by Clair Blank
Chapter X
RUSTLERS
"Oh, how I love to get up in the morning," sang Janet between yawns asshe stumbled from the tent with Carol close behind her. "Hullo, are wegetting company?"
Two cowboys on dust covered, lathered ponies had dashed into the campcircle and pulled their mounts up short beside the campfire. Jim who hadbeen on his knees poking at the ashes to stir the flames to life got upslowly with a wide grin of welcome. Tom joined the four and Virginia,coming from the tent, greeted them also.
"Let's get an earful," Carol proposed. "Evidently they are riders fromthe K Bar O."
"Then ya didn' see anythin' of 'em?" one of the new arrivals wasmurmuring to Tom.
"Not a thing, Lem," Tom replied with a serious frown. "How many did theyget?"
"Close to a hundred head, I reckon," Lem declared viciously.
"By now they are across the border," Virginia murmured. "Why did youlook for them up here near the hills?"
"A couple of the boys went toward the border," Lem's partner answered."We found a trail leadin' up this way."
"They didn't pass near here or we would have seen them," Virginia saidagain and her brother and Jim nodded in agreement.
"Then we got to be goin' farther," Lem said remounting his pony.
"But can't you wait and have a bite of breakfast?" Tom wanted to know.
"Not now, son," Lem replied. "We'll eat a cold snack from our saddlebags. We want to find those birds before the trail is gone."
"Wish you luck," Jim sang out as the ponies darted forward.
"Who were they?" Phyllis asked as she, with Gale and Valerie, appeared.
"Riders from the Lazy K," Virginia answered. "Rustlers stole close to ahundred cattle last night. They were following them."
"But they didn't bring the cattle up this way, did they?" Carol put in.
"No, but the boys figured some of the riders came this way. I hope theycatch 'em," Virginia said viciously. "We're probably due for a raidtonight."
Jim and Tom said nothing as they busied themselves getting breakfastready. Whatever thoughts they may have had on the subject, they kept tothemselves.
Breakfast was eaten, for the most part, in silence. Even when camp wasstruck and they started on their way again, there was not the usuallight-hearted banter and teasing. Each one realized that the situationat the K Bar O and other ranches was coming to a head. Rustlers had beenbusy too long. Now the ranchers were acting. Instead of going to theranch for safety from rustlers and bandits, it seemed that the girlswere running into more trouble. Jim led the way, silent and foreboding.Tom brought up the rear with the pack horses. He too was silent andgrim. It was their attitude that brought home to the girls just howserious the situation was.
Along about noon Jim's horse developed a limp that necessitated theirmoving more slowly. After deliberation they decided to camp for the restof the day and night. Perhaps by the morrow Jim's horse would be wellagain and they could travel at an increased pace. Now there was anundisguised desire to get back to the ranch house prevalent with all ofthem. Things were undoubtedly happening there and the girls wanted to bein on the excitement. They thought it high time the ranchers got busyand did something about their stolen cattle. The authorities had failedto capture the thieves so it was up to the ranchers themselves.
After camp was made Val took her sketching board and went off by herselfto draw. Gale had not unsaddled her horse and now she mounted him for aride.
"Not that there is much to see," Virginia laughed when Gale started out."Just sagebrush, rocks, and trees."
Gale liked to be alone sometimes and now she did not feel the need ofthe companionship of any of her friends. Once in a while the other girlsthought her a little strange when she went off by herself. But there wasnothing strange about her. Gale was the sort of person who is notdependent upon other people. She could spend a whole day by herself andnot be bored with her own company. She couldn't see why some people hadto always travel with a crowd, always have a lot of other people withthem. She could enjoy a walk, a movie, or a ride just as much alone aswith others. Of course it was fun to travel with a group, but sheenjoyed a day all to herself quite as much. When she was alone she couldreally think.
