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Show 'WHISPERING SAGE q q 5; - (Continued from leaf week.) CHAPTER XXXI. Tha Kea an tha Dear. Melody had I net Hied In Mercedea aome degree jjt ewnftdenco In his ability to find Heal Ho. It sustained her, now that aha wu alone; that, and her faith In Klldare. Hha could count on him. Ha had avan defied Arklln for her. Hh triad to mutter a prayer, hut mind and body wera lu exhausted that tha effort waa Intuhersnt. Vith tha littla etrensth that re-ma re-ma in J in her. aha mtmffd to Ret In ilia bad that Blood In tha rornar of i ha room L'nriraaalna; waa ha-oni ha-oni her. fhe tried to unlets her botp. hut her eyea rloaad. Mercedes did not know how lone he had ben aalaap whan aha waa awakened by lha aound of soma on creeping eteelthlly up tha atalra. It waa Khorty. Ha had called e vera I tlmea and. getting no answer, had begun searching tha houaa, bent on picking up whatever what-ever trifles ha could find and. at tha am a tima. Intending to maka certain that ha had not left him aelf open to Hodlne'e dlaplaaaura. Whan Mercedes thraw opan har door and faced him, ha waa tha Bore frightened of tha two. But Phorty waa truly an avlMooklng him aa aoon aa t heard tha eipto alon. Ha won't waata any time gat tin' up bare from Wlnnemucca. "Well, you gat him aa quick aa that old nag of yeura will tat you. wear In all tha deputies you can. and fan It for Bodlne'a placa. There'a going to be hall to pay Ihera In another hour. ArkHa la Coins' to awing him If ha can. "Ha meana bualnaea, huh? "You bat ha doaa! But I Intend la hava eomathlng to aay about that. I don't want him hung! Thla party of Acklln'e la going to throw tha fear of Ood Into an old friend of mine. I've got to atop it aome way. plate waa thinking of Hhorty. HHII Blasa reallaad aa Kant and ha daahad along that If tha Big1 Boea and hla men got to Webster Creak ft rat, aa was moat likely, tha odda agalQat being able to play for time until tha aherlff and hla poaea arrived ar-rived would maka tha effort almoat hope lee a. Tha cowboy racked hla brain to Invent aome gama of eroaa purpoaaa by which ha could accomplish accom-plish thla aaaming Impossibility. Ha understood fully, too, that even with tha aherlff there It waa no certainty that Bodina would not ba hanred. If Arklln Inaiated on going through with hla threat, tha law would ba sorely tried to stop him. They cama dlrertly to the place where the road forked. Blasa waa Heard him In hla own dan. t ) aelf would rnme elnle hnrtd "j Tha His Haa' walked mm 1 a ''. "1 kltrhen to tha doorway of the ro-n in which Khorty lay. Aa Buck r- n't!' rnrered from the data ha was In. y& ha finally manased to articulate; 4 ', v "I ain't armed:" T .'' Tka your banrle down than." Arklln enap.-ed. 'Hack Into laa centar of that room." . findlna retreated as ba was or- : darad, facing tha other man aa ka "1 etepnad backward. Tha bis cat-tlaman cat-tlaman kept para with him. A fVr ' movement near the window to which 4 r Mercedee had stepped with Basins aiopnad him In hla tracks Hia gua - I waa In position as ha wheeled, but ..v ha dropped jt n eonatarnai ion aa f' ha rrosnd tha girl and child. Hatred flam ad In Afkilne area. ' Finding har with Bodina was a ' etasrsarlng blow to hla vanity. Ha had overheard Burk s words ursine urs-ine flight to Oregon. They war '.'"v-gulng '.'"v-gulng t"e(her ; - Mercedes bit har finger nalla nee. voualy under tha search nr arruimy of Acklln'a eyas. Har very eacne-mant eacne-mant made har eeem guilty to him. I The crying child brought bark t tha man a racollactlon of Ketehsn a words. Bodina had taken care of tha child thanl Hha had coma. trv In soma way she had got rid of a. man. Malody. Hla vole rose to a roar aa ha opened hla month to apeak. "Tap, cama tha muffled ana war from tha neat room. "Waks that kid up! Tha girl heard Baalllo's startled cry aa Shorty awakaned htm. "You baat!M Mercedee shrieked. "Let ma hava talmt Ixt ma have him" "Not till you aay yea to