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diff --git a/old/62479-0.txt b/old/62479-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index e75a2e5..0000000 --- a/old/62479-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11030 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Buffalo Bill Entrapped, by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Buffalo Bill Entrapped - or, A Close Call - -Author: Colonel Prentiss Ingraham - -Release Date: June 26, 2020 [EBook #62479] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BUFFALO BILL ENTRAPPED *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, David Edwards, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - Buffalo Bill Entrapped - - OR, - - A CLOSE CALL - - - BY - - Colonel Prentiss Ingraham - - Author of the celebrated “Buffalo Bill” stories published in the BORDER - STORIES. For other titles see catalogue. - -[Illustration] - - STREET & SMITH CORPORATION - PUBLISHERS - 79–89 Seventh Avenue, New York - - - - - Copyright, 1915 - By STREET & SMITH - - Buffalo Bill Entrapped - - (Printed in the United States of America) - - All rights reserved, including that of translation into foreign - languages, including the Scandinavian. - - - - - IN APPRECIATION OF WILLIAM F. CODY - (BUFFALO BILL). - - -It is now some generations since Josh Billings, Ned Buntline, and -Colonel Prentiss Ingraham, intimate friends of Colonel William F. Cody, -used to forgather in the office of Francis S. Smith, then proprietor of -the _New York Weekly_. It was a dingy little office on Rose Street, New -York, but the breath of the great outdoors stirred there when these -old-timers got together. As a result of these conversations, Colonel -Ingraham and Ned Buntline began to write of the adventures of Buffalo -Bill for Street & Smith. - -Colonel Cody was born in Scott County, Iowa, February 26, 1846. Before -he had reached his teens, his father, Isaac Cody, with his mother and -two sisters, migrated to Kansas, which at that time was little more than -a wilderness. - -When the elder Cody was killed shortly afterward in the Kansas “Border -War,” young Bill assumed the difficult rôle of family breadwinner. -During 1860, and until the outbreak of the Civil War, Cody lived the -arduous life of a pony-express rider. Cody volunteered his services as -government scout and guide and served throughout the Civil War with -Generals McNeil and A. J. Smith. He was a distinguished member of the -Seventh Kansas Cavalry. - -During the Civil War, while riding through the streets of St. Louis, -Cody rescued a frightened schoolgirl from a band of annoyers. In true -romantic style, Cody and Louisa Federci, the girl, were married March 6, -1866. - -In 1867 Cody was employed to furnish a specified amount of buffalo meat -to the construction men at work on the Kansas Pacific Railroad. It was -in this period that he received the sobriquet “Buffalo Bill.” - -In 1868 and for four years thereafter Colonel Cody served as scout and -guide in campaigns against the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians. It was -General Sheridan who conferred on Cody the honor of chief of scouts of -the command. - -After completing a period of service in the Nebraska legislature, Cody -joined the Fifth Cavalry in 1876, and was again appointed chief of -scouts. - -Colonel Cody’s fame had reached the East long before, and a great many -New Yorkers went out to see him and join in his buffalo hunts, including -such men as August Belmont, James Gordon Bennett, Anson Stager, and J. -G. Heckscher. In entertaining these visitors at Fort McPherson, Cody was -accustomed to arrange Wild-West exhibitions. In return his friends -invited him to visit New York. It was upon seeing his first play in the -metropolis that Cody conceived the idea of going into the show business. - -Assisted by Ned Buntline, novelist, and Colonel Ingraham, he started his -“Wild West” show, which later developed and expanded into “A Congress of -the Roughriders of the World,” first presented at Omaha, Nebraska. In -time it became a familiar yearly entertainment in the great cities of -this country and Europe. Many famous personages attended the -performances, and became his warm friends, including Mr. Gladstone, the -Marquis of Lorne, King Edward, Queen Victoria, and the Prince of Wales, -now King of England. - -At the outbreak of the Sioux, in 1890 and 1891, Colonel Cody served at -the head of the Nebraska National Guard. In 1895 Cody took up the -development of Wyoming Valley by introducing irrigation. Not long -afterward he became judge advocate general of the Wyoming National -Guard. - -Colonel Cody (Buffalo Bill) died in Denver, Colorado, on January 10, -1917. His legacy to a grateful world was a large share in the -development of the West, and a multitude of achievements in -horsemanship, marksmanship, and endurance that will live for ages. His -life will continue to be a leading example of the manliness, courage, -and devotion to duty that belonged to a picturesque phase of American -life now passed, like the great patriot whose career it typified, into -the Great Beyond. - - - - - BUFFALO BILL ENTRAPPED. - - - - - CHAPTER I. - IN A TIGHT PLACE. - - -One June night in the early seventies, the sole occupant of a lonely -cabin high up in the Rockies had a bad dream. Pursued by a legion of -monsters, he found himself on the verge of a bottomless pit. While he -choked with terror, a terrific noise as of the bursting of a bomb -dissipated the horrible illusion to which his brain had been subjected, -and he awoke gasping and wild-eyed. His face was covered with a cold -perspiration, and for some moments he was incapable of movement. With -the return of his wits came sounds that he could distinguish. They -brought him to his feet instantly. Not far away had come a succession of -pistol and rifle shots. - -As he hurriedly dressed, a bright light streamed in at the window. The -room was brilliantly lighted up, and the man could hear the crackling of -timbers, and knew that the cabin of his nearest neighbor was in flames. - -Opening the door, he stepped out into the open air. The sky for a great -distance presented a lurid spectacle. - -Looking toward the lower end of the small flat upon which he was -located, he saw, as he expected, a cabin on fire. - -The crack! crack! of a rifle greeted his ears as he was on the point of -starting for the cabin. What did all these shots mean? Was the fire the -work of an incendiary, and had murder been added to arson? - -Bart Angell, hunter, scout, and Indian fighter, as brave a man as ever -stood six feet two without boots, compressed his lips tightly, and into -his sharp, homely, honest face there crept an expression of grim -resolution. Rifle in hand, he started on a run for the burning cabin, -and was about halfway to the spot when he caught sight of a man, a -stranger, running from the fire and toward the brush at the outlet of a -ravine. - -Crack! went Angell’s rifle, and the runner, with an unearthly scream, -fell to the ground. - -The cabin was in ruins as the scout passed it to reach the form of the -man he had shot. - -He was near the victim, who was lying on his face, when he heard a faint -voice calling him from the bushes on his right. He stopped, said loudly, -“Who’s that?” and, receiving no answer, walked quickly toward the place -whence the voice had come. - -The light was still strong enough for Angell to see about him, and he -was near the bushes when he saw a section of the buckskin habiliments of -a man who was lying on the ground. - -“That you, Bart?” asked a faint voice, as the scout reached the bushes. - -“Great Cæsar’s ghost!” ejaculated Angell, as his eyes rested on the face -of the prostrate man in buckskin. “Buffalo Bill!” - -The king of scouts tried to rise, but the effort was a failure. “I—I am -all right, Bart,” he said, with an attempt at a smile. “Lost blood that -I need in my business, that’s all.” - -Angell quickly made an examination of Buffalo Bill’s hurt. He had been -shot in the side, and it was impossible then to tell how serious was the -injury. But after the wound had been washed and bandaged and a generous -stimulant had been administered, the king of scouts diagnosed his case, -and, as it proved, correctly. - -“The bullet did not go straight into my anatomy, Bart. That’s a cinch.” -He felt along his side. “It struck a rib, glanced and shot upward. I can -feel it under the skin near the armpit.” - -“Then I’ll purceed ter seperate it from yer person, old son,” remarked -Angell, and with his hunting knife he deftly performed this bit of -surgery. - -The operation over, he said: “I’ve shore got ter ask yer ter excuse me -fer a few minutes. Thar’s a measly rickaroon at the edge of ther flat -that is claimin’ my attention.” - -“Come to remember, I did hear your Peter Erastus speak just before I -called to you, Bart. Did you bring down your man?” - -The homely scout snorted. “Do I know how ter shoot? Buffalo, I’m ashamed -on ye.” - -With these words he walked away, and was soon bending over the form of -his victim. The man was not dead, but the end was not far off. - -Angell raised the victim’s head and gazed sharply into the pale face. -The man was an utter stranger. He had a large mouth, a retreating chin, -and little eyes set close together. Upon his face was a stubby, reddish -growth of hair. - -The eyes opened after some whisky had been poured down the man’s throat. - -“Got me fer keeps,” was the hoarse remark, the little eyes blinking -furiously. - -“Yer shore goin’ ter peter,” replied Angell gravely; “an’, bein’ ez that -aire so, it’s up ter you ter tell ther truth. Why d’ye fire ther cabin -an’ shoot Buffalo Bill, an’ whatever hev become of Matt Holmes, who -lived in ther cabin?” - -“I never shot no one,” said the dying man. “I sot ther cabin on fire, -an’ that’s all I did. I aimed ter do ther killin’, but it war done—war -done—by——” The voice ceased, and a few seconds later Bart Angell was -looking at the face of a dead man. - -With a sour face, the slayer left the body and returned to the king of -scouts. - -“I didn’t git thar in time fer a satisfactory auntymottim, as them aire -crowner fellers would say,” he announced. “Ther skunk went up ther flume -without tellin’ all he knowed about ther fire an’ ther shootin’. -But”—his countenance lighting up—“mebbe you kin fill in ther blanks.” - -“Who was the man you killed?” inquired Buffalo Bill eagerly. - -“Hanged ef I know. Some ornery cuss that looks as ef he war three parts -idjut.” - -“Is he well dressed and a good looker in the face?” - -“Not by a jugful. He aire as homely as a hedge fence, and he wears the -clothes of a scarecrow.” - -“Then the villain who is responsible for this night’s work has escaped.” - -“Do ye know him?” - -“No, I don’t know him, but”—and there was a world of determination in -the tone—“I am going to know him, and——” - -He paused, and his eyes flashed ominously. - -There was silence for a while, and then Angell said: - -“It’s mighty queer ter find you here, Buffalo. I didn’t know you war in -this yer neck o’ woods. When did ye come, an’ what’s all this business -about? War you visitin’ Matt Holmes when ther cabin war sot afire?” - -“I was, and I have a pretty long story to tell, Bart. Suppose we defer -explanations until I get to your shack and have rested a bit.” - -“That proposition is shore all right,” replied Angell. “Ye can’t walk, -but I’ll tote ye along ther trail ’thout any trouble.” - -“There is no hurry, Bart. Before we leave, I want to make sure that Matt -Holmes is dead.” - -“Ther galoot I laid out allowed ther war killin’ done,” said Angell, -“an’ so I reckon that Holmes war murdered. Whar’ll I look fer him?” - -“I saw him go out the front door and start for the brush.” - -“Then I’ll shore do some projeckin’ in ther brush.” - -Angell went away, and soon returned with the statement that he had found -the dead body of the owner of the cabin. The murdered man had been -discovered at the mouth of the ravine. He had been shot a number of -times. One bullet had penetrated the brain. - -Buffalo Bill sighed. “I would have prevented the murder if the fiend had -not surprised us. I was shot just before Holmes made for the door.” - -As he spoke, the king of scouts noticed that Angell had his hand behind -his back. “Found something, Bart?” he said quietly. “Trot it out.” - -Angell brought to view a white handkerchief. He had found it near the -body of the murdered man. - -The king of scouts took the handkerchief and examined it carefully. - -In one corner was a Chinese laundry mark. - -“I am not a detective, Bart,” said Buffalo Bill, as he scrutinized the -mark, “or I might trace this wipe to its owner.” - -“It would be a hard job”—with a shake of the head—“fer ther nearest -chink joint is in Denver. Hold yer horses,” he added suddenly. “I’m -clean off my base. Thar’s one in Taos. It shore opened up six months -ago. I war in ther town when ther chink piked in from Austin. I’ll bet a -quirt ther rag came from Taos.” - -Buffalo Bill put the handkerchief into his breast pocket. “I’ll try Taos -if I don’t make the riffle in these mountains. The evidence I want may -be on the body of the man you killed. Go back again and search the -pockets. Bring everything here.” - -Angell went away for the second time, and when he returned he brought a -purse containing a few dollars in silver, a knife, a revolver, a plug of -tobacco, and a match box with the initials “T. D.” engraved upon an -oval. - -The king of scouts was disappointed. The match box was the only clew to -the identity of the dead man, and even it might prove valueless. The -initials might belong to somebody else. The box might have been found or -stolen. - -“Do you know any one whose name will fit these initials?” he asked. - -“Lemme think,” replied Angell, as he stroked his chin. “It’s more’n -likely that it stands fer Tom. As fer ‘D’—jumpin’ Jehosophat! Ther -galoot is Tom Darke; Lanky Tom, that ther sheriff of Santa Fe was achin’ -ter catch when I war down that way three months ago. I seen ther bills -describin’ ther critter, an’ thar’s no mistook about it.” - -“I reckon you’re right,” returned Buffalo Bill quietly. “I remember the -case. Darke was implicated in a dastardly murder. He was the tool, not -the principal. Jared Holmes, a merchant of Santa Fe, was assassinated at -his home. It was after dark, and he was sitting in front of an open -window. A shot was fired from without, and the bullet entered his brain. -A man answering the description of Tom Darke was seen running away from -the house; there was other circumstantial evidence connecting him with -the crime, and so the officers tried to overhaul him.” - -Bart Angell nodded. “Tom war a tinhorn gambler, and ther sheriff told me -that, onct whilst how-come-ye-so, Tom let out ter a feller he war -drinkin’ with that he war workin’ fer a boss that war shore comin’ in -fer all kinds of money.” - -Buffalo Bill’s face was grave. “Do you know,” he said, “that Jared -Holmes was the brother of Matt Holmes, whose dead body lies out there in -the brush? The motive that prompted the killing of Jared was the same -that prompted the taking off of Matt. But I won’t go into details now. -Help me to get to your cabin, and after a while I’ll talk more.” - -But there was no revelation that night. The king of scouts was in a -fainting condition when Angell’s cabin was reached. A second dressing to -his wound was given, and he was put to bed. Next morning he awoke with -mind clear and only a slight physical weakness. - -After breakfast, he said: “I realize that you are anxious to know -exactly what happened at the cabin of Holmes, and I believe you will -work better after I have relieved your curiosity. By this you will -understand that there is work for you to do. The bodies down on the flat -must be buried. We are many hundreds of miles from a town and a coroner, -and so we must act as if we represented the government of the -Territory.” - -Angell went outside, and presently appeared with a pick and shovel. -Resting the implements against the wall, he said as he came forward to -sit on a stool by Buffalo Bill’s bunk: “Go ahead. You aire ther judge -an’ I’m ther sheriff.” - -“I was in Hayes City a few weeks ago,” the king of scouts began, “and -was figuring on going up to Laramie for a spell to look after my -interests near the place, when an old army friend, Major Kent, met me -and asked a service. A young woman, daughter of a West Point classmate, -was in town, and it was her desire to proceed at once to the cabin of -Matt Holmes, in these hills. The matter was important, and she needed a -guide and protector. Would I act in that double capacity? I did not give -an answer until I had taken a look at the young woman. Then I -capitulated. I have seen many pretty women, Bart, but none prettier than -Myra Wilton. And, best of all, she is as good as she is pretty. I would -have been a brute if I had not consented to take charge of her and see -her safely to her destination. - -“Two days sufficed for preparations, and one fine morning, mounted on -ponies, we set out across the plains for the mountains. It was not long -before I had her full confidence. She told me something that both -surprised and vexed me. She had journeyed from her home in Pennsylvania -on the say-so of a letter written by a man who was an utter stranger to -her. The letter was from Santa Fe, and was signed ‘James Loftus,’ and -set forth that, as the attorney of Matt Holmes, her uncle, it was his -duty to inform her that her uncle had but a few months to live. He had -met with an accident while out hunting, and was now waiting for the end -to come. His brother Jared was dead, and she was his only living -relative. There was something of the utmost importance, relating to his -possessions, which he desired to communicate to her. He dared not trust -to the post, for he had an enemy who possessed satanic craft. Therefore, -he asked that she come to him, and at once. She could find a guide in -Hayes City. The journey was not a hard one, and he hoped to see her -before a month had passed. - -“I know all the law sharps in Santa Fe, or in the Territory, for that -matter, and no one of them answers to the name of Loftus. The statement -that Holmes had an enemy also made me regard the letter as shady. But I -did not voice my suspicions for fear of alarming Miss Wilton. I would -guide her to Holmes’ place, and see to it that she met with no harm. I -know now that I made a mistake. Better for her had we turned back and -never attempted to cross the mountains.” - -“What! Did ye lose her?” queried Angell, with marked concern written on -his homely face. - -“Yes, I lost her,” replied Buffalo Bill despondingly. “We were within -half a mile of her uncle’s cabin, and I had begun to think that my -suspicions were groundless, when I heard shots coming from the direction -of the cabin. I spurred on ahead, and did not look behind me until I was -in sight of the cabin. Then I turned. Miss Wilton was not in sight. -Supposing that she had failed to make good time and would soon show -herself, I waited. - -“Soon a shout from the cabin made me turn and face the door. There stood -Matt Holmes, as well as ever. I had known him for years, and when he -shouted, ‘Look out, Cody, or they’ll get you,’ I ducked my head, and -thus escaped a bullet fired from the brush. - -“The next moment I was on the ground. I got to the cabin, and as soon as -I entered, Holmes closed the door. ‘My enemy has found me,’ he -explained, ‘and we are goin’ to have a picnic.’ - -“Hurriedly I informed him that his niece was outside, and that she had -come in response to the instructions of a lying letter. The statement -was no sooner made than we heard a woman’s scream. I was about to dash -for the door, when a bullet fired from behind—the back door must have -been open—brought me to the floor. As I fell I heard other shots, saw -Holmes rush out of doors, and then I fainted. I came to my senses to -find the cabin on fire. - -“How I got outside in time to prevent cremation I do not know. But I -managed it somehow, and in the brush fainted again. I was opening my -eyes when you came, Bart. Now you know all I have to tell. The enemy of -Matt Holmes has won the first moves in the diabolical game he is -playing. He has committed two murders, and he has carried off Myra -Wilton.” - -“I shore hope he ar’n’t aimin’ to murder her,” said Angell, with a white -face. - -“It is not likely,” was the confident response. “He has other designs. -She is too pretty to kill.” As he spoke a frown came to his brow, and he -bit his lip viciously. “Confound this wound of mine. I won’t be able to -get about and do business for hours.” - -“But yer humble sarvint ain’t in ther same fix,” responded Angell -quickly. “I am shore on deck, an’, what’s more, I’m pinin’ ter git on -ther trail of ther pizen hounds that’s moseyed off with ther gal.” - -“Good!” said the king of scouts, his face clearing instantly. “Start as -soon as you like. I am able to look out for myself.” - -Ten minutes later Bart Angell was on the flat with pick and shovel. The -duty of burial performed, he set out up the ravine which had brought -Buffalo Bill and Myra Wilton to the flat. - -He had been gone an hour when a tall man, with face covered by a black -mask, stole up to the cabin that held the king of scouts. - -Through the small window on the side, he peered in and saw Buffalo Bill -propped up on the bunk and calmly smoking a pipe. - -The door was open, and a few minutes later the man appeared in front of -it. In his hand was a revolver, and the king of scouts looked up to gaze -into the muzzle of the weapon. - -A moment of silence followed: - -Then Buffalo Bill spoke coolly: “Looks as if you had the drop.” - - - - - CHAPTER II. - THE TABLES ARE TURNED. - - -The man with the mask emitted a soft chuckle. “Appearances in this case -are not deceitful, William,” he suavely replied. “I have the drop, and -you are exactly where I want you.” - -With the words he stepped into the room, but did not close the door. -Placing a stool on one side of the opening, he coolly sat down, his -revolver the while still pointed at the head of the king of scouts. - -Buffalo Bill went on smoking, and, though his face was pale, there was -no sign of fear upon it. - -There was silence for a few moments, and then the scout said quietly: -“If you are in no hurry to shoot, why not lower that gun of yours? It -might go off accidentally and bring my partner here.” - -The masked villain smiled evilly. “Your partner won’t come here to-day. -He has gone where you are soon to go.” - -Buffalo Bill could draw but one conclusion from the words. Bart Angell -had been surprised and killed. And a knife, instead of a pistol, had -been used. - -Gazing steadily at the masked man, the intrepid border king thus voiced -his opinion of the murderer: “I have met with all sorts of reptiles in -my time, but never one who was so meanly detestable as yourself. You -slimy, rotten, crawling apology for a human being, why don’t you blaze -away? I’d rather slip up the flume than remain a minute longer in your -company. The vilest degenerate that ever sucked air into his lungs is a -saint alongside of you.” - -Quick as a flash, the now thoroughly incensed villain raised the -revolver, which had been slightly lowered while the king of scouts was -speaking, and fired. The bullet cut a lock from the wounded scout’s -temple, whereat he laughed. - -“This is no laughing matter,” growled the assassin. “You escaped that -time, but I’ll get you with the next bullet.” - -“Maybe you will,” composedly responded the other, “but you’ll get -through with your business with me before you really try to kill me. I’m -on to you, Mister Man, and if I hadn’t guessed that you are not yet -ready to extinguish my light, I would never have invited you to cut -loose.” - -The murderer lowered his pistol. His expression of hate gave way to one -of admiration. “You are the limit, Cody,” he grudgingly remarked. “You -are sharp, all right, but you’ll need all your wits, and a cartload -besides, to get out of the fix you are now in.” - -“Think so?” said Buffalo Bill calmly. - -“I do. I have you where I want you. Your partner is dead, and we are -hundreds of miles from a human habitation. When our little séance is -over, one man will be the only living thing in these solitudes.” - -“How about the girl? Isn’t she near by?” - -The masked man scowled. “Yes, she is not far away,” he admitted, “and -much good may the information do you.” - -“You have left her up the ravine somewhere, I suppose?” insinuated the -scout. - -“No matter where I have left her. You’ll never see her. But a truce to -this profitless chin music. I am going to ask you a few questions, and I -have an idea that you will answer them promptly, for as long as you -continue on that line I’ll hold back the bullet meant for your brain.” - -“I am in the humor for frankness,” said Buffalo Bill easily. “Fire -away.” - -The masked murderer showed surprise, but he quickly repressed the -emotion. - -“You were a friend of Matt Holmes, were you not?” he asked. - -“He had no better friend. I had known him for twenty years.” - -“Did you know all his secrets?” The question was eagerly asked. - -“Maybe I did and maybe I didn’t.” - -As he spoke, the king of scouts was feeling about his person for a match -with which to relight his pipe. - -“I’ll come down to cases. Did he tell you when you met him last night -that he was looking for the coming of an enemy?” - -“Yes.” - -The masked man started slightly. - -“What did he say about me?” - -The questioner leaned forward, the eyes behind the mask winking rapidly. - -The hands of the king of scouts were now out of sight under the blanket, -which reached to his waist. So intent was the murderer upon the matter -of the answer he expected his victim to make that, for one short moment, -he lost caution. The lapse was fatal to his plan of ultimate murder. - -There were two lightninglike movements on the part of Buffalo Bill. His -hands came into view. In each of them was a revolver, and the masked -murderer, starting back, found himself covered. - -“Drop that gun of yours!” commanded the scout harshly, “and be mighty -quick about it.” - -The beaten villain allowed the weapon to fall to the floor of the cabin. -There was an explosion, but the bullet did no other damage than to make -a hole in the wall under the bunk. - -The situation was reversed. The king of scouts now held the whip hand. - -Holding his pistols in a menacing way, he kicked off the blankets and -sat on the edge of the bunk, with his feet resting on the floor. - -“The party of the first part has had his innings,” he coolly remarked, -“and now it is up to the other party in the controversy to do a little -stunt in the way of examination. Need I state that a failure to answer -questions will result in some effective pistol play, or are you wise to -the dangerous position in which you stand?” - -The masked murderer was trembling with fear and rage. He did not reply. - -“Take off that mask,” was the stern command. “Take it off or I will -shoot it off.” - -The mask was removed with celerity, and the face of a young man was -revealed. It was dark and smooth, and not unhandsome, but the thin lips, -the glint of the light-blue eyes and a certain hardness of expression, -betokened a selfish and cruel nature. - -The king of scouts looked long and intently at the man. Suddenly his -face lightened. He smiled. - -“I remember you,” he said quietly. “Wild Bill reformed Dodge City a few -years ago. Gave the tough ones twenty-four hours’ notice to leave town. -The chief of the disreputable outfit, a man who tried highway robbery -when the money did not flow in rapidly enough from card cheating, was -one Rixton Clay. You are the hombre.” - -The murderer showed his teeth. His face was as pale as death. - -Buffalo Bill went on calmly: “Clay is not your real name. I’ll bet it’s -Holmes, and that you are the cousin of Myra Wilton.” - -The expression that came to the villain’s face showed that the king of -scouts had made a correct guess. The latter proceeded with increased -confidence: “You are in a scheme to capture a rich estate. That’s plain. -Somebody, relative of Jared and Matt Holmes, Myra Wilton, and yourself, -has died recently. With the Holmes brothers and the girl out of the way, -you will become the sole heir to the fortune. I am right, eh?” No -answer. “Of course I am right. Come, own up, for you are on the -toboggan, and a close mouth won’t save you from the fate that awaits the -murderer.” - -“I have nothing to say,” replied Rixton Clay slowly. - -“Oh, but you have,” said Buffalo Bill, as he brought his revolver nearer -the head of his victim. “You have a whole lot to say. You are going to -tell me all about your game. You are going deep into details. You are -going to tell me how Jared Holmes was killed, by your orders, in Taos, -and how you afterward killed the slayer when you had no further use for -his services. You are going to do a whole lot of talk, and you are going -to begin right now. One, two, three——” - -“All right”—the words were jerked out—“I’ll talk. Curse, you! I wish I -had killed you when I first caught sight of your face.” - -Buffalo Bill shrugged his shoulders and grinned. “You were a fool, and -no mistake. But as I am the winner by your bad break, I’ll not raise a -kick. Now, what is your true name?” - -“Rixton Holmes.” - -“Myra Wilton is your cousin, is she not?” - -“Yes.” - -“What is this fortune you are scheming to get?” - -“It’s a mine in Colorado.” - -“Who owned it?” - -“My uncle, Peter Holmes.” - -“Brother of Jared and Matt, and the mother of Myra, eh?” - -“Yes”—surlily. - -“When did Peter die?” - -“Last month.” - -“How?” - -“How? Why”—he hesitated, and then said with lowered head—“some one -killed him while he was down in the mine inspecting a new lead.” - -“Ah, I see. You began with Peter and finished with Matt.” There was -disgust and repulsion on the scout’s honest face. - -“I’ll never say I killed him,” returned Rixton Holmes defiantly. “The -mystery of his death will never be cleared up.” - -“There you’re wrong,” was the cool response. “The mystery has been -cleared up. But it won’t be necessary to try you for the crime. When the -court gets through with you for your other offenses, there won’t be -anything left of you for further trial.” - -Rixton Holmes shivered, then suddenly straightened up and looked -resolutely at the king of scouts. “I am ready to die now,” he said, as -he tried to steady his voice. “I have got through talking. Kill me. I -don’t care.” - -Buffalo Bill appeared to consider the matter. “Why not?” he said. “In -these wilds I can be judge, jury, and executioner, and no one would -blame me. It is the safe thing to do.” He tightened his grip on his -pistols. The victim stiffened, expecting a report to come. But neither -trigger was pressed. - -“But,” the scout went on, “there is the poetic side of the case to -consider. If I were to kill you now, your suffering wouldn’t amount to a -hill of beans. You ought to suffer agonies; and, by the crawling -catamount, you shall. I’ll take you to Taos, and there you shall stay in -jail until the scaffold is ready for you to drop from. You shall hear -the carpenters as they hammer the thing into shape. Every nail driven -will be a nail in your coffin. Yes, to Taos you go.” - -The speaker rose to his feet. “I am not in the best of condition,” he -continued, “and, therefore, I must ask you to assist me a little. Here -are some rawhides”—tossing them. “Please tie your wrists for me. I think -I will be able to do the rest.” - -Rixton Holmes regarded the king of scouts in contemptuous surprise. “Do -you take me for a blanked idiot?” he said. “If you want me tied, you’ll -have to do the tying yourself.” - -A bullet scraped the villain’s ear. “You must take another look at your -hand,” remarked the shooter sharply. “You spoke without taking stock of -your situation.” - -With an angry expletive, Holmes took the cords and began to follow the -scout’s directions. He was thus occupied when a noise in the bushes -outside made him cease operations and look queerly at Buffalo Bill. - -The king of scouts walked quickly to the door and looked out with one -eye. The other he kept glued to the face of Rixton Holmes. He had the -forethought not to expose his body, but stood upon one side of the -opening. - -A peculiar, hissing sound from the bushes brought a similar sibilant -exhibition from within the cabin. - -Buffalo Bill, instantly alive to the new danger that menaced him, leaped -across the room and dealt Holmes a crushing blow behind the ear. - -As the villain collapsed in a heap on the floor, the king of scouts -started for the door for the purpose of closing it, when a series of -bloodcurdling yells broke upon his ears. - -The yells were followed by the appearance of a score of painted savages. -They were in full view from the door before Buffalo Bill could reach it. -Instantly his revolvers cracked, and howls and screams announced the -result of his shots. Having fired several times with the effect of -driving the redskins back to the bushes, he closed the door and shot the -bolt. This done, he turned his attention to the villain on the floor. - -Before Holmes’ senses returned, he was bound hand and foot. - -No gag was applied. The king of scouts desired a little further -information from his victim. - -It would probably be some time before the Indians made a new -demonstration, and the scout had a faint hope that the lull might -furnish something that would take the edge off the grave danger that -confronted him. - -“You know these savages,” he said harshly to Holmes. “Their coming was -not unexpected. Do they play a part in this villainous scheme of yours?” - -“It can do me no harm to answer that question,” replied the villain, -with a malicious grin. “They are friends of mine, and I knew they were -coming.” - -“Why have they come? You did not need them to aid you in the murder of -Matt Holmes, nor in the abduction of Myra Wilton.” - -“No”—the grin broadening—“but I need them to assist me in taking care of -the girl. She is to be the bride of Raven Feather, the chief.” - -“Then I reckon she is with them now.” - -“If she isn’t she ought to be. I left her with them when I made my sneak -to prospect this cabin.” - -“Did the Indians know that I was here?” - -“No, neither did I know you were here when I started for the cabin. I -knew some man, wounded, was here, but my notion was that the man was my -Uncle Matt.” - -A voice from without caused Buffalo Bill to look up quickly. - -“Raven Feather would speak with the great white warrior, Buffalo Bill,” -were the words, spoken in the Navaho tongue, that reached the scout’s -ears. - -“Speak, and see that your tongue is not forked, Raven Feather,” was the -cold reply. - -“The tongue of Raven Feather is not the tongue of a serpent. The words -shall be straight. Raven Feather seeks the white man who is Buffalo -Bill’s prisoner. Give Raven Feather the prisoner and Buffalo Bill may go -free. Raven Feather has no quarrel with the great white warrior.” - -“That’s a lie, chief,” was the quiet reply. “You want my scalp for the -loss of the braves who fell before the door a few minutes ago. Well, if -you get it you’ll have to suffer the loss of a few more braves. I am in -a tight place—I would be a fool not to admit it—but I’m not going to -peter out without taking a star part in a sanguinary circus. So drop -your smooth talk, and let the fun begin.” - -As he ceased speaking, a noise at the window on the side of the cabin -nearest the bushes attracted his attention. Quick as a flash, he wheeled -and fired, and a Navaho fell. - -It had been the design of the treacherous Raven Feather to distract the -attention of the king of scouts until the brave could reach the window -and take a shot at the man who had overcome Rixton Holmes. - -Buffalo Bill changed his position so that the window was no longer a -point of danger. - -The Navaho chief did not again open his mouth to speak, and for some -minutes silence reigned in the vicinity of the cabin. - -Rixton Holmes lay on the floor, a placid expression on his dark -countenance. - -The king of scouts regarded the villain with a frown. “Don’t you imagine -that your rescue is near at hand,” he said, in a tone that made Holmes -shiver, “for you’ll die before a savage enters that door. I may be -booked for the last journey, but you can make up your mind that your -ticket for the infernal regions will be punched before the redskins -settle my case.” - -The villain shut his eyes and did some tall thinking. He knew that -Buffalo Bill would do as he threatened. - -Soon he said: “I am willing to make a deal with you. Raven Feather is in -my employ. He will obey my commands. Turn me loose, and you shall not be -harmed.” - -The king of scouts smiled. “What do you take me for, a babe in arms? -What, let me go free after I know your game and am in a position to -spoil it? Oh, no, Mr. Rixton Holmes, no deal of that kind with you. But -I will tell what I am willing to do. Give orders to those Navahos to -withdraw, to light out across the flat to the open country—I will want -to see them as they go off, you understand—and when they are a mile -away, I will go out and leave you here.” - -“Where will you go?” - -“Out of the danger zone, of course,” answered the scout promptly, but -with his face turned away from the prisoner. - -Holmes considered the matter seriously. He sighed. It went against the -grain to accept Buffalo Bill’s proposition, but he must do it, or his -life would be lost. Soon his face cleared a little. Buffalo Bill was -wounded, and therefore could not travel fast. The Navahos, who were -magnificent trailers, and knew every foot of the country, would probably -be able to run the scout down. - -“I will accept,” he announced, and the king of scouts, who had divined -what had been passing in the villain’s mind, repressed a smile, and -responded coldly: “Very well. You are a sensible man, sometimes. Now -elevate your voice and talk business to your cutthroat allies outside.” - -Holmes shouted, and soon Raven Feather came out of the bushes and -approached the door. - -The command requested by Buffalo Bill was given, and immediately the -Indians withdrew, going across the flat and into the stretch of open -country. - -Buffalo Bill counted eight. Four, then, must have been slain. He waited -a few moments, and then cautiously opened the door. Three Navahos lay -dead in front of the cabin. He went around the building, and there was -the body of the fourth Indian. It lay under the window. - -Returning to the room, he satisfied himself that Holmes was weaponless, -then cut the bonds and told the prisoner to get up. The savages were now -half a mile away. - -“In a few minutes I will leave you,” said the scout. “It gravels me to -let you slip out of my fingers, but I am sure that we are destined to -meet again.” - -Five minutes later Buffalo Bill, armed with his own and Holmes’ weapons, -walked out of the cabin and entered the bushes. He appeared to be taking -a direction that would bring him to the trail that led over the hills to -Taos. - -Rixton Holmes smiled in satisfaction. He had noticed that the scout -moved slowly, and he believed that the wound in the side troubled him, -and would prevent quick movement away from the flat. - -The enemy was out of sight when Holmes signaled to the Navahos. -Instantly the band wheeled and started on a run for the cabin. - -On arriving at the structure, Holmes briefly explained to Raven Feather -what had happened, and pointed to the east. “He has gone up that way,” -he said. “Send out three or four of your swiftest braves, and they’ll -overhaul him.” - -At that moment the king of scouts was on the western side of the cabin. -His weakness had been assumed. The wound was not troubling him much, and -he felt able to do his usual work. Entering the bushes, he had hurried -to the ravine, made a detour, circled Matt Holmes’ cabin, and, under -cover of the brush on the western side of the flat, had crept to a spot -not twenty yards from the cabin door, about which Raven Feather and his -Navahos were standing. - -After four of the Indians had departed to trail the fugitive, he heard -Rixton Holmes ask Raven Feather: “Where is the girl?” And he heard the -chief answer: “She is in the cave with my brother Crow-killer.” - - - - - CHAPTER III. - BUFFALO BILL FALLS INTO A TRAP. - - -In reaching his position, the king of scouts had covered his trail as -far as was possible for him to do so. But he knew that the only effect -of his precaution would be to delay the arrival of the four Navahos who -had been sent out to run him to earth. - -At the most, he had half an hour in which to continue his retreat or -make an effort to regain the ground he had lost at the cabin. -Circumstances had compelled him to relinquish an advantage, but his mind -was made up not to leave the flat until he had had another accounting -with the murderer of Matt and Jared Holmes. - -He realized that the odds were against him, but the fact did not alter -his determination. “If only Bart Angell had lived,” he said sorrowfully -to himself, “the work would be easy. With him for support, I could rush -that cabin and have Rixton Holmes by the heels in a twinkling.” - -A rifle shot from the direction of the ravine brought an expression of -amazement to his fine face. Upon the sound of the report, Raven Feather, -who a moment before had stepped into the cabin, came out accompanied by -Rixton Holmes. Their eyes met, and one thought was in the mind of each. -The Indian trailers had come upon Buffalo Bill and shot him. No other -theory was permissible, for, if the shot had been fired by the king of -scouts, there would assuredly have come an answering report. - -The chief and his white employer stood a moment, listening, and then, -hearing nothing, Raven Feather spoke rapidly to the braves who had -remained with him at the cabin. - -As they made for the bushes, Buffalo Bill saw to his relief and -satisfaction that Holmes and Raven Feather were moving toward the door -of the cabin. He waited until they had entered, and then stole quickly -across the space that separated him from the little building. - -His movement was not observed, for the one window of the cabin was on -the other side. A slight noise in his rear caused him to turn his head -just as he was about to step in front of the doorway and cover the -enemies within. - -What he saw brought a light of joy to his eyes. - -Bart Angell, in the flesh, stood on the spot the king of scouts had left -but a few moments before. His rifle was in his hand, and, though his -face was bloody, he held himself erect, and seemed ready for any -emergency. - -Buffalo Bill put his finger to his lips, pointed toward the cabin door, -and then wheeled, took a few steps, and brought his revolvers to bear -upon the Indian chief and Rixton Holmes. - -The white villain and his savage ally were taken completely by surprise. -Holmes was sitting on the bunk, and Raven Feather squatted on the floor -in front of him. - -“One yell from either of you,” the king of scouts hissed, “and I shoot. -Hands up!” - -As he spoke, Bart Angell appeared by his side. The chief’s copper -countenance twitched once, and then became stolid. With the stoicism of -his race, he had quickly accepted the situation. But Rixton Holmes was -of different metal. He groaned, and then began to curse. - -While the king of scouts held the pistols, the stalwart backwoodsman -quickly and deftly bound the limbs of the two victims. - -The operation over, Buffalo Bill asked: “How many foes have we got to -face? Half an hour ago there were eight Navahos. Four went out on hunt -for me, and afterward three left to see what had become of the four.” - -“I reckon that three will be erbout ther number,” replied Angell, with a -slight smile. - -“I thought so, Bart. You met the four, and——” - -“Wiped ’em out. Yes, that war ther ticket. I had ter, Cody.” - -“Of course”—with a look of appreciation. “But the story will have to be -deferred. We must settle with the three who are out.” - -“I don’t berleeve they’ll mosey back hyer,” was Angell’s comment. -“They’ll shorely find ther four dead bodies, an’ they’ll naterally -conclude that you hev made tracks fer ther cabin, fer, in course, -they’ll think as how you war ther slayer.” - -“Maybe you are right, Bart.” - -“You stay hyer a spell an’ I’ll prove I’m right. Ef ther three aire -hot-footin’ it fer ther plains I’ll soon know, an’ waltz back an’ tell -ye.” - -Angell went off, following the route taken by the savage trio. - -He was out of hearing when it occurred to Buffalo Bill that the three -Indians might retreat to the cave spoken of by Raven Feather where Myra -Wilton was hidden a prisoner, with the chief’s brother Crow-killer as -guard. - -If this should prove to be the case, Angell might not be able to return -as soon as he had hoped when he set out. - -It was probable that he knew nothing about the cave, for if he had, he -would assuredly have spoken of it. Somewhat uneasy in mind, the scout -lit a pipe and began to smoke. - -Observing his sober face, Rixton Holmes said maliciously: “You are not -feeling very well, in spite of the fact that you have turned the tables -on me. I’ll bet a hat your pard doesn’t come back. He has played in luck -twice, but he’ll miss it on the third trial.” - -“His coming here in the nick of time showed you up as the champion -liar,” returned the king of scouts sharply. “You said you had killed -him.” - -“And I thought I had,” was the calm reply. “He was lying on the ground -up the ravine, looking at something below, when I stole up, used my -knife, and tumbled him over the bank. I saw him go plunging down a -hundred feet or more, landing in a clump of bushes.” - -“He’s a hard man to kill,” said Buffalo Bill, as he blew a cloud of -smoke into the air, “and he won’t miss this last trick. When he returns, -the girl will be with him.” - -“Do you care to make a small bet on that proposition?” asked Holmes, a -queer look on his face. - -The king of scouts regarded the villain curiously. “You think you know -something that I have not yet discovered,” he said. “It’s about the -cave, I am sure.” - -“Yes, it is about the cave, Cody. Your expression assures me that you do -not know where this cave is. It would be surprising if you did. I am -acquainted with this section as well as the next man, and yet I did not -know until yesterday that there was a cave in these parts.” - -“I’ll have to acknowledge that I don’t know where the cave is located,” -replied the king of scouts, “but that fact does not prevent me from -thinking that Bart Angell will find it. He is as good a trailer as a -Navaho, and he’ll follow the redskins to the cave if, as I believe, they -have gone there.” - -Rixton Holmes shook his head. “You don’t understand the layout, Cody. -The trail will be lost long before your partner gets within a half mile -of the cave.” - -“Well,” said Buffalo Bill resignedly, “if Bart fails to find the hole, -he’ll come back, and then we’ll put our heads together and try to solve -the riddle.” - -Holmes made no reply, but he winked at Raven Feather, who during the -conversation had been gazing placidly at the rafters of the roof. - -Buffalo Bill began to grow uneasy. He did not like the attitude of his -prisoners. It was evident that they did not look upon their situation as -serious. It was also evident that they were expecting assistance. From -whom could it come? He puckered his lips in an effort to reach a -solution of the cheerful demeanor of Holmes and the chief. Ah, the -explanation of the situation was at hand. The prisoners expected help -from Crow-killer, the chief’s brother. The three Indians would reach the -cave and tell Crow-killer what had happened and what they feared. -Crow-killer, more shrewd and intelligent than the three braves, would -conclude that the slayer of the four Navahos would go to the cabin and -attack the chief and the white man, Holmes. If he succeeded in this -venture, then he would likely take the trail to find the girl. He was -now, in all probability, on the way to the cave. Good; for while he, -Buffalo Bill, the mighty warrior, was following the trail of the three -braves, Crow-killer and the braves would be hurrying to the cabin by -another route. - -Thus reasoned the king of scouts, but his satisfaction over his -deductions did not last long. He called to mind the remark of Holmes -that Bart Angell would not return. The remark carried the implication -that he would be ambushed somewhere on the way to the cave. - -“Hang it,” muttered the scout, in marked vexation, “I wish I could guess -what is going on outside of this cabin.” - -Rixton Holmes spoke up at this juncture. “I would like to tell you a -story, Cody,” he said, with a half chuckle. “It is pretty long, but it -will serve to make the time pass pleasantly while you are waiting for -your pard. A few years ago——” - -“Cut it,” interrupted the perturbed king of scouts as he walked to the -door. “I can guess what your object is. You want to keep me here in this -room so that Crow-killer can get a bead on me when he comes. I won’t -have it so. I am going to leave for a few minutes.” - -The smile departed from Rixton Holmes’ face. The announcement did not -please him. A terrible fear gripped him when Buffalo Bill continued -coolly: “I shall not go far. I shall not go out of sight of the cabin.” - -He paused, looked at the prisoners, intercepted a glance between them, -and then, to their manifest discomfiture, walked over to them and -proceeded to gag them. - -Now, satisfied that they were powerless for harm, he went out of doors -and entered the brush. Along the trail he went until the steadily rising -ground brought him to a point whence he could command a view of both the -ravine and the flat. - -For more than an hour he remained at his post, and was becoming alarmed -as well as impatient at the nonappearance of either Bart Angell or -Crow-killer, and his party, when he saw emerging from the ravine at the -southern end of the flat the forms of three Indians. By the aid of his -pocket field glass he was able to identify Crow-killer as one of the -trio. The brother of the Navaho chief was a giant in size, and the king -of scouts had heard of his prowess in battle, and also of his cunning -and audacity. The scout had never before been placed in a position where -he could try conclusions with the redoubtable savage, and he was not ill -pleased because an opportunity had at last arrived. - -He watched the Indians, saw that they were not coming in his direction, -but were cautiously making their way across the flat so as to come upon -the cabin along the route the king of scouts himself had taken but a -short time before, and then he crept quickly and noiselessly back to the -building. - -Entering, he assured himself that the prisoners were as he had left -them, and then he went out again. - -A few rods from the door was a pile of logs which the owner of the cabin -had cut for firewood. - -Behind the pile Buffalo Bill hastened to conceal himself, and there -awaited the coming of his savage enemies. - -Fifteen minutes went by, and then the watcher detected a movement among -the bushes on the other side of the flat and nearly opposite his hiding -place. He used his field glasses, and soon discerned the head of an -Indian. The head was within rifle range, and the scout’s first impulse -was to fire. But sensible, second thought induced a different program. -If he fired and killed one of the savages, the others would likely take -themselves out of harm’s way, to give trouble in the near future. No, it -were best to wait and secure the chance to either slay or bag the trio. - -Expecting that the Navahos would soon make for the cabin, Buffalo Bill -was disappointed and perplexed when many minutes passed and no such move -was made. - -The head disappeared, and it was apparent that Crow-killer and his -braves had retreated farther into the bushes. - -It might be that they intended to go around the flat and approach the -cabin from the other side. Or the delay in coming to the cabin might be -attributed to caution. Crow-killer did not know where the scout was. He -might be in the cabin, and he might be out searching for Bart Angell. - -“I reckon I know what is bothering Crow-killer,” said the king of scouts -to himself. “He wants to know the layout in the cabin before making a -move to help his brother and that villain, Holmes. Maybe the program is -to make a sneak, get to the window, and look in.” - -He was looking across the flat when there came the report of a rifle, -and a bullet struck a log a foot above his head. This action on the part -of the savages filled the king of scouts with surprise and uneasiness. -His body could not have been seen, for he was crouched behind the tall -pile of wood, and he had not exposed his head during his stay there. -How, then, could the Navahos know where he was? - -He was endeavoring to answer this question, when a tomahawk, thrown with -murderous force, whizzed by his head. The attack had come from behind, -and his skull would have been cleft in twain if the wielder had not -slipped on the smooth, damp ground just as the arm shot out. - -The king of scouts sprang to his feet and met the giant Crow-killer -advancing on him with drawn knife. - -Buffalo Bill had his rifle in his hand. Quick as lightning he clubbed -it, and brought the stock down on the hand that held the knife. - -The weapon dropped to the ground, and instantly Crow-killer leaped upon -his enemy. - -Buffalo Bill had not time to again make use of the rifle. It left his -hand, and he met the rush by lowering his head and driving it like a -battering-ram against the weakest part of the giant’s anatomy. - -Struck squarely in the pit of the stomach, Crow-killer doubled up, and -was in the act of falling, when Buffalo Bill, converting his right hand -into a sledge hammer, caused it to carom on the savage’s chin. The -result was what might have been expected: Crow-killer struck the ground -with a thud. - -In an instant the victor regained his rifle and turned to glance at the -flat. The Navahos were running toward the cabin. - -They saw him, and three reports rang out. They were not simultaneous. -Buffalo Bill, the quickest on the trigger, fired first, and then sprang -to one side, only to fire again and again. - -When the smoke cleared away there were two dead Indians on the flat. - -With a hard smile the king of scouts turned to see Crow-killer making -strenuous efforts to get to his feet. - -A couple of well-directed blows had the result desired. The brother of -the Navaho chief sought again a horizontal position, and lay quite -still. - -He was bound and gagged and dragged into the cabin. Taking a stool, the -victor of the recent combat wiped his perspiring face. He had reason for -exultation, but his brow was sad. The nonappearance of Bart Angell was -disquieting. He must have fallen into a trap and been conveyed to the -mysterious cave; and to find that cave, rescue Myra Wilton and possibly -the missing scout, was now Buffalo Bill’s fixed intention. - -It was near the hour of noon. The king of scouts prepared a meal, ate of -it, and, removing the gags of his prisoners, gave each a supply of the -food. The two Indians partook sparingly of what was offered them, but -Rixton Holmes ate like a famished wolf. “I went off this morning without -my breakfast,” he explained to Buffalo Bill, with a nervous smile. “I am -in for it, maybe, but I’m not going to make a fool of myself. Food -imparts strength, and I may need my strength before I leave this neck o’ -woods.” - -“Yes, I think you will,” responded the king of scouts dryly. “Until I -find horses, there’s quite a long walk ahead of you.” - -There was one horse outside. It belonged to Bart Angell. Affixed to the -pommel of the saddle was a reata. It was a long one, and Buffalo Bill -nodded approvingly as he removed it. - -With the reata in his hand he reëntered the cabin, and thus addressed -his prisoners: “I am going to find that cave. You three will go with me, -for it would be the height of folly to leave you here. I shall give you -the use of your feet, but your hands will remain tied, and this reata -will serve as a bond to hold you together. The free end will be in my -hand, and I shall drive you much as I might drive so many fractious -ponies. Of course, it goes without saying that it won’t be healthy for -any one of you to disobey any order that I may give.” - -None of the prisoners had anything to say. The ankle cords were cut, the -reata placed as explained, and then Buffalo Bill pointed to the door. -“March!” he commanded, and with Rixton Holmes in the lead, a sheepish -expression on his evil face, Buffalo Bill and his strange tandem left -the cabin. - -Every order was obeyed as the party went along the trail that led to the -ravine. The two Indians wore scowling faces, but Holmes was cheerful. -The king of scouts wondered at the villain’s apparent state of mind. Was -he playing a part, affecting a joyousness that he was far from feeling, -or had he some card up his sleeve that he expected soon to play? - -The scout determined to get at the truth if he could. “Holmes,” said he, -when they were near the ravine, “you are a slippery cuss, and you are -counting on getting out of the hole in which I have placed you. That’s -right, isn’t it?” - -A cunning look came into the villain’s face. “I’d be a fool not to live -in hopes, when I am alive and well, wouldn’t I?” was the somewhat -evasive reply. - -“Suppose I take you straight to Taos and not try to find this cave? -Would you still have hopes?” - -Holmes’ jaw fell. But he quickly became composed. “But you won’t do -that,” he said. “I know you, Cody, and I know that you will not take the -trail for Taos until you’ve made an effort to find the girl.” - -Buffalo Bill frowned. He had learned what he desired, and the knowledge -was not such as to give him any pleasure. Holmes was banking on -something in or about the cave. What that something was the king of -scouts had not the remotest idea. He had strong reason to believe that -it was a trap, and that Bart Angell had fallen into it. If he went on, -was able, either through the assistance of his prisoners or by his own -ingenuity, to find the cave, he might fall a victim to the wiles of the -enemy. Three Indians had gone from the cabin to Crow-killer