Wildfire and the Heritage of the Desert (72 page)

Jack lifted Mescal upon Black Bolly and mounted Silvermane. Piute grinned till he shook his earrings and started the pack burros toward the plateau trail. Wolf pattered on before, turning his white head, impatient of delay. Amid tears and waving of hands and cheers they began the zigzag ascent.

When they reached the old camp on the plateau the sun was setting behind the Painted Desert. With hands closely interwoven they watched the color fade and the mustering of purple shadows.

Twilight fell. Piute raked the red coals from the glowing centre of the camp-fire. Wolf crouched all his long white length, his sharp nose on his paws, watching Mescal. Hare watched her, too. The night shone in her eyes, the light of the fire, the old brooding mystic desert-spirit, and something more. The thump of Silvermane's hobbled hoofs was heard in the darkness; Bolly's bell jangled musically. The sheep were bleating. A lonesome coyote barked. The white stars blinked out of the blue and the night breeze whispered softly among the cedars.

 

F
ORGE
B
OOKS BY
Z
ANE
G
REY

Betty Zane

Desert Gold

The Desert of Wheat

George Washington, Frontiersman

The Heritage of the Desert

Ken Ward in the Jungle

Last of the Great Scouts

The Last of the Plainsmen

The Last Trail

The Lone Star Ranger

The Man of the Forest

The Mysterious Rider

Outlaws of Palouse

The Rainbow Trail

The Redheaded Outfield

Riders of the Purple Sage

Roping Lions in the Grand Canyon

The Short-Stop

The Spirit of the Border

To the Last Man

Western Colors

Wildfire

 

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

WILDFIRE AND THE HERITAGE OF THE DESERT

Wildfire
was originally published in 1916.
The Heritage of the Desert
was originally published in 1910.

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e-ISBN 9781466867901

First Edition: June 2014