by B. M. Bower
CHAPTER XII. THE WILD-GOOSE CHASE
Because they had no human means of knowing anything about the blackautomobile that bad whirled across the mesa to the southeast and leftits mysterious passengers in one of the arroyos that leads into theSandias Mountains near Coyote Springs, nine cowpuncher deputy-sheriffsbored their way steadily through sun and wind and thirst, traveling duenorthwest, keeping always on the trail of the six horses that traveledsteadily before them Always a day's march behind, always watchinghopefully for some sign of delay--for an encouraging freshness in thetracks that would show a lessening distance between the two parties,Luck and his Happy Family rode--from dawn till dusk, from another dawnto another dusk. Their horses, full of little exuberant outbursts ofhorse-foolishness when they had left town, settled clown to a dogged,plodding half walk, half trot which is variously described upon therange; Luck, for instance, calling it poco-poco; while the Happy Familytermed it running-walk, trail-trot, fox-trot--whatever came easiest totheir tongues at the time. Call it what they pleased, the horses came toa point where they took the gait mechanically whenever the country wasdecently level. They forgot to shy at strange objects, and they neverdanced away from a foot lifted to the stirrup when the sky was flauntinggorgeous bantiers to herald the coming of the sun. More than once theywere thankful to have the dust washed from their nostrils and to letthat pass for a drink. For water holes were few and far between whenthey struck that wide, barren land ridged here and there with hills ofrock.
Twice the trail of the six horses was lost, because herds of cattle hadpassed between those who rode in baste before, and those who followed inhaste a day's ride behind. They saw riders in the distance nearlyevery day, but only occasionally did any Indians come within speakingdistance. These were mostly headed townward in wagons and rickety oldbuggies, with the men riding dignifiedly on the spring seat and thesquaws and papooses sitting flat in the bottom behind. These familyparties became more and more inclined to turn and stare after the HappyFamily, as if they were puzzling over the errand that would take ninemen riding close-grouped across the desert, with four pack-horses toproclaim the journey a long one.
When the trail swung sharply away from the dim wagon road and into thenorthwest where the land lay parched and pitiless under the hot sun, theHappy Family hitched their gun-belts into place, saw to it that theircanteens were brimming with the water that was so precious, and turneddoggedly that way, following the lead of Applehead, who knew the countryfairly well, and of Luck, who did not know the country, but who knewthat he meant to overhaul Ramon Chavez and Bill Holmes, go where theywould, and take them back to jail. If they could ride across this barrenstretch, said Luck to Applehead, he and his bunch could certainly followthem.
"Well, this is kinda takin' chances," Applehead observed soberly,"unless Ramon, he knows whar's the water-holes. If he does hit waterregular, I calc'late we kin purty nigh foller his lead. They's thingsI don't like about the way this here trail is leading out this way, nowI'm tellin' yuh! Way we're goin', we'll be in the Seven Lakes country'fore we know it. Looks to me like them greasers must stand in purtywell with the Navvies--'n' if they do, it'll be dang hard pullin' to git'em away 'n! outa here. 'N' if they don't stand in, they'd oughta boremore west than what they're doin'. Looks dang queer to me, now I'mtellin' ye!"
"Well, all I want is to overtake them. We'll do it, too. The littlegrain these horses get is showing its worth right now," Luck cheeredhim. "They're keeping up better than I was afraid they would. We'vegot that advantage--a Mexican don't as a rule grain his horses, and thechances are that Ramon thought more about the gold than he did aboutcarrying horse-feed. We can hold on longer than he can, Applehead."
"We can't either," Applehead disputed, "because if Ramon takes a notionhe'll steal fresh horses from the Injuns."
"I thought you said he stood in with the Injuns," Weary spoke up fromthe ambling group, behind. "You're kinda talkin' in circles, ain't you,Applehead?"
"Well, I calc'late yuh jest about got to talk in circles to gitanywheres near Ramon," Applehead retorted, looking back at the others."They's so, dang many things he MIGHT be aimin' to do, that I ain't beenright easy in my mind the last day or two, and I'm tellin' ye so. 'Slike a storm--I kin smell trouble two days off; that's mebby why I'mstill alive an' able to fork a boss. An' I'm tellin' you right now, Ikin smell trouble stronger'n a polecat under the chicken-house!"
