Juon would never hear that. 'Give it to me,' I said. 'I
shall throw more force into it.' A moment after I had blown the horn,
the woody heights repeated the sound just as if there was another
horn-blower there. Presently, from afar, right away among the hills,
another horn replied, just as if there was another echo there. That was
Juon's answer. He had heard the summons; we could now rest content. In
half an hour he would have bounded across the mountains and through the
glens and would be here. In the meantime we would barricade ourselves
inside the hut. Mariora anxiously asked me what we should do if her
husband were the last to arrive, for the robber had firearms. Acting on
my advice, we closed the door with a heavy beam and put out the fire.
The child began to cry, but Mariora took it in her arms and soothed it
to sleep. A heavy groan sounded from a corner of the room: it was the
faithful beast breathing forth his last breath. We exchanged not another
word in order not to betray the fact that Mariora was not alone. Half an
hour had nearly elapsed when we heard footsteps in the distance
approaching. We listened. Who was coming? Which of us would recognize
those footsteps first? I did. It was he! he for whose sake I had brought
down a curse upon my head.
"For about as long a time as it would take one to repeat a Paternoster,
he remained standing there before the door.
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