Gale reined her horse in and looked back at the valley she had justleft. She could see all her friends like moving spots against the dullgray and olive background. On the other side, the way she faced, a longflat plain stretched out to the right while on the left was a forest ofcottonwoods and fir trees. There was a narrow trail leading down fromher position on the crest of the hill through the woods and she urgedher horse forward. As she rode, she had to bend low in the saddle tokeep from being slapped in the face by low hanging branches.Occasionally she saw a rabbit or a squirrel, but for the most parteverything was still.
Her horse was young and frisky and jogged along with light, prancingstep. Gale was enjoying herself hugely with no thought of the passing oftime. Her surroundings were quiet and inspiring and, as usual with Galein such circumstances, she was dreaming of a thousand and one thingsother than the present. When the girls got back to Marchton they wouldstart their last year in the Marchton High School. The next year theystarted college. As yet the girls had not firmly decided on the schoolto which they would go after high school days. They were concerned nowwith ideas of what to do and be when they were finally all through withschool. They all firmly resolved that they wanted careers, but just whatthose careers were to be was a little undecided. Of course it wasunderstood that Val would continue with her art. She was really the onlyone of them all that had a talent of any kind to which she could cling.Long and repeatedly the girls had discussed the subject of careers. What_could_ they be? Artists? Only Val could do justice to that branch ofwork. Actresses then? Well, perhaps Phyllis would go in for the Drama.Madge, Carol, and Janet were totally at sea, as was Gale herself.
Gale had always thought she might like to be a doctor. But just thethought of all the years of study and preparation ahead of her was alittle disheartening. She liked the study of medicine and had alwaysbeen interested in it. At first she thought of being a nurse, but nowshe didn't like that idea. The thought of being a doctor was much moreintriguing. Doctors led such fascinating lives, she thought. In her rushof enthusiasm and ardor she didn't reckon with the long, tedious hoursthe doctor devotes to his patients, nor the fact that he has little freetime for himself. Then, too, she would like to be a sculptor. She likedto model things in clay and she was sure she could chisel interestingthings from marble if given the chance. She sighed and urged her horsealong a little faster. It was really quite a problem deciding what tobe. At any rate, whatever she went into, she wanted to go into it fullof enthusiasm and willingness to work and do her best. She had nointention of idling her life away. She wanted to do something, to besomebody, to be proud of her achievements whatever they might be. Shewas resolved that she would forge ahead to success and make a name forherself. After all, why not? Other people had started out with nothingand made themselves famous.
A huge drop of water on the back of her neck brought her back sharply tothe problem at hand. Riding along and musing with herself, she had notnoticed the dark clouds that had gathered overhead from nowhere. Now asher horse came out into an open clearing, rain began pouring down. Shecould not hope to get back to camp before the worst of the storm broke.If this heavy downpour continued, she would be drenched in a minute.Wildly she looked about for shelter of some kind. Through the trees tothe left she saw a log cabin, not much of a building, but enough toafford shelter in the storm. To the rear she found a sheltered hitchingpost where she tied her mount and ran back to the main cabin.
One step inside she stopped and glanced around. She had had thestrangest premonition when she stepped over the threshold. It was as ifshe had a warning of something dreadful about to happen. The room--therewas only one--was empty of all but its meager furnishings, a table andtwo makeshift chairs standing be
fore the fireplace. A saddle and riflelay in one corner. On the table were a few dirty dishes. Someone hadbeen here lately, if they were not here now. She had seen no horse whenshe tethered her own, but there was a saddle and, more ominous still,the rifle. Where was the owner?
The rain was teeming down outside and she went to the window to stareout. A regular cloudburst! Tomorrow a lot of the little streams they hadpassed would be raging, swirling rivers. She was glad this cabin hadbeen here or else she would have been drenched. She smiled as shethought of how her camp mates might be receiving this sudden rain. Theywould no doubt be huddled in the waterproof tents, but nevertheless theywould be fuming with disgust. It was no pleasure camping out when itrained. She looked up at the gray skies, impatient to be off and awayfrom this cabin that filled her with that strange, unreasonable fear.Why should she feel fear the moment she stepped into the place? Therewas no one here. Not a thing to frighten her. Yet she was filled with astrange uneasiness. Evidently her horse had felt it too, for when shehad tied him he whinnied faintly and nudged her arm with mute appeal.She had thought nothing of it at the time, but now it came back to herwith ominous warning. Animals had keen instinct and the horse had felt adistrust of this place. She wished heartily it would stop raining so shecould go on. She didn't want to get wet and she didn't want to stayhere.
