"Mon Dieu, they will kill us mademoiselle."

"Perhaps; but they will have to try hard. See yon valley with the tangles of bush?"

"Oui, mademoiselle."

"I know that valley. Was there once with mon pere. Unless they keep directly upon our trait, I shall lead them into a pretty mess."

Altering her course, suddenly, for a bluff intervened and hid the movements of the girls from the savages, Annette followed by Julie made rapidly for the bottom of the valley, crossing through a belt of straggling cedar and larches, and then held her way along the skirt of the opposite ridge.

Faint, far-off yells told the girls that they had been again discovered, but they had the consolation of knowing that their pursuers must have lost almost a quarter of a mile. But the best part of the matter was that, as Annette had expected and planned, the Indians descended into the valley at a point much higher than that chosen by the pursued. They knew not of the stretch of quaking, treacherous bog, with its population of designing beaver; indeed, they would be certain to be lured by the bright, glittering green of the liverwort that clad the level where the ground was most unsubstantial.

Although I am not certain as to the prevalence of this weed in the swampy places of the North-West, I can affirm that I have scarcely ever seen a very dangerous quagmire that has not been covered with this exquisite little plant; and if I could credit the stories of the nursery, I would be able to believe that those malignant fairies who live about dangerous springs and shaking swamps, cover the ground with these dainty sprays of green to lure men to their destruction.

Perhaps the fairies were as interested in the fortunes of Annette and Julie as, at my heart, I am; and that they decked this swamp in its cover of glistering green to hide the death beneath.

Well, whether the fairies did this thing or not, the savages were taking such a course that, in order to regain the trail of the fugitives, they must cross some portion of the treacherous bog.

Annette's eye was upon their movements now.

"Pull rein, Julie;" and both brought their horses to a standstill.

"Well, ma maitresse, what now?" and the pet's hands trembled, and the roses were out of her cheek.

"See; they near the swamp, and will be able, after a struggle, to get through it. Now, Julie, I wish to ride down when they get fairly in the toils; but I would prefer that you should go in the direction we were pursuing. If everything is right, I shall soon overtake you."

"Oh, I go with ma chere maitresse, to do whatever she does."

"Brava, Julie; I do not think we have much to fear. Ha, they are in the toils. In fifteen minutes they will be out. Let us away." While she guided her horse with her bridle hand, Julie perceived her unb.u.t.ton her holster pipe, and seize and c.o.c.k a Colt's revolver.

"I have one, too," muttered Julie; "so I guess I'll do the same thing." Not a bit of cowardice did the sweet exhibit now.

They were now within a hundred paces of that portion of the swamp wherein the braves were tangled. And if ever savages, or anything else, were in a mess, these painted warriors now were. They had reached the centre of the bog, and were floundering in it up to their horses' bellies. Their excitement was so intense that they had eyes for no other place than the spot where their horses floundered and writhed; and did not notice the approach of the fugitives. Nay, the two had reached the very edge of the quagmire before the Indians noticed the Cree boys. The yell that then went up from their throats was most comical.

Annette's arm was extended, and her revolver was pointed at the nearest savage; seeing which, Julie drew hers, and covered the next brave. But before she had the lid over her left eye, Annette had fired, and fired to effect, for the brave had gone over upon his back, and sprawled and splashed among the liverwort and the bog.

Julie next fired, and when she saw, as the result of her shot, the arm of the savage hang useless at his side, she cried--

"Bon, bon!" and c.o.c.ked her pistol again.

"We must wing them, Julie," Annette said, who had her arm extended once again. "I don't like to kill the wretches." Then came a voice crying from the swamp, in dismal Cree--

"Don't fire any more; we won't follow the little scouts. We swear it by the Sun, and by the G.o.d of Thunder;" and laying his hand upon his hatchet, the terrified wretch faced the Sun and swore the oath: then turning towards the clouds wherein the Thunder G.o.d resides, he repeated his avowal with the same forms and solemnity of gesture.

Still Annette kept her arm extended.

"The braves talk with forked tongues, and we do not believe them,"

she replied, in the Cree language.

"But we have sworn it," the miserable savage replied, in a doleful voice.