ana. as-nortta. as-nortta. "Tou coward' No wonder you want to run away. Bennr AcJtlin will sand you to prison for blowing blow-ing up his dam." "Tehf Buck ueatloned e jasper atlngly. "Katehan will go with m. too, won't haT" In a changed tone ba want an: "You followad ua Into tha hrtla this afternoon; I knew that long ago. What elaa you hava found out I donl know and I don't care. Ha disproved thia laal etaiement by Immediately aaklng: "Hava you aeen AchllnT Mercedaa caught a hint of uneas-Ineaa uneas-Ineaa In hia voice. "I have, she answared. "Humph I I auppoes you told him i all you know?" Tha big fallow tones wera threatening. I Mercedaa saw her advantage. Ml tell him nothing!" she cried. "Hut I will K you do not give me Basil lo and let ma take him home." Buck reachad out hla long; arma and caught her around the watat. Mercedea fought to gat free, but ha waa too strong for har. "Vow yon Chung your mind In a hurry, or I'll maka you." Ha ralead hla vole. "Ulva that kids arm a twlat or two." Then ha continued con-tinued to lha girl: "I'll ahow you who la boas hare." Khorty mora than obeyed Buck'a order. Haallto let out a euecraatnn of hrteks aa tha brute twisted hia arm until tha tender bonra were almost snapping. "Stop!" Mercadaa cried.' ao loudly that har mtra carried to Klldare. who was Btill soma dlatanca don tha road. "Stop!" aha called out again. Maybe you'll listen to reason now," Buck grumbled. I Ha caught her by the wrist as he i epoke and draw har closer to him. Mercedes beat hta faes with her free hand. But hla Jaw waa Impervious Imper-vious to har light blowa. With fa-Una fa-Una ferocity aha bared her nalla then and ripped hta cheeks until they wera smeared with blood. Bodina Bo-dina did not releaaa her, hawewr. "You fig h tin' wildcat. ha mum-bled mum-bled through gritted tetth. "Ill klsa you If It kllla ma." Try aa bard aa aha might. Mer-cades Mer-cades could not hold him off. Hta cruel, eeneuoua mouth drew close to her own. To add to her horrr. Baallln ehrteksd again and again. Hha red oh hied her efforts to get frea. Bodina pinioned har arms agalnat har hips. Hha fait aome-I aome-I thing aharp ripping her sleeve; it was urk'e revolver. Automatically har fingers closed upon It. With a wrench aha pulled It out of the holster. hol-ster. Bodina felt tha gun barrel boring Into hla stomach. Hla face grt'w while, "let bach!" Mercedaa gasped. "Kn srguidat Al moment ol or jou die hera" Buck backed away. Ha knew aha meant what aha said. Hla rifle atood In the corner. Ha r aires ted inward It. Tha way to tha door botwean tha two rooms waa clear now. Mar-cede Mar-cede ran lo It and flung It open. I Hhorty sat mi lha bad beside Ba-ilio, Ba-ilio, tha child' a arma atlll held In his big hands. A smoky wsll lamp revsald him In all of hla ugliness. But If ha aaw tha girl, ha did not ahow H Hta grip on tha child did not relax either. Merrsdea cried out for him to let go of her brother she raised har gun to compel him. Hut fear au h aa aha could never inspire In him held fthorty In Ma graap. Ha had caught eight of Blasa peering through tha open window. Mercedea aaw only tha man and child In front or her. Hhorty a rigidity rig-idity turned with incredible awlft-neaa awlft-neaa to moat violent artlnn. Ha dropped hla arm and brought It up with a gun In his hand ao quickly ! thnt It surpassed belief. Hut Kildara had betn mora rapid than ha. Hhorty'a gun cama up. and up, and up, as Mercedes watched. aie1lhound. It aeemed that It waa point 1tr a her flr f lnrm twitched, and her own gun barked. Kildara aaw the plav; the girt at tha door, her gun raised; Hhorty'a pistol leaping Into action; lha frantic fran-tic child struggling to throw oTf the Iron hand on hla arm. Hut mora poiynant than anything alas waa tha glitter In Hhorty'a eyea. Bless knew ha waa the man s larci, not lha girt. His gun wsa In his hand. A tightening of tha II pe end hla automatic au-tomatic spat forth Ua deadly mea-aage, mea-aage, , Ha saw Mercedea gun flash. Tha report