He got up from his chair and stood a moment before King. Then he extended his hand and King took it.
"We shall speak of this again, Howden," he said. "Now that there's nothing between us we can talk without being afraid. There'll be plans to talk over--and I'd like to talk them over with you."
He turned and went into the cabin without giving King a chance to speak, and King sat down again and went over in his own mind the details of the story Keith McBain had told him.
It must have been an hour later--King did not know how long he had been there alone--when he heard Cherry's step in the cabin, and lifting his eyes, saw her standing in the doorway.
"You must go to bed," she said, and her voice betrayed the fact that she had been weeping.
He looked at her a moment without speaking. Then he got up and turned towards her.
"Come out a minute, Cherry," he said, very softly.
She stepped down, and coming to where he stood, waited for him to speak. Taking her arm he led her off a short distance along the path, where they had walked together only a few hours before. Neither of them spoke until they had reached a point in the pathway from which only the light of the cabin was visible through the heavy, low-hanging branches of the trees.
Then King stopped and faced her, with his two hands resting on her shoulders.
"Your father has told me the whole story, Cherry," he said.
Cherry's head dropped and her shoulders shook under King's hands.
"I didn't think it was so bad," she sobbed.
"Cherry," he said abruptly, and in a voice so commanding that it was almost harsh.
The sobbing ceased suddenly and Cherry looked up expectantly.
"It ain't so bad," he said in a gentler voice.
"I don't know," he replied quickly. "One thing at a time, I guess--that's enough to think about."
"Wait," King interrupted again. "McCartney's bad--bad clean through. Some time--sooner or later--a bad man makes a mistake. I think Bill McCartney's mistake is about due. He's made one bad mistake already--maybe more--but one, anyhow."
"He has made up his mind he'll have you," he replied quickly. "But he's made a mistake. I'm going to have you, Cherry!"
She took a step away from him and regarded him seriously for a moment.
"There'll be some things to settle first," he went on. "But when they're settled--I'm coming."