Oliver Strange - Sudden Westerns 04 - Sudden Outlawed(1934) (32 page)

 
          
He
removed his hat and bowed, either in real or pretended politeness, as
Carol—anxious about her father—appeared. Baudry, who had apparently been to
fetch her, was just behind. His eyes met those of the bandit leader for one
brief instant -but his face was devoid of expression.

 
          
In
twos and threes the rescuers were returning, whooping triumphantly, some of
them waving ghastly trophies from which the blood dripped redly. They grouped
themselves behind
Rogue,
their cruel, reckless faces
alight with the lust of slaughter. The cowboys too rallied round their boss;
they did not like the attitude of these men who had come to their aid. Rogue
alone seemed unconscious of any tension.

 
          
“We
seem fated to meet in unpleasant circumstances, Miss Eden,” he said easily,
aware that by speaking to her he was rubbing the rancher on a raw place.

 
          
“My
daughter don’t
wanta talk to a rustler,” Eden said.

 
          
The
girl gazed reproachfully at her angry parent. “He came to our assistance,” she
reminded. Her eyes widened as she saw that Rogue’s wrist was torn. “
you
are hurt,” she went on.

 
          
“I’ve
some bandages here—I got them ready, in case….”

 
          
“It’s
on’y a graze—not worth fussin’ over,” the outlaw muttered.

 
          
But
Carol insisted, and Rogue’s eyes regarded her curiously as she deftly bound up
the wound.

 
          
“I’m
obliged,” he said gruffly.

 
          
“I
got a scratch too,” Navajo put in, his evil, leering gaze on the girl.

 
          
Rogue
spun round. “Get to hell outa this,” he hissed and before the deadly menace in
tone and look the half-breed fell back.

 
          
The
outlaw leader stepped into his saddle. “Well, so long, Eden,” he said. “We’ll
be
seem
’ yu. If yu bump into any more trouble, send,
an’ we’ll come a-runnin’. This time we couldn’t help ourselves; next time,
mebbe we’ll be able to.”

 
          
With
this meaning jest he signed to his men and rode away, indifferent to the
threatening growls which greeted it.

 
          
THE
herd went on, leaving behind one of the oblong heaps of rock which were only
too frequent on the western trails. The rancher was hard to live with during
the ensuing days. The loss of one of his men had depressed him; he became
moody, savage. The very thought that he had been placed under an obligation to
one he despised as an outlaw, who made no secret of his intention to rob him,
filled the old frontiersman with fury. He was troubled too with odd doubts in
the matter of Green and Sandy.

 
          
Baudry
also was far from happy, for Carol avoided him as much as possible, and was
coldly courteous when she could not. But this, though it put a raw edge on his
vanity, was not what most concerned him. It was several days after the Indian
attack that he made an opportunity to speak with Dutt alone.

 
          
“Well,
Monte, yu ain’t lookin’ too peart,” was the greeting he received. “
What’s disturbin’ yore rosy dreams
?”

 
          
“I’ve
told you not to use that name,” the gambler growled. “So you are satisfied with
the situation, eh?”

 
          
“Shore
I am. Rogue has got this outfit where we want it, an’ with those two cowboys in
the discard, it looks like pie to me.”

 
          
“Unless
Rogue keeps the cows and sells them himself.”

 
          
“At
that, we’re on velvet. Eden’s busted an’ we get the S E.”

 
          
“And
that damned outlaw picks up fifty thousand dollars or more. No, Davy, I’m not
standing for that. I offered to take those cows at five a head and I’m going to
have them. There’s another danger, the damn fool is turning soft. Did you see
his face when Carol tied his wrist up?”

 
          
“He
certainly didn’t seem to enjoy it as much as—yu might —for instance.”

 
          
“Enjoy
it? That was torture for him, it fetched back his past and showed him where he
had dropped to. I don’t suppose a good woman has stretched out a hand to him
for years. She played a big card then, though she didn’t know it. I was
watching him and I tell you I wouldn’t be surprised if he let Eden keep his
cows for her sake.”

 
          
Dutt
was plainly incredulous. “Rogue’s too tough to fall for a skirt,” he said. “An’
his men wouldn’t let him; we can see to it that they don’t.”

 
          
The
gambler nodded. “Tell Rollitt to find Navajo and warn him. Rogue must steal the
herd. Afterwards—we shall see. My share of that fifty thousand would pay for
the wedding trip I have in mind, Davy.”

 
          
“First
catch yore bride,” the other parodied.

 
          
“She’ll
come to heel, when her father is faced with finding a job,” Baudry said.

 
          
“Yo’re
probably right, but don’t forget the fella they call Sandy is interested in
that quarter.”

 
          
The
gambler shrugged his shoulders.
“That cowboy?
He’s
easy.”

 
          
“Mebbe,
but I wouldn’t think it,” Dutt replied. “An’ he’s got a friend—who ain’t.”

 
          
“Sudden,
no, but if he shows his face in Abilene he’ll be strung up and we’ll split the
reward two ways,” Baudry smiled, tapping the pocket containing a certain
printed notice.

 
          
“Suits
me,” Dutt agreed. “I’ll search out Rollitt.”