of It amothered his own. Only a apllt set-ottd of Ulna, that words fall to express, had Intervened bet ween the two ihon. Ho closa had 1 they hern that neither lha girl nor Bodina In tha next room realised two guna bad spoken. Buck rushed Ut where the girl atood, staring opan mouthed st tha , man on tha ted. For a second. It aeemed. Hhorty hung poised In tha air. Hla face was sat, sn unesrthly light In hia eyea. And then, with a thud, ha washed to tha floor, dead. Kildara had not waited for a aec-ond aec-ond look. Ha draw away from the window and picked up lha empty shell from hta gun. He threw It Into tha creek. Why ha did thla was not plain to htm at tha tim. In aoms wsy. ha knew, Hhorty'a death might ha turned to hla ad-vantags. ad-vantags. But how? HovT Ha tried to whip hta mind Into helping htm. He felt rn raret over Ml 1 1 nf tha man. H waa part nf the debt he had coma to square. Arklln would ba here In a few minutes It waa almoat dawn. How could ha twist thia thing ao that It would halt tha 11 ig BoaaT Hlaia caught eight of a man approaching ap-proaching on horaeha k. .Hs had been there only a aecond or two; Kildara draw bark Into tha shadows lurking about the houaa. Bodina waa looking up at Mercedes Mer-cedes from where ha knelt beside the body. "You killed him all right." Btasa heard him aay. "He a plumb dead. What Vou goln' in do now? Whoa go in to tha pan ? Thla atata'a no i place for you. Hay, I gueae you'll ba glad to bast It with me. You wait! I'll get a couple of fresh horses and we'll hit It for Oregon on tha Jump." "Throw up your hands!" Bod ins looked amund. In tha doorway stood the Big Boas. CHAPTER XXXIII Gathering af tha Clans. ' Bodina stared speeehlesaiy at ' Arklln. Hhorty'a sudden death and Mercedea maddening Influence had destroyed Burk s boastful poea. He bad bean prepared earlier In tha eenlng for tha advent of Morrow or aome leaser light In the Double A constellation. Hut at no ttme r-sd he d'-etned fht A'-k'ln Mm. BBBaaBBMawaaaBaBasaMaskSBaBM l . figure a. ehe aaw him alandlng In X the light that atreamed on him. V "Whet you want bar.?" aha de- mandrd. "Vou the Renorlta?" Shorty quentloned tn turn. "I'im. What la your bualnaea?" "I got a letter for you." Ha brought It forth from a coat-pocket. coat-pocket. "I been rallln' for ten mlnulea. I didn't think they waa any one home." Merredre read the note haatlly. Her heart beat faater aa aha rec-e.nlzeii rec-e.nlzeii Baailio'a etrange letter.. He waa alive then! "Yu are one of Bodln'a men. huh?" ehe aeked. "Yea, ma'am. We bin together a long time." "You have eeen my brother then? He la not hurt?" "No! lle'e all right, unleaa ha'a cried hteaelf to deelh." "Oh. 1 wlah ou had brought him here." Merredea guaned. "Well. Ia.lv. Buck waa afraid they wouldn't ba anythln' left nf thia place. I bin houra glttln , here. I got a fig to take you In. We'll have to go round by the 1 Wlnnemucca road to mak. II." fTha girl weighed what aha waa doing, for all nf her excitement, aa jbtf ehe followed Hhorty downatatra to u hia teanv Khe had good reason tn . fear Itodlne; hut ahe had to go to I Havilio. At leant. It would be dawn . when ahe arrived there, t' In anawer to a audden Impulae Rhe anatched a pin from her dree., and aa ahe Mepied upon tha rer- 1 nmla ahe faatenrd Bodlne'a note to I the door without attracting . . Khortv'a attention. Melody would I M be aure to find It there. I y W ith a diatlnct aenae of fear aha fir took her seat ncatde Itodlne'a man. F Tiring alone with him In tha f. hto'lrnda. with Ita old aaanclatlona and famlllHr nhjeala- to glv. -her I courage, had been terrible enough: I being In the open with him In the 1 dead of night waa Infinitely mora ' terrifying. jL Aa they went on and the wngon ff . continued tn rock back and forth, k the girl became droway. Her atrug-gle atrug-gle to keep to her end of the aeat hegnn to ceaae- The man healde her waa no longer the erll-looklng think he had been. Mercedea felt her head reeling on hla ahoulder. It