“Wild?” said her father gently.  “Wild?  I don’t say he’s still wild—­but why is he so late tonight, Kate?  The ground’s all covered with snow.  The wind’s growin’ sharper an’ sharper.  This is a time for all reasonable folk to stay home an’ git comfortable beside the fire.  But Dan ain’t here.  Where is he?”

“Hush!” said Buck, and raised a hand for silence.

Far away they heard the wail of a wolf crying to the moon.  She rose and went out on the porch of the house.  The others followed her.  Outside they found nothing but the low moaning of the wind, and the snow, silver glimmering where the moonlight fell upon it.  Then they heard the weird, inhuman whistling, and at last they saw Dan riding towards the house.  A short distance away he stopped Satan.  Black Bart dropped to his haunches and wailed again.  Dan was staring upwards.

“Look!” said Kate, and pointed.

Across the white circle of the moon drove a flying wedge of wild geese.  The wail of the wolf died out.  A faint honking was blown to them by the wind, now a distant, jangling chorus, now a solitary sound repeated like a call.

Without a word the three returned to their seats close by the fire, and sat silent, staring.  Presently the rattle of the wolf’s claws came on the floor; then Dan entered with his soft step and stood behind Kate’s chair.  They were used to his silent comings and goings.  Black Bart was slinking up and down the room with a restless step.  His eyes glowed from the shadow, and as Joe looked up to the face of Dan he saw the same light repeated there, yellow and strange.  Then, like the wolf, Dan turned and commenced that restless pacing up and down, up and down, a padding step like the fall of a panther’s paw.

“The wild geese—­” he said suddenly, and then stopped.

“They are flying south?” said Kate.

“South!” he repeated.

His eyes looked far away.  The wolf slipped to his side and licked his hand.

“Kate, I’d like to follow the wild geese.”

Old Joe shaded his eyes and the big hands of Buck were locked together.

“Are you unhappy, Dan?” she said.

“The snow is come,” he muttered uneasily.

He began pacing again with that singular step.

“When I went out to Satan in the corral this evenin’, I found him standin’ lookin’ south.”

She rose and faced him with a little gesture of surrender.

“Then you must follow the wild geese, Dan!”

“You don’t mind me goin’, Kate?”

“No.”

“But your eyes are shinin’!”

“It’s only the reflection of the firelight.”

Black Bart whined softly.  Suddenly Dan straightened and threw up his arms, laughing low with exultation.  Buck Daniels shuddered and dropped his head.

“I am far behind,” said Dan, “but I’ll go fast.”

He caught her in his arms, kissed her eyes and lips, and then whirled and ran from the room with that noiseless, padding step.