Show V dy BY william irnine servie copyright ly by nud d rm dunal spoke lis his light blue eyes taking in jasper with swift furtive appraisal he was convinced that stark would betray them to save his own hide it if the chance came dont look to we me uhe like were trapped not kot by a yore yora brother br eakin his neck to g sot et away for if got us rd id say its the other way round likely two or three of lem em butted in here lookin for vs this mccann wanted to make sure about whose cattle were wera here he must of left the others tin an the horses up in the pines when yore brother heard the shoot ln he figured the game was up an lit out pronto ill bet he be was along alone up there anyhow im coln up to find out well know then where were at with manuel posted at the narrows n arrows this mccann cant get out down the gulch my notion Is weve were got this guy where cherel we want him gitner shook a huge fist savage IT 1 I 1 speak ilor for him lemnie lemme have om him an antil all sure riddle hini him aplenty vp y he cried with a fierce oath again the terror that was riding jasper stark cried out toll tell you were wara trapped it if ever I 1 set get outa here alive P he ha did not finish the sentence but ns as it stood the meaning was clear enough a threat to abandon those with whom lie he was allied perhaps to betray them the eyes oi of gitner and met and a message passed between them in that lone look he was condemned for they knew their lives were at the mercy of this weakling who would turn tern evidence against them whenever pressure was baroug broucht b t to bear first off well all go up to the pines tin an see it if anyone Is still camped there dubwig dunal proposed that suit you carl it if we bump into this mccann an ills his friends well fog it out with him 1 gitner straddled to the wall and took a rifle down front from the deers horns on which it rested suits me fine ho he boasted 1 I always did want another crack nt at that wils mccann cCann BI I 1 most sent him to kingdom como coma doncet im sick boys reckon ill stay here jasper said reckon you wont told tola him with mth a brutal laugh now HOW about it mark for a fraction of a second dun wigs sidling eyes met those of the texan why no I 1 low hed letter go along cirl carl the man crouched outside the w window adow knew that it was time tor for h alm ilm 1 m to be gone he retreated carefully a few steps then n broke into ln to a run after lie hi reached his horse livorse and had reclaimed his title rifle lying near ho be hesitated where do we go from here jim Dandy he drawled aloud blamed 1 if I 1 know the gulch Is closed it would be suicide it if we tried to ranke make a break down th ataway its back to the big rocks for me I 1 expect already the outlaws jere wre pouring out of the house from where lie he stood he could have shot them down in comparative safety but he could not harden his heart to do that he be knew they would murder him without scruple if they got the chance hurriedly he mounted and rode back into the pines have to leave you here J D he told his horse im clayla tor for time old fellow and youre too big to hide so I 1 cant take you along it wilson made his way back to the upper end of the park the big rocks offered the best cover he bo had seen for a last stand CHAPTER XIV the old maid sheepherder JULIA ULIA stayed at the sheep ranch the night after her brother and his companion started tor for ouada guada loup canyon it was long before she could get to sleep she was glad of the darkness and the freedom it brought from the need to talk iier her thoughts were ot of wilson mccann what had lie meant when lie he said lie he would not tell her his opinion of her she tried to vision again the look that had accompanied the file words and her pulses throbbed with joy and apprehension ile he was no friend the lines in which their lives had been cast made that impossible but he be was the man she loved no longer did she deny that to herself it gave her a stinging delight to admit it they could be nothing to each other never 1 never I 1 none the less lie was everything to her it was long past midnight before her eyes closest closed they opened only when the tinkling ot of knives and forks told her that ethel was setting the table for breakfast what time Is she asked drowsily weve been up hours ethel told her ann said to let you sleep ashes bad her breakfast and started for one ona ol of the camps you dont have to go home today do you think id better phils away you know mr rafferty Kaff erty will look after things hes been doing it a good many years lie he during the day julia continued to argue that she must bo be getting home but she made no move to go the fact was that she was very reluctant to put that half dozen miles between her and the men who had gone to guadaloupe Guada loup she was not easy in her mind and she knew that i whatever news came bould would reach the sheep ranch before it did the circle cross toward evening ann returned and vetoed julias halfhearted half hearted suggestion that she must