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Show INSTALLMENT SIXTEEN Texas ex-peace officers to Invade the countryside and kill without trial all suspected rnsUers. By mistake, Terry and his foreman, Larry, are attacked by the Invaders, and they run to cover in a little cabin. Jeff, thinking them rus-' rus-' had occurred to him that she might have some influence with Brand if any was necessary. "But you'll stay at the Round Top till this is all over. The streets- are no place for a girl tonight." Roan got Ellen off the main streets as soon as he could, but not before she sensed the intense feeling feel-ing of the men they saw. It beat on her like the heat from the open door of a furnace. Instinctively she hurried her steps, as the chill of fear filled her breast. The old woman who was nursing Jeff thought that he ought not to be disturbed, but they brushed her aside and went into the bedroom. "It's life or death for two men," Roan explained. "We've got to see him, doctor's orders or not." As soon as Jeff saw Ellen his face lit. "I been thinking about you," he said. She could see by the light of the lamp that he was flushed with fever, fe-ver, but she had to tell him for what they had come. "Oh, Jeff!" she Cried. "The town has gone mad. Nate Hart has arrested ar-rested Calhoun Terry and Larry Richards, and Lee Hart is gathering a mob to lynch them." Jeff sat up on an elbow and stared at her in surprise. "What for are they doing it?" "Because Ellison's band of killers shot Dave Morgan and Sib Lee today." to-day." The wounded man's gaze did not shift from her, but Ellen knew he was seeing something else. His face had gone rigid. "How do you know?" he asked, after a long silence. "Wade Scott rode down with us. He helped carry the bodies to Sib's tiers, comes to help them, Is wounded, and Is dragged Into the cabin to safety. A rescue party takes Jeff to townfor medical med-ical treatment, and Terry and Larry are arrested by the sheriff for safekeeping. A lynching mob gathers. shoulder. The noise of excited voices beat up to them. A group below caught sight of them. . Someone shook his fist at the prisoners and cupped his mouth to fling a jeer at them. "We'll have you out of there presently," pres-ently," he threatened. The others sent up a roar of approval. ap-proval. 'A mob is sure a crazy thing, with no more sense than cattle in a stampede," stam-pede," Larry said. "Those birds down there are all het up till they haven't a lick of judgment." Sheriff Hart ,came upstairs with bad news. "I wish to heaven there was a way to smuggle you two out of here," he said. "Wade Scott got to town half an hour ago with word that Ellison's gunmen got Sib Lee and Dave Morgan. Afraid that means trouble." The prisoners knew what the officer offi-cer meant. The minds of these excited ex-cited men lumped them with the invaders as common enemies, and their first thought would be that an easy revenge was waiting for them. "There are ideas afoot," suggested suggest-ed Terry evenly, the inflection of a question In the words. "Yes." "So where do we go from here?" Larry asked ironically. "I have two-three men downstairs. You have your own guns. They can't have you without a fight." "We knew that already," Terry said dryly. "When do the fireworks begin?" Though no friend of the Diamond Reverse B, the sheriff found it difficult diffi-cult to tell these men that the hour of doom was at hand. He hesitated. Larry laughed hardily, without mirth. Like Terry, he was a tough and hardy realist, not afraid to face a situation which had to be met "Spit it out, Nate. When do the guns go boom?" "Soon. I'd say in ten or fifteen minutes." "Who are the trusty men you have downstairs?" Terry asked, a note of irony in his voice. He knew that the sheriff was a game man. Nate would do his best within reason to save his prisoners, but it would not be possible for him to prevent a determined mob from breaking into such a ramshackle building. Hart said that the men were his two deputies and a volunteer, Horace Hor-ace Garvey. At mention' of tEe editor's name Larry said: "I'll be dog-goned! The little rooster must have sand in his craw." "Let's have him up here," Calhoun Cal-houn said. "I want to talk1 with him." "What do you reckon ever got it into Garvey's head that he is a fighting man?" Larry asked his partner after the sheriff had gone to fetch the editor. "I did him a service once, and he is trying to square the account. Probably he is scared stiff. We don't want him here, Larry. He'll only get killed, and it won't do us any good. I'm going to send him away." THE STORV SO FAR: EUen Carey seems interested In two men, Jeff Brand, rusUer, and Calhoun Terry, ranch manager. man-ager. Four rustlers had been mysteriously mysteri-ously killed. The big ranchers, much over Terry's protest, hired an army of