第11章

Aikennoddedcoolly。Duane，whohadseenmanymeninperfectcontrolofthemselvesundercircumstanceslikethese，recognizedthespiritthatdominatedAiken。Hewaswhite，cold，passionless。Therewerelinesofbittergriefdeeproundhislips。IfDuaneeverfeltthemeaningofdeathhefeltitthen。

"Surethis’syourgame，Aiken，"saidSibert。"Buthearmeaminute。Reckonthere’snodoubtaboutthismanbein’BuckDuane。Heseentheplacardoutatthecross—roads。HeridesintoShirley。Hesayshe’sBuckDuanean’he’slookin’forJeffAiken。That’sallclearenough。Youknowhowthesegunfightersgolookin’fortrouble。Buthere’swhatstumpsme。DuanesitsdownthereonthebenchandletsoldAbeStricklandgrabhisgunantgetthedroponhim。More’nthat，hegivesmesomestrangetalkabouthow，ifhecouldn’tmakeyoubelievehe’sinnocent，he’dbetterbedead。YouseeforyourselfDuaneain’tdrunkorcrazyorlocoed。Hedoesn’tstrikemeasamanwhorodeinherehuntin’blood。SoIreckonyou’dbetterholdontillyouhearwhathehastosay。"

Thenforthefirsttimethedrawn—faced，hungry—eyedgiantturnedhisgazeuponDuane。Hehadintelligencewhichwasnotyetsubservienttopassion。Moreover，heseemedthekindofmanDuanewouldcaretohavejudgehiminacriticalmomentlikethis。

"Listen，"saidDuane，gravely，withhiseyessteadyonAiken’s，"I’mBuckDuane。Ineverliedtoanymaninmylife。Iwasforcedintooutlawry。I’veneverhadachancetoleavethecountry。I’vekilledmentosavemyownlife。Ineverintentionallyharmedanywoman。Irodethirtymilesto—day——deliberatelytoseewhatthisrewardwas，whomadeit，whatfor。WhenIreadtheplacardIwentsicktothebottomofmysoul。SoIrodeinheretofindyou——totellyouthis:I

neversawShirleybeforeto—day。Itwasimpossibleformetohave——killedyourwife。LastSeptemberIwastwohundredmilesnorthofhereontheupperNueces。Icanprovethat。MenwhoknowmewilltellyouIcouldn’tmurderawoman。Ihaven’tanyideawhysuchadeedshouldbelaidatmyhands。It’sjustthatwildbordergossip。Ihavenoideawhatreasonsyouhaveforholdingmeresponsible。Ionlyknow——you’rewrong。You’vebeendeceived。Andseehere，Aiken。YouunderstandI’mamiserableman。I’maboutbroken，Iguess。Idon’tcareanymoreforlife，foranything。Ifyoucan’tlookmeintheeyes，mantoman，andbelievewhatIsay——why，byGod！youcankillme！"

Aikenheavedagreatbreath。

"BuckDuane，whetherI’mimpressedornotbywhatyousayneedn’tmatter。You’vehadaccusers，justlyorunjustly，aswillsoonappear。Thethingiswecanproveyouinnocentorguilty。MygirlLucysawmywife’sassailant。"

Hemotionedforthecrowdofmentoopenup。

"Somebody——you，Sibert——goforLucy。That’llsettlethisthing。"

Duaneheardasamaninanuglydream。Thefacesaroundhim，thehumofvoices，allseemedfaroff。Hislifehungbythemerestthread。Yethedidnotthinkofthatsomuchasofthebrandofawoman—murdererwhichmightbesoonsealeduponhimbyafrightened，imaginativechild。

Thecrowdtroopedapartandclosedagain。DuanecaughtablurredimageofaslightgirlclingingtoSibert’shand。Hecouldnotseedistinctly。Aikenliftedthechild，whisperedsoothinglytohernottobeafraid。ThenhefetchedherclosertoDuane。

"Lucy，tellme。Didyoueverseethismanbefore？"askedAiken，huskilyandlow。"Ishetheone——whocameinthehousethatday——struckyoudown——anddraggedmama——？"

Aiken’svoicefailed。

AlightningflashseemedtoclearDuane’sblurredsight。Hesawapale，sadfaceandvioleteyesfixedingloomandhorroruponhis。NoterriblemomentinDuane’slifeeverequaledthisoneofsilence——ofsuspense。

