第16章

Suddenlyhethrewoffasombercastofcountenance，andhebegantotalk。Hetalkedswiftly，persuasively，yetDuaneimaginedhewastalkingtosmoothLawson’spassionforthemoment。Lawsonnomorecaughtthefatefulsignificanceofalinecrossed，alimitreached，adecreedecidedthanifhehadnotbeenpresent。Hewasobsessedwithhimself。How，Duanewondered，hadamanofhismindeverlivedsolongandgonesofaramongtheexactingconditionsoftheSouthwest？Theanswerwas，perhaps，thatLongstrethhadguidedhim，upheldhim，protectedhim。ThecomingofRayLongstrethhadbeentheentering—wedgeofdissension。

"You’retooimpatient，"concludedLongstreth。"You’llruinanychanceofhappinessifyourushRay。Shemightbewon。IfyoutoldherwhoIamshe’dhateyouforever。Shemightmarryyoutosaveme，butshe’dhateyou。Thatisn’ttheway。Wait。Playfortime。Bedifferentwithher。Cutoutyourdrinking。Shedespisesthat。Let’splantosellouthere——stock，ranch，property——andleavethecountry。Thenyou’dhaveashowwithher。"

"Itoldyouwe’vegottostick，"growledLawson。"Thegangwon’tstandforourgoing。Itcan’tbedoneunlessyouwanttosacrificeeverything。"

"Youmeandouble—crossthemen？Gowithouttheirknowing？Leavethemheretofacewhatevercomes？"

"Imeanjustthat。"

"I’mbadenough，butnotthatbad，"returnedLongstreth。"IfI

can’tgetthegangtoletmeoff，I’llstayandfacethemusic。

Allthesame，Lawson，diditeverstrikeyouthatmostofthedealsthelastfewyearshavebeenYOURS？"

"Yes。IfIhadn’trungthemintherewouldn’thavebeenany。

You’vehadcoldfeet，andespeciallysincethisrangerhasbeenhere。"

"Well，callitcoldfeetifyoulike。ButIcallitsense。Wereachedourlimitlongago。Webeganbyrustlingafewcattle——

atatimewhenrustlingwaslaughedat。Butasourgreedgrewsodidourboldness。Thencamethegang，theregulartrips，theonethingandanothertill，beforeweknewit——beforeIknewit——wehadshadydeals，holdups，andMURDERSonourrecord。

ThenweHADtogoon。Toolatetoturnback！"

"Ireckonwe’veallsaidthat。Noneofthegangwantstoquit。

Theyallthink，andIthink，wecan’tbetouched。Wemaybeblamed，butnothingcanbeproved。We’retoostrong。"

"There’swhereyou’redeadwrong，"rejoinedLongstreth，emphatically。"Iimaginedthatonce，notlongago。Iwasbullheaded。WhowouldeverconnectGrangerLongstrethwitharustlergang？I’vechangedmymind。I’vebeguntothink。I’vereasonedoutthings。We’recrooked，andwecan’tlast。It’sthenatureoflife，evenhere，forconditionstogrowbetter。Thewisedealforuswouldbetodivideequallyandleavethecountry，allofus。"

"ButyouandIhaveallthestock——allthegain，"protestedLawson。

"I’llsplitmine。"

"Iwon’t——thatsettlesthat，"addedLawson，instantly。

Longstrethspreadwidehishandsasifitwasuselesstotrytoconvincethisman。Talkinghadnotincreasedhiscalmness，andhenowshowedmorethanimpatience。Adullglintgleameddeepinhiseyes。

"Yourstockandpropertywilllastalongtime——doyoulotsofgoodwhenthisranger——"

"Bah！"hoarselycroakedLawson。Theranger’snamewasamatchappliedtopowder。"Haven’tItoldyouhe’dbedeadsoon——anytime——sameasLaramieis？"

"Yes，youmentionedthe——thesupposition，"repliedLongstreth，sarcastically。"Iinquired，too，justhowthatverydesiredeventwastobebroughtabout。"

"Thegangwilllayhimout。"

