"I don't know," replied the other; "and, what is more, I don't care.

What could have become of that rascal Beppo; and why don't he bring out those horses? that's what's troubling me. If we don't find him very soon, our plans will all be knocked in the head."

The men seemed to be very much concerned about the young Mexican, and that was a point in Archie's favor; for they did not remain long at the door, but set out in search of him. Archie watched the light through the grated door until it disappeared, and then began to question his prisoner.

"What's up here, any how?" he demanded. "What did those men want you to do?"

"Nothing," replied Beppo.

"Yes they did. You can't fool me, for I am better posted than you think I am. Where do you suppose those keys are?"

"I don't know."

"Well, I do; and I know, too, that those men promised you a revolver for doing some work for them."

"Who told you so?" asked Beppo, more astonished than ever.

"No matter. I have a way of finding out such things. What did those men want you to do? No fooling, now."

Beppo felt the muzzle of the pistol again, and the secret came out all at once.

"They wanted me to bring those two horses out of the stable for them,"

said he. "They are tired of staying here, and want to go away. They intend to take the Don's money, too--the gold he keeps in his bed-room. They want the gray and black horses because they are the swiftest in the country; and if they are followed, they can't be caught."

"Well," said Archie, when his prisoner paused, "go on, and tell me what else you know."

Beppo knew a good deal, and it took him some time to tell it; but Archie, impatient as he was, listened attentively to all he had to say--not because he was curious to learn something of the every-day life of the robbers, but for the reason that he hoped his prisoner would let fall some item of information that would a.s.sist him in making his escape from the rancho. He learned that Beppo was the stableboy, and that it was a part of his duty to bring out the "gray and black" every evening, at sunset, for two of the Rancheros, who mounted them and rode off somewhere; and the next morning Beppo would find two or three, and sometimes half a dozen, strange horses in the stable. The stolen nags were driven into Texas every week, and sold there; and the reason why Roderick and King James had been kept, was because they were known to be very fleet, and the robbers wanted to use them. One piece of information that greatly astonished Archie was, that, although there were fifty men on the Don's rancho, they did not number a third of the band. The others were scattered all over the southern part of the State, and were employed as herdsmen by the farmers, who little suspected that they were in league with the robbers. Beppo said there were some on Mr. Winters's rancho, but he did not know who they were. Their business was to send the Don, who was chief of the band, any information they might gain concerning the fast horses on their own and neighboring ranchos, and Pedro and another herdsman would go out and steal them. These two men did all the stealing; and Archie judged from Beppo's description of their exploits that they were very expert at the business. They always rode Roderick and King James, and the swift animals brought them home in safety, in spite of the most desperate attempts that had been made to capture them.

The keys to the stable and to all the rooms in the underground part of the rancho, were kept in the Don's bed-room. One of the discontented members of the band had stolen them, and, as he supposed, given them to Beppo, whom he had hired with the promise of a revolver to bring the horses out about half an hour before the usual time. When the mutineers saw the horses in the court, they were to make a sudden raid on their employer's bed-room, secure as much gold as they could carry, and then rush out, jump into their saddles, and leave the rancho with all possible speed.

Archie was silent for some minutes after Beppo ceased speaking. He was thinking what a skillful manager the Spaniard must have been to have successfully conducted the operations of so extensive an organization, without even exciting suspicion. And what astonishing impudence the old fellow had, too! Archie remembered that upon one occasion, during a general hunt after the horse-thieves, in which the Don had taken an active part, he had invited a dozen men and boys to his rancho, and served them up an excellent dinner. What would those guests have thought if they had known that they were being entertained by the chief of the very robbers they were trying to hunt down? And to think, too, that some of the band were employed on his uncle's rancho--that he had seen them every day, and talked and ridden with them! Archie told himself that there would be some exciting times in the settlement before all these robbers could be brought to justice, and the probabilities were that somebody would get hurt. He did not care how soon the fight began, for then he would have a chance to take satisfaction out of somebody for stealing his horse. Archie pondered upon these things, until it occurred to him that it would be a good plan for him to effect his escape before he began his war upon the robbers, and this thought once more aroused him to a sense of his situation.

