第5章

Canyoublamemeforbeinggladtoseeayoungfellow——agentleman——liketheboysIusedtogowith？Itellyouitmakesmefeelfull——Iwanttocry。I’msickforsomebodytotalkto。

Ihavenochildren，thankGod！IfIhadI’dnotstayhere。I’msickofthishole。I’mlonely——"

Thereappearedtobenodoubtaboutthetruthofallthis。

Genuineemotionchecked，thenhaltedthehurriedspeech。Shebrokedownandcried。ItseemedstrangetoDuanethatanoutlaw’swife——andawomanwhofittedherconsortandthewildnatureoftheirsurroundings——shouldhaveweaknessenoughtoweep。Duanebelievedandpitiedher。

"I’msorryforyou，"hesaid。

"Don’tbeSORRYforme，"shesaid。"Thatonlymakesmeseethe——thedifferencebetweenyouandme。Anddon’tpayanyattentiontowhattheseoutlawssayaboutme。They’reignorant。

Theycouldn’tunderstandme。You’llhearthatBlandkilledmenwhoranafterme。Butthat’salie。Bland，likealltheotheroutlawsalongthisriver，isalwayslookingforsomebodytokill。HeSWEARSnot，butIdon’tbelievehim。Heexplainsthatgunplaygravitatestomenwhoaretherealthing——thatitisprovokedbythefour—flushes，thebadmen。Idon’tknow。AllI

knowisthatsomebodyisbeingkilledeveryotherday。HehatedSpencebeforeSpenceeversawme。"

"WouldBlandobjectifIcalledonyouoccasionally？"inquiredDuane。

"No，hewouldn’t。Helikesmetohavefriends。Askhimyourselfwhenhecomesback。Thetroublehasbeenthattwoorthreeofhismenfellinlovewithme，andwhenhalfdrunkgottofighting。You’renotgoingtodothat。"

"I’mnotgoingtogethalfdrunk，that’scertain，"repliedDuane。

Hewassurprisedtoseehereyesdilate，thenglowwithfire。

BeforeshecouldreplyEuchrereturnedtotheporch，andthatputanendtotheconversation。

Duanewascontenttoletthematterrestthere，andhadlittlemoretosay。EuchreandMrs。Blandtalkedandjoked，whileDuanelistened。Hetriedtoformsomeestimateofhercharacter。Manifestlyshehadsufferedawrong，ifnotworse，atBland’shands。Shewasbitter，morbid，overemotional。Ifshewasaliar，whichseemedlikelyenough，shewasafrankone，andbelievedherself。Shehadnocunning。ThethingwhichstruckDuanesoforciblywasthatshethirstedforrespect。Inthat，betterthaninherweaknessofvanity，hethoughthehaddiscoveredatraitthroughwhichhecouldmanageher。

Once，whilehewasrevolvingthesethoughts，hehappenedtoglanceintothehouse，anddeepintheshadowofacornerhecaughtapalegleamofJennie’sfacewithgreat，staringeyesonhim。Shehadbeenwatchinghim，listeningtowhathesaid。

Hesawfromherexpressionthatshehadrealizedwhathadbeensohardforhertobelieve。Watchinghischance，heflashedalookather;andthenitseemedtohimthechangeinherfacewaswonderful。

Later，afterhehadleftMrs。Blandwithameaning"Adios——manana，"andwaswalkingalongbesidetheoldoutlaw，hefoundhimselfthinkingofthegirlinsteadofthewoman，andofhowhehadseenherfaceblazewithhopeandgratitude。

CHAPTERVII

ThatnightDuanewasnottroubledbyghostshauntinghiswakingandsleepinghours。Heawokefeelingbrightandeager，andgratefultoEuchreforhavingputsomethingworthwhileintohismind。Duringbreakfast，however，hewasunusuallythoughtful，workingovertheideaofhowmuchorhowlittlehewouldconfideintheoutlaw。HewasawareofEuchre’sscrutiny。

"Wal，"begantheoldman，atlast，"how’dyoumakeoutwiththekid？"

"Kid？"inquiredDuane，tentatively。

"Jennie，Imean。What’dyouAn’shetalkabout？"

"Wehadalittlechat。Youknowyouwantedmetocheerherup。"

Euchresatwithcoffee—cuppoisedandnarroweyesstudyingDuane。

"Reckonyoucheeredher，allright。WhatI’mafearedofismebbeyoudonethejobtoowell。"