"It’sain’thim！"criedthechild。

ThenSibertwasflingingthenooseoffDuane’sneckandunwindingthebondsroundhisarms。Thespellboundcrowdawoketohoarseexclamations。

"Seethere，mylocoedgents，howeasyyou’dhangthewrongman，"burstoutthecowboy，ashemadetherope—endhiss。

"You—allarealotofwiserangers。Haw！haw！"

HefreedDuaneandthrustthebone—handledgunbackinDuane’sholster。

"YouAbe，there。Reckonyoupulledastunt！Butdon’ttrythelikeagain。And，men，I’llgamblethere’sahellofalotofbadworkBuckDuane’snamedfor——whichallheneverdone。Clearawaythere。Where’shishoss？Duane，theroad’sopenoutofShirley。"

SibertsweptthegapingwatchersasideandpressedDuanetowardthehorse，whichanothercowboyheld。MechanicallyDuanemounted，feltaliftashewentup。Thenthecowboy’shardfacesoftenedinasmile。

"Ireckonitain’tuncivilofmetosay——hitthatroadquick！"

hesaid，frankly。

Heledthehorseoutofthecrowd。Aikenjoinedhim，andbetweenthemtheyescortedDuaneacrosstheplaza。Thecrowdappearedirresistiblydrawntofollow。

AikenpausedwithhisbighandonDuane’sknee。Init，unconsciouslyprobably，hestillheldthegun。

"Duane，awordwithyou，"hesaid。"Ibelieveyou’renotsoblackasyou’vebeenpainted。Iwishtherewastimetosaymore。Tellmethis，anyway。DoyouknowtheRangerCaptainMacNelly？"

"Idonot，"repliedDuane，insurprise。

"ImethimonlyaweekagooverinFairfield，"wentonAiken，hurriedly。"Hedeclaredyouneverkilledmywife。Ididn’tbelievehim——arguedwithhim。Wealmosthadhardwordsoverit。

Now——I’msorry。Thelastthinghesaidwas:’IfyoueverseeDuanedon’tkillhim。Sendhimintomycampafterdark！’Hemeantsomethingstrange。What——Ican’tsay。Buthewasright，andIwaswrong。IfLucyhadbattedaneyeI’dhavekilledyou。

Still，Iwouldn’tadviseyoutohuntupMacNelly’scamp。He’sclever。Maybehebelievesthere’snotreacheryinhisnewideasofrangertactics。Itellyouforallit’sworth。Good—by。MayGodhelpyoufurtherashedidthisday！"

Duanesaidgood—byandtouchedthehorsewithhisspurs。

"Solong，Buck！"calledSibert，withthatfranksmilebreakingwarmoverhisbrownface;andheheldhissombrerohigh。

CHAPTERXIV

WhenDuanereachedthecrossingoftheroadsthenameFairfieldonthesign—postseemedtobethethingthattippedtheoscillatingbalanceofdecisioninfavorofthatdirection。

Heansweredheretounfathomableimpulse。IfhehadbeendriventohuntupJeffAiken，nowhewascalledtofindthisunknownrangercaptain。InDuane’sstateofmindclearreasoning，commonsense，orkeennesswereoutofthequestion。Hewentbecausehefelthewascompelled。

DuskhadfallenwhenherodeintoatownwhichinquirydiscoveredtobeFairfield。CaptainMacNelly’scampwasstationedjustoutofthevillagelimitsontheotherside。

NooneexcepttheboyDuanequestionedappearedtonoticehisarrival。LikeShirley，thetownofFairfieldwaslargeandprosperous，comparedtotheinnumerablehamletsdottingthevastextentofsouthwesternTexas。AsDuanerodethrough，beingcarefultogetoffthemainstreet，heheardthetollingofachurch—bellthatwasamelancholyreminderofhisoldhome。

Theredidnotappeartobeanycampontheoutskirtsofthetown。ButasDuanesathishorse，peeringaroundandundecidedwhatfurthermovetomake，hecaughttheglintofflickeringlightsthroughthedarkness。Headingtowardthem，herodeperhapsaquarterofamiletocomeuponagroveofmesquite。

Thebrightnessofseveralfiresmadethesurroundingdarknessalltheblacker。Duanesawthemovingformsofmenandheardhorses。Headvancednaturally，expectinganymomenttobehalted。

