第60章

shapedheadanderectwhirringtailwithitsvibrantrattles。

Forfullythirtysecondsthemanandsnakeremainedlookingintoeachother’seyes。Thenthesnakeuncoiledandswiftlywoundfromsightamidstthesagebrush。McTeaguedrewbreathagain，andhiseyesoncemorebeheldtheillimitableleaguesofquiveringsandandalkali。

“GoodLord！Whatacountry！“heexclaimed。Buthisvoicewastremblingasheurgedforwardthemuleoncemore。

Fiercerandfiercergrewtheheatastheafternoonadvanced。

AtfourMcTeaguestoppedagain。Hewasdrippingateverypore，buttherewasnoreliefinperspiration。Theverytouchofhisclothesuponhisbodywasunendurable。Themule’searsweredroopingandhistonguelolledfromhismouth。Thecattletrailsseemedtobedrawingtogethertowardacommonpoint；perhapsawaterholewasnearby。

“I’llhavetolayup，sure，“mutteredthedentist。“Iain’tmadetotravelinsuchheatasthis。“

Hedrovethemuleupintooneofthelargercanyonsandhaltedintheshadowofapileofredrock。Afteralongsearchhefoundwater，afewquarts，warmandbrackish，atthebottomofahollowofsunwrackedmud；itwaslittlemorethanenoughtowaterthemuleandrefillhiscanteen。Herehecamped，easingthemuleofthesaddle，andturninghimloosetofindwhatnourishmenthemight。Afewhourslaterthesunsetinacloudlessgloryofredandgold，andtheheatbecamebydegreeslessintolerable。McTeaguecookedhissupper，chieflycoffeeandbacon，andwatchedthetwilightcomeon，revellinginthedeliciouscoolnessoftheevening。Ashespreadhisblanketsonthegroundheresolvedthathereafterhewouldtravelonlyatnight，layingupinthedaytimeintheshadeofthecanyons。Hewasexhaustedwithhisterribleday’smarch。Neverinhislifehadsleepseemedsosweettohim。

Butsuddenlyhewasbroadawake，hisjadedsensesallalert。

“Whatwasthat？“hemuttered。“IthoughtIheardsomething——sawsomething。“

Herosetohisfeet，reachingfortheWinchester。Desolationlaystillaroundhim。Therewasnotasoundbuthisownbreathing；onthefaceofthedesertnotagrainofsandwasinmotion。McTeaguelookedfurtivelyandquicklyfromsidetoside，histeethset，hiseyesrolling。Oncemoretherowelwasinhisflanks，oncemoreanunseenhandreinedhimtowardtheeast。Afterallthemilesofthatdreadfulday’sflighthewasnobetteroffthanwhenhestarted。Ifanything，hewasworse，forneverhadthatmysteriousinstinctinhimbeenmoreinsistentthannow；neverhadtheimpulsetowardprecipitateflightbeenstronger；neverhadthespurbitdeeper。Everynerveofhisbodycriedaloudforrest；yeteveryinstinctseemedarousedandalive，goadinghimtohurryon，tohurryon。

“WhatISit，then？Whatisit？“hecried，betweenhisteeth。“Can’tIevergetridofyou？Ain’tIEVERgoingtoshakeyouoff？Don’keepitupthisway。Showyourselves。Let’shaveitoutrightaway。Comeon。I

ain’tafraidifyou’llonlycomeon；butdon’tskulkthisway。“Suddenlyhecriedaloudinafrenzyofexasperation，“Damnyou，comeon，willyou？Comeonandhaveitout。“

Hisriflewasathisshoulder，hewascoveringbushafterbush，rockafterrock，aimingateverydensershadow。Allatonce，andquiteinvoluntarily，hisforefingercrooked，andtheriflespokean