"Howso？"

"Wal，whenIwentintoJenlastnightIthoughtshewashalfcrazy。Shewasburstin’withexcitement，an’thelookinhereyeshurtme。Shewouldn’ttellmeadarnwordyousaid。Butshehungontomyhands，an’showedeverywaywithoutspeakin’

howshewantedtothankmeferbringin’youover。Buck，itwasplaintomethetyou’deithergonethelimitorelseyou’dbeenkinderprodigalofcheeran’hope。I’dhatetothinkyou’dledJennietohopemore’neverwouldcometrue。"

Euchrepaused，and，asthereseemednoreplyforthcoming，hewenton:

"Buck，I’veseensomeoutlawswhosewordwasgood。Mineis。Youcantrustme。Itrustedyou，didn’tI，takin’youovertherean’puttin’youwisetomytryin’tohelpthetpoorkid？"

ThusenjoinedbyEuchre，DuanebegantotelltheconversationswithJennieandMrs。Blandwordforword。LongbeforehehadreachedanendEuchresetdownthecoffee—cupandbegantostare，andattheconclusionofthestoryhisfacelostsomeofitsredcolorandbeadsofsweatstoodoutthicklyonhisbrow。

"Wal，ifthetdoesn’tfloorme！"heejaculated，blinkingatDuane。"Youngman，Ifiggeredyouwassomeswift，an’suretomakeyourmarkonthisriver;butIreckonImissedyourrealcaliber。Sothet’swhatitmeanstobeaman！IguessI’dforgot。Wal，I’mold，an’evenifmyheartwasintherightplaceIneverwasbuiltferbigstunts。Doyouknowwhatit’lltaketodoallyoupromisedJen？"

"Ihaven’tanyidea，"repliedDuane，gravely。

"You’llhavetopullthewooloverKateBland’seyes，antevenifshefallsinlovewithyou，which’sshorelikely，thetwon’tbeeasy。An’she’dkillyouinaminnit，Buck，ifsheevergotwise。Youain’tmistakenhernone，areyou？"

"Notme，Euchre。She’sawoman。I’dfearhermorethananyman。"

"Wal，you’llhavetokillBlandan’ChessAllowayan’Rugg，an’

mebbesomeothers，beforeyoucanrideoffintothehillswiththetgirl。"

"Why？Can’tweplantobenicetoMrs。Blandandthenatanopportunetimesneakoffwithoutanygun—play？"

"Don’tseehowonearth，"returnedEuchre，earnestly。"WhenBland’sawayheleavesallkindsofspiesan’scoutswatchin’

thevalleytrails。They’veallgotrifles。Youcouldn’tgitbythem。

Butwhenthebossishomethere’sadifference。Only，ofcourse，himan’Chesskeeptheireyespeeled。Theybothstaytohomeprettymuch，exceptwhenthey’replayin’monteorpokeroveratBenson’s。SoIsaythebestbetistopickoutagoodtimeintheafternoon，driftovercareless—likewithacoupleofhosses，chokeMrs。Blandorknockheronthehead，takeJenniewithyou，an’makearushtogitoutofthevalley。Ifyouhadluckyoumightpullthetstuntwithoutthrowin’agun。

ButIreckonthebestfiggerin’wouldincludedodgin’someleadan’leavin’atleastBlandorAllowaydeadbehindyou。I’mfiggerin’，ofcourse，thetwhentheycomehomean’findoutyou’revisitin’Katefrequentthey’lljestnaturallylookferresults。Chessdon’tlikeyou，fernoreasonexceptyou’reswiftonthedraw——mebbeswifter’nhim。Thet’sthehellofthisgun—playbusiness。Noonecanevertellwho’stheswifteroftwogunmentilltheymeet。Thetfactholdsafascinationmebbeyou’lllearnsomeday。Blandwouldtreatyoucivilonlesstherewasreasonnotto，an’thenIdon’tbelievehe’dinvitehimselftoameetin’withyou。He’dsetChessorRuggtoputyououtoftheway。StillBland’snocoward，an’ifyoucameacrosshimatabadmomentyou’dhavetobequicker’nyouwaswithBosomer。"

"Allright。I’llmeetwhatcomes，"saidDuane，quickly。"Thegreatpointistohavehorsesreadyandpicktherightmoment，thenrushthetrickthrough。"

