"Did--the thing--grip you there?" she nervously inquired.

"There, and elsewhere. All over at once, it felt like. The beast
attacked me with five arms."

She shuddered. "I don't know how you could fight it," she said. "How
strong, how brave you must be."

This amused him. "The veriest coward will try to save his own life," he
answered. "If you use such adjectives to me, what words can I find to
do justice to you, who dared to come close to such a vile-looking
creature and kill it. I must thank my stars that you carried the
revolver."

"Ah!" she said, "that reminds me. You do not practice what you preach.
I found your pistol lying on the stone in the cave. That is one reason
why I followed you."

It was quite true. He laid the weapon aside when delving at the rock,
and forgot to replace it in his belt.

"It was stupid of me," he admitted; "but I am not sorry."

"Why?"

"Because, as it is, I owe you my life."

"You owe me nothing," she snapped. "It is very thoughtless of you to
run such risks. What will become of me if anything happens to you? My