come true!

Tula sat in the shadow against the wall, like some slender Indian
carving, mute and expressionless while the eyes of the woman rolled as
the two old friends exchanged their wonder tales of the night and day!
Elena made definite engagement to be with the "Judas" trailers on the
dark Friday, and both breathed blessings on Rotil who had promised
them the right man for the hanging.

It was this cheerful topic Kit entered upon with the written note from
Perez to the general. He had no liking for his task, as his eyes
rested on Dona Jocasta, beautiful, resigned and detached from the
scene about her. He remembered what Rotil had said scoffingly of
saints lifted from shrines--a man never forgot that shrine was empty!

"Mine is a thankless task, senora, but the general decided you are the
best keeper of this," and he gave to her the scribbled page torn from
a note book.

She took it and held it unread, looking at him with dark tragic eyes.

"I have fear of written words, senor, and would rather hear them
spoken. So many changes have come that I dread new changes. No matter
where my cage is moved, it is still a cage to me," she said
wistfully.

"I've a hunch, Dona Jocasta, that the bars of that cage are going to
be broken for you," ventured Kit, taking the seat she indicated, "and
this note may be one of the weapons to do it. Evidently Senor Perez
has had some mistaken information concerning the stealing of you from
here;--he thought it was by the general's order. So mistaken was he
that he thought you were the object of Rotil's raid on Soledad, and
for his own freedom he has offered to give you, and half his stock of
ammunition, to General Ramon Rotil, and agree to a truce between their
factions."

"Ah! he offers to make gift of me to the man he hates," she said after
a long silence. "And the guns and ammunition,--he also surrenders
them?"

"He offers--but it is written here! Since the guns, however, have been
taken south, he cannot give them; he can only promise them, until such
time----"

"Ho!" she said scornfully. "Is that the tale he tells? It is true
there are guns in the south, but guns are also elsewhere! He forgets,
does Jose Perez,--or else he plays for time. This offer," and she
referred to the note, "it is not written since we arrived--no. It was
written earlier, when he thought I was held by that renegade far in
the desert."

"I reckon that is true, senora, for after receiving it, Rotil had