"Hi! Don't shoot. It's only us. Mr Gunson there?"
The boughs were parted, and the familiar figure of the prospector came
out into the light, rifle in hand.
"Why, Gordon!" he cried. "You? Glad to see you; you too, Dean. But
that's risky work, my lad. Don't you know the old proverb--`Let
sleeping dogs lie'? I did not know you were friends, and these are
dangerous times; I might have tried to bite."
He shook hands with us both as he spoke, and Quong came cautiously out
from among the trees.
"Ay, ay, ay!" he cried, beginning to caper about. "You come along? How
de-do-di-do. Quong make hot flesh tea."
"No, no; they don't want tea at this time of night."
"Yes, please give me some," I said, for I was hot and faint with
exertion. "I shall be glad of a mug."
"Hot flesh tea," cried Quong, beginning to rake the fire together.
"Makee cakee dleckly."
"Why, Gordon, what brings you here?" cried Mr Gunson. "You belong to
the opposite camp. Raydon hasn't let you come gold-washing?"
"No," I said, hurriedly. "Have you seen those men?"
"What men? There are plenty about here."
"I mean those men you quarrelled with on the steamer about Quong."
"Eh? 'Bout Quong?" cried the little Chinaman, looking up sharply. "Bad
man on puff-boat pullee tail neally off. No."
"Yes; they have been at the Fort to-day--yesterday--which is it--and
they are down below yonder now."
"What, those fellows?" cried Gunson, excitedly; and he gave vent to a
long low whistle. "That's awkward."
"I was afraid you did not know," I said, hurriedly. "I knew you were
here, and I came to warn you. Mr Raydon--"
"Sent you to warn me?" interrupted Gunson.
"No," I said; "we had to break out of the Fort to-night and come. Mr
Raydon is not good friends with me."
"Humph!" ejaculated Gunson. "So you came to let me know?"
"To put you on your guard," I said. "Yes."
I saw him look at me fixedly for a few moments, and then in a
half-morose way he nodded his head at me, saying--
"Thank you, my lad--thank you too, Dean."
"Warn't me," said Esau, sourly. "It was him. I only come too."
"Well, it is awkward," continued Gunson, after a few moments' thought,
"for I have got to the spot now that I have been looking for all these
years."
"Then you're finding lots of gold?" cried Esau, eagerly.
"I am finding a little gold," replied Gunson, quietly; "and Quong is
too."
"Eh? Me findee gole?" cried Quong, looking up from the half-boiling
kettle, and hastily-made cakes which he had thrust in the embers to
bake. "Yes; findee lil bit, and put um in littlee bottle."
"But these men--will they attack you?" I said, anxiously.
"Yes, if they find that I have a good claim. More than two, you say?"
I told him all about the coming to the Fort, and how we had passed them
down below. Gunson looked very serious for a while; then with a smile
he said quietly--
"Well, union is strength. Now you two lads have come, my force is
doubled. You will stay with me now?"
"No," I said, firmly. "As soon as it is light I must go back to the
Fort to our friends."
"But you have quarrelled with Mr Raydon, and after this night's
business he will not have you back."
"No," cried Esau, eagerly. "Let's stop and wash gold."
"And leave your mother," I said, "for the sake of that."
"I wish you wouldn't be so nasty, Mayne Gordon," cried Esau. "Who's
a-going to leave his mother? Ain't I trying to get a lot o' money so as
to make her well off?"
"We cannot stay," I said. "I don't want Mr Raydon and my friends--"
"They have arrived then?"
"Yes," I said. "What would they think if I ran off like this?"
"Humph! you're a strange lad. You take French leave, and come to warn
me. They fire at you, and hunt you with that great hound, and yet you
are going back!"
"Yes," I said, "as soon as it is light; Esau too."
"And suppose old Raydon won't have us back?" cried Esau.
"But he will when he knows why I came."
"I am not so sure," said Gunson. "Well, I suppose you are right."
"No, no," cried Esau. "I meant to stop along with you. I shan't go.
If I do, it'll be to fetch mother."