e bank of the
stream.

"You over there," he shouted.

"It's dad," said Lee.

"You'd better surrender peaceable. We've come to git you alive or dead,"
shouted Snaith.

"What do you want us for?" asked Prince.

"You know well enough what for. You killed one of my punchers."

Clanton groaned. "Only one?"

"An' another may die any day. Come out with yore hands up."

"We'd rather stay here, thank you," Billie called back.

Snaith leaned forward in the saddle. "Is that you over there, Lee?"

"Yes, dad."

"Gone back on yore father and taken up with Webb's scalawags, have you?"

"No, I haven't," she called back. "But I'm going to see they get fair
play."

"You git out of there, girl, and on this side of the river!" Snaith
roared angrily. "Pronto! Do you hear?"

"There's no use shouting yourself hoarse, dad. I can hear you easily, and
I'm not coming."

"Not comin'! D'ye mean you've taken up with a pair of killers, of outlaws
we 're goin' to put out of business? You talk like a--like a--"

"Go slow, Snaith!" cut in Prince sharply. "Can't you see she's tryin' to
save you from murder?"

"We're goin' to take those boys back to Los Portales with us--or their
bodies. I don't care a whole lot which. You light a shuck out of there,
Lee."

"No," she answered stubbornly. "If you're so bent on shooting at some one
you can shoot at me."

The cattleman stormed and threatened, but in the end he had to give up
the point. His daughter was as obstinate as he was. He retired in
volcanic humor.

"I never could get dad to give up swearing," his daughter told her new
friends by way of humorous apology. "Wonder what he'll do now."

"Wait till night an' drive us out of our hole, I expect," replied Prince.

"Will he wait? I'm not so sure of that," said Jim. "See. His men are
scattering. They're up to somethin'."

"They're going down to cross the river to get behind us just as you said
they would," predicted Lee.

She was right. Half an hour later, from her position on the bank above
the cave, she caught a glimpse of a man slipping forward through the
brush. She called to Prince, who crept out from behind the tumble weeds
to join her. A bullet dug into the soft clay not ten inches from his
head. He scrambled up and lay down behind a patch of soapweed a few yards
from the girl. Another bullet from across the river whistled past the
cowpuncher.

Lee rose and walked across to the bushes where he lay crouched. Very
deliber