Cautiously Philip launched himself, and with silent sweeps of the paddle that made scarcely the sound of a ripple in the water set out in the direction of Churchill.  Jeanne’s captors had a considerable start of him, but he felt confident of his ability to overtake them shortly if Pierre had spoken with truth when he said that they would head for the Churchill River.  He had observed the caution with which Pierre’s assailants had approached the cliff, and he was sure that they would double that caution in their return, especially as their attack had been interrupted at the last moment.  For this reason he paddled without great haste, keeping well within the concealment of the precipitous shore, with his ears and eyes keenly alive to discover a sign of those who were ahead of him.

Opposite the rock where Pierre and Jeanne were to have met him he stopped and stood up in the canoe.  The wind had dispelled the smoke shadow.  Between him and the distant ship lay an unclouded sea.  Two-thirds of the distance to the vessel he made out the larger canoe, rising and falling with the smooth undulations of the tide.  He sank upon his knees again and unstrapped Pierre’s rifle.  There was a cartridge in the chamber.  He made sure that the magazine was loaded, and resumed his paddling.

His mind worked rapidly.  Within half an hour, if he desired, he could overtake the other canoe.  And what then?  There were three to one, if it came to a fight—­and how could he rescue Jeanne without a fight?  His blood was pounding eagerly, almost with pleasure at the promise of what was ahead of him, and he laughed softly to himself as he thought of the odds.

The ship loomed nearer; the canoe vanished behind it.  A brief stop, a dozen words of explanation, and Philip knew that he could secure assistance from the vessel.  After all, would that not be the wisest course for him to pursue?  For a moment he hesitated, and paddled more slowly.  If others joined with him in the rescue of Jeanne what excuse could he offer for not bringing her back to Churchill?  What would happen if he returned with her?  Why had Pierre roused himself from something that was almost death to entreat him to take Jeanne to Fort o’ God?

At the thought of Fort o’ God a new strength leaped into his arms and body, urging him on to cope with the situation single-handed.  If he rescued Jeanne alone, and went on with her as he had promised Pierre, many things that were puzzling him would be explained.  It occurred to him again that Jeanne and Pierre might be the key to the mysterious plot that promised to crash out the life of the enterprise he had founded in the north.  He found reasons for this belief.  Why had Lord Fitzhugh’s name had such a startling effect upon Pierre?  Why was one of his assailants a man fresh from the London ship that had borne Eileen Brokaw and her father as passengers?  He felt that Jeanne could explain these things, as well as her brother.  She could