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Show ^3. CHAPTER IV There xrere txro xreeks of c r i s p cold xreather and everyone in the shack xrorked long hours. Olaf brought in one deer and B i l l txro. L i t t l e B i l l xrent to sleep every night to the chop, chop, chop of a x e s . During the f u l l moon the men worked long a f t e r dark, txro chopping and one stacking. In t h e t h i r d xreek of November a l i g h t snow began to f a l l . Olaf d i d n ' t go to the creek that day to xrork, but took the horse and xrent t o look for deer. Said i t might be h i s l a s t chance t o hunt xrithout snoxr shoes. Olaf came background noon leading La very s k i t t i s h heifer." "Think s h e ' s got a calf in her?" He c a l l e d to B i l l xrho xsas working outside the shack. "Could be, b u t -" "I knoxr s h e ' s got a brand on her B i l l ; s h e ' l l do xrell t o survive even xrith s h e l t e r and xrhat feed xre can find her ' s p e c i a l l y if she %a.xrjln1 a calf. She'd never make i t on her oxml" "Never stepped outside the law before. First good weather come spring, I ' l l take txro or t h r e e days off and go pay the Dangbergs-get a b i l l of s a l e for h e r . " Bill said. "All r i g h t , a l l r i g h t . Get me a longer piece of rope and I ' l l t i e her out here and go out again and t r y for a deer. " |