"Thet’stheONLYchancefersuccess。An’youcan’tdoitalone。"

"I’llhaveto。Iwouldn’taskyoutohelpme。Leaveyoubehind！"

"Wal，I’lltakemychances，"repliedEuchre，gruffly。"I’mgoin’tohelpJennie，youcangambleyourlastpesoonthet。

There’sonlyfourmeninthiscampwhowouldshootme——Bland，an’hisright—handpards，an’thetrabbit—facedBenson。IfyouhappenedtoputoutBlandandChess，I’dstandagoodshowwiththeothertwo。Anyway，I’moldan’tired——what’sthedifferenceifIdogitplugged？Icanriskasmuchasyou，Buck，evenifI

amafraidofgun—play。Yousaidcorrect，’Hossesready，therightminnit，thenrushthetrick。’Thetmuch’ssettled。Nowlet’sfiggerallthelittledetails。"

Theytalkedandplanned，thoughintruthitwasEuchrewhoplanned，Duanewholistenedandagreed。WhileawaitingthereturnofBlandandhislieutenantsitwouldbewellforDuanetogrowfriendlywiththeotheroutlaws，tositinafewgamesofmonte，orshowawillingnesstospendalittlemoney。ThetwoschemersweretocalluponMrs。Blandeveryday——EuchretocarrymessagesofcheerandwarningtoJennie，Duanetoblindtheelderwomanatanycost。Thesepreliminariesdecidedupon，theyproceededtoputthemintoaction。

Nohardtaskwasittowinthefriendshipofthemostofthosegood—naturedoutlaws。Theywereusedtomenofabetterorderthantheirscomingtothehiddencampsandsoonerorlatersinkingtotheirlowerlevel。Besides，withthemeverythingwaseasycome，easygo。Thatwaswhylifeitselfwentonsocarelesslyandusuallyendedsocheaply。Thereweremenamongthem，however，thatmadeDuanefeelthatterribleinexplicablewrathriseinhisbreast。Hecouldnotbeartobenearthem。Hecouldnottrusthimself。Hefeltthatanyinstantaword，adeed，somethingmightcalltoodeeplytothatinstincthecouldnolongercontrol。JackrabbitBensonwasoneofthesemen。

BecauseofhimandotheroutlawsofhisilkDuanecouldscarcelyeverforgettherealityofthings。Thiswasahiddenvalley，arobbers’den，arendezvousformurderers，awildplacestainedredbydeedsofwildmen。Andbecauseofthattherewasalwaysachargedatmosphere。Themerriest，idlest，mostcarelessmomentmightintheflashofaneyeendinruthlessandtragicaction。Inanassemblageofdesperatecharactersitcouldnotbeotherwise。TheterriblethingthatDuanesensedwasthis。Thevalleywasbeautiful，sunny，fragrant，aplacetodreamin;themountaintopswerealwaysblueorgoldrimmed，theyellowriverslidslowlyandmajesticallyby，thebirdssanginthecottonwoods，thehorsesgrazedandpranced，childrenplayedandwomenlongedforlove，freedom，happiness;theoutlawsrodeinandout，freewithmoneyandspeech;theylivedcomfortablyintheiradobehomes，smoked，gambled，talked，laughed，whiledawaytheidlehours——andallthetimelifetherewaswrong，andthesimplestmomentmightbeprecipitatedbythatevilintothemostawfulofcontrasts。Duanefeltratherthansawadark，broodingshadowoverthevalley。

Then，withoutanysolicitationorencouragementfromDuane，theBlandwomanfellpassionatelyinlovewithhim。Hisconsciencewasnevertroubledaboutthebeginningofthataffair。Shelaunchedherself。Ittooknogreatperspicuityonhisparttoseethat。Andthethingwhichevidentlyheldherincheckwasthenewness，thestrangeness，andforthemomenttheall—satisfyingfactofhisrespectforher。Duaneexertedhimselftoplease，toamuse，tointerest，tofascinateher，andalwayswithdeference。Thatwashisstrongpoint，andithadmadehisparteasysofar。Hebelievedhecouldcarrythewholeschemethroughwithoutinvolvinghimselfanydeeper。