"Bah！"retortedLongstreth，inturn。Helaughedcontemptuously。

"Floyd，don’tbeafool。You’vebeenontheborderfortenyears。You’vepackedagunandyou’veusedit。You’vebeenwithrustlerswhentheykilledtheirmen。You’vebeenpresentatmanyfights。Butyouneverinallthattimesawamanlikethisranger。Youhaven’tgotsenseenoughtoseehimrightifyouhadachance。Neitherhaveanyofyou。Theonlywaytogetridofhimisforthegangtodrawonhim，allatonce。Thenhe’sgoingtodropsomeofthem。"

"Longstreth，yousaythatlikeamanwhowouldn’tcaremuchifhediddropsomeofthem，"declaredLawson;andnowhewassarcastic。

"Totellyouthetruth，Iwouldn’t，"returnedtheother，bluntly。"I’mprettysickofthismess。"

Lawsoncursedinamazement。Hisemotionswerealloutofproportiontohisintelligence。Hewasnotatallquick—witted。

Duanehadneverseenavainerormorearrogantman。

"Longstreth，Idon’tlikeyourtalk，"hesaid。

"Ifyoudon’tlikethewayItalkyouknowwhatyoucando，"

repliedLongstreth，quickly。Hestoodupthen，coolandquiet，withflashofeyesandsetoflipsthattoldDuanehewasdangerous。

"Well，afterall，that’sneitherherenorthere，"wentonLawson，unconsciouslycowedbytheother。"Thethingis，doI

getthegirl？"

"Notbyanymeansexceptherconsent。"

"You’llnotmakehermarryme？"

"No。No，"repliedLongstreth，hisvoicestillcold，low—pitched。

"Allright。ThenI’llmakeher。"

EvidentlyLongstrethunderstoodthemanbeforehimsowellthathewastednomorewords。DuaneknewwhatLawsonneverdreamedof，andthatwasthatLongstrethhadagunsomewherewithinreachandmeanttouseit。Thenheavyfootstepssoundedoutsidetrampingupontheporch。Duanemighthavebeenmistaken，buthebelievedthosefootstepssavedLawson’slife。

"Theretheyare，"saidLawson，andheopenedthedoor。

Fivemaskedmenentered。Theyallworecoatshidinganyweapons。AbigmanwithburlyshouldersshookhandswithLongstreth，andtheothersstoodback。

Theatmosphereofthatroomhadchanged。Lawsonmighthavebeenanonentityforallhecounted。Longstrethwasanotherman——astrangertoDuane。Ifhehadentertainedahopeoffreeinghimselffromthisband，ofgettingawaytoasafercountry，heabandoneditattheverysightofthesemen。Therewaspowerhere，andhewasbound。

Thebigmanspokeinlow，hoarsewhispers，andatthisalltheothersgatheredaroundhimclosetothetable。TherewereevidentlysomesignsofmembershipnotplaintoDuane。Thenalltheheadswerebentoverthetable。Lowvoicesspoke，queried，answered，argued。BystraininghisearsDuanecaughtawordhereandthere。Theywereplanning，andtheywerebrief。DuanegatheredtheyweretohavearendezvousatornearOrd。

Thenthebigman，whoevidentlywastheleaderofthepresentconvention，gotuptodepart。Hewentasswiftlyashehadcome，andwasfollowedbyhiscomrades。Longstrethpreparedforaquietsmoke。Lawsonseemeduncommunicativeandunsociable。Hesmokedfiercelyanddrankcontinually。Allatoncehestraightenedupasiflistening。

"What’sthat？"hecalled，suddenly。

Duane’sstrainedearswerepervadedbyaslightrustlingsound。

"Mustbearat，"repliedLongstreth。

Therustlebecamearattle。

"Soundslikearattlesnaketome，"saidLawson。

Longstrethgotupfromthetableandpeeredroundtheroom。

JustatthatinstantDuanefeltanalmostinappreciablemovementoftheadobewallwhichsupportedhim。Hecouldscarcelycredithissenses。ButtherattleinsideLongstreth’sroomwasminglingwithlittledullthudsoffallingdirt。Theadobewall，merelydriedmud，wascrumbling。Duanedistinctlyfeltatremorpassthroughit。Thenthebloodgushedbacktohisheart。