at the cave. -One had been left behind, presumably to guard the fair prisoner and also -take care of the trap which must have received the stalwart and fearless -Angell. And yet, in spite of the probable danger, of the nature of which -he could not guess, he resolved to go on. “I’ve got to,” he muttered -under his breath. “I can’t leave the girl in the power of that Navaho, -and I can’t quit this section without ascertaining what has become of -Bart Angell.” - -On the bank of the ravine the prisoners halted without an order. Their -eyes were directed toward a platform of rock about halfway up the -opposite bank. - -Buffalo Bill, following the look, saw the head of an Indian appear above -some depression just beyond the far side of the platform. Before he -could raise his rifle the head disappeared. - -“Your cave is over there,” the scout said to Rixton Holmes. - -The villain nodded. There was an inscrutable expression on his face. - -There was a safe trail to the bottom of the ravine. The prisoners and -their custodian went down the trail, the king of scouts keeping a sharp -eye meanwhile on the platform above. - -But the head did not again appear. - -“I wouldn’t try to go down to the cave if I were you,” said Holmes, with -affected earnestness. - -“Perhaps you would like to become my substitute,” returned the scout -dryly. - -“I wouldn’t mind,” was the cool response. - -Buffalo Bill resolved to make a careful examination of the surroundings -before attempting to get into the cave. The trap, if there was one, must -be outside the big hole. - -The three prisoners were ankle-bound and gagged, and left lying in the -bed of the ravine. Then the king of scouts, with an odd feeling in his -breast, began the ascent of the bank. - -He reached the platform, but without stepping upon it, stood up and -looked at the point whence the Indian’s head had appeared. - -There was no hole there. A large, flat stone occupied the spot. - -The platform was carefully inspected. There was no break in the surface. - -The ground about was next given the benefit of searching scrutiny. -Nothing unusual was presented to the sight. “Humph!” grunted the baffled -scout. “I wonder where the monkey business is hidden.” - -He stepped upon the platform, and the answer to his question was at once -given, and in a most startling manner. - -The huge rock sank under him, and he shot downward twenty feet. The -descent was rapid, but not so rapid as to cause him to lose his balance -when the bottom was reached. But he had not time to act on the defensive -against the enemy, who had been awaiting his coming. A lasso settled -about his neck, and he was jerked roughly to the hard floor of the cave. - -A succession of heavy blows upon the head instantly followed his -downfall. - -When he awoke to consciousness he was lying on a couch of skins in -another part of the cave. There was a subdued light furnished by a thin -crevice in the rocky wall over his head. - -Raising himself on an elbow, he saw a young woman sitting on another -couch and bathing the head of a prostrate man. The man was Bart Angell, -and the young woman was Myra Wilton. - -He was about to speak, when Rixton Holmes came in. The villain burst -into a laugh when he saw that the king of scouts had revived. - -“Well, William the Great, what is your conclusion? Bit off more than you -could chew, didn’t you?” - -“I certainly made a mistake,” replied Buffalo Bill. - -“A mistake that can never be repaired.” - - - - - CHAPTER IV. - A COWARD DEFIED. - - -Rixton Holmes turned from Buffalo Bill to Myra Wilton. His voice was -respectful as he asked: “How is your patient. Head all right?” - -“He will live,” the girl answered coldly. “I hope it will be his good -fortune to see you mount the gallows.” - -The villain’s face flushed. “You seem determined to regard me as your -enemy,” he said. “Haven’t I explained that I am acting for the best, in -your interest as well as mine?” - -Buffalo Bill’s expression of wonderment at this speech was increased -when Myra Wilton suddenly replied in a broken voice: “Forgive me. I—I -had forgotten. I ought to trust you, and I will.” - -Holmes gave a sigh of relief. “That’s right,” he said. “I am, indeed, -your friend, and these two scouts, honest men though they are, have been -working against you.” - -“You are a liar,” put in the king of scouts hotly. “I can’t guess what -you have said to Miss Wilton to make her believe that you are not a -thief and a murderer, but your statement, whatever it was, was a lie. -You are not her friend. You are her enemy, and you are scheming to get -the fortune which, by the death of Matt Holmes, is now hers.” - -Rixton Holmes was not disconcerted at these accusing words. Looking at -the girl, he said quietly: “For Mr. Cody’s benefit, read the letter that -was found on the body of Tom Darke, the wretch who killed your Uncle -Matt.” - -Myra Wilton wiped her eyes, and then, from the little bag that was -hooked to her waist belt, took out a letter and read these words: - - “MY DEAR NIECE: I am daily looking for you to make your appearance - here, but it may be ordained that we are never to meet in this life. - I have a bitter, remorseless enemy. His name is Tom Darke.” - -“Hired by Rixton Holmes to murder Jared Holmes in Taos.” - -The interruption came from Bart Angell. He was sitting up, and he winked -at Buffalo Bill as he spoke. - -“A mistake,” said the villain calmly. “Go on with the reading, Miss -Wilton.” - -The girl, who had shown no surprise at the interruption, continued: - - “He has threatened to kill every member of the Holmes family. The - reason for his deadly enmity is the incarceration of his father for - burglary, conviction of the crime being due to the evidence of my - father, whose house was burglarized. I have received information - that Darke is in New Mexico. I am sure he is seeking me. I trust - that I may see you before he finds me, but if I am gone when you - arrive, this letter will inform you that I have made a will leaving - all my property to you and my nephew, Rixton Holmes. In the event of - the death of either of you, the survivor is not to inherit the - estate of the dead one, but said estate is to become the property of - the Territory, and is, when converted into cash, to be used in - hunting down and punishing my murderer. - -“That’s all,” said the girl, as she folded the letter and placed it in -the bag. - -Holmes immediately followed the reading with this explanation: “Because -I could not convince Mr. Cody that I was an honest man, one who had been -the friend, not the enemy, of Matt Holmes, I permitted him to assume -that I was all that his fertile imagination had painted me. I went to -Bart Angell’s cabin, not expecting to find him there, and if I acted as -if I were not on the side of law and decency, it was because I feared -that he, in his mistaken idea of the situation, would butt in and -prevent me from looking after my own and Miss Wilton’s interests. And -what applies to Buffalo Bill applies, and has applied, to his partner, -Bart Angell. They have been used roughly, but there was no other way by -which they could have been rendered powerless for harm. It is necessary, -in order to obtain the fortune that my uncle has left to me and my -Cousin Myra, that we should be in Denver one week from to-day. The mine -in which the fortune lies is in litigation. The case will be called next -week, and only by my testimony can the mine be saved.” - -Holmes looked from Angell to the king of scouts, a complacent smile on -his dark face. - -As neither one of his auditors had anything to say at this juncture, he -went on coolly: “The mix-up with the Indians to-day is an unfortunate -affair. They are friends of mine, and they are not at war with the -government. They came with me in order to protect my uncle. I had heard -that Tom Darke was on the way to the flat, and, fearing that murder was -in his heart, I induced Raven Feather and a few of his braves to -accompany me. We arrived too late to prevent arson and murder, but not -too late to slay the murderer. In his pocket I found the letter Miss -Wilton has just read. Darke probably stole it from the cabin while my -uncle was away.” - -A quick, meaning glance passed between Myra Wilton and Buffalo Bill. The -latter, without looking at Holmes, said harshly: “I am most surprised -that your cousin has accepted your statement. It must have seemed -plausible. And it will do no good to say that what I have said before, -that you are a liar.” - -“Not an ounce of good. You mean well, but you are wrong regarding your -humble servant,” replied the villain. - -“And I came mighty nigh, I shore did, in bein’ off my ca-base on your -account,” put in Bart Angell dryly. - -The villain grinned. “You played in hard luck, all right, but there are -good times coming to you.” Then he spoke with simulated seriousness. “In -an hour I shall leave the cave for the trail eastward. My cousin will go -with me. Raven Feather has been instructed to hold both of you here for -a week. Then you will be released. If you are inclined, you can come to -Denver, where I will be pleased to give you whatever satisfaction you -may require.” - -Again, unperceived by the villain, Buffalo Bill, and Myra Wilton -exchanged meaning glances. Presently Holmes stooped, whispered something -to the girl, whereupon she arose and followed the villain from the -apartment. - -They passed through a narrow opening into a large grotto, at the farther -end of which was the trap. - -The two scouts waited until assured that Holmes was out of hearing -distance, and then began to converse in low tones. - -“The girl is all right,” said Buffalo Bill confidently. “She takes no -stock in the fairy tale that Holmes reeled off to her, though, for -reasons that we must both appreciate, she is pretending that she -believes it as gospel truth. That letter, of course, is a forgery. It -was written to deceive the girl. Rixton Holmes will not kill her as he -has killed Jared and Matt Holmes if she will consent to marry him. See -the point, Bart? He is trying to work himself into her good graces. He -dared not attack either my character or yours, but he thinks he has made -the riffle, all the same. We are well-meaning, honest men, but we have -got the wrong pig by the ear.” - -Bart Angell gave a snort of disgust. “He’s ther wust specimen of a white -man that I ever went up ergin, Cody. An’ ter think he was cute ernuff -ter lay ther pair of us by ther heels. I feel like kickin’ myself in -twenty-two places. Rats an’ little fishes, but I’m plumb ashamed of -myself.” - -“Are you hurt much?” asked Buffalo Bill. - -“No, I got a rap on the coconut when I drapped down ther hole, but I’m -feelin’ now in condition ter tackle ther hull murderin’ outfit.” - -“Did you trail the three Navahos to the cave?” - -“It ermounts ter ther same thing, Cody. I follered ther trail to ther -bottom of ther ravine, and while I war down thar I seen an Injun poke -his head out of a hole up ther bank, on ther far side of a big flat -rock.” - -“I have a hunch that our experiences were identical, Bart.” - -“Then they shore ain’t anything ter brag erbout. We war two innercent, -mush-headed flies, an’ that thar Injun, who insinivated his pesky cabesa -outer ther hole, war ther foxy spider. Waugh! Gimme a smoke, Cody. I -wanter to take ther taste outer my mouth.” - -Buffalo Bill laughed. It was not a mirthful laugh. “As my hands are -tied, and as you are in the same fix, Bart, I don’t see how I can -accommodate you.” - -“Ye’ve got ter,” persisted Angell. “Ef ye refuse ter whack up with ther -terback—ther measly Injun who worked ther spider game swiped mine—I’ll -shore hev ter take it away from yer by main force an’ awkwardness.” - -The king of scouts looked queerly at his friend. The big backwoodsman -was more than half in earnest. As his eyes met those of Buffalo Bill, a -big grin overspread his homely face. - -“It’s your play,” quietly remarked the king of scouts. “Bring out your -cold deck and proceed to do me up.” - -For answer, Bart Angell spread his legs. The cords that had secured his -ankles had been cut, and there between them lay the knife which had -performed the operation. - -Bending forward and downward, not without a painful effort, Angell took -the knife between his teeth. Then he lifted his hands and quickly -severed the cords that bound his wrists. - -A minute later Buffalo Bill, like his comrade, was free of his bonds. -“It war ther girl,” said Angell, his voice in a whisper. “She did ther -trick while that ornery hound of a Holmes war unwinding his rotten yarn -off onto you.” - -The scouts searched the chamber for weapons, but found none. - -Disappointed, but not daunted, Buffalo Bill stole to the narrow corridor -through which Holmes and the girl had departed, and listened intently. - -The faint sound of voices in the outer and main apartment of the cave -told him that his enemies were still underground. He went forward into -the corridor until he was able to both see and hear. The corridor had -many projections, the walls nowhere were even, and he quickly found a -hiding place. - -Rixton Holmes was speaking in the Navaho tongue when the king of scouts -reached his shelter. - -“Raven Feather shall have his revenge,” he said, in a cold, even tone. -“After I have gone, the cave and all that is in it is yours.” - -“My brother will depart alone?” - -There was savage eagerness in the question. - -“No,” was the firm answer. “The white maiden will go with me.” - -“My white brother forgets,” returned the chief, with equal firmness. “He -promised that the maiden should become the squaw of Raven Feather.” - -“‘Circumstances alter cases,’” said the villain coolly. “I had not seen -the girl when I made the promise. She will become the wife of Rixton -Holmes.” - -There was silence for a few moments. Buffalo Bill, his interest at fever -heat by the unexpected development, waited for the next words of the -chief of the Navahos. - -But it was Crow-killer, the chief’s brother, who was the next speaker. - -The giant in a guttural rumble sided with Raven Feather. He insisted -that the promise must not be broken. Raven Feather had agreed to help -the white man, and his reward was to be the white maiden. The white man -must leave her behind. - -Holmes compressed his lips, and his eyes flashed ominously. He was not a -brave man, and his demeanor under the circumstances puzzled Buffalo Bill -exceedingly. - -Addressing the girl in English, the villain said: “Go back to the other -chamber. There is a hitch. My friends, Raven Feather and Crow-killer, -object to your departure. I must smooth them down.” - -As she moved away, the king of scouts drew a deep breath. He felt that a -crisis was approaching. - -Myra Wilton was about to pass his place of concealment, her eyes looking -straight ahead, when the king of scouts touched her on the arm, -whispering these words at the same time: “I am watching the grotto. -There is likely to be a mix-up. Tell Angell I need him here.” - -The girl frowned. “You must not harm Mr. Holmes,” she said, also in a -whisper. “He gave me the knife, and told me to free your partner.” - -Buffalo Bill had met with many surprises in his life, but never one so -great as this. He stared at her without speaking. - -“He is a villain,” she quietly went on, “but he means you no harm. I -have seen to that.” - -“I don’t understand,” said Buffalo Bill, as he shook his head. - -“You will after a while. Rely on me. I know what I am about.” - -“I don’t believe you do,” muttered the scout under his breath. But what -he said was this: “I’ll not hurt Holmes while you are in your present -state of mind; but I may pay my respects to Raven Feather and his big -brute of a brother.” - -“I have no objection,” she replied, and then left him. - -Meanwhile, the two Indians and Rixton Holmes were talking together in -angry tones. The white stubbornly held his ground, and the Indians -finally came to the conclusion that he was not relying on his own -unaided efforts to carry his point. - -They might have leaped upon him, and either killed or made him a -prisoner, but a suspicion that caused them both to look toward the -corridor separating the two sections of the cave made them pause. - -A lull in the conversation was broken by the descent of the trap. The -Navaho who had guarded the prisoners while Crow-killer was away with the -two braves jumped from the platform, and made this report to Raven -Feather: “When the moon rises, the chief shall welcome the braves of the -village.” - -Raven Feather gave a slow nod of approval. Then he looked steadily at -Holmes. “Does my brother understand?” he asked. - -“Of course,” was the response, given with indifference. “The other -members of your band are coming from the village. It is now late -afternoon. They will reach here in four or five hours.” - -The villain smiled, and then proceeded: “But I won’t be here when they -arrive.” - -“If my white brother is not here then, it will be because he has kept -the promise he gave to Raven Feather,” returned the chief, with -decision. - -Another smile appeared on the face of the white man. Then he began to -scratch his head, the two Indians regarding him questioningly. - -“I have it,” he said; “we’ll leave it to the maiden. Send your brave to -fetch her here, and we’ll each of us put up his side of the case.” - -He spoke in English, but Raven Feather understood him. - -The chief shook his head. “The maiden shall be brought here,” he -replied, “but she shall not decide the matter. It has been decided. She -stays behind to grace the tepee of Raven Feather.” - -Holmes made no response, but he grinned when the Navaho brave started -for the inner chamber. - -In a few minutes Myra Wilton reappeared. She was very pale, and her eyes -sought those of her cousin in anxious inquiry. - -Holmes beckoned, and she came to his side. He whispered something in her -ear, and she nodded in understanding. - -“She says she prefers to go with me,” spoke the villain, as he fixed his -eyes on Raven Feather. - -The chief grunted, and Crow-killer clenched his big hands and gritted -his teeth. - -The right hand of Holmes was resting on the butt of his revolver in the -holster at his belt. He was eying Crow-killer when Buffalo Bill, -followed by Bart Angell, sprang into the grotto. - -Their appearance only became known to the Indians when each was -attacked. The king of scouts paid his respects to Crow-killer, while -Bart Angell tried conclusions with Raven Feather. - -At the instant of the assault of the two scouts Rixton Holmes leaped -upon the trap platform. Myra Wilton had already taken her position -there. - -While a terrific struggle was going on in the grotto the platform rose, -and the villain and the girl were in the open air long before the -struggle ended. - -Myra Wilton stepped from the platform, her lovely face flushed with -anger. “I did not expect this,” she indignantly exclaimed. “You told me -you would stay behind to assist Mr. Cody and his partner.” - -“They are able to get away with the redskins without my help,” he -quickly replied. “I saw that they were having things their own way -before I jumped on the platform.” - -“I do not believe you,” she said stoutly. “You must go back. Perhaps -your return may prevent a tragedy.” - -“I won’t go back,” was his harsh reply. “That is out of the question.” - -The girl sat down on the edge of the platform. “Then you may go on -without me,” she declared, a determined expression on her face. “If you -will not go back to the cave, I will.” - -“I think not, my dear cousin. You are going with me.” There was a look -in his eyes that she had never seen there before. - -A shudder ran through the girl’s frame. But she called up her courage as -she said: “Have you been lying to me? Did you not tell the truth when -you said that you meant no harm to Mr. Cody and Mr. Angell?” - -“I told the truth.” But the villain did not meet the girl’s honest eyes -as he spoke. - -“Then,” said she, “if you don’t go back to the cave, I must put you down -as a coward. I despise a coward,” she added, in a voice that made the -man wince. - -Holmes was in a hole. He had had the faith to believe that he could win -and retain the confidence and respect of his lovely cousin. But the time -had come when he must either expose his hand or permit her to think that -he was showing the white feather. For half an hour no word was spoken by -either of them. Then Holmes concluded to drop deception. By so doing -there could be no change in her attitude toward himself. Despising him -for a coward, she had refused to go on with him; therefore, take -whichever horn of the dilemma he might, he would be compelled to use -force. - -“I am not a coward,” he protested; “and at the same time I am not a -fool. I have parted company with Raven Feather and his Navahos. They -have served my turn, and I have done with them.” With these words he -fastened the platform so that it could not be operated. - -Myra Wilton observed the action, and a chill seized her. She waited -tremblingly for the next words of the villain. - -“I may as well be plain with you,” he went on, as he sat on the platform -and faced her. “I had planned a different detail in the game I have been -playing. I had hoped to win your consent to become my wife.” - -“You never would have obtained it,” she said scornfully. - -“Perhaps not, but the attempt would have been made if you had not -rebuked me for refusing to go back to the cave and fall into the hands -of Buffalo Bill. I fooled you a while ago, but I have never fooled him.” - -“I am glad of that,” was her quick interruption. - -“Your joy won’t last,” the villain replied, with a snicker. “He will -never leave the cave. He may, he probably has, got away with Raven -Feather and Crow-killer as he got away with the brave I sent after you, -but his victory will be a barren one. He can never escape from below. -There he will starve and rot.” - -Myra Wilton looked at the speaker with eyes that burned his soul. - -“To think,” she said slowly, “that I should for one moment have trusted -you. I would rather, far rather, live for the balance of my life as the -squaw of the most despicable red man in these Western wilds than become -your wife. Go! I am sick of the sight of you.” - -Rixton Holmes arose to his feet, his countenance black with rage. He was -past the feeling of shame. Advancing to where she sat, he extended his -hands to grasp her by the wrists. - -With a quick movement she was on her feet, and Holmes started back as -she drew a pistol from the folds of her gown and pointed the muzzle at -his head. His expression of amazement and alarm brought a smile of -fierce satisfaction to her lips. - -“I am able to defend myself, you see,” she coolly remarked. “The -revolver came from the person of the Indian you sent to escort me from -the chamber to the grotto. Mr. Cody, who overcame the Indian, insisted -that I should take the weapon. The other pistol—the Indian had two—was -appropriated by Mr. Cody.” - -“Well, I’ll be——” - -“You certainly will,” cut in the girl grimly, before the sentence could -be finished. “And now,” she coolly proceeded, “I would thank you to -unbuckle your belt and let your weapons drop to the ground. I mean -business,” she continued, in a hard, menacing voice. - -Rixton Holmes gnashed his teeth in the impotence of his wrath and -disgust. The position was ridiculous, to be thus held up by a weak girl! - -The fact that she had not immediately insisted upon compliance with her -stern order caused the villain to breathe more freely. His cunning came -to the surface. He resolved to prolong the decisive move, hoping to -catch her off her guard. - -“Hang it, Myra,” he said, “you are a thoroughbred. Can’t we come to an -amicable understanding?” - -He looked at her eagerly as he spoke. She shook her head. “No,” was her -response, “I will make no more bargains with you. I know you now, and I -shall never trust you again. You haven’t obeyed me. Is it possible that -you failed to guess what would happen if you refused to unbuckle that -belt of yours? You would die.” She advanced a step, and the muzzle of -her revolver was on a line with the villain’s forehead, and not more -than three feet from it. - -With the quickness of lightning, Holmes lowered his head and propelled -his body toward her. The pistol exploded, but the bullet passed him by. -The next instant Holmes had her by the wrists. - -Myra Wilton screamed, and the outcry was followed by a series of savage -yells. - -Releasing the girl, the villain wheeled, and beheld a score or more of -Indians coming up the bank of the ravine. - - - - - CHAPTER V. - BUFFALO BILL’S ESCAPE. - - -Rixton Holmes swore frightfully when his eyes fell on the Indians. He -knew them, and they knew him. They were a part of the band of Raven -Feather, the chief who had, until very recently, been both his ally and -tool. They were coming toward him with friendly intentions. He had -expected their arrival at the cave, for Raven Feather had sent for them, -but they had come long before the time announced by the chief’s -messenger. - -The villain found himself in a disturbing quandary. If he remained to -receive them, his cowardice and treachery in respect of the chief and -Crow-killer would be discovered, and he would probably lose his life, -and Myra Wilton would fall into Raven Feather’s hands. On the other -hand, if he ran away, he would lose the girl, and his scheme to win a -fortune would come to naught. - -A moment’s consideration decided the matter for him. Before the Navahos -reached the platform he was out of sight in the thick bushes on the -eastward side of the cave. Down the steep hill he went, stumbling, -falling, receiving many bruises and cuts until his feet struck the bed -of the ravine. - -His absence from the platform that concealed the shaft of the cave did -not surprise the leader of the savages. The red man supposed that the -white friend of Raven Feather had gone underground to announce the -coming of the reënforcements. - -Myra Wilton had been too terrified to move from her position. She was -trembling violently when the savages crowded about the platform. No move -was made to seize or harm her. - -Soon the fact that she was for the moment safe drove some of the fear -from her face. Looking steadily at the handsome young brave who -commanded the band, she pointed down the hill in the direction taken by -the fleeing villain. - -The Navaho was at first in doubt as what her action meant. But when it -was repeated, with expressive addition, he nodded, and at once gave -orders which sent two of the braves after Holmes. - -After the braves had gone, the Indian leader tried the platform, and -discovered that it was fastened. A frown came into his face. He looked -at the girl, and said in Navaho: “Where is the great chief, Raven -Feather?” - -Myra pointed downward. - -The young brave regarded her steadily for a moment, and then went to one -side of the platform, felt under the rock, and found a concealed lever. -Giving it a pull, the lock was released. - -Now, standing on the ground beside the platform, the Indian, by signs, -directed the girl to stand on the trap. - -Her face paled, but she did not hesitate. Refusal would have availed her -nothing. Before her was a score of savages, each armed to the teeth. She -stepped forward, and the Indian came to her side. Down went the trap, -and they descended, to find that the grotto was tenantless. - -Light for the apartment was furnished by a sputtering torch stuck in a -crevice of the wall. - -The Indian stepped from the platform and listened intently. No sound -broke the stillness. - -He moved toward the corridor, his right hand grasping the wrists of the -girl. - -His mystification was great, but not so great as that of Myra Wilton. -How had the struggle in the cave terminated, and what had become of the -combatants? - -A partial answer was afforded when the Indian and the girl entered the -inner chamber of the cave. On the rocky floor lay Raven Feather and -Crow-killer. Each was bound and gagged, and each bore the marks of -terrible punishment. - -“Ugh!” grunted the young Navaho. Then he looked at the girl. “What for?” -he said in English. - -Myra’s eyes were on a large hole high up in one corner. When she was a -prisoner in the chamber there had been no such hole. Where the hole was -there had been a crevice, which had admitted light. Facing the Navaho, -she replied quietly: “For me.” - -The savage, whose knowledge of English was limited, understood her, but -he was unable to say in response what he desired to say. - -He hesitated a moment, and then drew some leather cords from his breast -and proceeded to tie her hands. - -The operation finished, he lifted her up and sat her down beside the -prostrate chief. Raven Feather was in possession of his senses, and his -snaky eyes twinkled in evil satisfaction as he watched the actions of -his subordinate. - -In a few minutes the chief and his brother were sitting up and ready to -talk. Each was stiff and sore, but none of their hurts were serious. - -Raven Feather’s first words were: “Where are the braves that came with -Lone Wolf?” - -The young brave pointed toward the grotto. - -Some quick orders were given, and Lone Wolf went to the grotto, where -his braves were waiting, and brought them into the chamber. - -Raven Feather pointed to the hole in the wall, made a short explanation, -and followed it by some sharp instructions. - -Out of the hole sped the Indians, and it was late in the night when they -returned. - -They had failed to come upon the two scouts, but they had a strange -story to tell. It can be best told to the reader by a recital of the -adventures of Buffalo Bill and Bart Angell, who when last seen were -fighting a battle that meant either life or death for them. - -But each had the advantage at the outset. The two Indians were taken by -surprise, and, though they fought with skill and desperation, victory -soon came to the scouts. - -Buffalo Bill had the heaviest contract. He was opposed to a giant in -strength, and but for the science allied to his remarkable muscular -strength, the outcome might have been in doubt. - -When the contest was over, and the chief and his brother lay on the -floor, their limbs secured with stout leathers, the king of scouts, the -perspiration running in streams down his face, staggered to the space -under the trap, and jerked at the rope that was used to lower the -platform. He jerked in vain. The platform would not move. - -“I understand,” said the scout to his companion, “that hound Holmes has -locked the trap. We’re caged, all right.” - -“Maybe we aire an’ maybe we ain’t, Cody. I’ve shore corralled an idee -that we aire goin’ ter beat this game. Let’s mosey to ther other eend -an’ take a squint at that crevice whar ther light comes from.” - -They went into the inner chamber, carrying with them the two prisoners. - -Buffalo Bill looked up at the crevice. - -“I am afraid escape in that direction is barred, Bart,” he said. “The -redskins must have investigated the break, and found it a case of no -thoroughfare, or they would never have allowed it to remain unguarded.” - -Bart Angell scratched his head. “I hev shore a prize memory. I loses it, -an’ now an’ ag’in it comes back ter me. It’s comin’ back now. Cody, I’ve -shore struck it. I know all about this yer hole. It’s a double-ender. -We’re in one part of it, but thar’s a bigger part, an’ it’s on t’other -side of that crevice.” - -Buffalo Bill ceased to be in a state of gloom. “Are you sure?” he asked -eagerly. - -“Plumb sure. Ther hull business, descrip’ an’ everything hev come back -ter me. Squat, an’ I’ll eloocerdate.” - -They sat down, and after filling their pipes Angell began. “I wouldn’t -take ther time now ter do any talkin’ ef I didn’t feel that we need a -little rest afore tackling what’ll be a tough job. Five year ago I war -down in Taos visitin’ a half-breed who war related ter Kit Carson. Ther -cuss war weak-minded; not a shore-ernuff fool, but mighty near ter one. -He hed been a member of a gang of desperadoes, Injun an’ white, that had -made things mighty hot fer ther good people of ther Territory. Ther gang -had been broken up, an’ Manuel Larios, the half-breed, hed saved his -bacon by turnin’ State’s evidence. - -“It war shortly arter ther trial that I visited him. You wanter -understand, Cody, that Manuel hed a sister, an’ that I had a sneakin’ -admiration fer ther gal.” The big scout’s mouth twitched, and his eyes -sought the floor. “She’s dead now, an’ I—I, waal, I thought a heap of -her.” - -Buffalo Bill gave the speaker a glance charged with sympathy and -appreciation, and, recovering himself, Angell went on composedly: - -“Manuel war in bed when I hit ther adobe that sheltered him. He talked a -blue streak. War sure he war goin’ ter peter, an’ wanted ter ease his -mind. Among other things, he reeled off a queer yarn erbout a cave in -these yere hills. A member of ther gang he had been consortin’ with had -found ther cave, an’ ther gang fixed it up fer a hidin’ place. Thar war -a couple of mechanical critters in ther outlet, an’ they engineered ther -platform racket. I reckon one of ther Injuns berlongin’ to ther gang war -a Navaho, an’ that arter the gang war scattered he let out what he -knowed ter Raven Feather. He couldn’t ha’ knowed ther hull thing, or -else ther part of ther cave we hev not yet seen would ha’ been occerpied -by ther reds. - -“Manuel told me that only a few members of ther gang, ther leader, -Manuel, an’ two others, white men, knew erbout the retreat beyond ther -crevice. Ter prevent the Injun contingent from gettin’ on to what war -intended fer ther treasure house of ther gang, the leader an’ the few -members he could trust worked ther crevice as a scare hole. They knowed -that ther redskins would try ter investigate ther hole, an’ so they -rigged up a scarecrow, and rubbed phosphorious onto it. The Injuns saw -this scarecrow twice when they were prospectin’ erbout ther crevice. -That shore let them out. They didn’t monkey with ther hole any more. -Now, all redskins are plumb eaten up with superstition, an’ I reckon -Raven Feather got hold of ther tale, an’ so ther crevice had no -attraction fer him.” - -Raven Feather, who had not been gagged, here gave a grunt of disgust and -shame. “Me heap fool,” he said, in English, to Angell. - -“Sure,” was the quick response. “That aire p’int war settled some time -ago.” - -The scouts arose, and with the tomahawks taken from the prisoners, -proceeded to attack the crevice. - -Their labor would have taken them many hours if, after working a short -time, they had not struck a ledge of rotten rock. - -Half an hour after the telling of the story, Buffalo Bill and his -comrade were crawling upward out of the chamber. - -It had been the hope of the king of scouts that he would be able to -follow the light that came through the crevice and soon reach the top of -the ground; but the discovery that the light entered from above between -two massive bowlders, and that the open space that separated him from -the hilltop was not over half a foot in diameter, put a damper on the -hope. - -Both he and Angell used their combined strength to move the bowlders, -but in vain. - -“Come on,” said Angell, at last. “We will get outer here, all right, -though it’s shore goin’ ter take a little time.” - -The speaker was correct in his opinion. More than three hours elapsed -before they emerged from the new section of the cave. - -Beyond the bowlders there was a sharp descent. The scouts went down, -making many turns, and at last stood in a chamber four times as large as -the one that had recently held them as prisoners. - -As they were exploring the place, Bart Angell, in advance of Buffalo -Bill, who held the torch, gave utterance to a cry of amazement. - -“Ther sufferin’ saltpeter,” he exclaimed, “ef it ain’t Manuel. Ther aire -the chaps I guv him when he got over his sick spell, an’ ’lowed he’d -meander outer ther Territory.” - -The king of scouts looked, and saw the body of a man—that is, he saw a -portion of the body. The head and one shoulder was out of sight. The -inference was plain: The man had tried to crawl through a hole in the -wall, had become wedged in, and had died there. - -The torch was lowered so that a closer inspection of the body might be -made. The clothing had not rotted, but from appearances Buffalo Bill -knew that it inclosed a skeleton. - -“What do you make of it?” inquired the king of scouts. - -“Some one war chasin’ him, an’ he made fer ther hole ter hide. It war -too small, an’ he got stuck an’ stayed thar.” - -“I wonder what is down in that hole, Bart?” - -“You kin s’arch me. Maybe thar’s gold an’ all sorts of plunder.” - -“But how could the robbers have placed it there?” - -“Easy ernuff.” He gave the body a jerk, and the opening was fully -disclosed. - -“Why, it’s a large hole,” exclaimed Buffalo Bill, in surprise. “I could -go through it easily.” - -Bart Angell chuckled. “Of course, Cody, of course. An’ ye’ll have ter go -through thar, fer it’s ther only way outer this chamber.” As the -expression of surprise still lingered on the face of Buffalo Bill, -Angell quickly proceeded: “Manuel Larios war as broad as he war long. Ye -wouldn’t think it, lookin’ at him now. I reckon every member of the -gang, ’cept him, could get through ther hole, an’ I reckon also that -he’d never tried ter crawl in ef he hadn’t been skeered plumb ter death -by whoever war pursuin’ him.” - -“I don’t believe the pursuer caught up with him,” was Buffalo Bill’s -comment. - -“Nor I. Bekase why? Ef he had, he’d shore hev explored ther territory on -t’other side of the hole. Gimme ther torch, an’ I’ll try ther route.” - -“Excuse me,” returned the king of scouts quietly, “but I’ll have to -disoblige you.” - -So saying, he flattened his body on the hard ground, and, inserting his -head in the hole, began to crawl through it. He was at the other end, -when an exclamation of surprise escaped him. He was under an overhanging -wall, and the light of the torch permitted him to see all about him. -Below was what seemed to be a bottomless pit, but his eyes were fixed -not on the pit, but upon a large recess in the wall upon one side of -him. This recess extended about six feet inward, and was about as wide -as it was long. The whole surface was covered with lime coating, and the -floor was strewn thickly with human bones. The hand of the scout could -have touched some of these bones, and a close inspection induced the -belief that they had lain untouched for ages. - -Bart Angell was by Buffalo Bill’s side as the latter said: “We’ve struck -an Indian sepulcher. But how in the name of the saints did the Indian -bearers get the bodies up here?” - -“Gimme yer torch an’ I’ll tell yer,” replied Angell. - -Buffalo Bill complied with his comrade’s request, and the torch was -lowered so that the wall of the chasm could be plainly seen. - -A winding, dangerous descent was observed. At the bottom was a pool of -water, but the trail skirted it and passed into a small, oval chamber. -Angell looked for some time at the trail, and then said: “We kin make -it, but we got ter be blamed keerful.” - -As he spoke he started to go down. Buffalo Bill waited until Angell was -halfway to the pool, and then followed carefully. In his hand was the -tomahawk he had used while working his way out of the Navahos’ cave. An -idea came to him before he had taken half a dozen steps. There would be -a pursuit when Raven Feather’s reënforcements arrived from the village. -Here was opportunity to stop the pursuit. - -The trail had been made by human hands, footholds having been cut in the -rock. - -With his tomahawk the king of scouts destroyed these safeguards as he -passed them, and when he stood by Bart Angell’s side at the foot of the -descent, the wall was without a trail. - -“We can go on with more confidence now,” he said. - -Angell nodded, and they went through the chamber, and after a long -journey, in which many curious sights were seen, they came out of the -ground to find that they were on the shore of a branch of the river. - -The time was about midnight. The scouts were both hungry and tired. They -risked a small fire to make coffee, a supply of which Buffalo Bill -generally carried with him, and, after partaking of the beverage and the -beef and hardtack that went with it, they were ready for sleep. - -If either had known just where he was there would have been no sleep for -their eyes that night. But they had become confused as to direction on -account of the many turns they had made while in the great cave. To -attempt to find their bearings while the dark night lasted might have -taken them miles in a wrong direction. - -They were up at the break of day, and Buffalo Bill, field glasses in -hand, was scanning his surroundings. - -“Whar aire we?” asked Angell, as he raised his arms in a yawn. - -“We have been going westward. If I am not out of my reckoning, we are -about five miles from your cabin.” - -“Too bad. I’d been a-hopin’ we’d been p’intin’ t’other way.” - -“So had I, for the other way is the way the Navahos will take, and that -also is the way that villain Holmes will take. I wonder if the redskins -have overtaken and killed him. If they have, pretty Myra Wilton is now -in the camp of the Navahos.” - -“Thar’s nothin’ like findin’ out,” said Angell quickly, “an’ I’m fer -startin’ this identikle minute.” - -“We’ll have a bite of breakfast and then start.” - -Half an hour later the scouts were on the road to the scene of their -adventures of the day before. - -The platform that concealed the entrance to the cave was reconnoitered, -and when Buffalo Bill saw that it had been shoved aside, leaving the -shaft exposed, he came to the conclusion that the Indians had abandoned -the underground retreat for good and all. - -Both his horse and that of Angell had been stolen, but on the trail to -the cave he picked up a lariat that had fallen from the saddle of one of -the led animals. - -By the aid of the lariat he descended to the cave over the protests of -his comrade. “Ye’re shore takin’ a big chance, Cody,” Angell said. -“Maybe ther reds aire playin’ fox, an’, if they be, ye’ll get it in the -neck down thar.” - -But the king of scouts with a shake of the head went down the rope. His -voice was soon heard by the waiting comrade above. “They’ve gone,” he -shouted, “and the girl has gone with them.” - -“How do ye know?” Bart Angell shouted back. “Did she leave a billy dux?” - -The king of scouts did not respond until he was on terra firma again. - -“She left her handkerchief, Bart. Put it where I would be sure to see -it. The hank wasn’t there when we left the chamber.” - - - - - CHAPTER VI. - IN THE ENEMY’S CAMP. - - -The two scouts left the cave and returned to Angell’s cabin. Before -moving against the enemy it was necessary that their food supply should -be replenished. - -The bodies of the Navahos slain by Buffalo Bill had been removed during -the night, and the scout thought it strange that the cabin had neither -been robbed nor burned. - -“Bart,” said he, as they sat in the door and gazed out upon the flat, -“it’s my opinion that we won’t have to hunt Raven Feather and his band. -The chief left the cabin intact believing that we would come back here. -Probably he did not expect we would get here so soon.” - -“Whar is he now, do ye reckon?” inquired Angell. - -“In his village, but he has left a scout or two behind to find where we -are and report.” - -“Them aire scouts must ha’ fell inter a hole or got cold feet, Cody, -else we should ha’ heerd or seen ’em.” - -A number of shots from down the flat stifled the reply on Buffalo Bill’s -lips. He jumped to his feet and ran out into the open. Between the ruins -of Matt Holmes’ cabin and the ravine two horsemen could be seen. - -The horses were standing still, and the backs of the riders were turned -toward the two scouts. - -Buffalo Bill used his field glasses, and saw that the horsemen were -whites. - -Before he lowered the glasses the horsemen turned and rode up the flat. -They waved their hands when they caught sight of the king of scouts and -his comrade. - -Buffalo Bill’s face blushed with joyous excitement. - -“Bart,” said he, as he slapped his brave comrade on the back, “do you -recognize the tall one? It’s Wild Bill.” Angell gave a whoop and threw -his sombrero high in air. - -The riders came up. One was a young, handsome, honest-eyed man; the -other was Wild Bill, the noted Indian fighter and old comrade of the -king of scouts. - -If Buffalo Bill was delighted at the meeting, what must be said of the -emotions of Hickok? Usually cool, self-contained, slow in speech and -rarely demonstrative, he now exhibited the exuberance of an -impressionable youth. - -“Drat my skin,” he exclaimed, after he wrung Buffalo Bill’s hand and -pulled him roughly but affectionately about, “if I ain’t feeling too -good for any use. I expected to assist in a funeral, though I ought to -have known that you are too big a man to allow a measly mob of Indians -to down you.” - -“What did you hear? And how did you happen to come here?” - -“Let me introduce my friend, and then I’ll saddle the explaining racket -onto him. This is Carl Henson, only half a tenderfoot and wholly a -thoroughbred. He came from Denver to find you and somebody else.” - -Wild Bill, with these words, moved toward the cabin. - -“Hold on a bit,” said the king of scouts, his right hand in that of the -young man. “Before we go inside, I want some information. What did that -shooting down the flat mean?” - -“Oh,” replied Wild Bill indifferently, “we just stopped a little spying. -A couple of Navahos were sneaking toward this cabin when we spotted -them.” He said no more, and his head disappeared in the cabin. - -The king of scouts winked at Bart Angell. Carl Henson saw the wink, and -said, with a smile: “Our mutual friend Mr. Hickok is too modest. I had -no hand in the killing of the two Indians. But two shots were fired, and -both came from Mr. Hickok’s rifle.” - -“Wild Bill shore shoots ter kill,” was Bart Angell’s emphatic comment. -“I’m a fair hand at their trigger myself, but I lays down ter Wild Bill -an’ Cody.” - -In the cabin, Carl Henson told the story of his coming to the flat. - -“My home is in Pennsylvania,” he began, “and I am engaged to be married -to the nicest girl in America.” He sighed deeply, but went on before -Buffalo Bill could speak. “You have probably guessed her name, Mr. Cody. -It is Myra Wilton.” - -“She is a prisoner in the hands of the Navahos,” said the king of scouts -sadly. - -“I know it, but”—his eyes flashing determinedly—“she shall not be long a -prisoner.” - -“I reckon there are three persons in this room who will back you up in -that statement,” spoke Buffalo Bill. - -“That’s whatever,” responded Bart Angell quickly. - -Wild Bill stroked his long, silky mustache. He nodded, but did not -speak. - -“Thank you, gentlemen,” said Henson warmly. “I knew I could count on -you. But to my story. I was in New York when Miss Wilton left for the -West. She did not depart without informing me of the letter she had from -a lawyer, who represented that he was the attorney for her uncle, Matt -Holmes. I am myself a lawyer, and it struck me when I considered the -matter that the letter was not genuine. I had heard of Matt Holmes as an -intelligent, shrewd, upright man. It would not be likely for such a man -to request the presence of a young and inexperienced girl at his home in -the country of savage Indians, no matter what the urgency. - -“I determined to follow her. I quickly arranged my business, and arrived -in Denver two weeks after she had left her home. There I stumbled upon -an important piece of news. In the office of a lawyer friend of mine, -upon whom I had called for information concerning my intended trip to -these hills, I learned about the death of Jared Holmes in Taos, and of -the murder of his brother, the miner, in the mountains of Colorado. The -lawyer was the attorney of the miner’s estate, and he told me that there -were two joint heirs, the plainsman, Matt, and the Taos merchant, Jared. -In the event of the death of both, the estate was to go to the next of -kin, a nephew, Rixton, and a niece, Myra. - -“Instantly I became alarmed. The letter received by Myra was a lure; her -death, as well as the death of her Uncle Matt, had been plotted. There -had already been two murders, and the murderer and plotter must be the -nephew. I asked my friend if he knew Rixton Holmes, and the reply was -that he had met the nephew once at the mine. ‘I did not like his looks,’ -said he, ‘and I believe, with you, that he is scheming to get the whole -of the property, which is very valuable.’ - -“The next day, when I was preparing to set out for the New Mexican -Mountains, my lawyer friend came in. He was greatly excited. ‘It’s a -cinch,’ said he, as he dropped into a seat, ‘that Rixton Holmes is all -we have put him up to be. Last night a document came to me by mail from -New Mexico. It is the will of Matt Holmes. I am named as executor, and -he leaves his property to Rixton Holmes and Myra Wilton, nephew and -niece. But there is a proviso. In the event of the death of either, the -share of the deceased becomes the property of the Territory, and when -converted into cash is to be used in hunting down the murderer of the -testator. A letter was inclosed with the will. It explained the meaning -of the last clause of the document. Matt Holmes has or had, for he is -dead, a bitter, relentless enemy, one Tom Darke.’” - -“Stop a minute,” said Buffalo Bill, as he passed a thoughtful hand over -his brow. “I want to straighten something out. Rixton Holmes gave to -Myra Wilton a letter purporting to have been written by her uncle. The -letter refers to this will, and contains the same explanation as your -letter. I thought when the letter was read to me that it was a forgery.” - -“My friend’s letter was genuine,” said Henson. “He had been doing -business with Matt Holmes for years, and could not be deceived by a -forgery.” - -“I reckon I was mistaken,” returned the king of scouts, “but my error -does not change the situation. Rixton Holmes remains the villain and the -murderer.” - -There was deep curiosity in Carl Henson’s expression. “I am very anxious -to hear your story, Mr. Cody,” he said, “and, therefore, I will hurry on -with mine. In the full belief that Rixton Holmes had written the letter -which induced Miss Wilton to leave her home in Pennsylvania, that he -meant to kill Matt Holmes and then force the girl to marry him in order -that he might obtain possession of all the property, I started for the -Canadian River country. As I rode away I could but admit that the -villain had evolved a cunning plot. He might be accused of the murders, -but there would be nothing but suspicion to urge against him. It could -be proved that the shot that killed Jared Holmes in Taos was fired by -Tom Darke, and the letter of Matt Holmes to my friend in Denver, as well -as other circumstances, would seem to prove that the miner brother met -his death at the same hand. Tom Darke had threatened to wipe out the -whole Holmes brood.” - -“I believe he did so threaten,” said Buffalo Bill, as the young man -paused, “but he was Rixton Holmes’ tool, all the same. I would give a -good deal to know how the two fiends came together. Rixton Holmes must -have been traveling under his Kansas alias when they met, or there would -have been no deal. Tom Darke would have murdered his employer if he had -learned that the man was a Holmes.” - -“I think you are right, Mr. Cody. Well, there is little more to tell; -that is, for me to tell. My friend, Mr. Hickok, must bring the -explanation to a close.” - -Wild Bill grunted, and Henson went on: “Two days out I met Mr. Hickok. I -did not know him, but when he informed me that he was from Taos, and was -acting temporarily as a deputy United States marshal and was on the -trail of a murderer known as Lanky Tom Darke, I felt so pleased that I -wanted to hug him. We talked a while, and then I asked his name. He -blushed; yes, you did”—as the tall scout shook his head vigorously—“and -said he had a fool name. Because he was the quietest individual in the -West the boys had derisively named him Wild Bill. I gazed at him in -amazement. Wild Bill! Who hasn’t heard of him and who hasn’t heard of -you, Mr. Cody? I was fairly taken off my feet.” - -“You’ll be really taken off your feet and deposited in that ditch -outside if you don’t let up,” spoke Wild Bill sharply. “Quit monkeying -with me and talk sense.” - -Carl Henson smiled indulgently. “All right,” he replied. “If I have -given offense, I am glad of it.” - -Bart Angell roared, and Wild Bill glared fiercely at the young man. - -But presently he smiled, and began rolling a cigarette. - -“We exchanged confidences,” proceeded Henson, “and from that time on -have been comrades. In the hills two days later we came upon a wounded -Mexican. He had been shot by Raven Feather’s Indians and left for dead. -Why they did not scalp him is a mystery.” - -“No mystery at all,” grunted Wild Bill. “He was bald-headed.” - -“So he was,” admitted Henson soberly, while the others laughed. “That -makes a difference, I suppose?” - -“I should say it did,” declared Buffalo Bill. “It’s the hair the savages -want.” - -“Well, I am glad the Mexican was not scalped, for the operation might -have ended his life, and we would not have learned then what the Navahos -were up to. - -“The Mexican was able to talk, and he told us that he had overheard a -conversation between Raven Feather and a white man, who answered the -description of Rixton Holmes. A girl was to be abducted, and her -protector, Buffalo Bill, was to be killed. The girl and you, Mr. Cody, -had gone to a ranch in the hills, a day’s journey from the spot. While -the conversation was going on another white man appeared, and presently -the two whites went off together. They were mounted and rode westward. -The second man was Tom Darke, for the Mexican heard him called by that -name. - -“Afterward, while crawling away from the Indian camp, the Mexican was -seen and fired upon. He lay as if dead, and had been there on the ground -for two days. Death came while he was talking to us. We rode on, and—and -here we are.” - -“Now, Hickok, what have you to say?” asked Buffalo Bill, as Henson -finished his explanation. - -“Mighty little, old man. After we left the Mexican we struck an Indian -trail, and I parted company with Mr. Henson to do a little scouting. I -followed the trail to the Indian village, and learned that there had -been a fight, and that Raven Feather had captured a white girl. The -chief was not in the village, but was chasing a white man who had played -traitor. - -“I returned to my friend here, and we concluded to ride on to the flat -and learn how things were there before undertaking a campaign against -the reds. You see, Cody, I was a little anxious about you. I did not -know what had actually happened up here; and again, there was that -matter of Tom Darke.” - -“Darke is dead, Hickok.” - -“I know. I saw the body. Must have been some doing on and near this -flat.” - -Buffalo Bill told what had occurred, and Wild Bill opened his eyes in -astonishment and admiration. “Great Scott! But why wasn’t I here?” he -exclaimed. - -The king of scouts eyed him coolly. “The fight has but just begun,” he -quietly remarked. “There is a chance for you yet. There is a girl to be -rescued and a villain to catch and punish.” - -The tall scout arose, the flame of battle in his eyes. “Come on,” he -said. “I am ready.” - -“So am I,” returned the king of scouts, “though I would feel better if I -had a horse.” - -“You’ll have one, so will Bart here,” said Wild Bill. “The Indian scouts -came here mounted. I saw them when they left their plugs to make the -sneak on the flat.” - -Buffalo Bill’s eye kindled. He got up, and Bart Angell and Carl Henson -followed suit. The food wallets were filled, and then the quartet went -down the flat, all walking, Wild Bill and the young lawyer leading their -animals. - -At the mouth of the ravine the bodies of the two Indians slain by Wild -Bill were found. The king of scouts was surprised to discover that one -of the Indians was the giant Crow-killer. As he looked at the motionless -form of his late antagonist, a daring scheme formulated in his mind. - -“You have done a big thing, Hickok,” he said soberly to Wild Bill. “You -have given me the chance to get into the Navaho camp.” - -“As how?” inquired the other. - -“As Crow-killer, the brother of Raven Feather. Hold on, no expostulation -until I have finished. The dead Indian is of my height. He is a trifle -heavier, but that matter can be remedied by a little judicious padding. -You see that his face is one crisscross mass of paint marks. I am never -without Indian paint, and it will be easy for me to make up my face so -that it will pass for Crow-killer’s, especially as I shall select the -nighttime for my entrance into the village.” - -“You may fool the mob, but you can’t pull the wool over Raven Feather’s -eyes,” said Wild Bill. - -“I won’t have to. Leave that detail to me.” - -Wild Bill knew that it would be useless to protest. He said no more, but -gave earnest attention to the bold scheme that Buffalo Bill outlined. - -A mile from the flat the ponies of the slain Navahos were found. The -king of scouts took one and Bart Angell appropriated the other. - -The trail to the village was a plain one, and the four whites followed -it until they arrived at the top of a hill where there was a dense -growth of trees. - -Below them, and not more than two miles away, was the home of Raven -Feather and his Navahos. - -“We must not ride any farther,” commanded Buffalo Bill. “There is -probably a sentinel at the foot of this hill, and there are others -between the hill and the village.” - -“I can see the fellow at the foot of the hill now,” said Wild Bill, who -had borrowed the king of scout’s field glasses. “He is lying down under -a tree and smoking.” - -It was late afternoon. The horses were tethered, and then the four -friends sat down and waited for the coming of dark. Each had a part to -play, and each was anxious for the time of action to come. - -Just before dark they had a cold meal, and when night came Buffalo Bill -arose, and, after shaking hands with his three friends, strode boldly -down the hill, leading the larger of the two ponies, the one he had -selected, and which he believed to be the one that had belonged to -Crow-killer. - -He