"Whogoesthere？"camethesharpcalloutofthegloom。

Duanepulledhishorse。Thegloomwasimpenetrable。

"Oneman——alone，"repliedDuane。

"Astranger？"

"Yes。"

"Whatdoyouwant？"

"I’mtryingtofindtherangercamp。"

"You’vestruckit。What’syourerrand？"

"IwanttoseeCaptainMacNelly。"

"Getdownandadvance。Slow。Don’tmoveyourhands。It’sdark，butIcansee。"

Duanedismounted，and，leadinghishorse，slowlyadvancedafewpaces。Hesawadullybrightobject——agun——beforehediscoveredthemanwhoheldit。Afewmorestepsshowedadarkfigureblockingthetrail。HereDuanehalted。

"Comecloser，stranger。Let’shavealookatyou，"theguardordered，curtly。

Duaneadvancedagainuntilhestoodbeforetheman。HeretheraysoflightfromthefiresflickereduponDuane’sface。

"Reckonyou’reastranger，allright。What’syournameandyourbusinesswiththeCaptain？"

Duanehesitated，ponderingwhatbesttosay。

"TellCaptainMacNellyI’mthemanhe’sbeenaskingtorideintohiscamp——afterdark，"finallysaidDuane。

Therangerbentforwardtopeerhardatthisnightvisitor。Hismannerhadbeenalert，andnowitbecametense。

"Comehere，oneofyoumen，quick，"hecalled，withoutturningintheleasttowardthecamp—fire。

"Hello！What’sup，Pickens？"cametheswiftreply。Itwasfollowedbyarapidthudofbootsonsoftground。Adarkformcrossedthegleamsfromthefire—light。Thenarangerloomeduptoreachthesideoftheguard。Duaneheardwhispering，thepurportofwhichhecouldnotcatch。Thesecondrangersworeunderhisbreath。Thenheturnedawayandstartedback。

"Here，ranger，beforeyougo，understandthis。Myvisitispeaceful——friendlyifyou’llletitbe。Mind，Iwasaskedtocomehere——afterdark。"

Duane’sclear，penetratingvoicecarriedfar。Thelisteningrangersatthecamp—fireheardwhathesaid。

"Ho，Pickens！Tellthatfellowtowait，"repliedanauthoritativevoice。Thenaslimfiguredetacheditselffromthedark，movinggroupatthecamp—fireandhurriedout。

"Betterbefoxy，Cap，"shoutedaranger，inwarning。

"Shutup——allofyou，"wasthereply。

Thisofficer，obviouslyCaptainMacNelly，soonjoinedthetworangerswhowereconfrontingDuane。Hehadnofear。HestrodestraightuptoDuane。

"I’mMacNelly，"hesaid。"Ifyou’remyman，don’tmentionyourname——yet。"

AllthisseemedsostrangetoDuane，inkeepingwithmuchthathadhappenedlately。

"ImetJeffAikento—day，"saidDuane。"Hesentme——"

"You’vemetAiken！"exclaimedMacNelly，sharp，eager，low。"Byallthat’sbully！"Thenheappearedtocatchhimself，togrowrestrained。

"Men，fallback，leaveusaloneamoment。"

Therangersslowlywithdrew。

"BuckDuane！It’syou？"hewhispered，eagerly。

"Yes。"

"IfIgivemywordyou’llnotbearrested——you’llbetreatedfairly——willyoucomeintocampandconsultwithme？"

"Certainly。"

"Duane，I’msuregladtomeetyou，"wentonMacNelly;andheextendedhishand。

Amazedandtouched，scarcelyrealizingthisactuality，Duanegavehishandandfeltnounmistakablegripofwarmth。

"Itdoesn’tseemnatural，CaptainMacNelly，butIbelieveI’mgladtomeetyou，"saidDuane，soberly。

"Youwillbe。Nowwe’llgobacktocamp。Keepyouridentitymumforthepresent。"

HeledDuaneinthedirectionofthecamp—fire。

"Pickers，gobackonduty，"heordered，"and，Beeson，youlookafterthishorse。"

WhenDuanegotbeyondthelineofmesquite，whichhadhidagoodviewofthecamp—site，hesawagroupofperhapsfifteenrangerssittingaroundthefires，nearalonglowshedwherehorseswerefeeding，andasmalladobehouseatoneside。

