Show clie ward in OJ of sl robbers 1 roost bi crittenden MARRIOTT 45 0 w 0 stir ice J CHAPTER IX continued 19 supper was ready on time and bridgets place escaped the fate that its owner had conjured up though no one who saw the men oien eat cat would bae babe doubted that its escape was narrow like a torrent they poured into the lining dialog room when the gong sounded and like a horde borde of devouring locusts they swept the ahe table bare stella and go 00 ahead abend were there with the first but they stayed longer most mosi of f the others making their es scarle escape tile llie moment they finished their meal and scattering to affairs that interested them several however waited out side till 1111 go ahead came out when he did appear one ol of these a clear eyed determined looking ran rabih b man came up tip to him film with tile the of other it et two closely behind sly names crown brown lie he said 1 I own a big ranch near here sly ily friends nelson and white while he gestured toward the oth olli ers also own big ranches we nil all saw you get barkers goat goal a while ago course we dont know just what your game Is nn were viere not anskin sou son to spill it till you get good and ready were only tellin yol SOL that well back your play piny against barker to the limit and the sky call on us a any ny time go attend ahead nodded mighty line fine ol of you he said noncommittally ill be glad to call on oa you if I 1 need help but I 1 hope I 1 wiot need it so long the three men turned away and oo co ahead looked around for caesar and the horses an fn he was to bring caesar was not visible however no one was i T visible tor for the matter of flint except fttie nian man sitting on a houch bench lose close hy by rne is started back to the hotel 7 the door bridget met him ive just been gettin gettan word from fair she said it if you an bob will be leavin about two in the mornin so as to get to the JB ranch about day light find stella there it if you dont find her soon ride on toward blustin Blust ln and shell be with you yon afore you get there f bridgets words s nere ee accurate enough as a whole hole and in detail though they were somewhat mislead ing in spirit go attends face fell the pending meeting was exactly what he bad come west wesl for but it had bad been arranged with a speed that was not alto altogether getler I 1 welcome it involved his leaving lobo ville with a suddenness that would permit barker to assert and other oilier peo pie to believe that he be had weakened and run away of course he could wand and keep his promise to drop in on barker before he went but he could not got afford to notify him when s and where lie he was going for todo to do so would be to endanger stella As a matter of fact he did not want to cleave leave Lo boville until he had smashed barker completely to fairs addan ta ange ge nevertheless he could not disregard fairs instruction the lie authenticity of 4 lie had find no reason mason lr n the world to doubt tie ile must not biily only meet ni als cousin but he must take her imme dill telY kast lie ile could not got get back to in less than ten days find and what might happen in ten days he could not guess Ilo however wever abruptly he dismissed the matter his mind nia fluty duty was plain file fie must r set et about it and plater what was to be dune done next all right he nob and an d ill be there on time wheres fairs messenger pd id lilie like to talk lohli aill lie dhont dare walt wait sure it bould get him in had if any of 13 Bark arkers cri recognized him all right rr wheres bob ile be alsy hes asleep nw cow an if 1 its knowing anything about bys boys I 1 do ibe be wont be tor for twelve hours hour li if hes left alone y ilece good ive got an appointment to ti keep tonight and some things to at tend to right away if were ere to he get tang away before daylight and il id just as soon that bob know ever hed give me lall hall columbia 1 t f d out id done ally anything thin with j bilm so 11 II 11 not tell him bridget turned away and go ahead went back to tile the dor door to look to for Va caesar esar ile ie found him standing by t the rack with tour four horses which obo obedient alent to co instructions be had dad ob ili talked somewhere out ont and over to t him he went noting out of the tall of his bis eye that ibe he fourth of the diners diner who find bad waited outside was still sit lt ting ling on the bench by the door those the best horses you yon could find he be remarked contemptuously and loudly enough tor for the nan man by the door to hear caesar fell in with hla his lead immediately dia tely Tas suhl I 1 he answered promptly aint they finel floe those things go ahead bent down to examine a hoot hoof have the best three just east of town on the maln main road at two tomorrow morning doming he be breathed then he straightened up look here he be exclaimed aloud im no d 0 tender toot fool it you wint want to sell me horses you bring good ones and bring em by nine tomorrow morning understand all Yas Yos suh without a nod or a word further farther go ahead strode off up the road toward town down the broad white road he walked briskly till jost opposite the sheri fl 1 office then tur ningon his ht heel he crossed the rond road opened the door of the office beneath whose lowered ered aindow shades be could see a thin line of light and walked in evening sheriff he CHAPTER X when alien go ahead walked oil off with stella the sheriff watched him lor or a moment then strode back into his ot of oce bce called engled certain of his min inns and ordered them to keep a close watch on go attend ahead this done he sent tor for go Ahe abenis lids prisoners smilingly the men came in convinced by the tact fact that he be had bad sent tor for them that thai all that had happened in front of the hie office had been a farce played for the file benefit of the onlookers and that now they were to be set rree free perhaps even even to be complimented on the way they had behaved put but darker barker was to in no mood tor for smiles or outside lie he had concealed the rage eliat was seeth seething ng within him he be dared not give 4 IV it i fill I 1 il POP I 1 be alsy hes he asleep now i it it ventI vent later ater Insl dehla office he had bad held it in leash because be did not wish his subordinates to guess as it if anyone doubt doubted edit it that he had bad been holding it in but the first sight of the bandits grinning faces broke through his defenses and he be threw all restraint to the winds like a hurricane his wrath dese descend end ed on the two helpless prisoners he cursed them by the lords lorda of heaven and of hell bell by their ancestors ane ancestors estors and their progeny by their looseness ol of tongue and by their lack of brain he heaped upon them which had been conceal conceived ved by men who wallowed vall owed la in the primeval ooze nod and which re phrased in every generation nener atlon have been handed down through th the ages lie spared them nothing that brain could devise and tongue could utter even or an asbestos record would have flared dared up before it had recorded half that he uttered under the impact ol of his words the two men quailed as ag it if from the bent beai ot of a literal tornado for in his bis eyen they read promise of aud ud den death 1 t 1 f 4 for two tilts id let leli you yoo ban hang ile he choked at lasts basl cut but im going to jio lei you yiu get away this bitile because I 1 need you hut flut it you ever make lucli double doubled d d tools of yourselves again ill skin you von alive the two men drew long breaths rhey were erla at best mere riffraff cow ardly cruel dull and brutish brut leh who had bar drifted into crime because they hai had lacked intelligence to earn their liv lugs ings by any other way they were used to being cursed though not so s ellar ply us as by barker and they alicy never thought ot of resent resenting lo it they were only too glad to genaway get away under any an conditions with lightened hearts they walled waited to learn for what they were needed TO BE CONTINUED Is s easy art difficult |