by Max Brand
CHAPTER XXX
THE LAMP
The bluff was ended. It was as if the wind blew a cloud suddenly fromthe face of the sun and let the yellow sunlight pour brightly over theworld; so everyone in the room at the voice of Sally knew that the timehad come for action. There was no vocal answer to her, but each man roseslowly in his place, his gun naked in his hand, and every face wasturned to Bard.
"Gentlemen," he said in his soft voice, "I see that my friend Lawlor hasnot wasted his lessons in manners. At least you know enough to rise whena lady enters the room."
His gun, held at the hip, pointed straight down the table to the burlyform of Jansen, but his eyes, like those of a pugilist, seemed to betaking in every face at the table, and each man felt in some subtlemanner that the danger would fall first on him. They did not answer, buthands were tightening around revolver butts.
Lawlor moved back, pace by pace, his revolver shaking in his hand.
"But," went on Bard, "you are all facing me. Is it possible?"
He laughed.
"I knew that Mr. Drew was very anxious to receive me with courtesy; Idid not dream that he would be able to induce so many men to take careof me."
And Sally Fortune, bracing herself against the wall with one hand, andin the capable grasp of the other a six-gun balanced, stared in growingamazement on the scene, and shuddered at the silences.
"Bard," she called, "what have I done?"
"You've started a game," he answered, "which I presume we've all beenwaiting to play. What about it, boys? I hope you're well paid; I'd hateto die a cheap death."
A voice, deep and ringing, sounded close at hand, almost within theroom, and from a direction which Bard could not locate.
"Don't harm him if you can help it. But keep him in that room!"
Bard stepped back a pace till his shoulders touched the wall.
"Sirs," he said, "if you keep me here you will most certainly have toharm me."
A figure ran around the edge of the crowd and stood beside him.
"Stand clear of me, Sally," he muttered, much moved. "Stand away. Thisis a man's work."
"The work of a pack of coyotes!" she cried shrilly. "What d'ye mean?"
She turned on them fiercely.
"Are you goin' to murder a tenderfoot among you? One that ain't done noreal harm? I don't believe my eyes. You, there, Shorty Kilrain, I'vewaited on you with my own hands. You've played the man with me. Are yougoin' to play the dog now? Jansen, you was tellin' me about a blue-eyedgirl in Sweden; have you forgot about her now? And Calamity Ben! My God,ain't there a man among you to step over here and join the two of us?"
They were shaken, but the memory of Drew quelled them.
"They's no harm intended him, on my honour, Sally," said Lawlor. "Allhe's got to do is give up his gun--and--and"--he finished weakly--"lethis hands be tied."
"Is that all?" said Sally scornfully.
"Don't follow me, Sally," said Bard. "Stay out of this. Boys, you mayhave been paid high, but I don't think you've been paid high enough torisk taking a chance with me. If you put me out with the first shot thatends it, of course, but the chances are that I'll be alive when I hitthe floor, and if I am, I'll have my gun working--and I won't miss. Oneor two of you are going to drop."
He surveyed them with a quick glance which seemed to linger on eachface.
"I don't know who'll go first. But now I'm going to walk straight forthat door, and I'm going out of it."
He moved slowly, deliberately toward the door, around the table. Stillthey did not shoot.
"Bard!" commanded the voice which had spoken from nowhere before. "Stopwhere you are. Are you fool enough to think that I'll let you go?"
"Are you William Drew?"
"I am, and you are----"
"The son of John Bard. Are you in this house?"
"I am; Bard, listen to me for thirty seconds----"
"Not for three. Sally, go out of this room and through that door."
There was a grim command in his voice. It started her moving against herwill. She paused and looked back with an imploring gesture.
"Go on," he repeated.
And she passed out of the door and stood there, a glimmering figureagainst the night. Still there was not a shot fired, though all thoseguns were trained on Bard.
"You've got me Drew," he called, "but I've got you, and yourhirelings--all of you, and I'm going to take you to hell with me--tohell!"
He jerked his gun up and fired, not at a man, for the bullet struck thethin chain which held the gasoline lamp suspended, struck it with aclang, and it rushed down to the table. It struck, but not with the loudexplosion which Bard had expected. There was a dull report, as of a shotfired at a great distance, the scream of Sally from the door, and thenliquid fire spurted from the lamp across the table, whipped in a flareto the ceiling, and licked against the walls. It shot to all sides butit shot high, and every man was down on his face.
Anthony, scarcely believing that he was still alive, rushed for thedoor, with a cry of agony ringing in his ears from the voice beyond theroom. One man in all that crowd was near enough or had the courage toobey the master even to the uttermost. The gaunt form of Calamity Benblocked the doorway in front of Bard, blocked it with poised revolver.
"Halt!" he yelled.
But the other rushed on. Calamity whipped down the gun and fired, buteven before the trigger was pulled he was sagging toward the floor, forBard had shot to kill. Over the prostrate form of the cowpuncher heleaped, and into the night, where the white face of Sally greeted him.
Outside the red inferno of that room, as if the taste of blood hadmaddened him, he raised his arms and shouted, like one crying a wildprayer: "William Drew! William Drew! Come out to me!"
Small, strong hands gripped his wrists and turned him away from thehouse.
"You fool!" cried Sally. "Ride for it! You've raised your hell atlast--I knew you would!"
Red light flared in all the windows of the dining-room; shouts andgroans and cursing poured out of them. Bard turned and followed her outtoward the stable on the run, and he heard her moaning as she ran: "Iknew! I knew!"
She mounted her horse, which was tethered near the barn. He chose atrandom the first horse he reached, a grey, threw on his back the saddlewhich hung from the peg behind, mounted, and they were off through thenight. No thought, no direction; but only in blind speed there seemed tobe the hope of a salvation.
A mile, two miles dropped behind them, and then in an open stretch, forhe had outridden her somewhat, Anthony reined back, caught the bridle ofher horse, and pulled it down to a sharp trot.
"Why have you come?"
Their faces were so close that even through the night he could see thegrim set of her lips.
"Ain't you raised your hell--the hell you was hungry to raise? Don't youneed help?"
"What I've done is my own doing. I'll take the burden of it."
"You'll take a halter for it, that's what you'll take. The wholerange'll rise for this. You're marked already. Everywhere you've goneyou've made an enemy. They'll be out to get you--Nash--Boardman--thewhole gang."
"Let 'em come. I'd do this all over again."
"Born gunman, eh? Bard, you ain't got a week to live."
It was fierceness; it was a reproach rather than sorrow.
"Then let me go my own way. Why do you follow, Sally?"
"D'you know these mountains?"
"No, but----"
"Then they'd run you down in twelve hours. Where'll you head for?"
He said, as the first thought entered his mind: "I'll go for the oldhouse that Drew has on the other side of the range."
"That ain't bad. Know the short cut?"
"What cut?"
"You can make it in five hours over one trail. But of course you don'tknow. Nobody but old Dan and me ever knowed it. Let go my bridle andride like hell."
She jerked the reins away from him and galloped off at full speed. Hefollowed.
"Sally!" he c
alled.
But she kept straight ahead, and he followed, shouting, imploring her togo back. Finally he settled to the chase, resolved on overtaking her. Itwas no easy task, for she rode like a centaur, and she knew the way.