"We’vejusthadgrub，butI’llseeyougetsome。Thenwe’lltalk，"saidMacNelly。"I’vetakenuptemporaryquartershere。

Havearustlerjobonhand。Now，whenyou’veeaten，comerightintothehouse。"

Duanewashungry，buthehurriedthroughtheamplesupperthatwassetbeforehim，urgedonbycuriosityandastonishment。Theonlywayhecouldaccountforhispresencethereinaranger’scampwasthatMacNellyhopedtogetusefulinformationoutofhim。Stillthatwouldhardlyhavemadethiscaptainsoeager。

Therewasamysteryhere，andDuanecouldscarcelywaitforittobesolved。Whileeatinghehadbentkeeneyesaroundhim。

Afterafirstquietscrutinytherangersapparentlypaidnomoreattentiontohim。Theywereallveteransinservice——Duanesawthat——andrugged，powerfulmenofironconstitution。

Despitetheoccasionaljokeandsallyofthemoreyouthfulmembers，andageneralconversationofcamp—firenature，Duanewasnotdeceivedaboutthefactthathisadventhadbeenanunusualandstrikingone，whichhadcausedanundercurrentofconjectureandevenconsternationamongthem。Theserangersweretoowelltrainedtoappearopenlycuriousabouttheircaptain’sguest。IftheyhadnotdeliberatelyattemptedtobeobliviousofhispresenceDuanewouldhaveconcludedtheythoughthimanordinaryvisitor，somehowofusetoMacNelly。Asitwas，Duanefeltasuspensethatmusthavebeenduetoahintofhisidentity。

Hewasnotlonginpresentinghimselfatthedoorofthehouse。

"Comeinandhaveachair，"saidMacNelly，motioningfortheoneotheroccupantoftheroomtorise。"Leaveus，Russell，andclosethedoor。I’llbethroughthesereportsrightoff。"

MacNellysatatatableuponwhichwasalampandvariouspapers。Seeninthelighthewasafine—looking，soldierlymanofaboutfortyyears，dark—hairedanddark—eyed，withabronzedface，shrewd，stern，strong，yetnotwantinginkindliness。Hescannedhastilyoversomepapers，fussedwiththem，andfinallyputtheminenvelopes。Withoutlookinguphepushedacigar—

casetowardDuane，anduponDuane’srefusaltosmokehetookacigar，rosetolightitatthelamp—chimney，andthen，settlingbackinhischair，hefacedDuane，makingavainattempttohidewhatmusthavebeenthefulfilmentofalong—nourishedcuriosity。

"Duane，I’vebeenhopingforthisfortwoyears，"bebegan。

Duanesmiledalittle——asmilethatfeltstrangeonhisface。

Hehadneverbeenmuchofatalker。Andspeechhereseemedmorethanordinarilydifficult。

MacNellymusthavefeltthat。

HelookedlongandearnestlyatDuane，andhisquick，nervousmannerchangedtogravethoughtfulness。

"I’velotstosay，butwheretobegin，"hemused。"Duane，you’vehadahardlifesinceyouwentonthedodge。Inevermetyoubefore，don’tknowwhatyoulookedlikeasaboy。ButIcanseewhat——well，evenrangerlifeisn’tallroses。"

Herolledhiscigarbetweenhislipsandpuffedcloudsofsmoke。

"EverhearfromhomesinceyouleftWellston？"heasked，abruptly。

"No。"

"Neveraword？"

"Notone，"repliedDuane，sadly。

"That’stough。I’mgladtobeabletotellyouthatuptojustlatelyyourmother，sister，uncle——allyourfolks，I

believe——werewell。I’vekeptposted。Buthaven’theardlately。"

Duaneavertedhisfaceamoment，hesitatedtilltheswellinglefthisthroat，andthensaid，"It’sworthwhatIwentthroughto—daytohearthat。"

"Icanimaginehowyoufeelaboutit。WhenIwasinthewar——

butlet’sgetdowntothebusinessofthismeeting。"

HepulledhischairclosetoDuane’s。

"You’vehadwordmorethanonceinthelasttwoyearsthatI

wantedtoseeyou？"

"Threetimes，Iremember，"repliedDuane。

"Whydidn’tyouhuntmeup？"

"Isupposedyouimaginedmeoneofthosegun—fighterswhocouldn’ttakeadareandexpectedmetorideuptoyourcampandbearrested。"

