Rainbow Range

by Robert J. Horton

  “That … would depend,” said Wayne hesitantly. “I don’t know as I would. But I’m not here as a spy or anything like that.”

  To his surprise, Darling laughed harshly. “Lot of good it would do you. A spy! If there’s anybody welcome here, it’s spies. If the soap holes around here could talk, they could tell a story. I’m not afraid of anybody on this range. Get every outfit together and let ’em try to get me. They’ll grab a handful of free air and maybe a mouthful of dirt. Killin’ a couple of men has gone to your head, fellow.”

  Wayne flushed with anger but kept back the hot words on his tongue. “I never coaxed any gun plays,” he said, and was sorry as soon as he had said it.

  “Well, you didn’t sidestep any, I’ll give you credit for that,” said Darling with a scowl. “You’ve done for a couple of good men and now you’re here to make me like it, I gather. Go up to the end cabin.” He waved his hand toward the cabin where Polly Arnold was confined. “There’s a friend of yours up there.” He bared his teeth in a vicious smile.

  Wayne glanced at Hunter and thought he detected a glimmer of surprise in the man’s eyes. Hunter signaled to him to go, and he left the room, closing the door behind him.

  “Who is it?” Hunter asked sharply when Wayne had gone.

  “It’s Pete Arnold’s girl,” said Darling with a grin of triumph.

  Hunter eyed him steadily and Darling frowned. “Kidnapped?” said Hunter. “I suppose you know what that means?”

  “It’s the softest play I ever had,” said Darling angrily. “I’m asking fifty thousand to send her home … and I’ll get it. That old fool isn’t going to let his girl hang out with me any longer than it’ll take him to get the money together, and you know it. I’m going to get more’n that, too. There’s a bunch working on the north range tonight.” He nodded, his eyes flashing fire.

  Hunter was leaning forward in his chair. “It isn’t going to be as soft as you think,” he said. “The Bar A and Whippoorwill outfits will be on us with the sheriffs of two counties helping ’em. Stealing cattle is one thing, Darling, stealing a girl is another.”

  “You’re gettin’ blue behind the ears, Hunter,” sneered Darling. “Don’t you think I know? Arnold and Ed Wayne got into Rainbow this afternoon and half their outfits are there by now. I got the word straight. By this time Arnold’s got the word from me. I told him he could find me and my men, maybe, but, if he started any rough stuff, he wouldn’t find the girl.”

  Hunter stared at the cold cigarette butt between his fingers. “This means the end of this hangout,” he said quietly.

  “Why not?” flared Darling. “This territory is played out anyway. After the cleanup, we cross the line. In Canada,” he added with a significant nod, “we’ll weed the trash out of our outfit. You and me have got a vacation coming.”

  Hunter met his gaze, tight-lipped, his eyes glistening. He knew what Darling meant. They would split the $50,000 between them and keep only enough men to handle the cattle Darling expected to run off from the north range while the two big cow outfits were away. And he knew, too, how Darling intended to weed out the men he didn’t want. It showed in his cruel eyes. He had nothing to say.

  “Now, can I trust you to take charge here tonight?” asked Darling.

  “Why not?” Hunter asked shortly.

  “All right,” said Darling. “I’m going into town myself. Keep Wayne here. I let him see the girl because I may have to use him as a messenger yet … understand?” The dark eyes glowed with cunning. “He’s telling her this very minute that he’ll get her out.” Again that twisted, sneering smile. “He can stay there talking to her all night so far’s I’m concerned. But if he tries to get out of here, the lookouts will shoot him out of his saddle. I’m giving that order when I leave.”

  “I see,” was all Hunter said.

  Darling rose. The twilight had deepened until it was almost night. “If I shouldn’t come back, Jim, it won’t matter what you do,” he said slowly. “There’s just this. You went into this game with me, remember, and I expect you to play it. You’re the only man I trust. I’ve played square with you.”

  He took down a slicker that was hanging behind the desk. The wind had freshened and there were more clouds. “So long,” he said as he went out the door, leaving it open.

