It was dawn when Graydon awakened. Some one had thrown a blanket over him during the night, but he was, nevertheless, cold and stiff. He drew his legs up and down painfully, trying to start the sluggish blood. He heard the others stirring in the tent. He wondered which of them had thought of the blanket, and why he had been moved to that kindness.
Starrett lifted the tent flap, passed by him without a word and went on to the spring. He returned and busied himself, furtively, about the fire. Now and then he looked at the prisoner, but seemingly with neither anger nor resentment. He slipped at last to the tent, listened, then trod softly over to Graydon.
"Sorry about this," he muttered. "But I can't do anything with Soames and Dan. Had a hard time persuading them even to let you have that blanket. Take a drink of this." He pressed a flask to Graydon's lips. He took a liberal swallow; it warmed him. "Shh-h," warned Starrett. "Don't bear any grudge. Drunk last night. I'll help you, if—" He broke off, abruptly; busied himself with the burning logs. Out of the tent came Soames. "I'm goin' to give you one last chance, Graydon," he began, without preliminary. "Come through clean with us on your dicker with the girl, and we'll take you back with us, and all work together and all share together. You had the edge on us yesterday, and I don't know that I blame you. But it's three to one now and the plain truth is you can't get away with it. So why not be reasonable?" "What's the use of going over all that again, Soames?" Graydon asked, wearily. "I've told you everything. If you're wise, you'll let me loose, give me my guns and I'll fight for you when the trouble comes. For trouble is coming, man, sure—big trouble." "Yeah!" snarled the New Englander. "Tryin' to scare us, are you? All right—there's a nice little trick of driving a wedge under each of your finger nails and a-keeping' driving Them in. It makes 'most anybody talk after awhile. And if it don't, there's the good old fire dodge. Rollin' your feet up to it, closer and closer and closer. Yeah, anybody'll talk when their toes begin to crisp up and toast."
Suddenly he bent over and sniffed at Graydon's lips. "So that's it!" he faced Starrett, tense, gun leveled from his hip pocket. "Been feeding' him liquor, have you! Been talkin' to him, have you? After we'd settled it last night that I was to do all the talkin'. All right, that settles you, Starrett. Dan! Dan! Come here, quick!" he roared.
The Frenchman came running out of the tent. "Tie him up," Soames nodded toward Starrett. "Another damned double-crosser in the camp. Gave him liquor. Got their heads together while we were inside. Tie him." "But, Soames," the Frenchman hesitated, "if we have to fight, it is not well to have half of us helpless, non. Perhaps Starrett he did nothing—" "If we have to fight, two men will do as well as three," said Soames. "I ain't goin' to let this thing slip through my fingers, Dan'. I don't think we'll have to do any fighting'. If they come, I think it's goin' to be a trading' job. Starrett's turning' traitor, too. Tie him, I say."