Hewasplayingatagameoflove——playingwithlifeanddeathsSometimeshetrembled，notthathefearedBlandorAllowayoranyotherman，butatthedeepsoflifehehadcometoseeinto。Hewascarriedoutofhisoldmood。NotoncesincethisdaringmotivehadstirredhimhadhebeenhauntedbythephantomofBainbesidehisbed。RatherhadhebeenhauntedbyJennie’ssadface，herwistfulsmile，hereyes。Heneverwasabletospeakawordtoher。WhatlittlecommunicationhehadwithherwasthroughEuchre，whocarriedshortmessages。ButhecaughtglimpsesofhereverytimehewenttotheBlandhouse。

Shecontrivedsomehowtopassdoororwindow，togivehimalookwhenchanceafforded。AndDuanediscoveredwithsurprisethatthesemomentsweremorethrillingtohimthananywithMrs。Bland。OftenDuaneknewJenniewassittingjustinsidethewindow，andthenhefeltinspiredinhistalk，anditwasallmadeforher。Soatleastshecametoknowhimwhileasyetshewasalmostastranger。JenniehadbeeninstructedbyEuchretolisten，tounderstandthatthiswasDuane’sonlychancetohelpkeephermindfromconstantworry，togathertheimportofeverywordwhichhadadoublemeaning。

Euchresaidthatthegirlhadbeguntowitherunderthestrain，toburnupwithintensehopewhichhadflamedwithinher。ButallthedifferenceDuanecouldseewasapalerfaceanddarker，morewonderfuleyes。Theeyesseemedtobeentreatinghimtohurry，thattimewasflying，thatsoonitmightbetoolate。

Thentherewasanothermeaninginthem，alight，astrangefirewhollyinexplicabletoDuane。Itwasonlyaflashgoneinaninstant。Butheremembereditbecausehehadneverseenitinanyotherwoman’seyes。AndallthroughthosewaitingdaysheknewthatJennie’sface，andespeciallythewarm，fleetingglanceshegavehim，wasresponsibleforasubtleandgradualchangeinhim。Thischangehefancied，wasonlythatthroughremembranceofherhegotridofhispale，sickeningghosts。

OnedayacarelessMexicanthrewalightedcigaretteupintothebrushmattingthatservedasaceilingforBenson’sden，andtherewasafirewhichleftlittlemorethantheadobewallsstanding。Theresultwasthatwhilerepairswerebeingmadetherewasnogamblinganddrinking。Timehungveryheavilyonthehandsofsometwo—scoreoutlaws。Dayspassedbywithoutabrawl，andBland’svalleysawmoresuccessivehoursofpeacethaneverbefore。Duane，however，foundthehoursanythingbutempty。HespentmoretimeatMrs。Bland’s;hewalkedmilesonallthetrailsleadingoutofthevalley;hehadacarefortheconditionofhistwohorses。

UponhisreturnfromthelatestofthesetrampsEuchresuggestedthattheygodowntotherivertotheboat—landing。

"Ferrycouldn’trunashorethismornin’，"saidEuchre。"Rivergettin’lowan’sand—barsmakin’ithardferhosses。There’sagreaserfreight—wagonstuckinthemud。Ireckonwemighthearnewsfromthefreighters。Bland’ssupposedtobeinMexico。"

Nearlyalltheoutlawsincampwereassembledontheriverbank，lollingintheshadeofthecottonwoods。Theheatwasoppressive。Notanoutlawofferedtohelpthefreighters，whoweretryingtodigaheavilyfreightedwagonoutofthequicksand。Fewoutlawswouldworkforthemselves，letaloneforthedespisedMexicans。

DuaneandEuchrejoinedthelazygroupandsatdownwiththem。

Euchrelightedablackpipe，and，drawinghishatoverhiseyes，laybackincomfortafterthemannerofthemajorityoftheoutlaws。ButDuanewasalert，observing，thoughtful。Henevermissedanything。Itwashisbeliefthatanymomentanidlewordmightbeofbenefittohim。Moreover，theseroughmenwerealwaysinteresting。

"Bland’sbeenchasedacrosstheriver，"saidone。

"New，he’sdeliverin’cattletothetCubanship，"repliedanother。

"Bigdealon，hey？"

"Somebig。Ruggsaysthebosshedanorderferfifteenthousand。"

"Say，thatorder’lltakeayeartofill。"

"New。HardinisincahootswithBland。Between’emthey’llfillordersbigger’nthet。"

