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Show j ' ' ' 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n m m n 1 1 1 i n 1 1 1 1 m n n i n in n 1 1 m n r m ! r 1 1 r m t t 1 1 r r t r m 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 t 1 1 m 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 w 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 r i i 1 1 1 1 t 1 1 m r i r 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 m 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 t 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 u IpreE blue moonI I A TALE OF THE FLAT WOODS j Ty DAVIT AJfVE'RSOSl 1 IT CopyriRht by the Bobbs-Merrill Company :z FT 1 1 1 i i : : i j j 1 1 : i 1 1 h i u n ( 1 1 ; 1 1 i i ; i m u i m i u ( : t i n i i i I i ; i i n i : m m 1 1 1 i i i m m i 1 1 1 1 i i m i w 1 1 1 i i i i i m t ; i . m i m i m i j 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 : 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 1 i i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 : 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 : ! 1 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 j 1 1 i f i 1 1 1 1 1 1 . 1 1 1 1 CHAPTER XIII Continued. 16 A ,ril i,f (In- six 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 ! emphasized empha-sized ll,,. -.,iiiiii;ii,.l. The sheriff J 1 1 1 - ! . There a 1 1 1 ) r 1 1 . 1 1 l.- else I., do. II,- was slill ll,,u'i,!,i-ih;; ill, mil III! Ill,' hitler llllll-L'ill Ml' til,- In'- liinil Hi,' lulls when III-' I " i : 1 1 ' 1 1 1 1 1 ! ll , I-linnli'fl I-linnli'fl lightly beside liim. :i 1 1 in ini upon up-on him. Tin' pas-ime was dark- d;Vk lis III,' ini!,' ,,f ii p'stnl luii-i'i'l. ll was :i very I c a - s 1 1 1 ' i I . tact, ll meant that lit,-:-,' was no , -:in, II,- lni-::inL' farther far-ther :ih, -:', In' I In- ,-a ve. I li- as in time. .Mn I: or.- swr,- of thai v ry ini-I ini-I :-r . 1 1 1 r liu-l, ll,' thrust I 1 1- rcvi! cr into lln- holster poekol ill liis t i 1 1 . grasped llio sheriff I'.v Iho ol hi r nnil hurried up lln- passage. I'.v lln- sum,- s u hi li iiN'tinct lli.-tl luiil seiw-d liim lln- niln hel'iire., lie knew whcn In- reached Hi,' iiiilll III H-liirli til pllSSIIL't' widened inlo iho CUVO. There he loos,-,! iIip sli, -riffs collar nutl sli-in-k n mulch. The sherilT caught1 his hr.-ulh mi, I siuri-il. Tin- hois,-. Ihe -iiii,le In (he (Tunny, Hie suihlle liliri spurs, the feed nil Just us It luul lieen des, -rihed to . him. "I never knew there wits anything like Ihis under I-'nlU'ii Koek." "You're probably the third ninn Hint ever did know it. I'lek your slops neross tboe slivers of shule Ihere mid gel lulu thin pocket behind the luiy. Hurry! We tnusln't show much light, lie's due nny minute." The one innteh served. So urgently did tlie l'curlliunter consider the need of linste Hint before It wns gone they were crowded well back In the pocket hehind Hie buy. j "The Instant you're convinced I'm not the lied Musk, nudge me, and I'll give your revolver Imck. And I iiecdti't tell you that when the time comes to net, we've got to act quick." The two men bad stood In the pocket pock-et for what must have been half nn hour, and the throb of the I'onrlhunt-er's I'onrlhunt-er's wound was becoming almost un-bon un-bon ruble, .wlini the horse grow suddenly sud-denly quiet. The l'enrlhunler sank low In the cover and pulled the sherilT down beside him. A match scraped ; n sputtering flame hunted the candle' In Hie cranny ; the cave, the horse, the jaunty form of the man they awaited await-ed sprang out of the dark. lie cnnie straight to Hie horse; the one friend absolutely true to In all his dangerous world; the one friend who still regarded him as a gentleman. The horse reached out his nose to meet him; nibbed Ills) shoulder I . with bis head. A moment the man gave to the caress, then hurried lo the corn sack, laid three ears upon the rock, and turned to the hay. Now was the critical Instant. If they escaped his glance now ! Hut he was totally unsuspecting. Without raising his eyes as far as Hie pocket, he grabbed up a handful or two of the brightest straws and turned hack to the horse. "Short rations tonight. Rocket; and I'll make your toilet while you eat." He took down from near where the saddle hung n curry comb and brush from another of the numerous crannies cran-nies of the cave and proceeded, with surprising skill and quickness, to groom the horse. The task completed, he laid back the brush and curry comb, and, lifting the feet of the horse, examined them one by one. nail by nail, afterward running his hands down the horse's limbs and lingering over each