| Show ra V MOUNTAIN N IN MAN mc RN 1 74 lonnei serial OH CH C wire by HAROLD CHANNING WIRE SYNOPSIS coal forest ranger had been rlou sly siy killed in the pursuit of 0 his y gordon breck his best beat friend over ivr cotters job hoping to avenge indr bidad Si Dad book cook forest adfer super warna breck that the til tellson 04 ers mountain moon shiners are apt e hl hint trouble before leaving tor for fountai lount aln ri station areck buys an out 1 3 decides to attend the public dance ly y the Till bulsons sons in lono lone tree ree at the J i greek dances with louise temple cowgirl tor for whom ho he takes a 1 t unknown to breck she Is being bd d by art tillson youngest of the brothers angered by Vs klis attentions to the girl he picks a which ends indecisively when some ets dato the hall breck and his seibu set dimito for the mountain station ay they aro are met by sierra sum slim back mountaineer who li is also a iso in rest service around the campfire campf lre light brock breck learns leams from sierra that ingrown Ing down tim jim cotters murderer be done dona cautiously and by devious ds cook 4 areck and sierra con their theirl ascent of the mountains ato ing to rest they sight the Till sons ling to their hi hideaway ea wa y next dal day a brock breck and 8 sierra e r in one dl n to repair the telephone une line while aes another over the can campf fire lre ht sierra tells breck more about about is ft temple that kids a thorough he says say lie he also believes that ulm n 14 4 not essentially bad but I 1 victim 0 circumstances return rie turn i cooks cooka tamp breck Is directed to I 1 bockhouse nock house meadow his perma aa aa on his way he la in th the target pistol shot knot from an unseen assail fhe bullet misses but his fright pack animals bolt and breck goes goe ault finding binding a deserted cabin h he shelter th elter irom from the rain A moment iwo two of the tillson brothers arrive iteck ludes hides in the cabin loft then nilson alson breck hears the I 1 eulona sons discuss a plot against 1 A 1 R va VIII 11 continued p i lung lunged ad A art fl doubled his fists halted both with a look from wed eyes art he said and old quality of his voice car meaning far beyond his words made a mistake I 1 told you to that follow fellow and you knew what ant he paused rigid save glow slow movement of jaw mus you do turrie turned impulsively damn id aint I 1 had enough of this a it going to get me anyway has li sil already ready got you a herd of im giving you f bah with a fine lot of string sl at sot td ep em here on sulphur and work tor for you whenever jai aay to hell with st the same jud urged ire re yours rolled roo a cigarette surveying ro rom mover over the edge as he licked all right it if mine I 1 can gaii please with them so ill stop tho bunch tomorrow and this season season on temple mead sneers sneer c came ame across the stove rep hep sweet I 1 I 1 reckon that oust suit louy u heave aye louy out of this I 1 what hot yaure youre id iknon what youre doin dohnt ll s time jud made no move to ere arts aits fist flashed ov erthe hep slumped and when he rose allowed oll owed knocking him back ne me corner ck found his own teeth led he looked down upon art understanding t i moment t hep got up wiping a y mou mout hand muttering under ea eath art ignored him ten w then jud said ca casually U two bols have got it over ial we U lolk business we might U keep tn here until daylight goomeer goO meet your herd at art and shove em cm Sill sulphur phuk hep and ill go dio cam camp and fix things there r that fellow next time I 1 lay joly job you work on it nomore no more WA drita st box near the stove MI closing his eyes jud hunched over earnt A 4 11 0 ent outside he was naj a minute then reappeared d A a couple of packs at arril a it I 1 fie a stove was covered sprang prong from his box V ers rs you two go to 11 I 1 stay off in the shad ed out and their foot W Y to 0 his knees urgency iye e the stiffness from reasoning easo ning shot hot through had to get out those hist if the tillson Till sons i r they might find his loft lott was a poor place E an maln the men had gone ie beyond the cabin at is the corral leaning s edge he looked down silent lent room he swung tto to a beam dropped nothing showed beyond he took a step gun y sense alert for sound had reached the case one toot foot on the ground j ien en a gray shape sprang N fangs opened at his t the body with his gun belled jelled I 1 ed in the long fur he 1 Till sons wolf like dog amhed hed and the open mouth k kly ly before he could ia a mans hulk bulk blocked areck covered it keeping himself in th the adark dark stop therel there no need for that stranger came juds voice you art and hep 11 ho he called over his shoulder stow away your guns and come here A movement sounded outside keep your hands cupl breck warned them ile he watched the ob I 1 long ong of dim light that marked the doorway three forms appeared ile ho stood back against the end wall one of you uncover that stove it was jud who obeyed and then spoke first howdy ranger breck nodded surveying the man for or any sign of what the next move might be yet if jud suspected he had been in the cabin for some time he hid it art and hep squatted on their heels and held empty hands to the fire breck felt the need of opening matters at once too bad I 1 killed your dog he began indicating the gray shape stretched on the floor ile he charged from around the corner as I 1 came in jud kicked the carcass to one side aint going to be any trou brou blo ble about that suppose we talk things over while were all waiting not yet breck answered but im a good listener then heres what im getting at dont lot let yourself have any call to r ride ide this sulphur country I 1 want fuu full use of it breck nodded 1 I understand tillson am ain I 1 to keep out just because you say so 1 I pay for what I 1 jet get I 1 jud paused breck felt the cold gray eyes measuring his price what does the government give you for riding this range jud went on one hundred and five a month making four hundred and twenty for the season the other added AU all right in that same came season ill pay you two thousand to stay out 11 breck lifted his head sharply he had been prepared for a bribe of a few hundred but this two thou sandl it came to him that the tillson business might concern more than he had been told or else this was a bluff he saw a flicker of satisfaction cross croes juds face and knew that his surprise was waa being misinterpreted so for a moment withheld his flat bat refusal we can all use money