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Show ByiCNUWAY V.N.U. Release iSS&VA INSTALLMENT Z I THE STORY SO FAR: I . Gordon were ' '".I. v..t King-Cordon Texas to 1 55taS up this firing had to fight rivaled King-Gordon In power and wealth, but he had gained hit position through wholesale cattle rustling and gunplay. Their opposing interests came to thowdown when the Government announced the auctioning of the Crying Wolf land In Montana. B1U Roper. King's adopted son. had Inspected this territory and found It to contain an almost unbelievable un-believable wealth of grass. Bidding went high at the auction, but King beat out Thorpe to gain control of the land. press of Ben Thorpe's ruffiiani at the auction, getting his own boys Into fights, Jody Gordon was waiting wait-ing here for newt of what had happened hap-pened to the Crying Wolf. Bill Roper Rop-er vaulted the foolish little picket gate, scuffed the mud oft hit boots on the high front steps, and let himself him-self in. He sent a Comanche war gobble ringing through the house, but Jody wat already flying into the room. "Did you get it? Did you get it?" "All of it!" Jody flung herself at him, and kissed him; so sweet, so vital, to completely feminine that he wanted to keep her close to him. But she broke away again as he tried to hold her. "How much did It cost?" "Seventy cents gold." Jody's breath caught "Can we come out on it?" "Sure we can come out on It Not a cent less would've turned the trick. Dusty" Jody sat on a walnut table that had come all the way from St. Louis, and swung her feet. The ttory seemed to tickle her in more ways than one. "I can Just see you all," Into their little cubicle flowed the sweet air of the open prairie sweep, inspiriting with the fresh smell of the new grass. She said, "Tell me about your new Job." i "It isn't new." "They said that you'd be the new boss of the Crying Wolf, if we got it," Jody said. For more years than he could remember, re-member, he had been working toward to-ward this opportunity the chance to take two years, or three, with such-and-such cattle, on such-and-such land, and show that he could pay out on market deliveriet in pounds of beef. But now a million mil-lion horns and hoofs didn't seem to mean to much. Something was here something that wasn't any place else not on the long trail, not In the wild terminal termi-nal towns. He knew now he had to tell her that, and he dreaded it, because be-cause the probably would think it was funny. He wouldn't look at her as he spoke, because he didn't want to tee her laughing at him. "I don't know as I'm to much interested in-terested at I was," he tald. "Why, Bllly-not Interested in the Crying Wolf nearly five hundred tquare milea of feeder landl What's come over you?" "I guess maybe I'm tired of riding rid-ing alone," Bill said. "Alone? With all the outfit you'll have I wouldn't call it alone." "I would. Grass country is lonely country," he tald now, "as lonely as the dry plains. You get to won-dering won-dering what the everlasting cattle add up to, In the course of a life. Then some night you know you don't care what they add up to; and you think, 'Damn fat beef!' " "Why, Billy-why, Billy" "None of It means a damn, without with-out you're there," he told her. "Working cattle doesn't mean anything, any-thing, because you'll alwayt have all the cattle you need anyway; and no long trail means anything, without with-out you're at the end of it. I'm tick of long drive-trails, empty of you at the end." There was a long, motionless silence; si-lence; he kept his eyes on the far sand hills as presently she leaned forward to look up into his face. "You really mean it, don't you?" Jody said. . i , ta the Wells Fargo Jy commission- Signing papers, Vordonon the board Ul S 5rne the three " .Seance the Cry-into Cry-into the hand. J Ki"6. "we got " .aid. 55Ti have some decent law-" , et s 'sound basis fif i bust." Dusty JJ enforcement we ill rotten through and If office holders that a." .."Gordon said slowly, afcigottogo." Lew. we've got him rJberant mood of victory Tdampened. "You want S he chortled. "We'll !f ind order!" i in mind." said Gorier Gor-ier passed me this here V He handed Dusty c twisted scrap of paper, he corner of something it untangled It, looked at Elbowed it to the others. i were penciled on it in black letters: y$ NAME LOOK OUT this from, Lew?" i lips moved almost r.Urj Camp Pierce." set that name, without riat lengths of outlawry it Dry Camp Pierce to was today. Rewards Ben Thorpe were on Dry alp over half the West; i was is much as his life to show himself in Ogle-" Ling tossed it off with a Oh I suppose Thorpe is iai some place and spout-cat spout-cat what all he's going tc i when he catches up." sth showed in his infec-. infec-. "I suppose Dry Camt 1 Jody's words came very faint, and a little breathless. "Why didn't you say so before?" He looked at her then, and she wasn't laughing. In her eyes was a new, grave light, such as he had never seen; a warm light, a beloved light, better than sunset to a weary day-rider who has worked leather since before dawn. Timorously, but very willingly, she came into his arms; and he held her as if she were not only a very precious but a very fragile thing. For a little while it seemed that one trail, a trail longer than the Long Trail itself, had come to its end. "Can't believe," he said at last, his lips in her hair, "you're sure-enough sure-enough mine." "All yours all, all" They had one hour, there in the prairie lookout tower, discovering each other, getting acquainted as if for the first time. The sun went down in a gorgeous welter of color. jody shivered a little. "I wish Dad and Dusty would come. Espe-: Espe-: daily Dusty." 