before they had time to reach the door the Two Diamond men
had surrounded them, sitting grimly and silently in their saddles.
Several of Stafford's men had drawn their weapons, but were now
returning them to their holsters, for neither of the two men was armed.
They stood within the grim circle, embarrassed, their heads bowed,
their attitude revealing their shame at having been caught so easily.
One of the men, a clear, steady-eyed fellow, laughed frankly.

"Well, we're plum easy, ain't we boys?" he said, looking around at the
silent group. "Corraled us without lettin' off a gun. That's what I'd
call re-diculous. You're right welcome. But mebbe you wouldn't have
had things so easy if we hadn't left our guns in the cabin. Eh, Bill?"
he questioned, prodding the other man playfully in the ribs.

But the other man did not laugh. He stood before them, his
embarrassment gone, his eyes shifting and fearful.

"Shut up, you damn fool!" he snarled.

But the clear-eyed man gave no attention to this outburst. "You're Two
Diamond men, ain't you?" he asked, looking full at Ferguson.

The latter nodded, and the clear-eyed man continued. "Knowed you right
off," he declared, with a laugh. "Leviatt pointed you out to me one
day when you was ridin' out yonder." He jerked a thumb toward the
distance. "Leviatt told me about you. Wanted to try an' plug you with
his six, but decided you was too far away." He laughed
self-accusingly. "If you'd been half an hour later, I reckon you
wouldn't have proved your stock, but we loafed a heap, an' half of that
bunch ain't got our brand."

"We didn't need to look at no brand," declared Stafford grimly.

The clear-eyed man started a little. Then he laughed. "Then you must
have got Leviatt an' Tucson," he said. He turned to Ferguson. "If
Leviatt has been got," he said, "it must have been you that got him.
He told me he was runnin' in with you some day. I kept tellin' him to
be careful."

Ferguson's eyelashes twitched a little. "Thank you for the
compliment," he said.

"Aw, hell!" declared the man, sneering. "I wasn't mushin' none!"

Stafford had made a sign to the men and some of them dismounted and
approached the two rustlers. The man who had profanely admonished the
other to silence made some little resistance, but in the end he stood
within the circle, his hands tied behind him. The clear-eyed man made
no resistance, seeming to regard the affair in the light of a huge