muttering in his sleep. Fearful that he was awakening, the young hunter made a hasty move toward the wigwam opening. He stepped on the foot of a sleeping warrior, and the red man sat up with a start and called out in his native tongue, demanding to know what was the matter. Then, as he saw Henry dart from the shelter, he gave a war-cry that alarmed the entire camp.