"Hullo, ole rattler," he exclaimed; "here's somethin' to
stir you up;" and he tossed the brand upon the top of the cactus.
Taking another burning stick from the fire, he applied it to the
soles of his victim's feet. Lane writhed and groaned under the
excruciating torture, but uttered no word or cry. McKee brought
other brands, and began piling them about his captive's feet.
In the meantime the sahuaro had caught fire at the top, and was
burning down through the interior. A thin column of smoke rose
straight above it in the still air. The Rurales in the valley
below, who had reached the beginning of the ascending trail, and
were on the point of giving up the pursuit, saw the smoke, and,
inferred that the Apaches, either through overconfidence or
because of their superstitious fear of the mountains, which they
supposed inhabited by spirits, had camped on the edge of the
valley, and were signaling to their other party. Accordingly the
Mexicans renewed the chase with increased vigor.
As McKee bent over his captive's feet, piling against them the
burning ends of the sticks, the rattlesnake on the sahuaro,
incited by the fire above, struggled free from the impaling
thorns by a desperate effort, and dropped on the back of the
half-breed. It struck its fangs into his neck. McKee, springing
up with an energy that scattered the sticks he was piling, tore
the reptile loose, hurled it upon the ground, and stamped it into
the earth. Then he picked up one of the brands and with it
cauterized the wound.
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