1 "Why?" ..u v,c n manv enemies. Some ought to know about it gfct, Dusty," Lew Gordon e do want to look out, all the time." ways had to look out," led. the more so now. There ling in the world Ben wple will stop at. Dusty." a come on." at to look out," Gordon feel that way about it," ?, "what was the idea of 31 through that law we 'funs in town?" per said, "We could have ! to an open shoot-out, five -ten years ago. Better if shook his head. "Noth-setj "Noth-setj fixed up with guns." -is pulled his hat a little sue side so that he could H Roper unobserved. But 3e'i partly right, Bill Ben t just one man any more. 'iam-Cleve Tanner any own others could step Into H'l a whole rotten or- to be busted up." mt downed, and they'll 1 Hoper thought. But she broke away as he tried to hold her. she said, "standing around making an Impression on each other." He turned from the window, and she was laughing at him as he had thought, her mouth smothered with her fingers. "Come here a minute," he said, going toward her. She twisted from the edge of the table, as if to put it between them, but she was too late. His rope-hard fingers caught her wrist, and held her as easily as if he had dallied a calf to the horn. "Listen," he begged her. Listen" Lis-ten" , He caught her up, clamped an arm behind her head, and kissed her hard. Hard, and for a long So long as she was rigid in his arms, fighting him, he held her but when she stood limp, neither yielding nor resisting, his arms re-laxed. re-laxed. and Jody tore herself free She lashed out at him like a litUe mustang, striking him across the mouth. Her face was white, all that auick irrepressible laughter gone, X for a moment she looked at him ...... - uij ran from Bill "He has so many enemies. Some of them are dangerous as diamond-backs. diamond-backs. It worries me when he s due and doesn't get back." ( "Dusty'll take care of h'mseU. Bill Roper chuckled, and held her closer. One half hour more ... Up from the town came a crazily ridden horse, splashing mud eaves-high eaves-high under the urge of spur and Quirt- . . . h. ffnes .Pe down and it's only tety countered. "Get it m head that you can fix "t by downing Ben Thorpe. ' th organization stands Kt- Might be a good idea 0 remember that. Bill, in y happens." 1 BUI said, "if ever they 4 God, m get Ben Thorpe s last" Hid Dusty. "You hear me? get meyou'ii remem- rt, Mid' You remember f thing, and a big N one man." His face ftat familiar, contagious IW it! Dry Camp's Jat'i al. tei n arm through his ;,ni went swaggering off. 'r down the walk he ed. and came back. ; to R0per. -U any-'a any-'a happen, kid-remem-1 1 said." T tr ckle of blood ran from Bill Rooer's lips, and made a crooked rnark on his chin. Then she turned anWhend-she was gone Bill Hoper ttood still, sucking his cut After LryiSroVen "TcitemrbOord-as "TcitemrbOord-as a little tow-headed kid. befo e he hair had darkened into the i elusive misty brown that it was now. Or as 'con-legged girl with -ctche. her ta.fromr b.J rstsecSTunSstand picked up his ha, and for am-Ue am-Ue while stood tu-ng to aSwenhtes:hing through sinthetaBestofthe -He'll lame his pony if he goes down in that slick,'' Bill commented. Now what do you suppose- The rider tried to pull up ta front JSe house, and the frantic pony sweed and slid, mouth wide open f Z . tky ns shoulder crashed he fence faking down a dozer .feet f nickels The rider tumbled off, rL'up the steps to hammer on the d Roper went clattering down the stairs Pulled open the door. "Now listen, you , .Rill-Dusty-Mr. King-he at him. -Bill he s daid! :SS"wii Bill'H s gunned him - they gunned him down!" IS? known. Mr. Gordon's u Holer walked out past the B'll RPef,v ,ike a man gone TwSS knowing what he did bIind- ,7down to the gate, and ZZX pickeu with h,s jody asm l"c here you could foolish towers. From her y see the town, and the sum , S ing line of the railroad connect g these far plainsmen with a w hungry for beef. . -we've jody said matter-of-factly, got to have more loading p nsB. 1. Riii-i face broke into a slow gi chapter m Gordon had a daughter ; ""Wising as that he had Ele-minded, he clung brf,e memory of the s boraSt hen their first 2n was twenty now- She that n Lew Gordon; no" a. I B"t it was fairly ap-, ap-, n's stubborn bid for su-h su-h esuterr cattle was In-;.v;rbehalf. In-;.v;rbehalf. and without her Deen meaningless to Zttioa hadn't wanted his "round through the |