door. His rapid eye had
already swept the horse corral, the sheds, and the stable. If the
horseman that he had seen riding along the ridge had been Radford he
would not arrive for quite a little while. Meantime, he would learn
from Miss Radford what direction the young man had taken on leaving the
cabin.

Ferguson was beginning to take an interest in this game. At the outset
he had come prepared to carry out his contract. In his code of ethics
it was not a crime to shoot a rustler. Experience had taught him that
justice was to be secured only through drastic action. In the criminal
category of the West the rustler took a place beside the horse thief
and the man who shot from behind.

But before taking any action Ferguson must be convinced of the guilt of
the man he was hunting, and nothing had yet occurred that would lead
him to suspect Radford. He did not speculate on what course he would
take should circumstances prove Radford to be the thief. Would the
fact that he was Mary Radford's brother affect his decision? He
preferred to answer that question when the time came--if it ever came.
One thing was certain; he was not shooting anyone unless the
provocation was great.

His voice was purposely loud when he called "Whoa, Mustard!" to his
pony, but his eyes were not purposely bright and expectant as they
tried to penetrate the semi-darkness of the interior of the cabin for a
glimpse of Miss Radford.

He heard a movement presently, and she was at the door looking at him,
her hands folded in her apron, her eyes wide with unmistakable pleasure.

"Why, I never expected to see you again!" she exclaimed.

She came out and stood near the edge of the porch, making a determined
attempt to subdue the flutter of excitement that was revealed in a pair
of very bright eyes and a tinge of deep color in her cheeks.

"Then I reckon you thought I had died, or stampeded out of this
country?" he answered, grinning. "I told you I'd be comin' back here."

But the first surprise was over, and she very properly retired to the
shelter of a demurely polite reserve.

"So you did!" she made reply. "You told me you were comin' over to see
my brother. But he is not here now."

Had he been less wise he would have reminded her that it had been she
who had told him that he might come to see her brother. But to reply
thus would have discomfited her and perhaps have brought a sharp reply.
He had no doubt that some of the other Tw