There seemed to be no reason why he should not provide himself with the most substantial kind of dinner. He knew very little about a buffalo, but it was no difficult task to cut off a good sized piece, which he placed upon some green leaves, while he looked about for some means of starting a fire.

"Well, there!" he exclaimed in delighted amazement, "if that isn't the most wonderful thing yet!"

This exclamation was caused by the sight of a smoking wad lying at his very feet, just as if Providence had sent it that he might be provided with the indispensable fire. Picking it up and blowing it, he saw that it was in a vigorous state, and could be utilized without trouble. A few leaves were hurriedly gathered together, dried twigs placed upon these, and then the tiny blaze that required considerable blowing to produce, was carefully nursed into a larger one until a good roaring, crackling fire was the result.

Leaving this to burn by itself, Ned took the meat to the side of the stream, where he carefully washed and dressed it, ready for cooking.

When this was completed, he skewered it upon some green twigs, and began toasting it. The process was rather tardy, but as soon as a bite of the meat had spluttered and crisped for a moment, Ned bit it off, and went to masticating it. The cooking continued rapidly enough to keep his jaws going, and was a good arrangement, for it prevented his eating too fast, and gave him the fullest enjoyment imaginable of the meal. All of an hour was occupied in this way, during which Ned was in as happy a frame of mind as can be conceived. For the first half of the time he seemed to be growing more hungry with each mouthful he swallowed. Then came a standstill, and soon he began to gain upon it, the end being that he thoroughly satisfied that appet.i.te which at one time had seemed unappeasable. With no further necessity of thinking of the wants of the inner man, the lad began to debate as to what he should do to get out of the rather unpleasant position in which he was placed. There he was, his horse gone, his two friends missing, and himself still a long distance from home. He knew not in what direction to turn to reach Fort Havens, and, even if he did, he had little a.s.surance of ever reaching it.

Indeed, with the exception of the rather important fact that he had secured possession of a rifle and some ammunition, it may be said that his position was very similar to what it was before he came across d.i.c.k Morris and Tom Hardynge.

CHAPTER XXVI.

CAPTURING A MUSTANG.

It struck Ned that there was something very strange in the continued absence of the two hunters.

In thinking over the particulars of that rather curious buffalo hunt, he could not believe it possible that he was more than two miles from where he had made his start after the creature, and where he separated from them. All three were upon the easterly side of the herd, so that the trail made by his own animal could not have been obliterated by the hoofs of the buffaloes, and nothing could be easier than to follow it.

Where, then, were they? What was the cause of their absence? These were questions which he asked himself again and again, and which he was unable to answer in any manner satisfactory to himself.

Suddenly it occurred to him that by climbing one of the trees near at hand, he might extend his view, and perhaps gain a portion of the knowledge he was so desirous of obtaining. He acted upon the thought at once, and, selecting the tallest, first concealed his rifle, and then climbed to the very topmost branches. There he was rewarded by a magnificent view, and one which promised him some of the results he was seeking. With this extension of his field of vision he discovered more than one evidence that he was not in a solitude. In the first place, by looking to the southward, a ma.s.s of dust and vapor was visible, indicating the presence and progress of some sort of herd, perhaps a drove of sheep from New Mexico, under the convoy of Indians who had shot the rightful owners and stampeded their property. Looking westward, another clump of trees was discerned, from the center of which came just enough smoke to show that there must be a camp fire beneath.

"I'll bet they are there!" exclaimed Ned, to himself, "and it may be they have started the fire on purpose to guide me to them."

The point to which his attention was thus directed was no more than a mile distant, and he wondered that he had not noted it before. It resembled in many respects the one in which he pa.s.sed the night, and he saw from the course of the stream which ran through the latter, that it most probably watered the former where he believed the hunters were in camp.

Turning his eyes in another direction, the young wanderer was greeted by a sight which agitated him scarcely less. There, no more than a quarter of a mile distant, quietly grazing beside the winding stream which flowed at the base of the tree, was the very mustang which had been captured by the hunters and from whose back he had been thrown when in pursuit of the buffalo. He instantly lost all interest in the smoke of the camp fire in the greater interest he felt in the question of securing possession of the steed. Could he but remount him he would not care particularly whether he met the hunters or not, for, once upon the back of such a steed, he would consider himself competent to make the rest of the journey alone.

"What's to hinder?" he asked himself, as he fixed his eyes longingly upon the steed. "d.i.c.k says none of the Apaches have any animal that can overtake him, and all I have to do is to keep his head turned toward the southwest. There is a trail through the mountains yonder, and Corporal Hugg told me that there is a trail all the way. But can I catch him?"

