Those girl friends in San Francisco who had met him at her birthday-party would be fairly squirming with excited curiosity to know everything.  Among themselves they would make insinuations about the Bear Tamer or the Animal Trainer, as Gloria knew that they would variously and mirthfully designate him.  They would find it unusual that King had married her one day and had gone off the next without her.  They would hazard endless unpleasant explanations; they would get their heads together; they would make an astonishing patchwork of scraps of distorted rumour and bits of wild speculation....  From upstairs last night she had heard fragmentary outbursts from the “judge.”  “Irregular; no licence.”  Now Gloria meant to kill the snake outright, not to allow the scotched reptile to writhe free.  She was married; she was going with her husband into the wilderness on the most romantic of all honeymoons.  The papers were free to make much of that.

“Of course I want you,” said King slowly.  “Glad?  Glad that you want to come with me?  Can’t you see that I am the gladdest man on earth?  But——­”

“I have already written a message I wanted to send to a girl friend in San Francisco....”  It was to Miss Mildred Carter, who was engaged to be married to Bob Dwight of the Chronicle....  “I was going to have it phoned in to her.  It tells her I’m—­married.  To you, Mark.  And that we’re off on the most wonderful trip together into the heart of the wild country.”

“God bless you,” he said heartily.  But Gloria, glancing at him swiftly, saw that his eyes were clouded with perplexity.

“Of course,” she said, “if you don’t want a girl along——­”

“Gloria!”

“Well, then?  It’s settled?  I’m to go?”

“Only I’m afraid it isn’t the sort of a trip for a girl.  It’s hard going, and—­Oh, it’s a cursed shame I can’t put it off.”

“You said last night that you weren’t afraid of anything Brodie and his men could do?  That they didn’t even know where to go?  That they’d never know where to find you?”

“Yes.  And I meant it.  But——­”

He wanted her with him; she wanted to come.  Further, it pained him to think that those first glorious days should be spent with the mountains between them.  He was tempted, sorely tempted.  Gloria knew; she smiled at him across the table; she tempted him further. ...Was there really any danger, would there be danger to her?  If he thought so, that there was the faintest likelihood of harm to her, he would say no, no matter what the yearning in his heart.  But if they made a quick dash in and out; two days each way, not over one day at Gus Ingle’s caves?  If they went on horseback nearly all the way, and travelled light?  He carried a rifle nowadays, and he rather believed he might carry it ten years without ever firing a shot at any man of their hulking crowd.  They could go in one way, come out another.  They had at least a full day’s head start of