"WonderedwhatHardinwasrustlin’inherefer。"

Duanecouldnotpossiblyattendtoalltheconversationamongtheoutlaws。Heendeavoredtogetthedriftoftalknearesttohim。

"KidFuller’sgoin’tocash，"saidasandy—whiskeredlittleoutlaw。

"SoJimwastellin’me。Blood—poison，ain’tit？Thetholewasn’tbad。Buthetookthefever，"rejoinedacomrade。

"DegersaystheKidmightpullthroughifhehednursin’。"

"Wal，KateBlandain’tnursin’anyshot—upboysthesedays。Shehasn’tgottime。"

Alaughfollowedthissally;thencameapenetratingsilence。

Someoftheoutlawsglancedgood—naturedlyatDuane。Theyborehimnoillwill。ManifestlytheywereawareofMrs。Bland’sinfatuation。

"Pete，’pearstomeyou’vesaidthetbefore。"

"Shore。Wal，it’shappenedbefore。"

ThisremarkdrewlouderlaughterandmoresignificantglancesatDuane。Hedidnotchoosetoignorethemanylonger。

"Boys，pokeallthefunyoulikeatme，butdon’tmentionanylady’snameagain。Myhandisnervousanditchythesedays。"

Hesmiledashespoke，andhisspeechwasdrawled;butthegoodhumorinnowiseweakenedit。Thenhislatterremarkwassignificanttoaclassofmenwhofrominclinationandnecessitypracticedatgun—drawinguntiltheyworecallousandsoreplacesontheirthumbsandinculcatedintheverydeepsoftheirnervousorganizationahabitthatmadeeventhesimplestandmostinnocentmotionofthehandendatornearthehip。

Therewassomethingremarkableaboutagun—fighter’shand。Itneverseemedtobegloved，nevertobeinjured，neveroutofsightorinanawkwardposition。

Thereweregrizzledoutlawsinthatgroup，someofwhomhadmanynotchesontheirgun—handles，andthey，withtheircomrades，accordedDuanesilencethatcarriedconvictionoftheregardinwhichhewasheld。

Duanecouldnotrecallanyotherinstancewherehehadletfallafamiliarspeechtothesemen，andcertainlyhehadneverbeforehintedofhispossibilities。Hesawinstantlythathecouldnothavedonebetter。

"Orfulhot，ain’tit？"remarkedBillBlack，presently。Billcouldnotkeepquietforlong。HewasatypicalTexasdesperado，hadneverbeenanythingelse。Hewasstoop—shoulderedandbow—leggedfrommuchriding;awirylittleman，allmuscle，withasquarehead，ahardfacepartlyblackfromscrubbybeardandredfromsun，andabright，roving，crueleye。Hisshirtwasopenattheneck，showingagrizzledbreast。

"Isthereanyguyinthisheahoutfitsportenoughtogoswimmin’？"heasked。

"MyGawd，Bill，youain’tagoin’towash！"exclaimedacomrade。

ThisraisedalaughinwhichBlackjoined。Butnooneseemedeagertojoinhiminabath。

"LaziestoutfitIeverrustledwith，"wentonBill，discontentedly。"Nuthin’todo！Say，ifnobodywantstoswimmaybesomeofyou’llgamble？"

Heproducedadirtypackofcardsandwavedthematthemotionlesscrowd。

"Bill，you’retoogoodatcards，"repliedalankyoutlaw。

"Now，Jasper，yousaythetpowerfulsweet，an’youlooksweet，erImighttakeittoheart，"repliedBlack，withasuddenchangeoftone。

Hereitwasagain——thatupflashingpassion。WhatJaspersawfittoreplywouldmollifytheoutlaworitwouldnot。Therewasanevenbalance。

"Nooffense，Bill，"saidJasper，placidly，withoutmoving。

BillgruntedandforgotJasper。Butheseemedrestlessanddissatisfied。Duaneknewhimtobeaninveterategambler。AndasBenson’splacewasoutofrunning—order，Blackwaslikeafishondryland。

"Wal，ifyou—allareafraidofthecairds，whatwillyoubeton？"heasked，indisgust。

"Bill，I’llplayyouagameofmumblypegfertwobits。"

repliedone。

Blackeagerlyaccepted。Bettingtohimwasaseriousmatter。

Thegameobsessedhim，notthestakes。Heenteredintothemumblypegcontestwithathoughtfulmienandacordedbrow。Hewon。Othercomradestriedtheirluckwithhimandlost。