"Thatwasnatural，Isuppose，"wentonMacNelly。"Youdidn’tknowme，otherwiseyouwouldhavecome。I’vebeenalongtimegettingtoyou。Butthenatureofmyjob，asfarasyou’reconcerned，mademecautious。Duane，you’reawareofthehardnameyoubearallovertheSouthwest？"

"OnceinawhileI’mjarredintorealizing，"repliedDuane。

"It’sthehardest，barringMurrellandCheseldine，ontheTexasborder。Butthere’sthisdifference。Murrellinhisdaywasknowntodeservehisinfamousname。Cheseldineinhisdayalso。

ButI’vefoundhundredsofmeninsouthwestTexaswho’reyourfriends，whoswearyounevercommittedacrime。ThefarthersouthIgettheclearerthisbecomes。WhatIwanttoknowisthetruth。Haveyoueverdoneanythingcriminal？Tellmethetruth，Duane。Itwon’tmakeanydifferenceinmyplan。AndwhenIsaycrimeImeanwhatIwouldcallcrime，oranyreasonableTexan。"

"Thatwaymyhandsareclean，"repliedDuane。

"Youneverheldupaman，robbedastoreforgrub，stoleahorsewhenyouneededhimbad——neveranythinglikethat？"

"SomehowIalwayskeptoutofthat，justwhenpressedthehardest。"

"Duane，I’mdamnglad！"MacNellyexclaimed，grippingDuane’shand。"Gladforyoumother’ssakelBut，allthesame，inspiteofthis，youareaTexasoutlawaccountabletothestate。

You’reperfectlyawarethatunderexistingcircumstances，ifyoufellintothehandsofthelaw，you’dprobablyhang，atleastgotojailforalongterm。"

"That’swhatkeptmeonthedodgealltheseyears，"repliedDuane。

"Certainly。"MacNellyremovedhiscigar。Hiseyesnarrowedandglittered。Themusclesalonghisbrowncheekssethardandtense。HeleanedclosertoDuane，laidsinewy，pressingfingersuponDuane’sknee。

"Listentothis，"hewhispered，hoarsely。"IfIplaceapardoninyourhand——makeyouafree，honestcitizenoncemore，clearyournameofinfamy，makeyourmother，yoursisterproudofyou——willyouswearyourselftoaservice，ANYserviceIdemandofyou？"

Duanesatstockstill，stunned。

Slowly，morepersuasively，withshowofearnestagitation，CaptainMacNellyreiteratedhisstartlingquery。

"MyGod！"burstfromDuane。"What’sthis？MacNelly，youCAN’T

beinearnest！"

"Nevermoresoinmylife。I’veadeepgame。I’mplayingitsquare。Whatdoyousay？"

Herosetohisfeet。Duane，asifimpelled，rosewithhim。

Rangerandoutlawthenlockedeyesthatsearchedeachother’ssouls。InMacNelly’sDuanereadtruth，strong，fierypurpose，hope，evengladness，andafugitivemountingassuranceofvictory。

TwiceDuaneendeavoredtospeak，failedofallsaveahoarse，incoherentsound，until，forcingbackafloodofspeech，hefoundavoice。

"Anyservice？Everyservice！MacNelly，Igivemyword，"saidDuane。

AlightplayedoverMacNelly’sface，warmingoutallthegrimdarkness。Heheldouthishand。Duanemetitwithhisinaclaspthatmenunconsciouslygiveinmomentsofstress。

WhentheyunclaspedandDuanesteppedbacktodropintoachairMacNellyfumbledforanothercigar——hehadbittentheotherintoshreds——and，lightingitasbefore，heturnedtohisvisitor，nowcalmandcool。Hehadthelookofamanwhohadjustlywonsomethingatconsiderablecost。Hisnextmovewastotakealongleathercasefromhispocketandextractfromitseveralfoldedpapers。

"Here’syourpardonfromtheGovernor，"hesaid，quietly。

"You’llsee，whenyoulookitover，thatit’sconditional。WhenyousignthispaperIhaveheretheconditionwillbemet。"

Hesmoothedoutthepaper，handedDuaneapen，ranhisforefingeralongadottedline。

Duane’shandwasshaky。Yearshadpassedsincehehadheldapen。Itwaswithdifficultythatheachievedhissignature。

