by Max Brand
CHAPTER 26
He dismounted and gave his horse to one of the others, telling them thathe would do the scouting himself this time, and he went back on foot tothe house of Pop. He made his steps noiseless as he came closer, notthat he expected to surprise Pop to any purpose, but the naturalinstinct of the trailer made him advance with caution, and, when he wasclose enough to the door he heard: "Oh, he's a clever gent, wellenough, but they ain't any of 'em so clever that they can't learnsomethin' new." Hal Dozier paused with his hand raised to rap at thedoor and he heard Pop say in continuation: "You write this down in red,sonny, and don't you never forget it: The wisest gent is the gent thatdon't take nothin' for granted."
It came to Hal Dozier that, if he delayed his entrance for anothermoment, he might hear something distinctly to his advantage; but hisrole of eavesdropper did not fit with his broad shoulders, and, afterknocking on the door, he stepped in. Pop was putting away the dishes,and Jud was scrubbing out the sink.
"The boys are working up the trail," said Hal Dozier, "but they can doit by themselves. I know that the trail ends at the cliff. I'll tell youthat poor kid walked to the edge of the cliff, stopped there a minute;made up his mind that he was bleeding to death, and then cut it short.He jumped, missed the rocks underneath, and was carried off by theriver." Dozier followed up his statement with some curse words.
He watched the face of the other keenly, but the old man was busyfilling his pipe. His eyebrows, to be sure, flicked up as he heard thistragedy announced, and there was a breath from Jud. "I'll tell you,Dozier," said the other, lighting his pipe and then tamping the red-hotcoals with his calloused forefinger, "I'm kind of particular about theway people cusses around Jud. He's kind of young, and they ain't anykind of use of him litterin' up his mind with useless words. Don't meanno offense to you, Dozier."
The deputy officer took a chair and tipped it back against the wall. Hefelt that he had been thoroughly checkmated in his first move; and yethe sensed an atmosphere of suspicion in this little house. It lingeredin the air. Also, he noted that Jud was watching him with rather wideeyes and a face of unhealthy pallor; but that might very well be becauseof the awe which the youngster felt in beholding Hal Dozier, themanhunter, at close range. All these things were decidedly small clews,but the marshal was accustomed to acting on hints.
In the meantime, Pop, having put away the last of the dishes in acupboard, whose shelves were lined with fresh white paper, offeredDozier a cup of coffee. While he sipped it, the marshal complimented hishost on the precision with which he maintained his house.
"It looks like a woman's hand had been at work," concluded the marshal.
"Something better'n that," declared the other. "A man's hand, Dozier.People has an idea that because women mostly do housework men are out ofplace in a kitchen. It ain't so. Men just got somethin' more importanton their hands most of the time." His eyes glanced sadly toward his gunrack. "Women is a pile overpraised, Dozier. I ask you, man to man, didyou ever see a cleaner floor than that in a woman's kitchen?"
The marshal admitted that he never had. "But you're a rare man," hesaid.
Pop shook his head. "When I was a boy like you," he said, "I wasn'tnothin' to be passed up too quick. But a man's young only once, andthat's a short time--and he's old for years and years and years,Dozier." He added, for fear that he might have depressed his guest, "Butme and Jud team it, you see. I'm extra old and Jud's extra young--so wekind of hit an average."
He touched the shoulder of the boy and there was a flash of eyes betweenthem, the flicker of a smile. Hal Dozier drew a breath. "I got no kidsof my own," he declared. "You're lucky, friend. And you're lucky to havethis neat little house."
"No, I ain't. They's no luck to it, because I made every sliver of itwith my own hands." An idea came to the deputy marshal.
"There's a place up in the hills behind my house, a day's ride," hesaid, "where I go hunting now and then, and I've an idea a little houselike this would be just the thing for me. Mind if I look it over?"
Pop tamped his pipe.
"Sure thing," he said. "Look as much as you like."
He stepped to a corner of the room and by a ring he raised a trapdoor."I got a cellar 'n' everything. Take a look at it below."
He lighted the lantern, and Hal Dozier went down the steep steps,humming. "Look at the way that foundation's put in," said the old man ina loud voice. "I done all that, too, with my own hands."
His voice was so unnecessarily loud, indeed, just as if the deputy werealready under ground, that it occurred to Dozier that if a man werelying in that cellar he would be amply warned. And going down he walkedwith the lantern held to one side, to keep the light off his own body asmuch as possible; his hand kept at his hip.
But, when he reached the cellar, he found only some boxes and cannedprovisions in a rack at one side, and a various litter all kept in closeorder. Big stones had been chiseled roughly into shape to build thewalls, and the flooring was as dry as the floor of the house. It was, onthe whole, a very solid bit of work. A good place to imprison a man, forinstance. At this thought Dozier glanced up sharply and saw the otherholding the trapdoor ajar. Something about that implacable, bony facemade Dozier turn and hurry back up the stairs to the main floor ofthe house.