"Whatinthehell！"exclaimedLongstreth。

"Ismelldust，"saidLawson，sharply。

ThatwasthesignalforDuanetodropdownfromhisperch，yetdespitehiscarehemadeanoise。

"Didyouhearastep？"queriedLongstreth。

Nooneanswered。Butaheavypieceoftheadobewallfellwithathud。Duanehearditcrack，feltitshake。

"There’ssomebodybetweenthewalls！"thunderedLongstreth。

Thenasectionofthewallfellinwardwithacrash。Duanebegantosqueezehisbodythroughthenarrowpassagetowardthepatio。

"Hearhim！"yelledLawson。"Thisside！"

"No，he’sgoingthatway，"yelledLongstreth。

ThetrampofheavybootslentDuanethestrengthofdesperation。Hewasnotshirkingafight，buttobecorneredlikeatrappedcoyotewasanothermatter。Healmosttorehisclothesoffinthatpassage。Thedustnearlystifledhim。Whenheburstintothepatioitwasnotasingleinstanttoosoon。

Butonedeepgaspofbreathrevivedhimandhewasup，guninhand，runningfortheoutletintothecourt。Thumpingfootstepsturnedhimback。Whiletherewasachancetogetawayhedidnotwanttofight。Hethoughtheheardsomeonerunningintothepatiofromtheotherend。Hestolealong，andcomingtoadoor，withoutanyideaofwhereitmightlead，hesoftlypusheditopenalittlewayandslippedin。

CHAPTERXX

AlowcrygreetedDuane。Theroomwaslight。HesawRayLongstrethsittingonherbedinherdressing—gown。Withawarninggesturetohertobesilentheturnedtoclosethedoor。Itwasaheavydoorwithoutboltorbar，andwhenDuanehadshutithefeltsafeonlyforthemoment。Thenhegazedaroundtheroom。Therewasonewindowwithblindcloselydrawn。

Helistenedandseemedtohearfootstepsretreating，dyingaway。

ThenDuaneturnedtoMissLongstreth。Shehadslippedoffthebed，halftoherknees，andwasholdingouttremblinghands。

Shewasaswhiteasthepillowonherbed。Shewasterriblyfrightened。Againwithwarninghandcommandingsilence，Duanesteppedsoftlyforward，meaningtoreassureher。

"Oh！"shewhispered，wildly;andDuanethoughtshewasgoingtofaint。Whenhegotcloseandlookedintohereyesheunderstoodthestrange，darkexpressioninthem。Shewasterrifiedbecauseshebelievedhemeanttokillher，ordoworse，probablyworse。

Duanerealizedhemusthavelookedprettyhardandfierceburstingintoherroomwiththatbigguninhand。

ThewayshesearchedDuane’sfacewithdoubtful，fearfuleyeshurthim。

"Listen。Ididn’tknowthiswasyourroom。Icameheretogetaway——tosavemylife。Iwaspursued。Iwasspyingon——onyourfatherandhismen。Theyheardme，butdidnotseeme。Theydon’tknowwhowaslistening。They’reaftermenow。"

Hereyeschangedfromblankgulfstodilating，shadowing。

quickeningwindowsofthought。

ThenshestoodupandfacedDuanewiththefireandintelligenceofawomaninhereyes。

"Tellmenow。Youwerespyingonmyfather？"

BrieflyDuanetoldherwhathadhappenedbeforeheenteredherroom，notomittingatersewordastothecharacterofthemenhehadwatched。

"MyGod！Soit’sthat？Iknewsomethingwasterriblywronghere——withhim——withtheplace——thepeople。AndrightoffI

hatedFloydLawson。Oh，it’llkillmeif——if——It’ssomuchworsethanIdreamed。WhatshallIdo？"

ThesoundofsoftstepssomewhereneardistractedDuane’sattention，remindedhimofherperil，andnow，whatcountedmorewithhim，madecleartheprobabilityofbeingdiscoveredinherroom。

"I’llhavetogetoutofhere，"whisperedDuane。

"Wait，"shereplied。"Didn’tyousaytheywerehuntingforyou？"