He enjoyed in antic.i.p.ation the pleasure he would feel when, possessing rifle, ammunition and horse he should resume his journey westward and the delight and joy of his father when he should clasp him in his arms again. He could have spent several hours building his air-castles in this manner, had he not checked himself and resolutely faced the difficulty before him. Looking again at the mustang, he was to be seen with his beautiful Indian blanket somewhat soiled from contact with the dirt, but cropping the gra.s.s with the air of an equine which expected to spend the day at it.

Ned decided to try and steal upon him from the rear, thinking, possibly, that he might get so close that when the frightened animal discovered him, he could step forward and grasp the bridle before the mustang could gallop away. Accordingly, he circled out upon the prairie until he got directly behind the animal, when he began his approach. The horse continued quietly eating until he was within a hundred feet, when he shifted his position so that his side was exposed. Startled lest he should be seen, Ned dropped down upon the gra.s.s and waited for him to resume his first att.i.tude. After crouching in this manner for something like ten minutes, without any change taking place, he decided that as "the mountain would not come to Mohammed then Mohammed should go to the mountain," and he began crawling through the gra.s.s, with his eye upon his prize. To accomplish this without attracting notice was a delicate task, but he succeeded perfectly. Getting the mustang in exact range, he resumed his advance upon him, advancing until he was within twenty feet.

This was more favorable than he dared hope, and his heart beat high with expectation. He almost felt the warm body of the n.o.ble steed beneath him. And now, inch by inch, he stole forward, like an Indian scout moving upon a sleeping enemy until he could reach a point where he could bury his tomahawk in his skull.

"I wonder whether he will use those heels upon me?" reflected the lad, when he had reduced the intervening distance to a dozen feet. "If he were only blind in one eye, and I could get upon that side; but then he isn't."

It seemed to him that the greatest danger was the mustang hearing the throbbing of his heart, which was now beating like a trip-hammer; but the horse was as unconscious as if he were made of stone. Still nearer, until it appeared as if he had to make but a single leap forward, and he could grasp the long, flowing tail, and he felt that the moment had come when he must make the attempt. Crouching with one hand thrust out, he lifted one foot and advanced a few inches. Another step, and he could lay his hand upon him. At this exciting juncture, the horse abruptly ceased eating and raised his head. Ned saw it, and paused in an agony of suspense.

[Ill.u.s.tration: STILL NEARER, UNTIL IT APPEARED AS IF HE HAD TO MAKE BUT A SINGLE LEAP FORWARD.]

Looking straight off upon the prairie, the mustang gave a faint whinney, as if he scented danger from a point directly opposite to where the figure of the boy was stealing upon him. For a minute the two held these stationary positions; and then, as the lad moved a few inches again, the keen ears of the mustang told him the truth.

p.r.i.c.king his ears forward, he turned his head half way round, so that he saw the crouching figure directly at his heels. Then he turned his head still further, and gathered himself for a leap. But Ned was expecting this; and, as quick as a flash, he leaped forward and caught the tuft of hair hanging over his forehead, dropping his gun and seizing at the same moment, with the other hand, the bridle-rein. The mustang made his leap, but the lad held on, and, by a quick, powerful effort threw one leg over his shoulders and slid upon his back in a twinkling. The horse was outwitted, defeated, and the boy was his conqueror.

"Hurrah!" shouted the latter, overflowing with exultation. "Thank the Lord! I've had better fortune than I expected."

The mustang was not an ugly-tempered creature, but would have given the lad the slip, could he have done so. It may have been that because he was nothing but a boy, he underestimated his capacity too much; but he had been fairly outgeneraled, and he submitted with a grace which cannot be too highly commended. He instantly became docile, and turned in ready obedience to the rein, and trotted back to where the gun lay upon the ground. Here Ned was obliged to descend again, but he kept a tight grasp upon the strap, and scrambled back again as soon as he had recovered it.

It seemed to him, as he did so, that there was something like a mischievous twinkle in the eye of the pony. He appeared to say:

"It don't do to trust my species too far, my lad; for we prefer to be free rather than slave. However, you are a brave little fellow, and have done so well that I think I must stand by you hereafter."

Now that Ned was himself again, he turned the head of his animal toward the grove, where the thin smoke could still be seen creeping up through the tree tops.

"I will have quite a story to tell d.i.c.k and Tom," he reflected, as he rode along at an easy gallop. "I killed my buffalo, lost my horse, and caught him again. I don't believe that they themselves could have done much better."

CHAPTER XXVII.

A RUN FOR LIFE.

