On the
fourth day he rested, for though his spirit was willing, his legs were
weak. This inactivity irked him, for he knew the tireless energy of
the English sportsman; and at noon Fortune inspired him with the most
disastrous idea of all, the idea of taking a stroll by himself. He
took his rifle and a packet of sandwiches, and set out. Now to the
unpractised eye any one brae, or glen, or burn of bonnie Scotland is
exactly like any other brae, or glen, or burn of that picturesque land.
He had not gone two miles before he had lost his way.
He did not mind, for he was sure that he knew his direction. He was
wrong; he may have been like his Oriental ancestors in some of his
qualities, but he lacked their ingrained sense of orientation; and he
was walking steadily away from the house of Tullispaith. He rested
often and he looked often at his watch. He passed over the border of
Tullispaith into the forest of Ardrochan, and wandered wearily on and
on. The autumn sun was moving down the western sky at a disquieting
speed, when at last he caught sight of the Dell's Den, and with a new
energy hurried towards it.
At about the same time Hildebrand Anne, the robber baron of Ardrochan,
caught sight of him, mounted Black Rudolph, and rode down to meet him,
ready to drag or lure him to his stronghold.
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