Adventure Magazine Cover, December 18, 1919 — page 115: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

The Seven Cities of Cibola IOL have taken us. Wait. I must give the signal.”’ And the yap-yap of a coyote almost in her ears made the startled girl jump. In answer a tall figure hove suddenly up against the skyline. “Ts it you, sevor?’ * “Yes, Xicotl. Be quick, now, with the horse. This is no time for ceremony, man.” For Xicotl had flung himself upon his knees before the girl and Fray Marco, coming quickly up, his voice trembling with emotion, blessed her fervently. “Work and pray, good father. Even the scriptures place work first. Now, senorita—”’ “T like Mercedes best,’ said the girl demurely. “Bueno! Mercedes it shall be from now on—till I make it something else.” He half whispered the last as he swung the girl into the cumbersome demi-piqued saddle and, with a hearty slap, sent the startled horse plunging up the slope. “Which way? Over there, senor?” Xicotl pointed to the trail along which they had come. “Never. They will strike that trail first and will head back on the road by which we came. Let us head a little north of west. We can circle to the south when we have crossed the moun- tains. Make the horse trot fifteen min- utes in each hour, Xicotl, and we can travel six miles an hour.” For nearly three hours Mercedes’ ab- sence caused no comment in Acoma. As soon as she went down the hill Ikoni, the high priest, summoned the others to meet in full council in the kiva below the temple, where he laid before them what Maota had told him. The con- sultation was long, the debate stormy. At its conclusion, the priests came out of that hot room dripping at every pore, and Ikoni called out to the waiting girls— ‘ ‘Ask Ari-zuna to join us in the great room.” “She has not yet returned from the fields.” “What? Why has she delayed so long ?” “We know not. This morning She ' cross it. was gone but a short time. Tonight, none has seen her.” “Send men at once to the fields to search for her. It may be. that she has taken the wrong turning.” The party sent to look for her found no sign, and when morning came they had so crossed and re-cressed each other’s trails in the soft ground that none could follow the prints that Mer- cedes and Andres had left. It was not till well after sun-up that they picked up the tracks and then they were much disturbed by the prints of the horse’s feet, which were unknown to them. Ten miles out the trail became clear and the pursuers followed at a run. Andres traveled almost as fast, ham- pered though he was with the horse. They dared not push too fast at first. If he should break down now it would mean ruin for them. The sun clanged up in a brazen sky. Little lizards, abroad during-the cool of the morning, barked at them across the hot rocks. A swirl of heat-haze rose before them and once they saw, far away in the offing, a faint mirage such as Andres had seen before: the image of «the city hanging in the sky. On they went. They came to the foot- hills and the great main range stood up above them in its red and purple splen- dor, its shadows showing umber and blue and dun in the dawning. “Now comes the test,’ Andres al- most groaned, ‘‘We must leave here what little cover we have and take to the bare hillside. A fly can be'seen on it for twenty- miles almost. Yet we must If there are Indians following us they will see us when we leave the plain. Up we go!” There was no help for it. They took the hill at a trot and when they had climbed a short quarter of a mile over the slippery, brown shale, as bare of cover as a mahogany table, Andres looked over his shoulder. With a startled oath he turned again and slapped the blowing horse with his sword sheath. “Ont If you love life,” he said fiercely. “On and over the ridge!” \ Not two miles away, crossing the last sandy patch over which Andres had come, was a party of Indians coming on at a slinging trot.