 
          
Camp
was being struck and preparations made for the day’s trek when Sudden and his
two companions made their appearance, greatly to the astonishment of such of
the S E outfit as were present.

 
          
For
days since the encounter with the redskins they had trailed the herd, watched
the crossing of a river which Tyson opined must be the Cimarron, a stream with
an evil reputation but which they fortunately found not in flood.

 
          
The
two cowboys had found the “still-hunter” more than useful. Not only had he kept
them well supplied with game, but his knowledge of woodcraft made him an ideal
spy on the outlaws. But he had not yet learned when they intended to make the
final move. Sudden, however, guessed that the blow could not now be long
delayed, and that was why he had ridden in. The rancher received him with a
scowl.

 
          
“Eden,
I want a word with yu,” the cowboy said. “I’m goin’ to put my cards on the
table, an’ yu’d better look at ‘em.”

 
          
Without
waiting for assent, he dismounted and trailed the reins. The S E men silently
ranged themselves by their employer. When Carol appeared, the cattleman would
have sent her away, but Sudden intervened:

 
          
“I’d
like Miss Eden to hear what I gotta say.”

 
          
“We’re
going to listen to some more lies, eh?” Baudry sneered.

 
          
“Not
unless yu say somethin’,”
came
the acid retort.
“This’ll be the truth, though I misdoubt yu’ll recognize it.” He turned to
Eden. “First, I gotta talk about myself.”

 
          
Very
briefly he told the tale of his adventures to the time he joined the S E outfit
and the supercilious smile on the gambler’s lips became more pronounced. When
Sudden paused he laughed outright.

 
          
“Damned
good,” he jeered. “You ought to be writing dime novels. Why didn’t you come out
with this fine story then?”

 
          
“I
couldn’t prove it,” the cowboy said simply. “An’ I wanted to get outa the
country.”

 
          
“I’ll
bet you did,”
came
the gibe. “Besides, you were
working for Rogue.”

 
          
Sudden
raised his shoulders. “This fella claims he’s goin’ to ranch near yu,” he said
to Eden. “Did he mention his brand?” The old man shook his head. “Well, it
don’t
signify—he told yore daughter. See here.”

 
          
He
picked up a half-burnt stick from the fire and in the sand at his feet traced
the letters, S E. Then he joined up the ends of both, turning them into 8 B.”

      
 
“That’s his iron,” he said quietly.

 
          
“Convenient,
ain’t it?”

 
          
Baudry’s
expression of amused indifference vanished. “By heaven, Sam, I never thought of
that,” he cried.
“Comes of not being a cattleman.”

 
          
It
was well done, but his laugh met with no response; brand-blotting was not a
subject of mirth in that company. , “yeah,” Sudden said ironically. “While I
was stayin’ with Rogue, his men brought in a bunch o’ cattle to brand. As I
told yu, they were feedin’ me, so I did my share.

 
          
They
were supposed to be mavericks, but most of ‘em was S E when they
was
thrown an’ 8 B when they got up.”

 
          
“Which
only proves that Rogue was taking advantage of my ignorance to sell me stolen
steers,” Baudry pointed out. “Till the other day I’d never seen the fellow. I
let it be known I wanted stock and took it for granted they would be unmarked
strays.”

 
          
“Rogue
told me a man was payin’ him to bust this drive an’ was willin’ to take all or
any o’ the herd,” the cowboy went on. “Who gets yore ranch, Eden, if yu fail to
put yore cattle through?”

 
          
The
rancher started, and looked suspiciously at his guest. Baudry reached out a
cigar, lit it, and laughed.

 
          
“Dime
novel stuff,” he said. “Prove it.”

 
          
“Right,”
the other rejoined. “Eden, I want yore hoss-wrangler, Rollitt.”

 
          
The
gambler’s eyes flickered. “Fetch him, Davy,” he said.

 
          
“No,”
Sudden said sharply, and motioned to Jeff.

 
          
The
foreman returned with the wrangler, whose shifty eyes widened when he saw the
visitors. “Yu wantin’ me?” he asked his employer.

 
          
“I’m
wantin’ yu,” Sudden told him. “How long yu been in with Rogue?”

 
          
The
abruptness of the question caught the fellow off his guard, but he recovered
quickly, his look of alarm giving place to one of sullen obstinacy.

 
          
“
Ain’t never
,” he growled. “What yu gittin’ at?”

 
          
“The
truth,” Sudden retorted. A gun seemed to leap into his hand. “Rollitt, I’m
givin’ yu a chance to come clean. If yu don’t, I’ll kill yu.” The cold,
merciless tone drove the threat home.

 
          
The
wrangler’s gaze travelled round the circle of faces. “Nobody can help yu,” the
icy voice went on. “Whatever happens to me, yu’ll be as dead as Moses.”

 
          
Rollitt
looked at the levelled gun; if the thumb moved and let fall the hammer…. He was
not the stuff of which heroes are made.

 
          
“Mebbe
it’s a year,” he said huskily. “I broke away” The gun roared and a line of red
on the man’s cheekbone showed where the bullet had grazed him.

 
          
“The
next lie will be yore last,” the marksman warned. “
yu’ve
been watched, yu fool.