could not signal his approach to the sentinel, for he did not know -what the signal was. But he had devised a way of surmounting this -difficulty. As he came within hearing of the Navaho on guard, he began -the utterance of heavy groans, and followed them with the motions of a -person in a state of great bodily weakness. - -The sentinel heard the groans, and, springing to his feet, cocked his -gun and waited for he knew not what. - -Soon a staggering form was outlined between the tree shadows. - -The sentinel let out a hissing sound, followed by the terrified squeak -of a doomed squirrel. - -Buffalo Bill, in his disguise, did not answer in kind. He might make a -mistake, and the mistake would be a fatal one. Instead, he redoubled his -groans, giving to them the deeply guttural tones of the dead -Crow-killer. - -The sentinel’s suspicions, if he had any, were dispelled. He stepped -forward, and said in Navaho: “The great warrior of the Navahos, the -brother of the favorite of the Great Spirit, Raven Feather, is in pain. -Where is the pain?” - -“Here.” The false Crow-killer placed his hand on his heart, and at the -same time began to cough violently. - -The sentinel was within a few feet of the disguised scout when his eyes -fell on the horse. He started back, and his gun was raised in the -twinkling of an eye. - -At that moment Buffalo Bill was very near death. In the confident belief -that he had deceived the Indian, he had not made any demonstration with -his rifle, which he carried loosely in his hand. He did not know that -the pony had betrayed him. But he realized in a flash that the Indian -had made an important discovery, and he acted with the celerity of -lightning. But the Indian had the start, and a bullet would have reached -Buffalo Bill’s heart if a tomahawk, thrown with a practiced hand, had -not carved the Navaho’s skull at the very moment when he was about to -press the trigger. - -The king of scouts saw the Indian fall, and knew that a friend had -intervened, and in the nick of time. - -Wild Bill stepped from behind a tree. “I reckon you’ll forgive me for -disobeying instructions,” he said in a whisper. “You see, I had a hunch -that you’d taken the wrong pony, and, knowing how the Navahos regard -such changes, I concluded to slip on behind you and see you through.” - -“You are forgiven,” returned Buffalo Bill huskily. “That’s another on -me. I shan’t forget.” - -Wild Bill looked closely at the pony. Before, while on the way from the -ravine, he paid no attention to the animal. - -“I am a fool,” he muttered, more to himself than to his old comrade. -“The two ponies the Indians—Crow-killer and his partner—left behind when -they sneaked for the flat were pintos. This pony is a plain muser. There -was substitution after the Indians stole away from their ponies. Some -one, a white man, sure, for on no other supposition can the conduct of -this Navaho at my feet be accounted for, exchanged his own pony for that -of Crow-killer. Why did he do it, and who was he?” - -“Rixton Holmes,” replied Buffalo Bill promptly. “He knew the ponies. His -own, this fellow, is a decent sort of a plug, but Crow-killer’s is -stronger and fleeter.” - -“That’s it, sure, Cody.” Then Wild Bill added: “Of course, you know the -crook the Navahos have about the horses of the whites.” - -“Oh, yes. They will never ride one. All that are found are led away and -killed.” - -“Then don’t you see what a mistake you made in riding this pony?” - -“I do, but it is only just now that the mistake has been called to my -notice. Confound it, I have got to walk to the Indian village.” - -“You needn’t walk. The other pony is right here in the bushes. It is a -pinto, and if it did not belong to Crow-killer, you can explain, if you -have to, that your pony was killed.” - -“Hickok, you are a friend, indeed. You have saved me a lot of trouble -and worry.” - -The king of scouts, on his new mount, parted from Wild Bill and rode -into the little valley of the Navahos. - -But his spirits were not buoyant. The mishap at the beginning of his -desperate venture had brought many misgivings. But there was no -hesitation as to the program he had mapped out. He would carry out his -part no matter what the result might be. - -He was approaching the village, wondering, as he rode, why he had not -met another sentinel, when an Indian arose from the deep grass along one -side of the trail and grasped the pony by the bridle, saying as he did -so: “Crow-killer must go back. It is the order of his brother, the great -chief, Raven Feather.” - -The disguised scout heard the statement with amazement and -disappointment. “What has Crow-killer done that he should be treated in -this way?” he indignantly demanded. - -“He has offended Raven Feather. He has allowed the white traitor to -steal his pony.” - -“Is the white traitor in the village?” asked the false Crow-killer -eagerly, forgetting his indignation for the moment. - -“No. But,” the Indian added, “he was seen before the moon came, riding -the pony of the chief’s brother.” - -Buffalo Bill’s head sank to his breast. Nothing was said for a minute. -The scout broke the silence. “Where must I go?” he asked. - -“Back to the flat of the white man who was killed. There you must stay -for two moons.” - -“Do all the braves know that Crow-killer has fallen from his high -place?” - -The Indian shook his head. “But two know that the pony of Crow-killer -was stolen—Raven Feather, the chief, and Red Antelope, who saw the white -traitor and the pony.” As he spoke, the Indian placed his hand gravely -over his heart. The king of scouts heaved a sigh of relief. The -situation was not so bad, after all. - -“Red Antelope,” he said, in the deep guttural of the chief’s brother, -“is a wise brave, a courageous brave. He will do justice to Crow-killer. -He will listen to Crow-killer’s story, and he will not sustain the -position that Raven Feather has taken. Crow-killer was wounded and -unconscious when the pony was stolen. The wound was not inflicted by the -white traitor, Holmes, but by the great white warrior, Buffalo Bill.” - -The Indian shook his head. “The chief has given his orders,” he said, -“and Red Antelope must obey them. Crow-killer must go back to the white -man’s flat.” - -Buffalo Bill dismounted. The time for talk had passed. “Approach,” he -commanded sternly, “and gaze upon the wound that Crow-killer carries in -his breast.” - -The Navaho approached. He would look, he would express his sympathy, and -then he would see that the chief’s order was carried out. - -When within arm’s length of the disguised scout, his wrists were seized -and he was hurled violently to the ground. His cries were stifled, and -he was soon bound and gagged. The victory was an easy one, for the -Navaho was no match for his powerful and determined antagonist. - -Half an hour later Raven Feather, alone in his tepee, was surprised by -the entrance of one whom at first glance he took for his brother. - -He was on his feet, his dark face burning with anger, when a handful of -red pepper was hurled at his face. As he staggered back, he was thrown -upon the couch of skins from which he had arisen, and a robe was drawn -tightly about his head. - -Shortly after this occurrence the false Crow-killer walked out of the -tepee, and, accosting a Navaho, said: “Raven Feather sleeps. Let him not -be disturbed. He has left his affairs in the hands of Crow-killer. Where -has the white maiden been placed? Crow-killer must see her in order that -he may report when Raven Feather awakes from his sleep.” - -The answer was like a blow in the face: “The white maiden is dead.” - - - - - CHAPTER VII. - A CUNNING VILLAIN’S PLAY. - - -“Yes, the white maiden is dead,” repeated the Navaho. “Did not Raven -Feather so say to his brother?” - -Buffalo Bill was speechless. The news was so astounding that for the -moment he was incapable of sustaining his assumed character. As he stood -staring at the Navaho, there emerged from a tepee a few rods below him a -squat, grotesque figure, carrying a torch. He was followed by three -squaws, who set up a combined wail as they came into the open air. - -The distraction was opportune for the greatly disturbed king of scouts. -It served to divert the attention of the Navaho. - -“What is the matter?” asked Buffalo Bill. - -The answer was that the medicine man was on his way to the tepee of the -dead maiden to exorcise the evil spirits which were struggling with the -maiden’s soul. Raven Feather had loved the white maiden, and, as she -could not become his squaw on this earth, he wished her to become his -spirit bride. - -“I must be present,” said the disguised scout. “It would be Raven -Feather’s wish if he were awake.” - -“Raven Feather must be present himself,” replied the Navaho. “Black -Bison, the medicine man, cannot drive away the evil spirits without the -presence of the chief.” - -The situation was again becoming serious. The Navaho would suspect the -cheat if means were not immediately taken to hoodwink him. Buffalo Bill -thought rapidly. - -“I will go to the medicine man,” he said gravely, “and tell him that -Raven Feather, overcome by his great sorrow, is sleeping. The mind of -the chief was distracted when he talked with Crow-killer. Raven Feather -forgot that Crow-killer did not know that the white maiden had died; he -forgot, also, that he had promised to assist Black Bison.” - -It was lucky for the disguised scout that the Navaho was of a low order -of intelligence. The explanation was accepted, and Buffalo Bill, -immensely relieved, strode toward the tepee into which the medicine man -and the squaws had just entered. - -On the way he passed a number of braves, who were gazing curiously at -the tepee of the proposed incantation. - -The false Crow-killer did not speak to any one of them, but he did not -fail to note with relief that they looked at him without surprise. - -At the door of the tepee he halted. The bearskin flap had been pushed -aside and secured so that a clear view of the interior could be -obtained. - -Upon a pile of skins in a corner lay the body of Myra Wilton. Buffalo -Bill could see the face, and a chill came over his spirits. This, then, -was the end of his quest; this the termination of Carl Henson’s romance. - -At the feet of the body stood the dwarf medicine man, and squatted on -the floor in front of the body were the squaws. - -The medicine man was muttering some strange words, when the disguised -scout uttered a low hiss. The muttering quickly ceased, and Black Bison -looked up with a start. He saw the tall, muscular figure in the doorway, -and took note of the beckoning finger. In an instant he was at the side -of the false Crow-killer. - -Lowering his head and speaking hoarsely, and just above a whisper, the -scout informed the medicine man that Raven Feather was ill and could not -come to the tepee of death. But could not the chief’s brother, -Crow-killer, take the place of the chief? Crow-killer was sure that the -substitution could be made with success; only, for Crow-killer had had a -message from the Great Spirit, the squaws must be sent away. - -Black Bison was filled with wonder. What had the Great Spirit said to -Crow-killer? - -“He had said,” solemnly announced the disguised scout, “that the -presence and assistance of Crow-killer would be more potent than even -the presence and assistance of Raven Feather and the squaws. Why? -Because Crow-killer had just returned from an expedition which had -resulted in the killing of that dreaded enemy of the Navahos, Buffalo -Bill. The scalp of the great white warrior was now reposing under the -head of Raven Feather, and when the chief awoke he would find all his -troubles gone.” - -The medicine man was deeply impressed. He turned, issued a curt order, -and the three squaws arose and toddled out of the tepee. - -When they had gone from sight, Buffalo Bill entered the tepee and let -down the door flap. He had resolved upon a course that was not in his -mind when he entered the Indian village. If he could not rescue Myra -Wilton alive, he would carry her away dead. The poor girl should not -become the victim of an Indian burial. - -He walked slowly to the side of Black Bison, and then suddenly gripped -the dwarf by the throat and forced him to the floor. The head of the -medicine man struck the torch that he had brought, and which had been -stuck in a hole in the ground, and it fell over, sputtered, and went -out. - -The quick change from light to darkness caused the king of scouts to -slightly relax his hold on the throat of his victim. The action was -instantly taken advantage of, and Buffalo Bill, strong as he was, soon -discovered that he was opposing a very giant in strength. - -There ensued a long and terrific struggle, in which not a word was -uttered. While it was progressing, the king of scouts thought he heard a -movement from the direction of the couch of skins upon which lay the -body of Myra Wilton. - -Ten minutes elapsed before the end of the contest came. Sore and out of -breath, Buffalo Bill got to his feet and relighted the torch. - -As its light shone upon the bed of skins, he gave vent to a cry of -amazement. - -The body had disappeared. - -A large slit in the skin wall back of the couch disclosed the avenue of -escape. - -With a strange light in his eyes the king of scouts stepped quickly to -the wall and examined the slit. It had been made by one strong stroke. -No weak woman could have made it. Myra Wilton had not come to life, but -her body had been stolen by some enemy of the Navahos. - -Out of the hole in the wall went the wondering scout, and with his sharp -eyes endeavored to pierce the darkness that surrounded him. There were -no lights in any of the other tepees. The nearest was about twenty feet -away, and standing in front of it was an Indian. - -The false Crow-killer went over to the Navaho, and was pleased to find -that it was one who had spoken to him concerning the medicine man and -the incantation. The Indian did not respond when asked if any one had -preceded the questioner out of the slit in the tepee of the dead white -maiden. - -The question was repeated. Now there was movement instead of oral -answer. Clutching the disguised scout by the arms, the Navaho let out a -yell that was sufficient to arouse the whole village. - -A series of yells came in response, and as the king of scouts flung the -Indian to the ground he found himself in the midst of an excited mob. He -dodged a tomahawk, caught sight of the vengeful face of Raven Feather, -fired point-blank at the chief’s head, and, as the chief fell, struck -right and left with weapon and fist, and had succeeded in forcing his -way out of the crowd, when his legs were seized by the released medicine -man, who had crawled under the skin of the tepee. - -As Buffalo Bill felt himself falling, a shout that was as fine wine to a -thirsty throat saluted his ears. Then ensued a fusillade that sent all -the Indians who could use their legs to a place of security. - -The medicine man lay dead with a bullet in his brain as the grateful -king of scouts shook hands with Wild Bill, Bart Angell, and Carl Henson. - -They had been awaiting the signal from Buffalo Bill, and the delay in -giving it had caused them to think that there had been a miscue. -Consequently they had entered the village on their own motion. - -On the ground where the shooting had taken place lay seven Indians, -among them Raven Feather, the chief. - -“There are not more than a dozen Navahos left,” said the king of scouts -as he looked at the slain, “and I don’t think we need anticipate any -trouble from them. They know their chief is dead, and if we give them -opportunity they will leave the village before morning.” - -“I shan’t object,” remarked Wild Bill. “I have no use for them. Have -you, Cody?” - -“No. We have won out in the Navaho matter. But——” He paused, and gazed -thoughtfully at the ground. - -“But what?” anxiously inquired Carl Henson. “Is not Myra Wilton in the -village? Haven’t you seen her?” - -The questions cost the sympathetic king of scouts a painful effort to -answer. But the truth must be told. Slowly and gravely he narrated the -story of his adventures and discoveries since his arrival in the -village. - -Carl Henson uttered a groan of anguish. His form shook with emotion. - -“Brace up,” said Wild Bill sullenly. “I have got an idea, and if it -doesn’t change your tune, then I don’t know hardtack from chile con -carne. Listen to me: Myra Wilton is not dead.” - -Carl Henson looked up with a start of joy. “Explain,” he demanded. “What -do you know that Mr. Cody does not know?” - -“Mighty little in regard to most things, young man, but a trifle more -than he does in the matter of a certain Rixton Holmes.” - -“You think he stole the body, eh?” put in Buffalo Bill. “So do I.” - -“Of course he is the thief. And I’ll bet a hat I know how he worked the -snap. When I was in Taos gathering the facts about the murder of Jared -Holmes, I learned that Holmes—he went under another name then—had been -seen colleaguing with Tom Darke, the man who did the actual killing.” - -“What of it?” broke in the agitated young man. “How could this talk in -Taos, months ago, refer to the case of Myra Wilton?” - -“Easy, friend Henson,” returned Wild Bill amiably. “Give me time and -I’ll make the connection. I learned something else. Rixton Holmes was a -druggist in the early part of his career. He worked at the business in -St. Louis; had to leave the town between two days because he played a -cunning fraud on an insurance company.” - -The four friends were now walking out of the village toward the point -where the horses had been stationed. - -Wild Bill, without interruption, continued his statement. “The case was -a peculiar one. A woman, no matter what her station in life was, had her -life insured. She was a friend of Rixton Holmes. A month after the -issuing of the policy she died; at least, that was the opinion of the -doctor who signed the death certificate. The money was paid to Holmes, -who was named as the beneficiary. Six months later, the woman turned up -alive, and gave the snap away to the district attorney. She wanted -revenge. Holmes had agreed to whack up, and he failed to do so. There -was no original intent to cheat her, but faro got the money, and he -simply couldn’t make good with her. - -“It appears that the plot was concocted by Holmes, who said he knew of a -drug that, after being taken, would produce the semblance of death, -sufficient to deceive an ordinary physician; and, by the way, it was a -very ordinary one who attended her in what was supposed to be her last -illness.” - -“I begin to see,” exclaimed Henson, as Wild Bill paused and looked at -the young man with a meaning smile. “Holmes induced Myra to take the -drug, and when she was under its influence he stole into the tepee and -carried her off.” - -“You’re partly right and partly wrong,” replied Wild Bill. “She took the -drug, all right, but she did not know that it came from her bitter -enemy. Holmes never saw her, and never gave the drug into her hands. I -believe she took the stuff in the belief that it came from her friends.” - -Buffalo Bill now had something to say. “I am inclined to think that -Hickok is right about the drug. I now call to mind that there was a -peculiar drug-store odor about the tepee when I entered it. But Rixton -Holmes, as Hickok says, never personally induced the girl to take the -drug. There is mystery about that part of the affair that won’t likely -be solved until we rescue Miss Wilton and catch the villain who carried -her off. It was a bold thing to do. The time selected for the abduction -was the best possible. By George! I have it. Holmes followed us from the -vicinity of the flat. He must have seen us soon after he stole -Crow-killer’s pony, and, as his aim was to get the girl, he followed us -to the village, and permitted me to act as his cat’s-paw, hang him.” - -“But how did he get the drug to the girl?” asked Wild Bill. - -“That gets me,” was the reply. “It must have reached her some time -before my arrival in the village, for she was doing the dead act when I -got there. Of course, Holmes must have preceded me. We waited a couple -of hours, if you will remember, on the top of the hill overlooking the -valley.” - -“Well,” remarked Bart Angell, as he bit off a generous chew from his -side of hardcut, “we might as well quit roominatin’ over ther case. What -we got ter do is ter git on ther track of Holmes, and that aire mighty -pronto.” - -“We can do nothing until morning,” said Henson despondingly. “You can’t -trail anybody in the nighttime.” - -“That’s true as a general proposition,” said Buffalo Bill, “but in this -case you’re off. The villain has a pony, and, of course, the animal was -staked near the village. We can soon learn the direction of his flight. -There are three ways of leaving the valley. One is toward the flat that -we left behind this forenoon. The second is through the cañon at the -other end of the village, a route that takes one to Colorado, and the -third is toward the east through a narrow pass, and on to the plains.” - -The horses of the party were found; and the fact that they were where -they had been left, near the trail leading to the lower end of the -valley and the western hills, caused the king of scouts to believe that -Holmes had not sought to escape by way of the flat and the ravine with -the cave. - -“If he had come this way,” he said, “he would certainly have spotted the -ponies and stampeded them. And I don’t think he took the trail at the -other end. He wants to reach the plains, and the way to get there is by -taking the eastern route.” - -“Then let’s investigate over that way first,” suggested Wild Bill, “and -if you’re right, as I believe you are, we’ll be saving valuable time.” - -Buffalo Bill had correctly sized up the fleeing villain’s program. The -tracks of a pony were found on the east less than a mile from the -village. There were deep indentations in the soil, and the king of -scouts, looking at the marks, rightly concluded that they were made by a -pony that had carried double. - -“Holmes is a heavy man,” he remarked, “and Miss Wilton isn’t exactly a -lightweight.” - -Sleep was out of the question. The trail was followed at night, though -the progress was necessarily slow. In the hills, where there was but one -way for a horse to take, they could make better time. - -It was daylight when they halted in a cañon, through which flowed a deep -and rapid stream of water. - -They had breakfast, attended to the wants of their ponies, and then rode -on. - -“Do you think Miss Wilton remained long in her deathlike sleep?” asked -Carl Henson of Buffalo Bill, as the friends were riding, single file, up -the steep side of the mountain. - -“If she revived before this, Holmes would have found her more -troublesome on his hands than an elephant would have been. He’ll not try -to get her out of her sleep.” - -“But the sleep must some time come to an end. When will that be? Have -you any idea?” - -His anxiety was so marked that Wild Bill hastened to say: “That woman in -St. Louis stayed dead twenty-four hours. It will take Holmes more than a -day to get clear of these hills. We’ll catch him before he reaches the -plains.” - -Just before noon Bart Angell, who was riding ahead, and had just rounded -a sharp turn in the trail, uttered a shout that brought his companions -quickly to the spot where he had reined up. - -Before him in the road lay the dead body of an Indian pony. - -It was a pinto, and it had been shot in the head. - -Buffalo Bill dismounted, and saw that one leg of the animal was broken. - -“I understand,” he said. “The pony stepped in that hole there, broke a -leg, and was shot as an act of compassion.” - -Wild Bill, the man of coolness, threw up his sombrero. “We’ve got him -now,” he exclaimed. “That’s as certain as death and taxes.” - -The king of scouts did not share in his old comrade’s belief. “I don’t -know about that,” he said soberly. “Not having the pony, he will not be -obliged to keep to the trail. And it is so hard and rocky up here that -it will be no easy matter to trail him. However, we will hope for the -best.” - -Half an hour later Bart Angell, who had left the trail at the request of -Buffalo Bill, to explore a ravine that debouched into the cañon upon the -high side of which they had been traveling, made a discovery that raised -the spirits of his comrades. - -The footprints of two persons had been found on a short, sandy stretch, -just below the mouth of a spring. - -The tracks pointed up the ravine, and it was clear that retreat was -being made in that direction. - -There was no mistaking the prints. One set belonged to a man, the other -to a woman. - -“You may ease your mind regarding one thing, Mr. Henson,” said Buffalo -Bill. “Miss Wilton has come to her senses. She can walk, too.” - -The young man’s relief at this statement was not pronounced. “But why is -she going along with that scoundrel?” he said, with a voice that had -anger as well as surprise in it. “He isn’t dragging her along. She is -stepping freely.” - -“I hope you are not hobnobbing with the green monster,” was the -response, in comical disapproval. “There is an explanation, and we are -on the way to get it.” - -There was no trail that horses could follow, and so the animals were -left at the mouth of the ravine while the three scouts and Carl Henson -followed the footprints. - -The following was not easy; but the scouts were experts, and though they -went slowly over the rocky ground, yet there was never a stop. Once they -came to a flat bowlder where it was evident that the girl had rested. - -The king of scouts believed that Holmes and Miss Wilton were not far -off, for he had felt of the carcass of the pinto pony and found it warm. - -About a mile up the ravine the pursuers came to a point where the ravine -branched. One branch took a direction at right angles with the course -they had been following. The direction was toward the west and south, -for they could see that half a mile up the branch curved toward the -cañon they had but recently left. - -Buffalo Bill was both surprised and irritated when the discovery was -made that the tracks of the man and girl turned into the western branch. - -A suspicion of the truth caused him to say to Wild Bill and Bart Angell: -“We may have been tricked. It looks like it. Hickok, you and Bart will -take the back track to the place where we left our ponies. Henson and I -will follow these prints. They will take us to the cañon trail, and we -can all meet inside of an hour.” - -The order was instantly obeyed. Wild Bill and Angell hurried down the -ravine. They reached the spot where the ponies had been tethered to make -the alarming discovery that the animals were gone. - -Wild Bill looked at his comrade, and then each began to use language -that, while most expressive, would not look well in print. - -The ebullition over, Angell ran to the cañon trail and looked along the -route eastward. “There they are!” he shouted in wrath. “See ’em, Hickok? -Most to ther summit, an’ a-goin’ it fer keeps.” - -Wild Bill used his eyes and fiercely bit at his mustache. “Each on a -pony,” he muttered. “No coercion? Going away like two elopers. Bart, -this business beats me to a frazzle. Got an opinion that is of any -value?” - -“No, but I shore got a request ter make,” was the response, in deep -disgust. “Will you hev ther kindness as ter be so kind as ter take a -squint among ther big trees yereabout an’ find a knot hole. I shore -desires ter crawl inter it an’ haul ther hole in arter me.” - -Wild Bill fell to whistling. A smile came to his lips. “I am waiting for -Cody to come up. It will be worth something to note the expression of -his classic mug when he sees what a mess we have made of it.” - -It was not long before the king of scouts and Carl Henson put in an -appearance. There was no need to look toward the spot where the ponies -had been nor to ask questions. The faces of Wild Bill and Bart Angell -told the whole crushing story. - -For a moment Buffalo Bill gazed at them without speaking. Then he broke -into a laugh. “Boys,” he said, “it is certainly rough. But the battle is -not yet lost. Luck can’t stay always with that slick, double-dyed -villain. We are all candidates for bed, but the bed has not been made -that will take any of us in to-day. It’s sprint, and as this is no time -for a confab, here goes.” - -Up the hill he went, making surprising time for a man of his weight. It -may be said that his wound had healed rapidly, and that for twenty-four -hours it had given him no concern. - -Wild Bill was the fleetest runner. Tall, thin, and wiry, with the -strength of a giant and the suppleness of a panther, he fairly flew over -the ground. - -Carl Henson was a good second. The young man was on his mettle. Besides, -he had the greatest interest at stake. - -For hours the fugitives were lost sight of, but in the middle afternoon -they were seen to descend a hill ending in one of the rockiest sections -of the Canadian Mountains. - -With his field glasses Buffalo Bill noticed that Holmes and the girl -were walking their ponies, and that from time to time the villain, who -was in the lead, turned and shook his fist at the girl. - -Arrived at the foot of the hill, no attempt to increase the speed of the -ponies was made. - -“I tell you what, boys,” said the king of scouts, in pleasant -excitement, “things are moving our way.” - -“What do you mean?” interrogated Henson eagerly. - -“Why, can’t you guess? We wouldn’t have come in sight of Holmes if the -ponies had not been walked for a long distance. What has happened? Just -this: Miss Wilton has caught on to the situation. She has refused to -obey orders and ride hard. Holmes is mad clear through, but can do -nothing. He has probably threatened to shoot her if she does not go with -him, but he can’t induce her to bring her pony out of a walk.” - -Carl Henson was so greatly excited over what Buffalo Bill had said that -he started along the trail with the speed of a race horse. - -If he kept on in his course, a few minutes would bring him into view -from the rocky basin through which Holmes and Myra Wilton were riding. - -Buffalo Bill shouted: “Come back, or you will spoil all!” Henson heard, -but he did not lessen his speed. - -The king of scouts started after him. The pursuit would have been -fruitless if Henson, running with his head in the air and his mind on -the girl he loved, had not stumbled over a large stone and pitched -forward on his face. The king of scouts picked the young man up to hear -him say: “Let me alone. I am a match for a dozen fellows like that one -down there.” - -“If you don’t do as I say,” replied Buffalo Bill severely, “you may lose -the girl and be balked of your revenge. Holmes is a man without scruple. -Rather than see Myra Wilton restored to her friends, he will kill her -even if his own life pays the forfeit. We must go slow. The game is ours -if we work it right. Leave the direction of affairs to me.” - -“All right,” said Henson humbly. “I’ll not break loose again.” - -Soon after this conversation Holmes and his captive halted, and the -ponies were hobbled. - -Buffalo Bill was waiting for the darkness. He might, with his force, -descend immediately upon the villain, but he feared that once the -rescuers were seen, Miss Wilton’s life would be in jeopardy. - - - - - CHAPTER VIII. - SAVED FROM DEATH. - - -In a position from which all parts of the rocky basin could be seen, -Buffalo Bill assembled his men and unfolded his program. - -“Holmes will not stay all night among the rocks down there,” he said. -“He may start on before dark, though my opinion is that he won’t unless -he should see us coming down the hill toward him. He is probably facing -the hill now, on the watch for us. As he will not get a glimpse of us -during daylight, he will conclude that we have not been able to make -fast time in the pursuit.” - -“I wish the darkness would hurry up and come,” said Carl Henson, in -fierce impatience. “I am worried about Miss Wilton.” - -“She is in no present danger,” replied the scout. - -The sun was setting. Its rays illuminated and brought into bold relief a -long peak that stood at the farther end of the basin. The peak was built -of many-colored rocks laid in belts, and the effect was grandly -beautiful. - -On one side of the peak ran the trail that led out of the basin. - -In an hour the peak and the hollow at its base would be wrapped in -darkness. - -“That peak seems to interest you, Cody,” said Wild Bill. - -“It does, Hickok, for there I feel that the wind-up will take place.” - -“Then you don’t intend that Holmes shall sneak out of the basin.” - -“You have said it.” - -“I get the idea. The retreat by the peak must be cut off.” - -“Yes. The basin can be circled. There’ll be some tough climbing to do, -but——” - -“But a man of my build can easily do the trick. Good! That suits me down -to the ground. Wish I could start now. By gum”—looking along the -irregular wall of the basin—“I can start in daylight. The rocks offer -all kinds of opportunities for concealment. What do you say, Cody? -Hadn’t I better get a move on right now?” - -Buffalo Bill did not answer at once. His eyes were on the spot where -Rixton Holmes and Myra Wilton were resting. He saw the villain arise, -take the girl by the arm and point to the ponies. - -“They are going to move,” he said, in some excitement. Then to Wild -Bill: “Yes, you may go. You’ll have to travel fast if you expect to get -to the peak before they come up.” - -“Trust me,” was the quiet reply, and Wild Bill was off. - -Carl Henson was so excited that he would have rushed down the hill in -spite of his promise to obey Buffalo Bill’s orders, if Bart Angell had -not caught him by the arm and held him back. “Keep cool, sonny,” was the -big backwoodsman’s admonition. “You’ll shore hev a chance ter take part -in ther circus, but you got ter remember that Buffalo Bill aire ther -ringmaster.” - -The king of scouts, still watching the scene in the basin, was both -relieved and delighted to observe that Holmes was having trouble with -his captive. Myra Wilton had refused to mount her pony. An angry -discussion was evidently taking place. - -Meanwhile, Wild Bill, active as a cat and with the cunning and -discretion that had so many times stood him in good stead, was making -quick time toward the trail beyond the peak. - -Once Myra Wilton turned and looked toward the spot where Buffalo Bill -and his two companions were concealed. Did she know they were there? - -The king of scouts was in doubt on this point, but the inference was -that Holmes believed that she suspected help was near, for, while she -was looking at the point of concealment, the villain caught her around -the waist, lifted her from the ground, and, despite her struggles, began -to carry her in the direction of the peak. - -“Come on, boys,” said Buffalo Bill, as he leaped to his feet. “My slate -is smashed. It’s now a case of get there.” - -When they reached the basin, Holmes and the girl were out of sight. The -huge rocks of the hollow hid them. - -But as the objective point of the alarmed and desperate villain must be -the peak trail, the king of scouts pressed forward, running as he never -had run before. - -He outstripped his companions, and was in an open space that permitted a -view of the base of the peak when he stopped in amazement. - -Rixton Holmes was ascending the peak. Assisted by the rocky rings, he -had reached a point over fifty feet from the base. His strength must -have been prodigious, for he still held the girl in his arms. - -She was making no movement, and the king of scouts believed that she had -fainted. Had he known that the brutal villain had choked her into -unconsciousness, his rage might have overlapped his judgment. - -Holmes saw Buffalo Bill, and stopped to draw a knife from his belt. - -“Shoot, if you will,” he shouted hoarsely, “and I will drive this knife -into Myra Wilton’s heart.” - -“You coward,” yelled Carl Henson, who had come up and was beside himself -with rage and anguish. “Come down here and have it out with me.” - -Holmes laughed hoarsely. “I’m playing a safe hand,” he yelled. - -“What do ye expect ter gain by this monkey business?” demanded Bart -Angell, who had his rifle pointed at the villain’s head and was waiting -for a chance to fire. If the girl’s head had not rested against the -villain’s cheek he would have fired, anyhow. “I’m not likely ter miss, -but it won’t do ter take chances,” he said sourly to himself. - -“Gain?” repeated Holmes. “Satisfaction, that’s all.” His eyes were -rolling wildly, and Buffalo Bill realized that he was confronting a -half-crazed enemy; and he was the more dangerous on that account. - -But where was Wild Bill? He had had time to reach the peak, and yet -there was no sign of him. - -While the king of scouts wondered at the nonappearance of his old -comrade, Holmes, holding the knife in a threatening attitude, backed out -of sight, and continued his ascent of the peak. - -Buffalo Bill and his companions ran around the base to make a discovery -that at the moment gave them some satisfaction. - -The villain’s progress had been stopped. There was a wide gap in the -rings; too wide to be covered by a leap. - -The path Holmes with his burden had been pursuing terminated at a narrow -shelf over an almost vertical wall, which formed the back of a small -cove cut out of the base of the peak. The floor of the cove was not -smooth. Sharp, jagged sections of the rocky ledge upon which the base -rested pointed upward. - -Rixton Holmes, standing perilously on the shelf, looked down, and he -gave a wild laugh as his eyes fell on the king of scouts, Bart Angell, -and Carl Henson. “The jig is up,” he shrieked. “Myra Wilton is going -into eternity, and I am going to follow her. I lose and you don’t win.” - -“I am going to fire,” said Henson in a husky whisper. “I—I can’t stand -this.” - -“Wait,” sternly commanded Buffalo Bill. “If there is any shooting to be -done, it must be done by me.” - -As he ceased speaking, Holmes raised the limp form of the girl above his -head. - -“Down she goes,” he yelled, and, dazed with horror, Carl Henson started -back, his rifle held in a nerveless hand. - -It was a frightful moment. Buffalo Bill, whose wits had not deserted -him, did not fire, though he might have done so. He realized that a shot -would not save the life of the girl, for her form was held directly over -the precipice, and that she would fall the instant a bullet entered the -brain of the fiend who held her. - -Therefore, instead of firing, he leaped into the cove, braced himself, -and raised his hands. - -There came a savage shout from above, and the next instant the villain -fell back on the ringing rocks with Wild Bill on top of him. - -The intent of the tall scout had been good, but it did not suffice to -bring the girl from a position of deadly danger to one of safety. - -The sudden descent of Wild Bill from above the shelf caused Holmes to -relax his grip on the form of his victim. - -Her senses had returned a moment before Holmes lifted her above his -head. As the villain fell over under the weight of the savagely excited -scout, she slipped over the edge of the precipice. - -But she did not fall to the bottom. She clutched at the uneven surface -of the side wall as she went, and halfway down her belt caught on a -projection, and she hung there, head and feet pointing downward. - -Her terrified eyes met the upturned gaze of the palefaced king of -scouts. - -“Raise yourself if you can,” he shouted encouragingly, “and grip that -rock that has caught you.” - -The attempt was made and was a failure. The girl was too weak to exert -more than a small portion of her normal strength. - -“Rest a bit and try again,” counseled the scout. “If you can hold on a -few minutes, I’ll get you onto solid ground.” - -“Can’t I do something?” said Carl Henson, his handsome face twitching -with agony. - -“Yes,” was the quick response; “you can run to the ponies, where Holmes -left them, and get the reatas.” - -The young man was off like a shot, but he never went as far as the spot -where the ponies had been secured. On his way he met Bart Angell. The -big backwoodsman had the reatas in his hand. - -“I reckoned as how they’d shore be needed,” he said to Henson, “an’ so I -jest naterally made a bee line fer ther ponies without axin’ Cody’s -permission.” - -When Henson and Angell reached the cove Myra Wilton had succeeded in -gettin’ her hands on the rocky projection, and Wild Bill was standing on -the narrow shelf above. - -“Hike up here with those reatas,” Wild Bill shouted. - -“I’ll take them,” said Carl Henson quickly. “I can make better time than -you, Mr. Angell.” - -Buffalo Bill would not leave his position under the girl. She might fall -at any moment. If she did, it might be death for him and her, for there -was a sheer drop of nearly fifty feet. - -Bart Angell regarded the king of scouts gravely. Soon he was standing -behind his comrade. “Go away, Bart,” commanded Buffalo Bill. “One is -enough.” - -“Maybe not, son,” was the firm reply. “If she comes, I’ll shore yank you -back ther minute she strikes your arms. Thataway we’ll save some of ther -pieces.” - -The king of scouts tried to smile, but could not. Above him the girl was -swaying about the projection that was holding her. - -“I can’t hold on much longer,” she said faintly, and her voice just -reached the ears of the king of scouts. “And if I let go with my hands I -must fall, for the belt has given way.” - -“You must hold on,” came the reply as a command. “Help is on the way.” - -A shout from the shelf gave her courage. “I am here, Myra,” called out -Carl Henson tremulously. “I have got ropes, and they’ll be down to you -in a minute.” While he was speaking Wild Bill was twisting the reatas. -In the cove Buffalo Bill breathed a sigh of deepest relief. - -The transition from torturing suspense to ardent hope was scarcely set -before Bart Angell screamed: “Look out, she is falling!” - -He spoke the awful truth. Myra Wilton, turning to look up at her lover, -had broken off the end of projection of rock about which her hands were -clasped. If she had had wits about her she might have saved herself from -falling, but the accident unnerved her, and she relaxed her hold on the -solid, fixed, remaining section of the rock. - -Carl Henson saw her fall, and would have leaped after her if Wild Bill -had not seized his arm in the nick of time. - -The young man was struggling in the grasp of the tall scout, when a -joyous shout from the cove caused him to gaze into Wild Bill’s face in -utter bewilderment. - -“A miracle, I reckon,” said the scout to the young man as they both -started for the shelf. - -And a miracle, or something closely allied to one, had intervened to -save the life of Myra Wilton. Her lover, looking down, saw her safe in -the arms of Buffalo Bill. - -She had not fallen straight from the projecting rock. There were other -projections on the side wall of the cove. She had caught at them as she -went down, and once her gown had held her up for a few seconds. When at -last she fell, to be received in the arms of the king of scouts, she was -not more than ten feet from the ground. - -Five minutes later she was clasped to the breast of Carl Henson. - -“A mighty close shave, Cody,” remarked Wild Bill, as he slapped his old -comrade on the back; “mighty close. I never expected to see either you -or her alive again.” - -Buffalo Bill was sitting on a rock mopping his face. He was about to -make some sort of response, when Myra Wilton left her lover and stood in -front of him. First she smiled, and then impulsively leaned over and -kissed him. - -“The debt is wiped out,” he said, as he took her two hands and pressed -them. “But”—he paused and smiled at Carl Henson—“you must let me dance -at your wedding.” - -“You shall,” she responded, with a pretty blush. - -The king of scouts now gave his mind to more serious concerns. “How is -it with Rixton Holmes?” he asked Wild Bill. - -“It’s a case of dying, Cody. The fellow struck his cabesa on a sharp -rock when he fell, and the point became acquainted with his Sarah -Billium.” - -“Can he talk?” - -“Don’t know. I’ll bring him down for you.” - -Bart Angell went with Wild Bill. They soon returned bearing the limp -form of the villainous cousin of Myra Wilton. - -The wound was bandaged, and whisky was forced down his throat. - -Soon he opened his eyes and stared about him. He saw the girl he had -tried to murder, and he looked into the sober, reproachful countenance -of the king of scouts. - -“Take the money,” he said faintly, and trying to conjure up a smile. -“I’ve lost.” - -He was asked to make a full confession of his crimes. - -“Life is too short for that,” he replied, “but I’ll tell something about -the mine affair. I would never have plotted to kill my three uncles if I -hadn’t bumped up against Tom Darke. He knew me as Rixton Clay, and had -no notion that I was related to the Holmeses. We became card partners, -and soon I knew all his secrets. One night when he was pretty full he -told me that he had come West for the purpose of killing three -men—Peter, Jared, and Matt Holmes. At that time Peter’s mine was the -talk of Colorado. There had been a rich discovery, and the mine was -worth millions. - -“Well, I reflected, and soon the plot was born. Tom Darke killed Peter -and Jared, and he would have killed Matt if I had not taken the job off -his hands. I had to, for I was afraid that Darke’s gun would miss fire -and that Matt would get him. - -“The letter that brought my Cousin Myra to New Mexico was written by me. -I had ingratiated myself with my Uncle Matt, and I knew he had made a -will, leaving his estate to me and Myra. His estate then did not amount -to much, but the estate of Peter did, and when Peter and Jared died, -Matt became the owner of the mine. Before Myra arrived, Peter and Jared -had crossed the divide. - -“I could have come forward and claimed half the estate when my three -uncles were dead, but I was afraid that I would be arrested. Although I -had covered my tracks pretty well, I dared not face the authorities. -Therefore, my scheme at the last was to marry Myra, compel her to give -me the larger part of her share, and then light out for foreign parts. - -“I believe she was on the point of trusting me, when you, Mr. Cody, was -trapped in the cave. But I found when we got outside the hole that I had -caught a Tartar.” - -His voice became so weak that it could scarcely be heard. More whisky -was administered. - -“There is not much more for me to say,” the dying villain proceeded. “I -stole Crow-killer’s pony and trailed you and your friends, Mr. Cody, to -the Indian valley. I guessed your object. You were on your way to rescue -my cousin from the hands of the Navahos. I determined to block that game -if I could. I sneaked into the village ahead of you, and just after dark -got to Myra’s tepee, and was lucky enough to find that no one was with -her. I was once a druggist, and I have always carried on my person a -powerful and peculiarly acting drug that was sent to me from the East -Indies. This drug will produce a sleep that resembles death. I had come -to the tepee prepared to work a bold design, and before I crawled away -the drug was in the hands of Myra, and she knew what to do.” - -“How did you deceive her,” asked Buffalo Bill. - -“I used your name. A note accompanied the vial that contained the drug. -The note was signed with your name, and informed her that you were near -by, and that her rescue was certain if she would comply with your wish. -She must swallow the contents of the vial. A deep sleep would come, the -Indians would look upon her as dead, vigilance would be relaxed, and she -could be carried away before daybreak. I did not, of course, enter the -tepee, but thrust my hand under the wall of skins and made a slight -noise to attract her attention. - -“The scheme worked better than I had planned. The rescue was made with -you, Mr. Cody, as my ally. The fight in the tepee was right to my hand. -Before it was over I was on my pony, with Myra in my arms. - -“If I used her roughly after she came to her senses, it was because I -was half insane with fear. You were in pursuit, I knew it, and I knew, -also, that I was doomed unless I got safely out of the mountains.” - -“Did Miss Wilton see me before you left the pony to run to the peak?” -asked Buffalo Bill. “She acted as if she did.” - -“No, she did not see you, but she made me believe she did. Then I must -have gone wholly insane. I determined to kill her and then kill myself.” - -The tale was told. In a few minutes Rixton Holmes was dead. - -Not many weeks later Myra Wilton and Carl Henson were married in Denver. -Wild Bill Hickok left his partner to engage in a hunting expedition on -the Continental Divide. Buffalo Bill, however, had much else to attend -to. He had scarcely finished his work in the Holmes murder mystery -before he had received a telegram from Colonel Hayden, an army officer, -requesting the aid of the king of scouts in locating his beautiful -daughter, who had been kidnaped by a notorious bandit. - - - - - CHAPTER IX. - A MAN HUNT IN ARIZONA. - - -“He does not look as if he had the intelligence of a rabbit, Cody.” - -The speaker’s fine face was shadowed with grief. The tone was -despondent. - -“I’ll admit that he would not likely pull a prize at a scholastic -exhibition, colonel; but he knows one thing, and he knows it well. It -may be instinct or it may be intelligence—I’ll not venture a decided -opinion on the point—but the proof is abundant that he is, par -excellence, the great and only human sleuthhound.” - -Buffalo Bill, mounted on a coal-black steed, smiled on the Hualapi, who -was the subject of Colonel Hayden’s remark. - -The Indian was short, squatty, and in features closely resembled the -despised Digger of northern California. The forehead was low, the nose -short and broad, the lips as thick as a negro’s, and the chin -conspicuously nonaggressive. The eyes were small, piercing, and snaky. -Fixed upon the colonel, they expressed utter disdain, for the Hualapi -could speak a fair sort of English, and he had understood the purport of -the colonel’s slurring statement. - -The three men, the whites on horseback, the Indian on foot, were on the -edge of the Colorado desert. They looked upon a sky unbroken by a cloud. -The horizon stretched away until, on either side, it was lost in the -haze of quivering heat. The expanse was unmarred by tree or shrub, while -underfoot a sea of restless sand, ever shifting and ever changing, -seemed as if it sought to escape the all-pervading, deathlike monotony -and silence of the desert. - -Add to this the sparse and stunted vegetation that tells of scanty water -and burning suns, and a picture is presented of the home of the Hualapi, -the human sleuthhound, who by the keenness of his vision follows the -trail of man or beast where the best bloodhound would be baffled. - -Day after day the scene is the same, until the eye, weary with sweeping -the unbroken wastes, contents itself with noting the few signs of life -the desert furnishes. - -Colonel Hayden tried to gather comfort from the confident assertion of -the king of scouts. But his almost hopeless look returned when he gazed -out upon the desert. - -Buffalo Bill regarded the serious-faced officer with an eye of pity. The -colonel’s mind was burdened with a deep sorrow and a racking anxiety. He -was a father, and his only child, a daughter, was in the power of a -conscienceless villain. - -Commander of a military post in Wyoming, he had obtained leave of -absence for the purpose of pursuing the abductor of his daughter. -Buffalo Bill, then in the government employ, had also secured leave on -the recommendation and at the urgent request of the colonel, who -believed that if any man in the West could trail the villain and rescue -the girl, the brave, fearless, and skillful king of scouts was that man. - -The abduction had not the usual sordid motive. Colonel Hayden was a rich -man, but there was no question of ransom in the carrying away of Sybil -Hayden. Nor was there anything between the colonel and Edward Frams, -better known as Black-face Ned, out of which hate and revenge might have -grown. The two men were strangers. Colonel Hayden did not know that such -a person as Black-face Ned existed until the terrible news of the -abduction reached him. - -Sybil was away from the post visiting a schoolmate at her mountain home -many miles from the military station when she met the villain who now -had her in his power. - -He was a cowboy, and had arrived at the ranch a few days after Sybil -made her appearance there. Tall, muscularly built, with flashing black -eyes, a pale, classic face, and a heavy, drooping mustache, he was a man -who always attracted attention and compelled admiration. He was vain of -his good looks, and believed himself to be a lady-killer of the first -water. Sybil Hayden thought him interesting, but she did not admire him. -There was something about him that induced distrust. His eyes had -frequently a sinister gleam in them, and when he looked at her she saw -more than he desired she should see. - -None of the other cowboys on the ranch knew him, and none of them grew -to like him. They were rough, honest fellows, and did not take kindly to -his style, which was dandified and superior. But they grudgingly -admitted that he knew his business. He was a fine rider and a dead shot, -and his bravery was unquestioned. - -His story was that he had just come from northern Mexico, where for ten -years he had been the foreman of a large cattle ranch. - -One day while Sybil was riding a few miles from the house she met Frams, -who was returning from a visit to the nearest town. - -She gave him a cool bow, and was about to ride on, when he reined up by -her side and spoke quickly: - -“I must say what I have been wanting to say for weeks, Miss Hayden. You -must hear me. I love you, and I want you for my wife.” - -The girl’s indignation was greater than her surprise. - -“I have nothing to say to you,” she replied coldly. She gave her pony a -light tap, but Frams caught the bridle, and the pony remained at a -standstill. - -His voice was hoarse as he said: “You look upon me with contempt because -I am poor. I know your kind, and——” - -“Like them.” The interruption was coolly made. Frams turned red, and his -eyes glittered savagely. - -“Yes, I like your kind,” he hissed, “though I despise them, also.” -Irritated by her cool, sneering expression, he continued fiercely: “I -love you, and I want to tame you, to bring you down from your high horse -and make you sing small for your attitude toward those you consider your -inferiors.” - -“You make love in a most peculiar way,” Sybil replied, with a smile that -made the villain grit his teeth. “Until to-day I was scarcely aware that -you existed. But your stupendous insolence has forced you upon my -notice. Be kind enough to remove your hand from the bridle. If you were -a gentleman, I would not have to ask twice.” - -With an oath, Frams let his hand fall to his side. As the girl rode on, -he shook his fist at her and said loud enough for her to hear: “Go on, -but don’t think you have done with me. A day of reckoning is coming.” - -On her return to the ranch house, Sybil did not mention her meeting with -Edward Frams. She believed that the incident was closed, and that the -cowboy would in future keep his distance. - -She was not ill pleased when at night Frams threw up his job, received -his money, mounted his pony, and rode away, declaring that he was going -back to Mexico. - -Two nights afterward, Sybil, who slept in a room on the first floor, -with window opening on the long veranda, was awakened from a sound sleep -by a noise near her couch. Before she could cry out, a handkerchief, -saturated with chloroform, was pressed against her nostrils, and her -senses left her. When she returned to consciousness, she found herself -strapped to the back of a horse. - -It was still dark, and the horse was going at a gallop along the trail -toward the mountains. - -In front was another horse, and upon its back, a cruel smile upon his -dark face, was Edward Frams, the cowboy. - -The next day the news of the abduction reached Colonel Hayden. Well-nigh -distracted, he reached the ranch at the earliest possible moment, and -learned that several parties were out in pursuit of the abductor. - -The animal Frams bestrode had peculiar hoof marks, and several of the -cowboys at once recognized them. - -A week went by and there was no report from any one of the pursuing -parties. Colonel Hayden had come too late to hope to overtake the men -who had gone on the trail of Frams, and so he remained at the ranch in -an agony of suspense. - -While awaiting news, he telegraphed a description of the abductor to the -officers of all the towns, north, south, and west, and after the lapse -of several days received a letter from the Denver chief of police, -stating that the description fitted one of the most daring and -conscienceless scoundrels in the West, one whose whereabouts had been -unknown for many years. - -He had been the leader of a gang of outlaws whose range of operations -extended from Mexico to Dakota. Five years before the gang had been -broken up, but Black-face Ned and three of his men had escaped and gone -south toward Mexico. - -This intelligence increased Colonel Hayden’s alarm. He chafed at the -suspense, and would have taken the field himself if the members of one -of the pursuing parties had not returned ten days after setting out. - -The leader reported that the trail had been followed into Colorado, and -there lost. - -Soon afterward the other pursuers returned. They had failed to trace the -abductor. - -Colonel Hayden obtained leave of absence from the government, had -Buffalo Bill detailed to assist him, and a month after the abduction -they stood on the edge of the Colorado desert, the king of scouts having -picked up the trail the cowboys had lost, and followed it to the desert. -Here the services of the Hualapi had been secured on the strong -recommendation of Buffalo Bill. - -It was early morning when the little party, with the Indian in the lead, -took their way across the desert. An expert reader of signs, the Hualapi -was soon able to announce that the trail was but one day old. There were -many indications—among them the dew that had fallen, the dust