his property it's goin' to
cost you just what the last trip through the pass cost Jerkline Jo.
You started something, my friend, and you can't finish it--that's all.
Take your medicine like a sport."

"I'm going to keep up that mountain road, and I'm going to charge to
move vehicles and teams over it," replied Drummond angrily. "My
operations are legitimate. Yours are a holdup."

"Suit yourself." Tweet shrugged indifferently. "But, as I pointed
out, you'll pay back every cent you collect from Jo. And, besides,
you'll be out the expenses of your toll master."

"Others besides this lady will be crossing--lots of them later on,"
said Drummond. "I'm not going to keep that road in condition for the
general public free of charge."

"Then the best thing you can do is make a dicker with Jo to share her
part of the maintenance expenses, and you two divide the spoils that
you collect from others."

"I can't agree to that," Jo put in hastily. "The road will serve very
well as it is for our purposes, with a few repairs now and then which
my boys can attend to themselves. We don't have to have a road in as
good condition as the trucks will demand. We are entirely satisfied as
matters stand."

Tweet slapped his thigh. "Spoken like a man!" he cried. "Now it's
your move, Mr. Drummond. Fix your road all you want to and gouge
travelers for the last cent you can, but this outfit travels through
the mountains free, any way you can figure it out. Better write out a
permanent permit for Jo, and do away with this collectin' back and
forth and only breakin' even."

The truck man was so angry he scarcely could contain himself.

"It's a dirty, rotten deal!" he said between gritted teeth. "And this
is only part of it. This bunch of roughnecks rolled a big boulder in
the road after they'd passed yesterday, or some time, and it took us
three hours to get it out. Had to hook on the trucks, and unload, and
cut poles--and I don't know what all we didn't have to do to get the
thing out so we could pass it. That's dirty, low-down business, and
anybody who would do such a thing is a dirty piker--I don't care if she
is a woman! If I've got to come out here and buck a wild woman with no
principle I'll----"

Al Drummond paused abruptly. A mountain of bone and muscle had swooped
down from the top of the load of baled hay and loomed large before him.

"Mr. Drummond," said a caressing voice with what seemed a totally
disinterest