by Hal Dunning
CHAPTER IV
SONS OF THE DEVIL
By eight o'clock the following morning, every seat in the courtroom wastaken; men crowded the aisles and perched on the window sills. At eightthirty the sheriff closed the doors and refused to allow any more tocrowd in. Exactly at nine Judge Ransom stepped from his house andwalked slowly down Main Street toward the courthouse. As he passedState Street, Dutchy and Silent Moore stepped up and followed him. Thejudge did not look back, but he knew they were there. He quickened hispace, for their presence reminded him forcibly of his danger.
The crowd before the Red Queen grew silent as the judge approached. Henodded to several friends on the porch of the Comfort Hotel, as he cutacross Depot Street toward a small door which led to his chambers. Athis knock it was opened by the sheriff. The judge and his two shadowspassed in, and the door was locked behind them.
A few minutes later he entered the courtroom and took his seat on thebench; outwardly he was calm, inwardly he twitched with nervousness.
The prisoner was brought in, the charge was read, and the trial was on.Pete Cable, a big brute of a man, grinned insolently. The judgerealized with something of a shock that, in spite of the prisoner'spale skin and American name, he was a Mexican; he understood now whythe Mexican vote would be against him in the next election.
The Honorable J. T. Williams, the defense lawyer, had been importedfrom Washington at great expense. He towered over Bill Herrick, thelittle prosecuting attorney, who was obviously nervous and frightened.The judge wondered if Herrick, too, had been threatened, and, if so, ifhe had weakened.
Tom Powers had seen to it that there was no chance to fix the jury. Hehad collected his panel only the night before, and no man knew he wasto serve until given a summons, when he was straight-way conducted tothe jail and locked up in a large room.
From the first it was apparent that Williams sought delay. He did allin his power to make the trial drag and to encumber it withtechnicalities. He offered objection after objection, forced the judgeto rule on a fine point of law at every opportunity.
One by one the jurymen were called, and Williams challenged themperemptorily. He had no idea of the size of the panel called by thesheriff and hoped to force him to call another. If he were successful,the defense would not be caught napping again and would see that amongthose called there were several who would bring in a verdict ofacquittal, no matter what the evidence.
But by late afternoon Williams saw his challenges mostly used up, andstill there was no sign of the end of the panel. The jury box was fullbefore the court adjourned for the day.
The judge was thoughtful as, followed by his two shadows, he walkedhome that evening. The die was cast; he had clearly shown that he wasin the camp of justice. He refused to think of the consequences.
Bill Anderson was waiting for him when he arrived at his house. Thepolitical boss apologized for losing his temper the evening before. Hisregret appeared so sincere that the judge almost forgot that momentaryflash he had seen of the man's real character.
A little later Mac Kennedy and Ace Cutts arrived. Kennedy was afrequent visitor at the house and a great favorite of Mrs. Ransom's.Ace Cutts was a sleek-haired young fellow of twenty-three, who went infor flashy clothes and handmade boots. He had full charge of the Bar X,and the judge had brought him up as his own son, although he had neveradopted the boy legally. At times Ace's wildness bothered him. Now Acedrew his foster father aside.
"Look here, dad. Why lean over so straight you fall over backward? Besensible. Take things easy. They can't possibly acquit Pete Cable. Whynot work things to have a hung verdict? Then you grant a new trial. Youcan be in Washington, and another judge will hang him."
"I'm sorry to hear you talk like that, my boy," the judge said severely.
Ace flared up.
"Rats! It's sense. They'll break you," he cried angrily.
"Ace, come on, if you're going to dinner with me!" Kennedy calledsharply.
Kennedy said good night to the judge and departed, followed by thesulky Ace.
The judge watched them thoughtfully. He wished Ace would get control ofthat temper; he said foolish things when he was angry, and people mightmisunderstand him.
About ten that night Toothpick and Jim Allen arrived back in town. Allday they had lain flat on their stomachs, under cover of brush, andwatched the lava fields with a pair of powerful binoculars. Now theyhad circled the town and entered it from the north.
Toothpick went to the jail, where he held a long, whispered conferencewith the sheriff. Powers' expression changed from surprise to delightas he listened. Allen went to Maria's cantina. He staggered as hearrived, but he had money to pay for a bottle, so Maria allowed him toremain. He chose a table close to the rear door; here he drank thefirst bottle and called for another. He was halfway through this whenDutchy and another man entered. They argued drunkenly for a time, andended in a fist fight.
