Show 0 7 A aa aad KIDE 7 77 ay ERNEST HAYCOX s W zelease NU L to THE STORY SO PAR fail clay morgan has decided to play a to lone hand band against den ben herendeen a rancher bent on running the cattle country his hl own way the two men nave have been enemies lor for years having first ought fought over clays wife llla lila who died hating him and believing she should have married herendeen morgan Is a solitary figure devoted to his nine year old daughter janet e L although two women catherine G rant grant and ann mcgarrah are to in love with him they know he be cannot forget lila of his former friends only hack breathitt bad not gone over to heren deens side now hack Is dead shot by Heren deens foreman charley hill house honec gurd grant catherines brother joined herendeen when he be discovered that catherine had bad been to rix morgans organS ranch hut but the cold cola bloodedness blood edness of hacks murder his has made him break with herendeen warned by fox fo willing a nester hi he once befriended clay discovers that herendeen Is stealing his cattle he goes to Heren deens ranch for a showdown but herendeen deen Is ready he a chance of getting out alive when h en aig e white one of Heren deens friends rides up like gurd grant he Is fed up with Heren deens hi high h handed methods risking his life to save clay he persuades him to take a chance on riding off he think herendeen will dare to shoot the b luff bluff works and they escape now clay and his men are driving the cattle back into government valley ids his range herendeen has followed and there Is certain to he be a fight now continue with the story CHAPTER lige white considerably disturbed by his interview with morgan and pretty much at sea in his own mind traveled over the lower spur of the Hay creek hills and came down on the grant house at a fast clip the sound of his arrival bringing catherine to the door he said theres hell bell to pay around here wheres gurd upstairs the trouble lige white called hey gurd come down right now he rolled himself a cigarette while he waited and made a sketchy explanation to catherine nervousness catching at his words catherine said at once if theres any help needed from crowfoot clay will get it not ben herendeen gurd grant looked sick and desperate he put his shoulder against the doorway he said lige how did we get into this mess id give a thousand dollars 2 I 1 catherine turned on her brother bothering you gurd gurd dropped his eyes his face normally so light and cheerful held a sallow it was hard for him to talk and he pulled himself together with an effort his hands shook he noticed that and shoved them into his pockets 1 I was over with charley hillhouse on breath bitts itts trail we trailed breathitt all morning and found him asleep in the potholes potholed Pot holes of course I 1 thought charley meant to take him into town to jail what else would a man think how was it possible for me to figure that hillhouse who had been hacks friend for fifteen years would catherine breathed out gurd sure said gurd grant sullen and full of self hatred hillhouse simply lifted his gun and killed breathitt I 1 tried to stop it it do any good lige white threw away his cigarette finding the flavor gone out of it he looked away from gurd suddenly unable to meet the expression in the others eyes what could I 1 do lige catherine said you never should have gone with charley hillhouse there was your mistake lige said stay out of coming the best you can do for clay now we all got caught in bens net I 1 was a fool not to have known what hed try to do now we wiggle out im going to town catherine watched him go when he passed the far rim of the meadow she dropped her arm for gurd and faced him her tone was soft and cool you went after hack because you wanted to hurt clay I 1 know that you thought clay and I 1 11 he showed a reviving flash of anger the night ben and lige and I 1 went up to clays place you were there I 1 walked to the end of the porch and saw your horse around the house you were hiding inside if you had nothing to be ashamed of why hide she said because I 1 had gone up there to tell clay what you and lige and herendeen had said that night you were leaving clay out of it and I 1 stand that ben had both of you convinced but I 1 want ben to know I 1 was taking clay the information she walked from the porch to her horse standing by gurd said wait a minute where you going she answer swinging up aland a hand she left the yard bound toward mo auls rim charley hillhouse brought up Breath itts horse and lashed the dead man to the saddle and took him back to three pines when he ca came me to describe the affair to herendeen the words seemed to stick in his dry throat it puzzled him that it should be so hard to make a simple story of it too there was an odd look in Heren deens eyes and something queer in his voice herendeen said slowly all right charley nothing more hillhouse said im him into war pass where his people are buried he drove through war pass when he backed against the office door of doctor padden who was also coroner jesse rusey came by hillhouse said give me a hand jesse and the two of them carried breathitt into maddens Pad dens office padden around but there was a side room with a long table in in it they left breathitt here rusey solid said A little trouble 4 yeah rusey said too bad and went out hillhouse suddenly removed his own hat placed it over hacks face and turned from the room he drove the wagon as far as the long grade here stopping for a drink the barkeep made some casual remark about the weather which hillhouse accepted in dour silence thereafter the barkeep held hi his 1 s own council hillhouse