| Show abuss R iain ii in imm aag 9 pa 0 aa T lb AN E G R E 4 ay copyright WIM service CHAPTER IX continued 11 some ume time during the night he as ais awakened AS he lay there yes eyes open a soft hand touched his jh wheels ee JIB and a IV whisper sper brought him wide va awake transfixed and thrill n as g jim I 1 wake up it Is L I 1 helen knelt beside him jim sat up dp with a violent start i rout you I 1 what Is it has that I 1 hush not so loud nothing aas ss happened but I 1 coulden couldn t leep and I 1 must talk to you or lorn 0 o out of my mind in the file starlight her face had t the lie ame me pearl white milte tint as the clouds all al right talk but its risky e whispered hush huskily fly ills alls hand ested upon the blanket she bent lover loner so that her face as closer and she could whisper ery cry softly i first I 1 want to tell you how dolly it has come home to me ly ignorance my failure to believe dd d trust you even after you sv lo 10 y rudely insulted me that day up p the mountain trall trail if I 1 had ihly v had faith in you then I 1 its too id tie e but I 1 want you to know I 1 ave the faith now only the fear nd the suspense are wearing me f ut 11 L cut but you are well all right still lie ile harmed you elen P ano no he has not harmed roe me and am do not ill III im losing flesh beuse I 1 cant eat cat but noth g lately I 1 dont sleep beuse im horribly afraid he will me and smother me or choke e so I 1 cant cry out ive slept me in the daytime jim the ing Is I 1 cant stand it much long I 1 think I 1 frightened him film cut but c can an see I 1 can feel oh jim for ds s sake do something to end is s horror S she lie loaned leaned or tell fell forward in the akness of the moment her ber head a dinst him ne he stroked it gently i reaction as tar far from that pas nate mate and mocking embrace at if 1 ar r ranch as could have been pos life le helen dont give up he reed ihas you have been brave and has gone better than we could ipe only a little while lager tiger we might steal away now yes ive thought of that put cut 1 ily to get lost and starve or r die thirst in these brakes ahat hat almost would be better belter ame me if f you cant stick it out well an 0 and go say tomorrow night e must have food horses g only ho honest liest though to tell you e chances are a hundred to one alast us weve got an even e eak k if we wait how can you think that chis gang Is about ready to go ap to ill smoke therell be a terrible I 1 alil bt hays flays surely will be killed nd d just as surely more than be pat at will leave a proposition I 1 can andle nd die without risk to you cevan even then we still have to ond way ay out of 0 this awful place ates es but id have time and I 1 L J id pack water and food len e en trust me its the best bes t p plan a n if f you take me back to my broth ill give you the ransom ont insult me he replied bit IT t that she drew up suddenly I 1 d threw tier her hair back from her r e forgive me you see lave ave lost my mind that never never burred to me before but ill d you in some way 0 cs have bare saved you will be all reward I 1 ask and more than I 1 you have forgotten it I 1 I 1 love you lyes os I 1 had she whispered fler at t eyes studied film dim in ID tb the estar t as it if the fact had a vastly erent significance here than it lat at star ranch ddenny slie she stiffened over her ulder der jims eye was arrested b by y lot of starlight upon a bright eject t on the ground above and d lt it a shape P darker than the falc background gradually took the lie alpine tie of a man on hands and ild id terror assailed jim wall de 1 e his 1116 iron nerve that was hays flays ung ling upon them willi will a gun in hand and r bursting tide of blood through veins paralleled the lightning light nIn n of his thoughts death for both lucheni em was terribly close ills gun ibba under lila his pillow helen knelt len him and the robber A e of eun elen the slightest kind id it be batul tatal cunning roust must take dence of action ts tg hays flays lie whispered scarce audibly Rudi bly follow me now lj exerting all his will to aptak rally ally he sald said aloud no miss L rick k im sorry but I 1 cant oblige I 1 dunt dont approve ot of allays kid tog you but its done and im ember of his band I 1 would think hink of going against him let lei B trang to run olt off with you ore ere was a terise tense silence fraught THE STORY FROM THE BEGINNING jim wall wait young cowpuncher from wyoming seeks a new held field in utah ire he meets hank I 1 lays hays who tells him he Is working for or an englishman herrick Herr lck who has located a ble big ranch hays and others are plotting to steal their employers cattle and money lie he and his lieutenants ride away to drive off on the first bunch of cattle hueseman Hc eseman hays rival am among ong the cattle rustlers tells wall wail hays haya was once his lice partner and double crossed him herrick delegates jim to go to grand junction to meet helen herricks sister jim tries to impress her with the fact act that ho he jim Is a desperado of 0 the worst type but the girl treats the information lightly hays betrays unusual interest in the coming of miss herrick jim finds himself falling failing in love with helen and finally kisses her she dismisses him lm but relents and asks him not to leave the