The Trail to Yesterday

ned her. During her sleep she had turned her face to the wall, and when her eyes opened the first thing that her gaze rested on was the small window above her head. She regarded it for some t

lvers-even though she feared them-seemed to insure protection. It was odd, she told herself, that she should place so much confidence in Dakota, and her presence in the cabin with him was certainly a breach of propriety which-were her friends in the East to hear of it-would arouse much comment-entirely un

eemed to grow farther from her-the recollection of events during the past few hours left no room in her thoughts for sleep. Turning, a

, when he saw her looking

ned me," she returned. "Thunder always

asleep," he said

ad turned to look at him. She flushed with embarrassment over the thought that while she had been asleep he must ha

en asleep two hours," he said. "I'v

? Are you troubl

so serious as that.

ones, of

m pleasant. I've be

ly to make to this,

n coming into my shack. We're twenty miles from town here-twenty miles from the Double

Her face had grown slowly pale, but there was a

Why? Isn't it quite possible that you c

I did not," in

o you

veringly. "Because you are

in his eyes, but was not quite certain

ood mannikins around-has a way of putting us all in the right places. I expect that's one of the

to do-" began Sheila, won

't it?" h

t is

oved around like men on a chess board, and though they're always interest

n't s

rsonal in this, aside from the fact that I was trying to show you that some one was foolish in se

ile he stood at the door he turned and looked at her and presently, when a gust of wind rushed in and Sheila shivered, he abruptly closed the door, barred it, and strode to the fireplace, throwing a fresh

e you?" he

nty-

fe. Lived well, too, I suppose-ple

s lips curling a little. "Your fath

hink

self than to Sheila and he looked at he

y father should be h

t place and go to another. Maybe the place he went to wouldn't be j

sted Sheila. "I am sure that you haven't lived

at?" His gaze was q

now. But y

't find what I was looking for isn't the question-mostly none of us find the things we're looking for. But if I had been happy where I was I woul

u that he is coming

on for at that moment she was looking at his shadow on the floor.

he wants but his health.

hould

on," said Dakota subt

th has been failing

ce whiten, his lips harden. And when he spoke again there wa

t--" There was a mirthless smile on Dakota's face-"ten years is a longer time for a man in good health who hasn't

k. He worried q

enough to conceal the light of savage

surprise at the startling change in h

m to have a neighbor who is afflicted with the sort of sick

Sheila yawned and Dakota stood m

n?" came his voice presently,

up at him in surprise. "

him. Mostly children

fully at him. "I am twenty-t

ned, unruffled. "When

im with a sudden, new interest. "You are betrayi

kon that isn't odd, is it? He's g

hich equalled his. "And you are gossiping

n," he said

nent one,"

ignoring the jibe, "seems to think a heap of

sh; he wanted me to wa

ed to amuse him. He smiled mys

n't any one else-no rela

arrowly. "And he likes you. I reckon he'd be hurt quite a little if

th her booted foot on his shadow o

. Ten chances to one if nothing happens to you your father will consider himself lucky. But suppose you had happened to fall in with a different man than me-we'll say, for instance, a man

much. In the second place, if he does think that I am a treasure, he is very much mistaken, for I am not-I am a woman and quite able to take care of myself. Y

waken you,

k, her back to him. "You are k

then," he laughe

r.-Mr. Dakota,

ncentrated her attention on the rain; she could hear the soft, steady patter of it on the roof; she listened to it trickling from the eaves and striking th