the woman."

"Got the woman!" he repeated, "where's Tex?"

Purdy frowned: "That's what I don't know. I hope he's drownded. He never
landed where she did. They wasn't no tracks. That's the only thing
that's botherin' me. I don't mind sayin' it right out, I ain't got no
honin' to run up agin' him--I don't want none of his meat."

"Course he's drownded, if he never landed," cried Long Bill, and taking
tremendous heart from the thought, he continued: "I hain't afraid of
him, nohow--never was. I hain't so damn glad he drownded neither. If I'd
of run onto him, I'd of be'n a hundred dollars richer. I'd of brung him
in--me!"

"You'd of played hell!" sneered Purdy, "don't try to put yer brag over
on me. I know what you'd do if you so much as seen the colour of his
hide--an' so do you. Le's talk sense. If that there pilgrim offered a
thousan' first off--he'll pay two thousan' to git his woman back--or
five thousan'."

Long Bill's eyes glittered with greed: "Sure he will! Five thousan'--two
thousan' five hundred apiece----"

Purdy fixed him with a chilling stare: "They wasn't nothin' mentioned
about no even split," he reminded, "who's got the woman, you or me?"

Long Bill glared angrily: "You didn't know nothin' about the reward till
I come along. An' who's got to do the dickerin'? You don't dast to show
up nowheres. You'd git nabbed. They's a reward out fer you."

Purdy shrugged: "When we git the five thousan', you git five hundred.
Take it or leave it. They's others can do the dickerin'."

Long Bill growled and whined, but in the end he agreed, and Purdy
continued: "You listen to me. We don't want no mistakes about this here.
I'll write a note to the pilgrim an' sign Tex's name to it, demandin'
five thousan' fer the return of the woman. You take the note to him, an'
tell him Tex is hidin' out in the bad lands, an' they ain't a show in
the world to git the woman without he pays, because Tex will kill her
sure as hell if he goes to gittin' any posses out. Then you fetch him
over here--this place is good as any--today a week, an' we'll give him
his woman."

"What if he won't come? What if he thinks we're double-crossin' him?"

Purdy shrugged: "If he wants his woman bad enough, he'll come. It's his
only chanct. An' here's another thing: Before you hit back acrost the
river, you spread them bills around all the ranches an' on all the
trails around here. They ain't no one else can horn in on the big
reward 'cause I've got