safe to wait for. We must take our own horse, Ned. Are you ready?"

"Yes."

The wounded man again attempted to rise. He fell back, but this time
quite heavily. He had fainted.

Involuntarily and simultaneously the three women rushed to his side. "He
cannot go," said Kate suddenly.

"He will be better in a moment."

"But only for a moment. Will nothing induce you to change your mind?"

As if in reply a sudden gust of wind brought a volley of rain against
the window.

"THAT will," said the stranger bitterly.

"The rain?"

"A mile from here it is SNOW; and before we could reach the Summit with
these horses the road would be impassable."

He made a slight gesture to himself, as if accepting an inevitable
defeat, and turned to his companion, who was slowly reviving under the
active ministration of the two women. The wounded man looked around with
a weak smile. "This is one way of going off," he said faintly, "but I
could do this sort of thing as well on the road."