"Nice bit of work down there," he said. "I can use that idea very well.Well," he added carelessly, "I wonder when my fool posse will getthrough hunting for the remains of poor Lanning? Come to think ofit"--for it occurred to him that if the old man were indeed concealingthe outlaw he might not know the price which was on his head--"there'sa pretty little bit of coin connected with Lanning. Too bad you didn'tdrop him when he came to your door."
"Drop a helpless man--for money?" asked the old man. "Never, Dozier!"
"He hadn't long to live, anyway," answered the marshal in someconfusion. Those old, straight eyes of Pop troubled him.
He fenced with a new stroke for a confession.
"For my part, I've never had much heart in this work of mine."
"He killed your brother, didn't he?" asked Pop with considerabledryness.
"Bill made the wrong move," replied Hal instantly. "He never should haveridden Lanning down in the first place. Should have let the fool kid gountil he found out that Buck Heath wasn't killed. Then he would havecome back of his own accord."
"That's a good idea," remarked the other, "but sort of late, it strikesme. Did you tell that to the sheriff?"
"Late it is," remarked Dozier, not following the question. "Now the poorkid is outlawed. Well, between you and me, I wish he'd gotten awayclean-handed. But too late now.
"By the way," he went on, "I'd like to take a squint at your attic, too.That ladder goes up to it, I guess."
"Go ahead," said Pop. And once more he tamped his pipe.
There was a sharp, shrill cry from the boy, and Dozier whirled on him.He saw a pale, scared face.
"What's the matter?" he asked sharply. "What's the matter with you,Jud?" And he fastened his keen glance on the boy.
Vaguely, from the corner of his eye, he felt that Pop had taken the pipefrom his mouth. There was a sort of breathless touch in the air of theroom. "Nothin'," said Jud. "Only--you know the rungs of that ladderain't fit to be walked on, grandad!"
"Jud," said the old man with a strained tone, "It ain't my business togive warnin's to an officer of the law--not mine. He'll find out littlethings like that for himself."
For one moment Dozier remained looking from one face to the other. Thenhe shrugged his shoulders and went slowly up the ladder. It squeakedunder his weight, he felt the rungs bow and tremble. Halfway up heturned suddenly, but Pop was sitting as old men will, humming a tune andkeeping time to it by patting the bowl of his pipe with a forefinger.
And Dozier made up his mind.
He turned and came down the ladder. "I guess there's no use looking inthe attic," he said. "Same as any other attic, I suppose, Pop?"
"The same?" asked Pop, taking the pipe from his mouth. "I should tell ama
n it ain't. It's my work, that attic is, and it's different. I handledthe joinin' of them joists pretty slick, but you better go and see foryourself."
And he smiled at the deputy from under his bushy brows. Hal Doziergrinned broadly back at him.
"I've seen your work in the cellar, Pop," he said. "I don't want to riskmy neck on that ladder. No, I'll have to let it go. Besides, I'll haveto round up the boys."
He waved farewell, stepped through the door, and closed it behind him.
"Grandad," exclaimed Jud in a gasp.
The old man silenced him with a raised finger and a sudden frown. Heslipped to the door in turn with a step so noiseless that even Judwondered. Years seemed to have fallen from the shoulders of hisgrandfather. He opened the door quickly, and there stood the deputy. Hisback, to be sure, was turned to the door, but he hadn't moved.
"Think I see your gang over yonder," said Pop. "They seem to be sort ofwaitin' for you, Dozier."
The other turned and twisted one glance up at the old man.
"Thanks," he said shortly and strode away.
Pop closed the door and sank into a chair. He seemed suddenly to haveaged again.
"Oh, grandad," said Jud, "how'd you guess he was there all the time?"
"I dunno," said Pop. "Don't bother me."
"But why'd you beg him to look into the attic? Didn't you know he'd seehim right off?"
"Because he goes by contraries, Jud. He wouldn't of started for theladder at all, if you hadn't told him he'd probably break his neck onit. Only when he seen I didn't care, he made up his mind he didn't wantto see that attic."
"And if he'd gone up?" whispered Jud.
"Don't ask me what would of happened," said Pop.
All his bony frame was shaken by a shiver.
"Is he such a fine fighter?" asked Jud.
"Fighter?" echoed Pop. "Oh, lad, he's the greatest hand with a gun thatever shoved foot into stirrup. He--he was like a bulldog on a trail--andall I had for a rope to hold him was just a little spider thread ofthinking. Gimme some coffee, Jud. I've done a day's work."