or sand -that had drifted into the track, the condition of the occasional tufts -of dry grass which had been pressed underfoot and had partially regained -upright shape, and minute marks upon the rocks—that told a plain story -to the trailer. - -After traveling slowly for a mile, the Indian stopped, straightened -himself, and looked knowingly at the king of scouts. - -Buffalo Bill rode forward and asked: “What is it, Panecho?” - -“Sacks on feet; heap smart trick, ugh!” - -The grunt of contempt caused the scout to smile. - -“Meant to fool the ordinary white man, but it doesn’t fool you, eh?” - -The Indian nodded. He had been following a very faint trail made by two -horses whose feet had been muffled. - -“Bimeby sacks come off,” Panecho said. “Then we go fast.” - -On the trailer went, and late in the afternoon reached a spur of the -Hualapi Mountains. Ten minutes later the Indian held up his hand. He had -lost the trail. - -Colonel Hayden uttered a sigh of acute disappointment. Buffalo Bill -looked at the officer, half in contempt, half in pity. - -“Lost for the moment,” he said; “but Panecho will soon pick it up again, -or I’ll miss my guess.” - -The Indian made a motion that the king of scouts understood. A triangle -was formed, the point where the last vestige of the trail had been seen -being in the center of the base. Moving from each of the three points, -the colonel, Buffalo Bill, and the Hualapi began a search for the -missing trail. The colonel, who had watched the Indian closely during -the ride across the desert, and whose eyes were sharpened by anxiety, -was the one who found it. The mark was small, and so faint that the -officer had to look twice to be sure of it. He did not shout his -discovery, for silence was the order of the day, but motioned with his -hand. The Indian ran up, looked at the mark, and then hurried on, to -soon find another mark. - -Now the pursuit was resumed, and when an hour before dark a point was -reached, where there were evidences that the sacks had been discarded, -the colonel was in a state of hopeful excitement. - -There upon the ground was the impress of a horse’s hoof. The trail now -became more distinct, and the Indian went forward with a celerity that -delighted while it astonished the colonel. - -At dark a halt was made. - -The pursuers were now at the mouth of a narrow pass. Nothing could be -done until next morning, for Buffalo Bill knew that to try to follow the -trail by lantern light would not only be slow and vexatious work, but -might be attended with grave danger. If Black-face Ned was near at hand, -and he might be, the light would give him opportunity to pot every one -of the pursuers. - -Camp was made, and after a cold supper the two white men and the Hualapi -found soft places, and stretched themselves out for a few hours’ -much-needed rest. Buffalo Bill was up before daybreak. He roused the -Indian, and then turned to walk toward the spot—the lee of a -bowlder—where the colonel had lain, and was amazed to discover that the -soldier had gone. - -Both the king of scouts and the Hualapi were light sleepers, and it -seemed strange that the colonel should have departed without awakening -either of them. Not far away from the camp was a small creek, and, in -the hope that the colonel had gone to the water for a drink, Buffalo -Bill went down the sloping bank, and soon stood on the water’s edge. It -was now light enough for the scout to see for some distance about him. - -There was no sign of Colonel Hayden anywhere. - -As the king of scouts stood and wondered, the Hualapi came to his side. - -“Him heap make sneak,” said the Indian, with many nods. “Go away, think -he catch bad man asleep.” - -“He must have crawled off noiselessly, so as not to disturb us,” replied -Bill irritably. “I shall have to give him a sharp lecture when he comes -back.” - -“Him heap fool, may spoil game,” said the Indian. - -The words had scarcely left the Hualapi’s mouth before there came a -sharp report, and a rifle bullet ended the speaker’s career. - -Quick upon the shot Buffalo Bill dropped to the ground. The move saved -the scout’s life, for a second report had followed the first. - -Buffalo Bill had dropped near the trunk of a large cottonwood. He was -behind it in a twinkling, and with pistol in hand—he had left his rifle -at the camp—awaited the next move of the assassin. - -Five minutes passed and not a sound broke the stillness. The enemy must -be still on the spot whence the shots had been fired. If he had moved, -the king of scouts must have assuredly have heard him. - -“He is waiting for full daylight,” was the scout’s conclusion. “Well, so -am I.” - -Back of Buffalo Bill was the creek, and across the creek was a wall of -rock that rose sheer to a height of one hundred feet. There was, -therefore, no danger of an attack from behind. - -But one side of the scout’s place of shelter was exposed, that which -looked toward the camp. The other side was a mass of high, thick brush. - -At the expiration of ten minutes, the silence having continued unbroken, -Buffalo Bill stooped, picked up a three-foot section of the dead branch -of a tree, and then removed his sombrero. Placing the hat at an end of -the stick, he thrust it a few inches beyond the cottonwood in the -direction of camp. No shot followed. Either the ruse was guessed, or the -enemy had changed his position. - -The situation was a ticklish one. If the scout stepped out into the open -space he might become a target for a murderous bullet, while if he -crawled into the brush he might encounter a similar danger. - -Where had the enemy gone? Buffalo Bill tried to put himself in the -unknown’s place. After a few moments’ thought, he said to himself: “He -has probably sneaked noiselessly to a point nearer the camp. He has seen -the rifle, and he believes that I will, after a time, return there. I -will return, but not in the way he expects.” - -There was but the space of a few yards between the tree and the creek, -which carried a deep and swiftly running body of water. - -Buffalo Bill flattened himself, crawled in safety to the water, and then -softly entered it. Keeping his head as low as was possible, he allowed -the strong current to carry him a quarter of a mile. Then he swam to -shore, mounted the bank, and halted at the trail. - -Full daylight had come, and the scout could almost see the camp from -where he stood. - -The way thither was along a rock-bordered path, with here and there a -tree. - -Buffalo Bill looked at the trail, shook his head, and then turned his -eyes up the bank of the cañon. - -Here the trees were more numerous, and there were many bowlders, and a -few flat places where the mesquite flourished. - -The king of scouts, without hesitation, went up the bank, and by -stooping and crawling managed to reach a spot above and not twenty yards -from the camp without having been seen. - -He could see the rifles, and knew by this that the enemy had not as yet -entered the camp. - -But the scout did not move from his place of concealment. He had a -shrewd idea of the situation, and was not surprised when, after a short -time, he heard a noise in the brush below him and close to the camp. - -Presently a tall, muscular Indian stepped into the open and moved toward -the rifles. - -Buffalo Bill, who had expected to see Black-face Ned, was astonished and -puzzled when the redskin, an Apache, stepped into view. - -A bullet from the scout’s pistol would have laid the Indian low, but -Buffalo Bill did not desire to fire the shot if the action could with -safety be avoided. - -“I’ll capture him, if I can, and make him tell me what brought him here, -and why he killed the Hualapi.” - -With this thought in his mind, Buffalo Bill watched the Apache until he -saw the Indian stoop to gather up the rifles. Then he rushed down the -bank with such speed that he was close to the Apache when that -astonished aborigine raised his head. - -The next moment the scout’s fist shot out with catapultic power, and the -Indian measured his length on the ground. - -Blows were rained on the victim’s head until he was reduced to a state -of insensibility. - - - - - CHAPTER X. - THE SCOUT CAPTURED. - - -Buffalo Bill did not remain by the side of his victim and await the -return of sense. He made practical use of his time. He ate his -breakfast, risking a small fire for coffee. - -While he was eating, the Apache opened his eyes. For some time he -regarded the placid-faced king of scouts with a deeply malevolent -expression. But when he spoke in the tongue of his tribe, the expression -had disappeared. - -“Coffee for the great white warrior, cold water for Thunder Cloud.” - -Buffalo Bill started, then looked at the Apache keenly. “So you are the -renowned Thunder Cloud, are you?” he inquired in the Indian language. - -The Apache nodded, and there was pride in his look. - -“A chief,” the king of scouts went on reproachfully, “who stoops to the -work of the slinking, murderous brave. Thunder Cloud has forfeited the -respect of his foes.” - -The Indian’s eyes blazed with anger. “The great white warrior speaks -without thought. Thunder Cloud was whipped like a dog by the white -captain, and now he is a chief without a tribe.” - -“Yes, I heard of that whipping,” returned the king of scouts cuttingly. -“Thunder Cloud broke his parole, and Captain Foster punished him.” - -The Indian gnashed his teeth in savage recollection of the action which -had disgraced him in the eyes of the Americans. - -There was silence for a few moments. Buffalo Bill broke it by asking: -“Would the chief like a cup of coffee?” - -“Yes,” was the quick answer. - -The coffee was drunk, and then the king of scouts, believing the Indian -to be in a fairly quiet frame of mind, said: - -“Why did the chief kill Panecho, the Hualapi?” - -Thunder Cloud frowned. He did not answer the question. - -It was repeated, and with sternness. The Apache noted the menacing -expression in the scout’s eyes, and mumbled something about an old feud. - -“You are dodging the issue, Thunder Cloud,” said Buffalo Bill sharply. -“I must know the truth. You are in my power. Why should I not kill you?” - -The Indian shut his lips tightly. He was a stoic. “Why not?” he -repeated. - -The king of scouts took a new tack. “What if I take you to the village -of the Hualapis and deliver you over to the brothers of Panecho?” - -Thunder Cloud shivered. “No, no,” he entreated. “Let the great white -warrior take his revenge. Thunder Cloud is content to die by the hand of -Buffalo Bill.” - -The king of scouts appeared to seriously consider the matter. “I’ll tell -you what I will do,” he said, after a pause. “I will deal with you -myself, if you, on your part, will tell me what made you shoot Panecho, -and why you are in my camp, a spy.” - -The Apache, who was without honor, and who would have betrayed his best -friend if he saw a chance of personal profit, promptly replied: “Thunder -Cloud killed Panecho because the Hualapi was hot on the trail of Thunder -Cloud’s friend.” - -“Just as I supposed,” remarked Buffalo Bill quietly. “You have hired -yourself out to that white villain, Black-face Ned.” - -Thunder Cloud nodded, and then in answer to another question said that -Colonel Hayden had been overcome while he was walking along the trail. - -Buffalo Bill guessed how the colonel had been caught. He had arisen -early and had gone down the cañon, hoping to come upon the camp of the -abductor of his daughter before the coming of daylight. On the way he -had been attacked by a sentinel posted by the white outlaw, and was now -in the power of the man he had so much cause to hate and fear. - -“How long has Black-face Ned been in camp?” the scout asked. - -“Since yesterday morning.” - -“Who is with him?” - -“Three white men.” - -This was unlooked-for intelligence. The king of scouts arose to his -feet. The situation had changed. It would not be safe to remain longer -in this open space. The four white men, all outlaws, so Buffalo Bill -believed, would not likely stay in camp longer than was necessary for -the return of Thunder Cloud, who had been sent up the trail to ascertain -who had come with Colonel Hayden. - -After placing a gag in the Indian’s mouth, the scout concealed two of -the rifles, and with the third in his hand left the camp and stole -noiselessly toward the rendezvous of the enemy. - -As he went forward he considered the statement the Indian had made. -Black-face Ned was with friends. Did he expect to find them in the -Hualapi hills when he set out across the desert? The scout believed that -the meeting had been prearranged. The three white men were probably the -members of Black-face Ned’s band who had eluded capture when the band -was broken up. The rendezvous in the hills was an old one, and was -probably off the trail and in a secure place. - -After an hour’s journey, Buffalo Bill heard a suspicious noise in the -bushes in front of him. He instantly left the trail, and, climbing the -hill, got behind a bowlder. - -He was scarcely out of sight before two white men appeared on the trail -directly below him. - -One was tall, lean, and angular, with a broken nose and an ugly -disfigurement of the lower lip. One-half of the lip was of treble the -thickness of the other half, and hung down so as to disclose the teeth, -which were long, yellow, and fanglike. The eyes were small and piercing, -and looked out under shaggy brows that were contracted in a habitual -scowl. - -The other man was shorter in stature, had a round, red face, with a -happy-go-lucky expression. He was red-haired, and wore a shoe-brush -mustache. The tall man was smooth-faced. - -The king of scouts recognized the men as two of the most dangerous and -desperate criminals in the West. Before their association with -Black-face Ned they had been allied with the border ruffians of Kansas. -In that State Buffalo Bill had met them, and the short man bore upon his -body the marks of a luckless encounter with the king of scouts. - -“Shorty Sands and Flag-pole Jack,” muttered the scout, under his breath. -“I’ll bet the third rascal is that sneak, Bat Wason. The three were -pards in the old Kansas days, and Wason was the slickest and the most -dangerous scoundrel of the trio.” - -To the scout’s intense satisfaction, the desperadoes stopped at the -point of Buffalo Bill’s departure from the trail, and began an earnest -conversation. - -“The Indian knows his biz,” said Shorty Sands, “and I’ll gamble he has -made a killin’. Thar’s shore no use in gittin’ skeered, fer Thunder -Cloud hed only a pigeon-hearted Hualapi ter contend with.” - -“Don’t ye fool yerself,” responded Flag-pole Jack, with a deepening of -his scowl. “Ther ole kunnel war too foxy ter give away the hull -business. He allowed thar war only one man with him. Mebbe he lied. -Mebbe Thunder Cloud slipped his neck inter a trap when he pranced inter -the camp of ther kunnel. I ain’t plottin’ ter foller his example. Not by -a overwhelmin’ majority.” - -“What’s yer idee?” inquired Sands. - -“My idee is ter separate right hyer. One of us will keep on ther trail, -an’ ther t’other will crope up ther hill an’ git round ther camp.” - -“All right,” said Sands. “I’ll take ther hill.” - -The tall villain smiled contemptuously. “Aimin’ ter hit ther easiest -snap, aire ye? Well, take it, I don’t keer. Ther walkin’s better along -the trail.” - -He might have added: “I’ll go mighty slow until I see how you come out,” -but he didn’t. - -Shorty Sands was about to start, when a rattlesnake crawled out of a -hole in the bank, and, at sight of the outlaw, coiled and rattled. - -The snake was between Buffalo Bill’s bowlder and the trail. Shorty Sands -uttered a cry, and then drew his revolver to fire. A warning from his -companion to desist came too late. The revolver cracked, and the snake, -unharmed, leaped its length toward the shooter. - -Then it was that Buffalo Bill, excited by the shot, the meaning of which -he did not understand, showed his head. He saw the snake, saw Flag-pole -Jack taking aim to shoot, and was about to give warning of his presence, -so that the fight should be a fair one, when a series of yelps, like -those of wolves, made him quickly turn his head. - -The snake was dead as the two outlaws, as much amazed as the king of -scouts, looked up the bank. - -There in two lines, of a dozen each, crouched a curious and startling -body of human beings. Each was arrayed in wolfskins, and each face was -masked with the face of a wolf. - -But the long, black hair, that protruded below each wolfskin cap, told -Buffalo Bill that the strange newcomers were Indians. - -While the scout and the outlaws stared at the wolfish crew, taking note -at the same time that each member was armed with rifle and tomahawk, the -leader cried out in good English: “Surrender or we fire.” - -The king of scouts looked down at Flag-pole Jack and Shorty Sands. The -outlaws now saw him for the first time, for, upon turning to gaze up at -the fantastic crew, he had withdrawn his head from in front of the -bowlder. - -“Buffalo Bill!” gasped Shorty Sands. “We’re in for it now.” As he spoke, -he believed that the disguised Indians were allies of the famous border -fighter. - -“Don’t make a mistake, Shorty,” said the scout coolly. “We are in the -same boat.” Then he added: “Go up, you two, and do the surrender act. -I’ll follow suit.” - -“I’ll be hanged if I give in,” snarled Flag-pole Jack. “Hyer goes.” He -jumped down the bank, but a rifle bullet grazed his head before his feet -struck the ground. “That’s a reminder,” yelled the leader of the Wolves -sternly. “The next shot will be to kill.” - -The outlaw, with many curses, returned to the trail. - -As he was on the way, the Wolves marched down the hill. - -Buffalo Bill was not foolhardy enough to try to make a stand against two -dozen armed enemies. He stood up, rifle grounded, and smiled when the -leader of the Wolves approached. - -“Fine morning for ducks,” the scout remarked, as he tried to read the -expression of the eyes that looked out of the holes in the mask. - -“And for lulus. You’re one, Cody, all right.” - -Buffalo Bill started. The leader of this fantastic band was a white man. -“I failed to catch your name,” he said politely, as he craned his head -in the direction of the stranger. - -The Wolf laughed. “The wind must have blown it away, I reckon,” he -replied shortly. Then he added brusquely: “Give up your arms to my -adjutant here, and place yourself in his hands.” - -So saying, he marched down to the trail. Standing before the two -outlaws, he looked them over from head to foot. “Pards of Black-face -Ned, eh?” he said coldly. - -No answer. - -“Drop your guns!” The weapons struck the ground instanter. “Now go up -the hill and submit to be bound. No monkey business, or Ned will be -mourning your departure for a warmer clime than Arizona.” - -With black brows, Sands and his companion obeyed the order. Soon the -three prisoners were conducted to the retreat of the Wolves. It was at -the head of a ravine about five miles south of the cañon trail, and -Buffalo Bill was surprised when he reached the spot. It was forty feet -above the bed of the ravine, and was nothing less than one of the old -habitations of the extinct cliff dwellers. - -The wall into which the habitation had been cut was of irregular -formation, and nearly perpendicular. There seemed no way of reaching the -holes either from the top or the base of the ridge. But there was a way -to get up, and this passage was soon revealed. - -Halting his band at a point directly below the holes in the rock, the -leader of the Wolves gave the hoot of an owl. A head showed at one of -the entrances, and as soon as it disappeared the leader marched forward -to a large bowlder that rested against the face of the wall. With one -hand he gave the huge rock a turn, and it swung back to reveal an -opening large enough for a man to enter without stooping. - -Inside of a minute the king of scouts found himself in the chamber of a -cave. Upon the floor about the middle of the chamber was a cage, such as -is used by miners in underground journeyings, and attached to it were -stout ropes. - -Looking up, the scout saw the opening through which the cage had -descended, and understood how entrance to the cliff dwellings was -obtained. - -The prisoners were sent first, a windlass at the top furnishing the -motive power. - -Buffalo Bill had been in many of these dwellings, and found the one that -received him to be like the others he had seen. All the furniture was of -stone, but to the utensils of the Aztecs had been added many of the -modern implements of easy, practical convenience. - -There were three large rooms, each provided with a cliff outlook, and -furnished with stone seats and a plethora of bear and buffalo skins. - -But one Wolf was in the dwelling to receive the prisoners. He was an -Indian, and never opened his mouth until the windlass had performed its -office. - -He then addressed the leader in the tongue of a nation that had been -considered as practically extinct for many years. - -“It is well,” he said. - -“Comanche,” muttered Buffalo Bill, under his breath. “These reds may -turn out to be friends. Uncle Sam has had no trouble with them for a -long time. I didn’t know there was a single one of them in Arizona.” - -Shorty Sands and Flag-pole Jack were placed under guard in one of the -rooms. The king of scouts was taken to another, and soon found himself -alone with the leader. - -The latter threw himself upon the stone floor near a couch of skins that -served as the resting place of the prisoner. - -“Well,” he remarked slowly, “how does it strike you?” - -“The situation?” - -“Yes. Sort of puzzling, isn’t it?” - -The voice was muffled, but Buffalo Bill was sure that he had heard it -before. - -“Take off that wolf mask and let me see your face,” he said -persuasively. “You have got me in a hole, so that there need be no -further use for a disguise.” - -“Think so?” was the imperturbable response. - -“Yes. You know me, and I’ll bet a hat I know you. The question is, are -you an enemy or are you a friend?” - -“Yes, that’s the question.” A pause, and then the quick inquiry: “Have -you ever heard of my outfit?” - -“No.” - -“We are the remnants of the bravest and most fearless nation of redskins -that ever made Uncle Sam sit up and take notice. The disguise was -adopted at the suggestion of the leader who preceded me, and who was -killed by a fall about a month ago. We are the natural enemies of the -Apaches, and Silver Moon, the dead one, thought the Comanches could -better work in wolfskin than in their ordinary raiment.” - -“What do you call yourselves?” - -“The Yelping Crew. Appropriate name, isn’t it?” - -“Very,” said Buffalo Bill dryly. The leader of the Crew lazily lighted a -cigarette, then tossed paper and tobacco pouch to the prisoner. - -“We yelp to some purpose,” the strange man continued. “During the last -year we have wiped out seventy Apaches.” - -“Then you cannot be an enemy of mine or an enemy of the United States -government?” - -“No-o,” was the slow reply. “I am not your enemy, and yet I am not quite -ready to say I am your friend.” - -“How can that be? You must be one thing or the other?” - -“Let me explain,” returned the leader of the Yelping Crew composedly. -“You were found with two of the worst rascals in America. These fellows, -Flag-pole Jack and Shorty Sands—you see, I know them—the pards of -Black-face Ned, who is hand in glove with the Apaches. Thunder Cloud is -with Black-face Ned now.” - -“Beg pardon,” interrupted Buffalo Bill quickly, “but you are in error on -two points. Thunder Cloud is not with Black-face Ned, and Thunder Cloud -has been cast out by the Apaches.” - -“I may not have literally struck it when I said Thunder Cloud is now -with Ned,” replied the disguised white man calmly, “but I did strike it -when I said Ned is thick with the Apaches. The chief has not been cast -out by this tribe. He broke his parole, and was whipped like a dog, but -his tribe did not turn on him for a little thing like that. On the -contrary, his braves backed him up when he swore revenge. He has plotted -to kill the captain who ordered the lashes and the colonel who approved -the order.” - -The king of scouts felt a cold chill strike his spine. “What is the -colonel’s name?” he asked. - -“Hayden.” - -A groan escaped the brave scout’s lips. The keen eyes behind the wolf -mask expressed both curiosity and sympathy. - -There ensued a long pause. It was broken by Buffalo Bill. Speaking -abruptly, he said: - -“I am putting you up to be a friend. I need a friend’s help. I not only -desire to be set at liberty, but I want your assistance. Will you give -it?” - -The leader of the Yelping Crew laughed softly. “You are not very modest -in your demands,” he replied coolly. - -“I am what I am,” rejoined the king of scouts sharply. Then he went on -quickly and earnestly: “Colonel Hayden is a prisoner in the hands of -Black-face Ned. Thunder Cloud is down in the cañon bound hand and foot. -I surprised him while he was trying to execute a murderous order given -him by Black-face Ned. The Indian must be removed from the cañon or the -outlaw will find and release him.” - -The white chief of the Comanches arose to his feet. “Why did you not -tell me this before?” he asked. - -“Could I tell you before I was sure you were in sympathy with my cause?” -was the cold reply. - -“No, certainly not. You were wise to hold back your story. You want my -help in getting Colonel Hayden out of the clutches of Black-face Ned and -his Indian and white marauders and murderers. Well, you shall have it. I -never meant to keep you a prisoner. Your capture was a joke.” - -“A joke?”—gazing at the masked leader in astonishment. “Why——” - -A ringing laugh cut short the speech. “Fooled you to the limit, old son. -Never guessed the deception, did you?” - -Buffalo Bill stared hard at the speaker. The truth was creeping into his -mind. - -With one quick movement the wolf face was removed. - -The king of scouts looked up into the smiling countenance of Wild Bill -Hickok. - - - - - CHAPTER XI. - AN OLD FRIEND REAPPEARS. - - -The two old-time partners and fellow scouts and Indian fighters grasped -hands, Wild Bill’s knife having quickly cut the thongs that had held the -prisoner’s wrists. After the handclasp, the king of scouts was given the -use of his feet. - -Before entering upon an explanation, Wild Bill issued an order to three -of his Indians and they immediately set out to find Thunder Cloud and -convey him to the cliff. - -“Now,” said Wild Bill, after the Comanches had departed, “I’ll try to -satisfy your curiosity.” - -Buffalo Bill, seated on the couch of skins and smoking a fine cigar, -nodded. “You are in a curious position,” he said. “I can’t imagine how -you got into it.” - -“Accident, Cody, put me where I am. I had been hunting over on the -Continental Divide when, unluckily, I provided myself with a badly -sprained ankle. I couldn’t travel, and I believe I would have starved to -death if one of the Yelping Crew had not seen and come to my rescue. The -band was far away from their stamping ground—they had been out hunting -like myself—and so I was brought here. Their chief was dead, and there -was no one in the band capable of leading them. Some of them knew me by -reputation, and when I was well enough to get about, what do you think? -I was asked to become the chief, pro tem.” - -“Pro tem?” repeated Buffalo Bill. “Why not permanently?” - -“Because there was a Comanche in the line of succession. The fellow was -in Mexico, and a messenger had been sent there to notify him that he -could be chief of the Yelpers if he cared to undertake the job.” - -“You accepted—your position here shows that, Hickok. But what induced -you to do so?” - -“A desire to assist the United States government. The Apaches are giving -trouble again, and the soldier boys are having hard work to find them. -Now, my Yelpers know all the Apaches’ holes, and they are the sworn -enemies of the Apaches. Already we have had one brush with the enemy, -and it was a win-out.” - -“Why have you not descended on Black-face Ned and his gang?” - -“For the very good reason that none of the gang were in this -neighborhood until two days ago. We are now preparing to light down on -the murderous outfit and wipe it off the face of the earth.” - -Buffalo Bill, having heard Wild Bill’s explanation, astonished the tall -border fighter by telling him of the abduction of pretty Sybil Hayden -and the events of the past twenty-four hours. - -“We must move just as soon as my Yelpers get back with Thunder Cloud,” -said Wild Bill resolutely. “I’ll make Thunder Cloud tell me where the -outlaws are, and if we don’t give them a hot surprise, I’ll resign my -job and go to herding squirrels.” - -Before the expiration of an hour the three Comanches returned. The -Apache chief was not with them. They had found the camp of Buffalo Bill, -but it was deserted. - -“Rescued by Black-face Ned,” was Buffalo Bill’s sour comment. “I half -expected it.” - -In answer to questions put by Wild Bill, the spokesman of the trio -stated that two white men had gone away from the camp with Thunder -Cloud. The trail had been followed for a mile. There it ended on the -sandy shore of the creek. - -“Took to the water,” said Wild Bill understandingly. “Never mind. We’ll -find them, for I have trailers who can match any Hualapi that ever ate -rattlesnakes.” - -“Better send out your trailers at once,” suggested Buffalo Bill. “If -Black-face Ned’s force is small, he is on the retreat. The Apaches have -probably told him about their enemies, the Yelping Crew; and he won’t -likely desire to try conclusions with you.” - -“All right.” - -The trailers were dispatched on their mission, and pending their return -the two scouts had a talk with the captured outlaws. - -Flag-pole Jack was almost stupefied with amazement when Wild Bill, with -face exposed, entered the room, followed by the released king of scouts. - -But Shorty Sands showed no surprise. Neither did he seem pleased. - -“I shore tumbled to your game,” he said to Wild Bill, “when you failed -to wipe out Cody when he was whar he couldn’t play a hand.” - -“How many men has Black-face Ned at his command?” demanded Wild Bill, -with his eyes on Flag-pole Jack. - -“Ernuff ter wipe out your measly outfit, you kin bet yer boots on that,” -was the surly answer. - -“Then he must have a mob of Apaches with him?” - -“He’s got Thunder Cloud’s band, an’ thar’s more’n fifty of ther reds.” - -“You lie, Jack,” put in Buffalo Bill sternly. “If the Indians were with -Ned early this morning, one of them, a brave, would have been detailed -to scout my camp. As it was, Thunder Cloud was the scout. That’s not the -office for a chief, and you know it.” - -The outlaw grinned, and Shorty Sands laughed outright. - -“What do you find that is funny about this business?” said the king of -scouts, with a frown. - -Flag-pole Jack looked at his companion. Sands nodded, and then the tall -outlaw replied: “You ain’t on to the sitivation, Cody. I’ll put you in -line. When Black-face Ned struck the hole of his old pards, me’n Shorty -an’ Bat Wason—you ain’t seen Bat yet, but yer likely ter meet up with -him afore long—thar wa’n’t no Injuns thar. They was camped five miles -beyond. See? Well, yesterday Thunder Cloud, all by his lonesome, -meanders inter ther hole. He sees ther gal what Ned is a-herdin’, an’ he -corrals her name. Jumpin’ Jiminetty, but you orter seen him when he -heerd it war ‘Hayden.’ The kunnel was onto his black list, you wanter -understand. Right away he ’lowed that Hayden war not fur away. ‘In -course,’ said he, ‘he’ll follow you, Ned, an’ I wonder that you ain’t -had scouts out a-safeguardin’ your retreat.’ - -“Ned sniffed, an’ said he wasn’t worryin’ any erbout a pursuit by ther -kunnel. But Thunder Cloud stuck to his guns. He induced Wason ter trot -to ther Apache camp an’ tell ther reds ter hike up ter Ned’s hole, an’ -yarly this mornin’, afore the Indians appeared, ther chief lit out fer -ther desert. Now, yer have it,” concluded the speaker. “Ther Injuns aire -with Ned now, an’ Thunder Cloud at ther head of ’em with blood in his -eye.” - -Buffalo Bill was disturbed by this statement. His eyes sought Wild -Bill’s. The same thought was in the mind of each. - -Without a word, Wild Bill turned, left the room, and, going to one of -the cliff openings, looked out into the ravine. - -Buffalo Bill was at his side when he said: “If that scoundrel told the -truth, and I think he did, Black-face Ned will not run away. He will -hunt us.” - -As he spoke, there came the report of several shots. The firing was -about half a mile away down the ravine toward the cañon. - -“My scouts have bumped against a scouting party from the enemy,” -remarked Wild Bill. “I’ll wait five minutes, and if I don’t see my -Indians, I’ll start out with all my force.” - -“Bad plan,” replied Buffalo Bill, with a shake of the head. “You might -fall into a trap. Better get the lay of the land before starting. I have -another, and I think a more sensible, scheme. I’ll go out alone. The -bushes are thick in the ravine, and I have been on the plains and in the -mountains long enough to know how to work. I shan’t try to get on the -trail to the cañon, for that would bring me into the zone of danger. No, -I’ll take to the high ground, and try to spy out the location of the -enemy without exposing myself as your Comanches must have done.” - -Wild Bill tried to dissuade his old partner from undertaking the work, -but Buffalo Bill was determined, and at last Wild Bill gave in. - -“But you’ll understand this,” the latter said, with lips set in grim -determination: “If you fail to show up in an hour, out I go and all my -Yelpers with me.” - -Five minutes went by, and there was no sign of the Comanche scouts. -There had been no more firing, and the king of scouts concluded that the -Comanches had either been killed or taken prisoners. - -Wild Bill saw his comrade go down the shaft to the ground entrance, and -there was a cloud on his brow when he turned from the windlass and spoke -to the Comanches who had been taking in the scene with puzzled -countenances. - -Not far from the cave entrance to the cliff habitations the ravine -narrowed so that passage along it was beset with danger. The banks were -steep and high, and climbing would be slow and difficult work. - -Buffalo Bill was too wise to attempt a journey through this narrow pass. -Instead, he went up the hill where the ravine was wide, and did not stop -until he had reached the summit. - -Here the trees were few and scattered, and to go on with an approach to -safety he must flatten himself on the ground and work forward like a -snake. - -He was making good progress, and was approaching ground where huge -bowlders took the place of trees, when his quick ear caught the sound of -a muffled groan in front of him, and not far away. In an instant he was -concealed behind a large rock. - -The groan was repeated, and the scout, peering round the rock, saw an -Indian crawl into view not ten yards away. His face was contorted with -pain, and when he stopped and began to nurse one of his ankles, an -explanation of the groaning seemed to be afforded. - -Seemed to be, for Buffalo Bill was not quite satisfied as to the -genuineness of the Indian’s sufferings. Perhaps the Indian, who was an -Apache, had seen the king of scouts and had resolved upon a ruse to make -victory over the white enemy an easy one. - -So Buffalo Bill waited, and he smiled when, after a few moments, the -Apache stretched himself at full length upon the summit and let out a -groan that could have been heard a quarter of a mile away. - -The king of scouts, still smiling, picked up a stone of good size, and, -watching his chance, flung it with all his force at the Indian’s head. - -The aim was a true one. The stone struck the Apache on the ear, and he -jumped to his feet as if he had been on springs. - -For one short moment he looked toward the rock where Buffalo Bill was -hidden, and then hastily retreated to the shelter of another rock a few -feet from where he had fallen. - -The king of scouts could have shot the Indian while he was standing, but -for many reasons he had not used his revolver. A shot might bring on a -force of Apaches, who were probably close at hand. But Buffalo Bill -resolved that the Indian should not leave the summit to report what he -had encountered. - -Assured that stereotyped devices to deceive the Apache would not work, -the king of scouts determined upon a course of flanking. - -With the large rock as a screen, he backed away until he reached a cut -in the ground that extended diagonally for several hundred yards. - -Crawling in a direction that would bring him sidewise to the rear of the -rock behind which the Apache was concealed, he reached the end of the -cut, and then cautiously lifted his head and looked toward the Indian’s -place of shelter. - -To his surprise and annoyance the Indian was not there. - -Soon a light broke in upon his understanding. The Apache was as wise as -he, and had tried the same game. - -Back along the cut the king of scouts hurried, and was nearly at the -point from which he had entered the depression when he saw the Indian’s -head projected from behind a mesquite bush that grew on one side of the -cut. - -Quick as a flash, Buffalo Bill was out of the cut and behind the rock -that shortly before had sheltered him. - -The Apache had not had time to fire, and the king of scouts, immensely -relieved at the circumstances, looked out to find that the Indian had -withdrawn from a position of danger, and was nowhere to be seen. But it -was apparent to Buffalo Bill that the cunning enemy was behind one of -the bowlders near the cut. - -The situation in one sense was to the liking of the famous Indian -fighter. He was anxious at this time to avoid a commotion that would -bring down upon him a mob of savages, for a fight then and there, even -if it resulted in the scout’s escape, might prevent a descent upon the -camp of Black-face Ned and his Indian allies. - -If the Apache could be captured or put out of the way without noise, the -scout might pursue his journey under favorable auspices. And the Indian -must be rendered powerless for harm, the king of scouts resolved, and so -he welcomed the approaching battle of wits. - -For some time no move was made by either white or red man. One thing was -in Buffalo Bill’s favor: The Apache could not leave his hiding place to -reach either the cut or the rocks on the other side of the scout without -being observed. - -On the other hand, Buffalo Bill could go forward toward the destination -he had set out to make without exposing himself. He resolved to do this -in the hope that he would be able to bring the Apache out of cover and -to a point from which an attack could safely be made. - -Without noise, he backed to the rock originally used by the Apache, and -from that to another, and so on until he had placed himself a quarter of -mile beyond the Apache’s station. - -Here in a hollow, between two bowlders whence he could command a view of -the country in all directions, he waited for what was to come. - -For ten minutes he waited in vain. Then he saw the Indian crawl out of -the cut and throw himself on the ground and listen for sounds. - -Hearing nothing and evidently puzzled, he crept to the rock that had -been his hiding place after Buffalo Bill had thrown the stone, and a low -exclamation escaped him as his eyes fell upon the scout’s prints in the -sand. - -Now he proceeded with the utmost circumspection to follow the trail the -white enemy had left. - -Buffalo Bill knew the Indian was coming, and smiled, for before taking -his position between the bowlders he had been shrewd enough to cover his -trail. He had left the prints of hands and feet in the sand up to a -point of a few yards to the right of the two bowlders. The prints -terminated at the side of a single bowlder that stood in front of a -stunted tree. - -The tree was provided with a few live limbs, one of which hung over the -hollow between the two bowlders. Buffalo Bill had used this limb to -reach the hollow, and he was well satisfied with the ruse when he saw -the Apache halt near the bowlders by the tree and look curiously at the -plain trail in the sand. - -A moment he stood in full view, and then walked straight for the hollow -that concealed the enemy. - -The king of scouts had not been expecting a move of this kind, but he -made no attempt to retreat. He believed that the Indian was unaware of -his presence in the hollow, and, therefore, resolved to give the foe the -surprise of his life. - -The Apache, a tall, fine specimen of his tribe, was within a few feet of -the hollow when Buffalo Bill jumped up, gave a spring, and had the -redskin by the throat before that surprised aborigine had time to -realize what had happened. And now ensued a struggle that called into -play all of Buffalo Bill’s resources of mind and muscle. - -The Apache was powerful, supple, and as slippery as an eel. He had his -adversary about the waist, and, in spite of the terrible pressure about -his windpipe, his grasp tightened until the king of scouts thought that -his ribs would collapse. - -But the end came in a manner that neither combatant had anticipated. In -moving about, the Apache’s foot struck a stone, and in tumbling his hold -on Buffalo Bill was relaxed. In an instant he was lying on the ground, -and the scout was sitting on his chest. - -The fall had partly stunned the Indian, and he was soon placed so that -further resistance was impossible. - -When ready for a renewal of hostilities, he discovered to his rage and -disgust that his hands were tied. - -“If you raise your voice to call your fellows,” whispered the king of -scouts, in the Apache tongue, “I’ll kill you. Understand?” - -“Heap understand,” was the hoarse reply. - -“Where are your comrades?” asked the victor, with a menacing expression. - -“No know.” - -“Where were they when you set out to scout the summit?” - -“In the cañon of the Hualapis.” - -“That’s down below where I had my camp, isn’t it?” - -The Apache nodded. - -“Are your fellow braves and Black-face Ned’s outlaws going to attack the -Yelping Crew?” - -“Maybe.” - -“I see. You wish first to learn how large a force the Wolf Faces are -able to muster.” - -“Thunder Cloud desires no fight with the Yelping Crew. If the chief of -the Yelpers will release the white men he has captured, Thunder Cloud -will withdraw from these hills.” - -“Meaning Flag-pole Jack and Shorty Sands, eh?” - -“Yes.” - -“Were you on your way to the cliff dwellings when you ran afoul of me?” - -“No, I was afraid a white man who escaped from the castle this morning.” - -Buffalo Bill received this statement with great satisfaction. Of course, -the escape was Colonel Hayden. - -“Escaped from the castle,” he said. “Is that the name of the Apache -stronghold in these parts?” - -The Apache shook his head. “No, the white friend of Thunder Cloud holds -the place. He calls it the castle.” - -In this conversation no attempt is made to use the precise language of -the Indian. The Apache language was used, and a fair translation into -English is given. - -“What is this castle? And where is it? You might as well come out with -the whole truth, for you are at my mercy, and my motto is ‘death to -liars, especially if they be Apaches.’” - -The Indian was unmoved by this speech. His face was stolid as he -replied: “Greathead will not lie, because the mighty white scout will -find no one at the castle. Black-face Ned has deserted it. He has gone -to another retreat.” - -“Gone without attending to the Yelping Crew? Without trying to rescue -Flag-pole Jack and Shorty Sands?” Buffalo Bill gazed incredulously at -the Indian. - -“He has gone with the white maiden, but he has left behind Thunder Cloud -and the white man who is called Wason to manage the affair with the -Comanches.” - -“How about my affair? Does he not know that I am in these hills?” - -“No. Who was to tell him?” - -“That’s right,” said the king of scouts to himself. “Jack and Sands -couldn’t, for they were captured just after they clapped eyes on me. -Hold on, though. There is Thunder Cloud. He knows I am here.” Again -addressing Greathead, he said: “Your talk won’t wash. Thunder Cloud must -have told Ned that I am here.” - -“The chief did not see his white friend when he returned to the castle. -Black-face Ned had gone. He left with the white maiden shortly after -Thunder Cloud set out to scout the camp of the white maiden’s father.” - -“Ah, that explains it. So the colonel escaped. When did he get away? -Before Black-face Ned took his departure for another stamping ground?” - -“The white maiden’s father has not escaped,” replied the Indian calmly. -“Greathead did not say that he had done so.” - -Buffalo Bill exhibited the greatest astonishment. “Not the colonel?” he -said. “Then who was the white prisoner who escaped?” - -“A blame’ long-nosed idjut whose handle used ter be Allen,” said a -grunting voice behind the king of scouts. - -Buffalo Bill turned and saw a tall, ungainly figure, with a long face, a -hawklike nose, and two keen, snappy eyes, and his voice rang out in a -glad cry: “Alkali Pete! Of all men in the world.” - -The old plainsman, who had been in many campaigns with the king of -scouts, was so delighted at the meeting that he opened his mouth in a -grin that exposed a cavern of enormous size. This cavern was surrounded -by yellow tusks, with such an irregular alignment as would have brought -a sigh from any dentist in the land. - -“Mortally s’prised ter see ther old man, aire ye?” he said, with a -chuckle. “Ther s’prise is muchal. I no more expected ter run inter ye, -Buffler, than I expected ter be persented ter ther Queen uv -Maddygoosker.” - -“But what are you doing in Arizona? I thought you had settled down in -Kansas or Illinois, and was occupied in raising a family of Alkalis.” - -“I hev settled down, Buffler,” replied the ungainly scout, with a sigh, -“but this year I hankered arter ther old life. I shore told my wife that -I must hev a mounting outing, or else I’d go plumb crazy. She reasoned -with me, but it wa’n’t no sorter use. I war bound ter go, an’ hyer I be, -stanch, loyal, an’ true, like a pig’s foot in mush.” - -“Same old Alkali,” laughed Buffalo Bill. - -“Erbout ther same, but not quite. My feet shore got tender a bit while I -was cahootin’ with them innercent rickaroons that raise corn an’ -mortgages along ther Missourah.” - -“I understand. You wouldn’t have fallen into the hands of the Apaches if -you had come out here with your wits rodeoed.” - -“That’s a plumb true remark, Buffler,” rejoined Alkali Pete sadly. “I -was too fresh when I hit these yer hills. I hed reckoned that ther -’Paches would let an honest white man alone. I hedn’t hearn that they -hed been puttin’ on the war paint ag’in.” - -“How were you captured?” - -“How?”—in deep disgust. “Why, when I war snoozin’ on ther bank of ther -crik on t’other side of those hills. Hed been huntin’, and hed killed a -b’ar an’ two deer. War powerful tired, an’ while I war sleepin’ ther -sleep that innercence only is shore acquainted with, ther ’Paches crope -up and corralled me ez easy as if I war a lost babby. Shucks! it shore -makes me dumgasted weary when I recollects how I war taken in.” - -“Were there any white men among the Indians?” inquired Buffalo Bill. - -“Nary a one. They war all ’Paches, an’ that old thief, Thunder Cloud, -war ther leader. Ther capture happened a month ago, an’ I war with ther -reds, moseyin’ hither an’ yon up ter a couple o’ days ago, when we -hot-footed it fer ther castle.” - -“The castle? I have heard of the place, but I don’t know where it is, -and I have no idea what it looks like.” - -“It’s a stone fort at the head of a valley, Buffler. Thar aire trees all -round it, an’ I reckon it war built in ther year one by ther Azticks or -ther Woodsticks, or some other tribe of flat-headed mavericks.” - -Buffalo Bill slapped his thigh. “I know the place now,” he said. “I was -there years ago. No one lived there then. The plainsmen called it the -Palace of Adam.” - -“Hed an idee that Adam lived thar onct, did they?” - -“Perhaps. I never asked them. Come, let us talk fast. There is work to -be done. How long did you stay in the castle?” - -“Didn’t stay thar a minute. The Injuns camped outside, an’ this mornin’ -I shore bade ’em farewell. I played possum onto ther thievin’ outfit, -an’ believin’ I war sick ernuff ter peter, they made my cords easy ter -bear. They made ’em so easy, Buffler, that I beat ’em an’ got away.” - -“Did you know when you left the Indians that Black-face Ned and his band -were in the castle, and that there were two white prisoners -there—Colonel Hayden and his daughter Sybil?” - -Alkali Allen blinked his eyes. “Never knowed anything erbout outlaws or -prisoners. Ye shore hev got a story ter tell. Out with it.” - -Buffalo Bill complied. He spoke hurriedly, and his tale caused the lanky -plainsman to exhibit the most intense astonishment. - -“Well, I’ll be eternally obfusticated an’ fried inter goose grease ef -this don’t beat ther Dutch, an’ ther Dutch beat ther devil,” he -ejaculated. “Wild Bill hyer a cahoodlin’ with ther Comanches, an’ you, -Buffler, outer as purty a case as you ever tackled. I’ll take a hand -myself. I’m mortal glad I kem ter Arizony. Aire ye ready ter mosey? Ef -ye aire, take ther lead, an’ I’ll come a-trottin’ arter ye.” - -Buffalo Bill considered the situation thoughtfully. After a few moments, -he said: “I must go on alone. I will give you a job that ought to be to -your liking. I lost one Indian this morning. I don’t wish to lose a -second one. I want you to take Greathead here to the cliffs and deliver -him over to Wild Bill. Having done that, go out and keep an eye on the -trail leading to the cliff. Maybe the Indians are already marching -against the Yelpers. I’ll scout about the castle, find out who is there, -ascertain if Greathead told the truth when he asserted that Black-face -Ned had left, and then I’ll hurry back to take part in the fight between -the Apaches and the Comanches.” - -Alkali Pete nodded, and when he had gone from sight, with the Indian in -tow, the king of scouts continued his journey toward the haunt of the -enemy. - -The route he took would bring him to the farther end of the valley that -held the stone fortification. - -He was not obliged to use the cañon in which he had camped, and he hoped -by moving in a direction opposite to that the Apaches would have to take -to reach the cliff dwellings that he might meet with no obstructions. - -Among the rocks on a ridge that overlooked the little valley he halted, -and for some minutes listened for sounds and looked for signs of life in -or about the stone structure. - - - - - CHAPTER XII. - ENVIRONED BY PERILS. - - -Buffalo Bill could see a portion of the building from his coign of -vantage, but this portion was the rear. The door, that opened into a -walled inclosure of several acres, was open, and this circumstance led -the scout to believe that the castle was vacant. - -After the lapse of fifteen minutes, Buffalo Bill began a cautious -descent of the ridge. He reached safely the wall surrounding the castle, -and there paused and again listened for sounds. - -Hearing nothing, he stole round to the front. The wall gate here was not -locked, and he walked into the inclosure, and did not stop until he came -to the heavy door, which, like the door at the rear, was open. - -Now it was that the fearless king of scouts did some responsible -thinking. It was certainly strange that the front gate should be -unlocked, and that both doors of the castle should be open. Had they -been left open by design? - -He looked up at the window. There were two at the front, and each was -small and heavily barred. The bars were close together, so that it would -be impossible for an enemy to shoot any person on the ground. - -After some moments Buffalo Bill retreated to a position outside the -gate. He was not yet ready to enter the castle. - -In the valley, which was not half a mile in length, the utmost silence -reigned. The scout went to the edge of the grove of trees that screened -the castle, and gazed down the valley. There was not a human being in -sight. On the face of things, the Indians and the outlaws had departed. -It was reasonable to suppose that Thunder Cloud and his band had gone to -give battle to the Yelping Crew, and yet the scout was in doubt on the -point. - -He returned to the castle, and once more stood just without the open -doorway. While he was debating with himself as to his course of action, -the sound of a moan fell upon his ears. The sound came from within the -castle. - -The scout pricked up his ears, but he did not move. The moan was -repeated, and Buffalo Bill thought he heard the voice of a woman -speaking soothingly to some one in need of comfort. Instantly the -conviction came to him that he was listening to the voice of Sybil -Hayden, and that the moans had been uttered by her father. - -But with the conviction there came no sense of security. It was not -probable that Black-face Ned had gone off leaving his prisoners without -a guard. - -He was hesitating over his situation, when a voice that was unmistakably -that of a man said roughly: “Shut up, or I’ll smash your head.” - -The king of scouts cast discretion to the winds when following the -threat came the scream of a woman. - -He sprang to the doorway, and crossed the threshold to fall into the -trap that had been laid for him. - -From behind the door two men leaped out, and heavy clubs descended upon -the scout’s head. The blows dazed, but did not send him to the stone -floor. There was not time to draw a pistol, but he made good use of his -hands. - -He closed with the ruffians who had so brutally assaulted him, and so -quick were his movements that one was on the floor with an aching head -before he could realize that he had caught a Tartar. - -The other outlaw dropped his club when the thoroughly aroused and -desperate king of scouts made the fight one at close quarters. - -He was a powerful fellow, and received the fist jabs that Buffalo Bill -contributed without losing his ground. In return, he sent in one -stem-winder that lifted Buffalo Bill off his feet. - -The fight was going on fiercely, when a voice at the lower end of the -long, broad hall shouted encouragingly: “Go in and win, Pigeon. I’m -bettin’ on you. Give him one under the ear. You’ve got him going. One -more good punch will lay him out.” - -Here Black-face Ned—for the speaker was the abductor of pretty Sybil -Hayden—spoke with undue confidence. Buffalo Bill, recovering from the -blow that approximated a knock-out, now fought with more wariness. He -perceived that his antagonist was an experienced pugilist, and he -resolved to give evidence that he himself was no novice in the manly -art. - -An opportunity to make his mark came when the outlaw, believing from -Buffalo Bill’s wabbling that the scout was about ready to fall, made a -furious rush, with the intention of mixing things. In an instant the -king of scouts changed his tactics. He side-stepped, ducked, and then -struck. The blow caught the outlaw on the point of the chin, and he went -down, and stayed there. Coincident with the knock-out blow, Buffalo Bill -whirled to confront Black-face Ned. Too late to save himself. A revolver -cracked, and the brave scout put his hand to his heart, and then -staggered and fell at the feet of the unconscious pugilist. - -His hands and ankles were being secured when he opened his eyes. - -“Alive, are you?” said Black-face Ned, in surprise. “I thought my shot a -finisher, but I wanted to make sure of you, so I gave you the cords.” - -“If I am not mistaken,” replied Buffalo Bill quietly, “your bullet -struck a steel plate that covers my heart. The shock dazed me. -Otherwise, I don’t believe I am hurt at all.” - -“That’s all right,” returned the outlaw leader composedly. “There’ll be -a chance to have some fun with you before giving you a real, Simon-pure -send off.” - -The king of scouts made no reply to this statement. After a moment he -asked: “Were you looking for me to appear?” - -“Sure. When Thunder Cloud told me you were here, I believed you wouldn’t -rest until you had found the castle.” - -Buffalo Bill thought of the story told by Greathead, the Apache. - -“I was informed a while ago by one of your allies that you had left the -castle,” he said. “He must have lied to me.” - -“No, he didn’t lie. I did quit, but I did not go far. The leaving was a -ruse to fool you.” - -“Fool me? Did you count on my overcoming Greathead?” - -“No, for Greathead was sent out to round up that long-legged fool they -call Alkali Pete. But all the Apaches were told about my going, and I -was betting that you’d get the information from one or more of them.” - -“I didn’t meet any of them,” said Buffalo Bill sadly. “They went toward -the cliff dwellings, I suppose.” - -“You’ve hit it, and I am looking for an early return and a couple of -dozen scalps.” - -“What, you don’t expect them to scale the cliff, do you?” - -“They won’t have to,” returned Black-face Ned quietly. “The Comanches -will come out on the level ground and permit themselves to be shot -down.” - -The king of scouts did not know what to make of this speech. The outlaw -appeared to be in earnest, and yet the statement seemed preposterous. - -“They would be fools to come out of their stronghold,” he remarked. - -“Think so? What if I tell you that the Comanche they have selected as -the chief will call them out?” - -“Explain—I fail to understand.” - -The leader of the outlaws laughed. “Didn’t know we had captured their -chief, eh? Well, we did corral the fellow. He has been in Mexico, and -Thunder Cloud nailed him last night. Here is the proposition: The -Apaches and the Comanches have been pulling hair for a long time. -Thunder Cloud catches this Black Wing and gives him to understand that -the Apaches are tired of war, and want to patch up a peace with the -Comanches. See? ‘Now, says Thunder Cloud,’ using the words I put into -his mouth, ‘if you will use your influence, all this killing and -scalping will come to an end, and we’ll fix on a fair division of the -country so that each tribe will have ample territory of its own.’ - -“Black Wing agreed to use his influence, and he went off a while ago -with Thunder Cloud and the Apache braves. Of course, Black Wing’s -counsel will prevail, and, of course, when the Comanches come out into -the open to cement the treaty they will get it where the chicken got the -ax.” - -Buffalo Bill heard the explanation, and was not uneasy in mind. He knew -something that Black-face Ned did not know, and that was the presence -among the Comanches of Wild Bill. - -When the outlaw who had been floored by the king of scouts had recovered -his senses, he assisted Black-face Ned in carrying the prisoner to a -room in the rear. It was provided with a few modern conveniences, among -them a table and a chair. There was no bed, but a roll of Navaho -blankets in a corner contained a suggestion that promised a sufficiency -of restful comfort. - -The leader of the outlaws, a pleased expression on his dark and not -unhandsome face, directed his man to spread the blankets, and when they -were in position the king of scouts was deposited upon them. - -The one window in the room, without glass—a square hole in a thick, -stone wall—was barred like the windows at the front of the structure. - -Buffalo Bill was gazing at the window, when Black-face Ned said, with an -evil smile: “No chance of escape, William. You are as secure as if you -were in a dungeon.” - -The speaker was walking toward the door, when the prisoner asked -quickly: “Where are your other prisoners, Colonel Hayden and his -daughter?” - -“In another room. Would you like to see them?”—showing his teeth -maliciously. - -“Yes, of course.” - -“I am extremely sorry that I cannot take you to them. But I will be -pleased to convey a message. Shall I say that you are here, and that you -are so busily engaged in making your will that you cannot come to them?” - -Buffalo Bill glared at the villain, but vouchsafed no answer. - -The two outlaws went out, the door was barred, and the king of scouts -was left to his reflections, which were far from pleasant ones. - -He did not doubt that his death had been decreed. The reputation of -Black-face Ned was such that the scout had no hope that leniency would -enter into any of the villain’s calculations. - -Shortly after noon, the outlaw, who had had the disastrous encounter -with the prisoner, and who had been addressed as Pigeon, entered the -room with a tray of eatables. - -Buffalo Bill was hungry, and he ate until nothing was left on the tray -but empty dishes. - -While he was eating, the king of scouts glanced at the feet of the -outlaw. The toes were turned in, and the man’s nickname was at once -explained. “What do they—your pards call you?” the scout asked. - -The outlaw scowled. “They shore aim ter be funny,” he answered. “My name -is Isaac Alexander, but ther blame’ fools call me Pigeon-toed Ike.” - -“Been here long?” - -“No; I blew in yesterday.” - -“What’s Ned going to do with me? Did he tell you?” - -“He ’lowed he was goin’ ter send you pikin’ up ther flume.” - -“When is the interesting event scheduled to take place?” - -“Don’ ye get gay, Cody. Yer up agin’ ther real thing this clatter.” - -“It looks like it,” soberly admitted the prisoner. A pause, and then he -asked: “Has Thunder Cloud’s outfit returned?” - -“No, an’ Ned’s gittin’ oneasy. Maybe we’ll light out fer ther cliff if -Thunder Cloud fails ter show up inside of an hour.” - -Buffalo Bill received this statement with satisfaction. But he concealed -his feeling beneath a mask of indifference. - -Pigeon-toed Ike went out, and half an hour later Black-face Ned came in. -The outlaw leader was in an angry mood. Fixing his sharp eyes on his -prisoner, he said sternly: “There’s a hitch up at the cliff, and I’ll -bet you know what’s up. Tell me the truth, or I’ll kill you here and -now.” - -The villain drew a bowie knife from his belt, and, walking over to the -side of Buffalo Bill, shook the weapon in the prisoner’s face. - -In an instant he met with an astounding surprise. - -Up went Buffalo Bill’s hands, and the knife was wrenched from the -villain’s grasp. Before a move in self-defense could be made, the knife -was buried in the outlaw’s side. - -As he fell to the floor, the king of scouts arose to his feet. - -Black-face Ned was gasping for breath, and his eyes reflected an -expression of mingled pain and fear. - -After quickly removing his victim’s other weapons, Buffalo Bill stanched -the flow of blood and bound up the wound. This done, he secured the -villain’s wrists and ankles. “I’ll not stuff a gag in your mouth, if -you’ll promise not to cry out for help,” said the victor coldly. - -The reply came in a faint voice: “I couldn’t yell if I wanted to. I—I am -dying.” - -“Nonsense,” was the harsh response. “I knew what I was about when I did -the sticking. You are not hurt to speak of. I didn’t even scrape a rib, -and your heart is as whole and”—with a stern look—“as black as ever it -was. The blood-letting will do you good. It will take some of the -aguardiente poison out of your system.” - -Black-face Ned breathed a sigh of relief. “I wish,” he said, “I had a -good snifter of the real thing.” - -The king of scouts always carried a flask of whisky for emergencies. He -produced it, and allowed the villain to swallow a generous dose. - -“Thank you,” said Black-face Ned gratefully. “You are not a bad sort, -really.” - -“That so?” returned Buffalo Bill, with uplifted eyebrows. “Maybe you and -I will be great friends before we get through with our little affair.” - -The wounded villain smiled sourly. - -Soon he asked: “How in the dickens did you get loose? I would have sworn -that I had you tied for keeps.” - -“Tied with rotten leathers, that’s what I was. Pity you did not inspect -the cords before you started to use them.” - -The villain swore softly. Then his eyes sought the floor. Presently he -said: “Bend over me. I want to whisper something in your ear.” - -But the king of scouts, who at the moment had heard a noise outside the -door, declined to comply with the request. - -“I am onto you, Ned,” he whispered. “You want to get me where -Pigeon-toed Ike can surprise me. Not to-day. The program will be a -surprise for Ike.” - -The speaker was about to walk to the door to be ready for the outlaw -when he should enter, but was stopped by an important suggestion. - -He turned, and stooped over the form of his victim, bandanna in hand, -for the purpose of gagging him. - -But he was prevented from accomplishing his purpose by the quick action -of Black-face Ned. - -A hoarse cry, loud enough to be heard outside, issued from his lips as -Buffalo Bill was in the act of placing the gag. - -The door instantly opened, and if the king of scouts had not thrown -himself to one side, a bullet would have cut short his career. - -A second shot from Pigeon-toed Ike’s pistol went wild, and before he -could fire again, a bullet from the revolver, taken from the person of -the wounded outlaw, penetrated the brain of the assailant, and he fell -dead just beyond the threshold of the door. - -After assuring himself that Black-face Ned was secure against escape, -the king of scouts hurried from the room. - -There might be another outlaw—Bat Wason—to deal with, for it was -probable that Wason had been placed as guard over Sybil Hayden and her -father. - -In the hope that the pistol shots had not been heard in that part of the -building where the two prisoners were confined, Buffalo Bill hastened to -the hall, and then looked questioningly at one of the two doors that met -his eyes. - -Before the nearer one he listened for sounds. All was silence within. -Stealing softly to the other, he again played the listener. No sound -came from the room. He tried the door, and it readily opened. The place -was empty, but he saw something that brought a cloud to his brow. In the -middle of the room was an opening. There was a trap, and the door, a -square, thin block of stone, had been removed, and was lying by the side -of the hole. - -Buffalo Bill did not stop for investigation, but with an apprehensive -expression hurried back to the room where he left the dead outlaw and -Black-face Ned. - -He was not surprised, though he was intensely chagrined to find that his -prisoner was not there. - -No open trap in the room was visible, but the king of scouts believed -that Black-face Ned had escaped by means of a trap that let him into the -cellar. - -He made a quick search, and soon was rewarded with the discovery, under -the blankets, of a door similar to the one in the other room. - -He was standing before the door, debating whether or not to raise the -trap and descend, when loud yells from without brought him to a -realization of a new danger. - -Hastening to the front door, he saw nothing but the grove of trees that -shielded the castle. But the yells continued, and he knew that the -Indians were close to the grove. No hope of escape, then, from the -front. - -He ran around to the rear of the castle, and was alarmed to discover -that the wall door had been closed and locked. He could not climb the -wall, for it was too high, and there were no footholds. - -In desperation he turned to the door of the castle. It was still open, -and he entered, and then quickly shut and barred it. This done, he -rushed to the front, and shut and barred the door at that point. - -He was now entrenched in the castle unless—unless there were enemies in -the cellar. - -But they should not come out of either of the traps if he could help it. -Into the room where the first trap had been discovered he went, and, -quickly replacing the stone door so that it masked the hole, he piled -upon it all the furniture that the room contained. One piece was a -cooking stove, whose newness showed that it had been brought recently to -the castle. - -Having worked without interruption, he was beginning to congratulate -himself upon his success, when a disturbing thought brought a sigh from -his lips. - -He was stopping one hole, he might stop another, and still a third -outlet from the cellar might be left open. That outlet must open into -the inclosure. - -There was not time to go out and search for it, so with a grave face he -hurried to the room that had been his prison, and contented himself with -barring the door. - -A few minutes later, through one of the windows in front, he saw Thunder -Cloud and his Apaches emerge from the grove of trees, and saw a -diminutive, thin-faced white man, whom he took to be Bat Wason, come -from around the building and greet the Apache chief. - -The conversation, carried on in the Indian tongue, was overheard by the -listener. The translation follows: - -“Why is the chief back?” asked Wason. - -“Because Black Wing is a deceiver.” - -“How’s that?” - -“He promised to get the Comanches out of the holes so that a treaty of -peace could be made, and instead he has put on the war paint and defies -the Apaches.” - -“Did you try to rout the Yelpers from their holes?” - -Thunder Cloud hung his head. “We fired at the cliff,” he said -shamefacedly, “and the Comanches fired back and killed four of my -braves. Then we retreated to seek the wise counsel of Thunder Cloud’s -friend and ally, Black-face Ned.” - -“You’ll find him in the cellar. He is flat on his back.” - -The Apache chief gazed at the speaker in startled inquiry. “Has he met -with an accident?” he asked. - -“Yes. An enemy, the most dangerous man in the West, nearly killed him.” - -“The great white warrior, Pa-e-has-ka?” - -Bat Wason nodded. Thunder Cloud shivered. “Where is he now, this dreaded -foe of the Apaches?” - -“In the castle. If you like, you may go in and lay him out.” - -The Indian looked puzzled. The little outlaw grinned, and then explained -the situation. - -“I was in the cellar and got Ned out of a hole. Buffalo Bill had gone -from the room where I found Ned, but I didn’t care about hunting him up. -He is inside, though, and has the run of the castle above stairs, and -thinks the game is in his own hands. Fool! The provisions are -downstairs, and if we can’t kill him any other way, we will starve him -to death.” - -Buffalo Bill heard, and smiled. There was enough in his wallet to last -him three days, and much might be done in that time. - -The Apaches and Wason disappeared around the side of the building, and -the scout left the front and hastened to the kitchen. - -Here were utensils for cooking, but there was nothing eatable in the -room. But there was a bucket of water, the diminutive outlaw in his -haste having forgotten to take it away. There was a spring in the -inclosure, and Buffalo Bill, finding neither sink nor pump, concluded -that the water came from the spring, and that the spring was the sole -source of supply for the building. - -He could see the spring from the kitchen window, and was gratified to -find that it was far enough away to permit a line shot from the window. - -Here he resolved to take his stand. He would keep an eye on that spring -until there should be serious menace from another part of the castle. - -Half an hour passed and no one had come into the inclosure. Apaches were -camped in the grove in front of the castle, and presumably the two -outlaws and their prisoners were in the cellar. - -Buffalo Bill was looking beyond the spring, when he saw the head of -Alkali Pete show itself at the top of the wall. A moment later appeared -the shoulders, and soon the lanky plainsman was astride of the wall. - -The king of scouts found himself in an unpleasant dilemma. If he shouted -a warning, the Apaches might pursue and kill Alkali Pete, and also spoil -any plan of rescue the homely scout had prepared. - -It was evident that Alkali Pete believed that the king of scouts had met -with disaster, and it was also evident that he knew the Apaches were at -the castle, and that the outlaws were somewhere inside. - -Pete must therefore know what he was doing. But it was with grave -apprehension that Buffalo Bill saw his old comrade descend from the wall -and steal quickly to the side of the building. Would he look toward the -window? Yes, his eyes were uplifted, and his ears caught these words, -delivered in a thrilling whisper: “Be careful, Pete, the Indians are in -front and the white fiends are in the cellar.” - -The lanky plainsman hesitated a moment, and then, indicating the rear -with a jerk of his finger, stole around the building. - -Buffalo Bill experienced relief when his comrade passed from view. All -might be well if the outlet from the cellar should not prove to be near -the back door of the castle. - -He was at this door, expecting to open it and admit Alkali Pete, when a -pistol shot rang out, and he knew that his one fear had been realized. -The homely scout had passed the cellar outlet, had been seen by Bat -Wason, and—the king of scouts ceased to speculate, for another shot was -heard, followed by a scream of agony. - -Regardless of danger to himself, Buffalo Bill rushed out of doors as -Thunder Cloud and his Apaches appeared at the side of the castle. - -Alkali Pete was not in sight, but there was the opening into the cellar, -and through it the king of scouts rushed just in time to escape a -fusillade of bullets from the guns of the Indians. - -Once inside, he closed and secured the door. A shot made him drop to his -knees. It was dark in the cellar, and he feared that he might have -jumped from the frying pan into the fire. - -Working himself sinuously around the underground apartment, he listened -intently, so as to get the location of his enemy. - -To his surprise, all was still about him. He waited a few moments, and -then deliberately lighted a match. The flame showed him an empty cellar. -The trapdoor in the ceiling was closed, and he was positive that no one -had escaped to the room above while he had been in the cellar. - -Where, then, was the person who had fired the shot that had whizzed by -his head? - -He lighted another match, and, walking forward, began a close -investigation of the ground. A low exclamation burst from his lips when, -in a corner, he beheld an open hole. A third match showed it was the -entrance of an underground tunnel, which probably terminated outside of -the castle inclosure. - -By the tunnel the enemy had gone, and by the tunnel had gone, also, -Alkali Pete and the prisoners. - -Without stopping to reflect, Buffalo Bill went into the hole. He did not -strike any matches, but crept forward slowly and cautiously. - -The way was not obstructed, and, after five minutes’ progress, he -reached the mouth, which was screened by bushes. - -Voices not far away made him pause. - -“He’ll shore strike ther tunnel, an’ we’ll get him when he projecks his -snoot outer ther mouth,” said Bat Wason. - -“Then go at once and take a position so you can plug him when he -appears,” was the reply of Black-face Ned. - -Now it was that Buffalo Bill acted with celerity. He was out of the -tunnel, and hidden behind a bowlder a few feet away from the brush when -Bat Wason showed his face. - -The diminutive outlaw squatted on the ground within a rod of the brush, -his body concealed by a rock, and waited, revolver in lap, for the king -of scouts to appear. - - - - - CHAPTER XIII. - A VENGEFUL INDIAN. - - -A line of brush extended from the mouth of the tunnel to the base of the -mountain. The distance was about fifty feet, and in the brush somewhere -Black-face Ned and his prisoners were concealed. - -Were there three prisoners or two? Buffalo Bill believed that both -Colonel Hayden and his daughter were with the leader of the outlaws, and -he feared that Alkali Pete was also a prisoner. The lanky plainsman had -not been killed, that was certain, for if he had been shot to death, his -body would have been found either in the tunnel or the cellar of the -castle. - -The king of scouts was about to give Bat Wason an unwelcome surprise, -when he saw the little outlaw drop to his knees and begin to crawl -toward the brush by the tunnel’s mouth. Before the movement was made, a -noise resembling the chirping of a cricket had issued from the brush. -Occupied with thoughts of the probable situation of his friends the -captives, the king of scouts had not at the moment placed sinister -construction upon the chirping. But when Wason started for the tunnel -the scout scented danger. - -It was time to act. With a heavy stone in his hand, he sprang from -behind the bowlder and threw the stone at Wason’s head. The aim was -true, and the outlaw, flattened on the ground, gave a few convulsive -twitches, and then lay still. - -At the mouth of the tunnel, trying to peer through the brush, crouched -Thunder Cloud, the chief of the Apaches. - -The fall of the outlaw had been attended with little noise, and Wason -had died without a groan. - -But the chirp of the cricket had not been answered, and Thunder Cloud -was in doubt as to the situation outside the tunnel. - -While the Indian waited for developments, Buffalo Bill, who had -possessed himself of the victim’s weapons, was once more behind the -bowlder, his countenance expressive of perplexity and indecision. He -dared not chirp in answer, for it was probable that a chirp was not the -proper response to the signal. The foe was too wily to adopt a mode of -communication that under any circumstances could be turned to advantage -by an enemy. - -Soon was heard a second chirp. Quickly following the noise came the -warning, sibilant rattle of a snake. - -The king of scouts turned his head quickly, and saw that the snake was -within a few feet of the bowlder. Instead of using a revolver, he -retreated and came into the open beside the line of brush. - -At that moment Thunder Cloud showed his head beyond the brush that -masked the mouth of the tunnel. His eyes fell on Buffalo Bill, and the -head would have been withdrawn if something terrible had not occurred. -The rattlesnake, crawling swiftly from the bowlder to the brush, struck -without warning, and the deadly fangs were embedded in the Indian’s -cheek. - -With a shriek of wild affright he leaped to his feet, the white foe no -longer in his mind, and, flinging the reptile from him, began to chant -the death song of his tribe. - -The king of scouts looked coldly on for a moment, and then his humanity -getting the better of his aversion, he stepped forward, removed without -resistance the weapons of the sufferer, and then said sternly: “Flatten -out on the ground, and I’ll try to save you.” - -Thunder Cloud waved the scout off. “No, the hour has come. Thunder Cloud -must go to join his fathers in the land of the Great Spirit.” - -“Perhaps, but I’ll see about that.” - -With these words he tripped the chief, and then sat upon him. With a -knife he cut a slit in the cheek where the snake had operated, and, -applying his mouth to the wound, sucked out the greater part of the -poison. - -Then from his pocket he produced a small oilskin package, which, on -being opened, disclosed a wad of dried leaves having an aromatic flavor. -The leaves were moistened with whisky and then applied to the poisoned -cheek. - -Thunder Cloud, now passive, followed the operation with staring eyes. -After the leaves had been bound in place, Buffalo Bill offered his -whisky flask to the Indian. “Drink,” he commanded; “drink the whole of -it. The combined treatment I have been giving you will bring you out all -right. I know what I am talking about, for I have cured myself more than -once. In these snake-infested hills I always carry with me the antidote -for the poison.” - -Thunder Cloud, in faith and gratitude, drank until not a drop of the -liquor was left in the flask. - -As he lay on the ground in a half-unconscious condition, the king of -scouts stole away to find Black-face Ned and the white prisoners. - -He moved with caution, for, though he knew that the leader of the -outlaws was not in a condition to oppose physical force against his -enemy, yet the villain could use a pistol, and a shot could be made -effective from ambush. - -But the line of brush was without an enemy or a friend. Black-face Ned, -wounded and weak as he was, had disappeared, and with him had gone -Colonel Hayden, Sybil, and probably Alkali Pete. - -The king of scouts looked up the mountainside, but saw no sign of a -human being. Yet it was to be believed that the persons he was seeking -were concealed behind one of the many huge rocks that strewed the steep -incline. - -He whistled, and, receiving no answer, shouted in a voice that could be -heard far up the mountain. - -Still no answer. “Pshaw!” he said to himself, in disgust, “of course the -prisoners are gagged. They could not answer if they wanted to.” - -After a short debate with himself he returned to the Indian. - -Thunder Cloud was sitting up, and, though his face was flushed, Buffalo -Bill knew by the state of his eyes that the danger point had been -passed. - -“You are out of the woods,” he said kindly, as he came and stood by -Thunder Cloud’s side. “In a little while you will be able to walk. But -you won’t be in shape for work for several days.” - -The Indian’s head was lowered. He was looking fixedly at the ground. The -king of scouts waited for the redskin to speak. Several moments passed -before Thunder Cloud raised his head and looked his rescuer full in the -face. “Thunder Cloud owes his life to the great white warrior. Thunder -Cloud must pay the debt.” - -Buffalo Bill said nothing in reply. But there was smiling appreciation -in his expression. - -“Thunder Cloud is no more the enemy of the great white warrior, -Pa-e-has-ka,” the Apache chief slowly continued. - -“Glad to hear it,” replied the king of scouts earnestly. “This deadly -enmity business isn’t what it is cracked up to be.” - -“Thunder Cloud asks humbly what must he do to show his gratitude?” - -“Well,” said Buffalo Bill, “there are a number of things you can do. -First, trot out some information. What made you go into the tunnel?” - -“Thunder Cloud went to find out what had become of his friend Black-face -Ned.” - -“You knew, of course, that there had been a fight in the cellar. What -became of the white man who was attacked by Ned and Bat Wason?” - -“He is a prisoner in the castle.” - -This intelligence was unexpected. Buffalo Bill’s face clouded. - -“Was he captured outside the castle?” he asked. - -“Yes, he ran into the arms of Thunder Cloud’s braves at the front.” - -“Didn’t he make a fight?” - -“No, he was running for the door when my braves came out of the grove. -They fell upon him before he could turn his head. There were shots -fired.” - -“After the capture you went to the cellar and found that Black-face Ned -and the prisoners had gone, eh?” - -“The prisoners had not gone. They were in the room where lies the dead -body of the white man they called Pigeon-toed Ike.” - -The king of scouts stared at the Indian in amazement. “They did not go -off with Black-face Ned and Bat Wason?” he said, incredulity struggling -with surprise. “How did that happen?” - -Thunder Cloud shook his head. “Can guess why, but don’t know for sure,” -he replied. - -“Well, give a guess.” - -“Black-face Ned and his friend were scared. They wanted to get away, and -they thought they couldn’t go fast if they took the prisoners with them. -The prisoners might hang back, and they could not be carried.” - -“I see,” returned Buffalo Bill, with a nod. “So they hoisted the colonel -and his daughter into the castle room where I was confined, and then lit -out through the tunnel. This action must have been taken just after the -appearance of Alkali Pete. Pete must have been shot at, and not knowing -how many enemies were in the cellar, he ran around to the front, -expecting, probably, that some one would come out of the front door.” - -“He expected the great white warrior to open the door,” said Thunder -Cloud. “He told me so.” - -“I don’t see how he figured out that I would come that way when I was at -the rear, for he had seen me. However, there will be an explanation when -we meet.” - -This was said calmly, and the Apache chief could not withhold an -admiring grunt. - -“Good, big, brave Buffalo Bill.” - -The king of scouts appeared not to have heard the compliment. He was -staring hard at the ground. Suddenly he glanced suspiciously toward the -mouth of the tunnel. “I am forgetting how I stand,” said he quickly. -“Won’t your braves follow you here?” - -“If Thunder Cloud does not return inside of an hour they will come.” - -“The hour is nearly up. What’s to be done? You are on my side now, and I -am willing to receive advice.” - -“My braves must not be hurt,” was the grave reply. “Thunder Cloud will -keep his word and assist the great white warrior, with the understanding -that no more blood is to be shed. Thunder Cloud will go back to the -castle, tell his braves that Black-face Ned has forsaken them, that he -wants peace with the Comanches, and that the prisoners must be taken -through the tunnel and delivered to Thunder Cloud’s friend.” - -“That’s the ticket,” cried the king of scouts enthusiastically. “Chief, -you have a great head. I am proud to be your friend.” - -The Indian’s swarthy face glowed with pleasure. He was rapidly -recovering from the effects of the poison and the antidote, and as -Buffalo Bill spoke he rose to his feet, and then leaned on the scout for -support. - -“Think you will be able to get back through the tunnel?” anxiously -inquired the scout. - -“Yes. The weakness will soon pass, and Thunder Cloud can crawl, if he -cannot walk.” - -Five minutes later he was out of sight in the underground passage. - -Buffalo Bill sat down on the ground, and impatiently awaited the coming -of Colonel Hayden, Sybil, and Alkali Pete. - -“When they come,” he said to himself, “I’ll consider the case of -Black-face Ned. The scoundrel must be captured, and it ought to be an -easy stunt to catch him, for he can’t travel fast on account of his -wound.” - -The chief had not been gone ten minutes before a series of savage yells -smote the air. They came from the direction of the castle, and the king -of scouts sprang to his feet, anger and alarm in his eyes. - -A discharge of firearms followed the yells, and more yells came on the -heels of the shots. - -A fight was in progress, and it was clear to the mind of Buffalo Bill -that the Apaches were being attacked by the Comanches led by Black Wing -and Wild Bill. - -Doubtless the Comanches were acting under a prearranged plan. Alkali -Pete had been sent out as a scout, and the Comanches were to follow him -unless he should return and counsel a different action. He had not -returned, and the Yelping Crew were now at the castle, and yelping for -all they were worth. - -The king of scouts was angry because the well-meant attack of the -Yelpers might defeat the program agreed upon between himself and Thunder -Cloud. It was not likely that the Apache chief would return with the -prisoners while the castle was being besieged by a savage enemy. - -Buffalo Bill looked about him, and, observing a log lying on the ground -near the bowlder that had recently been his place of shelter, he lifted -it and placed it against the high stone wall of the castle inclosure. - -He “shinnied” up the log, reached the top of the wall, and looked down -into the spacious yard of the castle. - -Not an Indian could be seen. - -The Apaches were doubtless in the castle, and the Comanches were at the -front, in the grove, or near there. - -While the scout looked, a force of Comanches, with their fantastic -make-up, dashed around the side of the castle. They kept close to the -building, evidently aware of the safety of this proceeding. The Apaches -could fire only from the windows, and these were high up, and so netted -with bars that they were of no service unless the enemy should appear -far out in the inclosure. At the head of the Yelpers was Wild Bill. He -saw the king of scouts perched on the wall, and gave a shout of welcome. - -The drop to the ground was about fifteen feet, and for a moment Buffalo -Bill had a mind to drop and join his old comrade. But a different -counsel prevailed as he saw the Yelpers approach the rear of the castle. - -Climbing back to the ground outside the wall, he entered the tunnel and -hurried quickly through it. His intention was to reach, if possible, the -room in the castle where Alkali Pete had been placed, and then try to -find a way to open the back door and admit Wild Bill and his Yelping -Crew. - -The chances were against him, he had to admit it, but he would make the -attempt, nevertheless. - -He was halfway through the tunnel when he heard the sound of approaching -footsteps. Halting instantly, he drew his pistol and waited for what -might be a deadly encounter. There was a possibility that the on-comer -might be Thunder Cloud, but the chances were that the chief was in the -castle occupied with more serious concerns than the return of prisoners -and the keeping of a sentimental promise. - -The darkness prevented the king of scouts from seeing any object in his -front, and the person who was coming from the cellar was within touching -distance before Buffalo Bill knew it. - -The tunnel was narrow, and, therefore, each must discover the presence -of the other at the time of passing, if at no other period. - -Buffalo Bill reached out a hand, and catching the unknown person by the -wrists, flung him sidewise to the ground. - -“Who are you?” he whispered, as he tried to hold the struggling victim -down. - -“Drat yer eyes, I’m Pete,” was the gasping reply. - -The king of scouts laughed softly. Then he assisted the angry plainsman -to his feet. “Had to act as if you were an enemy,” he said -apologetically. “Hope I didn’t hurt you any.” - -“My wrists will shore be sore fer a week,” was the sour response. Then -he began to chuckle. “I ain’t mad, Buffler. Don’t ye go fer ter think -so. I’m mighty glad ter see ye. I war huntin’ ye.” - -“And I’m glad you have found me. Did you know that Wild Bill and his -aggregation of crack-brained aborigines are in the castle yard?” - -“I’m bettin’ that I do, an’ that’s why I hiked out ter see ye an’ git -ther benefit of yer vallyble advice. I war in ther room whar ye hed ther -scrimmage with Pigeon Toes, an’, guessin’ that no one war in ther -cellar, I raised ther trap, an’ hyer I be.” - -“Didn’t see the colonel and his daughter, did you?” - -“No. They shore must be in some part of ther shebang.” - -“Well, what advice do you hanker after?” asked Buffalo Bill smilingly. - -“How ter help Wild Bill an’ ther Comanches. They kain’t do anything from -ther outside, an’ they kain’t git in ther castle. Ef they expect the -’Paches ter come out an’ have a set-to in ther yard, they aire shore off -their cabesas. We gotter scheme out a way ter beat ther doors of ther -castle.” - -“I was on my way to beat those doors,” said Buffalo Bill coolly. “My -idea was to enter the room that held you, and then watch a chance to -open the back door.” - -“You might watch a year, Buffler, an’ never git that aire chance. I’m -gamblin’ that both doors aire guarded.” - -“What’s the matter with settling the guard?” - -“Ter do that ye’d hev ter pay yer respecks to a mob of ’Paches. O’ -course, they aire fillin’ up ther hall.” - -“Nonsense, Pete. It is more likely that the most of them are in the room -where the windows are, looking out into the inclosure. Come, let’s go -back. There is more chance of winning out, now that you are with me.” - -“I’ll go ye, Buffler,” said Alkali Pete promptly. “Ye may be right. I -hope ye aire; but right er wrong, I’m at yer back until yer stummick -caves in.” - -“Thank you,” responded the king of scouts heartily. “And now for it.” - -The two scouts reached the cellar without trouble. The trapdoor through -which Alkali Pete had descended was open, and, climbing upon Buffalo -Bill’s broad shoulders, the lanky plainsman looked into the room. It was -vacant. The dead body of the outlaw had been removed. - -“I shore don’t like ther looks o’ things,” whispered Pete to his -comrade. “Ther body war thar when I lit out fer ther tunnel, an’ it -bein’ gone sartinly shows that ther ’Paches know I hev vamosed. Mebbe -they aire waitin’ fer me ter come back, an’ mebbe thar’s a bullet -waitin’ fer ther man that crawls inter that aire room.” - -“I don’t believe they expect you to come back,” replied Buffalo Bill. -“Why should they? You were a prisoner, and you escaped. Is it the usual -caper for a prisoner to voluntarily return to the room of imprisonment?” - -“Ye talk mighty fine, Buffler, but all ther same, I’m plumb leery of -that aire room.” - -“If you are afraid,” began the king of scouts, when his old comrade -quickly and roughly interrupted: - -“Afraid nothin’,” and upon the words he crawled into the room. - -No bullet came to put an end to his existence. He listened a moment, and -then stretched himself by the hole and assisted Buffalo Bill in getting -through the trap. - -On his feet, the king of scouts made for the window. The yard, or, -rather, that portion within his range of vision, was clear of Indians. -Where had Wild Bill and the Yelping Crew gone? And everywhere was -silence. Within the house there were no sounds. - -“Pete,” whispered the scout, “are we living in a land of enchantment? -Fifteen minutes ago the air was filled with yells and gun reports. Now -all is as still as the grave.” - -“But ther Injuns kain’t hev left ther castle?” said Alkali Pete, as he -vigorously worked his tobacco-filled jaws. “Mebbe they aire all in ther -front room. This aire castle is stone, an’ sound don’t travel wuth a -cent.” - -“I am going to find out what the silence means,” returned Buffalo Bill -resolutely. So saying, he went to the door and tried to open it. The -effort was vain. The door was barred from the outside. - -“Better work back through the tunnel, hedn’t we?” suggested the lanky -plainsman. - -The king of scouts nodded. The trapdoor was open, and Buffalo Bill was -kneeling by it, preparing to descend when the door of the room opened, -and Thunder Cloud walked in. - -His countenance was grave, and he was shaking his head as he came -forward and held out his hand to Buffalo Bill, who, upon the opening of -the door, had quickly arisen to his feet. - -“I expected to find you here,” the chief said, in the Apache tongue. “I -believed you would come when you found that I was placed so I could not -immediately keep my promise.” - -“Where are your braves?” asked the king of scouts. - -“They have gone to the cliff where the Comanches have their home.” - -“What?”—regarding the Indian in amazement. “Gone where the Comanches are -not?” - -Thunder Cloud gravely inclined his head. - -“Say,” put in Alkali Pete. “Ye aire shore puzzlin’ us, chief. Ye kain’t -ram that aire nonsense down our throats. What aire yer leetle game?” - -Thunder Cloud scowled at the speaker. He was not in a mood for -pleasantry, and he was offended at Alkali Pete’s tone. - -“The chief is all right,” said Buffalo Bill, with a warning glance at -his comrade. “He will explain why the braves have left the castle.” - -Thunder Cloud bowed slightly, and the scowl departed. - -“My braves have gone to the cliff,” he said, “because that was the wise -thing to do. Black Wing, who should be chief of the Yelping Crew, has -gone with them, and soon there will be peace instead of war between the -Apaches and the Comanches.” - -The king of scouts tried to guess the riddle the chief was attempting to -explain, but it was beyond him. He looked at Alkali Pete, and caught a -wink that expressed contemptuous incredulity. - -Thunder Cloud imperturbably went on: “The great white warrior fails to -understand. He does not know that Black Wing, who came from Mexico to be -the chief of the Yelping Crew, was unable, when he reached the cliff -to-day, to induce the Comanches to come out and treat with Thunder -Cloud.” - -“The Yelpers did not want peace, then?” said Buffalo Bill. - -“They were under the spell of the white man who has been acting as their -chief, and they would not listen to Black Wing, though he is a Comanche, -and had been sent for to become their chief.” - -“Good thing they didn’t, for they would have been led to a massacre. But -who is this white man who possesses more power than Black Wing?” -inquired the king of scouts innocently. - -Thunder Cloud frowned. “The great white warrior must not speak with a -forked tongue. He knows who the white man is, for he was with the -Comanches this morning.” - -“Yes, I do know,” replied Buffalo Bill quickly. “I wanted to learn -whether or not you knew him.” - -“No, Thunder Cloud does not know the name of the white man. He has never -seen the white man’s face, and Black Wing was not taken into the white -man’s confidence.” - -The Apache chief paused, expecting that the king of scouts would -volunteer the information that Black Wing had failed to obtain. But -Buffalo Bill maintained a severe silence. - -The revelation of the identity of the acting chief of the Yelping Crew -came from Alkali Pete. Buffalo Bill was looking out of the window when -the lanky plainsman spoke. “Did ye ever hear uv a man by ther name uv -Wild Bill?” he asked. “He’s shore ther hombre.” - -Thunder Cloud started, and it was plain that the announcement -unpleasantly affected him. - -“The sworn enemy of the Apaches, the white devil who shoots to kill. -Yes, Thunder Cloud has heard of him.” He ceased speaking, and looked -sadly, reproachfully at Buffalo Bill. - -The king of scouts met the look serenely. “Are you at last earnestly -desirous of making peace with the Comanches?” he asked. - -The chief nodded. “Thunder Cloud has done forever with Black-face Ned, -and he now desires to live in peace with both white man and red man. Did -not Thunder Cloud say as much when he left the great white warrior at -the mouth of the tunnel?” - -“Yes, you did, chief, and I accept your statement. Peace you shall have. -Wild Bill is a friend of mine, and if I can get speech with him, I’ll -soon bring him round to my way of thinking. But you haven’t yet told me -how Black Wing purposes to act.” - -“He will gain the cliff stronghold, and there wait for the coming of the -Comanches.” - -“Where are the Comanches now?” - -“They are at the back of the castle, crouching against the wall near the -door, and waiting for the door to open, or——” - -“Or what?” as Thunder Cloud paused. - -“Or for some signal from the great white warrior, Pa-e-has-ka.” - -“Don’t they know that the Apaches have gone?” - -“No. When the Comanches stole around to the rear, my braves quietly went -out the front door, and were in the grove before Wild Bill could place -watchers at each side of the castle.” - -“I see. Hickok would not have counted on such a move on the part of the -enemy, and so failed to take precautions against a sudden evacuation of -the castle. Well, when the Yelpers return to their home, if they do -return without an understanding between me and Wild Bill, they will find -Black Wing and your braves in possession of the cliff. Then what?” - -“Black Wing will again urge the Comanches to sign a treaty of peace. He -will have the whip hand, as you Americans say, and the Comanches may -listen this time and agree to accept Black Wing’s suggestion. And again -they may not, for that devil, Wild Bill, may again bend them to his -will.” - -Buffalo Bill’s face was sober. “It’s up to me to act,” he said, with -decision. “But before I make an attempt to get speech with Wild Bill, I -wish to see Colonel Hayden and his daughter. Bring them here, if you -please.” - -“Thunder Cloud will bring the white maiden, but the great white warrior -cannot see the white maiden’s father.” - -This was said with compressed lips and a ferocious expression. - -The king of scouts involuntarily clenched his hands. He tried to speak -without betraying his feelings. - -“Does Thunder Cloud forget what he promised? Did he not say that he -would release all the prisoners?” - -The Apache chief replied, with lowering brows: “He did so promise, but -he forgot when he spoke that one of the prisoners had already been -condemned to death. Would Thunder Cloud be willing to forget that -Colonel Hayden said ‘yes’ to the order that sent Thunder Cloud in -disgrace from the white soldiers’ camp? Thunder Cloud would be a dog if -he did not take his revenge upon the white colonel.” - -There was a stir in the cellar. Alkali Pete, who was standing nearest -the open trap, heard it, but the noise did not reach the ears of the -Apache chief. - -The lanky plainsman, controlling his excitement with an effort, flashed -a warning glance at Buffalo Bill. - -The king of scouts interpreted the meaning of the glance, and, -therefore, made this response to the chief’s ultimatum: “Bring the girl -to me.” - -Thunder Cloud glued his keen eyes to the scout’s, as if he would read -what was beyond them. But he made nothing from the searching scrutiny. -Buffalo Bill was placidly smiling. - -With a grunt, the Indian turned and walked toward the door. When he was -gone, Alkali Pete stooped by the trap, and called out in a whisper: -“Aire ye thar, Hickok?” - -“Yes,” was the quick answer. “Come down, won’t you, and pass the word to -Cody, if he is up there with you.” - -The lanky plainsman raised his head and told Buffalo Bill what had been -said. - -“Go down,” was the reply, “and tell Hickok that I’ll follow presently. -The chief will return in a minute, and I must be here when he comes in.” - -Alkali Pete, without hesitation, lowered himself to the cellar. There -was a heavy thud as he struck the ground, and at the same moment Thunder -Cloud opened the door and pushed Sybil Hayden into the room. - - - - - CHAPTER XIV. - STRANGE HAPPENINGS. - - -The girl was very pale, and there were signs of recent weeping. But a -look of relief came into her lovely countenance when her eyes fell on -the king of scouts. - -“You are Mr. Cody, are you not?” she asked, as she came up to him with -outstretched hand. - -“Yes, and how is your father?” - -“I do not know. I haven’t seen him for over an hour. I—am afraid——” She -paused, and looked tremblingly at the chief, who was standing, grimly, -by the door. - -“Trust in me,” the scout whispered. Then he turned, and a revolver was -pointed at Thunder Cloud’s head. “I am sorry to again place myself in -opposition to you, chief,” he said sternly; “but it’s a case of white -blood against red. You must give up this girl’s father.” - -The Apache chief’s eyes flashed savage defiance. “Never,” he replied, -and with a quick movement his hand went to the tomahawk at his belt. - -Buffalo Bill fired, but to wound, not to kill. The bullet struck the -hand that was gripping the handle of the tomahawk, and the grip -instantly relaxed. But the Indian never flinched. Not a cry issued from -his lips. - -“Must I kill you, or will you surrender?” demanded the king of scouts -coldly. - -The head of a white man showed itself above the hole in the floor. Sybil -Hayden saw the head, and uttered a shriek of fear. - -Instantly Buffalo Bill whirled, and at the same instant a tomahawk -whizzed, and a pistol shot rang out. The Indian’s weapon, hurled with -the left hand, went wide of its mark, and the bullet failed to do more -than graze the scout’s scalp. - -The man at the trap was Black-face Ned, and as soon as the bullet sped, -Sybil Hayden, scarcely realizing what she did, sprang to the edge of the -hole, and began to kick the villain in the head. As he howled and tried -to turn so as to shoot her, she changed her tactics and jumped with all -her force upon Black-face Ned’s hands. This was more than he could -stand, and he dropped back to the floor of the cellar. - -Buffalo Bill was not a witness to the commendable actions of the -colonel’s daughter. He was occupied with Thunder Cloud, who had followed -the throwing of the tomahawk by a savage rush forward. - -One hand was practically useless, but he made the best possible use of -the other. Sybil Hayden watched the struggle first with anxiety, then -with delight. The Indian, even at his best, would have been no match for -the muscular, scientific king of scouts. Two minutes after the assault -the Indian was lying on the stone floor, and the victor was banging the -red man’s head against the stone. - -There were no cords about with which to tie up the chief, so Buffalo -Bill coolly proceeded to cut strips from the skin suit of the Indian. A -sufficient number, tied and knotted, served the scout’s purpose, and -when he arose to his feet, Thunder Cloud was powerless to accomplish -further harm. - -Buffalo Bill glanced at the open hole in the floor, and shook his head -sadly. “I am afraid my comrade has been killed,” he whispered. “That -villain fooled him and fooled me. I had no reason to suspect that he was -in the cellar. I don’t understand why he came back.” - -“I do,” replied the girl, with a little shiver. - -The king of scouts nodded. “Yes,” he said, “he hated to give you up. He -is more courageous than I had given him credit for.” As he spoke, the -scout moved toward the hole. - -“You mustn’t go down there,” expostulated the girl. “It would mean death -for you, for, of course, he is waiting, and his pistol is ready.” - -Without having appeared to hear the girl, Buffalo Bill stood near the -edge of the trap and called down: “Pete, are you there?” - -There was no answer. - -“I’ll soon know how the land lies,” said the scout quietly. He replaced -the door over the hole, and then held out a revolver. “Take this,” he -said to the girl, “and stand by the trap. I am going out for a little -while. When I return, I hope your father will be with me.” - -Sybil Hayden took the pistol and sat down by the trap. “You may rely on -me,” she declared firmly. - -Buffalo Bill went out, and, reaching the rear door of the castle, threw -back the bars and opened it. Stepping out, he looked along the back wall -of the building. There were no Comanches there, nor anywhere in the -inclosure. - -Surprised and ill pleased, the scout walked around to the front. No one -there. The front gate of the wall was open, and Buffalo Bill went -through the grove of trees and looked down the valley. No sign there of -a human being. - -He thought he understood the situation. While he was talking with -Thunder Cloud in the side room with the trap, Wild Bill and the Yelpers -had stolen along the other side of the castle, and gone out into the -valley, their objective point being the cliff home of the Comanches. - -How Wild Bill had learned of the departure of the Apaches the king of -scouts could not guess, but he must have known that the Apaches had -deserted the castle, otherwise he would have remained to besiege the -building. - -Returning to the rear, he reëntered the castle, and then began a search -for Colonel Hayden. Every room in the castle was investigated, but the -colonel could not be found. Mystified and vexed, the scout returned to -the room where he had left Sybil Hayden and Thunder Cloud. - -The situation in the room had not changed. The Indian lay on the floor, -and the girl was sitting by the side of the trap. - -“Didn’t you find my father?” she asked, in astonishment, mingled with -alarm. - -“No,” replied the scout gravely, “but the chief knows where he is, and -I’ll make him tell me, or I will know the reason why.” - -Going over to Thunder Cloud’s side, Buffalo Bill stooped, and said -sternly: “Where did you put Colonel Hayden?” - -The Indian, who was in full possession of his senses, promptly answered: -“He should be hanging from the big cottonwood at the lower end of the -valley.” - -Sybil Hayden uttered a despairing cry. “No, no,” she wailed, “you -couldn’t have sent him out to die.” - -“Of course he couldn’t,” said the scout consolingly. “He is mad, and he -wants to torment you.” Then to the Indian: “Why do you lie? Don’t you -realize that you are in a mighty ticklish position?” - -“Thunder Cloud has spoken the truth as it appears to him. The father of -the white maiden went off with Black Wing and the Apache braves, and the -order of Thunder Cloud was that the white man who is responsible for -Thunder Cloud’s disgrace should be hanged like a dog from the cottonwood -tree.” - -“The order may not have been carried out.” - -The Apache chief smiled grimly. But he said no word in reply. - -Buffalo Bill tried to comfort the colonel’s daughter. “From all -accounts,” he said, “Black Wing is a decent sort of an Indian. He was -bossing the Apache outfit when he left for the cliff. He wants peace. Is -it in the line of peace to do an act that would bring the military down -upon him? Hardly. So cheer up. I’ll bet anything that your father is now -alive and in good hands.” - -Somewhat reassured by these words, the girl dried her eyes and insisted -upon an immediate departure for the home of the Comanches. - -“I’ll go as soon as I have attended to Black-face Ned and have found out -what has become of my friend Alkali Pete. Remain here, and in half an -hour, at latest, I’ll be ready to depart.” - -The girl, much as she desired to get out of the castle and run to that -cottonwood tree, did not interpose any objection to Buffalo Bill’s -proposal. She knew he was acting as one true friend would act toward -another, and so, without a protest, saw him leave the room. - -The king of scouts reached the mouth of the tunnel, and then looked -about for evidence that would show whether or not Black-face Ned was -inside or had again retreated to the open country. - -There were many footprints about; some made by the scout, Thunder Cloud, -and Bat Wason, whose dead body was where the scout had left it, and it -required much perspicacity to arrive at the truth. At last the scout -became convinced that Black-face Ned was either in the tunnel or the -cellar. The most reasonable supposition was that the villain was in the -cellar. - -But Buffalo Bill realized that he was undertaking a dangerous piece of -work when he entered the tunnel. Still, he did not hesitate. - -Much to his relief, he made the journey through the tunnel without -encountering the leader of the outlaws. - -He had moved noiselessly, and when he reached the entrance into the -cellar he stopped and listened intently. - -A sound as of muffled breathing reached his ears. “That can’t be -Black-face Ned,” thought the scout. “It must be Alkali Pete.” - -The darkness was intense. Buffalo Bill knew the location of the trap, -and, believing that the outlaw leader was under it, he began to glide -cautiously along the side of the wall. - -Every ten feet he would stop and listen. - -Suddenly his foot struck an obstruction, and he came within an ace of -falling over it. - -The obstruction was a human body. No sound had followed the striking of -the scout’s foot against the body, and, agitated by the fear that he had -come upon the lifeless form of Alkali Pete, Buffalo Bill knelt quickly -on the ground and placed his ear to the breast of the unknown. The heart -was not beating. Next the scout passed a trembling hand over the -unknown’s face. Cold, but not icy cold. Death must have taken place but -a short time before the scout’s entrance into the cellar. - -Buffalo Bill arose with a feeling of relief. The dead man was not Alkali -Pete. The face was that of an Indian. The scout had felt the high cheek -bones, the sharp nose, the retreating forehead, and the long, coarse -hair of an Apache. - -His relief at finding that his fear was unfounded quickly gave way to a -feeling of wonderment. How came the dead Apache in the cellar? And who -had killed him? - -A slight noise in front of him made him put a tighter grip upon the -knife he had drawn upon entering the tunnel. The noise was as of some -one stepping softly. - -Believing that Black-face Ned was approaching, the king of scouts -crouched by the wall, and waited with tense nerves for the enemy to come -within striking distance. - -The steps drew nearer, and then stopped. Suddenly a match flared, and -Buffalo Bill saw the face of the leader of the outlaws. He had come to -the body of the Indian for the purpose of assuring himself that the -savage was dead. Before the match went out the villain saw the king of -scouts. But the sight of his enemy came too late for him to take either -offensive or defensive action. Buffalo Bill sprang forward as the -villain looked up, and struck him a powerful blow between the eyes. - -Black-face Ned collided with the hard ground with such force that his -breath left his body. - -Not until the victorious scout had removed the villain’s weapons did he -light a match. - -The light exhibited a spectacle that brought a cry of joy from his lips. -Ten feet away, with his back against the wall, sat Alkali Pete, rubbing -his eyes. - -“Pete? Alive?” the king of scouts exclaimed, and the answer came dryly: - -“I shore don’t know. Come over hyer an’ pinch me.” - -The match went out just as Black-face Ned’s limbs began to twitch. - -Buffalo Bill sat on the villain’s chest, and said roughly: “Are you -going to be quiet, or must I give you a sleeping dose?” - -“Oh, I’ll be good,” whined the now thoroughly frightened man. “I missed -the trick, and I am willing to leave the field to you.” - -“See that you don’t change your mind.” - -Lifting the outlaw in his arms, the king of scouts bore him to the side -of Alkali Pete. “I am shy on cords,” he said to the lanky plainsman. -“Got any about you?” - -“Ther one that held my wrists is hyer in my lap, an’ when ye ontie my -ankles ye’ll shore corral another,” was the reply. - -“Ah, I am on. You were tied up, and you’ve got your hands loose.” - -“Ye’re singin’ on ther right key, Buffler.” - -After the villain had been tied up, the king of scouts asked anxiously: -“How are you feeling?” - -“Sorter down in ther mouth. Made a fool slip when I kem inter the -cellar. Thar warn’t any Wild Bill down hyer.” - -“I know. We were both fooled.” - -“An’ I never knowed I’d been played fer a sucker ontil a few minutes -ago. I struck ther ground, an’ a club struck me. Reckon Black-face Ned -opined he’d put me outer business fer good an’ all. Made a big beefsteak -thar, son. He shore didn’t know that my head is some thicker nor a -paper-shell almond. I hev been a’feelin’ uv ther old cabesa, an’, -barrin’ a leetle lump, it’s shore somewhat intact.” - -“I am glad to hear you say that, Pete,” responded Buffalo Bill -earnestly. “I thought you were all in when I discovered that Black-face -Ned was here.” - -The lanky plainsman stood up and stretched himself. “What all’s happened -since I ca’mly deposited myself inter the lap of ther enemy?” - -“I’ll tell you after you have satisfied my curiosity on one point. An -Apache was killed here in this cellar after you were downed. Do you know -anything about the affair?” - -“Not a blessed thing, Buffler. I war sleepin’ off my headache when ther -killin’ kem off. Ask ther black devil at yer feet, an’ he’ll tell yer -what ye want ter know.” - -“That’s so. Ned”—speaking to the captured outlaw—“what about this -Apache? Did you kill him?” - -“Yes,” was the surly answer. “Had to. I took him for you.” - -“Then he made a noise coming through the tunnel?” - -“Enough to put me on my guard. I suppose he thought there was no one -here.” - -“What was his object in coming to the cellar? Do you know, or can you -guess?” - -“I don’t know, and I am not good at guessing. But I do know this: The -Indian was Thunder Cloud’s right-hand man, second in command, you -understand.” - -“He came back to see Thunder Cloud. Something had occurred on the march -to the stronghold of the Yelping Crew. An important discovery had been -made, or there was a slip of some kind. Maybe he became suspicious of -Black Wing, and came back to urge Thunder Cloud to come to the cliff and -boss operations.” - -This speech was directed to Alkali Pete, who at once replied: “Let’s get -ther kunnel an’ light out fer ther cliff. Ef thar’s goin’ ter be a -mix-up, an’ it shore looks thataway, I’m hankerin’ ter take a part.” - -Buffalo Bill was seized with a cold fear. He had, for the moment, -forgotten about the colonel. - -“I haven’t yet told you,” he said gravely, “that the colonel went with -the Apaches and Black Wing.” - -“What fur?” Surprise and dismay were in the tone. - -The king of scouts repeated the appalling statement made by Thunder -Cloud. - -Alkali Pete groaned. “I shore sees ther p’int, Buffler. Ther ’Pache this -yer Black Face downed moseyed back ter tell Thunder Cloud that ther -order ter hang ther kunnel to ther cottonwood hed been carried out.” - -“I won’t believe it,” returned Buffalo Bill, hoping against hope. “Some -other reason brought him back. I’m going down to the cottonwood -immediately. But first I’ll get speech with the girl.” - -Black-face Ned had brought his rifle to the tunnel, and the king of -scouts thumped on the trapdoor with the muzzle of the weapon. - -“Ye won’t get ther girl ter open ther trap, Buffler,” said Alkali Pete. -“She’ll think ye aire Black-face Ned, fer sure.” - -As the door did not open, the king of scouts yelled at the top of his -voice: “Open. It is Cody who speaks.” - -If the sound penetrated to the room above, no indication of the fact was -given. - -“I’ll have to go around and into the front door of the castle, Pete. -It’s a waste of time, but it can’t be helped.” - -“Goin’ ter leave Black-face Ned hyer?” asked the lanky plainsman. - -“No, we’ll take him along with us.” - -The bound outlaw was conveyed to the outer air, and there set on his -feet and conducted to the front of the castle. - -Leaving the prisoner with Alkali Pete, Buffalo Bill entered the -building. As he stepped into the hall he saw that the door of the room -with the trap was open. - -The circumstances induced a feeling of uneasiness, for the scout had -closed the door when he went out of it less than half an hour before. - -At the threshold he stopped in amazement. Sybil Hayden had gone, and -Thunder Cloud lay as if dead upon the stone floor. - -The king of scouts walked to the body, and his amazement was -intensified. - -The Apache chief was dead, and there was a bullet hole above the right -temple. His hands, freed from the leathers that Buffalo Bill had used to -secure them, were stretched out and clenched. - -No time was wasted in the room. Hastening back to Alkali Pete, the king -of scouts announced his astonishing discovery. - -“Ther Injun got shet of the leathers, and was aimin’ ter do up ther gal -when she plugged him. O’ course that’s the way it happened, Buffler.” - -“You are probably right. There is no other sensible explanation. But why -did she leave the room? I requested her to stay until I returned. There -is something queer about the affair.” - -“Maybe she lit out ter hunt you up. Got tired o’ waitin’.” - -Buffalo Bill went to the rear of the castle, and, not finding the girl, -returned to the front, reëntered the building, and searched all the -rooms. No sign of the girl anywhere. - -Alkali Pete had to confess that the matter was beyond him. “Gals aire -pecooliar,” he remarked. “Ye never know what they aire plannin’ ter do.” - -Buffalo Bill did not hear the last words of his comrade. He was walking -toward the open front gate, his eyes on the sandy ground. - -At the edge of the grove of trees he stopped and called to Alkali Pete. -“Come on,” he said. “The girl went off this way. I have found her -tracks.” - -The lanky plainsman, his arm in that of Black-face Ned, started for the -grove. - -“There are plenty of other tracks, mostly Indian,” the king of scouts -said, “but it was easy to pick out Miss Hayden’s. She has gone down the -valley.” - -“To take a look at that cottonwood, I reckon,” was Alkali Pete’s -rejoinder. - -“Probably. I hope we will find her there, and also that she has -discovered that her father has not yet been killed.” - -The walk to the end of the valley was quickly performed. - -The surprise of Buffalo Bill was great when he saw, sitting under the -cottonwood, Sybil Hayden and her father. - -Both rose as their eyes fell on the two scouts. With a happy smile the -girl spoke. - -“I have been waiting for you,” she said, as she came forward to meet the -king of scouts. Then, as her eyes fell on Black-face Ned, she added: -“You have done well.” - -Her next words were addressed to Alkali Pete, and they were spoken with -such warm earnestness that the homely plainsman blushed. “I am so glad -you are here and well. You don’t know how badly I felt when I found you -had fallen into a trap.” - -Colonel Hayden, while this talk was going on, was shaking hands with -Buffalo Bill. He was in a joyous mood, and the compliments he paid to -the valiant king of scouts caused the recipient of them to vigorously -shake his head. Sybil relieved his confusion. - -“You must be anxious to learn how I came here,” she said. “Didn’t you -guess what occurred in the room? Thunder Cloud got the use of his hands, -and was reaching forward to snatch my pistol when I saw him and fired. -My eyes were on the trapdoor while he was working himself free, for I -thought I heard a noise below.” - -“After I had killed the chief I wanted to get away. I was faint, and the -sight of the blood was more than I could stand. I rushed out of doors -and looked around for you, Mr. Cody. Not finding you, I determined to -hurry to the end of the valley and find out whether or not the Apache -chief had lied. I got to the cottonwood, saw, to my delight, that no -human body was hanging from it, and was about to retrace my steps to the -castle when my father appeared. Black Wing had freed him, and he was on -his way to attempt my rescue.” - -Colonel Hayden now made other points clear. - -“Black Wing is all right,” he averred. “He promised Thunder Cloud that -he would hang me to the cottonwood, but he never meant to keep that -promise. He is an intelligent Indian, and a true friend of the whites. -He knows that you, Mr. Cody, and Wild Bill are friends, and that I am -your comrade. Besides, he had had an understanding with Mr. Hickok, and -the two were acting in accordance with that understanding.” - -Buffalo Bill whistled softly. “And Thunder Cloud was fooled, was he? -Thought Black Wing was really working for peace, eh?” - -“Yes. He pulled the wool over Thunder Cloud’s eyes, and now Thunder -Cloud’s Apaches are on their way either to a reservation of Uncle Sam or -to bloody death.” - -“Wild Bill and Black Wing have fixed up a trap, then?” - -“I think you would call it one. The Apaches will come out of the holes -in the cliff, and, instead of marching out into the open to arrange a -treaty of peace, they will be invited to a duel. Wild Bill wouldn’t -stand for an ambush, so that the fight will be a fair one.” - -“It hasn’t commenced yet, or we would have heard the firing,” said -Buffalo Bill. The speaker looked at his watch. It was a few minutes -after four. - -“Five o’clock is the time set for the scrimmage,” explained the colonel. -“The palavering is going on now.” - -“Time enough to get there before the fun begins,” said Buffalo Bill. -“I’ll hear the rest of your story, colonel, and then I’ll start.” - -“I’ve told all there is to tell, Cody. I was released by Black Wing -about half a mile up the hill.” - -“But you have not said anything about the Apache, Thunder Cloud’s -lieutenant, who left the band and returned to the castle.” - -“I didn’t know that he returned. He was walking by the side of Black -Wing when I left the band.” - -“How did he take your release? Didn’t he expostulate with Black Wing?” - -“Yes, he did, and I remember that he gave me a savage look when I went -away.” - -“I think I understand,” declared the scout, after a moment’s thought. -“The Apache imagined that Thunder Cloud would be angry when he learned -that his murderous order had not been carried out, so he deserted the -band soon after you left, colonel, and hurried back to the castle for -the purpose of informing the chief of your release. He selected the -tunnel way for his entrance, because he wanted to avoid being seen by -me. He knew, of course, for Thunder Cloud must have told him, that I was -free, and he was afraid that I would suspect his errand and try to queer -it.” - -“I think he suspected more than that,” said Colonel Hayden. “Black -Wing’s noncompliance with Thunder Cloud’s order may have set him to -thinking, and he may have feared that Black Wing meant treachery.” - -“We’ll shore never learn ther rights of ther matter,” put in Alkali -Pete, “fer Thunder Cloud an’ his leftenant aire both takin’ it easy in -ther happy huntin’ grounds.” - -Colonel Hayden nodded. “I guessed that the Apache never got into the -castle,” he said. - -“But you didn’t guess that the Honorable Mr. Frams here gave the Apache -his quietus. Yes, Black-face Ned played into our hands, and I’ll bet -he’s mighty sorry for it.” - -The villain scowled, but said nothing. He was in an unenviable state of -mind. He was without resources, and saw ahead of him the gallows. - -But he determined to make one strong appeal to the man he had so -grievously injured. - -“Let me go, colonel,” he pleaded. “You’ve got your daughter back, and -you’ve cleaned me out of friends. Let me go, and I’ll start for Mexico -and never come back. I have made a mistake, and I am sorry for it. -You’ll sleep better if you turn me loose.” - -Colonel Hayden’s face hardened. “You contemptible scoundrel, don’t talk -to me,” he replied, and then turned his back on the villain. - -Buffalo Bill’s voice was heard after a short silence. “Colonel,” he said -quietly, “I am going to take this man off your hands and deliver him -into the hands of the Apaches. He has killed the Apache who would have -been chief had he lived, and for his offense he must undergo an Indian -trial. I can assure you it will be short, and that there will be no -appeal from the judgment.” - -Colonel Hayden smiled grimly. “As you will, Cody,” was the reply he -made. But Buffalo Bill’s announcement had caused Alkali Pete to raise -his eyebrows. - -“Ain’t ye takin’ a losin’ contrack, Buffler?” he inquired. “How on arth -aire ye goin’ ter turn over ther rapscallion ter ther ’Paches when ther -prospecks aire that ther ’Paches will soon be _non est combusticus?_” - -“I intend to stop the massacre,” returned the king of scouts quietly. - -“Ye do, eh? Well, ye aire takin’ a mighty big job onto yer shoulders.” - -“I have taken larger ones, Pete.” This was said in no boasting tone, -rather as a matter-of-fact statement. - -A flood of recollections deluged Alkali Pete’s mind. He nodded and -smiled. “I reckon I’ll haul in my horns, Buffler. Ye’ll make it; jest -how I kain’t conceive, but ye’ll make it, or thar’ll be a circus.” - -“And to make it I must be moving,” the king of scouts replied. “You must -remain here with the colonel and Miss Hayden, Pete. I’ll be back before -dark.” - -With these words he took Black-face Ned by the arm and moved away. - -Half an hour later, and ten minutes before the time fixed for the -outcoming of the Apaches, Buffalo Bill and his prisoner reached the edge -of the opening in front of the cliff dwellings. - -Wild Bill saw him coming, and rushed forward to meet him. - -“I am in time,” said the king of scouts, with a smile as hand met hand. - -“If you had come earlier you would have suited me better,” declared Wild -Bill earnestly. “I have been worrying a bit about you. Thunder Cloud -told Black Wing about the rattlesnake business, and I believed you were -on velvet back there in the castle, otherwise I would never have left -the place without trying to find you. But you are here at last, and I’m -mighty glad to see you. You’re just in time to see a sensational -spectacle. The Apaches are up in the cliff rooms now, but in a few -minutes they will come out, and then Beelzebub will proceed to pop.” - -“I have heard about the trap you have laid for the Apaches,” said -Buffalo Bill disapprovingly, “and I have hurried here to have you -withdraw it.” - -“Withdraw it. Have you gone daffy, Cody?” - -“No, I am as sane as you are. Look here, Hickok”—speaking with serious -earnestness—“you are a white man, aren’t you?” - -“I have always passed for one,” was the smiling reply. “What of it?” - -“Just this: A white man, the type of the higher civilization, does not -lay traps in order to take a mean advantage of an enemy. He fights fair, -he despises the tactics of the savage.” - -Wild Bill’s face flushed with anger. “Do you mean to insinuate that I -have hatched up a low-down scheme to entrap the Apaches?” he said hotly. - -“Keep your temper, Hickok,” returned Buffalo Bill quietly. “We have been -friends too long for any serious difference to arise between us. You -have not yet coolly considered the situation. You have, I am sure, acted -on impulse. Don’t you know that, if your plan goes through, the Apaches -will be at the mercy of the Yelping Crew? They will come expecting to -treat for peace. You and your crowd will be all ready for a fight. The -announcement that it is war, not peace, will throw the Apaches into a -state of consternation so that they will not be able to put up any kind -of a fight against you. The scheme is unfair; it is more than unfair, it -is——” - -“That will do, Cody,” interrupted Wild Bill, his countenance red with -shame. “I see the point. I was hasty, reckless. I did not take a cold -squint at the matter. The scheme won’t do. Come with me while I do some -responsible haranguing. Time is mighty short, for the Apaches will be -out of the holes in a minute.” - -Wild Bill reached the group of Comanches, and began to talk rapidly. -Headshakes and low, fierce mutterings were heard as he urged a change of -plan. After all, he argued, it would be better to have peace. A fight -against the advice of Buffalo Bill, who represented the United States -government, would draw down upon them the wrath of the soldiers. They -would be driven from their home, and, if they did not succeed in -escaping to Mexico, they would either be killed or placed on a -reservation. - -Ten minutes went by while the talk went on. When Wild Bill stopped, -satisfied that he won his point, he uttered an exclamation of surprise. -The Apaches had not come out. What had happened? - -“There is a screw loose somewhere,” the king of scouts remarked, with a -clouded brow. “Have you seen an Apache since you came here?” - -“No, I haven’t.” - -“Black Wing knew that five o’clock was the time for the confab over the -treaty, did he?” - -“Sure.” - -“Then something has happened to him. Send one of your Comanches down -close to the cliff and have him call to Black Wing.” - -“I’ll go myself.” - -Wild Bill ran to the base of the cliff and shouted: “Black Wing! Are you -there?” - -No answer. The call was repeated. Still no answer. - -Astonished beyond measure, Wild Bill returned to Buffalo Bill and the -waiting Comanches. “I don’t believe there’s a soul up the cliff,” he -said to the king of scouts. - -“I am of your opinion. Here, hook onto Black-face Ned for me, and I’ll -soon solve the riddle.” - -Without waiting for an answer, Buffalo Bill ran to the mouth of the -cave, entered, and climbed up the rope that depended from the windlass -above. As his head appeared out of the hole in the stone floor, he saw -the dead body of an Indian. - -The face was upturned to the ceiling, and was the face of Black Wing, -the Comanche. The king of scouts, with serious mien, stood a moment by -the body. - -A glance disclosed the manner of death. The Indian had been tomahawked. - -The other rooms were vacant. The Apaches had gone, and with them the two -outlaws, Flag-pole Jack and Shorty Sands. But Black Wing had not been -killed by either of the outlaws. They used pistols or knives, never -tomahawks. The Indian had met his death at the hands of an Apache. - -Buffalo Bill went back to the group of fantastically attired Comanches. -His story was received first with amazement, then with savage -indignation. Every face was turned toward Wild Bill. - -The white leader of the Yelping Crew faced the Indians with flashing -eyes. “Black Wing shall be avenged,” he said, in a voice that cut like a -knife. “Peace be hanged. We’ll march to the castle, for the Apaches have -gone back, of course, and camp there till we starve them out.” - -Buffalo Bill knew that the time for conciliatory talk had passed, so he -uttered no protest, but said quietly: “I think as you do, Hickok. The -Apaches somehow got on to Black Wing’s plan and killed him. Then they -hurried to the castle, taking the cut-off over the ridge that I took -when I went from here this forenoon. But they may not stay there. The -finding of Thunder Cloud’s body, the discovery of the dead Indian in the -cellar, and the escape of the white prisoners will, I think, send them -out again. And if they come back here they will come by the regular -trail. Great Heaven, Hickok, they will come by the cottonwood tree! -Alkali Pete and the Haydens may see them coming, but the chances to -escape observation are poor. Come on, we must meet the fiends before -they reach our friends, if it is possible to do so.” - -The words were scarcely out of the scout’s mouth before the Apaches -appeared. - - - - - CHAPTER XV. - THE FRUITS OF VICTORY. - - -Buffalo Bill saw the redskins rush out of the bushes into the open, and -at once dropped to his knees and fired. A volley from the Apaches -drowned the report of his rifle. - -Black-face Ned, struck in the head by a bullet meant for Wild Bill, -staggered and fell upon the kneeling king of scouts, sending him flat -upon his face. Shots and bloodcurdling yells rent the air as he was -trying to arise. - -When he got to his feet he saw a strange sight. The Apaches were running -up the mountainside, pursued by enemies from two sides. - -Wild Bill and all but four of the Yelping Crew were chasing the Apaches, -while from the brush out of which the foe had emerged Alkali Pete and -Colonel Hayden were using their weapons with telling effect. - -The king of scouts joined in the rush of the Yelpers. - -But the Apaches, demoralized by the attack in the rear, won out in the -running race. They were out of range when the pursuers reached the top -of the ridge. - -Seven had been killed, and there were not more than ten, the two outlaws -with them, who were able to get to the castle. - -On the ridge, the king of scouts said to Wild Bill: “Go on and invest -the castle, and I’ll join you after a while. I must have a talk with -Colonel Hayden.” - -“All right, but be quick, Cody, for it will be dark before long.” - -Alkali Pete was coming up the hill as Buffalo Bill began the downward -walk. Below, on the flat, stood Colonel Hayden and Sybil. - -As the two scouts met, Sybil Hayden was hastening to the side of a -wounded and dying Apache. - -In her hand was a canteen of water that her father had given her. - -The Indian, who was sitting up with his hands at his throat, took the -canteen and drank until he almost choked. - -Buffalo Bill and Alkali Pete joined the girl, and the colonel came up -while the Apache was speaking. - -“Black Wing was a traitor,” he said, in answer to a question put by the -king of scouts. “He would have sent the braves of Thunder Cloud to be -massacred if the white friend of Thunder Cloud, he who is called -Flag-pole Jack, had not taunted him with treachery and forced him to -tell the truth.” - -“Black Wing was a fool to admit he was leading the Apaches into a trap,” -said Buffalo Bill. - -“He was angry and reckless,” replied the Apache. “The white man has a -cutting tongue, and he lashed Black Wing to fury. Then when the Apaches -learned how they had been deceived, Black Wing was made to pay for his -treachery.” - -The last words were spoken just above a whisper. In a few minutes the -Apache was dead. - -“I must go on and rejoin Wild Bill,” said the king of scouts to Colonel -Hayden, as the quartet walked away from the scene of death. “As for you -and Miss Hayden, my advice is, go to the camping ground by the creek—the -place is safe enough now—and stay there to-night. Alkali Pete here will -go with you, and in the morning you can set out for civilization.” - -The lanky plainsman said nothing to this speech. But his homely face -wore a look of keen disappointment. As he caught Sybil Hayden’s smiling -glance he reddened, and attempted an explanation for his apparent -exhibition of discourtesy. “I think, I shore do, that Buffler orter come -with us. He’s got no call ter be buttin’ inter a squabble atween ther -’Paches an’ ther Comanches. Don’t ye see, Miss Hayden?” - -“Yes, I see,”—and the smile broadened. Then she added wickedly: “You -wouldn’t go back and help Wild Bill and the Comanches, would you? An ox -team couldn’t make you go. Am I right?” - -Alkali Pete gave a shamefaced look at the smiling girl, and then turned -an appealing glance on Buffalo Bill. - -The colonel spoke at this juncture. “Your plan shows a good heart, Cody, -but you forget that you are under my orders.” - -The king of scouts bit his lip. “That’s so,” he reluctantly admitted. -“And what is your order?” - -“That you go with us and let Mr. Allen proceed to the castle.” - -The lanky plainsman’s eyes danced with pleasure. But the new arrangement -was not carried out. Sybil Hayden vetoed it. - -“I have not had my say yet,” she declared, with an expression of -determination on her pretty face. “You may all do as you please, but I -am going back to the castle. I am interested in the squabble, as my -friend, Mr. Allen, calls it. I want to be a looker-on in Venice. And, -besides, I hope to induce you three husky men to come with me. Perhaps -the end may come the sooner for your presence and assistance.” - -“But, Sybil, the danger,” expostulated her father. “You have had enough -of harsh experience, I should imagine.” - -“No use talking, dad, I’m going to have my way. There is no great -danger. There will be about twenty men against a dozen.” - -“You are talking strangely for a woman,” returned the colonel severely. -“I am surprised at your conduct.” - -“There, there, daddy”—speaking caressingly—“you have miscalled your -feeling. You really want to go to the castle. Now, be honest and tell -the truth.” - -“Well, I would like to go,” replied the colonel slowly, “but not under -your conditions.” - -The argument went on, and finally the colonel capitulated. - -The quartet reached the grove in front of the castle just before dark. -There was found the greater part of Wild Bill’s force. Two Comanches had -been detailed to watch the mouth of the tunnel, and three others had -their station at the rear of the building. - -“You are sure, Hickok, that the Apaches are inside, are you?” asked -Buffalo Bill. - -“Yes. Several shots have been fired from the windows.” - -“What is your program?” - -“To stay here and starve them out. Can you suggest a better one?” - -“I will tell you in a minute. Did those shots from the windows do any -damage?” - -“No. They were fool shots, fired to annoy us, I suppose, to give the -impression that the inmates of the castle defied any attempt to rout -them out.” - -“You’ll have to stay here a month, Hickok; that is, if you are allowed -to stay, before the garrison will be out of provisions.” - -“Nonsense. I know, by what Black Wing told me, that there is not enough -grub in the shebang to last a dozen men a week.” - -“True, but suppose there are but two persons in the castle?” - -Wild Bill caught his breath. “Do you mean——” - -“Yes,” the king of scouts quickly interrupted. “I mean that the Apaches -are not in the castle. They are playing trick against trick. Flag-pole -Jack and Shorty Sands are inside, no others are there, and the shots -were fired to make you believe the whole force of the enemy is in there. -Do you catch on? At this minute, if I am not clear out of my reckoning, -the Apaches are preparing to sneak up and massacre your whole outfit.” - -“They will come from the rear, then.” - -“Naturally.” - -Wild Bill, who had been sitting on the ground, arose to his feet and -issued some quick orders to the Comanches. - -Four of them at once stole away in the darkness, going along the edge of -the valley, two on each side. - -As soon as they had departed, Buffalo Bill went to Sybil Hayden’s side -and whispered: “There is likely to be trouble soon, and you must not be -where you would run the chance of catching a stray bullet. Go around the -wall until you get to a large, low-growing pine. Climb the tree, you -will find it easy work, and wait until it is safe for you to return -here.” - -The girl at first refused to go, but upon her father’s supplication she -left for the pine. - -She had been gone five minutes, and the scouts sent out by Wild Bill had -just returned with a startling report, when a scream, fraught with -deadly terror, awoke the stillness and pierced Colonel Hayden’s heart -like a knife. He was running along the wall in the direction of the -sound when Buffalo Bill dashed by him, going at race-horse speed. A -pistol shot was fired when the king of scouts was within a few yards of -the pine tree. - -Quickly following the report, a heavy body fell from the tree, striking -the ground with a thud. - -“That was not the girl,” said Buffalo Bill to himself, with -positiveness. Then he called out in a thrilling whisper: “Miss -Hayden—where are you?” - -“In the tree,” was the answer given in a shaking voice. “I—I can’t get -down.” - -“Are you hurt?”—anxiously. - -“No, but—I am stuck.” - -The king of scouts struck a match, and, stepping forward, looked at the -body that had fallen from the tree. It was that of Shorty Sands, and the -outlaw was stone-dead. - -Climbing into the tree, Buffalo Bill found that Sybil Hayden’s form had -become wedged between two limbs. By using all his strength he was able -to bend back one of the limbs so that the girl could move out. When both -were on the ground she told her story. She had climbed into the tree, -and was between the limbs when she heard a movement above her. Looking -up, she saw the dim outlines of a man’s form, and immediately gave -utterance to the scream that was heard at the front of the castle. Next -she tried to leave the tree, but found to her terror that she could not -move. - -A hissing whisper caused her to stifle a second scream. “If you yell -again, I’ll cut your heart out.” - -Up to this time she had not thought of the pistol she carried. It was in -her bosom, and she took it out just as the outlaw was about to swing -himself to a limb opposite to her. As his feet touched the limb she -fired. - -“Did I kill him?” she whispered faintly. - -“I couldn’t have made a better shot if I had been in your place,” the -scout answered. “He’s dead, all right, and a good riddance to bad -rubbish.” - -They were on their way back to Wild Bill and the Comanches when they -heard a groan. It emanated from some person not many feet from them. -“Who is it?” whispered Buffalo Bill, while Sybil Hayden clutched his arm -tightly. - -“Hayden,” was the hoarse reply. “I ran against a root, and fell and hurt -my head. Is Sybil safe?” - -“Yes, father,” the girl answered, as she ran forward and knelt beside -the colonel. “I am without a scratch.” - -At this moment a wild commotion arose in the valley, not one hundred -yards away. The air was pierced with shots and yells, and it was evident -that a fierce fight was in progress. - -It was over when the king of scouts reached the open space beyond the -grove of trees. The Apaches who had planned to bushwhack the Comanches -had themselves met with a surprise. - -Of the band that had stolen silently up the valley, but three escaped, -and these were never again seen in the Hualapi Mountains. - -But one Comanche was killed. - -Buffalo Bill was not surprised to hear that Alkali Pete had done his -share in the work of extermination. The lanky plainsman had exposed -himself more than once, but he seemed to bear a charmed life, and had -come out of the fight without a wound. - -“Only one enemy to attend to,” said Wild Bill, after he had heard the -story of Sybil Hayden’s adventure. “Flag-pole Jack is in the castle, but -we will get to him by the way of the tunnel.” - -“Let him go,” urged Sybil. “You have done enough.” - -Wild Bill would have made reply had not one of the Indians detailed to -watch the tunnel come up as the girl ceased speaking. He had a report to -make, and Wild Bill looked pleased when it was made. - -It was short but important. Flag-pole Jack had attempted to escape -through the tunnel, and had been shot and killed as he was crawling out -of the long hole. - -“All’s well that ends well,” said the colonel joyously. - -The white contingent of the force that had routed the Apaches slept that -night in the castle, and next morning left for the desert and the -civilized places beyond. - -Wild Bill resigned his position as acting leader of the Yelping Crew. - -Colonel Hayden and his daughter went on to the military post in Wyoming. -They parted with Buffalo Bill, Wild Bill, and Alkali Pete at Laramie. - -What was said and done at the parting left the two scouts blushing like -schoolboys. - -“Kissed me, kissed me,” murmured the lanky plainsman, as he walked away -with the king of scouts. “Didn’t she know’t I’m a married man?” - -“Your status as a husband cut no ice with her, Pete. It was purely a -matter of generous sentiment. Tell your wife, she won’t be jealous.” - -“Ye don’t know her, Buffler. This aire is one o’ ther things I’ll shore -keep ter myself.” - -There was a pleasant twinkle in his eyes as he rubbed his cheek. - -Upon their arrival in Laramie, Buffalo Bill received orders to proceed -at once to Fort Grant. Alkali Pete elected to remain at Laramie, but -Buffalo Bill and Hickok pushed on to Fort Grant, where they met with old -Nick Nomad and Buffalo Bill’s Indian pard, Little Cayuse. From Fort -Grant the outfit hit the trail for Skyline, where their services were -needed. - - - - - CHAPTER XVI. - THE MAN WITH A PAST. - - -The man who answered to the names of Tom Conover and Toltec Tom squared -his drooping shoulders and stood up more sturdily on his shaking legs. - -“No,” he said to the man who asked him to have a drink at the bar of a -cheap saloon near by, “I’ve cut it out!” - -The tempter laughed skeptically, and Conover lurched past, his face -flushing to a deep red. - -It was already flushed and somewhat swollen from the effects of alcohol. -High on the forehead was a scarlet nick—a three-cornered scar—extending -well up into the hair. - -Conover pulled an old brier pipe and a handful of loose tobacco from a -side pocket of his corduroy coat, filled the pipe and thumbed the -tobacco down in the bowl as he went on, his hands trembling. - -“Yes, I’ve cut it out—for good!” he muttered. “I’ve been a fool for the -past month, but I won’t be any longer. I’ll straighten up and be a man -again, if I can, and then I’ll get back to God’s country. No more of -this for me—I’ve had enough of it.” - -He stopped, at the foot of the street, and swept a glance over the town -and surrounding country, at the little, sunburned valley below, and the -ragged hills beyond rolling away into higher and higher elevations, -which were rimmed in and ringed by scarred and splintered mountains. The -sight of those mountains depressed him. - -The view of the town was not more prepossessing. It was a straggling -mining camp, without beauty of outline or architecture. The houses were -cheap affairs, half of them on the main street being saloons or gambling -dens where the miners from the mountains spent their hard earnings -riotously. - -“I’m sick of it,” he said, “and I’m goin’ to git out of it.” - -For the first time he lapsed into a hint of the dialect to which he had -so long been accustomed. - -Again he looked at the desert reaches of the scarred mountains, where it -would seem that even a crow would have hard picking to get a living. - -Then he took from an inner pocket of the old corduroy coat a single -playing card—the queen of hearts; and he looked at it, with a strange -emotion showing in his puffed and scarred face as he passed on down the -slope. - -He was soon at the edge of the town, though cheap Mexican houses, -chiefly of mud, stretched on still farther. Before the doors dark-faced -children played in the dust, and now and then from some deep window was -visible the swarthy, Indianlike face of a Mexican woman. - -Where a mesquite tree grew at the side of the road he stopped. No house -was near, and he sat down on a stone, dropping heavily as if tired. - -Though he had sturdily refused a drink that morning, his mind was not -yet relieved of the effects of recent potations. For a month he had been -on a “spree,” and the results showed in his face and general appearance, -and still more in the workings of his mind. - -He held the playing card out before him and looked at it steadily, -clutching it in one trembling hand, and as he did so tears came into his -red eyes and trickled down his swollen cheeks. To a certain extent they -were maudlin tears, yet they testified to a real and deep emotion. - -“The queen of hearts,” he said; “the only picture I’ve got of her—ever -had of her; it don’t look like her, yet it makes me think of her. And I -don’t want to think of her no more; it’s bad business, and it don’t do -me no good. It’s what set me to drinkin’ and howlin’ round like a locoed -Injun. I reckon I played the fool ginerally and made a swath-wide -nuisance of myself. But no more for me—this is the end of it.” - -Rising, he stepped up to the mesquite tree and pinned the card to it; -then he went back and sat down again on the stone. - -After staring at the card a while he drew out his revolver and began to -shoot at it. His hand was unsteady and his first shot went wide, but the -next cut through the middle of the card. - -“She’s dead, and the past is dead, and now I’ll kill even the memory,” -he muttered. “I’ve hung to that card a long time, and it was all I had -that suggested her; now even that goes. I don’t want to think about it -any more. I didn’t treat her right, and she didn’t treat me right; -and—but what’s the use o’ thinkin’? It’s all gone, and dead; and she is -dead; and here goes the only thing that’s left to remind me of her.” - -Again his revolver cracked spitefully in the clear air of the morning. - -The bullet nicked a hole in the forehead of the picture. - -He stared at it, his face paling a little. - -“Just where I got the lance head of old Fire Top that time,” he said. -“That was a stem-winder—wonderful that it didn’t finish me! If it was -that old heathen who was dead, instead of her! But he’s still livin’ to -do more meanness in the world. Yes, I wisht it had been him; or that -this card was his ugly, painted mug that I’m shootin’ at. He wouldn’t be -waitin’, though, for me to set here and plug him like this; he’d be -doin’ something himself, like he did before.” - -His revolver swung between his knees, in his right hand. With his left -he touched significantly the scarlet scar on his forehead. - -But for that disfiguring scar and the marks of dissipation revealed so -plentifully in his countenance, Tom Conover would not have been a -bad-looking man. There was a week’s growth of stubble on his face, but -with that cut away, his features would have been comely enough. His eyes -were of a steely blue. They were watery now, but normally they were keen -and farsighted—the eyes of a man long used to looking on the vast -reaches of the mountains and deserts, where for so many years he had -made his home. He was tall and straight, too, with a symmetry of form -which his recent debauch, and the baggy clothing he wore, could not -wholly hide. As for his years, he was probably fifty, or near it; and -his hair was tinged with gray. It had been black, and round the edges of -that livid scar it still showed black, thrusting the scar out by way of -contrast, so that it seemed to stand forth as vividly as a cattle brand. - -His face hardened as he touched the scar with his finger and old -memories swept over him, and once more he looked off at the serrated -mountains against the sky line. A notch there drew and held his gaze, -and in imagination he traveled along it, by way of a trail he knew well, -far into the ragged range. - -There had been strange doings in some of the valleys of those mountains, -and he had taken part in them. His mind began to fill with unpleasant -pictures. - -He frowned as they trooped in on him; then, snatching up his revolver, -he fired again at the queen of hearts. Shot followed shot in roaring -succession, until the revolver was emptied and the playing card was torn -into shreds. - -His fusillade drew Mexicans to the doors of their huts and shabby -jacals. The playing children scampered out of the street dust and out of -sight. There were also cries of indignation, and of fear, together with -some sharp commands laid on him to desist. - -But he only laughed with unnatural recklessness and gayety as he -proceeded to empty his revolver and shatter the card. - -When the last cartridge was spent and the card hung but a thing of -shreds, he got up from the stone, pulled the remnants of the card from -the trunk of the mesquite, and ground them out of sight into the deep -dust of the road. - -“The bullock carts will make a finish of it, if I haven’t,” he said, as -he looked at the hole his heel had gouged. “And now maybe I can git away -from them old memories. When I go back East I want to be another man—a -new man altogether, and I don’t want to think even of the things that’s -happened out here. I was in the wrong, of course; but not all in the -wrong. And I don’t want any more gold—I mean any more hunting for gold, -or nothing. I jest want to git away—away—away!” - -His voice rose. - -At the end of this outburst, as he turned about, he became aware of a -commotion in and about the huts and jacals, and in the road which led to -the town. Mexican women were shrieking and wailing, and the voices of -Mexican men rose in curses in the local patois. Some of the men were -issuing from the huts in a threatening manner. - -“Well, what’s up?” said Conover, staring. “My shots have been scaring -these greasers, I reckon.” - -He laughed harshly, and turned toward the town, having thrust his -revolver out of sight. - -Some of the men issuing from the huts now dashed up to him and sought to -lay hands on him. He threw them off. - -“What’s up?” he demanded. - -One of them drew a knife and sprang at him. - -He laughed again, bitterly this time, and, catching the little Mexican -by the arm, he twisted the knife out of his hand and threw it into the -roadside chapparal. - -“Oh, no!” he said. “I don’t let any pig-eyed greaser stick his dirk into -me. What you want?” - -“_Diable!_” the man grunted, picking himself up and making a dash for -the tall, shabby American, naked-handed. - -Conover again threw him off, as easily as he would have hurled aside the -attack of a child. - -He was aroused now, and his appearance had changed. Though his face was -still puffy and his eyes watery, his tall form straightened into sinewy -outlines; the trembling, too, had gone out of his hands and arms. - -“You devil!” he said to the fallen man. “Keep off, or——” - -He looked up the road toward the town, where a crowd had appeared, a -crowd which increased in numbers, and was led by a man Conover knew to -be the town marshal. - -With one eye on the howling Mexicans, who were trying now and then to -get at him, Conover stared at the advancing crowd. - -“What’s Ben Woods want? Coming for me, is he? Well, that’s queer! They -don’t pull a man in this town for a little shooting, as a usual thing, -unless he kills somebody; and all I’ve been potting is an old playing -card. I was a fool for even doing that—a fool and drunk, or nigh it! A -man can’t slay a memory by shooting a card to pieces.” - -He stepped with quick stride to the side of the road, where he had a mud -wall at his back; so that he was now able to face the Mexicans and also -watch the crowd that hurriedly approached from the direction of the -town. - -The patois of these peons was strange to him, but he was beginning to -catch words that he understood, and slowly the meaning of what they -meant filtered in. - -One of his bullets, glancing against a rock, had entered a Mexican jacal -and struck a Mexican woman, injuring her severely. It was the husband of -the woman who had tried to knife him; and her brother had run into the -town and summoned the marshal with a direful story. - -The marshal was now coming, with a posse, to arrest the “wild American” -who was supposed to be shooting up the Mexican portion of the town. The -reports of the revolver had given point to the story of the woman’s -brother. - -“Hit a woman, eh?” said Conover incredulously. “Hit a woman when I was -merely shooting at the representation of one? Is that what you’re -howlin’ about?” - -He flung a glance at the woman’s husband, who had crawled out and -recovered the knife, and was again trying to get where he could use it. - -“Keep off!” he snarled to the man with the knife. “If I shot a woman, it -was an accident, and a fool thing to do; but it wasn’t meant; and I -ain’t goin’ to let you drive your sticker into me because of it. Keep -off, or I’ll choke you!” - -The Mexicans, gaining courage by reason of the approach of the marshal -and his men, began to crowd Conover, gathering in a gesticulating and -frantic mob between him and the tiny Mexican huts where the women stood -and yelped like coyotes. - -Seeing that the Mexicans were in a murderous mood, Conover now drew his -revolver, coolly thrust cartridges into it, and, cocking it, he -threatened them with it, as he began a slow retreat. - -Thus retreating, he came up against the forces of the marshal. - -“I surrender!” he said, turning and holding his revolver toward Ben -Woods. “Whatever I’ve done was a fool trick, and unintentional.” - -Ben Woods, the marshal, a wiry, middle-aged borderman, came up and took -the extended revolver. - -“What’s it mean?” he said, his men crowding in behind him and looking -curiously at Conover and the excited peons. “You’ve had a fight down -here?” - -“No,” said Conover. - -“It’s reported that there was a fight, and you shot a woman.” - -“Let me explain,” said Conover. “You know me, and you know that when -I’ve been boozing, or coming out of one, that I’m a fust-class fool; and -not always responsible at other times. I’d been drinking until I got up -against the Woozy-wooz.” - -“You mean you’d had the D. T’s.” - -“That’s what I mean; I didn’t just have ’em, but mighty near it. I would -have, if I hadn’t stopped. And the stoppin’ was almost worse than goin’ -on. You know how ’tis; you’ve seen lots o’ the boys that way. Well, -them’s me; and I was nighabout crazy, I reckon. But I’d cut the stuff -out, and meant to stay by that resolution. - -“So I ambles down here a while ago feelin’ about as good-humored with -myself and the world as a she-wolf that’s lost her cubs. And because I -was nervous, and didn’t know what to do with myself, I began to shoot at -a target. It was a card that I had stuck up on that mesquite; if you’ll -look at the mesquite you’ll see where some o’ my lead plunked into it -while I was shooting. I wasn’t shooting at anybody, nor dreaming o’ -harmin’ anybody. - -“Then these wild men jumped out at me, slingin’ their crazy lingo; and -I’ve just waked up to the discovery that some o’ my lead must have went -astray. They say I hit a woman. It’s the first time for me, Woods, and -I’m sorry if it’s so. I didn’t know it, and didn’t mean it.” - -Ben Woods looked at him intently. - -“That sounds straight, anyway,” he said. - -“It’s the truth, and the whole truth!” asserted Conover. “What would I -want to be shootin’ a Mexican woman for, anyhow? Ask these chaps if the -woman wasn’t in her house? I never seen her, and she must have been.” - -The marshal turned to the Mexicans. - -“Was the woman in her house?” he demanded fiercely. - -They pressed forward and began to make excited statements; yet out of -what they said he managed to extract the confession that this was so. - -“There wasn’t any crazy shootin’ up of this part of the town, then?” he -said. “It was reported there was.” - -The Mexicans clamored about him, declaring that the woman was dying, and -demanding the immediate punishment of the man who had shot her. - -“But if he didn’t shoot at her, and hadn’t any intention of hittin’ -her?” said the marshal, trying to lull the storm. - -They still clamored. - -Woods turned from them to the man who was now his prisoner. - -“This thing will have to be looked into, anyhow, Conover,” he said -regretfully. “If the woman dies it may make trouble for you. But we’ll -hope she’ll git well. Anyway, I don’t see but I’ll have to take you to -jail until the thing can be looked into.” - -His tone was almost an apology, and Conover understood it as such. - -The deep flush, accentuating the liquor-red of his face, noticed once -before that morning, came again; his blue eyes contracted and narrowed; -for a moment he looked defiant, his hand dropping toward the revolver -pocket hidden by the corduroy coat. He forgot for the instant that he -had surrendered the weapon. - -Then his mood changed, and he laughed, a harsh sound that had no -merriment in it. - -“Oh, all right, Woods!” he said. “Just as you say. I wouldn’t shoot a -woman—not even a Mexican one; I ain’t that kind, and you know it. I’ll -go with you.” - -He stepped forward, almost as if pushed by the yelping Mexicans who -crowded his heels; and the marshal’s men surrounding him, he was led -away into the town, and cast into the town jail. - -“Hard luck!” he said, when the marshal’s men were gone. - -He looked disconsolately about his cheerless quarters—a narrow room, -dingy and disreputable, with one high, barred window, and a heavy, -barred door. It held nothing but a broken-legged stool and a shaky -wooden cot on which was a tattered government blanket and a makeshift of -a pillow. - -“I dunno as it’s any use,” he muttered when he finished his survey. “I -intended to try to be a decent man, and here I am. When a man’s down, -even Fate kicks him. I didn’t even know there was such a creature in the -world as that Mexican woman, but one of my bullets goes huntin’ for her, -and finds her; and it lands me here. And if she dies——” - -He shrugged his shoulders and dropped to a seat on the cot. - -“It come about, of course, all of it, because that other woman died; -that got me to thinking again, and then I got to drinkin’ to keep from -thinkin’. I’m all sorts of a fool, on general principles, and when I go -to loading up with liquor I’m even a few more.” - -Restlessly he got up from the cot, and, putting the broken stool against -the wall, he mounted it, and looked out from the barred window. - -At first his gaze took in the town, and particularly that portion which -held the Mexican huts. He could even see the little mesquite tree where -he had stuck up the queen of hearts and fired at it. - -Following the road which ran there, he looked off toward the ragged -hills and the mountains looming beyond them, his thoughts bitter. - -As he did so, he became aware that horsemen were approaching the town -along that road. - -He stood on the stool staring at them until they came up to the Mexican -huts and on into the street which led to the center of the town. - -The horsemen broke into a canter. - -“Injuns,” he said, “and three white men.” - -He strained his eyes to make them out. - -Suddenly a low whoop broke from his lips. - -“Buffalo Bill, or I’m a sand hog!” he exclaimed, striking a palm against -the bars of the window. - -He rubbed his eyes, and looked again. - -“And the two white men with him are Wild Bill and that old trapper they -call Nick Nomad. Whoop! I reckon the Injuns aire some o’ Buffalo Bill’s -scouts.” - -A change passed over his face. - -“But mebbe they won’t help me. When Fate kicks a man she kicks him hard. -Yet there was a time when Buffalo Bill and me were pards. But that’s -long ago, long ago.” - - - - - CHAPTER XVII. - THE STORY OF QUICKSILVER JOHN. - - -Ben Woods, the marshal of the town of Skyline, met Buffalo Bill and his -pards and followers in front of the principal hotel of the town. - -The hotel piazza was filled with “prominent citizens,” as a sort of -welcoming committee backing the efforts of the marshal, while people of -lesser importance filled the street on each side of the hotel and backed -against the opposite buildings in a curious wave. - -Buffalo Bill’s arrival in the town had been hourly expected, and had -been watched for from the “lookout” station on the hotel roof. - -As soon as his coming was announced the news was sent flying throughout -the community. - -Woods stepped down from the piazza, extending to Buffalo Bill his thin, -wiry hand. - -“It seems like you’ve been a long time coming, Cody,” he said, “but -we’re glad to see you.” - -He flung commands at some Mexicans grouped near. - -“Pedro, Sebastian—you fellers git a move on, and take the hosses—what ye -staring at? Yes, them’s Injuns with the gentlemen! Didn’t ye never see -any before? Well, you’ll have time to git acquainted later. Take the -hosses and hustle ’em to the stables.” - -The Mexicans flew to obey. - -The citizens on the piazza swarmed down behind the marshal, and the next -moment Buffalo Bill and his pards were being given a characteristic -greeting of the border. - -“Any word about the child?” the great scout asked of Woods, almost -before the greetings were finished. - -“Not a thing,” said Woods. “We’re reckoning that Injuns took him; that’s -what we got, from the little of the trail we could follow; though why -they would do it, or what they would want with the boy, puzzled us, -until——” - -He stopped to present another “prominent citizen,” who had just arrived -in breathless haste and desired an introduction. - -Leaving Wild Bill and old Nomad to converse with the group on and about -the piazza, Buffalo Bill accompanied Woods into the hotel, as soon as he -could do it without offense to the assembled people. - -“I’ve sent for the kid’s father and mother,” said Woods, “and they’ll be -here in a little while, I reckon. It’s a curious case.” - -“From the report I received, it is. You were about to say something a -while ago, but stopped to introduce that gentleman?” - -“Oh, yes; I was sayin’, I believe, that the whole thing tangled us all -up. But I heard somethin’ this mornin’ which, maybe, is a clew. And, by -the way, I just now arrested and jailed the feller that give it to me. -Mebbe you know him? It’s Tom Conover, old Toltec Tom, some call him, -and——” - -“Shot a woman?” - -“Well, it was by clear accident, so he says.” - -“Is she much hurt?” was the scout’s interested query. - -“I’m hopin’ not, but we ain’t goin’ to be too rough on any white man for -a thing like that, especially if ’twas an accident.” - -Buffalo Bill settled back in the chair he had taken. He and Woods were -in the hotel office; but the clerk had gone out on the piazza, and was -listening there to the talk of old Nick Nomad and Wild Bill. The -trapper’s heavy voice, uttering characteristic exclamations, floated in -at the window, accompanied by the comments of some of the citizens. - -“Go on,” said Buffalo Bill to the marshal. “Tell me about the child.” - -“Well, you know the story?” - -“Not clearly. I was not at Fort Grant when your messenger arrived; so -what I know I received at third hand, from the commander there, on my -return. But he said that word had come from here of the kidnaping of a -child by Indians, and he ordered me to report here and see what I could -do.” - -“Well, that’s straight, and nearly the whole of it. It’s Bill Morgan’s -boy, down at the foot of the hill over there. They live beyond the town, -ye see, and so it was an easy job for the reds to sneak in and do their -work, particularly as no one was thinkin’ of such a thing, and the kid -was allowed to play round outdoors all he wanted. I’ve sent for Morgan -and his wife, so’s they can tell you all about it, and jest how it -happened; but that’s all they know, or any one does, unless it’s Tom -Conover.” - -He produced some cigars and passed them to the scout, as if the matter -under consideration called for such care that haste would be its ruin. - -“Thanks!” said Buffalo Bill, accepting a cigar in the spirit in which it -was offered. - -Woods struck a match, which he held out for the scout’s use, lighting -his own cigar from it after the scout’s was going. Then he settled back -in his chair with quite as much deliberation. - -Before he went on with his story the clerk of the hotel returned to the -office, and some other men came in at the clerk’s heels. They ranged -themselves by the bar, where one or two of them called for liquor, which -the clerk dispensed from a long-necked, black bottle. - -“What Tom Conover told me maybe amounts to something,” said the marshal, -“and maybe it don’t; but you’re entitled to know it, and it may help. -It’s this: About twenty or thirty years ago, he said, a child was -missin’ in jest about this same way. Skyline wasn’t standin’ here at -that time. The kidnapin’ was done south o’ here, at the old ’Doby Wells, -where a settler had pitched his shack and was trying to live. Injuns -swung down from the mountains and run off with the kid; they didn’t -massacree, nor burn the house, nor they didn’t make any ginral raid; -they jest snatched up the kid and hit the trail for the mountains.” - -“And what became of the child?” - -“Well, if anybody knows, I don’t; Conover didn’t seem to. He jest -remembered that. But he said he recalled that when it was done there was -talk around to the effect that every twenty or thirty years them hill -Injuns did a trick like that; what for I don’t know, and I reckon nobody -don’t. My idea, though, if I was put to it, is that if the thing ever -really happened, it was for a sacrifice of some kind.” - -The scout smoked in silence as Woods talked. - -“Anything else?” he said, when Woods stopped. - -“That’s about all; only Conover was inclined to the theory that it was -the work of old Fire Top, and so was we; I mean this present case was -the work of that old heathen, we thought. Why he thought it I don’t -know, and he never said. He’d been boozing, as I’ve told you, and -whether he really knowed what he was talkin’ about or not I can’t say. -But there you have it.” - -“What else?” the scout asked again, when the marshal once more subsided -behind his cloud of smoke. - -“I reckon there ain’t anything else, that I know of.” - -“Why did you think it was the work of old Fire Top?” - -“Well, from the fact that a red who was supposed to be one of Fire Top’s -bucks was seen sashayin’ round Morgan’s place the day before, and from -what Conover told me this morning?” - -“You found a trail?” - -“Not a very plain one; but there was pony tracks behind the knoll below -the house—tracks of an unshod Injun cayuse—which must have been made -about the time the kid disappeared.” - -“You followed them?” - -“To the point where they entered the main trail leadin’ toward the -Cumbres. We couldn’t do nothin’ after that, for the main trail is hard -as flint, with a thousand tracks, if there’s one.” - -“You might have made sure that the cayuse tracks didn’t leave the -Cumbres trail.” - -“We tried to, but we didn’t find nothing—except this.” The marshal put -his hand in his pocket and drew out a battered piece of silver that had -been rudely fashioned into an Indian earring. - -“Whoever wore that was most likely an Indian,” he said, “though it might -’a’ been a Mexican; they’re all alike in wantin’ to wear shiny things in -their ears and in their hair—Mexicans aire half Injun, anyhow, ye know. -One of my men picked that up below the knoll, as we was follerin’ that -cayuse trail; and I put it in my pocket.” - -“Did you send a force toward the Cumbres Mountains?” queried the scout. - -“Well, not all the way,” said the marshal, twisting uneasily in his -chair, for he knew that was a thing he should have insisted on. “I -couldn’t git any men that wanted to go farther than the Cross Timbers. -Fire Top’s Toltecs ain’t men that aire to be fooled with, and so I -didn’t go beyond that point. But I didn’t see any need, as we’d struck -no trail. And if it was Fire Top, and he got into the Cumbres, where he -holes up, then it wouldn’t do no good, anyhow.” - -“Why?” said the scout quietly. - -The marshal tried to laugh, but failed. - -“Well, Cody,” he answered, “if you want to go into the Cumbres, and up -to Fire Top’s headquarters there, you’re welcome to; but not for me, or -any one I could git here to trail after me. It never was done but -once—by any one that came back alive; and that was when Quicksilver John -blundered down there by mistake, and got out again by mistake. It wasn’t -courage, but luck, that brought Quicksilver John out of there that time, -I’m telling you.” - -He settled back again, and tried to hide his confusion by “smoking up.” - -“Maybe you don’t know about Quicksilver John and that little adventurer, -Cody? You wasn’t in this section at the time, and I don’t think it has -ever got into print, so you’re pardoned for not knowin’ anything about -it. - -“Quicksilver John was huntin’ for a cinnabar lode, as usual, and he hit -into the Cumbres, takin’ nothin’ but a burro and his tools and his water -bottle and grub. It’s a desert country, and he had a hard time straight -from the start. - -“He didn’t know anything about Fire Top nor them wicked Toltecs of his, -and so wasn’t figurin’ on trouble from that quarter. He didn’t find any -cinnabar, but he struck the queerest Injun town that any one ever heard -of, or dreamed of; it had reg’lar houses, somewhat like them cliff -dwellers’ houses you’ve seen, or maybe read about. But some was -better—some was of stone. It was a bang-up place, for an Injun city, he -said; and he was wonderin’ whether it could really be Injuns livin’ -there, or some settlement of whites he had never heard of, when the -queerest thing happened you could ever imagine. I dunno whether to -believe it or not! But Quicksilver John said that while he was studyin’ -them houses, a big eagle, that he hadn’t even see, flapped down out of a -tree behind him and struck him between the shoulders. - -“He was layin’ at the time on the edge of a precipice, lookin’ down; and -the blow of the eagle knocked him over the edge, so that he began to -fall. But, so he reported, the claws of the eagle had got fast in his -clothes, and that kept him from dropping down like a shot; the eagle -tried to fly with him, and that held him up a bit, though his weight -kept pullin’ the eagle down and down. He was too heavy for the eagle to -carry; but at the same time the efforts of the eagle to lift him up kept -him from droppin’ swift. So together they came right down into that -queer town, nighabout in the middle of it, the eagle flappin’ his wings -and screechin’, and him swinging his arms and legs and yellin’. It must -have been a queer sight. - -“And it was that way they landed, clost by some Injuns, that wore red -feathers in their hair, and was otherwise ’most naked, except for a lot -of gold bracelets. When the ground was struck the eagle managed to pull -its hooks out of the clothes of Quicksilver John, and to fly off; and -there he was left, sprawlin’. - -“Well, them red-feathered Injuns swarmed round him prompt, and whooped -and hollered; and they picked him up and carried him off to some kind of -a temple, where there was a great howdy-do about it. And then a priest, -or a king, or somethin’, come; Quicksilver John didn’t know who, or -what, for this priest, or king, or whatever, was all veiled, and wore a -robe of some kind. - -“But, anyway, after Quicksilver John had been held some days, and -expected to be killed