She shook her shoulders impatiently and went over to inspect the riflein the corner. Probably she was imagining things. It was the first timeshe had let her imagination make her afraid of anything. She was beingsilly she told herself again sternly. Most likely this cabin had beendeserted for a long time. But when she picked up the rifle she knew thatwasn't so. The rifle was clean and recently oiled. Too, it was loaded.It was the same make rifle as Tom carried in his saddle sheath and quitewithout knowing why she took the cartridges out of the barrel to examinethem. At the same moment she looked up through the window to the trailshe had so recently left for this shelter.
Terror gripped her for a moment. Horsemen were issuing from the thickgrowth of trees and there was no disputing the identity of the firstman. It was the bank bandit who had held Val and her prisoners in thatother cabin. She dropped the rifle over the saddle where it had been andlooked about wildly for a means of escape. Were they close enough to seeher if she slipped out of the door? Of course they were! In the rearwall was a window. She placed a chair beneath it and a moment later wassqueezing through the opening. Rain or no rain, she preferred to get wetto remaining in the cabin to receive those men. How had they managed toelude the Sheriff and his men so long? Were the bank bandits connectedwith the rustlers who had been stealing cattle from the K Bar O? Galemade a shrewd guess that they were.
When she jumped from the window to the wet earth Gale ran immediately towhere her pony was tied and, slipping her arm through the reins, led himback into the woods to the rear of the cabin. She was sure the thickgrowth of trees and brush would shield them from view and that proved tobe the case. The trees overhead were a little protection from the rain,but even so, when she had been in the open five minutes she was soaked.She had left her slicker in the camp and now she wished fervently shehad let it remain rolled behind her saddle. She heard the thunder ofhoofs and sound of voices as the men she had eluded dismounted at thecabin and entered it. Surprised, she looked down at her hand. She stillhad the two shells from the rifle clutched in her fingers. She haddeparted in such haste that she didn't have time to replace them;indeed, she had not even thought of them. Now she shoved them deep intoher breeches' pocket and huddled beside her horse.
It would be better to get into the saddle and ride than to stand here inthe rain, but she was sure the sound of her horse's hoofs would beclearly audible to those men in the cabin and they would be sure toinvestigate. Too, she had an idea. It would be a big help to her uncleif she could, in some fashion, determine if these were the men who werestealing cattle from the ranchers. Perhaps, now that she had stumbledupon their cache, she could spy on them and learn something of interestto the authorities. It was worth trying. She would wait until it grewdark and then sneak up and endeavor to listen to their conversation andto obtain a glimpse of the men within the cabin.
Her horse whinnied softly and she put an admonishing hand on his muzzlewhile her heart raced with apprehension. Suppose one of the men heardhim and came to see---- But they were undoubtedly too busy and besides,they might think it one of their own horses. Still, it would be best tobe on the safe side. She led her horse farther into the woods and theretied him to a cottonwood. She was hungry. She remembered she had hadonly a light lunch but she remembered, too, that she had put somethingin her saddle bag just in case she wanted an afternoon snack. It came inhandy now. She found two lumps of sugar, also, which the horse promptlysnuggled from her hand.
Another thought came to her and she bent down to her boot. Her littlerevolver still nestled in its customary place. She might have use for ittonight, she reflected. Suppose the men were the rustlers and supposeshe did make sure of that fact. How was she to notify the authorities?By the time she got back to her camp and told Jim and Tom and theysummoned the Sheriff or some of his men the rustlers would have ampletime to get away. What was she to do? With a shrug of her shoulders shedismissed the thought. Everything would take care of itself she wassure.