Joint, finally summing up the inspection by listening with no 111 1 1 o care to the animal's breathing. It was the work of a master. The inspection in-spection over, he took the saddle down from the wall, threw it on the horse, drew the girths, hung the bridle on the horn, unstrapped his spurs from the back of the saddle and buckled thorn to his heels. "I wisli I knew." he muttered, half to himself, apparently ball' to bis dumb companion, as be wailed for the nnim.'il to finish his supper, "whether that I'earlhunter has left. It looks like r.e had. And yet. that's not like his .'irecd to cut out. Still, there's always a chance." He seemed to medilnte; flung up his bead with a bitter grimace and a toss of his hand. "( 'bailee !" he growled. "What's life without Its chance! Life! Hull! A game of chance with the cards Mucked, and the devil's deal ! Kocket. you'll carry double tonight. Yellow curb, eyes like bluebells and ankles ! Hut high headed she came devilish dev-ilish nigh shoot in' me this afternoon! I'.nt the harder to tame, the heller worth tamin'." The I'earlhunter was writhing back In tin- pocket, his face Pke the rock he crouched ngnlfv.t; lui" the sheriff hadn't nudged blu.. The Hed Mask looked down at the fast disappearing provender before the horse, walked hack and forth across the cave a time or two. turned and syaid for a moment or two fumbling fum-bling behind the oak root where It had been tied. "That sheriff." lie straightened, threw up his head and laughed boisterously. boister-ously. "He couldn't lind a lost elephant, ele-phant, let alone a wonderful, wee little lit-tle drop of distilled witchery like this." I'rom the dry clay and shale back of the mk root he had drawn forth a Buiull plush box. WTUi the word "this" lie blew the ilu.-l olT. and pushed in tin- cnicli. The 11,1 Hipped up., (hi the tiny cushion lay l he lllite Moon twinkling in the candle-light, nol un-lil-c lln- princess Hint waked up ill the onve of the dragon. At last came Ihe sheri.T's limlgc. 'I'll,- real-lhlllllcr quietly passed his re- ,,l or over. Then- couldn't lime been a sound in Ihe act louder than nudnik nu-dnik ing of a breath, hut so:ii"how ll iiiiim have reached the iti.-in by the l:or-o. Th'-rc can:,' a fll.itigc over Ills fa,-,--, a clian'.'e so sl'-.:ht as to he as ooil as impci-ccpl ible : to lie fell rallier than seen. Ilatl he so much as glanced toward Ihe pocket hack of the hay. the l'enrlhunler would have acted on Hie inslanl. Hut he didn't glance Ihat way. Very leisurely he closed Hie box. put it in his vest pocket and looked down to see If the horse had finished his supper. The I'earlhunter was in the net of pressing against the knee of the sheriff in sign Hint (he lime, had come. when, totally without a warning sound, wit lion li-on r tlie slightest preliminary motion, there came a shot from behind the horse that dashed Ihe candle out. The shut was followed by n scullle of feet. The reurlhunter leaped the bay and charged through the dense dark straight at the horse. It wasn't there, l-'rom the passage came the clatter of hoofs. Followed by the stumbling sheriff, he groped his way to the mouth of the passage. lie was barely In time to hour a splash, and the click of steel upon the rocks of the pool. w CHAPTER XIV. Man to Man and an Even Draw. The candle lingered long that night In the cabin of the three gables. The old man was more than usually restless. rest-less. The girl hovered about his chair constantly.. She succeeded at last in coaxing him down in his chair, where he sat groaning; mumbling in his beard; and whelting the knife on Hie palm of his hand.. She had smoothed the cushions behind his head and The Merciless Arm Struck Again and Again. . 1 stood stroking his face with her hand, when, without the least warning, the door flew open, and. sharp'.V outlined against the dark background of the night, a man with n red jnnsk over his face stalked across the threshold. He was. of course quite unaware that the girl nlready knew his Identity. That probably explained why he had put on the mask. It would he Impossible Impos-sible to describe the startling transformation trans-formation It wrought on Ills sinister face, l-'rom out of all Its many ter-rnri ter-rnri the night could not have selected a more appalling one to fling into the cabin. The girl screamed and clung about the old man In the chair. Her scream seemed to rouse him. He glanced up. rubbed bis wide, pitiful eyes. and. with a wihl cry more that of beast than man sprang from the chair with a strength that sent the girl reeling. His sfceplng senses seemed to wake, to recognize the object for which his ghostly