Excepting for one hasty, puzzled glance, she did not deign to look

again toward him, and the man rested motionless upon his back, staring

up at the sky. Finally, curiosity overmastered the actor in him, and

he turned partially upon one side, so as to bring her profile within

his range of vision. The untamed, rebellious nature of the girl had

touched a responsive chord; unseeking any such result she had directly

appealed to his better judgment, and enabled him to perceive her from

an entirely fresh view-point. Her clearly expressed disdain, her

sturdy independence both of word and action, coupled with her frankly

voiced dislike, awoke within him an earnest desire to stand higher in

her regard. Her dark, glowing eyes were lowered upon the white face of

the dead man, yet Hampton noted how clear, in spite of sun-tan, were

those tints of health upon the rounded cheek, and how soft and glossy

shone her wealth of rumpled hair. Even the tinge of color, so

distasteful in the full glare of the sun, appeared to have darkened

under the shadow, its shade framing the downcast face into a pensive

fairness. Then he observed how dry and parched her lips were.

"Take a drink of this," he insisted heartily, holding out toward her as

he spoke his partially filled canteen.

She started at the unexpected sound of his voice, yet uplifted the

welcome water to her mouth, while Hampton, observing it all closely,

could but remark the delicate shapeliness other hand.

"If that old fellow was her father," he reflected soberly, "I should

like to have seen her mother."

"Thank you," she said simply, handing back the canteen, but without

lifting her eyes again to his face. "I was so thirsty." Her low tone,

endeavoring to be polite enough, contained no note of encouragement.

"Was Gillis your father?" the man questioned, determined to make her

recognize his presence.

"I suppose so; I don't know."

"You don't know? Am I to understand you are actually uncertain whether

this man was your father or not?"

"That is about what I said, was n't it? Not that it is any of your

business, so far as I know, Mr. Bob Hampton, but I answered you all

right. He brought me up, and I called him 'dad' about as far back as I

can remember, but I don't reckon as he ever told me he was my father.

So you can understand just what you please."

"His name was Gillis, was n't it?"




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