| Show A A ALAN LE MAY WN U 5 L revice CHAPTER XII continued Is 15 come on in it if you want to bob kentucky said you might just as well sit fit in on this elliot accepted following as kentucky led the way through the main living room to 10 a little room at one side this room was small and its gun racks and leer deer horns made it seem smaller cm aller as if there were viere hardly roo room in for the three men to find places here kentucky jones could not dot look at tills this trophy cluttered room which gave a curious effect of being a cross section of campo Ra Ray glands linds soul without thinking of that other contrasting room at the other end of the house which belonged to jeans mother so different must have been the people that ma made de those rooms that the wonder was not that mrs ragland hagland was now far away but that she had ever been a ble able to make herself a part of this household at all campo sat in a corner ills heavy desk was pulled diagonally across in front of him as it if he were at bay there futilely barricaded barricades barrica ded from beneath the sweeping dome of his forehead his eyes regarded them as as the eyes of a dog la in firelight suddenly kentucky wondered it if campos evident sense of standing stubbornly at bay had been caused more by himself an and d sheriff hopper than by the now far oil off woman who had made him fear a showdown upon masons death so fear it that he was held in a paralysis ot of indecision while jiro jim humphreys was killed and lee bishop and the 88 herds poured over his range in the shadows of a recessed win dow seat jean ragland sat sheriff hopper said howdy campo howdy miss ragland 11 campo flicked him a glance elance then dropped surly red eyes to his thick freckle blotched hands kentucky jones began the making of a cigarette seems like we been a little bit disorganized out here hopper lie he said the fact Is campo and I 1 barent seen eye to io eye on this la in all things sheriff floyd hopper waited and bob elliot crossed his legs and laced his fingers together it seems said kentucky that campo became convinced that I 1 did away with old Tron ironsides sIdes myself there was a sharp silence here durling during which kentucky jones finished and lighted his cigarette hopper turned a quest questioning loning glance on carapo campo yes ragland glanced at kentucky jones but did not speak known all along kentucky said that I 1 was out here at the bar hook just before snow flew on the day mason was killed and ive admitted it it assuming tor for a minute that I 1 could easily have got hold of the weapon that killed mason the next thing needed against me was my reason tor for this act of unseemly violence campo found out where I 1 did have a good reason and naturally figured that lied hed come to the end of the trail you admit you had a reason for killing mason hopper said im not denying that I 1 had said kentucky come to find out that was one ne of the reasons that campo wanted ted baylor brought out bare ted Is one of the very few that know that mason turned rue me down on a renewal that id counted 0 on and d ilk like to broke me youre broke jones close to it you sure are freehanded free handed about making a case against tl fl campo was overlooking a couple of things said kentucky its true that yoi fon can show I 1 was broke by mason ant what about all those other cowmen that mason had to close down on to those men masons decisions meant s or ruin exactly as to me ile he could not carry us all in digging p k a reason for me to kill mason campo only dug up a motive that forty or fifty rimrock cowmen would own to 1 I see what youre driving at said hopper maybe mason did have such un an enemy or six of them or fifty the fifty of them merent having no barbecue at the bar hook the day mason was killed so I 1 gathered kentucky admitted but bear in mind this it if any one of the fifty had been there he might have gun whipped mason theres been un awful lot of wearing of guns in the rimrock the past ten twelve months what with riders hoping for a chance to shoot a coyote or a rabbit with 4 45 klugl 1 I cowlens Cow mens minds can work that way only about so long before something bolls boils over and busts yes hopper admitted 1 I was looking tor for it all right but when it come to 1111 killing ing mason P he was a right ambitious victim kentucky agreed but there were big reasons for killing him too when you build up pressure like that you can zare un ua an aa cot but it was the sun gun smoke in the history and the pressure of the bad times that wiped out john mason and incidentally zack sanders and jim humphreys and lee bishop the sheriff put in partly true kentucky al lonce the killing of humphreys and sure do make up an angle of this thin thing it took two things to kill olt off humphreys and bishop the smoky feeling between the brands before masons death and masons death itself humphreys and bishop were killed in the weirdest weir dest d n one sided range struggle that has ever been seen on tills this or any other range the sheriff said slowly masons death comes first but dont you ever think elliot that ive forgotten the funny look of this so called range war rubbed out humphreys and bishop everybody knows youve swamped campos range and campos hardly raised his hand against it ill tell