CHAPTER XXXII After supper Ellen walked out into the soft, moonlit night to see where her father was. She found him in the stable putting harness on Sam and Buck. "I'm going with you," the girl told him. "I think you had better," he agreed. "There's a chance these invaders in-vaders might come this way. Pack a valise with things to last you two-three two-three days. Until things settle down you'll be safer at Round Top than here." The solitude of the night- swallowed swal-lowed them. Countless stars studded stud-ded the sky. When the road ran between pines they could hear the rustle of the wind in the foliage. Lane pulled up to listen. "Someone "Some-one is riding a trail parallel to this road," he said. A queer dread flooded the girl, as if it had been no mortal man riding rid-ing that trail but a black shape out of the spirit world. Lane clucked to the horses and they started again. Presently the trail ran into the road. A man came out of it at a canter. Ellen drew a deep breath of relief. He was a man of flesh and blood, and one she knew. His name was Wade Scott. "Ellison's men got Dave Morgan and Sib Lee," he blurted out. Only a few hours ago she had seen Morgan start for Deep Creek to warn the settlers. , Scott rode down beside or behind them to Round Top. He dropped off at the Crystal Palace to tell his news. The place was boiling with life, as was the street outside. He caught sight of Lee Hart and Red. Both of them showed signs of having hav-ing had a good deal,to drink. The man from Deep Creek banged a tumbler on the top of the bar for silence. 'When the voices died down he told his story to a stilled and shocked audience. They waited till he had finished, then poured questions ques-tions at him. Lee Hart slammed his fist on the walnut. "That settles it. We'll take those fellows out of the calaboose and string 'em up, no matter what Nate says." A little wrinkled man with a wide, gray, weather-beaten hat walked into the place. He had just ridden down from his ranch to find out how large a force Round Top expected ex-pected to send as allies of the settlers set-tlers against the invaders. Roan had arrived just in time to hear Hart's snarling threat. "You don't want to get on the prod too sudden, Lee," he said mildly. mild-ly. "I heard up at Black Butte as I came through that Cal Terry saved Jeff Brand's life today. It takes only a li'l while to hang a man, but only God Almighty can bring him back to life again." Hart turned on him angrily, a glass of whiskey halfway to his mouth. "Not a thing to that story. Horace Garvey started it He has done been bought and gone over to the big fellows. Cal Terry has come to the end of his last crooked mile." ' Alford was worried, but he said no more in protest. He knew it was of no use. "How is Jeff?" he asked. "Where is he?" Instinctively she hurried her steps. j home." Ellen pushed past that to the terror crowding in on her. "They think Terry is in with the invaders. He sent a telegram asking the President Pres-ident to send troops to stop the trouble. trou-ble. Father thinks he did right. Nobody No-body can talk these crazy men out of what they are going to do unless you can do it, Jeff." "How can he talk to them when he is sick abed?" the nurse wanted to know. "Even il you were to bring them here? The doctor said he was to be kept quiet." . Jeff hardly heard what they were saying. He was thinking about Dave Morgan. They had frolicked a lot together and they had ridden lawless trails side by side. Between them had been a close comradeship. Each of them had trusted the other completely, had known his friend would not fail him at a pinch. Now Dave was gone. Out of the fog of his thoughts Ellen's El-len's voice came to him. ". . . so father is coming with the wagon to carry you to the jail if you can go." "He can't go," the nurse snapped. "I wouldn't think of letting him." Roan Alford said: "We hate to ask it of you, Jeff, seeing how sick you are. It's up to you. Lane and I can carry you to the wagon. 1 dunno as it will do any good, but we figured maybe if you would tell the boys about how Richards and Terry stood by you they wouldn't be so bull-headed." The nurse said, "No, he's going to stay right there on that bed." "Bring me my clothes," Jeff told his nurse. "I ain't a-going to do it. The doctor doc-tor said " "Doc didn't know I had important impor-tant business on hand," the wounded wound-ed man said. "Roan, you bring me my shirt and pants." "I knew you would, Jeff," Ellen said, and walked into the corridor. Jeff's eyes followed her, in them the knowledge of defeat. CHAPTER XXXIII Calhoun Terry and Larry Richards Rich-ards played seven-up with an old deck of cards the sheriff had given them. Occasionally one or the other oth-er of them strolled to the window and looked out through the bars at the crowds milling