Adventure Magazine Cover — page 43: what you’re looking at

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

THE WOLF MASTER 37 “Where is your home?” It occurred to Kirdy that if Nada’s house were near at hand, she would not need the extra ponies. horses, but since Nada had saved them for him, and since she had two men to mount, he did not mean to claim them. “In the Wolky Gorlo.” “The Wolf’s Throat? Where is that?” “Beyond the border, across the river where the sun rises.”’ “That is far.” “Aye, my White Falcon. I sought the aid of your sword upon the way, but since you have sworn an oath—”’ she glanced at him, with amusement that vanished in one of her sudden changes of mood. ‘You do not know whither Otrépiev draws his reins!” “Nay, the trail is blind. Yet he must ride farther.” ‘Soon the river turns sharp to the north. If he is for Kazan, which is the trading town of the northern frontier, he will follow it. If he strikes for Astrakhan, on the southern sea, he will turn off. But if he goes on, into the steppe—that way my road lies, to the eastward. Can you keep a bargain, Cos- sack?” She pulled the bear’s paws over her face, leaving only dark, grave eyes visible when Kirdy frowned blackly. “Kai—I think you can, Cossack. You are a fool, but—” she chuckled aloud— “T will wager my life there is honesty in you! Well, we are agreed. If Otrépiev turns north or south, I will give you one of your horses back, with gratitude, and you can ride off and be killed like a dog. If he keeps on, to the tribes, you must come with me. Nay—” She forestalled a swift objection. “Kazan and Astrakhan lie many weeks’ ride distant. But the river Volga he could reach before you can come up with him. I know the trail.” Kirdy nodded. She had spoken the truth. He wondered what course the fugitive would take on the Volga. “Tf he crosses,’ Nada observed, “and he is bold enough to do that, you must go through the Wolky Gorlo, to meet him. Now, my White Falcon, you must let me sleep. You have talked so much I am yawn- ing. But is the bargain struck?” “Agreed!” “Then you will see tomorrow that Nada They were, in a way, his: can fly over the steppe as swiftly as any bogatyr of the Siech.”’ She snuggled down into the voluminous folds of the bearskin, wrapping the head and paws about her, and Kirdy strode away, too restless to sleep, wondering how he had come to talk so much. Usually he said little enough. Presently Toghrul appeared out of the shadows with an armful of wood and stirred up the fire. Although he did not appear to look at them, his slant eyes took in the si- lent woman and the angry Cossack, pacing from the horses to his blanket, and when the old man returned to his sheepskins he kicked Karabek out of slumber. “The khanum bids us to saddle when the stars are low, before the moon is out of the sky. By the beard of Azrael, it is as I said! Until now the Cossack has led, and when the khanum takes the rein there will be more than words. Two hands on the rein and neither will yield to the other.” ADA, it seemed, had guessed Otré- N piev’s course. They came the next evening to the great bend in the Okka and learned from a caravan of mer- chants that had just crossed on the ice that the sledge and seven cavaliers had taken the Volga road. ‘“‘They are merry—the young gentlemen. Ekh, what horses!”’ And Toghrul proved to be right in the matter of horse-flesh. For a while he pressed the three blacks with all the skill of the nomad he was. He would rub them down himself at night, water and feed them sparingly, sleep with them, and talk to them at the start before the rising of the sun. Then he would let them walk for a while before trotting. At a word from him they would work into a light gallop, and the ground would flash past until Toghrul chose to bid his steeds halt. Then they would walk, stretching out their necks, until they were breathed. Kirdy noticed that To- ghrul managed them by voice, and gave lit- tle heed to the reins. By now he was pretty certain of the tracks left by Otrépiev’s cavalcade, for the sledge had unusually narrow iron runners and some of the ponies were unshod. He prayed that there would be no heavy fall of snow, and that the ice in the Volga would be going out. COmiclbooks.c©