you plain elliot it it turns out that bishop and humphreys were killed in the kind of shenanigan it looks like ill nob bob elliot reddened 1 I come here to talk about range rights he said but it you want a showdown on that im ready any time As long as theres been cattle on the rim or on the bake ran pan either no brand has ever leaned any harder against another brand than the bar bai hook has borne down on the 88 it if campos pulled in his horns maybe its because he be knows that the rights of the SS 88 are going to be backed up for a change campo ragland spoke for the first time I rights lIghts he said bitterly rights sheriff floyd hopper said angrily youre a funny one elliot to bring in talk about rights I 1 you sou said yourself elliot answered the bar hook has folded up they all turned their eyes to campo ragland but the boss of the bar hook was rolling a cigarette with slow blow meticulous care and he did not contribute any observations sheriff floyd hopper swung restively la in his big seat 1 I cant understand it he said 1 I cant understand it it understand it now said kentucky jones 1 I can tell you exactly why elliot has thought he could shove his beet beef all over bar hook range in full peace and comfort bob elliot said it if the idea Is to sit bit here halt half the let him alone bob hopper snapped kentucky jones looked elliot over with a cool unfriendly eye ill tell you another little thing that happened the day mason was killed he sald said bob elliot and campo ragland were riding the bake pan range and it happened that they met on that ride where did you get this hopper put in partly kentucky said from elliot himself elliot said ill III be d d if will you be still said sheriff hopper what then jones elliot was armed campo ragland was not it seems to be a kind of custom with the 88 to take advantage ot of a situation like that as lee bishop and I 1 found out one day in a little conversation we had with bill mccord naturally I 1 there when ragland and elliot met but I 1 can tell you that what happened was this elliot gave ragland such a bussing cussing out as you expect any man to stand for or put up with Is that right campo the sheriff demanded campo ragland gave gate a grunt which might have been an affirmative it did not appear to be a denial campo ragland kagland said kentucky jones told bob elliot that he would kill him before the day was out lies hes guessing gues slug now said bob elliot yes guessing conceded kentucky jones campo ragland ra land said unexpectedly yes by 0 d but hes guessing right kentucky jones nodded sure im guessing right 1 up here in the frying pan ilan country theres an old lion hunter called old man coffee and he says to h I 1 with old man coffee said the sheriff what happened then just at the moment said kentucky jones 1 I cant tell you exactly what happened then but I 1 can tell you something different of a very curious interest on the wall of this house used to be a chromo an enlarged snap snot shot of a man sitting on a horse look across the room at that little tle picture and say to yourself why campo lias has hung up a lens study of bob elliot then maybe look closer and see it bob elliot at all but a representation of john jobu mason sheriff copper said you mean youre saying bob elliot knew that sometimes sitting his horse lo in a certain way and at a certain distance he be and john mason looked strangely alike and campo had bad promised to kill elliot that day elliot knew that campo did not dare to take a chance on what a 8 jury might make out of that youre suggesting that campo ragland killed mason by mistake mISta kC taking him for elliot im suggesting that it could be made to look that way and that elliot was able to hold that over campo and that was why elliot dared swamp bar hook range you mean that he ran a bluff that he could bring ragland to trial for the ni murder ader of mason you can call it a bluff said kentucky jones looking at bob elliot or you could call it a kind of silent blackmail if you want bob elliot jerked forward in his chair as it he would come to his feet why d n your eyes he said it you think im going to sit here and take sit there kentucky jones said coolly and take it ani and like it take it because youre yellow cleat down to the roots and you forgotten the night I 1 knocked you kicking and squalling equalling squal ling in the sheriffs office at waterman bob elliots elliote Elli face went white and his ebes ejes took on a squinting slant ills his lower lip dropped loose away from his teeth why you y yellow kentucky repeated clear down to the roots an inarticulate blasphemy strangled in elliots elliote Elli throat sheriff floyd hopper made a clutch at elliots elliote Elli belt but missed his hold as elliot sprang at kentucky jones like a quieted horse kentucky hunched low then straightened out the whole length of his body behind his lt ift hand there was a rin ringing 9 crack as it if a bone had broken and an instants confused tangle then bob elliot was lying on his back breathing hoarsely staring at the cell ing with blank eyes and kentucky jones stood over him nursing his left liand hand in his right hopper said in a low exasperated thera was a ringing crack voice you baited him into that jones I 1 1 I was counting on his temper kentucky said lord I 1 thought