Finally，whenBillhadexhaustedtheirsupplyoftwo—bitpiecesortheirdesireforthatparticulargame，heofferedtobetonanything。

"Seethetturtle—dovethere？"hesaid，pointing。"I’llbethe’llscareatonestoneorhewon’t。Fivepesoshe’llflyorhewon’tflywhensomeonechucksastone。Who’lltakemeup？"

Thatappearedtobemorethanthegamblingspiritofseveraloutlawscouldwithstand。

"Takethet。Easymoney，"saidone。

"Who’sgoin’tochuckthestone？"askedanother。

"Anybody，"repliedBill。

"Wal，I’llbetyouIcanscarehimwithonestone，"saidthefirstoutlaw。

"We’reinonthet，Jimtofirethedarnick，"chimedintheothers。

Themoneywasputup，thestonethrown。Theturtle—dovetookflight，tothegreatjoyofalltheoutlawsexceptBill。

"I’llbetyou—allhe’llcomebacktothettreeinsideoffiveminnits，"heoffered，imperturbably。

HereupontheoutlawsdidnotshowanylazinessintheiralacritytocoverBill’smoneyasitlayonthegrass。Somebodyhadawatch，andtheyallsatdown，dividingattentionbetweenthetimepieceandthetree。Theminutesdraggedbytotheaccompanimentofvariousjocularremarksanentafoolandhismoney。Whenfourandthree—quarterminuteshadpassedaturtle—dovealightedinthecottonwood。ThenensuedanimpressivesilencewhileBillcalmlypocketedthefiftydollars。

"Butithadn’tthesamedove！"exclaimedoneoutlaw，excitedly。

"This’n’issmaller，dustier，notsopurple。"

Billeyedthespeakerloftily。

"Wal，you’llhavetoketchtheotheronetoprovethet。Sabe，pard？NowI’llbetanygentheahthefiftyIwonthetIcanscarethetdovewithonestone。"

Nooneofferedtotakehiswager。

"Wal，then，I’llbetanyofyouevenmoneythetyouCAN’Tscarehimwithonestone。"

Notproofagainstthischance，theoutlawsmadeupapurse，innowisedisconcertedbyBill’scontemptuousallusionstotheirbandingtogether。Thestonewasthrown。Thedovedidnotfly。

Thereafter，inregardtothatbird，Billwasunabletocoaxorscornhiscomradesintoanykindofwager。

Hetriedthemwithamultiplicityofoffers，andinvain。Thenheappearedatalossforsomeunusualandseductivewager。

PresentlyalittleraggedMexicanboycamealongtherivertrail，aparticularlystarvedandpoor—lookinglittlefellow。

Billcalledtohimandgavehimahandfulofsilvercoins。

Speechless，dazed，hewenthiswayhuggingthemoney。

"I’llbethedropssomebeforehegitstotheroad，"declaredBill。"I’llbetheruns。Hurry，youfour—flushgamblers。"

Billfailedtointerestanyofhiscompanions，andforthwithbecamesullenandsilent。Strangelyhisgoodhumordepartedinspiteofthefactthathehadwonconsiderable。

Duane，watchingthedisgruntledoutlaw，marveledathimandwonderedwhatwasinhismind。Thesemenweremorevariablethanchildren，asunstableaswater，asdangerousasdynamite。

"Bill，I’llbetyoutenyoucan’tspillwhatever’sinthebucketthetpeon’spackin’，"saidtheoutlawcalledJim。

Black’sheadcameupwiththeactionofahawkabouttoswoop。

DuaneglancedfromBlacktotheroad，wherehesawacrippledpeoncarryingatinbuckettowardtheriver。Thispeonwasahalf—wittedIndianwholivedinashackanddidoddjobsfortheMexicans。Duanehadmethimoften。

"Jim，I’lltakeyouup，"repliedBlack。

Something，perhapsaharshnessinhisvoice，causedDuanetowhirl。Hecaughtaleapinggleamintheoutlaw’seye。

"Aw，Bill，thet’stoofurashot，"saidJasper，asBlackrestedanelbowonhiskneeandsightedoverthelong，heavyColt。Thedistancetothepeonwasaboutfiftypaces，toofarforeventhemostexpertshottohitamovingobjectsosmallasabucket。