"Theysureare，"hereturned，grimly。

"Oh，thenyoumustn’tgo。Theymightshootyoubeforeyougotaway。Stay。Ifwehearthemyoucanhide。I’llturnoutthelight。I’llmeetthematthedoor。Youcantrustme。Waittillallquietsdown，ifwehavetowaittillmorning。Thenyoucanslipout。"

"Ioughtn’ttostay。Idon’twantto——Iwon’t，"Duanereplied，perplexedandstubborn。

"Butyoumust。It’stheonlysafeway。Theywon’tcomehere。"

"Supposetheyshould？It’sanevenchanceLongstreth’llsearcheveryroomandcornerinthisoldhouse。IftheyfoundmehereIcouldn’tstartafight。Youmightbehurt。Then——thefactofmybeinghere——"

Duanedidnotfinishwhathemeant，butinsteadmadeasteptowardthedoor。Whiteoffaceanddarkofeye，shetookholdofhimtodetainhim。Shewasasstrongandsuppleasapanther。Butsheneednothavebeeneitherresoluteorstrong，fortheclaspofherhandwasenoughtomakeDuaneweak。

"Upyet，Ray？"cameLongstreth’sclearvoice，toostrained，tooeagertobenatural。

"No。I’minbedreading。Goodnight，"instantlyrepliedMissLongstreth，socalmlyandnaturallythatDuanemarveledatthedifferencebetweenmanandwoman。ThenshemotionedforDuanetohideinthecloset。Heslippedin，butthedoorwouldnotclosealtogether。

"Areyoualone？"wentonLongstreth’spenetratingvoice。

"Yes，"shereplied。"Ruthwenttobed。"

Thedoorswunginwardwithaswiftscrapeandjar。Longstrethhalfentered，haggard，flaming—eyed。BehindhimDuanesawLawson，andindistinctlyanotherman。

LongstrethbarredLawsonfromentering，whichactionshowedcontrolaswellasdistrust。Hewantedtoseeintotheroom。

Whenhehadglancedaroundhewentoutandclosedthedoor。

Thenwhatseemedalongintervalensued。Thehousegrewsilentoncemore。DuanecouldnotseeMissLongstreth，butheheardherquickbreathing。Howlongdidshemeantolethimstayhiddenthere？Hardandperilousashislifehadbeen，thiswasanewkindofadventure。Hehaddivinedthestrangesoftnessofhisfeelingassomethingduetothemagnetismofthisbeautifulwoman。Ithardlyseemedpossiblethathe，whohadbeenoutsidethepaleforsomanyyears，couldhavefalleninlove。Yetthatmustbethesecretofhisagitation。

Presentlyhepushedopentheclosetdoorandsteppedforth。

MissLongstrethhadherheadlowereduponherarmsandappearedtobeindistress。Athistouchsheraisedaquiveringface。

"IthinkIcangonow——safely，"hewhispered。

"Gothen，ifyoumust，butyoumaystaytillyou’resafe，"shereplied。

"I——Icouldn’tthankyouenough。It’sbeenhardonme——thisfindingout——andyouhisdaughter。Ifeelstrange。Idon’tunderstandmyselfwell。ButIwantyoutoknow——ifIwerenotanoutlaw——aranger——I’dlaymylifeatyourfeet。"

"Oh！Youhaveseenso——solittleofme，"shefaltered。

"Allthesameit’strue。Andthatmakesmefeelmorethetroublemycomingcausedyou。"

"Youwillnotfightmyfather？"

"NotifIcanhelpit。I’mtryingtogetoutofhisway。’

"Butyouspieduponhim。"

"Iamaranger，MissLongstreth。"

"Andoh！Iamarustler’sdaughter，"shecried。"That’ssomuchmoreterriblethanI’dsuspected。ItwastrickycattledealsI

imaginedhewasengagedin。Butonlyto—nightIhadstrongsuspicionsaroused。"

"How？Tellme。"

"IoverheardFloydsaythatmenwerecomingto—nighttoarrangeameetingformyfatheratarendezvousnearOrd。Fatherdidnotwanttogo。Floydtauntedhimwithaname。"

