as not exactly a glance
of hate, but rather of veiled antagonism, of distrust--almost of
contempt. Alice's own eyes had been frankly friendly, but as they
encountered the look, they fell before the blue-black eyes, and she
turned appealingly toward Jennie. But the woman did not notice. She
chattered on:

"Ontil yesterday, I ain't seen Mrs. Endicott sence that night, it's a
year back, when Tex Benton brung you to the hotel in Wolf River an'
wanted the room--" Janet McWhorter sat down abruptly in a chair beside
the table and became suddenly interested in fingering the rims of the
cartridges in her belt. Jennie continued: "An' I jest give him a good
blessin', 'cause I don't trust no cowpuncher--or didn't then--ontil he
explained how it was. An' then he went away, an' Old Bat come an' tuck
you off, an' we heard afterwards how you an' Bat, an' the pilgrim an'
Tex hit down through the bad lands an' crossed the river, an' you an'
the pilgrim was married in Timber City----"

Alice gave a little cry: "Oh, and he's there now! Worrying his heart
out! He don't know where I am nor what's become of me! Oh, I've got to
go to him! I've got to get word to him, somehow!"

Janet McWhorter looked up quickly, the blue-black eyes resting in frank
surprise on the woman's face. Her husband! Why should she be so
concerned about her husband? Must get back to him! Was she tired of the
Texan already? Had her experience with Purdy taken the romance out of
the adventure? Or, was the concern assumed for the benefit of her
hearers? No. The girl decided the concern was not assumed--it was a very
real concern--and there were real tears in the woman's eyes.

Jennie sought to soothe her: "There you go again, deary. We'll git you
back to him as soon as ever we can. But there ain't no way with the
river where it's at. But, tell us how come Purdy to have you tied up,
an' what's Tex Benton got to do with it--an' your man in Timber City? I
be'n most bustin' to hear about it."

"Oh, it all happened so suddenly--I hardly know myself. It seems like
some horrid dream--some fantastic nightmare. We came to Timber City, Win
and I, to be there on our anniversary. Win is going to buy a ranch, and
while he was talking business I rode out on the trail a little way, and
when I returned it was dark, and there was a crowd of men in front of
the saloon and they were shooting. And one of them told me there was a
man inside--a Texan. Somehow, I just knew it was Tex--our T