Columbine rode into a thick clump of spruces that had long, shelving branches, reaching down.

Here she hid, holding Pronto motionless.
Presently the sound of hoofs denoted the approach of several horses.
That augmented Columbine's anxiety.

Peering out of her covert, she espied three horsemen trotting along the trail, and one of them was Jack Belllounds.

They appeared to be in strong argument, judging from gestures and emphatic movements of their heads.

As chance would have it they halted their horses not half a dozen rods from Columbine's place of concealment.