"Whatname？"queriedDuane。

"ItwasCheseldine。"

"CHESELDINE！MyGod！MissLongstreth，whydidyoutellmethat？"

"Whatdifferencedoesthatmake？"

"YourfatherandCheseldineareoneandthesame，"whisperedDuane，hoarsely。

"Igatheredsomuchmyself，"shereplied，miserably。"ButLongstrethisfather’srealname。"

Duanefeltsostunnedhecouldnotspeakatonce。Itwasthegirl’spartinthistragedythatweakenedhim。TheinstantshebetrayedthesecretDuanerealizedperfectlythathedidloveher。Theemotionwaslikeagreatflood。

"MissLongstreth，allthisseemssounbelievable，"hewhispered。"CheseldineistherustlerchiefI’vecomeoutheretoget。He’sonlyaname。Yourfatheristherealman。I’vesworntogethim。I’mboundbymorethanlaworoaths。Ican’tbreakwhatbindsme。AndImustdisgraceyou——wreckyourliferWhy，MissLongstreth，IbelieveI——Iloveyou。It’sallcomeinarush。I’ddieforyouifIcould。Howfatal——terrible——thisis！Howthingsworkout！"

Sheslippedtoherknees，withherhandsonhis。

"Youwon’tkillhim？"sheimplored。"Ifyoucareforme——youwon’tkillhim？"

"No。ThatIpromiseyou。"

Withalowmoanshedroppedherheaduponthebed。

Duaneopenedthedoorandstealthilystoleoutthroughthecorridortothecourt。

WhenDuanegotoutintothedark，wherehishotfacecooledinthewind，hisreliefequaledhisotherfeelings。

Thenightwasdark，windy，stormy，yettherewasnorain。Duanehopedassoonashegotclearoftheranchtolosesomethingofthepainhefelt。Butlongafterhehadtrampedoutintotheopentherewasalumpinhisthroatandanacheinhisbreast。

AllhisthoughtcenteredaroundRayLongstreth。Whatawomanshehadturnedouttobe！Heseemedtohaveavague，hopelesshopethattheremightbe，theremustbe，somewayhecouldsaveher。

CHAPTERXXI

BeforegoingtosleepthatnightDuanehaddecidedtogotoOrdandtrytofindtherendezvouswhereLongstrethwastomeethismen。ThesemenDuanewantedevenmorethantheirleader。IfLongstreth，orCheseldine，wasthebrainsofthatgang，Pogginwastheexecutor。ItwasPogginwhoneededtobefoundandstopped。Pogginandhisright—handmen！Duaneexperiencedastrange，tigerishthrill。ItwasthoughtofPogginmorethanthoughtofsuccessforMacNelly’splan。Duanefeltdubiousoverthisemotion。

NextdayhesetoutforBradford。HewasgladtogetawayfromFairdaleforawhile。Butthehoursandthemilesinnowisechangedthenewpaininhisheart。TheonlywayhecouldforgetMissLongstrethwastolethisminddwelluponPoggin，andeventhiswasnotalwayseffective。

HeavoidedSanderson，andattheendofthedayandahalfhearrivedatBradford。

ThenightofthedaybeforehereachedBradford，No。6，themailandexpresstraingoingeast，washeldupbytrain—robbers，theWells—Fargomessengerkilledoverhissafe，themail—clerkwounded，thebagscarriedaway。TheengineofNo。6cameintotownminusevenatender，andengineerandfiremantoldconflictingstories。Aposseofrailroadmenandcitizens，ledbyasheriffDuanesuspectedwascrooked，wasmadeupbeforetheenginesteamedbacktopickuptherestofthetrain。Duanehadthesuddeninspirationthathehadbeencudgelinghismindtofind;and，actinguponit，hemountedhishorseagainandleftBradfordunobserved。Asherodeoutintothenight，overadarktrailinthedirectionofOrd，heutteredashort，grim，sardoniclaughatthehopethathemightbetakenforatrain—robber。