jud urged and a good little 1 l pue pile fair breck answered but im not ready to take it juds eyes narrowed good god mani man what do you want you dont need to take rny my promise ill have the money cash in full tor for you to morrow night Is that better breck had bad played the game but now a sudden revolt checked him from any further show of dickering 1 I cant take it he said bluntly you think its a stand ing jud retorted now or not at all breck met his eyes levelly across the fire then its not at all 1 I dont believe youre that big a tool fool said jud and for once I 1 ill 11 go back on my own word ill give you a week to think about it he turned away drawing out his watch hell boys its three ocl breck could see that morning was not tar far off the blast of wind and rain no longer beat upon tho the cabin 1 I suppose you figure to head in with tho the cattle drive and take count at rock house IIo uso jud observed about it then your quickest way would bo be south from here mechin the bunch at long canyon no doubt there was a double purpose in this directing steering him out of sulphur but breck knew klew ho he would have no immediate trouble jud had given him a week get out of here boys jud ordered weve got to be on the summit when they come over so long ranger see you at the count ho he strode off without a look backward art followed arrogant disdain on his young face as he passed only hop shot a sidelong glance furtive evil eyed ida his puffed mouth drawn down sneeringly breck watched him beyond the door tenso tense with a feeling that had grown strong and certain through the night hep had killed jim cotter I 1 he had no more proof than his own reading of treachery in the man and the retort art had hurled at him yet he was convinced ilia his thoughts mulled on it as ho he returned to the stove stripped of off khaki shirt and breeches and hung them up to ago V V I 1 X wo W art followed knocking him back into ome corner for or the storm to blow past youre the new guard at rock house aint you yes and im willing to talk as far as tho the forest service Is concerned what I 1 mean my way is to come out in the open with new rangers right night now you strike me as being a fair minded sort understand I 1 dry then came a clear realization he had entered Int into othis this forest job to fulfill a pledge that was no longer the whole of it tonight he had brought all things squarely upon himself firelight picked out the badge on his shirt and a warm pride possessed him as he stared at the lone pine tree flanked by the letters U S since the war he had often recalled those letters something of the grim eagerness of first enlistment list ment days returned to him now CHAPTER IX with the break of dawn breck brack caught his stock and rode into a deer trail beyond the meadow the Till sons had gone by the same route tracks of three horses showed in the wet ground they led up a ridge then climbed a backbone some distance before they descended into the next canyon water was fresh in the first stream he crossed but the second flowed warm and odorous here the trail marks changed they thinned out only one animal having passed where there had been three art was the one who had continued that was according to juds order last night breck turned in ills his saddle saddie what had become of tho the other two ten brought him to tho the blazed rock boure trail and a little before noon he topped a ridge that flanked long canyon what he saw then gripped him with swift wonder thousands of cattle had como come over the eastern summit and wera pouring down the canyon in a red bellowing stream cowhands looking like blac black specks from this distance darted along the line pushing back bunches that broke from tho the main flow dogs raced in with them the animals moved on endlessly slowly heading down until lang canyon could spew the tham into the bowl of rock house meadow there they would bo be hold over night in the morning brecks job of allotment would begin he could see no real chance for trouble A book in his pocket told the exact number of cattle on each mans mana permit cooks instructions Instruct lona had been allow twenty over your count you might make that much of a mistake but no more to which he had added a word of 0 warning go out on patrol the night the drive reaches rock hock house someone usually tries to push a few bunches ahead of the release day when au all the animals had como come over the summit tho the stream was a milo mile long and a quarter wide entirely filling the grass bottom of long canyon breck rode down to fall in behind the drive coming into the roar and bellow above which the cowboys hooshy hooshy burst constantly some of the hands were pluto plute indians from the desert short dark fellows on paint horses they nodded to brecks greeting C cattlemen itt lemen shouted How dyl as they flashed by in their ceaseless charging against rear animals it was in one of these rushes that he saw art tillson astride a chestnut horse then came a roll of dust and ho he could see no more than tho the rise and tall fall of red backs white horns lashing tails behind him his packs snorted out the thick air lie ho followed the example of other men and hung a bandana over his nose the drive flowed on at times the punchers dropped out to talk and drink at the creek then dogs alone kept the line moving some of the cowhands came around breck sizing him up but for the most part they were aloof and he knew that any friendship must start from himself one in particular swung often within a certain distance remained there tor for a moment then darted off riding a tall blue horse with more than the usual cowboys abandon finally this figure approached clos er in the dust and he realized it was not a man he turned his mount that way louise temple lowered the handkerchief from her face hello there gangerl Ran gerl we meet again breck laughed he held out his hand to her she grasped it across the space between their saddles youre surprised sed she asked adding so am I 1 you tell me you belonged up here they rode together for si a time and he made conversation in m order to keep her near he wanted to watch her she was prettier than he had thought at the dance that night at least more picturesque she wore a roll brim stetson bt bf deep browm brow r 1 mf h and a cirk irk eyes 4 in Ws shirt of white silk bilk lay open against her firm slender throat and was drawn down tightly over her breast to be tucked into blue denim jeans her cowboy boots were black with shore shor spurs jingling at the heels TO BE CONTINUED |