A table and a chair crashed over. Maria screamed. She left her bar tostop the fight and assailed the two men with furious words. Theymumbled and staggered out. When she returned to the bar she lookedabout for Allen; he had vanished. Puzzled, she stared about for amoment, then shrugged her shoulders with indifferent indolence.
Allen had slipped, under cover of the fight, out of the back door. Hefound, as he expected, another door beyond, that led from the storeroominto a path. This, in turn, led to an alley, which cut the block in twoand was lined by shacks, little better than hovels. Directly oppositefrom the intersection of the path and the alley lay a corral.
"That's where Mr. Anderson got straw on his feet. He comes by thatnarrow alley so he won't have to go by them greaser shacks, 'cause, ifhe did, they might talk. Let's see what he comes for." Allen chuckledto himself.
He removed his blue glasses, took a Colt from his shoulder holster, andtucked it inside his belt. Then he flitted across the alley and duckedunder the corral bars, silent as a ghost. He crossed the corral to awall on the farther side. Music within told him that this was the rearof the Red Queen Saloon. There was no door here, so he slipped over tothe barn and examined that. He passed the double doors that led to thestable. Beyond these he found a small door which was locked. Herecrossed the corral, slipped under the bars, and tiptoed down thealley toward Depot Street. In one or two of the shacks there werelights, and once he passed two slovenly Mexicans seated in a doorway.They called to him, but he hurried by.
Back on Main Street he fell into his role once more, staggering andsinging softly to himself. He peered through the doors of the RedQueen, not daring to enter, because of the danger of being thrown out.Yet if he found Anderson, he had a plan that he thought would reinstatehim in the Red Queen. He waited until several men clattered in to thebar and slipped in after them. He ducked through into the dancing hall,unseen by the bartenders. By good luck he found Anderson watching apoker game. He plucked his sleeve.
Anderson scowled at him.
"Say, mister," he whined, "don't let that sheriff jug me. They tell meyou're a good guy that don't kick a guy just 'cause he's down on hisluck."
Several other men who heard the hobo's appeal looked curiously at thetattered figure and laughed.
"You just stick in here, an' Powers dasen't come in after yuh," one ofthem said.
"But them gents out front will give me the bum's rush," the hobocomplained.
Anderson grinned good-naturedly. "I've been down on my luck myself. TomPowers can't touch you, if you have a job."
The hobo drew back suspiciously.
"I ain't very strong, mister."
Again the others laughed, and the political boss smiled.
"I wasn't thinking of anything that would hurt your health," he said."How about doing odd jobs about the Red Queen?"
Anderson went over to the Toad and talked to him for a moment. The Toadgrinned and assented. Allen had known there was no love lost betweenAnderson and Tom Powers, but, even so, things had worked out betterthan
he had hoped. Now he was hired as handy man about the Red Queen.
He took up his new duties on the spot. And between errands he kept hisears open.
"Ace is sure shootin' 'em high to-night. I bet he's lost over athousand," he heard a man say.
"It must come easy to him, because he lost more than that last night,"another laughed.
Allen wandered over to the poker table. Ace Cutts' face was sullen. Acewas a poor gambler, for he became angry and forced his luck. He bluffedwildly and tried to outdraw the other players. Allen watched his chipsmelt away until the last one was gone. Ace leaped to his feet and wentover to Bill Anderson.
"I'm busted, Bill; let me have five hundred," he demanded.
Anderson's face grew flinty, his eyes hard.
"And you'll pay me back out of the sixty a month the judge gives you,"he said with a harsh laugh.
Ace Cutts' dark face flushed; his eyes grew stormy. He leaned forwardas if to whisper something, but Anderson turned away. Ace glared athim, then jammed on his hat and went out to the bar.
"Where the hell does he get his money?" some one asked Anderson.
The political boss shrugged.
"Maybe he signs the judge's name to papers," he suggested.
The other nodded. But Allen was not satisfied with this explanation,for he knew that Anderson knew the judge was broke. A little later hewalked out of the Red Queen and headed toward the Ransoms' house. As hepassed it he whistled softly, then stopped in the shade of some bushesa little farther on. There he was joined by Dutchy.
"That was sure a realistic scrap yuh pulled in Maria's," Allen said byway of greeting.
"Yuh got what yuh was after?" Dutchy asked.
Allen nodded. They whispered together for a few minutes, untilToothpick rode up and dismounted. Without a word he handed his bridleto Allen, who mounted and trotted down the street.
"Damn the little cuss! Why doesn't he tell a fellow what he's doin'?"Toothpick said irritably.
"So yuh can tell the folks in the Red Queen about it?" Dutchy wasscornful. "I'm bettin' he'll find a way through them lava fields."