Herodeataneasytrotmostofthenight，andwhentheblackpeakofOrdMountainloomedupagainstthestarshehalted，tiedhishorse，andsleptuntildawn。Hehadbroughtasmallpack，andnowhetookhistimecookingbreakfast。WhenthesunwaswelluphesaddledBullet，and，leavingthetrailwherehistracksshowedplainintheground，heputhishorsetotherocksandbrush。Heselectedanexceedinglyrough，roundabout，anddifficultcoursetoOrd，hidhistrackswiththeskillofalong—huntedfugitive，andarrivedtherewithhishorsewindedandcoveredwithlather。ItaddedconsiderabletohisarrivalthatthemanDuanerememberedasFletcherandseveralotherssawhimcomeinthebackwaythroughthelotsandjumpafenceintotheroad。

DuaneledBulletuptotheporchwhereFletcherstoodwipinghisbeard。Hewashatless，vestless，andevidentlyhadjustenjoyedamorningdrink。

"Howdy，Dodge，"saidFletcher，laconically。

Duanereplied，andtheothermanreturnedthegreetingwithinterest。

"Jim，myhoss’sdoneup。Iwanttohidehimfromanychancetouristsasmighthappentorideupcurious—like。"

"Haw！haw！haw！"

Duanegatheredencouragementfromthatchorusofcoarselaughter。

"Wal，ifthemtouristsain’ttoodurnedsnookythehoss’llbesafeinthe’dobeshackbackofBill’shere。Feedthar，too，butyou’llhevtorustlewater。"

DuaneledBullettotheplaceindicated，hadcareofhiswelfare，andlefthimthere。UponreturningtothetavernporchDuanesawthegroupofmenhadbeenaddedtobyothers，someofwhomhehadseenbefore。WithoutcommentDuanewalkedalongtheedgeoftheroad，andwhereveroneofthetracksofhishorseshowedhecarefullyobliteratedit。ThisprocedurewasattentivelywatchedbyFletcherandhiscompanions。

"Wal，Dodge，"remarkedFletcher，asDuanereturned，"thet’ssafer’nprayin’ferrain。"

DuanesreplywasaremarkasloquaciousasFletcher’s，totheeffectthatalong，slow，monotonousridewasconducivetothirst。Theyalljoinedhim，unmistakablyfriendly。ButKnellwasnotthere，andmostassuredlynotPoggin。Fletcherwasnocommonoutlaw，but，whateverhisability，itprobablylayinexecutionoforders。Apparentlyatthattimethesemenhadnothingtodobutdrinkandloungearoundthetavern。Evidentlytheywerepoorlysuppliedwithmoney，thoughDuaneobservedtheycouldborrowapesooccasionallyfromthebartender。Duanesetouttomakehimselfagreeableandsucceeded。Therewascard—playingforsmallstakes，idlejestsofcoarsenature，muchbanteringamongtheyoungerfellows，andoccasionallyamildquarrel。Allmorningmencameandwent，until，alltold，Duanecalculatedhehadseenatleastfifty。Towardthemiddleoftheafternoonayoungfellowburstintothesaloonandyelledoneword:

"Posse！"

FromthescrambletogetoutdoorsDuanejudgedthatwordandtheensuingactionwasrareinOrd。

"Whatthehell！"mutteredFletcher，ashegazeddowntheroadatadark，compactbunchofhorsesandriders。"FusttimeI

everseenthetinOrd！We’regettin’popularlikethemcampsoutofValentine。WishPhilwashereorPoggy。Nowallyougentskeepquiet。I’lldothetalkin’。"

Theposseenteredthetown，trottedupondustyhorses，andhaltedinabunchbeforethetavern。Thepartyconsistedofabouttwentymen，allheavilyarmed，andevidentlyinchargeofaclean—cut，lean—limbedcowboy。Duaneexperiencedconsiderablesatisfactionattheabsenceofthesheriffwhohehadunderstoodwastoleadtheposse。Perhapshewasoutinanotherdirectionwithadifferentforce。

"Hello，JimFletcher，"calledthecowboy。

"Howdy，"repliedFletcher。

Athisshort，dryresponseandthewayhestrodeleisurelyoutbeforetheposseDuanefoundhimselfmodifyinghiscontemptforFletcher。Theoutlawwasdifferentnow。

