Show By ALAN LE MAY Ul N. N U. U Rc I e a s e r 1 INSTALLMENT 18 TilE STORY SO FAR E f Dusty King and Low Lew Gordon had bulls built Up p a vast string of ranch ranches ranch es Kin King was killed by his powerful and unscrupulous competitor Ben Thorpe Bill Roper King Kings King's s adopted son son was determined to aVen e his death In spite of af the CHAPTER HAfTER Continued Jod Jody stood up She felt suddenly tired and numb still I think a world can be made where decency can live she said Some day decent things will live on this prairie whatever happens to us But meantime I I g gUess ess he belongs belongs be be- longs to you She held Marquita's stare for a moment then turned and walked to the door Opening it she saw that the firs firs forlorn cold gray of the winter dawn was coming into the sky east of Montana The black hulk of the horse whose neck she had broken lay at her feet She She pulled from under it the coat with which she had blinded it when she charged the door and pulled iton Iton it iton on the bitter cold of the dawn was enough to penetrate to the bones Slowly she and worked the saddle free then the bridle She staggered a little as she shouldered the saddle and walked out toward the corral where other living ponies stood dark humped bumped up shapes against the Ute snow CHAPTER Hill Bill and Bob Stokes the Stokes the King-Gordon King whom Roper had bad not known known had had finished their makeshift dressing of Old Joes Joe's wound and were working on Jim Leathers Jim Leathers lay perfectly perfect perfect- I Ily ly still only his eyes seemed alive Hows she feeling Bill Roper I asked The Gordon girl She's all right i She went out to look over the horses or something Bob you better go see nothings nothing's happened to Jody Ill go in a minute soon as were we're through here But Jody came in of her own accord accord accord ac ac- ac- ac cord before that She went straight to Old Joe Are you terribly uncomfortable Joe I III feel great Joe said with spir spir- it I UI been hunting for a vacation for fifteen years and this is my first excuse Im sorry Joe You'll never know how sorry I am I tangled things up pretty badly 1 guess You done wonderful Joe told her You saved Bills Bill's neck all right They had him tied hog-tied like a and the girl too when we busted in Jody shot Marquita a glance in which the only light was a faint contempt con can tempt but she did not comment Im riding back to Miles she told Joe On the way Ill I'll send help back and everything you'll need need- need And And Ill I'll see that youre you're moved in a spring wagon soon as you yoa feel like moving I appreciate what I youve you've done Joe I Hey look Bob Stokes Degan You Yo cant can't be riding off like this inthe in inthe inthe the middle of the night Its coming daylight fast Ill I'll beall be beaU beall all aU right Outside in the gray light that seemed colder than the air Jody Gordon had mounted as Bill Roper came to her stirrup Y You u mustn't go yet he told her gently These boys are fixed as comfortable as they can be theres there's no DO hurry to get help You'll be wanting some coffee and I have to talk to you Jody Im not interested in talking to you Jody said without expression Why Jody Jody look look here here here- I got you into this s. s Jody saidI saidI said I got you into this because I was a fool So I had to get you out That's all over now I dont don't want to talk to you now or any time She whirled her horse borse sharply so that its hoofs sent up a n scurry of dry snow then she was gone her retreat covered by the cabin as she Uie trail s swung g toward o ou fn moment Roper stood lookIng looking looking look look- ing her ber Then he be stepped inv in in- U v side stay here Bob be he said Ill Ill I'll saddle and ride after her ber Ill I'll see that she gets to Miles Wait a minute Old Joe said You got to wait walt a minute Theres There's something else you got to know Theres nothing else I need to know Lew Gordon aint in Miles Then where the devil is he His daughter daughter- Somebody J Jim m Leathers I 1 Eue guel sent guess sent s-sent sent a note to Lew Gordon that his daughter was all right but couldn't be sent borne home just yet Nobody No No- Nobody body signed that note But it was p plain lain to be seen from rom it that some of Ben Thorpe's was holding hold hold- party warp war ing her r some som pl place So Lew e Gordon Jardon Gor- Gor don don- You mean that Lew Gordon is going on the warpath himself Hunt Hunt- Hunting Hunting ing for lor Jody Hes going