Duane，marvelouslykeeninthealignmentofsights，waspositivethatBlackheldtoohigh。Anotherlookatthehardface，nowtenseanddarkwithblood，confirmedDuane’ssuspicionthattheoutlawwasnotaimingatthebucketatall。

Duaneleapedandstrucktheleveledgunoutofhishand。

Anotheroutlawpickeditup。

Blackfellbackastounded。Deprivedofhisweapon，hedidnotseemthesameman，orelsehewascowedbyDuane’ssignificantandformidablefront。Sullenlyheturnedawaywithoutevenaskingforhisgun。

CHAPTERVIII

Whatacontrast，Duanethought，theeveningofthatdaypresentedtothestateofhissoul！

ThesunsetlingeredingoldengloryoverthedistantMexicanmountains;twilightcameslowly;afaintbreezeblewfromtherivercoolandsweet;thelatecooingofadoveandthetinkleofacowbellweretheonlysounds;asereneandtranquilpeacelayoverthevalley。

InsideDuane’sbodytherewasstrife。Thisthirdfacingofadesperatemanhadthrownhimoffhisbalance。Ithadnotbeenfatal，butitthreatenedsomuch。Thebettersideofhisnatureseemedtourgehimtodieratherthantogoonfightingoropposingignorant，unfortunate，savagemen。Buttheperversityofhimwassogreatthatitdwarfedreason，conscience。Hecouldnotresistit。Hefeltsomethingdyinginhim。Hesuffered。Hopeseemedfaraway。DespairhadseizeduponhimandwasdrivinghimintoarecklessmoodwhenhethoughtofJennie。

Hehadforgottenher。Hehadforgottenthathehadpromisedtosaveher。Hehadforgottenthathemeanttosnuffoutasmanylivesasmightstandbetweenherandfreedom。Theveryremembrancesheeredoffhismorbidintrospection。Shemadeadifference。Howstrangeforhimtorealizethat！Hefeltgratefultoher。Hehadbeenforcedintooutlawry;shehadbeenstolenfromherpeopleandcarriedintocaptivity。Theyhadmetintheriverfastness，hetoinstilhopeintoherdespairinglife，shetobethemeans，perhaps，ofkeepinghimfromsinkingtothelevelofhercaptors。Hebecameconsciousofastrongandbeatingdesiretoseeher，talkwithher。

ThesethoughtshadrunthroughhismindwhileonhiswaytoMrs。Bland’shouse。HehadletEuchregoonaheadbecausehewantedmoretimetocomposehimself。Darknesshadaboutsetinwhenhereachedhisdestination。Therewasnolightinthehouse。Mrs。Blandwaswaitingforhimontheporch。

Sheembracedhim，andthesudden，violent，unfamiliarcontactsentsuchashockthroughhimthatheallbutforgotthedeepgamehewasplaying。She，however，inheragitationdidnotnoticehisshrinking。Fromherembraceandthetender，incoherentwordsthatflowedwithithegatheredthatEuchrehadacquaintedherofhisactionwithBlack。

"Hemighthavekilledyour"shewhispered，moreclearly;andifDuanehadeverheardloveinavoicehehearditthen。Itsoftenedhim。Afterall，shewasawoman，weak，fatedthroughhernature，unfortunateinherexperienceoflife，doomedtounhappinessandtragedy。Hemetheradvancesofarthathereturnedtheembraceandkissedher。Emotionsuchassheshowedwouldhavemadeanywomansweet，andshehadacertaincharm。

Itwaseasy，evenpleasant，tokissher;butDuaneresolvedthat，whateverherabandonmentmightbecome，hewouldnotgofurtherthanthelieshemadehimact。

"Buck，youloveme？"shewhispered。

"Yes——yes，"heburstout，eagertogetitover，andevenashespokehecaughtthepalegleamofJennie’sfacethroughthewindow。Hefeltashamehewasgladshecouldnotsee。Didsherememberthatshehadpromisednottomisunderstandanyactionofhis？Whatdidshethinkofhim，seeinghimoutthereintheduskwiththisboldwomaninhisarms？SomehowthatdimsightofJennie’spaleface，thebigdarkeyes，thrilledhim，inspiredhimtohishardtaskofthepresent。