eyes had searched the woods for weary years -a hit of red cloih with a certain face behind it. Ills giant frame seemed to swell with a strength tremendous. ll" raised the knife mid. leaped toward Hie Intruder. A giant's strength, hut with the disordered dis-ordered unwlehliness of a stricken mind. The knife barely grazed where It was meant to kill. Before (he gray giant could recover his ponderous strength to strike again, the Red Mask bad him by the wrist, and, seemingly unwilling to risk the sound of a shot, was raining blows upon his head with the butt of his heavy revolver. It wns a horrible thing to see. The girl stood with laced fingers, helpless with horror. hor-ror. The tirst blow brought the blood Hi reaming out over the white hair nnil disabled the old man so frightfully that he ceased the struggle and stood quivering. But the merciless arm struck again and again until ihe vast frame drooped, .shrank together, the knife fell from his lingers, his knees gave way and he sank groaning to the floor writhed, straightened and lay still. Tile revolver was foul with blood and gray hair. The murderer noticed it, hastily wiped ll away on a corner of the fallen mail's coal. Ihrus-i it hack into bis pocket and raced the girl. The spell was broken. She started as if from a nightmare and sprang back of the chair. Like a man press. -d for lime, he dashed afier her. With Ihe chair between them, she managed for a haiv moment to keep beyond his hands. He kicked ihe chair out of the way, She darled toward Hie kitchen door, probably with Hie hope of escaping to the woods, but he was loo close lo her. She whirled toward the door of the bedroom. The turn was fatal. Ills hands reached her and drove her hack Into the corner of the room at the head of Hie couch. She fought as only a woman lights for a stake Infinitely higher than life itself. Since time began the earth has staged that struggle. Her dress was torn, her body bruised, her hands gradually driven together behind her hack ; a hot wild face near her owu. A step creaked the plank at the door. Her assailant whirled at the sound and she sunk panting against the wall. Just inside the door, his body crouched forward, his lips tight drawn, stood the tall form of the IVarlhunt-er. IVarlhunt-er. Things happened so fast In Hie next Instant that words are too slow to keep up with them. It was man to man, and an even draw. The two shots came so close together that the hills out through the open door caught hut one echo. Rut-Hie shot from the door struck first a scant little mile of an instant first and jarred the aim of the other a trifle high. The shot from the corner merely clipped a bandage at the top of 'he Pearlhunter's shoulder, shoul-der, drew a little welt on the skin, and whistled harmlessly away Into the night. The bullet from the door evidently evi-dently found the core of the target. The Red Musk bent backward. The revolver dropped to his side. He tried to raise It again; seemed surprised that he couldn't. He laughed oddly, and swore; stared round toward the girl ; gasped and choked. The revolver slipped from his fingers. He groped with Ids hands, as If searching the air for It ; staggered, caught himself, tottered, pitched heavily to the floor. The girl edged out of the corner past his body and threw herself upon the form of the old man. The Pearl-hunter Pearl-hunter eased down the hammer of his revolver, thrust 11 back into his pocket, pock-et, and stooped beside her. At the touch of his hand, she raised her head nnd knelt stroking the still face and crying softly. The Pearlhunter opened the old man's coat and felt over his hen rt. "He's alive !" She laid her face down close and spoke Ids name the only name she knew. There wns no response. "Help me lift him to the couch," the man said. They hail the old man on the couch, and i lie girl had run for waier, when the sheriff, who had been far outstripped out-stripped by the younger man, dashed Into the cabin. All three worked over him. The Pearlhunter chafed one wrist, ihe sherilT the other, while the girl bathed his face, washed the blood out of his hair, and strove to staunch Its flow by binding up his head In cold cloths. Suddenly, without nny warning signs of returning consciousness, the old man plucked his hand away from the Pearlhunter and rubbed It over his face. His eyes came open, but they were not the same eyes. And Ids face was free from twitching. The girl stared down upon him In wonder. The Pearlhunter stooped low and marveled at the startling transformation. Neither Nei-ther knew, nor even suspected, until the doctor explained It days later, that ihe blows of the