The following morning, when court opened, the room was again packed.The judge took his seat, and the first witness took the stand. Theprosecuting attorney, visibly upset, began the questioning. It wasapparent at once that the attorney had been "fixed"; he might as wellhave been the defending lawyer, for he asked only questions that werefavorable to the prisoner. The witness looked disappointed when he wasexcused. He had had something to tell and had not the chance to do it.He had been asked many questions, but none of importance.
Another witness took the stand, and the district attorney followed thesame tactics. The judge saw Williams frown. The local attorney wasmaking the thing too obvious. The jury glanced at one another andwhispered among themselves. But this witness was a pugnacious Irishman,and when he was excused he refused to leave the chair.
"Ain't yuh goin' to ask me if Oi seen Pete Cable down that dude?" heroared.
The district attorney paled. He glanced appealingly toward Williams.Before he could determine on a line of action, the foreman of the jurydecided to question the witness himself.
"Did yuh see the prisoner down that dude?" he asked.
"Shure Oi did. The dude was skeered stiff whin Pete yanked out his gun.Pete said deliberate: 'Oi'll learn yuh to call me a card cheat.' Thinhe plunked the dude twice in the stomach."
Williams shouted: "I object!"
The spectators began to move restlessly and mutter in low tones. Thejudge hammered on his desk. When silence was restored, he overruledWilliams' objection.
The district attorney met the belligerent eye of the foreman; he sensedthe angry restlessness of the spectators. He was between the devil andthe deep sea. A coward at heart, he yielded to the present menace. Hehad started this trial crooked, but he would have to finish itstraight. Instantly he did a right-about face and changed his tactics.He called witness after witness, and his questions were now keenlyedged.
When the prosecution rested, not a man in the room would have taken theshort end of a thousand to one that Pete Cable would not hang. Thestraight stories of those witnesses seemed already to have placed therope around his bull-like neck. Confidence had left even the prisoner;pasty yellow mantled his usually red face.
Williams did what he could; he called witnesses who flatly contradictedthe first evidence, but under cross-examination they floundered andcontradicted themselves. By five o'clock the rival attorneys asked timeto prepare their summing up, and court adjourned.
That night the district attorney made a wise decision; he slept in thejail. And two deputies reenforced the judge's usual escort of Dutchyand Silent.
Late that night Allen attacked the mysterious little door in the barnwith a large variety of keys. It gave at last, and he slipped inside. Aladder led to a hayloft, and he went up. He had no light and fumbledfor many minutes before he found another door in the farther end of theloft. More key manipulation and it, too, yielded. Cautiously he creptalong the short hall beyond and listened at the door at the end.
"I've done all I will to save that fool," an unfamiliar voice rasped.
"He's your brother." Allen knew that heavy guttural. It belonged toFrancisco Garcia, the Toad.
"You and he are alike. You lose your temper and kill," the other manreplied.
Allen searched his memory. Where had he heard that voice? At the riskof missing something he hurried to the door at the other end andlistened. If any one came in through the barn he would be caught like arat in a trap. Five seconds later he was back again, straining his ears.
"We'll talk about that when he comes," the unknown man said. "We havegot to start a clean-up pronto. It's our only chance. We got to getthese gents out of the way." He read a list of names, which Allencarefully noted. When the man had finished, he added: "Jim Allen's intown!"
"The Wolf!" A chair crashed as the Toad leaped up.
"Skinny saw him and those grays of his over near the lava fields," theother added. "Skinny's downstairs waiting."
"_Dios!_ The man who killed our father!" the heavy voice of the Toadcried.
"There's two people in town who may know where he holes out--Toothpickand that girl Snippets."
"Then we have to----"
Like a flash Allen slipped back along the hall. Already his exit wasbarred! A blurred figure stood at the top of the ladder. He waited,knowing that whoever it was had seen him in the shadows. The figurevanished behind a post.
"Francisco!" the man called. "There's some one out here."
The inner door to the room was flung open, and Allen heard a voice bawlfor Baldy and the Yuma Kid. Noiselessly Allen circled the post whichhid the man. He was within five feet of the square hole which led tothe floor below when he heard steps pounding upstairs as the twokillers answered the call of their boss. He picked up a board andhurled it across to the opposite wall; he knew that the man behind thepost would look instinctively in that direction. He leaped for thetrapdoor. He plunged through before the man had time to turn and fire.Allen landed on his feet, agile as a cat. The outer door was blockednow by another man. A Colt roared, and the door was empty. Allenslipped through the corral bars.