"Well, by cripes, let 'er come!" Big Medicine roared cheerfully,inspecting a battered plug of "chewin'" to see where was the mostinviting corner in which to set his teeth. "Me'n' trouble has lockedhorns more'n once, 'n' I'd feel right lonesome if I thought our trails'dnever cross agin. Why, down in Coconino County--" He went off into along recital of certain extremely bloody chapters in the history ofthat famed county as chronicled by one Bud Welch, otherwise known as BigMedicine--and not because of his modesty, you may be sure.
Noon of that day found them plodding across a high, barren mesa under aburning sun. Since red dawn they had been riding, and the horses showedtheir need of water. They lagged often into a heavy-footed walk andtheir ears drooped dispiritedly. Even Big Medicine found nothingcheerful to say. Luck went out of his way to gain the top of everylittle rise, and to scan the surrounding country through his fieldglasses. The last time he came sliding down to the others his facewas not so heavy with anxiety and his voice when he spoke had a newbriskness.
"There's a ranch of some kind straight ahead about two miles," heannounced. "I could see a green patch, so there must be water aroundthere somewhere. We'll make noon camp there, and maybe we can dig up alittle information. Ramon must have stopped there for water, and we'llfind out just how far we are behind."
The ranch, when they finally neared it, proved to be a huddle oflow, octagon-shaped huts (called hogans) made of short cedar logs andplastered over with adobe, with a hole in the center of the lid-likeroof to let the smoke out and a little light in; and dogs, that ran outand barked and yelped and trailed into mourning rumbles and then barkedagain; and half-naked papooses that scurried like rabbits for shelterwhen they rode up; and two dingy, shapeless squaws that disappearedwithin a hogan and peered out at one side of the blanket door.
Luck started to dismount and make some attempt at a polite request forwater, and for information as well, but Applehead objected and finallyhad his way.
If the squaws could speak English, he argued, they would lie unless theyrefused to talk at all. As to the water, if there was any around theplace the bunch could find it and help themselves. "These yer Navviesain't yore Buffalo-Bill Sioux," he pointed out to Luck. "Yuh can't treat'em the same. The best we kin look fer is to be left alone--an' I'mtellin' ye straight."
Luck gave the squalid huts a long stare and turned away toward thecorral and a low shed that served as a stable. A rusty old mower and atoothless rake and a rickety buckboard stood baking in the sun, and afew stunted hens fluttered away from their approach. In the corral amangy pony blinked in dejected slumber; and all the while, the threedogs followed them and barked and yapped and growled, until Pink turnedin the saddle with the plain intention of stopping the clamor with abullet or two.
"Ye better let 'em alone!" Applehead warned sharply, and Pink put up hisgun unfired and took down his rope.
"The darned things are getting on my nerves!" he complained, and wheeledsuddenly in pursuit of the meanest-looking dog of the three. "I canstand a decent dog barking at me, but so help me Josephine, I draw theline at Injun curs!"
The dog ran yelping toward the hogans with Pink hard at its heelsswinging his loop menacingly. When the dog, with a last hysterical yelp,suddenly flattened its body and wriggled under a corner of the shed,Pink turned and rode after the others, who had passed the corral andwere heading for the upper and of a small patch of green stuff thatlooked like a half-hearted attempt at a vegetable garden. As he passedthe shed an Indian in dirty overalls and gingham shirt craned his neckaround the doorway and watched him malevolently; but Pink, sighting thegreen patch and rememb
ering their dire need of water, was kickinghis horse into a trot and never once thought to cast an eye over hisshoulder.
In that arid land, where was green vegetation you may be sure there waswater also. And presently the nine were distributed along a rod ortwo of irrigating ditch, thankfully watching the swallows of water gosliding hurriedly down the outstretched gullets of their horses thatleaned forward with half-bent, trembling knees, fetlock deep in the wetsand of the ditch-banks.
