United States or Brazil ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
They spent half an hour where the explosion of the night before had blown out the side of the mountain, and then drove on to Coyote Number Twenty-eight. It was in the face of a sandstone cliff, and all they could see of it when they got out of the wagon was a dark hole in the wall of rock. Not a soul was about, and Blackton rubbed his hands with satisfaction. "Everything is completed," he said.
For a moment, as Peggy Blackton went to her husband, he stood very close to Joanne, and into his eyes she was smiling, half laughing, her beautiful mouth aquiver, her eyes glowing, the last trace of their old suspense and fear vanished in a new and wondrous beauty. He would not have said she was twenty-eight now. He would have sworn she was twenty. "Joanne," he whispered, "you are wonderful.
Before the dust had settled they began to reappear, and with a shrill scream Peggy Blackton darted forward and flung her arms about the gold-shrouded figure of Joanne, swaying and laughing and sobbing in the sunshine.
Not until Joanne had disappeared into the house with Peggy Blackton did Aldous feel that he had descended firmly upon his feet once more into a matter-of-fact world.
"I thought it was full of powder and dynamite," apologized Peggy. "You see, it's like this," Blackton began. "We put the powder and dynamite down there, and pack it over solid with rock and cement. If we didn't leave this big air-chamber above it there would be only one explosion, and probably two thirds of the explosive would not fire, and would be lost. This chamber corrects that.
Behind them, her hands clasped to her breast crying out to them to hurry, hurry stood Peggy Blackton. The strength of five men was in every pair of arms. Huge boulders were rolled back. Men pawed earth and shale with their naked hands. Rock-hammers fell with blows that would have cracked the heart of a granite obelisk.
Aldous saw her struggling to understand to comprehend; and he kissed her soft upturned lips, fighting back the excitement that made him want to raise his voice again in wild and joyous shouting. "It is Blackton!" he said over and over again. "It is Blackton and his men! Listen! you can hear their picks and the pounding of their rock-hammers!"
With the note still in his hand he repeated to them what he had told Blackton that he had received word which made it immediately urgent for him to go to MacDonald. He shook hands with the Blacktons, promising to be on hand for the four o'clock breakfast. Joanne followed him to the door and out upon the veranda.
A moment later, when they went ahead of Blackton and his wife to where the buckboard was waiting for them, he said: "You put on that veil to punish me, Ladygray?" "It is a pretty veil," said she. "But your hair is prettier," said he. "And you embarrassed me very much by staring as you did, John Aldous!" "Forgive me. It is I mean you are so beautiful."
I wasn't expecting you for a week. To-morrow I was goin' to start on a hike for Miette. I been watching through my telescope from the mountain up there. I see Quade come in this morning on a hand-car. Twice I see him and Rann together. Then I saw Blackton hike out into the bush. I was worrying about you an' wondered if he had any word. So I laid for him on the trail an' I guess it was lucky.
Word Of The Day