"Ye've five minutes. Say yer prayers, if ye feel like it."
The simple preparations were made swiftly. Two raw-hide lariats were
properly adjusted. The prisoners looked on with the stoical
indifference of Red Indians. It might have been said of the pair that
neither had known how to live, but each knew how to die.
"Ready?" said the 'Piker.'
"Hold on!" replied a high-pitched voice.
The crowd turned to behold Mintie. She had crawled up silently and
stealthily. But now she stood upright, her small head thrown back, her
eyes glittering in the moonlight.
"Got a rope fer me?" she asked. "I've heard everything."