after atter it straighter than that Everybody knows Ben Thorpe is at Sundance Lew Gordon Gordon Gordon Gor Gor- don has bas gone to Sun Sundance dance to tie into Ben aen Thorpe and his old gun is hammering away at his side He figures to fight Thorpe Bill it sure looks that way to me about that What's strange Thorpe away nt ot Lew Gordon has as all aU U his life t H Hes He's s stole his cattle a tle and nd killed his his' trail all trail bosses and fought taught Uon of his sweetheart Jody Gordon Cordon and her father Roper conducted a great raid upon Thorpe's vast herds In Montans Mon Mon- tana tans He was captured by Leathers and Kane two of Thorpe's men Leathers Leathers' girl pretty Marquita loved Roper and him in the market fit to break them both and finally he kills Lews Lew's partner partner part part- ner and still he keeps on Joe Bill Roper said Joe Walk Lasham himself js Ss with Ben Thorpe Well Well I I aint surprised But God Almighty Joe if he walks into a fight with those two all hell cant can't save him Hes He's as good goodas as dead the minute he walks in there That said Old Joe is what I figured you ought to know CHAPTER LTV t tIt It was Vas very early the sun was only just breaking over the winter- winter starved prairie that Sunday morning morning morning morn morn- ing as Bill Roper splashed through the creek that runs by Sundance and rode into the little town Overhead the sky was such a clear crystalline blue as Bill Roper had hadnot hadnot hadnot not seen since he left Texas and underfoot his tired pony was sinking fetlock deep in thawed mud The mud itself was predicting a spring which Roper believed now he would never see Without sign from the rider Ropers Roper's Ropers Roper's Ropers Roper's Rop Rop- ers er's pony drew up before the Palace Hotel and Livery With some difficulty Bill Roper roused a sleepy and resentful indi hid vidual Feed this pony and feed him welL Casually Roper strolled along the corral where stood the loose horses S- S rv r jI 5 lh w r I rr Bill Roper splashed through the creek that runs by Sun Sundance dance which were being boarded here He was chewing a straw as he came back jack to the sleepy man who was now shaking down hayI hayI hay I see you ha have ve a horse therea there there- a good one Yeah I figure Lew Gordon rode that horse in And he did Where is he stopping How should I 1 know This dump dumpis is good enough for his horse borse but it aint good enough for him He went to sleep with some friend or something out at the edge edg of town Ill take a room facing on this street he said A little while later Roper sat at last with his heels caught in the window sill resting as he regarded the empty street I That Ben Thorpe was here was known to every cattleman in the north country Ben Thorpe had been here many weeks it was to Thorpe that Bill Roper was to have been delivered here if a kid horse wrangler wrangler wrangler wran wran- gler following Jody Gordon had not shot Jim Leathers down But by bythe bythe bythe the fine ridden hard-ridden horse which Lew Gordon had ridden in in Bill Roper Rop flop er knew that Gordon had not been here long He judged that he had got here in lit time Bill Roper sat there a long time Seven o'clock passed and eight and nine while he smoked and waited Ten o'clock passed and ten thirty I Then upon the quiet main street of Sundance appeared a n figure the figure the theone one he had been waiting for It H seemed to Bill Roper that Lew Gordon walked like a younger manthan man manthan manthan than Roper had remembered Bill Roper knew Lew Gordon by the thc flash of silver in his short beard by the theold theold theold old hat curiously like Dusty Kings King's which Lew Gordon had had never changed But he be had to look twice to be sure that this man with the springy stride and erect bearing was the Lew Gordon he had known When he was sure Bill BUI Roper stood up and stretched he filled his lungs with air and at last let it go again with a like that of a THIS IS A If 11 l SUPERIOR SERIAL A MARK Of FINE UN ON made madea a a desperate but vain attempt to save him Thorpe's men were attacked by some of Ropers Roper's cowboys cowboy led by Jody Her Joy at finding him was short lived because Marquita told her that Marquita not Dot Jody was Ropers Roper's girl pony which knows that it has come cometo cometo cometo to the end of at the long trail He drew a last drag from his cigarette cigarette cigarette ciga ciga- rette and strapped on the which he had laid aside Unhurriedly Unhurriedly Unhurriedly edly