  Hunter absently rolled a cigarette and lighted it. Then he went out to unsaddle his horse and Wayne’s.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Wayne walked past the cabins toward the last one wondering what Darling had meant when he had said he would meet a friend. The meeting with Darling had been distasteful. Wayne knew he never could mingle with a band ruled by such a man. The glamour of outlawry, even of wild romance that had surrounded Darling in his imagination had been dissipated when the man had first spoken. Here was a cruel, rough bandit, who made his living, not by his wits, or through cleverness, but by dint of force, unscrupulous attack, bullying, and wanton use of his weapons, both guns and men. Wayne suspected that Darling trafficked considerably on his reputation. He could not understand how Jim Hunter had come to throw in with him. Perhaps there was a lot he didn’t know—in which he suspected the truth.

  It was just about dark when he came to the door of the far cabin. A figure was bending over the table, lighting the lamp. Wayne started back from the threshold with a little cry when he recognized Polly Arnold. He stood, looking at her as the lamplight framed her face against the shadows.

  “Polly!” He stepped into the cabin. The girl looked at him steadily without speaking. “Polly, how did you get here?”

  The girl pointed to his hat on the bunk. “A man brought me that at the hotel yesterday evening and told me you wanted to see me. I took his word and went with him. It was a scheme to get me here. That’s easy to understand. But it’s not so easy to understand how you come to be here … riding in of your own free will with one of Darling’s outlaws. Is this what you’ve come to, Ted Wayne?” A rich scorn was in her voice; her eyes were cold.

  “That hat?” said Wayne. “I lost it during the trouble. Darling kidnapped you?”

  “You didn’t know about it?” Polly inquired, raising her brows.

  “What do you mean?” said Wayne sternly. “Of course I didn’t know about it. Do you think I would have let this happen if I had known or suspected such a move by that cut-throat? Be sensible.”

  “But you’re here, in his camp. He told me last night I would see you. He said you were coming here of your own accord. Those were his very words.”

  “He did?” Wayne was plainly mystified. His face froze in a frown. Hunter must have told the outlaw he was going to bring Wayne to the rendezvous, or else he had asked permission to do so. Then again, it might have been deliberately planned. Had Hunter known of the plan to kidnap Polly?

  Wayne stepped to the door and looked out. No one was in sight. He turned back to the girl. “After the trouble with Jake Barry … I suppose you heard about it? I see. Well, I beat it with Hunter. I didn’t think he was so bad for he befriended me. I didn’t want to stay in town and have more gun play. I asked him to bring me here last night because I wanted to see this Darling out of pure curiosity and nothing else. I have no idea how Darling knew I was coming for we stayed at Hunter’s cabin below here last night. So … it must have been arranged in advance.” He paused and pressed his lips tightly. “That’s how I come to be here and you know I don’t lie. So put your mind to rest on that score. What did Darling say to you?”

  “He wants my father to pay fifty thousand dollars to free me,” said Polly slowly. “I wrote a short note saying I was where Darling said I was … a note to Father. So he must have sent him word.”

  “Why the fool might know he can’t get away with that!” Wayne exploded. He stared at her, thinking rapidly. “I’m going to get you out of here,” he said in a low tone. “Do you know where you are?”

  “In the bad country by the butte,” replied the girl.

  “You’re in Devil’s Hole,” Wayne announced, �
�and nobody from our range except you and me has ever been in here. And what’s more, Darling can stop anybody from getting in here. There’s only one narrow entrance, a hard trail through quicksand.”

  He stepped again to the door and this time he saw Darling leaving the large cabin. He saw him beckon to a man and the man started off. Darling was carrying a slicker. He was going on a ride. When he had disappeared, Wayne saw Hunter come out of the cabin and go to their horses. As he started to unsaddle, Wayne again turned to the girl, standing on the other side of the table.

  “I said I was going to get you out of here and I am,” he said slowly. “I don’t know just how I’m going to do it, but I’ll make it if I have to shoot a way out. And it has to be done before Darling can get his hooks on that money. I just saw him go out with his slicker so he’s riding somewhere, maybe to Rainbow.”

  “Ted!” the girl exclaimed. “I’m depending on him for my safety. He’s the only one who can control the men. He said he hoped he wouldn’t have to go for my sake.”