revolver butt had loosened Hie tiny bit of skull that had so long shackled his brain loosened It at the expense of a. far worse hurt, but undoubtedly loosened It. They only knew that the eyes were free from ihe vacant stare; that his face was calm with the light of reason. lie felt again over his face, seemed astonished at the heard. Ills eyes calmly gazed up al the girl uud studied stud-ied her a long time. "You couldn't be Dotty?" His voice was queer, hollow, quavering, quaver-ing, like some sound from another world, so long had it gone unused. "Oh. Paddy!" She threw her arms around blin and dropped her head on his breast, lie sat stroking her hair, finally raised her, looked hard at her, rubbed his eyes and looked again. "Y'ou must be Potty. Liut you've changed so since morning." The girl seemed unable to tell him. She strove for words, but none came. The Penrlhuuter drew nearer. "You've been sick a long time, sir." lie said. "Seven years. And you're Just getting well again." The puzzled eyes, suddenly wakened Into a world new and strange, turned toward him. "1 haven't the pleasure of your acquaintance," ac-quaintance," he said wit 1 1 the stately politeness of a day long gone. ".May I ask V" "I'm I'm " He hesitated. Hushed. The girl, calm again, eanie to the rescue. "lie's ihe I'earllinnier, Paddy, lie's been good lo me since you've been sick." Tlie old man reached out his bund, it seemed heavy for him. The Penrl-hunler Penrl-hunler grasped ll. lie was startled lo find It cold, lie glanced hastily inlo the old man's face. A pallor was spreading over It Ihat was unmistakable unmistak-able the momenlury return to consciousness con-sciousness was but Ihe gleam that, at the enil of a gray day, .sometimes tiares out between sundown and dark. He said nothing of it lo the girl, who was happily busy again with the water and bandages. Tlie sheriff had left the couch and was squalled over the body of Ihe fallen bandil. The l'earlhiinler happened hap-pened to glance that way. The sherilT beckoned to him. "This feller ain't dead yet." he said, when the Pearlhunter hail joined liim. Tlie young man siooped over the sprawled robber. He was still breathing. breath-ing. "lie don't deserve It," the sheriff went on, "but It's only common decency de-cency to get him up." lie put his arm under the man and raised him, while the Pearlhunter brought a damp cloth from the basin by the couch, and wiped bis face. The touch of the cold cloth rallied him. "WMer!" he mumbled, husky nnd strained. The girl had turned and was looking on. She ran to the kitchen and brought a cupful. v The Pearlhunter held It to the man's lips. He couldn't swallow, but the touch of the water seemed to revive him. He opened his eyes and stared, like a man trying to make out objects in a very dim light. His eyes caught the glitter of the sheriff's star, frowned, raised, found the Pearlhunter and strained hard at him. "And It was a cussed YVarbritton that got me at last !" "Who speaks the name of YVarbrlt-ton?" YVarbrlt-ton?" came a hoarse voice from the couch. The dying bandit started, rolled his eyes toward the sound. "What was that 1 That voice !" The Pearlhunter caught the foot of the couch nnd moved it around so the two fast sinking men could see each other. No sooner had the gray giant on the couch caught a glimpse of the man on the floor than, with a great cry, he tried to rise. His utmost strength only served to bring him partly part-ly up on nn elbow, and that only with the Pearlhunter's aid. "Martin Redmond 1" he cried and almonst Instantly: "Where Is she? The woman you distained? And the boy? Tell me! I've still the strength to tear It out of your cursed throat!" The dying robber fixed his falling eyes on the couch. Only God knows who glveth his grace to the Just and to the unjust how he found strength for further words. "Wnrbrittoti !" He muttered the name huskily, the bloody froth upon his lips. "She wns not distained. It was all a mistake. I let you think It because I hated you because I loved her because she loved you and not me. Twenty years she's roved these rivers, pure as the dew at dawn. She sleeps tonight in a grave four days old at Fallen Rock." He picked up his hand from where It sagged down upon the floor, carried It at great labor to his bosom, fumbled under the fancy .vest, drew forth a picture and laid It against his lips.-The lips.-The Pearlhunier snatched It away. The action brought the picture near the old man.. He seized It, held It an instant before his eyes, and with a deep groan laid It against his bosom. "And the boy?" he cried to the man on the floor. "The hoy?" (TO BE CONTINUED.) |