it would never break hoppers voice rose angrily it if you got me out here to make fools of us all shut up kentucky snapped at him bin weve got work to do I 1 youve talked all around and about abou and over the bush hopper said bitterly and you end up with nothing more to the point than a cheap brawl youve wasted enough words to not one single word kentucky contradicted him 1 I had to go g all over that so that you would understand what Is going to happen what I 1 hope Is going to happen now campo I 1 ho hold id this range hog here when he comes to put a gun on him if 11 you need to all right jones caught hoppers arm aria and dragged the sheriff after him to the door what are you going to do you youve ve got the case worse scattered out now than then well try to tie it together again heres where we tackle bill mccordel its the turn its the break I 1 you hoar hear me ive got to run a bluff are you backing me or not im backing you give me the gun that killed sanders floyd hopper obeyed and kentucky jones stuck it in his waistband come on three pairs of eyes turned upon kentucky jones and floyd hopper as they came into the kitchen in the room from which they had come all four men had been armed and so accustomed cus tomed had bad they become to the sagging gun belts as standard equipment in the last few days that here it was ted baylor and bill mccord who were unarmed who ho looked unusual and suspicious now floyd hopper was flushed and sharp eed but though it was to hopper the eyes of the three waiting men turned it was kentucky jones who spoke his face na as unpleasantly cold and ugly us as ice on broken rock he showed bill mccord the gun that had killed sanders the gun that had been in sanders hand as lee bishop found him hien dead 1 I dont suppose lie he said to lo mccord you ever saw tills this gun before bill mccord seemed to consider for a long moment maybe I 1 have hane 11 he said at last and maybe I 1 would you care to say where here it was when you saw it last A humorless grin twisted one side of mccordn mccords Mc Me Cords face you go to h 1 11 he answered kentucky jones eyed him sorrowfully 1 Is I that final he said you bet your life its onal final I 1 f im sorry for or this kentucky said 1 I swear to heaven I 1 believe theres going to be an injustice done don I 1 was afraid of 0 this but this mccord Is a man nho means what ahat he says floyd it if he wont talk he wont talk I 1 guess theres nothing to do but follow up lip what elliot says saya dont it look that way to you floyd hopper had no more idea of what jones was talking about than did mccord eCord Al cut but he be was a poker player and a good one and he had been in office for or a long time it sure ure looks that way he be said kentucky kentucky jones said youre under arrest mccord for a moment no one spoke A hard gleam came into rill bill mccords accords Mc Cords eyes who says so he demanded once more the sheriff completely in the dark as lie he was backed Kentuck ys p play I 1 ay gamely 1 I say so he told mccord personally said gald kentucky 1 I dont think youre guilty bill ill admit I 1 was kind of hoping that we had closed in on bigger game still I 1 suppose we ought to be glad that we can hang this on anybody at all I 1 guess we better tell you that anything you say will be ba used against you mccord bill mccord spat into the wool wood box bos what am I 1 charged with he demanded the murder of lee bishop said gala kentucky mccords accords Mc Cords face hardened but he be went back to the making of his cigarette in the first place he said 1 I anywhere near it it and in the second place it no murder lee bishop was killed in a fair standup stand up tip fight that lie la Is plumb useless said kentucky contemptuously because I 1 was waa with lee bishop when he was killed bishop was knocked out of 0 the saddle with a rifle shot by a man hidden in the rocks three hundred yards away and the slug that killed him was poured into him after he was down and helpless and I 1 was carrying him to cover and my story Is proved by the nature of bishops wounds fair fight h 11 murder fou OD hear bear me mccord stared at jones his face immobile at last he shook his head puzzled 1 I take all that to be freehand lying it if you was with Ills bishop bop know that I 1 there ue he was shot from cover I 1 told you kentucky said 1 I see his big killer I 1 could never have named you as the man it if cob bob elliot lost his guts 1 elliot him lose his guts mccord repeated incredulously a hot one kentucky jones shrugged 1 I heard different he said significantly mccord it if youve got anything to say for yourself you sure better talk I 1 tell you elliots elliote Elli gone out from under you you tool fool bill mccord stared again hesitated then he laughed shortly Th atsa a lie he decided a lie ile from the ground apt up I 1 neither me nor elliot had anything to do with any of this so be it said kentucky floyd bring in elliot or here ill bring him myself ile he flashed a malignant grin at mccord and went out behind him hopper said to his bis deputy watch this guy Wl williel WIll illel lel ile he followed kentucky jones kentucky and the sheriff paused tor for a whispered conference beyond the door by G d jones said the sheriff 1 I believe that guy knows something of course he knows something kentucky |