  “He’s a liar to start with,” said Wayne savagely. “Anyway, Hunter is unsaddling our horses so he must figure on staying here tonight, and I wouldn’t leave you here under any circumstances. Polly, don’t you believe me?” There was a pleading note in his voice, a pained look in his eyes.

  “Yes, Ted,” said the girl softly, “I believe you.”

  He took a step to go around the table and take her in his arms, but thought better of it. “Listen, Polly,” he said in some excitement, “the clouds are bunching up and I reckon the heat we’ve had the last few days is bringing on a storm. I didn’t see many men around and we did see a bunch leaving here before we came in. Hunter is practically the only man I have to reckon with. Put your light out early, and, if you hear two raps twice in succession, it’ll be me. I’m going because I don’t want Hunter to think we’re framing anything. So long, girlie.”

  As he turned to the door, Polly hurried around the table, threw her arms about his neck impulsively, and kissed him. Then she held him off, breathless. “Don’t do any more shooting, Ted,” she said in a low voice. “I’d rather stay than …”

  “Leave it to me,” he put in quickly. And then he was gone.

  It now was dark. The gathering clouds were rapidly obscuring the stars. There was a wind, but it might be hours before the storm broke. There were flashing pale sheets of heat lightning.

  Wayne met Hunter in front of the big cabin.

  “We’ll go over here,” said Hunter, and he led the way to a smaller cabin. There was no one inside as they discovered when Hunter had lighted the lamp. There were four sets of bunks with two bunks to the set, one below and one above. A table and benches comprised the other furnishings.

  Hunter closed the door. He sat on a bench by the table and Wayne sat on a lower bunk. Both rolled a cigarette.

  “Do you know who’s here?” Wayne asked, striking a match.

  “Yes, Polly Arnold,” replied Hunter coolly.

  Wayne lighted his cigarette. He took a few puffs and put the question uppermost in his mind, looking Hunter straight in the eye. “Did you know Darling was going to kidnap Polly?”

  “No,” replied Hunter with a frown. “First I knew of her being here was when Darling told me a bit ago. How is she?”

  “Oh, she’s all right,” said Wayne. “But it isn’t a very pleasant situation for a girl to be in. It’s a dangerous piece of work, Hunter. It’ll make a hornets’ nest out of this whole range. This is once when Darling will find things too hot for him.”

  “This isn’t an easy place to get into,” mused Hunter. “And there are guards on the outside with orders to shoot to kill.”

  Wayne wondered if this was said for his benefit. “Are we going to stay here tonight, then?” he asked.

  “Yes,” was the short answer.

  “Has Darling gone away?”

  “He’s gone to Rainbow where your dad and Pete Arnold are this minute,” said Hunter.

  “Then the Bar A and Whippoorwill outfits will be following ’em,” said Wayne. “Darling has nerve, at that.”

  “No one ever has accused him of not having it,” Hunter remarked dryly. “He’s safe enough, maybe, with the girl here.”

  Wayne wanted to ask him how Darling knew, or professed to know, that Wayne would be coming to the rendezvous, but he held back the question. Hunter pulled off his boots and took off some of his clothing. “Blow the light out when you turn in,” he said with a yawn as he lay down on one of the bunks and turned his face to the wall.

  Wayne smoked another cigarette before he put out the light and lay down in the bunk fully clothed. The lightning was playing, but there was no thunder. Wayne watched the pale flashes light the window and slowly evolved his plan.

  * * * * *

  Ed Wayne and Pete Arnold did not ride fast, and before they reached Rainbow in the late afternoon some members of the Bar A and WP outfits had caught up with them. The WP owner gave the order to stay out of the resorts and avoid any trouble.

  When they had put up their horses, the two stockmen sought Fred Hastings. But Hastings knew nothing of what had happened the night before save for what his night man had told him. And this was substantially what he had told Jack McCurdy.

  Ed Wayne and Arnold then went to The Three Colors. Miles Henseler invited them at once into his private office.

  First they heard the resortkeeper’s account of the meeting between Ted Wayne and Jake Barry. Henseler was careful to absolve Ted of all blame. He appeared nervous and his glances roved.

  “Where did Ted go afterward?” Ed Wayne asked.