"Where did these mutineers intend to go?" he asked, at length.

"To Texas," replied Beppo.

"Well, they sha'n't do it--that's settled. Before I will allow them to take these horses out of the country, I will hunt up the Don and blow the whole thing."

"O, don't do that," pleaded the prisoner, who seemed terror-stricken at the bare thought. "He will shoot me."

"I wouldn't like to have you shot, Greaser," replied Archie, "but I tell you that my horse is not going to Texas. There is one way in which you can save yourself, and that is by leading me out of this hole by the safest and most direct route. Then the Don need know nothing about it; but just as surely as I am captured down here, I'll repeat to him every thing you have said to me."

"I can't lead you out," replied Beppo. "The doors are all locked."

"We don't care if they are. I've got the keys."

"You! Santa Maria!"

"It's a fact," answered Archie; "but how I got them I need not now stop to explain. What do you say, Greaser? Will you show me the way out?"

"Yes," gasped the young Mexican, who knew, from the peremptory manner in which the pistol was pressed against his head, that it was dangerous to hesitate longer. "Don't shoot! I will."

"That's all right," said Archie. "Now, to put it out of your power to play any tricks upon me, I shall tie your hands behind your back with your own sash--so. Then I will take mine, and pa.s.s it around your ankles, in this way."

"I can't walk, if you do that," interrupted Beppo; "and if I can't walk, how can I show you the way out?"

"Don't you be uneasy. I sha'n't draw the sash tight enough to interfere much with your walking; but if you try to run, it is probable that you will be tripped up very suddenly. Now, then," he continued, after he had satisfied himself that his prisoner was secure, and that he could not possibly free himself from his bonds, "stand here until I put the saddles on those horses. Who's that?"

At this moment heavy footsteps sounded on the floor overhead, and a light suddenly flashed down into the stable. Archie looked up, and saw a pair of feet descending a ladder, leading down from a small trap-door which opened into the apartment over the stable. Shortly afterward a villainous looking Ranchero came in sight, and holding his lantern at arm's length before him, stooped down and glanced all around the stable, as if he were looking for some one. Archie was so badly frightened that he could not move; and his alarm increased, and his heart seemed to stop beating, when the man's eyes, after roving all about the stable, rested on his face. This was the time to test his disguise.

"Beppo," said the Mexican, in a gruff voice, "bring out the horses."

As he spoke he placed his lantern upon one of the steps of the ladder, and ascended out of sight through the trap-door.

CHAPTER X.

ARCHIE MAKES A BOLD DASH.

"Who was that?" whispered Archie, in a trembling voice.

"Pedro," replied the young Mexican.

"What did he want?"

"He told me to bring up the gray and black; he is going out to steal horses, now," said Beppo, with the same indifference he would have manifested if he had said that Pedro was about to drive up a herd of cattle.

For a moment Archie stood, almost without breathing, looking up at the trap-door through which the Ranchero had disappeared. His heart beat so fast and furiously that he was almost afraid the man might hear it, and come back to see what was the matter. At first he did not know what to do; but, after a few seconds' reflection, the details of a scheme which he had matured while Beppo was telling him about the plans of the mutineers, flashed through his mind, and he began to bestir himself.

