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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who is being entertained at the Brandt house?
(a) Tull.
(b) Bishop Dyer.
(c) Oldring.
(d) Lassiter.

2. When Jane and Venters leave Lassiter at the grave and are walking back, they see a rider. Who?
(a) Rusters.
(b) Judkins the Gentile rider.
(c) Oldring.
(d) The Masked Rider.

3. When Venters realizes the Masked Rider is alive, he opens his shirt to look at the wound. What does Venters find?
(a) The wound is large and bleeding badly.
(b) The pale body of a very young boy.
(c) The wound is in the stomach.
(d) A woman's breast.

4. When confronted with the two riders in the canyon who shoot at him, what does Venters do?
(a) He runs into the sage.
(b) He orders the dogs to attack.
(c) He shoots one of them.
(d) He shoots both of them.

5. How many cattle are in the red herd?
(a) 250.
(b) 15.
(c) 3.
(d) 2,500.

Short Answer Questions

1. After shooting the Masked Rider, what does Venters discover?

2. When Venters offers to take the wounded girl back to Oldring, what does she say?

3. When Venters takes Bess to Surprise Valley, she awakens and think she hears a waterfall. What is she really hearing?

4. After the visit from the Bishop, what does Lassiter tell Jane about her employees?

5. When Venters goes into the canyon where he saw the rustlers go, what does he find?

Short Essay Questions

1. The first appearance of Judkins, the Gentile rider "means hell." Why do you think this is true?

2. Venters sees Oldring and the Masked Rider ride across the edge of Jane's land. Why is this ominous? What do the people know about Oldring?

3. Describe Balancing Rock and how it was made to balance. What would happen if the rock is dislodged? How can this protect Venters and Bess now that he knows how to use the rock as a defense? Do you think this is foreshadowing an event?

4. As Bess tells Venters of her relationship with Oldring, does she seem haunted? What about her past does not match with the girl that Venters is getting to know? Is Venters having trouble seeing both sides of Bess? Are there two sides to Bess?

5. How did Jane's father make his wealth? What did he own that others needed? How has Jane changed that legacy and what effect has the change had on the people of Cottonwoods?

6. How is Tull different than the man he pretends to be? How does he play both ends of his conspiracy against Jane?

7. Who is the "unseen hand" and what role is he playing in what is happening to Jane and her ranch? Why is the "unseen hand" at work?

8. How does Venters find the openings to the canyons? How does he find Oldring's den?

9. Once Venters reaches Surprise Valley he skins the rabbit and saves the hide? Why would he want to keep this hide? What feeling is Venters trying to capture and hang on to?

10. While exploring for the first time, Venters finds evidence of beavers in Surprise Valley and realizes that he must find the the stream where they entered. Why does Venters need to see the where the stream enters Surprise Valley? What is he afraid of?

(see the answer keys)

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