A few minutes' ride at a swinging, easy, gallop brought Ned to the edge of the grove where the camp fire had first arrested his attention. As he reached the margin he threw himself from the back of the mustang, fastened the bridle-rein securely to a limb, and, with his rifle slung over his shoulder, strode forward toward the center. He was not yet in sight of the fire when it suddenly occurred to him that possibly he was mistaken. He checked himself and began moving very much as he did when approaching his mustang, and it was fortunate that he did so, for the next moment he discovered that he had committed a most serious mistake indeed. Instead of seeing the well-known figures of the hunters sitting by the camp fire and quietly smoking their pipes, he caught a glimpse of half a dozen warriors very similarly engaged.

Ned shuddered as he reflected how narrowly he escaped running into destruction, and then he crept forward until he could get a little better view. There they were, six Apache Indians lolling and lounging upon the gra.s.s. They had evidently returned from a long and wearisome ride, and were devoting the early portion of the day to rest, both for themselves and animals, which were picketed near at hand. The lad naturally wondered whether any of them belonged to Lone Wolf's band, and he crept nearer than was prudent in order to make certain.

"It may be that Lone Wolf himself is there," he reflected, drawn on by that strange fascination which often seizes a person at the proximity of some dreaded danger. "It would be queer if the chief had crossed my path again."

By and by, after moving along for some distance upon his hands and knees, he secured a favorable point, where, by waiting a few minutes, he was able to gain a view of all the faces. They were all strangers. He had never seen any of them before.

"That's good," he said to himself, as he began retrograding, "they won't be expecting me--"

At this juncture, one of the Indian horses, a short distance away, raised his head and whinnied. It was instantly responded to by the mustang which Ned had ridden to the place. The Apaches very naturally noticed this significant fact, and started to their feet to learn what it meant. Terribly alarmed at the unexpected mishap, Ned sprang up, not daring to trust the tardy, crab-like gait he was following, and, regardless of discovery, dashed away as hard as he could run in the direction of his steed. He could not mistake the true course, for the animal seemingly aware that something was wrong, kept up a continual whinnying, that guided him as unerringly as it did the Apaches who were hurrying after him. A few seconds and the boy stood beside the creature, which showed, by its excited manner, that he was as desirous as his master to leave the spot. He was tugging at the rein so l.u.s.tily that it threatened to break every instant, and Ned trembled at the fear that he would be left alone.

The impatient, eager haste with which the rein was unfastened, the seemingly impossibility of getting the loosely fastened knot untied, the little obstructions that constantly obtruded themselves--these cannot be described nor imagined. It would have been unnatural in the highest degree had Ned not found himself "nervous." He was ready to yield to despair more than once, and what were really seconds were as many minutes to him. The Indians could be heard moving through the undergrowth, their progress cautious as it always is when they have reason to fear that enemies are close at hand.

It was this deliberation which gave Ned his only chance. The rein was unfastened at last, and, with a desperate effort he mounted the mustang, which came very near bounding from beneath him while in the act of springing upward, and, turning his head toward the southwest, the very direction he wished to follow, Chadmund struck his sides with his heels, gave a regular Indian shout and was off. The steed scarcely needed all this to incite him to his highest efforts. Stretching out his neck, he sped away like an arrow, while the young rider constantly urged him to still greater effort. But no urging was required. The fleet-footed courser was already going with the speed of the wind.

Scarcely had he gotten under way, however, when the crack! crack! of rifles was heard, and the singing of bullets around his ears told the fugitive at whom they were aimed. He instantly threw himself forward upon the neck of the mustang, and shouted again, in a voice that must have been heard by the redskins themselves:

"Go it, my horse! Don't let them catch us! We mustn't lose now!"

One or two more shots were heard, and then all was quiet again.

"We've got beyond their range," concluded the boy, "and there's no need of wasting their powder on us."

Still he remained with his head bent on the neck of his animal, the latter upon a dead run, until they had gone a considerable distance further. Then believing all peril past, he drew him down somewhat, for the gait was more trying to him than to the steed himself, and it was simply prudent to husband his strength, when there was no necessity of putting it forth.

For the first time since starting, Ned turned and surveyed the ground over which he had pa.s.sed. The view was not a rea.s.suring one by any means. Instead of seeing the Apaches standing in mute despair upon the margin of the grove, and staring in wonder at his flight, he saw instead the whole party mounted and in full pursuit. They were adopting what seemed to him a strange course. Instead of charging along in a body, they were separating and spreading out like a fan.

"I wonder what it is for," said the fugitive to himself, as he urged his horse to a renewal of the arrowy speed he had shown at the beginning.

When he came to reflect upon it more fully, he divined the cause. The Apaches had recognized in him a prize worth striving for, and had set about it in their usual cunning fashion. By separating in this manner, they could close in again whenever they chose, and at a time, too, when it might be out of the power of the fugitive to escape by means of the superior speed of his horse. If he should turn to the right or left, or to the rear, he would come in collision with some of them, whereas, if they remained in a compact body, and he should find his way shut in front, he might elude them by turning to either side.