  “He rode away with Hunter. He had to get out because that crowd of Barry’s was set to get him any way they could.”

  “Have you any idea where he went with Hunter?” Ed Wayne demanded.

  “No,” replied Henseler. Replying to further questions he said he knew Polly Arnold had been in town, but thought she had gone home. He was genuinely astonished and puzzled when he learned she had disappeared.

  “I don’t know anything about it,” he declared. “If … if Darling grabbed her, she’s safe enough. He’s wise enough not to harm her. I … well, I don’t know anything about it and that’s the straight truth. I wouldn’t lie to either of you, anyway. But I have to be careful here and keep on the outside. I’ve got a peculiar trade.”

  He had hardly finished when there was a knock on the door. A bartender handed him an envelope. He closed the door and looked at it. “Why, it’s for you, Pete,” he said, handing the envelope to the stockman.

  Arnold tore it open and found two notes. He read them and his face went gray. Without a word he passed them to Ed Wayne. Wayne read Polly Arnold’s brief message first, and then one from Darling.

  Your girl is safe with me at present. I want $50,000 cash, delivered to me by you in person and alone. Go to Rainbow when you get this and wait for word which will come from me. If you raise a fuss things won’t be too good.

  Darling

  Pete Arnold was wiping beads of sweat from his forehead and hands. Ed Wayne’s eyes had narrowed. He handed the notes to Henseler and turned to Arnold. “You’re here,” he said. “The only thing to do is to wait for the word from that cut-throat.”

  Henseler was staring at the notes, wetting his lips with his tongue. Arnold spoke to him in a low voice. “Henseler, have you got fifty thousand in cash?” he asked.

  “Why … yes,” replied the resortkeeper. “It’ll cut me short, but you can have it if you want it.”

  “I’ll give you a three-day note,” said Arnold grimly. “Now Ed and me are goin’ to the hotel. I suppose the word’ll come through here.” He took the two notes and pocketed them.

  “Now understand, I’ve got nothing to do with this,” said Henseler earnestly. “If Darling wants to leave word here for somebody, I can’t very well help it. I’ll try to find out who brought this in.”

  “Never mind,” said Ed Wayne sharply. “Just remember where we are, although Darling’s spies
will find out quick enough.”

  As the two stockmen went out, Wayne told Arnold the wording of the note from Darling, instructing him to come to Rainbow, showed that the outlaw had expected the note to be delivered at the Bar A. Such being the case, the notes had been sent in the morning. “It won’t be long before he knows we’re here,” he finished.

  * * * * *

  By midnight most of the Bar A and WP outfits were in town. And it was then that a messenger came with word for Arnold to go to The Three Colors.

  “I’ve a good notion to throw the men around that place,” said Ed Wayne. “We might …”

  “No,” said Arnold. “I can’t take any risks or make any hostile moves until Polly is safe at home. When I have her back, we’ll wipe Darling and his gang out clean, and without botherin’ any sheriffs. You stay here. I’ll go up there alone.”

  Ten minutes later the visibly shaken Henseler led him to a rear room in the resort and Arnold found himself facing Darling.

  “Don’t try any tricks,” warned the outlaw, his eyes gleaming, cold and hard. “If we don’t come to terms at this meeting, we may never meet again. I know about the men you and old Wayne have got in town. Are you going to shell out?”

  “Where’s Polly?” asked Arnold, struggling to control his voice.

  “I didn’t come here to answer questions, but to ask ’em,” said Darling in a sinister voice. “Are you going to come across? I’m telling you I haven’t got much time.”

  With a great effort Arnold kept a grip on himself. “Take me to Polly and turn her over to me and I’ll pay the money,” he said. He knew it would be futile to threaten the man before him. And his whole concern was for his daughter.

  “You’ve arranged for the money?” Darling asked sternly.

  “Yes,” said Arnold after hesitating several moments.

  “All right,” said Darling in a satisfied tone. “Stay here in town. And see that old Wayne stays in town. And keep all your men right here in town. I’ll turn the girl over to you within twenty-four hours in my own way. That’s giving myself plenty of time and that’s the way I want it. And you can’t make a move without me knowing it.”