"Fletcher，we’vetrackedamantoallbutthreemilesofthisplace。Tracksasplainasthenoseonyourface。Foundhiscamp。Thenhehitintothebrush，an’welostthetrail。Didn’thavenotrackerwithus。Thinkhewentintothemountains。Butwetookachancean’ridovertherestoftheway，seein’Ordwassoclose。Anybodycomeinherelatelastnightorearlythismornin’？"

"Nope，"repliedFletcher。

HisresponsewaswhatDuanehadexpectedfromhismanner，andevidentlythecowboytookitasamatterofcourse。Heturnedtotheothersoftheposse，enteringintoalowconsultation。

Evidentlytherewasdifferenceofopinion，ifnotrealdissension，inthatposse。

"Didn’tItellyethiswasawild—goosechase，comin’wayouthere？"protestedanoldhawk—facedrancher。"Themhosstrackswefolloredain’tlikeanyofthemweseenatthewater—tankwherethetrainwasheldup。"

"I’mnotsosureofthat，"repliedtheleader。

"Wal，Guthrie，I’vefolloredtracksallmylife——’

"Butyoucouldn’tkeeptothetrailthisfellermadeinthebrush。"

"Gimmetime，an’Icould。Thettakestime。An’heahyougohell—bentferelection！Butit’sawrongleadoutthisway。Ifyou’rerightthisroad—agent，afterhekilledhispals，wouldhevridbackrightthroughtown。An’withthemmail—bags！

Supposin’theywasgreasers？Somegreasershassense，an’whenitcomestothievin’they’reshorecute。"

"Butwesentgotanyreasontobelievethisrobberwhomurderedthegreasersisagreaserhimself。Itellyouitwasaslickjobdonebynoordinarysneak。Didn’tyouhearthefacts？Onegreaserhoppedtheenginean’coveredtheengineeran’fireman。

Anothergreaserkeptflashin’hisgunoutsidethetrain。Thebigmanwhoshovedbackthecar—dooran’didthekillin’——hewastherealgent，an’don’tyouforgetit。"

Someofthepossesidedwiththecowboyleaderandsomewiththeoldcattleman。Finallytheyoungleaderdisgustedlygathereduphisbridle。

"Aw，hell！Thetsheriffshovedyouoffthistrail。MebbehehedreasonsSavvythet？IfIhedabunchofcowboyswithme——Itellyouwhat——I’dtakeachancean’cleanupthishole！"

AllthewhileJimFletcherstoodquietlywithhishandsinhispockets。

"Guthrie，I’mshoretreasurin’upyourfriendlytalk，"hesaid。

Themenacewasinthetone，notthecontentofhisspeech。

"Youcan——an’bedamnedtoyou，Fletcher！"calledGuthrie，asthehorsesstarted。

Fletcher，standingoutalonebeforetheothersofhisclan，watchedtheposseoutofsight。

"Luckferyou—allthetPoggywasn’there，"hesaid，astheydisappeared。ThenwithathoughtfulmienhestrodeupontheporchandledDuaneawayfromtheothersintothebar—room。

WhenhelookedintoDuane’sfaceitwassomehowanentirelychangedscrutiny。

"Dodge，where’dyouhidethestuff？IreckonIgitinonthisdeal，seein’IstavedoffGuthrie。"

Duaneplayedhispart。Herewashisatigerafterpreyheseizedit。Firsthecoollyeyedtheoutlawandthendisclaimedanyknowledgewhateverofthetrain—robberyotherthanFletcherhadheardhimself。ThenatFletcher’spersistenceandadmirationandincreasingshowoffriendlinesshelaughedoccasionallyandallowedhimselftoswellwithpride，thoughstilldenying。Nexthefeignedalackofconsistentwill—powerandseemedtobewaveringunderFletcher’spersuasionandgrewsilent，thensurly。Fletcher，evidentlysureofultimatevictory，desistedforthetimebeing;however，inhissolicitousregardandclosecompanionshipfortherestofthatdayhebetrayedthebentofhismind。