Chapter VII: Part 7

“I guess we better go home, Marion.”

“Yes,” she said softly.

“You tell Mrs. Blanco I’ll be out in a day or two,” said Mrs. Cooper. “Mebby tomorrow.”

“That will please her,” said Marion. “We’ll look for you, Ma.”

They were halfway to the buckboard, when they met Oscar, grinning widely, coming from the jail.

“Sturgis told the whole works,” he said. “The money is all hid at the TD. They never spent a cent. Can you imagine it? I seen Hartley goin’ down the street, but I didn’t have no chance to stop him. Jist to think that Shorty and Matt was the two tough jiggers of Stormy River. Well, I’ve got to find the sheriff. He’s prob’ly around some’ers, with his mouth wide open.”

Oscar trotted across the street, while they went on to the buckboard. Judd untied the team and handed the lines to Tex.

“I’m not goin’ back with you, Tex,” he said.

“You’re not?”

“Aw, you can drive with one hand, Tex.”

Tex looked at Marion and back at Judd.

“Just why ain’t you goin’ back with us, Frank?”

“Well, if you want to know so bad, Hashknife told me if I didn’t let you two come home alone, he’d whip hell out of me when we got there. And that meddlin’ jigger means what he says.”

“Oh, yeah,” replied Tex rather blankly. “Well, under them circumstances, I’ll forgive you, Frank. Giddap, broncs!”

“They’ll walk, if you’ll let ’em,” was Judd’s parting shot.

Tex nodded with complete understanding, and they went out on the winding road toward home.

[Transcriber’s Note: This story appeared in Adventure Magazine, December 1, 1927. It is believed to be in the public domain in the United States; copyright status may differ in other countries.]