he three or four times drew the iron from its leather to be sure that it was running free Then with witha a purely unconscious motion he cocked his hat over one eye and went down into the street He knew that Lew Gordon had gone into the Red fled Dog Saloon and he walked toward it now For a moment Bill Roper raider dreaded rider night gunfighter name of at the Long Trail Trail Trall experienced a twist of the heart terrible unbelievably acute Then he shrugged and walked into the Red Dog Bar Lew Gordon stood at the bar of the Red Dog Saloon The hard line of his jaw was blurred by a silver shag of whisker now and his mustache mustache mustache mus mus- tache was silver and his hair but the clear blue eyes were unbelievably bly young younger than Bill Roper had ever seen them before His hands were folded quietly one elbow elbow el el- bow on the bar and so greatly did this silver-haired silver man dominate the space In which he be stood that it was minutes before Roper realized that there was a bartender there at all So you came Lew Gordon said Of course Lew Didn't you know I would come In one way Lew Gordon said Im glad you came I want to say saya a co couple p e of things to you Billy my boy I done something wrong Billy You was right and I was wrong You fought him I tried to smooth things out Im I'm glad Ive I've lived to tell you this you was right and I was wrong Lew Bill beganI began I I should have killed him Billy Lew Gordon said Lew What are you telling me I know I was wrong Lew Gordon Gordon Gordon Gor Gor- don said Yet somehow he did not seem unhappy Always I stood for forlaw forlaw law for order the order the decent thing the thing that would build this country into something my kid could live in But But I I guess it t wasn't meant to be I should have swung with you when you tied into him In Texas and again when you tied into him in the north But I aim to square it all up today You mean mean- said Bill Roper Hes coming to meet me here With how ho many men Roper asked again What does it matter Lew poured himself a drink Outside on the board walk of Sundance Sundance Sundance Sun Sun- dance were sounding the heels of approaching men I can kill him Bill Roper saidI saidI said I can kill him even if I die Lew Gordons Gordon's face changed swift swift- ly Suddenly be he was the Indomitable ble old man whom Bill Roper had always known Ben Thorpe is for me Lew Gordon Gordon Gordon Gor Gor- don said to make up for the quiet years And Bill Roper looking deep into the young eyes of that ageing man finally said Okay And then the door darkened and the approaching heels on the board boardwalk boardwalk boardwalk walk were silent because they had arrived The man Lew Gordon had sent for had come It was Ben Thorpe who stepped quickly through the door and one pace to the left so that his gun al already already already al- al ready drawn swept the bar It was was Walk Lasham who followed him through the door stepping one pace to the right so that the door was clear for the three unknown gunfighters gunfighters gunfighters gun- gun fighters who tried to enter all at once Draw Ben Lew Gordon said and then all guns spoke at once In the blast of ot gunfire that followed followed fol fol- lowed no man could tell what happened hap hap- but but Roper knew that all guns seemed to converge upon Lew Gordon Gordon Gordon Gor Gor- don and frantically he threw the thc lash of his fire at Thorpe at Lasham Lash Lash- am at the unknown men at the door For a moment the guns spoke in n a smashing roar and the powder smoke stung Bill Ropers Roper's nostrils and then suddenly there was silence again Thorpe and Lasham both were down as that cleared and those other strangers in the doorway had disappeared except for tor a boot heel that dragged almost out of sight and then was still Beside the bar of the Red Dog Saloon Lew Gordon still stood Perhaps Perhaps Per Per- haps it was his bullet in the heart of at Ben Thorpe Thorpe Thorpe-no no man would ever know He turned now slowly elbow upon the bar and looked at Bill Roper Thanks son he be said The hand that held the heavy forty five sagged deliberately then dropped the gun it made a strange clatter upon the theun un swept boards of at the floor Then Lew Gordons Gordon's knees broke and be went down and Bill Roper caught I him as he fell Thin and tinny across the town across the thawing prairie the church bell was ringing a ringing a makeshift make make- shift church bell beU ringing on I Sunday rooming morning as Lew Gordon died tO BE DE CONTINUED |