She fired the fifth shot from her revolver.  Her voice was hoarse from shouting, but she called every few minutes.  Then, when she was at the low ebb of hope, there came an answer to her call.  She fired her last shot.  She called and shouted again and again.  The voice that came back to her was close at hand.

“I’m down in the prospect hole,” she cried.  Another moment, and she was looking up into the face of a man, Dan Meldrum.  In vacant astonishment he gazed down at her.

“Whad you doing here?” he asked roughly.

“I fell in.  I’ve been here all night.”  Her voice broke a little.  “Oh, I’m so glad you’ve come.”

It was of no importance that he was a man she detested, one who had quarreled with her father and been thrashed by her brother for insulting her.  All she thought of was that help had come to her at last and she was now safe.

He stared down at her with a kind of drunken malevolence.

“So you fell in, eh?”

“Yes.  Please help me out right away.  My riata is tied to Blacky’s saddle.”

He looked around.  “Where?”

“Isn’t Blacky there?  He must have broken loose, then.  Never mind.  Pass me down the end of a young sapling and you can pull me up.”

“Can I?”

For the first time she felt a shock of alarm.  There was in his voice something that chilled her, something inexpressibly cruel.

“I’ll see my father rewards you.  I’ll see you get well paid,” she promised, and the inflection of the words was an entreaty.

“You will, eh?”

“Anything you want,” she hurried on.  “Name it.  If we can give it to you, I promise it.”

His drunken brain was functioning slowly.  This was the girl who had betrayed him up in Chicito Canon, the one who had frustrated his revenge at Hart’s.  On account of her young Rutherford had given him the beating of his life and Hal had driven him from Huerfano Park.  First and last she was the rock upon which his fortunes had split.  Now chance had delivered her into his hands.  What should he do with her?  How could he safely make the most of the opportunity?

It did not for an instant occur to him to haul her from the pit and send her rejoicing on the homeward way.  He intended to make her pay in full.  But how?  How get his revenge and not jeopardize his own safety?

“Won’t you hurry, please?” she pleaded.  “I’m hungry—­and thirsty.  I’ve been here all night and most of yesterday.  It’s been . . . rather awful.”

He rubbed his rough, unshaven cheek while his little pig eyes looked down into hers.  “That so?  Well, I dunno as it’s any business of mine where you spend the night or how long you stay there.  I had it put up to me to lay off ’n interfering with you.  Seems like yore family got notions I was insulting you.  That young bully Jeff jumped me whilst I wasn’t looking and beat me up.  Hal Rutherford ordered me to pull my freight.  That’s all right.  I won’t interfere in what don’t concern me.  Yore family says ‘Hands off!’ Fine.  Suits me.  Stay there or get out.  It’s none of my business.  See?”