ranch hays flays men return ha having ving sold the cattle and brought back the money A quick getaway Is imperative hays tells his men to go on ahead that he will join them later he comes with helen herrick Herric lt a captive explaining that he robbed her alck and stole helen tor for ransom realizing the girl will ill be worse off if she falls into heesemann Hee semans clutches jim rides on with hank and his men heesemann Hee semans riders are discovered in pursuit after a battle in which latimer one of hays men Is wounded hays leads the gang into a cany canyon the robbers roost before he dies latimer tells jim and smoky slocum that hays has held out some of the money he stole from herrick with will much apprehension for jim would she be able to play piny up to him there was just a chance that alys had not dot heard any of their whispers his pers in which case it was possible sible to debei decelie e him helen comprehended ended ill give you the ransom money she said quite clearly and certainly most bosl persuasively persua shely my ily brother will reward you otherwise you cant bribe me he rejoined ant and I 1 advise you to try it on smoky or any of the others hays may haie hae had only money lo in his mind at first but now dow dont move came a low hard voice from the shadow helen gaie a little gasp and sagged on her knees jim waited a moment 1 I wont lank dank he replied then alays tall form loomed black abbe the rise of ground round ue ile strode forward it if he be had sheathed his gun jim would have made short work of that thai interview but be held it half leveled glancing darkly in the start starlight fit the robber chief gazed down dow n upon jim and helen uis ills features were but the poise of his head was expressive enough still jim sensed that thai lie he had been misled you cat he be declared roughly if I 1 ketch you again tr tryl yInto nto bribe any of my outfit ill treat you so aou ou wont want to go back to your baby faced brother now you git to your tent helen rose unsteadily and vanished in the gloom jim wall you aint been with me long iong an I 1 dont know you but im this deal to heart hays said slowly im much obliged I 1 reckon youre the only man in the outfit who could of withstood thet woman no youre wrong lank hank smoky would nt have listened to tier her and im sure the others would have stood pat my faith was near goue gone it in you hank flank youve no call to lose it youve about split your gaug gang over this woman wal im not askin judgments from you or any of the outfit growled the chief gloomily all be good an glad to git your share of the ransom the thing Is boss will nill we get it flays made a violent move like a striking snake what you wean mean by thet im askin askan you air you In atin you git it yours demanded hays flays no you might say I 1 was askin for or nil all of us replied jim curtly wal ill elt the outfit together in an do some askin myself its a good idea it might prevent the split provided you bilde the money you stole from herrick ill wring thet white cats neck dock hissed biased the robber youre wrong boss she tell me die she know you robbed her brother brot lier sparrow confessed before lie he died hays swore a mighty oath au an lie he squealed yes to smoky fin an me we kept it secret until we ae had to tell they knew so methin was wrong all the time you knowel ill there was something pathetic in the fallen chier chieftains taws shame and amaze ily by this time lie he seemed t to 0 realize his crime you see fee hank flank how your outfit lias has stood by you even in your guilt util abutin ifft if it aint too late lale ill make amends he rejoined hoarsely and stalked away in the darkness jim had bad breakfasted before the other men were up with rifle in hand be headed beaded toward the western exit loneliness was paramount there was no sound uly only an immense silence no ko life at alil not kot a winged creature hovering over that ghastly region I 1 hut but over this hits scene of desolation sloay slowly spread the solemn blight of locating blazing sun soon to mantle all in illusive copper haze before that hour arrived jim wall took up the field glass below in the camp the men were luell stirring to a late breakfast the alo dour r of the cabin was wag open A glint of gold crossed the dark aperture then the tall form of nays hays stalked out rie ile yawned dawned lie ile stretched wide his long iong arms ills ruddy face gleamed in the glass to that sight walls bhole being leaped by heaven hs his voice rang out hays flays your last mornings stretch I 1 before this days day done stretch forever let his men haie hae their hour thought jiro jim darkly but if they did not mete out justice to their chief the end was nevertheless fixed an and unalterable jim settled back and raised his hh Held glass more from habit than an semblance of the old watchfulness there was nothing to see b but ut the stark denudation of the brakes suddenly into jims magnified cli ch cle of vision crept dark objects i long line of them ile he was so startled that the glass wavered out of line lie ile moved it to and fro searching what could thai have been ao an error of sight a line of cedars a conception of adli mind therel there I 1 he breathed ile he hail had caught it again not cedars nol brush but moving objects