As Tom followed Bill Tolliver down to the corral, he saw Elaine riding away from the clearing on a spirited little sorrel mare. She could ride, he noted with approval, and seemed to know how to get the most out of her mount.
Tom had quite a few things to take up with the man wounded by the boar, but obviously he could not do it now. The black-haired man was not going anywhere for a long while, and Tom might better forget him and go along on the hunt. He knew where it should start. Furthermore, they’d need all the men they could get if they should run down the boar. Having spilled a man’s blood once, the ugly beast knew perfectly well that he was capable of doing it again, and because of it was sure to be doubly dangerous.
Bill strode to the corral, picked up a lasso, and flung a loop tha