"False men, swearing by false G.o.ds!" Annette replied. "No; we will not trust them. But let the braves listen. We do not want to kill them, and have decided to wing them instead."

"Oh, oh!" groaned the poor red-skins.

"There is no time to lose; the braves must not hide behind their ponies in that way, or we shall be obliged to fire at their bodies and kill them. They must come out so that we can shoot them in the legs."

The reader who has reached this point will likely say, "Well, Mr.

Author, you are a bright individual. Why did not the Indians fire?"

The truth is, they had no firearms, being supplied only with hatchets and spears; and they were not aware that the scouts had pistols.

"But we have nothing more to fear from them, mademoiselle," Julie said, "wherefore need we fire at them?"

"Nor do I intend to do so, Julie; I am only bent now on so frightening them that they will no more attempt pursuit. Moreover, I am anxious that they shall convey tidings of our bloodthirstiness among all the tribes; for when such rumour obtains circulation, we shall be hara.s.sed less by pursuit."

"C'est bien, ma maitresse; c'est bien."

"No more delay," shouted Annette. "Let the two braves stand up," But each one lay close under the lee of a struggling horse, holding the animal fast by the head, in order to keep him sure in the swamp.

"Put you up your pistol, Julie; leave this work to me." And once more presenting her little round, ferocious arm, she fired, hitting one of the shielding horses upon the fore shoulder. Maddened with pain, the brute flung himself out of his predicament, and left the Indian exposed, upon which Annette immediately fired. The savage uttered a terrible cry, flung up his arms, and fell without a move among the liverwort.

"Did you kill him, after all, mademoiselle?"

"No, Julie; the wretch is only shamming. I fired yards away from him. Now let the other brave stand up, or the same fate awaits him,"

the girl cried; and, presenting a picture of abject terror, the unfortunate redskin, who believed the third one shot at to be dead, drew himself out of his covert, and, putting his leg upon the horse, exposed himself to the pistol. Once more the bloodthirsty little scout fired, and with an agonized yell, the Indian sprawled in the marsh-mire. His leg he seized just above the knee, as if the bullet had entered at that point.

"Is he hit?" whispered Julie.

"No, silly pet.i.te; he is also making believe. How well the two rascals act their part. See the one playing dead. Well, we shall wait long enough to see his imposture exposed. He is sinking fast in the quagmire. His head is almost under now." She had scarce ceased, when the redskin gave a convulsive start, resembling a dying spasm, and got once more safely above the hungry swamp.

"He will continue to have the spasms right along," Julie whispered, "while we stay here."

"Yes; but for the sake of the two wounded ones--I believe mine is badly hurt--we shall ride away. But we must keep watch to-night, Julie. I believe these two men will follow; and if they find us sleeping, they will brain us." Then, turning to the tangle of struggling horses and Indians, she said in a stern voice--

"Some of you may only pretend that you have been wounded, and purpose following us. But we shall keep strict watch, and woe unto any one of you that we catch in pistol range again. We now leave you." With these words the two sanguinary girls turned their horses, and briskly rode away.

"What idiots they must have been to follow without fire-arms," Julie said.

"Had we been armed only with hatchets, how different the case would have been, enfant naif. You, child, may have considered this shedding of blood unnecessary, and therefore cruel."

Oh, no; Julie did not think it so. La maitresse knew better than she did.

"But there was only the choice between taking the method adopted, and openly meeting the four Indians on _terra firma_, when probably all the savages would have been killed; or, in the hurried shooting, we might have missed the mark, and been cloven or speared."

"Where shall my mistress camp to-night?"

"I know an extensive bluff, and we could penetrate it far enough to be tolerably safe from the braves."

When the upper rim of the sun burned like a semi-circlet of yellow, quivering flame, above the far flat prairie, the girls turned their horses towards a stretch of sombre wood that stood like a vast and solemn congregation of cloaked men upon the level.

It was not considered prudent that night to kindle a fire; for one wandering spark might prove a signal to the foe. So they ate their meal, and Julie rolled herself up in her blanket, while Annette seated herself outside of the tent to keep vigil during the first watch.

"My mistress must not let me sleep too long; she ought not to sit up at all. What did I come for--if--not--to--to--." Here the tired, drowsy pet stopped, for she was asleep.