BuckleyDuane——howstrangethenamelooked！

"RighthereendsthecareerofBuckDuane，outlawandgunfighter，"saidMacNelly;and，seatinghimself，hetookthepenfromDuane’sfingersandwroteseverallinesinseveralplacesuponthepaper。ThenwithasmilehehandedittoDuane。

"ThatmakesyouamemberofCompanyA，TexasRangers。"

"Sothat’sit！"burstoutDuane，alightbreakinginuponhisbewilderment。"Youwantmeforrangerservice？"

"Sure。That’sit，"repliedtheCaptain，dryly。"Nowtohearwhatthatserviceistobe。I’vebeenabusymansinceItookthisjob，and，asyoumayhaveheard，I’vedoneafewthings。I

don’tmindtellingyouthatpoliticalinfluenceputmeinhereandthatupAustinwaythere’sagooddealoffrictionintheDepartmentofStateinregardtowhetherornottherangerserviceisanygood——whetheritshouldbediscontinuedornot。

I’monthepartysidewho’sdefendingtherangerservice。I

contendthatit’smadeTexashabitable。Well，it’sbeenuptometoproduceresults。SofarIhavebeensuccessful。Mygreatambitionistobreakuptheoutlawgangsalongtheriver。I

haveneverventuredinthereyetbecauseI’vebeenwaitingtogetthelieutenantIneeded。You，ofcourse，arethemanIhadinmind。It’smyideatostartwayuptheRioGrandeandbeginwithCheseldine。He’sthestrongest，theworstoutlawofthetimes。He’smorethanrustler。It’sCheseldineandhisgangwhoareoperatingonthebanks。They’redoingbank—robbing。That’smyprivateopinion，butit’snotbeenbackedupbyanyevidence。Cheseldinedoesn’tleaveevidences。He’sintelligent，cunning。Nooneseemstohaveseenhim——toknowwhathelookslike。Iassume，ofcourse，thatyouareastrangertothecountryhedominates。It’sfivehundredmileswestofyourground。There’salittletownovertherecalledFairdale。It’sthenestofarustlergang。Theyrustleandmurderatwill。

Nobodyknowswhotheleaderis。Iwantyoutofindout。Well，whateverwayyoudecideisbestyouwillproceedtoactupon。

Youareyourownboss。Youknowsuchmenandhowtheycanbeapproached。Youwilltakeallthetimeneeded，ifit’smonths。

Itwillbenecessaryforyoutocommunicatewithme，andthatwillbeadifficultmatter。ForCheseldinedominatesseveralwholecounties。YoumustfindsomewaytoletmeknowwhenI

andmyrangersareneeded。TheplanistobreakupCheseldine’sgang。It’sthetoughestjobontheborder。Arrestinghimaloneisn’ttobeheardof。Hecouldn’tbebroughtout。Killinghimisn’tmuchbetter，forhisselectmen，theonesheoperateswith，areasdangeroustothecommunityasheis。Wewanttokillorjailthischoiceselectionofrobbersandbreakuptherestofthegang。Tofindthem，togetamongthemsomehow，tolearntheirmovements，tolayyourtrapforusrangerstospring——that，Duane，isyourservicetome，andGodknowsit’sagreatone！"

"Ihaveacceptedit，"repliedDuane。

"Yourworkwillbesecret。Youarenowarangerinmyservice。

ButnooneexceptthefewIchoosetotellwillknowofituntilwepulloffthejob。YouwillsimplybeBuckDuanetillitsuitsourpurposetoacquaintTexaswiththefactthatyou’rearanger。You’llseethere’snodateonthatpaper。Noonewilleverknowjustwhenyouenteredtheservice。Perhapswecanmakeitappearthatallormostofyouroutlawryhasreallybeengoodservicetothestate。Atthat，I’llbelieveit’llturnoutso。"

MacNellypausedamomentinhisrapidtalk，chewedhiscigar，drewhisbrowstogetherinadarkfrown，andwenton。"Nomanontheborderknowssowellasyouthedeadlynatureofthisservice。It’sathousandtoonethatyou’llbekilled。I’dsaytherewasnochanceatallforanyothermanbesideyou。Yourreputationwillgofaramongtheoutlaws。Maybethatandyournerveandyourgun—playwillpullyouthrough。I’mhopingso。

Butit’salong，longchanceagainstyourevercomingback。"

"That’snotthepoint，"saidDuane。"ButincaseIgetkilledoutthere——what——"

