The Holly chieftain., 1923-12-27
BIZ RANDALL PARRISH
cev,rssh, b. A. c. Meou,s s Co

Following the opposite wall they would
miss any contact with Gomez body.
and there was nothing he could do but
stand and let them pass.
| The two men had turned the sharp
corner. the slight sound Of their move
ments ceasing to reach his ears. Then
the faint glow of match reflected
along the rock wall, the silence broken
by Meager's voice.
''There's the lantern. Juan-in that
niche. see. Here. turn up the wick"
The flame frightened suddenly. but
the outer tunnel vet remained black.
Only In the distance the light flickered
along the walls. casting weird shad-
ows. One Of the"men evidently held
the lantern up. peering about curl
ously.
"He's not here senor: where's the
old devil. anyhow"
They moved forward with the light.
and Kelleen. all fear swiftly lost in
his intense interest. crept on to the
curve in the tunnel. from which point
he could see their dim shadow Behind
him. but unnoticed. daylight began to be
visible through the mantle Of vines con-
ceaIing the entrance. The dark figure on
the floor assumed vague outline. The
two men In the lantern glow came to
a halt. thrusting the light forward,
peering at the object which had at
tracted them. The Mexican identified
1t first in a sudden cry.
"1t's a body. dead man." he ex-
| <lnima6 HHa hoe haon killaI-
Manuel!''
Meager held back. the coward grip
ping him, but Sanchez bore the lam
tern forward. desperate to learn the
truth. His startled voice came down
the passage.
"'Tis not Gomez" he cried, "and no
face l ever saw before. Perhaps you
know the man?''
"No; but there has been a fight, or
n murder-see. he has been shot; and
In the back, by G-dl Gomez must
have done this job. But what has
become Of the old devil? And who
was this kid? What was he doing
here? See If there is anything in his
pocket, Juan. Give me the lantern"
He held 1t up, as the Mexican
dropped to his knees. and began to
rummage through the dead mans
clothes. The increasing daylight of
the desert found entrance far above,
and stole down the narrow passage In
a faint, ghastly glimmer. which only
added to the ghastllness of the scene.
The strain was too much for Meager's
nerves, and he swore gruffly.
Come on,' he said fercely; bring
the light. Well search every inch Of
this id hole"
Kelleen turned. his first impulse
being to escape, to rush toward that
dim glimmer of light now plainly
marking the cave entrance. Yet the
instantly. There was a better way
than that and he whirled back to face
them, as the two came cautiously for
ward. the glow of the lantern glimmer-
ing like red star. The hand with
the weapon in 1t fell to a level, and he
fred. the glass Pickering into a thou
sand pieces, the light instantly extin-
guished.
Kelleen's plan OF action had formed
swiftly In his mind. He had a gllm-
mering of what this conspiracy meant,
but must learn more. Only one
method was possible-a confession
from Bob Meager. The real secret Of
this tunnel was In his possession. now
that Manuel Gomez was dead. He
} must be made to talk.
The advantages in this encounter
were altogether on his side. He knew
them. where they were; they possessed
no knowledge Of his exact position,
who he was or whether they faced
one opponent or dozen. They had
been taken completely by surprise.
startled by the sudden attack. con-
fused in the darkness. He had both
of them absolutely at his mercy
The silence was intense after that
: first startled second. There was no
movement, not even the sound Of
; breathing audible. The two stood mo-
tionless. crouched back against the
wall. peering into the blackness from
whence that tongue OF fame had
leaped into their very faces yet re-
vealing nothing. They could neither
thinl: nor act. Who had fired-ManueI
Gomez? some enemy who had trapped
them7 Were they facing one man. or
a dozen? Into what had they blndly
walked? Confident of his own safety.
realizing that he had the whip hand.
Kelleen smiled grimly, every nerve
| tense. his revolver poised. The sltua-
: tion pleased him.
Drop your guns. both Of you'll" he
' commanded sternly. quick now! I've
got you against the light"
"Who the h-l-"
stop that! Drop them. or l shoot
something besides n lantern. It's a
hair trigger Im playing with"
; He heard both weapons fail to the
floor. Meager cursing impotently. but
the Mexican silent Kelleen laughed
| rial. laaI ,s.