waa aoft and wonderfully comfortable. com-fortable. Bhe alghed contentedly. Hy the time they rame to the main road ahe alept. Hhorty'a arm wna around her to keep her from falling, the expreaaion on, hla faca aa emotinnlesa aa ever. In thla faahion they traveled to Webater t'reek. They had not yet arrived there when the note Mercedea had pinned tn the door of the hacienda caught Kenl'a attention. Ilia place hail eacnped. and hie flrat thought Ii.kI been of the girl and liaalllo. The destruction of the dam caused Kent no regret. Kor all of hia talk, Tuscarora waa a lawleaa .tld enul. Pynamlte had accomplished accom-plished more lna aecond than all nf hia weekr f patient work. Acklln had got what he richly de-eerved. de-eerved. He might rant, and hla ' ' legal henchmen tear their hair, faut tha dam waa gone! Home one would pay dearly for destroying It. If ha were caught. I Catching him waa something else J again! Thus In spirit quite ae-I ae-I ceptlng the accomplished fact, he I )had ridden to Duena Plata. I J The note on the door had caught I ) ' hla attention Immediately. It told I ' ' him very little. If Baalllo waa at Rndlne'a place, where were Mer-1 Mer-1 crdes and Katehan? ' lie wsa searching tha rooma ahove .when he heard aome one ride un. "Hello, there!"- he called. "Who are you?" "That you, Tuecarora?" tha n.w-x n.w-x comer questioned anxloualy. I Kent recognised Klldarea vole. t V He ran downatatra to meet him. "Where'. Mercede. and Mel-odv?" Mel-odv?" Blaxa demanded. "Ain't no one here but me. They must V got away In time." "No, nol Melody brought her here after th. dam went out." Kent's eves widened, and Klldare told him briefly of the explosion and of taking Ksteban to Paradise, where the doctor held out hope for the boy. "Bodlne promised tn get Baalllo to aafety." Blase exclaimed, "fcthe didn't know, that when aha started down hera. though." "Guess ha did!" Tueearora answered. an-swered. "Or what do you make of thla?" Ha produced th. note. "I found It pinned on th. door." "My Cod!" Blaa. groaned. "Bhe'a nne to Bodlne'a aa aura as fat. fHe'. decoyed her thaw, with thla. But what happened to Melody He waan't hera when an. received thla note, or else aha wouldn't have tuck It up like that. It waa meant for him all right! Tawn It! If he hadn't had to go back to the ranch to get here, I'd a been In "Tlla Jawa closed with a click. He wheeled on Kent with an angry glitter glit-ter In hla eyes. Tuaearora'a anxiety for the girl Matched Klldarea. . a "Lata not waata any more time," MV9M cried, aa ha flung hlmeelf Into m hi. aaddle. "Ueten, Kent," h. went . "How long will It take you to V1 Wthe aherlff V f fie may be In Paradlae now. j Xaiad'e a Iriend of mine. 1 "shooed - ahead. Ha draw up until Kant waa baslda him. "I'll ha there 'fore long; part ana chipper, too,' Tuscarora assured him. "Don't loaa a minute, Joa. I'm going to try and catch Mercedes before be-fore aha gats there. If I don't, any thing la liable to happen. I'll staJI until you coma. Kent did not turn for a backward glanca. Like a ahadow ha waa gons In tha night. Kildara had disappeared disap-peared aa rapidly. Far across tha "valley tha same urge (or haste had take possession of Shorty. Ha lashed hla lagging team Into a gallop gal-lop that aent them flying over (ha remaining miles. And while, they hurried. In tha hills above them unaeen and unheard, un-heard, miles away In placea Acklln'a Ack-lln'a men wera moving. Their spoid was alow. In marked contrast to thoee below them. But they begsn to Join hands, and they cama on a pa re. Tha gape In tha circle began to fill. Tha Har Circle boys came tip. Over on the north the men from Klolss arrived at their appointed , dratinatlon. It was the gathering nf tha clans i Tha Double A had heard tha call, i And at their head rode Acklln. tha Big Boss, the feudal lord. CHAPTER XXXII Bodina caught sound of Shorty's coming when tha man was atlll soma distance) a wsy. Buck had worked hlmselt Into a fine ferment as ha waited. Ha