He ran down the alley and five minutes later entered the Red Queen. Hewas once more the hobo as he slouched into a chair where he could watchthe door that led into the Toad's private quarters. He considered hisdiscoveries. He had learned that there was another brother mixed up inthis affair. He would see to it that Toothpick was sent out of dangerand that Snippets was guarded. He had a suspicion as to who this otherbrother was, but no proof. As a matter of fact, he had no proof ofanything. He would have to get that, and there was very little time tobe lost.
Fifteen minutes later the Toad, followed by his killers, entered. Allenwaited for some time and then decided that the unknown man had left thebarn by the back way. Shuffling, with his hands thrust deep in hispockets, he went to the bar. Here he had a couple of drinks, which, asusual, went, not d
own his throat, but into the cuspidor.
He staggered out to the sidewalk and commenced to sing. As he nearedthe jail Tom Powers came out and seized him by the arm.
"I told yuh I'd run yuh in if I caught yuh again," he cried, and, tothe amusement of several spectators, he dragged the cursing little hoboto the jail door. When this was closed behind them the sheriff releasedAllen's arm and led the unresisting tramp into his own private office.
"I'm glad to meet yuh, Mr. Allen," the sheriff said as he studied thetattered figure opposite him.
Allen grinned.
"We sure worked that pretty. Yuh got to keep me in jail a couple ofdays. I found the way through them lava fields, and I want to see whereit goes to, so I'm lightin' out for there to-night, and I don't reckonI'll be back until after to-morrow."
"And the people over in the Red Queen will think yuh're in jail," thesheriff chuckled. "A good alibi."
"I suppose yuh want to learn what I found out. Maybe yuh recollect ahombre what used to hang out along the Texas border about seven yearsago what called himself '_le Diable a Cheval_?'"
"Yuh betcha--and he was some devil, too," the sheriff said.
"He used to steal girls over the border and hold 'em fer ransom," Allenwent on. "I followed the gent--the Devil on Horseback--for near amonth, then I ketched him and downed him."
The sheriff stared.
"He had four sons by four wives, and all four sons is right here intown. One of 'em ain't far from us here."
"You mean Pete Cable?" the sheriff demanded.
"Sure. That's why the other three are raising such hell to keep Petefrom stretching hemp. I betcha yuh could guess another if yuh thinkshard enough."
Without a moment's hesitation the sheriff answered. "The Toad! An' I'dsay I knew the third if he weren't white."
"Didn't I tell yuh they had different mothers?" Allen grinned.
"Then Anderson did fix those bandages!" the sheriff cried with an oath."Who's the fourth?" he asked.
"I ain't got no idea--don't even know what he looks like. But I didhear once that a gent in Texas who was called 'Cupid Dart' was a son ofthe Devil."
"The two-gun sheriff and bad man?"
"The same."
Briefly Allen told the sheriff about the death list he had heard theunknown man read out in the secret room.
"Two nights from now yuh have Tim Lynch, the Hogg brothers, DocRobinson an' yourself meet me at the judge's, an' I'll have somethin'to tell yuh," he promised. "An' yuh can warn them gents that the bunchthey calls the Lava Gang is goin' to down 'em, 'cause if they can getthe judge's crowd out of the way, they can run things as they choose.With Anderson controllin' the white vote, and the Toad the greaservote, they'd sure break this country wide open and plenty. Yuh and yuhrfriends be careful."
The sheriff shook his head. As yet they had no proof against theirenemies. Yet there was something in the matter-of-fact way Allen spokethat made him hope their difficulties would be over soon.
"Yuh got a back door here?" Allen asked.
The sheriff led him to the small door that opened into a vacant lotbehind the jail.
"Yuh tell Dutchy not to let Snippets out of his sight," Allen gave hisfinal warning. He vanished into the night.
Scarcely had the door closed on him when some one pounded on the frontdoor. The sheriff opened it to an excited news bearer.
"Some one knifed Doc Robinson," gasped the man.
The sheriff called two of his deputies and ran to the doctor's house.The doctor had been knifed in bed. No one had seen the murderer come orgo.
With a sick feeling, the sheriff remembered Allen's story of the fatallist. He left the deputies in charge and went to warn the others ofthat death list. Each took it seriously and quietly, with the exceptionof Jim Hogg, who sputtered and insisted he had a right to know who wasgoing to attack him and why.
"I don't know who, but the why of it is because yuh're an honest man,"Tom Powers told him.
The sheriff found Dutchy in his usual place before the judge's house.When the sheriff gave him Allen's message his only reply was a grunt ofreassurance.