BI heavens lie muttered am I 1 dotty horses 1 A line of dark horses ills his straining eyes blurred ile he low cred the glass with slinking shaking hands so help me it looks like riders A third time jim caught the ob ejects he froze the glass on them horses and riders horses v with I 1 th packs A bursting gush of hot blood ran all through him it looked like heesemann Uee Hee semans outfit at least three miles away approaching slow ly by a route far to the south ol of that over which hays had come about three miles muttered jim coming slow lost but that wash in leads head into the lays hays trail I 1 if they strike that come fast not nol enough rain yet to wash out our tracks weve not time to pack and ride out by thunder cornered now hank hays jim took one more straining look no hope it was a big outfit and not traveling so slowly either tup the leader bestrode a black horse jim remembered that horse snatching up his rine rifle he slung the field glas over his dei det and ran down on the bluff to the camp to his profound amaze lie espied hays flays bound hand and toot foot with a stick behind him and through his of el bons bois the robber sat in an buncom fordable for table posture against the wood pile in a second jim saw that hay had been gagged and his face was wa so contorted by rage that it ap feared scarcely human cupl up 1 cried jim breaking out of his bewilderment nays hays gaie gae vent rent to an inarticulate sound but it was expressive jim wheeled N to stalk under u n der the shack his hand on his gun as if he hall expected heeseman to have arrived before him to ills his amaze miss tier her rick was sitting at the rude tali table eating breakfast bieak fast A big gun that jim recognized as hays flays property lay conspicuously in front of her happy jack whistling as usual was serving her what does this mean demand ed cd jim ask the men she replied curtly outside and below the shack sal smoky ou on a rock with the others other standing near lawnin Maw nin jim drawled with a grin you see weve got a new chief who haeg aled the boss Ite beckon ckon I 1 did with a little help what for D 13 if I 1 know our lady pals oner made me do it ilass herrick derrick forced you to tie hays flays cupl up queried jim trying to conceal his exultation 1 I should shiver she did struck hays hair trigger gun ilu a cocked right into my belly fin ao says will you tie tills this villain a an n swe swear ar bj your honor not to release him or a al low tiny any of 0 these other men to do so fo or or will you have me shout shoot you I howd loud she get that gun wal she ehe snatched it quick ern light lightning nin how an when she cocked it with buth both hanis hands it well beni oft off bang the bullet went between hanks legs tickled him you can see the hole in his bis bauts Scar Scare eill dr my aly bawd you tie never or see a man so s scared thet gyrt gurl coot cool a as a a cucui her bee cocked the gun again an held lays up then all of us we was nt at the table she made us all stand hands high iiii an then she performed thet tact little trick with hanks gun agin my n g gizzard 1 r d int jim I 1 hope to die if I 1 ill d go cold 1 1 l an stiff but I 1 promised on my biord ord of honor as a robber thet id tie hank up an make the other fellers play square it was so runny funny 1 too thet I 1 near bust hays flays soon as he was helpless liel pless got over his scare nn an then was he madl mad I 1 I 1 reckon no one on this earth saw a madder ninn man ile he cussed so terrible abet she made me gag him well ill be bloN vedi gasped jim no wonder we was wed had breakfast an hank was bryin to race face us fetters fellers ill say he came elean clean jim he divided all the money he got from herrick derrick an his sister an the gold things an diamonds fellers he said 1 I could lie an say I 1 meant to give this to rou cwi later but I 1 ut im not built thet way I 1 double crossed you all first time in my life I 1 meant to keep it nil all an the ransom ter fer the girl put but now there wont be no ransom for im not goin to give her up ashes mine an I 1 can do as I 1 want in if any of you dont like ilke it you ran oan make your kick now dow wal we was so plumb flabbergasted thet ve see the gurl who banfe lose on the sun side of happas happys helter elter li she heard the whole d n how jim I 1 wish you could e e fa the thing Is boss will we get it have seen her when she stepped up 0 o hank I 1 dont know what vital did it debbe her eyes but he shore gilted vil ted it was then she snatched ils i I 1 S g eun so the dealt deal ejaculated aim what whal are you going to do dont ask me I 1 gaie gae my word lu iu ill keep it for that matter the rest of our outfit air fer the gurl ransom or no do ransom suddenly jim awoke out or of his stupefaction to remember the ap roach of heeseman eseman smoky I 1 know what youre ill to do and tight light he 11 hashed asbed curtly heesemann Hee semans outfit is coming I 1 sighted them perhaps three miles traveling slow but ure lire wee no time to pack an et awny away weve got to fin find d the nest place to stand an fight an lack ac k our stuff into it pronto I heeseman leeseman I 1 cried smoky coolly so its come I 1 reckoned on thet hit it busy men jim strode under the shelter to ace miss herrick she had bad heard for or she was white were |