be going wherefore the guest stayed another night and was awakened next neit morning to the odor ol of trying frying bacon they had not fl finished islieb eating when a maus mans voice outside hailed the house the man was dave stone lie he had come to say goodby good by before I 1 leming leading tor for texas it was julia not ann who asked him questions texas I 1 I 1 know you were even thinking of going how long are you going to stay there im figurin on therann the rangers therel there 1 I wish you go why cant you stay at the circle cross bvm every once in a while I 1 gotta sorta borta hunger tor for texas julia was not one to give up easily but she did not find it possible to move him from his purpose you talk to him ann while ethel and I 1 do the dishes she sat said at 21 last but ann had nothing to say she sat eat route mute and still while the texan maintained as best he could a flow ol of small talk presently she rose ive got to look at the teed feed troughs she said ile he walked beside her to the corrals the girl put her forearms on the top bar of the fence and looked across at the distant Sl sierras erras am I 1 driving you away silo she asked at last why no maam im just restless 1 I ought not to say anything about U ibba wont on with a ilare flar of her old bitterness its not womanly I 1 suppose but youre either my friend or youre not I 1 want to know ellch im yore friend he said in ft a low voice all you did was to try to save me from prison and to protect my good name when folks were talking talk ng about me nothing to speak of just almost gave your life tor for me itow ow you come and say im going away without telling me why Is that fair maybe not he said quietly fact Is miss ann I 1 am leavan on yore account its not fair to you for we to stay ive worked it all out in my mind folks have got a fool notion that that 1 that rm im in love with you she finished for him no maam but that rm im right fond of you and since it true yonora KO go aw I 1 driving you away she asked at last ing ji away vay fo to alo slop gilr ut belr talal yes tos miss bliss ann im going coins away to stop their talk but not lor for that reason im pave dave stone texas killer it wont do any young ladys name any good to be associated with mine when I 1 go the talk will dle die right down she laughed shortly good ol of you to be so thoughtful why you just send word you were going away 1 I wanted to see you well youve seen me now she held out her hand goodby good by lie ile shook ills his head 1 I dont want to part th ataway were friends only its better for me that we dont see each other friends at a distance shall we exchange christmas cards stone reflected smiling a little at her tart suggestion women were not reasonable she ought to see that it was right for him to go that he could not stay and let people talk as though there were or had bad been something between them it if I 1 was like wils mccann say an upstanding young fellow with a good reputation why it be important it folks did talk tails about us but im different rm im a bad man as the sayin Is my friends suffer from knowin me I 1 dont want anything but good to come to you so ill just pull my freight kinda casual who says youre a ba bad man she demanded why everybody understood do you think you are 1 I expect not a fair question tio he answered find and again a smile blotted out the impassive coldness of his poker face probably cart carl gitner justifies himself to himself but the fact remains that I 1 1 killed tom cArdle and have killed others no I 1 killed him she said looking straight s t r a igi I 1 t at him im telling the truth miss ann I 1 shot sh ath him I 1 I 1 maybe so I 1 dont know about that but whether you did or not it was I 1 that killed hilled him it was my thought thou ht my impulse and its my sin she stopped a moment shivering at the memory ill have to pay for it all my life i its because I 1 think so much of you that I 1 dont want you to be tainted in folks minds by their as socia so clatin tin me with you she rejected that with an impulsive gesture ridiculous even if it were true I 1 let it influence me but its not people think differently of you now they know youre not like that alt ner or jasper stark no but im still dave stone and im ann ana gifford an old maid sheepherder shep herder not quite liow how I 1 think of you he differed she looked directly at him a faint color beating beneath the deep tan on the thin face now how do you think mink of me stone measured his words la in order not to say too much 1 I think youre a mighty fine an handsome young woman one ill be grateful to as long iong as I 1 live but all why J dont reckon I 1 know what you mean miss ann k the girl pushed on breathlessly afraid lier her courage courage milt might fall you I 1 kissed me once W why did yo you do that because you were grateful A muscle twitched in his immobile face it if I 1 did wrong that time she brushed that aside impatiently chos talking about right or wrong do you care for me dave stone tone or dont you TO BE CONTINUED |