Since he entered the stable and found his horse there, he had more than once told himself that if he could only contrive some way to get the animal above ground, he could laugh at all the Rancheros in Southern California. He would jump on his back, and go through the court, and out of the gate, at a rate of speed that would make Don Carlos and his band of rascals wonder; but the difficulty was to get the horse up there without being obliged to answer questions. As far as his disguise was concerned, he was not at all uneasy. He was so nearly Beppo's size that the jacket fitted him exactly; and his journey across the plains, and constant exposure to the hot sun, had tanned his face until it was almost as brown as an Indian's. It was just the color of Beppo's--not quite so dirty, of course, but that was something the Mexicans would not be likely to notice. Besides, Archie was a capital mimic, and he knew that, if he was questioned, he could imitate his prisoner's way of talking, Spanish tw.a.n.g and all. He had the keys, too, with which he could open any doors he might find in his way; but suppose he should meet some of the band, and they should ask him where he was going, and what he intended to do with the horses--what reply could he make? Now, however, he had no fears on that score. Pedro had made every thing easy for him. Mistaking him for Beppo, he had ordered him to bring up the horses; and if he met any one who took an interest in his movements, he would know how to answer them.

"I'll soon be out of here," said Archie, to himself; "and when I once find myself fairly in that court, won't I astonish these Greasers?

Uncle said this morning that if we could shoot Old Davy and arrest the horse-thieves, he would be glad of it. We've finished the grizzly, and if we can't capture the robbers, we will at least have the satisfaction of knowing that we have broken up the band, and got our horses back. But I believe we can gobble up every one of them. When I get home I'll tell Carlos to send out uncle's herdsmen, and we will arouse the settlement, and raise a crowd of men, and come here and storm the rancho. I'll have a chance then to see a fight and smell powder."

Many a time, while talking over the particulars of the battle which had taken place years before at Mr. Winters's rancho, Archie had expressed the hope that another band of freebooters would turn up before he left California, and make a second attack on the building.

He had pa.s.sed through a fight with hostile Indians; had heard the whistle of their bullets and arrows; and he thought that all that was needed to complete the list of his adventures, was the opportunity of taking part in a siege of a week or two. If every thing worked according to his calculations, it was probable that his wish would be gratified. How the robbers would fight when they found their stronghold surrounded by the settlers; and what desperate attempts they would make to cut their way out! How the rifles would crack! and how d.i.c.k Lewis and Bob Kelly would yell and exult at finding themselves once more in their natural element! Archie became highly excited over the prospect.

Archie's first care was to provide for the safe keeping of his prisoner, which he did by binding his handkerchief over his mouth, and pushing him under Roderick's manger, where he tied him fast; Beppo submitting to the operation without a murmur. His next work was to prepare the horses for their plundering expedition, which he had fully determined should not prove a success that night. A saddle, which hung upon a peg close at hand, was soon strapped on the mustang's back; but when Archie had slipped the bridle over his head, a thought struck him, and he stopped and looked reflectively down at his prisoner.

"I shall have to untie this fellow again," said he, "for I don't know which way to go. These pa.s.sage-ways run about in every direction, and I might get lost; then, if some of the band should meet me, they would know in a minute that I wasn't Beppo. Whoa, there! Where are you going, Roderick?"

While Archie was talking to himself, the mustang backed out of his stall, and walked quietly to the grated door at the farther end of the stable, where he stopped, and seemed to be waiting for some one to come and let him out. He had become quite familiar with his new quarters; and Archie knew then that he had only to let Roderick take his own course, and he would lead him straight to the court. He quickly put the saddle on his own horse, and he also backed out of his stall, and took his stand beside Roderick, in front of the grated door. So far every thing was working to Archie's satisfaction; but the dangerous part was yet to come, and he trembled when he thought of it.

He carefully examined his revolver, hid his bowie-knife in his boot, and put the pistols, which he had found on the table, into his trousers' pockets. Then he pulled out his bunch of keys, picked up the lantern, and started toward the door. He regretted an instant afterward that he had not left the lantern; for as he glanced toward the door, he saw a face pressed close against the bars, and a pair of eyes glaring at him with a most ferocious expression. Archie stopped suddenly, undecided how to act. Had the man penetrated his disguise?

That question was quickly answered to his satisfaction by the Ranchero, who clenched his hand and shook it at him, saying, in a savage whisper:

"You haven't heard the last of this, my young friend. I'll settle with you as soon as you have taken those horses up."