put on his hat now snd went to the barn. Ha wanted a word with Shorty befora he faced the girl. Ha heard him drive Into the yard, and aaw Mercedes gat out of Ilia wagon and walk Into tha kitchen. A few seconds later Shorty pulled up his tesm In front of tha barn. "Damn it, man, where you been?" Buck demanded angrily. "Vou mean, where ain't I bean." Fhoriy growled back at him. "Look at that rig. It's bean over tha hubs In mud l.alf the time. I vol what I went after, didn't 17 "Yah? And you bad ma scared to death, too. You unhitch your team and saddle up. Tha boys sra waltln for you on the trail that goes up to leotard's placa. I'll bring1 vou down In tha morn In' If every thing s O. K." "What about tha kldr Shorty asked. "I clean forgot him," Buck admitted. ad-mitted. "Tou stay and hang on to him. If he starts squawkln' agsln, wring hla Utile neck." alercedea drew back, as Buck opened tha kitchen door. Tha slovenly slov-enly disorder of tha room and the air of mystery which bung aver the entire place had thoroughly alarmed her. Bodina aaw har nervous start. "Well. I sea you got hers at last, he aald with an easy em Us. "I knew you'd ba worried about tha kid.1 "Ta ha all right V "Hiire: sound asleep right now." "It ma hava him. please. want to take him." "You ain't thlnkln of leavfn' hrra 'fore mornin', sra you? Buck demanded. de-manded. "HI. sen or; I go at once. "No, you're not. querlda. Bodina Bo-dina used the term of endearment with assured familiarity. "1 risked my Ufa gettln' the kid out of danger dan-ger you. and you stn't goln to pay ma back by refualn' my hospitality" hospital-ity" "But I want to go, Mercedes rapes ra-pes ted ansously as Buck tried to induce her to taka a aeat. "fuet'a get down to caees. Buck answered her. "There's no uaa beat in' round tha bush. 1 been sweet on you ever slnca ! flrat clamped eyes on you. Tou knew It, too, and you gave ma tha low down every time. But that's all right. I Ilka a woman with soma scrap In her. You've got nerve anough to match my own. That's why I'm strong for you. t aware I'd get you soma day, and I'm going to maka good. I didn't bring your kid brother broth-er hers for nothln'. "8top stop, please, Mercedes begged. Her nearness to him drove Buck mad with desire, hha was even more lovely than ha had supposed. "Why, querlda," he aald fervently, "there an't a thing I'vs got I would not give for you. T got water on this ptacs again. It's worth oms-thtn' oms-thtn' now. But I ain't a rancher. I'd throw up this thing In a minute min-ute for you. There ain't no real money In ranching, nohow. I'll take you where there's soma Ufa and excitement. ex-citement. Thia God forsaken dee-ert dee-ert ain't no placa for a girl Uka you." "You maan that you want ma to go with you 7 Mercedes could not believe bar ears. "Tes. I'll een marry you. If you'll coma with me," Buck replied. Tha girl baora him shook har head hopelessly. Tha man must be' mad. I "Well, what do you aay? ha demanded. de-manded. "I aay no!" Mercedea cried. She1 put a chair between them aa Buck advancad toward her. The look In hla eyea waa proof enough of hla Intention. He wanted to take hen In hia arms and feel har warm flash agalnat his, whether she would havei it or not. "Tou hava trapped gas, aha az-j claimed. "I do not believe my i brother ta bars at all. "Has hera, all right, Bodina aa-! st i red bar, "Hay, Shorty!" be caUad. "Ho you rs g'ttinr ready to sVifj with Bodina. eh? That's ynur lln a plan, la HT Tou forget It.' lias dona all the Irsvellng he's going is do. You'll go with me whan I lee- here, Aw-w-wh! Who did thatT He pointed to Shorty, "bhs did!'1 tiodine Cried, wiping tha blood from his scratched fare. "Pulled my gun out and gtt hint from the door there!" "la that right?" Arklln bellowed. M arre1ea covered har fare with her hen ds. Ha could hear her t aa aba turned awsy. It was answer enough for him. "They'll take you to Jail for th'e he grumbled. Ha atopped to mufer to himself. Then: "No, they wwn t