Stepsons of Light Part 24

He slipped along the rail to the other end of the table, his gun poised and ready. Caney sprawled on the floor in a huddle. His mouth was open, gasping, his eyes rolled back so that only the whites were visible, his livid face twitched horribly. See swooped down on Caney's gun and made swift inspection of the cylinder; he did the like by Weir's, and then tiptoed to the part.i.tion door, first thrusting his own gun into his waistband. The barroom was empty; only the diving Mermaid smiled invitation to him. See turned and raced for the back door. Even as he turned a gust of wind puffed through the open front door and the wrecked middle door; the lamps flared, the back door slammed with a crash.

With the sound of that slamming door, a swift new thought came to See. He checked, halted, turned back. He took one look at the unconscious Caney. Then he swept a generous portion of free lunch into his hat and tossed it over the crowning woodwork of the ten-foot refrigerator, with the level motion of a mason tossing bricks to his mate. Caney's revolver followed, then Weir's and his own. He darted behind the bar and confiscated a half-filled bottle of wine, the appetizing name of which had won his approving notice earlier in the evening. He stepped on a chair beside the refrigerator, leaped up, caught the oaken edge of it, swung up with a supple twist of his strong young body, and dropped to the top of the refrigerator, safe hidden by the two-foot parapet of ornamental woodwork.

A little later two men sprang together through the front door; a sloe-eyed Mexican and the dwarfish friend of the Australian giant.

They leaped aside to left and right, guns ready; they looked into the gambling hall; they flanked the bar, one at each end, and searched behind it.

Then the little man went to the door and called out scornfully: "Come in, you d.a.m.n cowards! He's gone!"

Shadowy forms grew out of the starlight, with whistlings, answered from afar; more shadows came.

"Is Caney dead?" inquired a voice.

"h.e.l.l, I don't know and I don't care!" answered the little man truculently. "I had no time to look at Caney, not knowing when that devil would hop me. See for yourself."

The crowd struggled in--but not all of them. Weir came in groaning, his face distorted with pain as he fondled his crippled arm. The Merman examined Caney. "Dead, nothing," he reported. "Knocked out.

He won't breathe easy again for a week. Bring some whisky and a pail of water. Isn't this fine? I don't think! Billiard table ruined--plate-gla.s.s mirror shot to pieces--half a dozen men crippled, and that d.a.m.ned little h.e.l.l hound got off scot-free!"

"You mention your men last, I notice," sneered the little man. "Art Price has got three of his back ribs caved in, and Lanning needs a full set of teeth--to say nothing of them run over by the stampede.

Jiminy, but you're a fine bunch!"

They poured water on Caney's head, and they poured whisky down Caney's throat; he gasped, spluttered, opened his eyes, and sat up, a.s.sisted by Hales and the Merman.

"Here--four of you chaps carry Caney to the doc," ordered the Merman.

"Take that door--break off the other hinge. Tell doc a windla.s.s got away from him and the handle struck him in the breast. Tell him that he stopped the ore bucket from smas.h.i.+ng the men at the bottom--sob stuff. Coach Caney up, before you go in. He's not so bad--he's coming to. Fresh air will do him good, likely. Drag it, now."

"Say, Travis, I didn't see you doin' so much," muttered one of the gangsters as Caney was carried away, deathly sick. He eyed the little man resentfully. "Seems to me like you talk pretty big."

The little man turned on him in a fury.

"What the h.e.l.l could I do? Swept up in a bunch of blatting bull calves like that, and me the size I am? By the jumping Jupiter, if I could have got the chance I would 'a' stayed for one fall if he had been the devil himself, pitchfork, horns and tail! As it was, I'm blame well thankful I wasn't stomped to death."

"All this proves what I was telling you," said Hales suavely. "If you chaps intend to stretch Johnny Dines, to-night's the only time. If one puncher can do this to you"--he surveyed the wrecked saloon with a malicious grin--"what do you expect when the John Cross warriors get here? It's now or never."

"Never, as far as I'm concerned," declared the bullet-headed man of the free lunch. "I'm outcla.s.sed. I've had e-nough! I'm done and I'm gone!"

"Never for me too. And I'm done with this pack of curs--done for all time," yelped the little man. "I'm beginning to get a faint idea of what I must look like to any man that's even half white. Little See is worth the whole boiling of us. For two cents I'd hunt him up and kiss his foot and be his Man Friday--if he'd have me. I begin to think Dines never killed Forbes at all. Forbes was shot in the back, and Shaky Akins says Dines is just such another as Charlie See. And Shaky would be a decent man himself if he didn't have to pack soapstones.

I'll take his word for Dines. As sure as I'm a foot high, I've a good mind to go down to the jail and throw in with Gwinne."

"You wouldn't squeal, Travis?" pleaded the Merman. "You was in this as deep as the rest of us, and you pa.s.sed your word."

