The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1917-03-29

zEA
! liams cache. I rode IN last night from
Thief river, and you are riding ont
with me TO start me on to the Sleepy
! Cat trail. II you can remember that
much"
De Spain stopped halfway through
his sentence. The figure revealed in
the half-llght puzzled him at first. Then
Pit confused and startled him. He saw
it was not man at an, but woman
and a woman than whom he would
rather have seen six men. It was Nan
Morgan.
/ With her head never more decisiyely
set under her mannish hat, her waist
never more attractiyely outlined in
slenderness, she silently faced De
Spain in the morning gray. His face
reflected his chagrined perplexity. He
could already see Mans eyes. They
were bent keenly first on him, then on
his companion. and again on him. De
Spain kept his face down as much as
he dared, and his hat had been pulled
well over it from the beginning.
They were now almost abreast. The
very instructive knowledge that her
eyes were bent on his made him steal
a glance at her in spite of himself. The
next instant he was shamefacedly
touching his hat Though nothing
was lost on her, Nan professed not to
see the greeting. When she spoke her
tone was dry with suspicion.
"Wait moment, Sassoon. Where
are you going?" she demanded. Sas-
soon -hitched with one hand at his
trousers band. He inclined his head
sulI1ily toward his companion. start
ing a man on the trail for Sleepy Cat"
"Stop," she exclaimed sharply, for
De Spain, pushing his own horse ahead,
had managed without being observed,
to kick Sassoon's horse in the flank,
and the two were passing. Sassoon at
the resolute summons stopped. De
Spain could do no less; both men,
lfalting, faced their suspicious inquisl-
tor. She scrutinized De Spain keenly.
What is this man doing in the gapT'
"He came up from Thief river last
night" answered Sassoon monOton-
ously.
"What is he doing here with you?"
persisted Nan.
He's a cousin of John Rebstock's
from Williams Cache" continued Sas-
soon. The yarn would have sounded
decently well in the circumstances for
which it was intended, but in the
searching gaze of the eyes now con-
fronting and clearly recognizing him,
it sounded so grotesque that De Spain
would fully as lief have been sitting
between his horses legs as astride his
back.
That's not true, Sassoon," said his
relentless questioner. Her tone and
the expression of her face BODIED no
friendliness for either of the two she
had intercepted.
De Spain had recovered his wits.
you're right" he interposed without
an instant's hesitation. "It isn't true. /
But that's not his fault; he is under
arrest, and is telling you what told I
him to tell you. 1 came in here this /
to take Sassoon to Sleepy Cat. (
He is a prisoner, wanted for cutting up I
one of our stage-guards."
Nan, coldly skepdcaI, eyed De Spain.
"And do you try to tell me"-she |
pointed to Sassoon's unbound hands
chat he is riding out, of here, a free
man, to go-to jail?"
Il do tell you exactly that. He is
my prisoner"
Il don't believe either of you" de-
clared Nan scornfully. you are plan
ming something underhand together"
De Spain laughed cooliy. We've
planned that much together. but not, I
assure you, with his consent"
Il don't believe your stories at all"
she declared firmly.
De Spain flushed. The irritation and
the serious danger bore in on him. IF