"First you settles with the law, Bland. You roams free a long time with a good price on your head. I am sorry fer you, but I reckons you are due to stretch hemp."

Texas Bland actually laughed.

"Pete," he said, "the rope ain't made yet what hangs me."

"Your nerve is good, but I opine you're wrong this yere time. I has you, Bland, and I keeps you. I deliver you to them what wants you bad."

"That's all right, Pete," was the cool retort. "No hard feelings on my account, you understand. I takes my medicine when I has to, and so I swallows this all pleasant and smiling. Just the same, you mark what I tells you, the rope ain't made what hangs Texas Bland. I goes back a-looking for that red skunk later, and I pots him. When I gits a chance, I starts a lead mine in his carca.s.s. The idea of being fooled by a redskin galls me up a heap. But you don't tell me any how it happens you drops down thar and gathers us in just then."

"I am some acquainted with Frank Merriwell. I has done business for him before. When he comes sailing into Cottonwood and locates me, he says: 'Curry, I am up against it some, and I needs a.s.sistance.' 'I am yours to order,' says I. 'Whatever is a-doing?'

"Then he up and tells me that a gent with a whole lot of coin, what calls himself a money king, is trying to get possession of some new mines he has located. This gent, he says, has faked up a false charge against him and gives him a heap o' trouble. This gent's partner once tried mighty hard to get his paws on another mine belonging to Merriwell, and in the end he runs up against a bullet and lays down peaceful and calm. This gent's name were Sukes. The one what is a-bothering Merriwell now is Macklyn Morgan."

"You interest me a-plenty," nodded Bland. "Now, there were some gent behind this yere deal what says it pays us well if we seizes those mines. Just who it were that puts up the coin fer the job I didn't know for sure. All I knows is that it comes straight through a gent what I depends on, and the coin is in sight the minute we delivers the mines over. I reckons, Pete, the gent you speak of is the one what lays the job out fer us."

Curry nodded.

"Likely that's all correct, Bland. But he makes a big mistake if he thinks this yere Merriwell is easy. Merriwell is a fighter from 'Way Back."

"He is a whole lot young."

"In experience he is a whole lot old. Mebbe he don't grow whiskers much, but he gets there just the same. Whiskers don't always make the man, Bland. With all his money, this yere Sukes don't get ahead of Merriwell any. When Morgan he tackles the job he finds it just as hard or harder.

It does him no good to fake a charge that Merriwell shoots up Sukes."

"Where did this yere shooting happen, Pete?"

"Over yon in Snowflake."

Bland shook his head.

"Then it's ten to one he gits disturbed none fer it. If he proves conclusive this yere Sukes bothers him, why, supposing he did do the shooting, it convicts him of nothing but self-defense down in this yere country!"

"Sukes was a whole lot wealthy, you understand."

"All the same, I reckons it is pretty hard to put murder on a gent yereabouts in case he is defending his rights."

"That's so," nodded Curry, at the same time lifting his eyes and watching with interest several hors.e.m.e.n who now appeared far up the valley, riding toward them through the heat haze.

Bland noticed Curry's look and turned in the same direction.

"Who does you allow is coming?" he questioned, with repressed eagerness.

Instead of answering, Curry called to the men who were laboring in the bed of the creek.

"Oh, Bill! Oh, Abe! Come up yere right away."

The inflection of his voice indicated that something was wrong, and the two men hastened to join him.

Curry motioned toward the approaching hors.e.m.e.n.

"Mebbe we is troubled some," he observed. "We needs to be ready."

The hors.e.m.e.n came on rapidly. There were seven of them in all. Like Curry and his two companions, the captives watched the approaching men with no small amount of anxiety. As the hors.e.m.e.n drew near, having told Bill and Abe to watch the prisoners closely, Curry rode forward.

"Howdy, gents!" he called.

"Howdy!" returned one of the men. "Is that you, Curry?"

"Surest thing you know," said the deputy sheriff. "Somehow I don't seem to recall you any."

"That's none strange," said the spokesman of the party. "I am Gad Hackett. No particular reason why you should know me."

"Whatever are you doing yere?" inquired the officer suspiciously.

"Just making a short cut, leaving all trails, from Fulton to Oxboro."

"Say you so? Seems ter me you're hitting in the wrong direction."

"I reckon I know my course," returned Hackett. "I have traveled this section a-plenty. There seems to be a good bunch of you gents. Whatever are you a-doing?"

"We're holding up for water now," answered Curry evasively. "Mebbe you hurries right along? Mebbe you has no great time to waste?"

"We look some for water ourselves," returned the other man.

"Well, you has to look mighty sharp yereabouts. We digs our own water hole, and unfortunately we can't share it any. If you goes down the valley a mile or two, mebbe you finds a locality where water is easier to reach."

"Seems ter me you're some anxious to hurry us on," laughed Hackett.

"We're slightly tired, and I reckons we holds up for rest, water or no water."

"That being the case," said Curry, "let me give you some advice. Yander I has a few gents what are wanted for various little doings in different parts, and I am takin' pains careful-like to deliver them over. They're lawbreakers to the last galoot of the bunch. Mebbe you bothers them none. I does my duty."

"Oh--ho!" retorted Hackett, "so that's how the wind blows! Why, certain, Curry, we interferes none whatever with your business. Instead o' that, we helps you any we can in running in your bunch of bad men."

"Thanks," returned the deputy sheriff coolly. "So long as I am not bothered with, I needs no help."

Hackett laughed again.

"I see, pard," he said, "you counts on gathering in the reward money yourself, and proposes to divide it none. All right; you're welcome."

Then, with his companions, he again rode forward. Curry looked them over critically. In his eyes, with one or two exceptions, they appeared little different from the collection of ruffians who were his prisoners.

With them he recognized one man, at least, who had an unenviable reputation--a tall, pockmarked individual--no less a person than Spotted Dan.

There was in the party a man who seemed strangely out of place there.

His every appearance was that of a tenderfoot, while his face, with his shaven lips and iron-gray beard, looked like that of a stern old church deacon. Somehow this person interested Curry more than all the others.

He wondered not a little at the appearance of such a man in such a party.

"Who is the parsonish gentleman?" asked the deputy sheriff, as Hackett came up with him. He spoke in a low tone and jerked his hand slightly toward the tenderfoot.

"That?" said Hackett loudly. "Why, that is Mr. Felton Cleveland, a gentleman what is looking around some for mining property, and it is him we escorts to Oxboro. He engages us to see that he gets there all safe-like, and he is in a hurry."