"Leavethattome，"interruptedCaptainMacNelly。"Yourfolkswillknowatonceofyourpardonandyourrangerduty。IfyouloseyourlifeoutthereI’llseeyournamecleared——theserviceyourenderknown。Youcanrestassuredofthat。"

"Iamsatisfied，"repliedDuane。"That’ssomuchmorethanI’vedaredtohope。"

"Well，it’ssettled，then。I’llgiveyoumoneyforexpenses。

You’llstartassoonasyoulike——thesoonerthebetter。Ihopetothinkofothersuggestions，especiallyaboutcommunicatingwithme。"

Longafterthelightswereoutandthelowhumofvoiceshadceasedroundthecamp—fireDuanelaywideawake，eyesstaringintotheblackness，marvelingoverthestrangeeventsoftheday。Hewashumble，gratefultothedepthsofhissoul。Ahugeandcrushingburdenhadbeenliftedfromhisheart。Hewelcomedthishazardousservicetothemanwhohadsavedhim。ThoughtofhismotherandsisterandUncleJim，ofhishome，ofoldfriendscamerushingoverhimthefirsttimeinyearsthathehadhappinessinthememory。Thedisgracehehadputuponthemwouldnowberemoved;andinthelightofthat，hiswastedlifeofthepast，anditsprobabletragicendinfutureserviceasatonementchangedtheiraspects。Andashelaythere，withtheapproachofsleepfinallydimmingthevividnessofhisthought，sofullofmystery，shadowyfacesfloatedintheblacknessaroundhim，hauntinghimashehadalwaysbeenhaunted。

Itwasbroaddaylightwhenheawakened。MacNellywascallinghimtobreakfast。Outsidesoundedvoicesofmen，cracklingoffires，snortingandstampingofhorses，thebarkingofdogs。

Duanerolledoutofhisblanketsandmadegooduseofthesoapandtowelandrazorandbrushnearbyonabench——thingsofrareluxurytoanoutlawontheride。Thefacehesawinthemirrorwasasstrangeasthepasthehadtriedsohardtorecall。Thenhesteppedtothedoorandwentout。

Therangerswereeatinginacircleroundatarpaulinspreadupontheground。

"Fellows，"saidMacNelly，"shakehandswithBuckDuane。He’sonsecretrangerserviceforme。Servicethat’lllikelymakeyouallhumpsoon！Mindyou，keepmumaboutit。"

TherangerssurprisedDuanewitharoaringgreeting，thewarmthofwhichhesoondivinedwasdividedbetweenprideofhisacquisitiontotheirranksandeagernesstomeetthatviolentserviceofwhichtheircaptainhinted。Theywerejolly，wildfellows，withjustenoughgravityintheirwelcometoshowDuanetheirrespectandappreciation，whilenotforgettinghislone—wolfrecord。Whenhehadseatedhimselfinthatcircle，nowoneofthem，afeelingsubtleandupliftingpervadedhim。

AfterthemealCaptainMacNellydrewDuaneaside。

"Here’sthemoney。Makeitgoasfarasyoucan。BetterstrikestraightforElPaso，snookaroundthereandhearthings。ThengotoValentine。That’sneartheriverandwithinfiftymilesorsooftheedgeoftheRimRock。SomewhereupthereCheseldineholdsfort。SomewheretothenorthisthetownFairdale。Buthedoesn’thideallthetimeintherocks。Onlyaftersomedaringraidorhold—up。Cheseldine’sgotbordertownsonhisstaff，orscaredofhim，andtheseplaceswewanttoknowabout，especiallyFairdale。WritemecareoftheadjutantatAustin。Idon’thavetowarnyoutobecarefulwhereyoumailletters。Rideahundred，twohundredmiles，ifnecessary，orgocleartoElPaso。"

MacNellystoppedwithanairoffinality，andthenDuaneslowlyrose。

"I’llstartatonce，"hesaid，extendinghishandtotheCaptain。"Iwish——I’dliketothankyou。"

"Hell，man！Don’tthankme！"repliedMacNelly，crushingtheprofferedhand。"I’vesentalotofgoodmentotheirdeaths，andmaybeyou’reanother。But，asI’vesaid，you’veonechanceinathousand。And，byHeaven！I’dhatetobeCheseldineoranyothermanyouweretrailing。No，notgood—by——Adios，Duane！Maywemeetagain！"