"Yes, I suppose I did," agreed the little man reluctantly. Then he burst into a sudden fury. "d.a.m.n my word, if that was all! Old Gwinne wouldn't have me--he wouldn't touch me with a ten-foot pole. I've kept my word to sc.u.m like you till no decent man will believe me under oath." He threw up his hands with a tragic gesture. "Oh, I've played the fool!" he said. "I have been a common fool!"

He turned his back deliberately to that enraged crew of murderers and walked the length of the long hall to the back door. From his hiding place above the big refrigerator Charlie See raised his head to peer between the interstices and curlicues of the woodwork so he might look after this later prodigal. Charlie was really quite touched, and he warmed toward the prodigal all the more because that evildoer had wasted no regret on wickedness, but had gone straight to the root of the matter and reserved his remorse for the more serious offense. This was Charlie's own view in the matter of fools; and he was tolerant of all opinion which matched his own. But Charlie did not wear a sympathetic look; he munched contentedly on a cheese sandwich.

"Never mind Travis," said the Merman. "Let him go. The little fool won't peach, and that's the main thing. I'm going after Dines now, if we did make a bad start. There's plenty of us here, and I can wake up two of my dealers who will stand hitched. And that ain't all. A bunch from the mines will drop down for a snifter at eleven o'clock, when the graveyard s.h.i.+ft goes on and they come off. I'll pick out those I can trust. Some of 'em are tough enough to suit even Travis--though I doubt if they'd take any kinder to pool b.a.l.l.s than you boys did--not till they got used to 'em. I don't blame you fellows. Billiard b.a.l.l.s are something new."

"We want to get a move on, before the moon gets up," said Weir.

"Oh, that's all right! Lots of time. We'll stretch Mr. Dines, moonrise or not," said the Merman rea.s.suringly. "But we'll meet the night s.h.i.+ft at the bridge as they come off, and save a lot of time. Let's see now--Ames, Vet Blackman, Kroner, Shaw, Lithpin Tham--"

On the refrigerator, Charlie See put by his lunch. He fished out a tally book and pencil and began taking down names.

Charlie See raced to Perrault's door a little before eleven. He slipped in without a summons, he closed the door behind him and leaned his back against it. The waiting men rose to meet him--Perrault, Maginnis, Preisser, and a fourth, whom Charlie did not know.

"Come on to the jail, Maginnis! The gang have closed up the Mermaid and they are now organizing their lynchin' bee. We've just time to beat 'em to it!"

"How many?" asked Perrault, reaching up for a rifle.

"You don't go, Perrault. This is no place for a family man."

"But, Spinal--"

"Shut up! No married man in this. Nor you, Preisser. You're too old.

Mr. See, this is Buck Hamilton. Shall we get someone else? Shaky Akins? Where's Lull?"

"Lull is asleep. Let him be. Worn out. Akins is--we've no time for Akins. Here's a plenty--us three, the jailer and Dines. Jailer all right, is he?"

"Any turn in the road. Do you usually tote three guns, young feller?"

"Two of these are momentums--no, mementos," said Charlie. "I've been spoiling the Egyptians. Spoiled some six or eight, I guess--and a couple more soured on the job. That'll keep. Tell you to-morrow. Let's go!"

"Vait! Vait!" said Preisser. "Go by my place--I'll gome vith you so far--science shall aid your brude force. Perrault and me, you say, ve stay here. Ve are not vit to sed in der vorevront of battles--vat?

Good! Then ve vill send to represend us my specimens. I haf two lufly specimens of abblied psygology, galgulated to haf gontrolling influence vith a mob at the--ah, yes!--the zoological moment! You vill see, you vill say I am quide righdt! Gome on!"

"And they aim to get here sudden and soon?" Mr. George Gwinne smiled on his three visitors benevolently. "That's good. We won't have long to wait. I hate waiting. Bad for the nerves. Well, let's get a wiggle.

What you got in that box, Spinal? Dynamite?"

Spinal grinned happily.

"Ho! Dynamite? My, you're the desprit character, ain't you? Dynamite?

Not much. Old stuff, and it shoots both ways. We're up-to-date, we are. This here box, Mr. Gwinne--we have in this box the last straw that broke the camel's back. Listen!"

He held up the box. Gwinne listened. His smile broadened. He sat down suddenly and--the story hates to tell this--Mr. Gwinne giggled. It was an unseemly exhibition, particularly from a man so large as Mr.

Gwinne.

"Going to give Dines a gun?" inquired Hamilton.

Mr. Gwinne wiped his eyes. "No. That wouldn't be sensible. They'd spring a light on us, see Dines, shoot Dines, and go home. But they don't want to lynch us and they'll hesitate about throwing the first shot. We'll keep Dines where he is."

He led the way to Johnny's cell. The conversation had been low-voiced; Johnny was asleep. Gwinne roused him.

"Hey, Johnny! When is your friend coming to break you out?"

"Huh?" said Johnny.