every minute, he was carried up to the top of the -cliff from which the eagle had knocked him, and told to git.” - -The marshal stopped and puffed at his cigar, which had nearly gone out. - -“And then,” he said, breathing deeply and blowing out the smoke, “you -can bet he got—he skedaddled.” - -Some of the men who had come in and heard the story, laughed; they had -heard it before, and saw only its comedy elements. - -“I reckon you don’t believe that story, Cody,” remarked Woods, glancing -at the scout. “It’s a purty stiff yarn, and I dunno as I believe it -myself. But what Quicksilver John wanted to tell it for, if it was a -lie, gits me; he didn’t gain anything by it.” - -“He told it for the same reason that makes a man like to tell the -biggest fish story,” said some one in the crowd. - -“He said,” went on the marshal, “that the Injuns was Toltecs, and was -under that old coyote called Red Feather, though whether Red Feather is -livin’ or dead, or anything much about him, nobody knows. Maybe there -ain’t any old Fire Top, and no such queer Toltecs in them hills; but -there aire Apaches there, and that’s enough for me. Wherever there aire -Apaches I keep out. Sabe?” - -He hesitated, and went on: - -“But Toltec Tom says there is, or was, a chief called Fire Top; and -Injuns wearin’ red feathers have been seen round here, and they’re said -to be Toltecs, and live in them Cumbres Hills. But that’s all we know, -Cody; maybe all that anybody knows. Except that this kid is gone—seems -to ’a’ been stolen—and we found Injun pony tracks, and this Injun -earring, or nose ring, or whatever it is. - -“And so, after talkin’ the thing over, when we couldn’t do anything, or -very much, ourselves, we sent that messenger to Fort Grant, askin’ for -your help; and here you aire.” - -He seemed mightily relieved that this was so. - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII. - THE STOLEN CHILD. - - -Before Buffalo Bill could comment on the queer story of Quicksilver -John, or on any of the other things which the worthy marshal of the town -of Skyline had imparted to him, there was a sound of scraping feet -beyond the door, in the direction of the piazza, and a man and woman -came into the office. - -The marshal jumped to his feet when he saw them, and the scout also -rose, knowing that here were the father and mother of the child that had -been supposedly stolen by Indians. - -The man was a sturdy-looking fellow of the miner type, about thirty -years old. The woman was younger and girlish, and was a beauty. Her skin -was fair, her eyes a bright blue, her hair a gold-brown; so that, -altogether, she had, in spite of the poorness and simplicity of her -clothing, something in her appearance that suggested one of Titan’s -pictures of angels. - -So fair and girlish, though a wife and mother, she was, that Buffalo -Bill could not, as he came to his feet, repress a look of admiration. - -“These are the people I told you about,” said Woods, introducing them. -“This is Morgan and Missus Morgan; and it’s their kid that has -disappeared.” - -The blue eyes of the woman filled with tears as she looked up at the -tall and handsome scout who stood before her; his kind and kingly looks -warmed her heart, and gave her a feeling of confidence even before he -spoke to her. - -As soon as the introductions had been put through by the marshal, -Buffalo Bill began to ask Morgan and his wife questions, finding them -intelligent and eager to impart all the information they possessed. - -“He”—she referred to the child—“was playing out of the knoll when it -happened. He played there nearly every day when the weather was good, -and it’s been mostly good lately. I didn’t hear him cry out, or -anything, but I did hear the hoofs of a horse out there somewheres, -though at the minute I didn’t think anything about that in particular. -But somehow I got uneasy by and by, and went to the door and called him. -And when he didn’t come I ran out there—and he was gone! - -“A good distance off, in the direction of the Cumbres trail, was a cloud -of dust; but I couldn’t see what was in it. For a minute I was that -scared I couldn’t hardly do anything. I ran all round, looking for him; -and then I ran to the neighbors; though maybe I ought to have done that -first. - -“Then one of ’em told me that the day before she had seen an Indian -riding along there, with a red feather in his hair, and a blanket on -him, which she hadn’t thought much of at the time, as Indians come often -into the town.” - -“Not the Red Feathers!” interrupted the marshal of Skyline. - -“I don’t know what Indians they are, and the woman didn’t know that he -was different from any others; but when I told her about the cloud of -dust, she said at once it was probably an Indian done it, and told me -about the one she’d seen the day before, with a red feather in his hair. - -“Then Mr. Jones—that’s her husband—he ran into the town here and -reported it, and after that a lot of men tried to follow the Indian, -but——” - -She stopped with a pathetic break in her voice, and looked at Buffalo -Bill, tears showing in her eyes. - -“How old was the child?” the scout asked, mildly and kindly. - -“Fi—five years old!” she faltered. - -“A boy, I believe you said?” - -She assented by an inclination of her head, and put her handkerchief to -her eyes. - -“If what Toltec Tom said was so,” put in the marshal, “the kid that was -stolen by the Red Feathers thirty years ago was a girl.” - -The woman fumbled in the bosom of her dress and drew out a photograph. - -“That’s his picture,” she said; “taken two months ago, when we was -visiting down in Madgeburg. Everybody says it looks like him.” - -Buffalo Bill studied the photograph, seeing there a bright-eyed, -handsome little fellow in semisailor clothing, a smile on his lips, as -he looked straight out at the beholder and stood up sturdily on his -well-formed legs. His long hair fell down on the collar of the sailor -suit, and was, in front, cut square off across his well-rounded -forehead. It was the picture of an attractive, cheerful, healthy boy. - -“Can you think of anything else it may be important for me to know?” -said the scout, as he handed back the photograph. - -“You will try to find him?” she asked tremulously. “I can’t think of -anything else. Only, I have been hearing such awful things; and the -Indians are so cruel and terrible, and he’s such a little fellow, and so -good and dear. Do you think they will kill him—have killed him?” - -“I don’t think they have killed him!” the scout declared with emphasis. - -“And you think you can find him?” she quavered. - -“Mrs. Morgan, I and my friends stand ready to do everything that can be -done in the matter.” - -“But the delay!” she urged. “I have heard some awful talk—about how the -Indians sacrifice children, and torture them, and all that. It’s -breaking my heart.” - -She began to cry; and in her nervousness it seemed that with difficulty -she restrained a desire to clutch hold of the great scout and thrust him -out of the office, and on the trail, in pursuit of the abductors of her -boy. - -Buffalo Bill, understanding her feelings, said all that he could to -quiet her and give her the comforting warmth of hope. He repeated that -he would take the trail with his aids and run the Indians down. - -“You will begin at once?” she urged. - -“Yes,” he answered; “as soon as I can get ready for so long and -dangerous a trip.” - -“It will be long—very long?” - -She wanted her boy rescued instantly. - -“They have probably retreated deep into the Cumbres Mountains,” the -scout told her. “We shall have to follow them there; and it will be a -dangerous journey, for which we shall have to make preparations. It is -an unfamiliar country to me, and my companions, too, and we may need to -look for a competent guide.” - -“You’ll get none here, Cody,” said the marshal; “you couldn’t get any -man here to follow old Fire Top into the Cumbres—if it was old Fire -Top.” - -There was an interruption at the door, and a man came into the office -hurriedly. - -He was from the jail, and bore a letter. - -“For Buffalo Bill,” he announced. - -The letter was a note scrawled with a pencil on a page that appeared to -have been torn from a notebook. - -When Buffalo Bill opened it, he saw by the signature that it was from -the jail prisoner, Toltec Tom. - -It was brief, and ran as follows: - - “BUFFALO BILL: You may remember me, old pard, but perhaps you won’t, - as we rawhided around together a good many years ago and our trails - haven’t crossed much lately, if any. What all I’ve been doing since - then doesn’t matter. But I hear you’re in town—saw you, in fact, as - you and your friends came into the place. I’m putting up at the Town - Hotel, and can’t say that I like the accommodations. I want to get - out, and that’s why I write you. The marshal will tell you why I’m - here, if you haven’t already heard about it. Come over and see me as - soon as you can, and we’ll have a talk. I want to get out of this - hole mighty bad. - - “Your one-time pard and present well-wisher, - - “TOM CONOVER.” - -“From Tom Conover,” said the scout, looking up and addressing Woods, the -town marshal. “He wants to see me, and I’d like you to go over to the -jail with me!” - -Woods got on his feet. - -“All right,” he said; “that can be arranged easy.” - -The woman and her husband stood waiting. - -“I’ll see this man who is held in jail here,” said the scout to her, -“and then I’ll make my arrangements. Cheer up. I can promise you that we -will do all that men can do to rescue your boy.” - -He shook hands with her and her husband, and then with Woods left the -office and went out into the street, where Nomad and Wild Bill were -still “guffing” with the crowd that surrounded them and the Indian -scouts. - - - - - CHAPTER XIX. - THE TALK WITH TOLTEC TOM. - - -Buffalo Bill took Wild Bill and Nick Nomad with him when he walked to -the jail to interview Tom Conover. The marshal went along also, as a -matter of course. Left behind, Little Cayuse and his three Apaches -retreated to the stables to get away from the curious crowd, and busied -themselves there in attending to the horses. - -Conover was pacing restlessly the narrow confines of his cell when -Buffalo Bill and his companions arrived. - -The marshal brought him out into the little room which served as the -jail office, where he found the pards awaiting him. - -“Hard luck, Conover,” said the scout, greeting him; “but we’ll hope you -won’t have to stay in here long. They’re getting ready to investigate -that shooting, and I’m told the woman isn’t really hurt much. I guess it -can be shown that the thing was a pure accident.” - -“I was a fool for potting away with my hardware down by those huts,” -Conover admitted; “there’s where I was wrong. I hope you can git me out -of this without trouble; that’s why I sent for you.” - -“We think we can do that,” said the scout cheerfully. “You know my old -pard, Wild Bill, I believe, and no doubt you’ve heard of Nick Nomad.” - -Nomad had doubled himself up in a chair in an uncommunicative way, and -sat staring at Conover under his shaggy brows, taking his measure; -apparently the old trapper did not like his looks any too well. - -But Wild Bill was in a different and amiable mood. - -For a few moments they discussed the accidental shooting of the Mexican -woman; after which, without preliminary, Buffalo Bill introduced the -subject of the kidnaped boy. - -“That’s why we are here,” he explained. “I am under instructions from -the commander at Fort Grant to take up this matter at once; which means, -probably, a trip into the Cumbres in pursuit of the kidnaping redskins. -You’re familiar with those mountains, I believe?” - -Conover’s puffed face took on a deeper red. - -“Just say that all over again, Cody,” he requested, for the purpose of -getting time to think. - -Buffalo Bill rehearsed the story of the kidnaping in all its details, so -far as they were known, mentioning what had been said about old Fire Top -and his Toltec Indians, called the Red Feathers. - -“Tell me what you know about old Fire Top and his Red Feathers,” he said -in conclusion, “and what it was made you think Fire Top probably had a -hand in his present case.” - -Conover was still hesitating; and after that question was asked so -squarely he did not speak for some seconds. Once or twice he put his -hand up to the scarlet scar on his forehead, apparently not knowing that -he did it, and his hand trembled. - -“Could I talk with you alone about this, Cody?” he said finally. - -Old Nick Nomad, squatting silent in his chair, shot Conover a -distrustful glance. - -“Certainly,” Buffalo Bill answered, rising. “We can go into that cell -you occupied, or——” - -“Oh, we’ll clear out—go outside,” said Wild Bill, also rising. - -But though he made the offer so quickly, he, too, seemed not at all -pleased. - -The office was cleared, and Buffalo Bill remained alone with the -prisoner. - -“Maybe I’m pertickler, and I know them fellers didn’t like it,” said -Conover. “But what I’m goin’ to say concerns that time I deserted -you—flunked like a coward, over on the Niobrara.” - -“I haven’t forgotten it,” the scout admitted quickly. - -Conover glanced away at the window, as if he desired to avoid the -scout’s direct gaze. - -“Up to that time,” Buffalo Bill added slowly, “we had been good pards.” - -“And never was afterward,” Conover added. - -“That’s right; I went my way, and you went yours. They haven’t happened -to cross since, until to-day.” - -“I’d like to make myself right about that Niobrara bizness, if I can; -but maybe I can’t. We was ringed in by old Rattlesnake’s Pawnees, you -know, and our horses was hid in some cottonwoods down by the river, and -you was wounded.” - -“I’ll never forget it.” - -“I wisht that I could,” said Conover. “I’ve wisht that a thousand times -since. But forgettin’ the past is a hard bizness, as I’ve found. Well, -though you was wounded, you said you thought you could hold them rocks -where we were against the Pawnees, and for me to sneak out and git the -horses, and then make a dash in with ’em, your idea being that maybe I -could rush through the Pawnee line up to the rocks in the darkness, when -you could climb to the back of your horse, and perhaps both of us git -away. It seemed the only chance, and it was as desperate a one as any -man ever figured on takin’.” - -“I’ll never forget it!” the scout repeated. - -“And you’ll never forget what I did—and that’s where the present trouble -comes in; for you’ll never feel like trusting me again. I made the sneak -all right through the Pawnee lines, but the reds were thicker than I -expected; and when I got to the horses my courage failed. It wouldn’t, -maybe, if I hadn’t been discovered; that rattled me, and scared me, and -instead of trying to git your horse to you I simply straddled mine and -cut out, leaving you there among the rocks, with them murderous Pawnees -all round you.” - -Buffalo Bill nodded quietly, his face unchanged. Conover was covered -with confusion. - -“But the next day,” said Conover, drawing a deep breath, “I tried to -make it right; I rode to the nearest fort and gave the word, and -troopers were sent right out.” - -“And found, when they got there, that I had fooled the Pawnees and got -away from them unaided, even though I was wounded; and that the nest of -rocks to which you guided them was empty and the Pawnees gone.” - -Conover was silent for a moment. - -“It was a clear case of blue funk, Cody; I was scared, and I thought -only of my own scalp lock. Of course——” - -“Of course you never expected to see me alive again?” - -“I didn’t,” Conover confessed, “not even when I led the horse soldiers -to that spot. When I seen that the Pawnees was gone, my thought, -naturally, was that they had rubbed you out and got away; and I believed -that until I knew better, some time later.” - -He stopped, and again his gaze wavered away to the window. - -“That’s why I didn’t know if that note I sent you just now would do any -good; and it was the reason I didn’t want to talk about this before Nick -Nomad and Wild Bill. I admit I ain’t proud of that record.” - -He still stared at the window, his face red and puffy, the corners of -his eyes twitching. The scarlet scar on his forehead seemed redder and -angrier than ever. His confusion was painfully apparent. - -“And now about old Fire Top,” said the scout. “Just what do you know -about him? And why did you think that perhaps he and his Toltecs were -mixed up in this case of child-stealing? You are called Toltec Tom; I -don’t know why. Back at the time of that Niobrara matter you were simply -Tom Conover.” - -“Yes, that’s so,” Conover admitted. - -“Perhaps we can start the thing,” said the scout, seeing his reluctance, -“by having you tell me how you got the name of Toltec Tom.” - -“I was a prisoner of the Toltecs once,” was the hesitating admission. - -“Of Fire Top’s Toltecs?” - -“Yes.” - -“How long were you held by them?” - -“A number of months,” said Conover, continuing to stare at the window. - -“That was in the Cumbres Mountains?” - -“You’re right.” - -“Then, perhaps, you can give me an idea whether there is any truth at -all in this story of Quicksilver John, which the marshal here was -telling me about.” - -He ran over hastily the points of the marshal’s story of Quicksilver -John. - -“I think there was somethin’ in it,” said Conover. - -“But it wasn’t all true?” - -“Likely Quicksilver John would head the procession of champion liars, on -some points,” Conover averred. - -“Tell me, in your judgment, how much of it was truth.” - -Conover withdrew his gaze from the window. - -“Cody,” he said, with sudden emotion, “there was too much truth in it. -But I can’t talk about it.” - -“Why not?” - -“I don’t want to talk about it!” - -For the first time in many minutes he looked straight at Buffalo Bill; -and the latter noted now that the flush had gone from the puffy face, -giving place to a grayish pallor. - -“There aire some things a man don’t want to talk about, Cody, and that’s -one of ’em, for me. But I’ll say this: I done you dirt there on the -Niobrara, because my nerve went back on me; I played the coward, and it -might have caused your death, as I thought it had, for a time. I ain’t -felt easy about that, and maybe I never will. But there’s such a thing -as a man being sorry for a thing like that, and willin’ to make amends, -if he can. That’s me. - -“And now my proposition: Git me out of this hole, on this charge that’s -against me of shooting that poor Mexican woman, and then I’ll lead you -and your men into them Cumbres Hills, and straight to the home of old -Fire Top himself. Why I’m willin’ to do it I ain’t going to say, more -than that. It will help me to pay off the debt I owe you.” - -“You can go straight there?” - -“No man can do that, Cody; them Red Feathers aire always watching, as -I’ve reason to know. We’ll have to come it roundabout, some way. But I -think I can help you, and I’m willin’ to try. I’d like to feel that I’m -your pard again, and that that Niobrara debt is paid off.” - -The pallor was going out of his face; his voice began to harden and show -a firmness that indicated a sense of increasing manhood. - -“I’d like to stand straight up on my feet again, and have the feelin’ -that I’m worthy to be Buffalo Bill’s pard, like in the old times. And -I’ll do the best I can; I can’t do more. I can’t tell you everything, -though, and you’ve got to trust me.” - -The scout rose and stretched out his hand. - -“I accept your offer, Conover,” he said. - -“And forget the past?” said Conover, as if he could not believe it. - -“All of it.” - -“Particularly that time on the Niobrara?” - -“I said all of it.” - -“And overlook the fact that I ain’t tellin’ everything I know, for which -I’ve got reasons I don’t want to pass over now?” - -“That, too. What I want is a man who knows something about Fire Top and -his Toltecs, and the way to reach them. For I’m convinced that he, or -his men, stole the child. What’s your opinion of that?” - -“The stealin’ of the kid?” - -“Yes. Why would he want to do it?” - -“I don’t know; sacrifice, likely.” - -But his voice was evasive again. - -“But git me out of this, Cody,” he added, “and I’ll do what I can; I’ll -try to redeem myself. And say nothing about that old Niobrara matter to -Wild Bill and Nomad. They wouldn’t understand it, as you do; they’d -think I hadn’t changed, and was ready to desert, or lead you into -ambush, and things of that kind. Just keep that from ’em, will ye?” - -Buffalo Bill nodded and stepped toward the door. - -“That’s all right, Conover,” he declared. “Unless you make it necessary, -I’ll say nothing to them about it.” - -“You’ve never mentioned it to ’em?” came the question, in a troubled -tone. “For, if you have——” - -“I’ve never thought of speaking about it,” the scout asserted. - -“I suppose you’ve had too many other things to think about, to keep -remembering a thing like that, so long ago?” - -“You’re right there, Conover. Shall I call them in now?” - -Conover hesitated again. - -“Yes,” he said, “might as well, I reckon; but I’m thinkin’ they won’t be -overwell pleased to know I’m to be not only their pard, but their guide. -I could see they didn’t like me.” - -Wild Bill, Nomad, and Woods, the marshal, were asked by the scout to -come into the office. - -Then he laid out before them so much of the conversation had with -Conover as was needed to let them know that Toltec Tom was to be a -member of the party which was to hit the trail of the kidnaping Indians -and follow it wherever it went. - -Nick Nomad, squatting in his chair, still shot distrustful looks at Tom -Conover. - -“I don’t like his face,” he said to Wild Bill, after the interview had -ended. - -“Why not?” Hickok inquired. - -“You see that red scar on his forrud, re’chin’ up inter his ha’r?” - -“Yes; but what of it?” - -“It’s bad medicine.” - -Hickok laughed with light incredulity. - -“Laugh ef yer wanter,” growled the trapper; “but ef thet critter goes -along wi’ us you’ll be laughin’ outer ther t’other side o’ yer mouth -afore we sees this hyar town o’ Skyline ag’in.” - -“Rot! Why, you superstitious old gorilla, what’s a scar on a man’s head -got to do with his character?” - -“Lissen ter me,” said Nomad impressively: “Ther fust man I ever see what -had a scar jes’ like that war a hoss thief what stole frum me ther best -hoss I ever had—old Nebuchadnezzar; and that man war hung.” - -“You hanged him?” - -“I helped to do it; I pulled hard on ther rope.” - -“And the second one?” said Wild Bill, laughing. - -“Ther second one tolled me inter a game of poker some y’ars back when I -war greener than I am now, and swindled me outer everything I had, -leavin’ me on’y the old clo’es I stood in; and he’d no doubt took them -if they’d been wuth it.” - -“And the third one?” - -“Is this hyar feller that they calls Toltec Tom. Ef he goes wi’ us he’ll -do us; an’ that’s what he’s goin’ fer; no other reason.” - -“You get worse and worse all the time, Nomad!” - -“But even you don’t like him, Hickok!” the shrewd old fellow declared. -“Thet’s ther truth, an’ yer knows it; you don’t like ther looks of him -any more’n I do. Admit it.” - -“I admit it.” - -“Then, shell we let him go with us?” - -“It’s not for us to say, Nomad; Cody is boss here, and we’re simply -trailing along with him, to help him as much as we can.” - -“Waugh! Waal, I’m shore goin’ ter speak ter Buffler. He don’t know what -he’s bitin’ off when he pards in wi’ a wart hog like thet feller.” - -Old Nick Nomad spoke his mind vigorously, elaborating to Buffalo Bill -the objections he had stated to Hickok. - -But the great scout was skeptical, even though, a thing he did not -confess, he had still rankling recollection of that unpleasant incident -of the Niobrara; he said that he had agreed to take Conover along, and -that instead of being a handicap, he believed Conover would be able to -aid them materially. - -It was the last word. - -Whatever Buffalo Bill said went. - - - - - CHAPTER XX. - SIGNS AND OMENS. - - -The marshal and citizens of Skyline watched Buffalo Bill’s party out of -town with strange interest. - -And it was a suggestive and attractive sight, even setting aside for the -moment the occasion of their going forth. - -In the lead, stirrup to stirrup, rode Buffalo Bill and old Nick Nomad, -the scout mounted on his superb horse, Bear Paw, and Nomad astride of -Hide-rack. The contrast between the scout, with his erect, fine bearing, -and the wizened old trapper, was almost startling. Yet no one knowing -old Nomad could ever doubt that, in his way, he was a wonderful man. - -Nomad would not ride with Tom Conover, so Wild Bill fell in at Conover’s -side, and they followed right behind Cody and Nomad. - -The contrast here was almost as great, for Conover, with his baggy -corduroy clothing, his puffy face and watery eyes, and the livid scar -high on his forehead, resembled no more that dashing free lance of the -plains, Wild Bill Hickok, than Nick Nomad did Buffalo Bill. - -There was always something light and jaunty in Wild Bill’s appearance, -wherever he was seen. He liked flashing bits of silver on the trappings -of his horse, and soft velvet in his attire when it could be had; even -though the attire was only that of a frontiersman and often rough from -hard usage. There was usually a light smile on his open, fearless, -almost reckless countenance; it rested there now, as he rode out from -the town of Skyline toward the forbidding mountains, even though he -could not be sure he was not riding out to meet death. - -Behind Wild Bill and Conover rode Little Cayuse, the Piute Indian boy; -and at his side one of his Apache scouts. - -The other two of his three Apaches brought up the rear of the warlike -procession; the four Indians silent and grave, with impassive, dark -faces; but their blankets were new and gorgeous in color, while their -clothing was paint and feather decked. - -The marshal and the people of Skyline gave Buffalo Bill’s little caravan -a prolonged and rousing farewell cheer, which Cody returned with a wave -of his hand; then the little cavalcade broke into a trot, down the steep -incline of the plain below the town, and clattered away in a cloud of -dust. - -It was just past midday. - -Only that morning had Buffalo Bill and his small band entered Skyline; -and that morning Tom Conover, shooting to tatters the queen of hearts, -had accidentally wounded a Mexican woman and been thrown into the -Skyline jail. - -Through the good offices of the great scout he had been released in -record time; and, the preparations for the pursuit of the kidnaping -Indians being hastened, the work for which Buffalo Bill had come to -Skyline was already begun. - -Below the knoll back of Morgan’s, Little Cayuse and his Apache trailers, -Chappo, Yuppah, and Pedro, picked up the track of the supposed kidnaper. - -To ordinary eyes the trail would not have been visible, and eyes as keen -and trained as those of the white men of the party would have made hard -work of following it; yet the three Apaches found it without trouble, -and pursued it with the certainty of bloodhounds tracking familiar game. - -Little Cayuse and his Apaches took the lead now, and rode straight along -at a swinging gallop on their wiry, ponies, bending over as they rode, -their eyes searching the hard ground. - -Suddenly Chappo drew in, and slipped like a snake from the back of his -saddleless pony. - -When he stood up he held something small and shiny in the palm of his -brown hand. - -“Ugh!” he grunted. - -The object he exhibited was a tiny red bead, of a glowing scarlet, so -that it resembled a small scarlet berry or seed. - -“Sabe?” he said, his black eyes searching the face of the scout, to whom -he exhibited his find. “Injun moccasin, Pa-e-has-ka; Injun kick um pony -make um go fast, and little bead fall off. Wuh!” - -Buffalo Bill inspected it critically; and saw that it was a moccasin -bead, for a bead of a different kind is often used for moccasins than -those used for clothing, or for the hair. - -“Right, Chappo,” he said. “What tribe—can you tell?” - -“No can tell tribe,” said Chappo. - -“That’s right, too, and I shouldn’t have asked it; for white men -manufacture the beads, and all Indians are able to get them, by purchase -or barter. But do you see anything else, Chappo?” - -There was nothing more at that point; though a mile or so farther on -Little Cayuse, trying not to be outdone by his Apaches, made a discovery -that seemed really astounding; but which probably he would not have made -first if in his desire to excel he had not at the moment been some yards -in advance. - -The discovery seemed to indicate that they were following the trail of a -woman! - -Little Cayuse announced this with a grunt of surprise. - -“Squaw trail!” he declared, something of scorn in his tone, for he held -to the Indian notion that a squaw is an inferior creature. It did not -please him to think he had been following the trail of one; there was no -honor in it. “All same only squaw, Pa-e-has-ka.” - -The rider whose pony they had been following had there dismounted, for -some reason, and the prints of small moccasins were visible in the sand. -The tracks had been overlooked by the marshal’s men when they came that -way. - -Tom Conover stared down at the marks pointed out by little Cayuse, while -the grip on his bridle rein tightened and his face became suddenly an -ashen gray, with all the high color driven out of it. - -At the instant no one was looking at him; all were staring, like him, at -the small footprints pointed out by the Piute boy. - -Buffalo Bill swung from the back of his horse and carefully examined the -tracks. - -“The moccasins of an Indian woman,” he said; “yet the tracks don’t seem -exactly like those of an Indian. We can’t tell though, for she didn’t -walk about, to give us much of a line on that.” - -Nomad drove old Hide-rack closer in and peered down, wrinkling his -brows. - -“It couldn’t have been an Injun boy, eh, Buffler?” he said. - -“It might have been a boy; but he was wearing a woman’s moccasins, if -so.” - -“Waugh! Yer right, Buffler. Yer kin see thar whar ther fringe o’ beads -an’ quills cut inter ther sand at ther side o’ ther track; an Injun -buck, er even er boy, wouldn’t wear ther likes o’ thet, particularly -when on a difficult trail. All o’ ther female kind loves ornaments, and -sometimes it tell agin’ ’em, as hyar. Et war shore a woman, Buffler; -even an Injun boy wouldn’t wore a thick bead an’ quill fringe like thet -on the sides of his moccasins.” - -Conover took no part in the conversation, but kept his horse back, and -apparently gave scant attention to the tracks in the sand. - -But it was the subject of lively discussion, as the trailers continued -on their way. - -Finding the spot where the trail of the woman—they were almost sure it -was a woman—entered the main beaten trail, they kept a close watch on -each side to see when the pony tracks left it. - -When they found them they were much nearer the dreaded Cumbres -Mountains, and night was at hand. - -They stopped, on finding a water hole, and went into camp. Nothing was -to be accomplished by hastening on in the darkness. In doing that, they -might miss the trail altogether, though it seemed now to point straight -to the notch before them, which for some time they had seen, and which -appeared to lead directly toward the heart of the Cumbres. It was the -mountain notch which Tom Conover had stared at so hard and often when he -was shooting the queen of hearts into tatters before the mesquite bush -just outside the town of Skyline. - -Tom Conover was so silent that evening round the hidden camp fire that -it was noticeable. - -Nomad spoke of it, in an aside, to Wild Bill: - -“Thar’s two things, Pard Hickok, that don’t speak until they’re ready -ter strike—rattlesnakes an’ Injuns; an’ now I’m addin’ a third—this hyar -wart hog what w’ars that three-cornered red nick in his forrud. Ef -you’ll take a look at it by the flickin’ o’ that match which Buffler is -recklessly usin’ this minute you’ll see that it’s redder’n common, like -ther wattles of a turkey cock when it’s thinkin’ mischief.” - -“You’ve got as healthy an imagination as a kid schoolboy,” said Wild -Bill, with his light laugh. “You’ll soon be finding a suspicious -circumstance in the fact that he eats just like an ordinary man.” - -“But he don’t,” Nomad persisted; “he ain’t et a thing this evenin’, -though thar war a lot o’ good chuck in thet war bag which Buffler opened -up fer us. Thar’s somethin’ on his mind.” - -Wild Bill laughed again, skeptically. - -“What else, you superstitious old mummy?” - -“Don’t go ter callin’ me names, Hickok, fer I won’t stand it; but I’m -watchin’ him constant. Ter-night I sleeps like er cat—wi’ one eye open. -An’ I dunno but I’ll tie my scalp lock down, so’s he can’t lift my ha’r -ef I sh’d fall asleep.” - -Then he, too, gave a laugh; but it had not the merriment of Wild Bill’s. - -Buffalo Bill talked much that evening with Little Cayuse and his three -Apache scouts. The great scout trusted the Indians, for they had been -true on many occasions; and though they had the redskin failings, they -were faithful and marvelous trailers. - -The principal trouble with them was that they were more superstitious -and more governed by signs than was even Nick Nomad. - -That afternoon, Little Cayuse had seen a circling vulture close his -wings and drop like a hawk shooting downward at prey. It was bad -medicine, for never before had he seen a thing like that; it foretold -disaster—some enemy, he thought, was observing them from the high -cliffs, and would drop on them with the suddenness of that drop of the -vulture. - -Worse than this, Yuppah had crossed the trail of a three-legged sage -rabbit. That there might be no mistake about it, Yuppah had slid from -the back of his pony and closely inspected the rabbit’s tracks. The -rabbit, he believed, had four legs, but for some reason which boded ill -for this expedition, it was holding up one leg and using but three. - -Buffalo Bill tried to make Yuppah see that the rabbit had lost a leg; -that a coyote had probably nabbed it at some time, and it had escaped -with the loss of a leg, bitten off by the snap of the coyote. But Yuppah -would not believe it; the rabbit had four legs, he said—all rabbits -have—this was a spirit, or witch rabbit, and bad luck was sure to -follow. - -That night Nick Nomad tried to sleep like a cat—with one eye open; but -he failed, because he was too tired to lie awake all the time, and the -night was so quiet it lulled one to sleep. - -Every one else slept soundly, except Little Cayuse, who stood guard the -first half of the night, and Chappo, who acted as sentry the last half. -Neither of them, so they declared afterward, heard nor saw anything, -though their superstitious fears, it seemed to the scout, ought to have -been enough to keep them wide-eyed until morning. - -But in the morning came a startling discovery, which showed, also, that -at some time in the night one of them, at least, had been asleep. - -Tom Conover was gone from the camp! And no one had known when he went. - -The fact of his disappearance was announced by Nomad, who awoke early, -and, looking round for him, did not find him, and had hardly expected -that he would find him. - -“Whoop!” he shouted, and sprang to his feet; he had lain down with all -his clothing on. “Waugh! Me no cumtax this. Onless, mebbe, it’s ther -whiskizoos workin’!” - -What whiskizoos were was a thing old Nomad had never been able to say to -the satisfaction of Buffalo Bill or any one else. But whenever the old -trapper came company front with what struck him as much out of the -ordinary, or supernatural, or inexplicable, then the whiskizoos had been -at work. He never tried to explain beyond that. - -His whooping exclamations brought Buffalo Bill and Wild Bill out of -their blankets and roused the sleeping Indians, starting also to his -feet Chappo, who was on guard, but at the moment was squatting in a -growth of sagebrush by the camp fire, hugging his rifle between his -brown knees. - -“What’s up?” demanded Wild Bill, pulling out his revolver and staring -round. - -“Lookee thar!” said Nomad, pointing to the spot where all had seen Tom -Conover lie down for his night’s sleep. “What is it yer sees thar, -anyhow?” - -“Nothing.” - -“That’s jest what I see, too—nothing; and Scar-face Conover ought ter be -layin’ thar, hadn’t he? Whar is he? Call ther roll, Buffler.” - -Buffalo Bill looked about, and off over the surrounding country. - -The sun had not yet risen, and a gray haze, of early dawn, hid much of -the rugged landscape from his view. - -“Cayuse?” he called, a strange quaver in his voice. - -“Ai, Pa-e-has-ka.” - -“Yuppah!” - -“Huh!” - -“Chappo!” - -“Wuh!” - -“Pedro!” - -“All same here, Pa-e-has-ka!” - -Little Cayuse and his Apache scouts lined up. - -“The white man who was here is gone,” said the scout shortly. “Find his -trail.” - -“Ai, Pa-e-has-ka.” - -They began to circle the camp, with heads down, black eyes scanning the -earth and rocks. - -At once they were puzzled, if not baffled; there was no trail of a white -man’s boots leading out from the camp. - -Wider and wider grew the circle in which they swung, closer and nearer -they bent their heads to the ground. - -At last, more than a hundred yards out from the camp, Chappo uttered a -low, triumphant whoop. - -He stopped, staring at the ground, and the other Indians hastened to -him. - -Buffalo Bill and his white companions walked out to where the Indians -were grouped. - -“Me find um, Pa-e-has-ka,” said Chappo proudly. - -He pointed to the ground. - -“Waugh!” said Nomad. “Thar’s his boot heel, shore enough! But how’d he -git hyar without making tracks before this? Whiskizoos ag’in, I reckon.” - -Without a word Chappo began to search the ground in the direction of the -camp, which he soon was aided in by the other Indians. They talked -excitedly, using many gestures, their guttural words flowing so fast -that no one not an Indian could make out just what they were saying. -Even Little Cayuse, being a Piute, could not comprehend all the words of -the Apache scouts who worked under him. - -Buffalo Bill and the others, following along, saw now what the Indians -saw, but none would have seen, probably, but for that discovery of the -boot-heel mark. - -The owner of the boot heel, apparently, had got out of the camp without -stepping on the ground, merely because in doing it he had stepped on a -blanket laid on the ground. - -It was all plain enough, after it was understood. A blanket had been -spread down and walked on; then the loose end of it had been flung round -in front and that walked on; with a continued repetition of this until -what was supposed to be a safe distance from the camp was gained. The -place where this blanket maneuver was discontinued was rocky. - -When they had run back to the camp in this way, the Apaches and Little -Cayuse returned at once to the spot where the boot heel had been -discovered. - -There was but one indentation; the next step had been taken on solid -rock; and after that the trail went, as it were, “into the air”; it -could not be followed farther at that point. - -“Waugh!” grunted old Nomad. “What does yer think o’ et?” - -Little Cayuse and his Indian trailers halted and began again their vocal -gymnastics, when the trail disappeared on the rocks. - -“Whiskizoos,” said Nomad, staring about. “No man what w’ars a red scar -like Conover does kin be honest, and from ther fust I said it.” - -The Indians talked of the three-legged rabbit, and of the vulture that -dropped for its prey like a hawk. - -“Heap bad medicine!” said Chappo, deeply disturbed. - -Little Cayuse, inasmuch as he was the chief of the Indian scouts, dared -not, in the presence of Pa-e-has-ka, express what he thought; but his -dark face looked troubled and his eyes were big and bright. Buffalo Bill -saw him paw a circle quickly through the air. - -The circle, emblem of the egg, is everywhere the “sign” of life; and -life is the opposite of death. Little Cayuse made the “life” sign, to -keep away the shadow of death. - -All looked off toward the Cumbres Mountains. Scarred and splintered, the -bare peaks lifted themselves in the gray morning. The high rays of the -rising sun struck them and seemed to burn there. - -As they did so, the outline of a great black head—the head of a giant -with grizzly black hair—came into view on the side of the nearest of the -mountains. - -The Indians lifted groans of fright and horror and dropped downward on -their faces, groveling. - -Old Nomad uttered a snort of amazement, and stared until his little old -eyes popped. - -“Waugh!” he grunted. - -“Thunder and carry one!” cried Wild Bill, with biting scorn, as he -addressed the trapper. “Have a bit of sense, will you?” - -“You see it? You see it, eh?” said Nomad. - -“Anybody can see that, of course; he’d be blind as a mole if he didn’t -see it. But what of it?” - -“It’s a head—a black head—the head of a giant! Whiskizoos!” - -“Fiddlesticks! Can’t you see, Nomad—you can if you aren’t an idiot—that -that which looks like a head is just a big, cavernous hole in the side -of the mountain, ringed all round, where you think you see hair, by a -fringe of chaparral! The sunshine is lighting up the rest of the -mountain, but that hole lies in the shadow, and is black. It -happens—just happens—to take the shape of the head of a negro, with -bushy, or woolly, hair. But it’s only a rocky hole, ringed round with -chaparral.” - -Nomad looked again, incredulously. - -“Whiskizoos!” he sputtered. “Waugh! It’s shore bad medicine; and the -skedaddling of ole Scar-face Conover means trouble for the hull of us, -ef we go on. I’m ready ter backtrack ter wonst.” - -“Look at it again,” urged Buffalo Bill. “The head is disappearing, as -the sunshine creeps down into the hole.” - -It was true. In a little while the black head was gone, and they could -see the deep hole, with its fringe of chaparral, clearly outlined on the -mountainside. - -“Yit that don’t mean that we won’t have a heap er trouble ef we go on,” -said Nomad. “I’m fer backtrackin’ prompt.” - -The Indians still groveled, with their faces against the ground, praying -mightily to the spirits of the mountains; they were in a blue funk. -Three-footed rabbits, eccentric vultures, and giant black heads on the -mountains, were altogether too much for their courage. - - - - - CHAPTER XXI. - GIANT FOOTSTEPS AND DEVIL BIRDS. - - -Seeing that his Indians were for a time useless, Buffalo Bill took up -the work of searching for the lost trail, calling Wild Bill to his aid. - -“Probably you can’t blame Indians,” said the man from Laramie, “but it’s -enough to make a sensible man sick, the way Nomad acts. I hope he’ll see -a whiskizoos some day, and that it scares him to death.” - -Wild Bill’s disgust over the superstitious behavior of old Nomad amused -Buffalo Bill mightily. - -“It’s as useless to blame Nomad as to blame the reds,” he said; “he -lived with Indians the better part of his life, so that naturally his -mental machinery works somewhat like that of an Indian.” - -The keen-eyed scout had not searched far, out on the edge of the hills -away from the lost trail, before he made a discovery; though just what -it meant he was at first at a loss to know. - -“See here,” he said to his pard, and pointed to a depression in a little -hollow of loose sand that lay between some rocks. “What do you say that -is—what made it?” - -Wild Bill took in at a glance the shape and dimensions of the -depression. - -“Ask me something easy,” he said; “it looks as if a round stone, or, -rather, an egg-shaped one, had fallen and made that; but, if so, where -is the stone?” - -“It’s a footprint,” Buffalo Bill declared, when he had looked farther. - -“An animal’s, then; no man ever had a foot as big as that.” - -“Whatever made it,” the scout asserted, “went on across these rocks; for -you can see here where pebbles were dislodged. This little stone was -turned, too; the thing, man or animal, stepped on the end of it, and it -flipped over as he lifted his foot and went on. That’s clear enough.” - -It was, to men trained to close observation, as they were. The side of -the small, flat, sharp-pointed stone which was now uppermost was of a -different hue from the side that had weathered, and was now turned -underneath, and of a different hue from the other stones about it. - -Accompanied by Hickok, Buffalo Bill went on across the rocks, looking -carefully ahead of him; for there was always the danger of ambush, as -they were now in unknown and hostile Indian territory. - -The trail of turned pebbles, with here and there an overturned stone, -guided them, until they came again to a sandy depression between rocks, -where once more they discovered an oblong hole suggesting the footprint -of some large and unknown animal. - -But at the side of this footprint was a bright, new rifle cartridge, and -finger marks that were surely made by a human hand, where fingers had -obviously reached down to pick up the dropped cartridge, but had failed. - -Buffalo Bill looked at this intently. - -“That’s plain enough,” he said; “this is the trail of a man, who passed -along here in the darkness, or, perhaps, in the moonlight, for there was -a bright moon along toward morning. Being in a hurry, or not able to see -well, he now and then stepped into one of these sandy hollows, and here -he dropped a cartridge from his belt, or out of his pocket, and tried to -find it, but failed, probably because in the bad light he couldn’t see -it.” - -“Thunder, and carry one!” was Wild Bill’s exclamation. “I reckon, Cody, -if you’re right—and it looks it—the fellow is a giant. That print is as -big as the spoor of an elephant.” - -Looking back, Buffalo Bill saw the three Apaches still prostrating -themselves. But Little Cayuse, remembering doubtless that he was a -chief, and possibly ashamed of his show of fear, had withdrawn from -them. Yet he was still staring at the mountain, as if wondering what had -become of the black head. - -Observing Little Cayuse’s attitude, Wild Bill laughed. - -“You see what it will mean, pard, when they discover these big tracks. -They’ll be sure they’re the tracks of the giant whose head they saw over -there.” - -Buffalo Bill had already thought of that. - -“And Nomad will be as bad,” Wild Bill added. “Here’s a whiskizoos for -him that’s worth thinking about. What do you make out of it, Cody, -anyhow? Was the fellow who went along here a giant, or did he have a -case of deformed feet?” - -As it was a question that could not be answered, the scout did not try -to reply, but, standing on the rock by the sandy depression, he signaled -to Nick Nomad to bring down the horses. - -Nomad was seen to shake his head lugubriously; but he got up the horses, -and began to pack the camp kit and other belongings, after having -saddled and bridled the animals. - -Having seen the old trapper begin this, Buffalo Bill went on with the -work in hand, accompanied by Wild Bill, who made a running fire of -comment in low tones, with now and then a characteristic humorous -expression. - -“What about Little Cayuse and the ’Paches?” Hickok asked after a while. - -“It’s no use to argue with them now. When he sees the horses packed and -the camp abandoned, Little Cayuse will come on; and you may be sure the -’Paches will trail along not far behind him, in spite of their fears. -You see, Hickok, they’ll be more afraid to stay behind than to go ahead; -to be with us gives them a sense of protection they can’t have when by -themselves. Yet they’re not cowards; they’re simply superstitious, and -scared by their superstition.” - -“The same as Nomad?” - -“Yes; only Nomad will listen to reason sooner than the reds. You can see -that he’s bringing the horses down now.” - -When they had followed the strange trail over the rocks for some -distance, finding it anything but easy work, as at times there was not a -thing to be seen and even the direction had to be reasoned out, they -came down from the rocky hill to a stretch of sand, which reached on in -a narrow valley toward the mountain which had shown the black head. - -The big tracks, seen only twice before, were here plainer than print, -where they entered and continued on the sandy area. - -“The fellow was no giant, anyway,” said Buffalo Bill, looking at the big -footprints. - -“No? How do you make that out?” - -“The tracks are too close together, you will observe. We may rightly -suppose that a giant with feet as big as those tracks indicate would -have long legs, in proportion, and would take long steps; but you can -see that the steps are only about as far apart as they would be if made -by an ordinary man; in fact, either you or I would step farther. The -fellow had big, heavy feet, or wore large and heavy shoes, that is shown -by the way he scraped his feet along, as if they were too heavy to lift -out of the sand. Right out there, I judge, he broke into a run, from the -way the tracks look.” - -“Right, Cody!” assented Wild Bill. “You don’t need any Apaches to trail -round and play Eliza’s bloodhounds for you; you’re fully equal to that -trick yourself.” - -Without waiting at the edge of the sandy plain for the arrival of Nomad -and the horses, they continued to follow the big tracks, and as a result -soon made another discovery. - -A horse had come down out of the edge of the hills and crossed the -narrow plain here, going in the direction of the mountain; and the man -with the big feet had apparently followed it. - -The small hoofs of the horse, and the fact that it was unshod, told that -it was an Indian pony; while the depth to which its hoofs had sunk in -the sand indicated that it carried a heavy burden. - -While the two scouts were making these discoveries and discussing them -they came upon a shining bit of metal lying in the sand. Of the shape -and size of a twenty-dollar gold piece, it was not so round. One side, -perfectly flat, showed hammer marks, while on the other side was the -rayed image of the sun. The workmanship was Indian, without a doubt. - -“Indian money?” said Wild Bill, as they looked at it. - -“More likely an Indian ornament. Or it may be some sacred emblem. There -are sun-worshiping tribes down here in the Southwest, you know; and I -don’t doubt these mysterious Toltecs we’re trying so hard to visit have -got a lot of sun-worship practices and traditions. So, this has a -meaning for us.” - -“Yes?” - -“This pony was ridden by an Indian, and the rider dropped this bit of -metal.” - -“It’s pure gold, I think.” - -He bit it, and tested it by ringing it against the barrel of his rifle. - -“It’s gold, all right, Cody. Maybe the pony was loaded up with gold like -it, judging by the way he sank into the sand here. And perhaps old Giant -Foot was chasing after the Indian, to get some of the gold.” - -Buffalo Bill understood that his pard was making wild and half-humorous -guesses, in lieu of something tangible to hit upon. - -“Well, Hickok, we’ve made a beginning,” he said, with immense -satisfaction; “and now we’ll turn back and get something to eat, and -talk the thing over while getting ready for another start. These trails -go straight toward the notch in the mountain there; we can see that from -here.” - -“And they were made last night.” - -“Or early this morning.” - -“But this doesn’t tell us anything about Conover, Pard Cody; what of -him? Why did he make a sneak like that out of our camp?” - -That was not easily answered. - -The two pards met Nick Nomad at the edge of the sand, where the old -trapper had halted and dismounted. - -“What yer goin’ ter do now?” was his querulous inquiry. - -“We’ve found some trails that we’re going to follow, Nomad, as soon as -we’ve had some breakfast,” Buffalo Bill informed him. “It isn’t healthy -to begin a hard day’s work on an empty stomach, so you may open that war -bag, while I start a fire here, and we’ll boil some coffee and have -something to eat.” - -Wild Bill, looking across the slope of the hills, saw the four Indians -bunched together and staring down at the party of whites. He waved to -them, and Little Cayuse started down the slope reluctantly. - -When Little Cayuse was halfway down, the three Apaches began to follow -him, coming along in single file. - -“Just let them alone—pay no attention to them,” Buffalo Bill advised -Hickok. “They’re no good right now, but we can work this thing out -without them, and they’ll trail along behind us rather than be left.” - -Nomad was silent, getting out the food and the cooking vessels; but what -the scout stated was not lost on him. - -“You’re goin’ ter try to foller thet ole Scar Head, Buffler?” he asked -at length. - -“We don’t intend to trouble ourselves in the least about him, Nomad,” -was the reply. “We brought him along for a guide, as he knows more about -this section than any of us; but as he seems to have deserted us, we’ll -just go on without him, and let him work out his own salvation. We’re no -worse off than if we hadn’t started with him.” - -Nomad shook his head in vigorous dissent. - -“A heap wuss off!” he asserted. - -“That’s as one looks at it, perhaps,” said the scout. He would not argue -the matter with his trapper pard. - -“Yer ain’t any idee why he done it?” - -“No.” - -“What has yer found out thar in ther sand?” - -Buffalo Bill explained the nature of the discoveries made. - -“These hyar reds seem ter be havin’ more gold and silver than they kin -well kerry, jedgin’ by ther way they drap it,” commented Nomad, as he -inspected the gold piece which the scout showed him. “Recklect thet -silver yearring, we thought it war, which war let fall thar by Morgan’s, -whar ther kid was took, an’ now this hyar gold ornyment!” - -“Perhaps we’ll pick up enough gold and silver along this trail to pay us -for our time and trouble,” remarked the scout, laughing, as he put the -gold piece away in his pocket. - -By this time Little Cayuse had reached the edge of the small sand plain; -and the Apaches, who had hurried their steps, were right behind him. -Little Cayuse halted and looked at Buffalo Bill; apparently he expected -a rebuke of some kind. - -But Buffalo Bill chose rather to ignore what had happened. - -“Have the Apaches come in, and we’ll get something to eat in a short -time,” he said to the Piute boy. “We’ll likely have a hard day of it, -and we want to start in with well-lined stomachs. Nomad, I suppose you -watered the horses?” - -The trapper started guiltily, a flush spreading over his hairy face. - -“Waugh!” he grunted. “Buffler, I clean fergot it.” - -The discovery that he had been so derelict seemed to arouse him, and he -sprang with vigor to the back of Hide-rack, and, taking the reins of the -other horses; he led them back across the ridge to the water hole, close -by which they had made their night camp. - -When he had watered the horses and returned, the breakfast was ready, -the meat roasted to a turn, and the coffee smoking hot in the tin -coffeepot. - -Buffalo Bill called the Piute and his Apaches to the morning meal, -avoiding any mention, for the time, of the things that had so disturbed -them. It was the best course to pursue, under the circumstances. Yet -they did not eat well—their appetites were gone for the time. - -Only when the scout ordered a forward march, after breakfast, did Little -Cayuse bring up the matter that troubled them. - -“Apaches say um bad medicine, Pa-e-has-ka!” he said. - -Buffalo Bill looked directly at him. - -“You are the chief of these Apaches, Little Cayuse,” he stated. “And a -chief must be brave, if his followers are to be brave. Tell your Apaches -to go on and follow the trail they will find out there. You can see some -of it here.” He pointed to the gigantic footprints. “Out there is the -trail of an Indian horse, joining this one. Are you ready to obey -orders, Cayuse, or shall I go on and leave you and the Apaches here?” - -His tone was stern, for the first time. - -Chappo, Yuppah, and Pedro looked at each other, a shrinking expression -in their black eyes; but Little Cayuse, thus appealed to, straightened -his muscular shoulders and lifted his head. - -“Ai, Pa-e-has-ka,” he said, “Little Cayuse go on.” - -He strode forth into the trail left by the big-footed man. - -For a moment or two the three Apaches hung back, talking among -themselves; then Chappo followed Little Cayuse, and the others, with -shrugs of their naked shoulders and apprehensive glances at the -mountains, went along behind him, each stepping in the tracks of the one -before, Indian fashion. - -“We’re ready, Nomad,” said Buffalo Bill, swinging to the big saddle on -the back of Bear Paw. - -Nick Nomad scorned to show the white feather where an Indian led the -way. Without even a grunt he mounted Hide-rack, and the trailing of the -big tracks and the hoofprints of the Indian pony was begun. - -Yet though they went on, the Indians were silent and apprehensive. - -The double trail led to and into the notch in the range; then on through -the notch, with the mountains on each side growing higher and wilder. -But nothing of a startling character was seen or heard. The notch lay in -deep silence. - -For a whole day the party went on, without trouble. - -The next day began much the same. And they entered another mountain -notch, like the first. - -In places the way was so stony, being but naked rock, that even the -Apaches could see no marks of hoof or footprint; but as it was so -manifestly impossible for those they were following to have left this -notch, the party continued on, reasonably sure that when the soil was of -a friendly character they would find again the tracks they had so long -followed. - -And so it came about, as they descended from the notch into a scarred -basin, which lay like a burned cup in a niche of the desolate mountains, -that the trail was picked up again—the giant footsteps, supposed to be -those of a man, and the hoofprints of the Indian pony. - -During that long ride of a day and more the three white men talked at -intervals of the mysterious disappearance from their midst of Toltec -Tom, and of what it meant; how he had sneaked out of the camp, hiding -his footsteps by using a blanket. - -One thing gave them food for thought—it was not one of their blankets he -had used; therefore, some one had come to him, bringing him the blanket -with which he had hid his tracks. - -From that fact they had reached the conclusion that the reason the pony -tracks sank deep into the sandy places was because the animal carried -double—bore Toltec Tom and whoever it was who had come to his -assistance. - -Who was that person? - -They could not guess, unless it was the Red Feather who had stolen away -the child from the town of Skyline, and had dropped the silver earring -in the trail close by the knoll at Morgan’s. If true, the same person -had dropped the sun-stamped gold piece. - -That person, they had argued, was an Indian; and what they had seen the -previous day indicated it was an Indian woman. - -But had an Indian woman, the stealer of the child, also stolen or -enticed Toltec Tom to leave the camp in that mysterious manner during -the watches of the night? - -Here was a puzzle. - -Buffalo Bill admitted that its explanation rested in the future. All -they could do now was to go on as they had been doing and see what would -come to pass. - -One of the things which developed was of a character to again frighten -the Indians and cause Nomad to talk once more of the whiskizoos. - -The vulture seen previously, or another similar bird, was observed to -hover over the trail some distance before them, and then close its wings -and drop, like a hawk descending on a rabbit. - -The Indians went on, even after that; but when they came to the spot -where the vulture had hovered and shot downward, and discovered at that -spot, or near it, singular bird tracks in the sand, they were thrown -into a panic. - -“The devil bird!” said Chappo, speaking to his companions in their own -language. - -He stood up, wild-eyed, and repeated it to Little Cayuse in broken -English, the other Apaches, grouped by him, shaking with renewed terror. -Little Cayuse seemed almost as much moved. - -Buffalo Bill rode forward and looked at the track of the “devil bird.” - -There is the sand, close by the pony trail, where the marks of an -immense claw of a bird, at least a yard in diameter. Yet the keen-eyed -scout soon saw that, while a clever imitation, it had not been made by a -bird, but by human fingers tracing it in the sand for a purpose. - -That purpose, of course, was to frighten the Indian trailers. Which -showed, also, that either the rider of the pony or the man who made the -gigantic steps knew Indian trailers were following. - -Buffalo Bill pointed this out to Little Cayuse and the Apaches, and -argued the thing with them. - -But the Apaches only looked at him stolidly now; they refused to go on -again. - -“Yer remembers thet story o’ Quicksilver John,” said Nomad, “and how a -big eagle come an’ knocked him off ther cliff aidge down inter ther town -of them queer Toltecs. I opine this is ther track o’ thet identickel -eagle; and it war thet we saw in sky hyar, ’stead of a vulture.” - -“Thunder, and carry one!” exploded Wild Bill. “Nomad, you old -weenywurst, you’re as bad as the Apaches.” - -“I ain’t believin’ in no devil bird,” expostulated the trapper; “but yer -heerd yerself about thet eagle, how it grupped Quicksilver John in ther -slack o’ his coat, and jest lifted him gentle down off ther clift inter -ther town. Yer heerd thet.” - -“But didn’t believe it.” - -“Waugh! I’m believin’ it, now.” - -Buffalo Bill was still talking to Little Cayuse and his Apaches. - -“Stay behind, then,” he said at length, losing his patience at last; “we -can get along without you! There’s the trail straight behind us, to the -town of Skyline; take it, and get back there as quick as you can.” - -He rode on, and, Wild Bill following, Nomad could not but do the same, -if he did not want to hang back with the shrinking Indians. - -Buffalo Bill did not glance back, but he had not ridden far when the -sounds he heard told him that Little Cayuse and his Apaches were -following. Their fears would not let them retreat alone; they wanted the -protection of the white men. - -Rounding some ridges in the sunburned valley, where a strange mist had -seemed to rise, they came upon a number of bubbling mud springs, which -emitted, with the ocherish mud, a fetid odor. - -Close by these springs, and running off toward the barren flanks of the -mountains, were a petrified forest of considerable size, but the trees -were prostrate, and some of the trunks and branches were broken. - -There were more of these mud springs, some with bases of red, where the -overflowing mud, impregnated with that color, had built up fantastic -formations. - -One of these springs threw up its muddy jets at regular intervals, with -a whistling sound which ended like the shriek of a madman. - -Naturally, these things only tended to make the Indian trailers think -they were being plunged now into some inferno presided over by demons. -If it had seemed safe to run away incontinently, they would have done -so. - -Beyond the valley holding the petrified trees and the mud springs was -another mountain notch. - -The trail pointed straight into it. Buffalo Bill followed the trail. He -kept his horse at a canter much of the time, so that the Piute boy and -his Apaches were forced into a run. His object was twofold—to get over -the ground as fast as possible, and to hurry the Indians along so -quickly they would not be given time to consider too much the apparent -perils they were running into. - -The notch they entered now was narrower than the others, with steeper -walls, of a cañonlike character, and high cliffs naked and sun-seared. -In addition, many of the cliffs were banded and streaked with ocher and -vermilion, and with various combinations of these, mixed in with duller -colors. Sometimes it was as if the cliff walls had been laid up -regularly with lines of stones of these colors. The tops were a fiery -red. And as the narrow avenue before the party was of that same reddish -hue, the general appearance was what one might imagine to be that of a -gateway to the infernal regions. - -The Indians, instead of hanging back, now kept close to the heels of the -horses, with frightened glances cast now and then behind. - -Old Nomad was as silent as the Indians themselves. - -Even Buffalo Bill and Wild Bill did not talk much; the rainbowed avenue, -pinching in about them, had a depressing effect. - -“Waugh!” said Nomad, when daylight was seen shining like a white star -ahead. “I’m glad ter git outer this hyar, anyhow. I’ll sing praises an’ -shout halleluyers, when I hears water runnin’ ag’in and sees grass -growin’.” - -But there was no water and no grass, apparently, in the region beyond -this red notch. A flat basin lay there, like the dried-up bottom of some -old lake; except that near the middle of it the bottom seemed to have -dropped out, and showed a ragged rent or hole, with precipice edges on -the nearer side and sheer cliff walls, rainbowed, on the farther. - -Smoke ascended in thin columns out of that deep hole, and though from -where they were the hole seemed small, Buffalo Bill saw that really it -was very large, covering a space of a mile or more in its widest -diameter. - -He drew rein involuntarily in the mouth of the notch, and sat looking -off at that hole and the smoke columns mounting out of it into the -turquoise-blue sky. One of the columns was like mist, and much larger -than the others. - -“Waugh!” ejaculated Nomad, drawing Hide-rack back by a jerk on the rein. -“I been lookin’ fer ther Pit, and thar she is.” - -Buffalo Bill took out his field glasses, screwed them into focus, took a -long look, and passed them silently to Wild Bill. - -The Indians stood wide-eyed and staring. - -Little Cayuse swung his hand through the air, making that egg-shaped -circle; it was his prayer to the Indian spirits to give him “life,” in -this dire emergency, instead of “death.” - -As they gazed at the queer valley and queer hole a score or more of -mounted Indians bobbed into sight and swooped down on an object that had -not yet attracted attention. - -The Indians were so near the end of the notch that their painted bodies -and faces, and their singular ornaments, could be seen; likewise the -tuft of red feathers which each wore in his hair. And their yells -reached the group in the notch. - -The Indians swung ropes, presumably of rawhide, and cast them at the -object, which apparently had been crouching on the ground beside a rock. - -The object rose into full view, and was seen to be a man. - -Buffalo Bill, with the glasses again in his hands, turned them full on -the man whom the red-feathered Indians lassoed. - -“The baron!” broke from his lips. “Baron von Schnitzenhauser!” - -“Thunder, and carry one!” - -“Waugh! It cain’t be; it jes’ cain’t be, Buffler!” - -But there was no doubt about it. Buffalo Bill knew the baron too well. -There was the round body and the slender legs, like a pippin on a pair -of toothpicks; there was the characteristic clothing; even the baron’s -frightened face could be seen distinctly with the glasses as the lariats -threw him down. - -There was but one thing strange and puzzling—the shoes the baron had on -his feet; they bobbed up into full view as he fell forward under the -pull of the ropes. - -Then even that mystery was solved; the baron was wearing Dutch wooden -shoes. - -That explained the gigantic tracks in the sand. The baron, wearing those -monstrous wooden shoes, had been the man following the tracks of the -pony. - -He had reached the spot where he now was, had been detected there by the -red-feathered Indians, and was now their prisoner. - -It was impossible to help him, though near enough to be distinctly seen, -he was still too far off to be reached quickly. - -Throwing him to the back of one of their ponies, the Indians bore him -off, as Buffalo Bill turned his field glasses, for the second time, over -to Wild Bill. - -“Schnitzenhauser,” he said, as if it were difficult to believe, “and -captured by the Red Feathers! That’s the Toltec town right ahead of us, -in that hole, I think, and they’re taking him there. But we can’t do -anything, just now.” - -The only thing they could do was to watch and wonder while the Red -Feathers made off and disappeared with their prisoner. - -“Wooden shoes!” grunted Nomad almost incredulously. “What war ther Dutch -fool w’arin’ them fur, somebody tell me!” - -But no one was able to inform him. - - - - - CHAPTER XXII. - THE BARON AND TOLTEC TOM. - - -Schnitzenhauser, a prisoner in the town of the mysterious Toltecs, to -which he had been taken hastily, was met there by a white man, who -visited him in the little prison into which he had been thrown. - -It was a marvelous prison—a gem of marble and gold; Schnitzenhauser had -never even dreamed of anything like it, and he had been carefully -inspecting it. The bars across the narrow window seemed to be of pure -gold, though, as they were so hard and strong, some alloy must have been -used. The lock and the key of the door, also, seemed to be gold. - -The German was wondering if he could not in some manner wrench those -gold bars away, and, on getting out, carry them off with him, for he -hoped to escape, and it was a sudden lust for gold which had brought him -into his present peril. - -While the German was testing the gold bars by feeling of them and -licking them with his tongue, the door was opened, and the white man -mentioned came in. - -Red-feathered Indians were visible behind the white man as the door -swung open, but he closed the door with a jerk, and none of the Indians -offered to enter. - -“Howdy!” he said, looking at the German. - -“Yaw,”, said the German, staring in surprise, yet pleased to know that a -white man was in this place. “I vass pooty goot, bud I don’t like diss -chail pitzness. How you vass yourselluf, heh?” - -“Set down there, and let’s have a talk,” said the white man, motioning -to a bearskin rug on the floor, while he dropped down against the -opposite wall. - -The baron clattered obediently across the stone floor with his heavy -wooden shoes and dropped heavily down on the bearskin; astonishment was -growing in his round face. - -“You vass a vite Inchun, heh?” he asked. - -“No, I’m a prisoner, like you.” - -The baron twisted his head round with a comical jerk and stared hard at -the white man. - -“You ton’d loogk id, mine frient,” he declared. “A brisoner ton’d can -come unt vent vhen he likes—nein! He is putt indo a blace like diss. -Yaw, I dinks me dat iss so, unt dhe troot. You vass come here like a -vree mans yet already.” - -The white man, who was none other than Tom Conover, did not laugh at -this sally; his face had a serious, grave look. - -“It would take a good deal of explainin’,” he said, “to make you -understand all about it—how I came to be here.” - -“Bud nod so mooch, py chinks, to dell how I come to pe here!” - -“You were captured by the Indians out on the plain there.” - -“You pet you!” - -“What was you out there for?” - -“Vhat vass you here for? Dell me; unt mebbe I opens oop.” - -“I’m goin’ to try to get you out of this.” - -The German came to his feet with a clatter. - -“Chumpin’ raddlesniks!” he cried, his eyes opening wide. “You vass nod -makin’ shokes uff me?” - -“Certainly not,” said Conover, with the utmost seriousness. “I’m sorry -you fell into the hands of these Indians, and I’ll try to get you away.” - -The baron clattered across the stone floor and stretched out his hand. - -“I shake you der hant py for dat,” he cried; “unt vhen he meeds me, I -tell Puffalo Pill I have meed vun vite Inchun vat iss a shendelmans.” - -“You know him?” cried Conover, amazed. - -“Do I know heem? Veil, I dhinks me so I do. I haf his bard peen yit -already. Unt I know Vilt Pill, unt old Nomat, unt all dem odder vellers -vat drail rount mit heem. I know heem petter as I know eenpoty.” - -He was shaking Conover’s hand vigorously. - -“How does it happen?” - -“Vat? Vy, he know I vass a courageous Cherman, unt so he make me hiss -bard.” - -“You wasn’t with him, out there?” - -“Nein! I vass py my lonesome selluf; I strike straighdt indo dis gountry -on mine own hooks. You see dose?” He withdrew his hand and hammered on -the bars of the window. “Das vass der glimmer vat I voller—I am drawed -here py der shine uff golt. I git der—vat you gall id?—der golt fever.” - -“So you knew there was gold here? How did you find that out?” - -“I tidn’t knowed id, but I guessed id. I vill exblanation do you. -Fairst, I vass brosbecting in dese moundains. I t’ink me as eferypoty -iss afrait do come in here, den nopoty hass peen in here. You see dose -boint? Yaw. So I came, mitout peing told py eenpoty.” - -“It was a foolish thing to do.” - -“Meppy so. Now it loogks id. Bud I ain’d deat yit. Uff I peen kilt soon -py dese Inchuns I gan’t hellup id; unt maype, as you say, you vill gid -me oudt uff here. So I make diss exblanation. I come hunding der golt -for; unt look dere!” - -He hammered the gold bars again, clattering about noisily with the -wooden shoes. - -Noticing that the white man glanced at the shoes, he said: - -“Der likes uff heem I vear vhen I vass a poy, in der olt gountry. So I -dhinks, vhen I blan diss drip, vooden shoon is maype petter as leadher -vuns; maype der sand don’t purn t’rough der vood so pad as t’rough der -leadher. Unt I vass righd; id don’t. In dese I valk all tay t’rough der -hot desert uff der sands, unt I ton’d feel id.” - -“I hadn’t thought of that,” Conover admitted. “But I should think they’d -be so clumsy you couldn’t get along at all.” - -Schnitzenhauser dissented vigorously, and danced across the floor to -show how light he was on his feet, in spite of the clumsy shoes. - -“Id make a heab uff tifference uff a veller peen used to ’em,” he -asserted. “Dey vass Cherman shoes, unt I vear dhem as a poy already. It -make me feel youngk again vhen I bud dese on my feed. Yaw, dat iss so.” - -“About this other matter,” said Conover. “I’m told you were following -the trail of the pony that came, in here. I didn’t see you, but that’s -what the Indians reported here.” - -“You didn’t seen me?” - -Conover had made a slip, probably, but he smiled. - -“I might as well tell you just how it was,” he said, “and then you’ll -have a clearer understanding. A child was stolen from the town of -Skyline. You know where that is?” - -“Apowet. But I ain’d neffer peen dere.” - -“A certain woman stole that child from there, and set out to bring it -here. The Indians here didn’t know it—didn’t know she intended to do it, -though it so nearly concerned them.” - -“Vat iss? Chilt sdealin’ iss a mean pitzness.” - -“I reckon you’re right about that. But that isn’t my story. She set out -with the child, and Buffalo Bill and some of his pards——” - -“Vat!” The German flounced round, staring. “Dit you say Puffalo Pill?” - -“Buffalo Bill and his pards, Nomad and Hickok, set out, with another -man, to follow the trail of the person who kidnaped the child.” - -“De chilt iss in vat blace?” - -“It is here.” - -“Donderundblitzen! Id iss here!” - -“Right here in this town.” - -“Den Puffalo Pill iss caming?” - -“He and his pards are out in the hills beyond the town now, and the -Indians are planning to capture him.” - -“Mein himmel! Iss dot de troot?” - -“Yes, they’re out there, and I reckon the reds will sure bag them. I’ll -get to that directly, and give you a plan whereby maybe you can help -them, if they’re not captured before night. - -“The other man who set out from Skyline with Buffalo Bill and his pards -had been in this part of the country before and knew about it, and they -took him along as a guide because of it. But one night when the whole -camp was asleep, even the guards, this woman, who had gone on with the -child, and then had turned back to see if she had been followed, entered -their camp, and awoke this man, without arousing the others. - -“There was a time when this man had been the husband of that woman. She -is a white woman, not an Indian, and he had loved her; I don’t suppose I -could make you understand just how much he had loved her. And he had -been told that she was dead. He had not seen her for a long time, but he -still cared so much for her that when he heard she was dead he went on a -high old drunk, and——” - -“A mighdy foony vay to show he vass sorry apowet id!” - -“When he got over it, and cut out the liquor, he determined to turn his -back on the past and go far away, never to come back. Yet he didn’t; he -went with Buffalo Bill, when it seemed he could do some good; for he had -come to the decision to try to do some little good in the world -hereafter, if he could. - -“I’m just telling you this so that you’ll understand something of the -way he felt when he woke up there in the camp, and saw that this very -woman, his wife, had waked him. The moon shone, and when he first saw -her face he was sure it was her spirit. - -“She beckoned and put her hand on her lips; and he got up and followed -her. He couldn’t help himself—it was as if he was in a dream, and he -rather thought it was all a dream at the time. So he did just what she -motioned him to do—stepped carefully on the blanket she laid down for -him to step on, and so, using that to hide their footsteps, they went -out of the camp. The moon was shining bright.” - -At intervals the staring German uttered strange German exclamations. Yet -even then he did not understand the spirit in which this confession was -being made; could not understand that Tom Conover felt the necessity of -telling this, explaining this apparent desertion of Buffalo Bill, to -some one. That the German had been a pard of the great scout was really -the thing that drew it out of him; he hoped it would reach Buffalo Bill -in that way, and that he would understand. - -“I still thought I was in a dream,” he went on, “or that I walked with a -spirit. The woman had a horse, and we both mounted it and rode away -toward this place. In a notch of the hills she picked up the child, -which she had left there when she went back. And so we came on here. But -I didn’t know you followed, or that we had been seen.” - -The German stared harder now. - -“You—you vass diss mans?” - -The flush deepened in Conover’s face and made a more vividly crimson the -deep scar that disfigured his forehead. - -“I was that man!” he confessed, almost as if he stood convicted and -abashed before this German. - -“Mein himmel!” The German threw up his hands. - -“I don’t expect you to understand it—my feelings,” went on Conover, “I -don’t really suppose that anybody ever can; so I’ll not try to make it -plainer, but——” - -The baron danced round the room in his excitement. - -“Den id vass you,” he said, stopping short, “vat I vollered; you unt dem -vomans. You vass bot’ uff you riting on vun horse.” - -“Yes; and you got yourself in this fix by following us.” - -“Id vass der golt she hat vat I voller—der golt on her pridle unt -sattle, unt on her dress; she vas vair shinin’ mit golt unt silver. I -seen her ter tay before, ven she bass me py; but I tidn’t see no chilt. -Unt den in der moonlighd, ven I vake me oop, I seen her vonst again, unt -a man’s mit her, unt she shine more as efer like golt mit dem -moonlighds. Unt I t’ink varefer dat golt peen so blentiful iss der blace -for me; unt I voller, unt I come here by der drail. Yaw, dat iss der -troot. Unt id vass you, unt diss golt vomans. See here!” He hammered -again the window bars. “Golt varefer you loogk; gold door latchges. -Inchins mit gold earrings unt praceleds, mit golt breastbins unt -hairbins, mit gold gollars on der necks, mit golt arrow beats unt golt -on der lance boints. It make me grazy as a loonadicks, so mooch golt -varefer I loogk.” - -He stopped, almost breathless. - -“But I tidn’t see no Puffalo Pills follerin’ diss vomans unt you.” - -“He and his pards are out in the hills now, but they’ll be captured. I -hope they will get away, but I don’t see how they can. It’s no country -for a white man to come into.” - -“Yid you vass here—huh?” - -“That’s different.” - -“Vy iss id tifferend?” - -“I couldn’t make you understand, but it is. You see, I am the husband of -this woman. We quarreled and I left her, years ago, but she never forgot -me, and she doesn’t want me ever to go away again.” - -“Unt you ain’d goin’ do?” - -“That’s not the point. I came here just to tell you to cheer up; that -I’ll get you out of this to-night, unless all my plans fail. I’d like to -get you to Buffalo Bill, with a message from me, telling him to -backtrack.” - -“Bud der chilt?” said the German. “He vouldn’t go mitout id. Uff you -vass his bard peen, you know dot. Puffalo Pill gids all der time vat he -hass came for.” - -Conover looked troubled. - -“Yes, that is so,” he admitted. - -The baron faced him. - -“Dell me,” he said, “vy is diss golt vomans vant der chilt? I subbose id -iss pecause she hass god none uff her own.” - -“Not exactly that,” said Conover evasively. - -“No?” - -“She had another reason altogether.” - -“Der chilt iss to pe kilt—saccerivized? I haf heart uff der ligkes uff -dat.” - -“No, not at all; it will be treated well.” - -The baron looked puzzled. - -“I’m your vriend, eenyhow,” he said, striking Conover familiarly on the -shoulder, “uff you gan gid me oudt uff dis, unt vare Puffalo Pill iss -now. Der Inchins ton’d gid him. Nein! Puffalo Pill iss doo smardt vor -eeny Inchuns vatefer. I know him; me, Baron von Schnitzenhauser, know -Puffalo Pill petter as he knows me.” - -He stood up very straight, drawing himself to his full height, with a -clatter of the wooden shoes, and hammered his breast much as he had -hammered the gold bars. - -“Dot iss me!” he said. “I am a prave mans, unt so iss Puffalo Pill. You -gid me oudt uff here undo vare he is, unt I bed you ve git does chilt -mighdy quick. Likewise,” he looked covetously at the gold bars, “ve gid -so much uff diss stuff as ve can load ondo ower horses. Olt -Schnitzenhauser ain’d dead vid, huh? Nein! You pet me dot ve—dot is me -unt Puffalo Pill—vill lif yid to make dings lifely for dese Inchuns.” - -He held out his hand again. - -“Bud I veels sorry vor you, sure; you petter gome mit us when ve make -t’ings lively py dis town. Der lifely pitzness vill pegin yoost as soon -as I am oudt uff here unt mit Puffalo Pill. Yaw, dot iss so.” - -Conover rose a bit wearily. - -“This gold here is heavily alloyed,” he said; “yet it is valuable, for -there is a lot of it. Those window bars are more than three-fourths -copper.” - -He had said much more than he had meant to say about himself, but the -hopelessness, even the apparent uselessness, of trying to make this -German understand him and his viewpoint was impressed on him deeply. - -The German was staring at the shining window bars. - -Wearily Conover turned toward the door, which had been locked from the -outside after his entrance. On the door he tapped, and the key was -turned in the lock. - -“Good-by for the present,” he said, squeezing the hand of the German. -“These fellows out here don’t understand English, so you needn’t be -afraid on that score; I know them well. And be ready for to-night. I -don’t know just how it’s to be done. But I heartily hope Buffalo Bill -can keep out of the hands of the Indians here until after to-night.” - -For an instant it looked as if the baron meant to flounce out behind him -and fight a way through the Indians there, but the heavy door banged in -his face and he clattered backward, almost falling to the floor. - -“Ach!” he gasped. “Vat a mans! Unt Puffalo Pill is dis town py! Der -baron ain’d dead yid! But der golt is pooty much cobber, eh?” - -Outside, Conover had shaken off the Indians who thronged about him, and -took his way unmolested thereafter into another part of the Indian town. - -Neither he nor Schnitzenhauser had heard rifle shots and Indian yells -far beyond the town; they were too far off. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIII. - BUFFALO BILL’S CAPTURE. - - -The Red Feathers who had discovered and captured the baron had also -discovered the presence of Buffalo Bill’s party, or had been informed by -the woman. - -This was not immediately manifest, however. Buffalo Bill drew his party -back from the mouth of the mountain notch, intending to go into -concealment until by careful scouting he could learn something about the -Toltec town supposed to be in that hole in the plain. - -By and by Buffalo Bill set out alone, intending to steal along the base -of the mountains which girt the valley, hoping to come on something -which would aid him. He had two reasons now for wanting to get into the -town which he was sure existed. The child was there, and so was the -baron. Toltec Tom had so apparently deserted him that he concluded not -to trouble about the fellow, unless fate threw the latter in his way. - -The great scout had proceeded nearly a mile when a sudden outburst of -yells behind him, accompanied by a cracking of rifles, told him that his -friends had been attacked. - -He began to backtrack at once, to assist them in this emergency, when he -discovered that some Red Feathers had got in between himself and the -camp. - -Suddenly he found himself between hills, on the edge of a cañon, with no -way of crossing but an Indian footbridge of ropes, a thatching of ropes -and reeds—a swaying, flimsy structure, hanging over the cañon and -reaching from side to side. - -There was no time for hesitation, and Buffalo Bill rushed upon the -swaying bridge, in an effort to cross. - -In the middle of it he halted and drew his revolvers. By apparent -intention, he had been driven upon that bridge by the Indians who had -chased him, that he might be corralled, for other Indians now appeared -in the path on the other side of the cañon, closing in on him there, as -the others were closing in on him from the rear. - -On each side Indians dashed to the ends of the bridge and began to hack -at the ropes. - -Buffalo Bill was trapped, and death by bullets or arrows, or by a drop -into the cañon, seemed to await him, for even though he slew the -foremost of his foes he could not escape the other Red Feathers hurrying -to their aid. - -Nevertheless, he stood defiantly on the swaying structure as the Indians -hacked at the ropes which held it at the ends. His threatening revolvers -kept the Red Feathers from rushing out upon him, yet it was soon -apparent that they desired to have him as a prisoner, rather than drop -him into the cañon or riddle him with their gold-headed arrows. - -One of them, apparently a chief, put up his hand, shouted something that -stopped the work of cutting the ropes, and stepped to the end of the -bridge at the farther side. Buffalo Bill did not know it, but the chief -was old Fire Top. - -What the feathered chief said Buffalo Bill did not comprehend, beyond -the fact that his gestures told he wanted the white man to surrender; -the language was one the great white scout had never heard, though he -was familiar with many Indian dialects. - -He threw his revolvers down on the bridge, and followed them with his -hunting knife. It was suicidal to do anything else. The Red Feathers had -him at their mercy. - -Then he held up his empty hands, palms outward, in token of peace and -submission. - -A yell of triumph burst from the throats of the bedizened Indians, and -the chief who had spoken stepped out on the bridge to secure the -discarded weapons, while his warriors on the shores set arrows to their -bows and stood ready to slay the white man if he showed treachery. - -Old Fire Top was a glittering fellow, shining with ornaments of gold and -silver, and with a breastplate of gold which nearly covered his bosom -and glittered brightly in the sun. It was native gold, fashioned rudely -by Indian hammers; in its center shone that rayed image of the sun. - -“Gold must be cheap as clay round these parts,” was the scout’s -reflection. “I wonder where they got it all. It’s a good thing for them -that the white men over yonder at Skyline don’t know about it, and it -stands them in hand to keep the secret close.” - -It was a thought which caused him to realize how great was his peril. -Only by killing the white men who fell into their hands, and covering -these mountains with a pall of terror, could the Red Feathers keep from -the outer world all knowledge of the wonderful stores of gold which it -seemed they undoubtedly possessed. - -The chief threw the revolvers and knives to the shore, then produced a -thin rawhide rope, unwinding it from about his own body, where it had -been concealed by the gold-ornamented panther skin which he wore round -his shoulders and waist. - -Without a word the scout submitted to having his hands tied and a length -of the rawhide rope passed loosely round his ankles. The end of this -rope the chief retained in his hand, so that if the prisoner tried to -run he could jerk it and trip him. - -The chief motioned, and Buffalo Bill walked on across the bridge, -followed by the Indians who had chased him, and was surrounded at once -by those on the other side. - -Closing round him and the chief, the warriors formed a guard and -conducted him hurriedly along the narrow mountain path until they came -to a series of steps cut in the stone and leading from the top of the -precipice down into the hole which held the Toltec town. - -While descending these steps, which he saw could be readily guarded by a -few men, Buffalo Bill had a good view of the town lying in the bottom of -the deep cavity, the hole, as has been said, being above a mile in -diameter in its widest part. - -The houses were flat-roofed, and most of them seemed to be communal, -indicating a large population. The streets were winding and narrow. But -near the heart of the town the thoroughfares were wider, and a large, -circular street was there, inclosing a low dome-shaped building whose -roof flashed in the sun as if it were of beaten gold. Close by it, -seeming a part of it, were other buildings that were smaller. - -Near that dome-shaped structure rose what at first the scout took to be -the smoke of a large fire, but when he was lower down on the long flight -of steps he saw that a pool of some kind lay there, sending up steam, -and he recalled the mud pots he had seen hissing and bubbling by the way -he had come from Skyline. - -He saw, also, as he got still farther down with his captors, that the -houses were of stone, a grayish-white marble apparently, and that they -were richly ornamented with gold, or with something which glittered like -that metal. - -The stone stairway led to the circular street before the domed house, -and there a great concourse of red-feathered Indians, whose armlets, leg -bands, and other ornaments flashed in the sun. - -In their midst, standing as on a pedestal, he beheld a white woman, -clothed in white, fringed deerskins, with a circlet of gold on her -abundant black hair, and behind her, his face pale and his manner -nervous, stood Tom Conover, staring at the captive scout. - -“The traitor!” was the scout’s indignant thought, as he flashed Conover -a look of high scorn. “This is worse than that affair of the Niobrara.” - -A way opened before him between ranks of Indians, and Buffalo Bill was -conducted through it into a stone prison. - -When he was thrust in, and the door banged behind him, a human form -flung itself against him. - -“Ach! Donnerwetter! Dis is awful!” - -It was the baron. - - - - - CHAPTER XXIV. - BUFFALO BILL HEARS THE TRUTH. - - -Buffalo Bill knew the worst. He and his friends were condemned to death. -They were crouched together in the little prison, whose shining bars and -heavy door were too much for their combined strength. Wild Bill and -Nomad were there, as well as the baron and the scout. - -The Piute and his Apaches, out scouting when the attack of the Red -Feathers was made on Wild Bill and Nomad, had escaped, perhaps by -running, and where they were now, or whether living or dead, could not -be told. - -Though knowing now the worst, Buffalo Bill and his friends were not cast -down. Peril only seemed to quicken the spirits of Wild Bill. While as -for old Nomad, he did not fear Indians, nor did he fear death. - -Nor was the baron as much alarmed as one might have expected. - -About the middle of the afternoon Buffalo Bill was taken from the prison -and conducted to a room in the dome-shaped building which has already -been mentioned. From its general appearance Buffalo Bill had already -decided that it was a temple, perhaps of sun worshipers, and this seemed -to be borne out by the fact that over the wide portal through which he -was taken was a large, rayed image of the sun, in gold, resembling the -gold piece he had found in the trail. - -He had learned from the baron that the apparent gold seen everywhere so -plentifully was not all what it seemed—was badly debased with a big -percentage of copper, but this representation of the sun, like the -smaller one he had found, seemed to him to be pure gold, and no doubt it -was. - -When conducted into the room that was at one side of the main entrance -he found that it resembled a small sanctuary, and this was further borne -out by the robed figure that stood at its farther end, close by a fire -which burned red on a brazier of gold. - -The robed figure had been feeding the fire, and an aromatic smell arose, -showing that herbs had been burning. - -The thing that astonished Buffalo Bill was that in a glittering seat -close by the robed figure sat Toltec Tom. And when the robed figure -turned to face the scout on his entrance he beheld the face of a woman -of fifty years or more—a white woman surely—whose years had not yet been -able to obliterate the undoubted beauty of her youth. - -Her robes were of white skin. The scout judged them to be dressed -deerskins, tanned to a snowy whiteness. - -Her arms were bare, and on them were loops of gold whose flattened sides -showed the sun image. In her ears were earrings—pendants—also showing -that representation of the sun, and the front of the shining brazier -showed the same. - -With his Indian guards crowding in behind him, Buffalo Bill halted when -he beheld Tom Conover and the woman. He looked accusingly at Conover, -and saw the red flush deepen in Conover’s face and crimson in the scar -on his forehead. - -The woman looked up from the fire and beckoned to the scout, pushing out -a footstool in front of her, indicating that he was to sit on it. - -The doorway closed, but the Indian guards were on the inside, and they -held their lances in readiness. - -“This seems queer to you, Cody!” said Conover, trying vainly to smile. -“But you’ll understand it better, maybe, and then you’ll not think so -hard of me, perhaps.” - -The woman paid no heed to this, but kept her dark eyes fixed on the face -of the scout as he came slowly forward and took the stool. - -Then she sat down, leaning back into the arms of a chair that was graced -with a panther skin. - -“There are some things that it is unpleasant to try to understand,” was -Buffalo Bill’s comment, in response to the words of Conover. - -The light of the fire reddened the white robes of the woman and gave a -ruddy tinge to the cheek she turned toward it. She sat looking earnestly -at the scout for a moment without speaking, and when she spoke her words -were clipped and broken, showing that she had difficulty in using the -language. - -“It is very hard for me to say the Ainglish,” she declared, “and I know -not hardly why it should be said, for all is fixed that you and your -friends go not out of this place, but it is for him to please,” she -nodded to Conover, “and he will tell you more things than what it is in -my power to tell.” - -Conover half lifted himself with a sudden, eager impatience, then -dropped back. - -“It’s this way, Cody,” he said: “she can’t handle the language like we -can, for, though she knew it when she was a child, and I’ve taken the -trouble to teach her what I could, it doesn’t come natural to her. I -asked her to have you come here, that I could explain; for I don’t want -you to think too hard about what has happened.” - -When the scout did not answer, Conover went on hurriedly: - -“It all goes back to a good many years ago, when I was captured by these -Indians, and would have been killed, if she had not saved my life. I -paid her for that, later, by marrying her. I couldn’t get away, and by -and by I didn’t want to; I only wanted to stay with her. As I shan’t be -able to make you understand that part of it, Cody, I’ll not try to; only -I’ll say this, there came a time when I would have died for this woman, -and that time ain’t past yet. - -“But we had quarrels, in spite of the fact that I loved her better than -any other woman I’d ever seen, and then, too, I got jealous of the chief -here, old Fire Top. We had a regular duel about her, me and him, on -horseback, with lances, and that’s how I got this beauty mark.” - -He tapped the scar significantly. - -“The fight happened out in the hills beyond the town, and he left me -here for dead. When I came to myself, I was a bit hazy mentally, and I -cut out, without trying to get back. I feared, too, that old Fire Top -would kill me, after what had happened. And she had turned against me. -So I fled. - -“That was a good while ago. I shan’t go into all the details—it ain’t -necessary. But I hit out for the white man’s country, and though I knew -there was gold here aplenty, I never cared to come back to try to get -any of it, for what is gold if you have to pay your life for it. - -“I roamed round after that, here, there, and everywhere, and done all -sorts of work, and the years slipped past. I kept my own counsel. I -still loved this woman, and I knew if I spread round a report of the -gold in here adventurers would crowd in, and maybe the Toltecs here -would be annihilated and the woman killed, and I didn’t want that to -happen. I had come to like a good many of these reds, and, as I said, I -loved the woman, though I wasn’t sure that I’d ever see her again. - -“A month or so ago I met one of the Red Feathers near the town of -Cochise—you know where that is—and he told me the woman was dead. He -lied to me, as I know now, because he was afraid I’d try to come back, -and he didn’t want it. But I took his word for it. - -“That knocked me out—I went all to pieces; and in Cochise, and in -Skyline, I simply went on a spree that came nigh being my last. You know -about that. - -“And you know how I chanced to set out with you for this place. When you -asked me what I knew about these Toltecs, and put it up to me, it came -to me that here was a chance to do a bit of good, in return for all the -wrong I’ve done, and also to find out about how the woman had died, and -all that, maybe. I still thought she was sure dead. And—I didn’t want -any more of that child-stealing business to go on. I’ll tell you soon -about that—all about it. - -“I didn’t intend to desert you—I meant to play true blue, and when it -happened I felt that it wasn’t really desertion. She came to me in the -camp, when all were asleep, and woke me up, and I thought it was her -spirit, or that I was dreaming, and I got up when she motioned to me and -walked out on the blanket she put down, and then I got on the horse she -had and come here with her. - -“If I was to die this minute, Cody, I couldn’t help doing that!” He -looked appealingly at the scout. “I couldn’t help it, and maybe I didn’t -want to help it, and I ain’t even sorry now, for, you see, I have got -her again, and she isn’t dead.” - -He put his hand to his throat as if a lump choked him there. But the -woman sat impassive, without moving her face, on which the red light of -the fire flickered. To all seeming, she did not hear or understand a -word Conover was saying. Yet her bright, dark eyes were fixed on the -scout, as if she sought to read the emotions displayed in his -countenance. - -“I think I can understand your feelings somewhat,” said the scout to -Conover. - -“Thanks for that,” said Conover, his face brightening; “I was afraid you -couldn’t.” - -“The Morgan boy is here—still here?” the scout asked. - -“I’m coming to that,” said Conover. “As you’ve heard, every twenty or -thirty years a white child is stolen by these Toltecs, or, rather, by -their priest. This woman was stolen that way, when she was a child. She -was brought up here, and became the priestess of these Toltec sun -worshipers; that’s what she was stole for. - -“They’ve got some kind of legend, or teaching, which directs that their -priest must be white, or nearly white. I suppose before there were any -white people in the country they took a very white Indian. It teaches, -too, that one priest must be a boy, and the next a girl, and so on, and -that they must be stolen from some place by the priest. - -“It’s supposed that the Great Spirit picks out the child that is to be -taken. So when the priest or priestess thinks his or her death isn’t far -off, it becomes a duty for him or her to go out and find the child that -is pointed out by the Great Spirit.” - -His voice choked again. - -“She—Itzlan—that’s her Indian name”—he nodded to the woman—“thought her -time was near, and, believing with the Indians, she set out to find the -child, a boy this time, and she got this child of Morgan’s, and set out -to bring him here. - -“She will teach him how to be a priest of the Toltecs, and so well that -he will want to be that, and never will go back to his people; that’s -the way it always is; she wouldn’t go back to the white people; she is a -Toltec through and through, believing everything they do. And it will be -that way by and by with this Morgan kid—he will be in time the white -priest of these Toltecs. - -“She thought I was dead. But when she had left the child in the hills by -the trail and slipped back to see if she had been followed, and then saw -me, with you, she felt that she couldn’t go on again, unless I went with -her. That’s what she has told me. And so she planned to get me out of -the camp, and I’ve told you how she did it. - -“And,” he licked his dry lips nervously, “that’s how it happened; and I -reckon that’s about all.” - -“The child is to be kept here?” said Buffalo Bill. - -“Yes, and be trained up for the high priest of the Toltecs; Itzlan there -will see to that. It’s laid on her as a part of her religion to do that, -and she’ll do it. The Toltecs felt grieved when she came back with the -child, for it was the first they had heard that she didn’t think she -would live long. But she says now, has said to me, that since I’ve come -back she doesn’t feel that way. It’s queer, ain’t it?” - -He stared nervously at Buffalo Bill. - -“So I want you to understand it, so you’ll know how it was, and won’t -think too hard about me. That Niobrara matter was bad, and likely you’ll -think this one worse.” - -In spite of all, Buffalo Bill felt sorry for Conover; he could read the -mental suffering in his face, which Conover had endured, and he -understood the strength of the temptation to which the man had been -subjected. - -“I suppose we are not to be released?” said the scout. - -“She says not,” Conover answered, turning his gaze away. “I’ve tried to -get her to change that, but I can’t; it’s one thing she is set on.” - -He turned again to the scout. - -“This is the way she looks at it, and the way old Fire Top looks at it. -He’s the chief, and the head of the warriors, and in his way he has more -power here than she has. She’s the religious leader, you see. - -“Well, she and Fire Top believe that the only way to keep white men from -coming here and driving out the Toltecs is for the Toltecs to kill all -that do come, and so make others afraid to come. She says the white men -love gold so that if they knew what was here they could not be kept -back, so many of them would come. But the white people won’t trouble the -place so long as they don’t know about the gold, and are made afraid to -come nigh it. I suppose she’s right about that.” - -His face was troubled. - -“I’d do something if I could, Cody, and that’s a fact, though you may -not believe it. I’m afraid I can’t do anything. I feel sorry about it, -and feel a bit responsible, as I set out as your guide to this spot. I -ought to have known better. But I meant well. Only I didn’t know Itzlan -was living, you see!” - -“I understand,” said the scout. “We are to be killed, at the order of -this woman, so that knowledge of this place may not get to the world -outside. But you may tell her, for me, that she is making a mistake in -that, for if I and my friends do not return from this spot the United -States government will surely send here a force strong enough to -annihilate this whole tribe of Toltecs. I wish you’d make that plain to -her, Conover, if she doesn’t thoroughly understand my words now.” - -The woman’s face was still impassive. - -Nor did it change in its expression even when Tom Conover began to -translate to her in the Toltec language the threatening statement which -Buffalo Bill had made. - -The scout could see that the woman did not intend to relent. - - - - - CHAPTER XXV. - THE HEART OF TOM CONOVER. - - -The battle that raged in the heart of Tom Conover after that interview -with Buffalo Bill can be but dimly indicated here. - -In the end the man’s better instincts triumphed. - -Buffalo Bill and his friends did not at once know this, however. - -Night came early in the town that lay in the deep pit of the plain, the -evening shadows deepening there even before the sun had set on the world -outside. - -Within the marble prison the darkness was soon so dense that, as Wild -Bill said, “it could be felt.” - -No food had been brought to the prisoners, nor had any messenger come to -them, after that first announcement, conveyed by the woman herself, that -it had been decided in council they were to die. - -They crouched in the gloom and talked as the slow hours slipped by, -while they waited, they did not know for what. - -They tried the gold-copper bars of their prison again and again, but the -bars were too strong and well set; they could not even shake them. They -had no tools with which to hack at the marble walls, and probably if -tools had been in their possession they could have accomplished nothing -in that way. - -“Ach!” grunted the baron, after a long interval of silence. “Dose vite -Inchin mans vass a liar peen, aber he ton’d come unt hellup me, like as -he said. Uff I hat someding to ead, I vouldn’t veel so pat, maybe. Here -iss a town full of golt, and noddings to ead.” - -“There is enough to eat in the town, no doubt,” commented Wild Bill, -“but it’s like the gold—we can’t get it.” - -“Aber I hund vor golt eenymore I hobes somepoty vill keeck me ka-vick.” - -“I’m afraid you won’t hunt for gold any more, baron! But what’s the use -of being blue? Can’t we do something—can’t we sing a little? I’ve got a -voice like a crow, but I’d join in, if somebody would raise a tune.” - -He began to sing a popular air that had a lighthearted lilt in it, and -it was wonderful what a change it made in their spirits. They began to -talk more confidently, and plan for a vigorous resistance when the time -came for it. - -But later on their plans were altered. - -A door of their prison, of which they had not known, opened behind them, -and snapped shut with a click, and they knew that some one had entered -the room. When the intruder spoke they discovered that it was Tom -Conover. - -“I’ve made up my mind to help you,” he said, speaking in low tones. “You -are to be slain at sunrise in the morning, by one of the priests of the -Toltec temple. You saw the steaming lake that lies close by this -prison—right behind it, in fact. The temple and this prison were built -on this spot because of that boiling lake. Victims are stabbed on the -stone steps back there, which lead down to it, and then their bodies -tumble down into the lake, and that is the end of them, and people -standing on the other shore, when they see that the thing is done, set -up a great shout and afterward there are religious exercises in the -temple, led by the priests. - -“I’ve seen it myself, more than once; all enemies are served that way; -and once a year, if no enemies have been taken, warriors are selected by -lot for the purpose. It’s a horrible business, and I never was in love -with it. - -“And that’s the plan for you. I didn’t see at first how I could help it, -as Itzlan is determined you shall not leave here alive; but I’ve worked -out a plan. - -“There is one Indian here who used to be my servant, and he will do -whatever I tell him, perhaps because he isn’t over-and-above bright. -Well, I have had him get your horses and tie them to those little pines -at the edge of the trail, where it comes down from that notch in the -mountains. You know the place. And I have had him tie your rifles and -weapons to the saddles. On one of the saddles he has hung two buckskin -bags of gold—pure gold; and that is for this Morgan boy. - -“Perhaps I was a fool for doing that. But I’m going to risk it. And risk -the anger of the woman. I’ll pull through all right, for the woman will -stand by me, whatever comes. And I reckon,” he added thoughtfully, “that -I’ll need her, if it gets out that I did it.” - -“Why can’t you go with us?” asked Buffalo Bill, who had risen. - -The other prisoners had also risen, in their excitement, the German with -a startling clatter of his wooden shoes. - -“You’d better take those blocks off your feet,” advised Conover, “they -make too much noise; your stocking feet will be best for you. Carry the -shoes in your hand, if you must have them.” - -“Ach!” panted the baron, “der desert sand voult purn my feed off mitoudt -’em!” - -“Then carry them in your hands. And now listen: Whatever the risk is, -I’m going to take it. This door I came through here is a secret one, and -only a few even of the Toltecs know of it. I’m going to hope that -suspicion will fall on some of those who do know. For I think it isn’t -understood that I possess the secret. Itzlan told me about it long ago, -but perhaps she even has forgot that she did. Anyway, I take the risk. - -“Listen: You are to follow me quietly out of this place and down the -stone steps—the steps of sacrifice. There is a little path which we can -take past the boiling lake, and we can get out of town by it, for, -besides the lake, there are only a few houses, as the steam makes it -unpleasant for people to live there. - -“I think we can get out of the town, as the night is dark, and the -steam, which is bad to-night, makes the air even thicker.” - -He had dropped, or forgotten, nearly all of his dialect, his words -showing now, in his haste and excitement, that once, at any rate, he had -been a man of some education and attainments. - -“When you reach the horses you will find the child there, tied up by the -bushes. My Indian friend has stolen him and placed him there, and I had -him give the kid a sleeping drink to keep him from making any noise. It -sounds cruel, but it seemed necessary. - -“But I’m wasting too much time. No,” he said, as Wild Bill sought to -take him by the hand, “I don’t feel worthy to touch the hand of any -honest and upright white man. You know why. But perhaps I can right -things this way, and I want to, and I’ll take the risk. It will not be -so great, and Itzlan will stand by me and protect me, no matter what -comes.” - -They heard him turn about. - -“Follow me,” he whispered. “And take your shoes off, Schnitzenhauser. It -wouldn’t be a bad idea if all of you removed your shoes. We’ve got to be -silent as death itself, for if these Toltecs woke up to what’s -happening, not one of us would live ten minutes. There’s a guard in -front of the prison, but none out by that boiling lake. Even those -guards are ignorant of this secret door. Now, follow me.” - -They heard him fumbling along the wall and were sure he was searching -for the hidden spring which moved the door. - -“The horses were left out on the plain, for pasturage,” he said, as if -this were an afterthought, “so that my Indian had no trouble in placing -them where I told him to. The worst trouble was with the child. I had to -steal the kid out from under the nose of one of the temple priests, and -give him into the hands of the Indian. That was as hard a thing to do as -anything that is before us.” - -The hidden spring clicked under his fingers. - -The scout and his companions were anxious to interrupt, to tell him how -grateful they were, and beg his pardon for any wrong they had done by -misjudging him, but his manner and the tones of his voice, as well as -his direct warnings, kept them silent. - -They heard the secret door spring open almost noiselessly. - -“Follow me!” Conover repeated. “And step carefully. There is a flight of -stone steps here. Just follow my voice.” - -He stepped aside, waiting until they had filed silently out of the -marble prison; then they heard the snap of the spring of the secret -door, as it moved back into place. - -After that he put himself at their head, and, by whispering to them, -directed them where and how to step in order to follow him safely. - -They felt the warm mist of the boiling lake on their faces and in their -nostrils as they descended the flight of steps toward it, and puffs of -hot steam were blown in their faces as they followed Conover in the -darkness along the narrow path skirting the lake. Below they could hear -its bubbling, like the sputtering of some giant teakettle. - -It took iron nerves to repress a shudder as they passed along the lake -and thought of the fate that had been fixed for them by Itzlan and the -priests of the Toltec temple. - -A half hour or more was consumed in getting out of the town, for a long -flight of stone steps had to be ascended, but they reached the upland -finally, with Conover still leading the way. - -There he stopped. - -“Good-by!” he said. - -The moon had not yet risen—it rose late, toward morning; but in the -starlight they could see him, and could discern that he held out his -hand. - -“I feel that I can shake hands with you now,” he said. “I think that you -will get away.” - -“Come with us!” Buffalo Bill urged, as he shook heartily the hand given -him by Conover. - -“No!” said Conover, with a positive click of his teeth. - -Gravely he shook hands with all of them. - -“No,” he repeated. “I’ve got to stay here! In the first place, since -Itzlan is still alive, I don’t want to go. In the second place, if she -gets into trouble I want to be here to help her. But I think there will -be no trouble for either of us. She has a lot of influence, and many -friends. It would mean war if any of the priests or chiefs turned -against her. So there will be no trouble. I’m even hoping that neither -of us will even be suspected of this thing.” - -He pointed to the starlight. - -“Off there is the notch, and your horses, and the Morgan kid; you’ll -find them all now without trouble.” - -“You won’t come with us?” said the great scout, reluctant to leave him. - -“No! And I’m hoping that none of you will ever come this way again. -We’ll not meet any more, likely. So, good-by, and success to you!” - -He turned, as he said this, and broke into a run, as if he feared to -linger; and the darkness soon hid him. - -Buffalo Bill turned about and headed toward the notch. - -“Forward march!” he said. “We want to be well out of this before morning -comes. The Red Feathers will be hot after us as soon as they can see to -strike the trail.” - -They found the horses, and the child, their arms and ammunition, and the -two stuffed bags of gold for the Morgan boy. - -And in the darkness they rode away, wondering at their strange escape, -and questioning among themselves as to what had become of the Piute and -the Apaches. - -But when morning dawned they came on the four Indians, who, hiding -beside the trail, had been trying to screw up courage enough to make a -scouting trip in the direction of the valley. - -“Ai, Pa-e-has-ka!” they shouted. - -They fell in joyfully behind the party of white men, and the flight was -resumed. - -It was a running flight, kept up without regard for the comfort of man -or beast, until they knew they were well beyond the reach of the -Toltecs, whose pursuit they feared. - -Two days later they placed the boy in the home of his parents, with the -bags of gold which Tom Conover had given him. - -And their journey to and from the terrible Cumbres was at an end. - - - THE END - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -No. 138 of THE BUFFALO BILL BORDER STORIES, entitled “Buffalo Bill’s -Totem Trail,” by Colonel Prentiss Ingraham, is a rattling good story in -which Buffalo Bill and his pards meet with some of the most wonderful -adventures that ever befell them. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES - - - 1. Silently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling. - 2. Archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings retained as printed. - 3. 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