paid for the drink went out and climbed into the wagon there was no travel on the road it t wound with the foothills it lo 10 looped ped beside a creek passed over a small I 1 I 1 17 7 I 1 bullets squashed into the dobe wall beside morgan causing him to shift slowly divide and entered a scattered belt of timber by the dell lake trail he observed that three or four horsemen had recently come off mogul far up near moguls rim he caught the transitory motion of a rider all these things he automatically noted A mile beyond this point cache river cut nearer the road and a small grove of cottonwood lay hard by the stream charley turned through the grove and let his horses water at the margin of the river he wrapped the reins around the brake handle and got down holding the whisky bottle charley hillhouse spoke aloud 1 I wish seen it my way hack I 1 wish you had he walked steadily forward until he faced a cottonwood he drew his gun holding it only a toot foot from the tree and fired at it afterwards stooping a little he studied the hole made by the bull bullet et with a strange care he held the bottle of rye in his left hand and now nov knowing it would do him no good ever he gave it a long overhand heave into the river As long as he was alive nothing would cover up his thinking excitement whetted morgans nerves to a sharp edge as he stood there and heard ben herendeen say come on boys A man yelled to hell with thiel morgan waiting a more definite target saw one rider swing wide and rush in suddenly all of Heren deens men were wheeling around the beef running for the dobe building near I 1 by as though to circle it vance ketchell called to announce himself its me ketchell and lige white they raced down on morgan he had to step aside barely avoiding a collision vance was out of the saddle beside him and grumbling damned near too latel late I 1 lige white still mounted turned away he called herendeen cut this out one of Heren deens riders plunged straight on and fired once at lige whites high placed shape morgan and ketchell laid their shots on this man they caught his horse and watched it sink they saw the rider free himself and seem to flatten against the earth jump murmured they I 1 re going to try something powder smell settled around morgan A small definitely cold thread of wind hit his face and there was a telltale tertale smearing of the shadows in the open area by the far building they were running wide heren deens men and now they were on an foot firing as they moved away from the dobe jump said im goin after those horses and scurried forward bullets squashed into the dobe wall beside morgan causing him to shift slowly horses plunged around him knocking him backward some blodys shoulder hit him and then he saw Heren deens men rise out of the earths massed darkness into their saddles the ruffle of Heren deens horses diminished on the desert and standing slack and tired in the open morgan knew this nights fight was done he knew something else as well it was Heren deens crew which had given way not herendeen vance ketchell called lages been hit morgan went over at once ketchell knelt on the ground his knee propping lige at the shoulders morgan drew back from the party quietly calling fox willing fox he said 1 I wish ride over and bring mrs white to the ranch fox cut away at once the rest turned north reaching long seven an hour later coming into the yard morgan saw catherine in the doorway when he got down to help lige white from the saddle e he turned molook at her again framed as she was in the light tau tall and still and straight shouldered and he felt the tug of strange old excitement lige could use one leg only and had to brace himself between ketchell and morgan catherine stepped aside to let them pass saying put him on a bed clay and followed the men upstairs into an extra bedroom the room was dark and they had a moments trouble getting lige on the bed morgan heard lige grit his teeth together as they laid him down catherine found a lamp and lighted it and by this yellow glow au all of them saw the whiteness of aiges face his hair came down on his forehead and sweat oiled his skin his lips crawled back forming a smile 1 I sure as hell broke something you know clay if it too much trouble I 1 wish send for grace already have im going into town for padden vance you better get his clothes off lige white said 1 I guess you dont know the whole story yet clay hillhouse cornered hack and killed him the mans a fanatic im warning you about that it if you should see him in town morgans eyes dropped he stood like this quiet and cold and too weary to feel the full shock of the news he said after a while ill meet him sooner or later and left the room he turned to janeas room when he came beside the bed and looked down through the shadows he found she asleep she reached tor for his hand saying chos hurt daddy 11 we had a fight with Heren deens ranch janey lige white was hurt im going after a doctor she murmured it is too bad but im glad it you the pressure of her hand was warm and confident she was pleased to have him sit here and talk with her it made her expand and grow confidential 1 I wish I 1 had been here daddy when you were young and danced with catherine I 1 bet you were the best dancer of all she is pretty wait till you get old enough to dance ill stand by and remember when you were so small you walked under the table she wai was silent seeing the picture of herself dancing and pleased by it her lips softened and there was a glow in her eyes afterwards in a faintly reserved tone she said she like I 1 thought she was daddy what did you think she likes me daddy I 1 think she would TO BE CONTINUED |