glass of whisky and swallowed it. When she turned her lips were
tightly shut over her brilliant teeth, a thousand thoughts came rushing
into her brain. There was no longer any compunction--she would strike
now and deep. Through her efforts alone the man would be captured, and
she gloried in the thought.

"Here--here is something that will interest you!" she said; and putting
her hand in her bosom drew out a soiled, faded photograph. "There--that
will settle him for good and all! Never again will he boast of trifling
with Nina Micheltorena--with me, a Micheltorena in whose veins runs the
best and proudest blood of California!"

Ashby fairly snatched the photograph out of her hand and, after one look
at it, passed it over to the Sheriff.

"Good of him, isn't it?" sneered Nina; and then seemingly trying by her
very vehemence to impress upon herself the impossibility of his ever
being anything but an episode in her life, she added: "I hate him!"

The picture was indeed an excellent one. It represented Ramerrez in the
gorgeous dress of a _caballero_--and the outlaw was a fine specimen of
that spectacular class of men. But Rance studied the photograph only
long enough to be sure that no mistake was possible. With a quick
movement he put it away in his pocket and looked long and hard at the
figure of the degraded woman standing before him and revelling in her
treachery. In that time he forgot that anyone had ever entertained a
kind thought about her; he forgot that she once was respected as well as
admired; he was conscious only of regarding her with a far deeper
disgust and repugnance than he held towards others much her inferior in
birth and education. But, presently, his face grew a shade whiter, if
that were possible, and he cursed himself for not having thought of the
danger to which the Girl might even now be exposed. In less than a
minute, therefore, both men stood ready for the work before them. But on
the threshold just before going out into the fierce storm that had burst
during the last few minutes, he paused and called back:

"You Mexican devil! If any harm comes to the Girl, I'll strangle you
with my own hands!" And not waiting to hear the woman's mocking laughter
he passed out, followed by Ashby, into the storm.

X.

In the still black night and with no guide other than the dimly-lighted
lantern which she carried, the Girl had started for home--a bit of
shelter in the middle of a great silence, a l