River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1923-09-13

by Spur rock and Nipple peaks. He
shook Hahn by the sound shoulder.
Brace up" he said. "You can hide
in Split Rock cave. I'm going to put
the girl in there. Take another drink.
Pick up some grub. There's water in
the cave. You can come out soon's
the coast is clear"
"I'll not be coming out" said Hahn
huskily. "But it's a good move" He
weakly collected the bottle. some
scraps of food.
Plimsoll stopped over Molly, coming
out Of her faint, and gagged her
with her own scarf as her eyes
opened and looked at him. He took
off her belt and strapped her arms
behind her back. Then, despite his
wounded wrist, he lifted her easily
enough and strobe with her out Of
the door, Hahn following.
Hahn's horse was standing there
obediently with pendent reins anchor
ing 1t! Blaze and Plimsolls black
were nipping grass in the little corral
where they had been placed. Blaze
whinnied at the sight, or the scent,
of his mistress. Plimsoll turned into
a cleft stopping at rock whose al
most fiat surface was level with his
feet, great mass of granite that
some freak of weathering or convul-
sion of earthquake had split almost
in half. Into the crevice a wild
grapevine had twined, and died.
Can you make it, Hahn?" he asked.
The dealer nodded and knelt, using
his sound arm to aid himself by the
tough fibers, bracing with his knees.
Down some ten feet in the crack he
looked up, his CHASTITY face pallid in
the shadow, with an attempt at grin.
"Good-by. Plim," he said. "Good
luck What do l do with the grip
Keep her from calling out. She's
gagged but she might try 1t. Make
her nurse you. Do anything you d-n
please with heri"
Hahn dropped out of sight. Plim-
soil did not wait, but picked Molly
up from where he had deposited her,
helpless bundle, on the rock.
"The bottoms soft down there" he
said. "Sand. 1t amt more than fiji
teen feet. Down you go, you hi cat
They'll have fine time locating you.
And you've got dying man for COM
pany. He'll be dead one before
morning"
He lowered her, feet down, released
her and watched her disappear. He
swung about and ran back to the
corral, his hurt arm throbbing with
his exertion. He flung himself into
the saddle of the black horse, once
leader of slickear herd of wild mus
tangs, magnificent for speed and SYM
metry, worthy better MASTER and
galloped out Of the corral, out of the
side-ravine, into the open park. The
rough towel about his arm was becom-
Ing soaked. Every jump of the black
horse seemed to increase the bleed
ing. The squirt of fictitious energy
that had carried him through since
the arrival of Cookie was dying away.
But he was on q mount that none
could match, he was going on a trail
that was hard to follow, practically
unknown. Unless he was headed off,
he could break through. At Nipple
peaks he could rest, attend to his
wound.
A shout, bullet whistling past that
nicked the stations ear and sent him
plunging and bucking, warned him
that his enemies had found the way
in and were eeter him. He did not
look back h4c bent forward In his
saddle and sunk the spurs into the
blacks TANKS. The half-tamed mus
tang's indignant bounds spoiled the
aim of the marksmen. and. though the
steel-nosed missiles hummed like bees
about them. they gained the shelter
Of the same trees that had covered
Cookie. Belly almost to ground, the
black swept over the cropped turf at
racing speed, the drum of his 'hoofs
like distant thunder, crest high, GRIM
son-satin nostrils flarlng, mad at the
sting Of the red notch In his ear.
Round the elbow Of the Hideout,
with Brandon's men distanced into
the gorge at the south end. A wild
scramble up steep slope and the
way to Spur rock was clear. Plimsoll
smiled grimly. "D-n them, I'll beat
them yetl' For second he was sill
houetted against skyline, then he
plunged down. Fresh droppings told
him that Reynolds had won clear. He
was safe from pursuit. If the wound
he should have cauterized it. But :. {.
He refined in for moment. The
sound Of shout rang in his ears. 1t
was an echo, he fancied, 1t must be
an echo, flung back from the noun
tain walls ahead. But 1t could mean
nothing else than a view-halloo Some
one had glimpsed him disappearing
beyond the ridge.