, 1922-10-31

waited. turned slowly. Eve stool
there.
Hell died in his pale eyes as she
came 70 him. rested silently in his
ront,e embrace returned his kiss.
laid her flushed. sweet cheek against
his unshaven face.
Dad. darilngz"
yes, my baby"
You're watching to kin Quint-na
But there's no use watching n
longer"
Have the boys below got hIm7"
he demanded.
They got one OF his gang. Byron
Hastings is dead. Jim is badly hurt;
sid Hone. too-not so badly
where's ouintana7"
Dad. he's gone. But II
don't matter. See here She aug
her slender hand N TO her brooches
pocket and pulled out a little fistful
OF gems.
ciinch. his powerful arm closing
her shoulders. looked duly at the
Jewels.
You see. dad. there's no use kill
ing ouintanr. These r h things
he robbed you Of"
-'Ta'n't them that matter. &.
I'm glad you got EN-. / allus want
ed you should be a great lady. grille.
Them's the tickets OF admission. You
put 'cm in your pants. 1 gotta stay
here for a spell"
Dad Take Them
He look them. smiled. showed them
into his pocket.
'swhat is Is. rirlie7" he asked. Eb-
sently. his pale eyes searchinE the
woods ahead.
i've Just told you.- she said. that
the boys went in as far as ouintana's
shanty. There was a dead man.
there. too; but Quintana has gone"
Clinch sald-not removing his eye
from the forest: III any O. them boys
has let ouintana crawl through III
xiii him. TOO. G'wan home.
grille. ! gotta mosey-I gotta kinda
loaf around fr a spell
Dad. 1 want you TO come back
with me-
you go home: you hear me. Eve?
Tell Corny and Dick Berry to hook
It for owl Marsh and stop the Star
Peak trails-both on en-. Can
Sid and Jimmy walk2'
Jim can't"
'rvvell. let Harve taxi him on his
back. You go up too. You help fix
Jimmy up at the house. He's a little
fella. JiIamy Hastings lie. Harve
can tote him. And you 20 along
Dad. Quintana says he means to
kill you. What is the use OF hurting
him? You have what he look"
IT gotta have more'n he took. But
even that amt enough. He couldn't
pay for all he even lone to me. grille.
I'm amin to traw on him
on sight"
Clinch's set visase relaxed into an
alarming smile which fiickered. fad
ed. died in the wintry ferocity of
his eyes.
Dad
.G'wan homer he interrupted
harshly. You want that Hastings
boy to bleed to deathr"
She came up to him, not uttering
n word, yet asking him with all the
tenderness and eloquence OF her eyes
to leave his blood-traI where it lay
and hunt no more.
He kissed her mouth, infinitely
tender. smiled; then. again prim an6
scowlng:
"G'wan home. you little scut. an
do wha. I told We. or. by God. III
cut a switch thatn learn ye goodl
Never a word, now! On yer wayl
G'wanr'
Twice she turned to look back.
The second time. C1inch was slowly
walking into the woods straight
ahead OF him. She waited: saw him
go in: waited. After a while she
continued on her way.
CHAPTER ".
And Clinch's mind was on her. All
else-his watchfulness. his stealthy
a6vance-all the alertness of eye and
a all the subtlely, the cunning. the
infinite caution-were purely instinc
tive mechanics.
Somewhere in this flooded twilight
of gigantic trees was Jose Quintana.
Knowing that, he dismissed thai fact
from his mind and turned his
thoughts to Eve.
Sometimes his lips moved. They
usually did when he was arguing
with God or calling his Creators at
tention to the justice of his case.
his Two caseS-eEch, to him, a
celebre; the matter of Harrod: the af-
fair of ouintana-
Many a time he had pleaded these
two causes before the Most High.
But now his thoughts were chiefly
concerned with Eve-with the prob
lem of her future-his mater pas
sion-this daughter OF the dead wife
he had loved.
He sighed unconsciously; halted.
well. Lord" he concluded. in his
wordless way. my grille has gotta
have a chance If I gotta go 10 he'll
for it. That's sure as shootin' =.
Amen"
At that instant he saw Quintana.
Recognition was instant and mu-
tual. Neither man stirred. Quin-
tana WIS standing beside a giant
hemlock. His pack lay at his feet.
Clinch had haltei-always the me
chanics5close TO a great ironwood
tree.
Probably both men knew that they
could owe themselves before the
other moved a muscle. Clinch's small
light eyes were blazing: Qulntana's
black eyes haG become two Sits.