on the street. Both of them felt uneasy. Their disquiet took the form of sardonic jesting. "The Crystal Palace and the Red Triangle must be doing a land-office business tonight," Larry said. "I reckon a war must be good for trade. A lot of redeye must have gone down the hatch since supper time." Calhoun came and looked over his oure. i give tne little cuss good at that for coming through. But like you say, no sense in his making one more victim." Garvey was white to the lips. He carried a Colt's .45, at a right angle I to his body, as if he was afraid of it. But it was quite clear that he had nerved himself to stand by his friend. Cheerfully Terry greeted him. "Hello, oldtimer. I hear you've enlisted en-listed for the duration of the war. The editor did not try a smile. This was serious business with him. I He could stand up and take what- j ever was in store for him, but he could not make light of it. "I felt I ought to come," he said. "Bully for you, Horace. I'll remember re-member this. But we don't need you here and we sure do need you outside. What I want you to do is find the fellows who brought Jeff Brand to town. They know what happened in the fight at Lee Hart's place. Take them to the leaders of these crazy men and make them tell what they know." He gave the ! names of the men who had guarded 1 the wagon that brought the wounded ' man to town. Garvey looked at him suspiciously. suspicious-ly. "You're trying to get rid of me because you think I won't be of any use," he ventured. "I'm sending you out to make a stab for our lives, and you've got to hurry to do any good. Listen." On the light night breeze was lifted lift-ed the yell of those ready for the kill. The editor made up his mind instantly. in-stantly. "I'll do what I can, Calhoun. Cal-houn. I hope to God I can help you." "Sure you can," Larry encouraged. encour-aged. "Hop to it, old man. And you might tell these birds out there to order eight or ten coffins. We'll be behind cover, and we won't be fooling the way we were this afternoon after-noon against the Ellison crowd. We aim to take a few of these anxious anx-ious lads with us." Garvey hurried away and was let out of the front door of the jail. He was at once seized by those outside and questioned. Through the window win-dow the prisoners watched him as he was hustled along. "He might do some good, at that," Larry said. "But I would hate to bet a plugged dime on it." Terry had no hope, but he did not say so. It was up to him to keep his chin up. He meant to go out as a man should, without flinching. After all, there was only the quick agony of the bullet, and then painless pain-less sleep. (TO BE CONTINUED) "Doing all right, I reckon. He's at the Round Top hotel." Roan left his horse tied at the hitch-rack and started for the Round Top, which was really only a boarding-house. On the way somebody stopped him for a moment to discuss dis-cuss the chances of trapping the invaders. in-vaders. He mentioned casually that he had just seen Lane Carey at the Holden House. Lane and his daughter daugh-ter had reached town. Alford decided de-cided to consult with the Box 55 man about the best thing to do. He knew that Terry and Richards were in very great danger. Only a determined deter-mined effort could save them from mob vengeance. The streets were crowded with men, nearly all of them excited beyond reason. They talked of nothing but the Invaders, the fate of Morgan and Lee, and the prospective lynching of the Diamond Reverse B men. Carey and his daughter were still In the lobby of the Holden House. They were waiting there for a maid to finish changing the bed of a room recently vacated. Alford walked across to them. "Hell has broke loose in Georgia," he said to Carey. "I've just left the Crystal Palace, where they are all talking about lynching Cal Terry and Larry Richards. That's all they are discussing on the streets too, except the trouble on Deep Creek. They'll be heading for the jail mighty soon, looks to me." All the color washed from the face of Ellen. She stared at the little man, lips parted, fear dilating her eyes. "But but how can that be, when they fought with the Tex-ans Tex-ans today and saved Jeff Brand's life?" she asked. "I told 'em that. They won't believe be-lieve it. They have gone crazy. We have got to get it across to them that Cal isn't tied up with this bunch of Ellison's. I figured maybe they would listen to Jeff, if we could get him to the jail. He's at the Round Top Hotel." "I'll go to Jeff," the girl cried. Til bring him." Lane Carey ignored what she had said. "You go see Jeff and talk with him," he said to Alford. "I'll run down to the corral and bring the wagon to move him if he is able to go. See you soon." "I'm going with Roan, father," Ellen cried. The Box 55 man hesitated. "All right," he said after a moment. It |