either! I'll fis that!" Ha came close to Bodina. Burks hervs had returned In a meaaure. "You won't take her away front m, Arklln; pat that way." ha cut) In before the Big Bnsa could speak. Hut Acklln laughed In bis face fur his pains. "You have your little Joke, Bo. dine," hs warned. "Your time short enough." Burk s faca paled a trifle at lha studied ases with which the ana a ! before htm uttered this statement. "What you hinlio' at new," ha aa mantled. "Whan my men get here you'll find out. You didn't think yea could get away with what you pulled on me tonight, did you? You bossed this deal!" UtHllne'a lips twitched uneael'y. Had that fool kid given him awsyt Hla poker eyas searched Arklln a face for aome sign of bluffing, but ha found nothing to reaeaure him. "You ain't goiit' to hava ma arrested ar-rested on that bo aco's word., ara you." be asked. "No. We aJn't going ta arrest you. Bodlne." The directness of this ststement blanched the big fellow's fare. They wera going to do without the law: that wss what Arklln was saying! , Tha blood along buck's spina grew cold for a brief aecond. But hla concern con-cern paaeed. He had been In dirs atraita before and lived thrown h. Ha summoned a grin to his mouth now and laughed derisively, pretending not to understand tha Innuendo. "You'ra ail cut up about ynrf dam, ain't yuhr Tba laugh died out of Bodlne'a voice. "You'll never rebuild that Utile toy, either; sot it you Jug me!" It was Acklln's turn ta smite. 'We clean forgot about your hi Junction when wa built It, didn't waT ha asked sarcastically. "No!" Buck shook hia head. Ton forget how the water waa tricked out of tha Rebel so thst you could build your dam! When I tell my story to a Jury, you'll go Into ec'lpas." "Tha Jury that's going to bear your case will use a rope! You gt that, Bodlne. By the -time the coroner cor-oner comes to get this thing on tha floor, tha buzaarda will be picking your bonse. There won't ba anybody but a to aay how this snan got shot. And If I aay that you did U lha matter will ba ended. You ara going to awing!" Buck caat an an Ions, calculating eye at tha windows. Tha ons at back waa opan. It waa near anough, too. A flying leap, and ha could maka It. la the murky grayneaa of early dawn ha could steal away. Acklln waa looking al hla watch. It waa an opportunity, a ahsnoel Mercedea waa watching Bodina. She saw his fingers clench, hia muscles knot. She divined hla Intention, In-tention, Her moutk opened la amaaement. Bodina crouched thaa for tha spring that waa to taka him a Safety; but tha patter of h arses) outside the window at which be waa aiming atopped him abort. Acklia smiled at bun pityingly. Ha ba4 heard also. . Kildara had watched Acklln aad Bodlne. Ha b leased every mlauta that passad without bringing tba rank and fUa of tha Double A ta thwart biro. That tha Big Boaa ; had coma there single-handed ra-vaaled ra-vaaled Acklln In a new light. Blasa had alwaya found him cautious. I tactful, unemotional. Ha could nol I i hava known that Bodina waa alone J Or had ha figured that tha ma ; waa In hiding; that tha houaa on Webster t'reek would ba deserted? Ha hsd heard tha bustle of ap- proachlng roan a long minute befora , Buck or Acklln bcama awara of their noise. Thera wars five srat jj In tha party. Hs rscognlaad Brother ; Jones' cackling voles. A aacon later tha old man and his oompaa- -Ions wars tramping Into tha kite ha n. Hlaia recognised Chet and Pat- teraon bringing up tha raar. They wars all heavily armed. Brother jonea waa already at lha door of the room In whlrh Acklln had cornered cor-nered Bodlnt. Tha othera wera at hia heela. Klldare sprang Into action, ua vaulted into tha kitchen. When the n . Boaa caught eight of him. ha placed his hande on the alii and believed tha man had coma la who the othera. , . Here he Is! tha owner of tha Ttoubla A called out. pointing at Bodina. "My Gawd! Who dona hat Brothar Jones si ol aimed, oatchlcuj sight of ths body In ths eomar. (ContUoad Nasi Sunday f ( |