she lay very quiet,
open-eyed; then she arose, unlocked her door and replaced the revolver
in its sheath, leaving both lying where he had tossed them.

Over at the bunkhouse Douglass stood glaring at the imperturbable Red.
"I thought," said he ominously, "that my orders were that nobody should
ride those outlaws."

McVey, having finished the cigarette he was rolling, gave it a final
lick with his tongue, twisted the ends adroitly, struck a match, and
between tentative puffs, remarked:

"When they's nothing left in thu corral but one hoss I reckon it's ride
thet er go afoot. When I got back from Vaughan's this evenin' I found
thu pastur' bars down an' everything stompeded but thet buckskin
outlaw. Reckon he were too or'nary to trail with thu bunch an' cut
hisself out; ketched him in thu cow paddock."

Douglass carefully selected a cigarette paper and reached for the
tobacco pouch. The hand that held the lighting match was very steady.

"How do you size it up, Red?"

"Matlock," said the other, tersely. "Thu bars were not only down, but
dragged away more'n a rod. It were one man thet done it--his hoss shod
all around 'ceptin' left hind foot. 'Twere too dark to track after I
lost him in thu timber, but the whole cavvy is scattered to hell an'
gone. Say, Ken, I'm goin' to rue back on that promise; an' I don't see
as it's eggsactly fair on the other boys, either. S'posen sum of us was
to meet up with that skunk accidental: are we to let him slip jest
because yuh don't happen to be cavortin' around conteegious? I, fer one,
_won't_, an' right here I gives yuh notice."

"Besides," he drawled softly, "I've got a privut grutch agin him of my
own, an' I'm goin' to beat yuh to it if I kin."

The other shook his head deprecatingly. "Don't do anything rash, Red. I
preempted that right first. And my claim's been bearing interest ever
since."

CHAPTER IX

IN PART PAYMENT

The temporary loss of the horses was a twofold source of irritation to
Douglass. They had been gathered with much labor for the forthcoming
round-up and that work would all have to be done over again at quite an
expenditure of time, patience and money; for this he deemed himself also
responsible, and it added materially to the already large pecuniary
obligation which he had assumed.

Then, he also regarded the malicious scattering of his horses as a
stigma on his care and watchfulness of his employer's interests, as well
as a personal affront a