"Drink, you sons-uh-guns, drink!" Weary exclaimed jubilantly, "you'vesure got it coming--and mama, how I do hate to see a good horsesuffering for a feed or water, or shelter from a storm!"
They pulled them away before they were satisfied, and led them back towhere green grass was growing. There they pulled the saddles off and letthe poor brutes feed while they unpacked food for themselves.
"It'll pay in the long run," said Luck, "to give them an hour here. I'llpay the Injuns for what grass they eat. Ramon must have stopped hereyesterday. I'm going up and see if I can't pry a little informationloose from those squaws and papooses. Come on, Applehead--you can talk alittle Navvy; you come and tell 'em what I want."
Applehead hesitated, and with a very good reason. He might, for all heknew, be trespassing upon the allotment of a friend or relative ofsome of the Indians he had been compelled to "get" in the course of hisduties as sheriff. And at any rate they all knew him--or at least knewof him.
"Aw, gwan, Applehead," Happy Jack urged facetiously, sure that Appleheadhad tried to scare him with tales of Indians whose pastoral pursuitsproclaimed aloud their purity of souls. "Gwan! You ain't afraid of acouple of squaws, are yuh? Go on and talk to the ladies. Mebby yuh mightwin a wife if yuh just had a little nerve!"
Applehead turned and glowered. But Luck was already walking slowlytoward the hogans and looking back frequently, so Applehead contentedhimself by saying, "You wait till this yere trip's over, 'fore ye git sodang funny in yore remarks, young man!" and stalked after Luck, hitchinghis six-shooter forward as he went.
At the shed, the Indian who had peered after Pink stood in the doorwayand stared unwinkingly as they came up. Applehead glanced at him sharplyfrom under his sorrel eyebrows and grunted. He knew him by sight wellenough, and he took it for granted that the recognition was mutual. Buthe gave no sign of remembrance. Instead, he asked how much the Indianwanted for the grass the horses would eat in an hour.
The Indian looked at the two impassively and did not say anything atall; so Applehead flipped him a dollar.
"Now, what time did them fellows pass here yesterday?" Applehead asked,in the half Indian, half Mexican jargon which nearly all New MexicoIndians speak.
The Indian looked at the dollar and moved his head of bobbed hairvaguely from left to right.
"All right, dang ye, don't talk if ye don't feel like it," Appleheadcommented in wasted sarcasm, and looked at Luck for some hint of whatwas wanted next. Luck seemed uncertain, so Applehead turned toward theditch, and the food his empty stomach craved.
"No use tryin' to make 'em talk if they ain't in the notion," he toldLuck impatiently. "He's got his dollar, and we'll take what grassour hosses kin pack away in their bellies. That kinda winds up thetransaction, fur's I kin see."
"I wonder if another dollar--"
But Applehead interrupted him. "Another dollar might git him warmed upso's he'd shake his danged head twicet instid uh once't," he assertedpessimistically, "but that's all you'd git outa him. That thar buckain't TALKIN' today. Yuh better come an' eat 'n' rest yer laigs. If hetalked, he'd lie. We're a heap better off jest doin' our own trailin'same as we been doin. That bunch come by here; the tracks show that. Ifthey went on, the tracks'll show where they headed fur. 'N' my idee isthat they'll take their time from now on. They don't know we're trailin''em up. I'll bet they never throwed back any scout t' watch the backtrail, In' they're in Navvy country now--whar they're purty tol'ble safeif they stand in with the Injuns. 'N' I'm tellin' yuh right now, Luck,I wisht I could say as much fer us!" Applehead lifted his hat and rubbedhis palm over his bald pate that was covered thickly with beads ofperspiration, as if his head were a stone jar filled with cold water."If we have to sep'rate, Luck, you take a fool's advice and keep yoredang eyes open. The boys, they think I been stringin' 'em along. Mebbyyou think so too, but I kin tell ye right now 't we gotta keep our dangeyes in our haids!"
"I'm taking your word for it, Applehead," Luck told him, lowering hisvoice a little because they were nearing the others. "Besides, I'veheard a lot about these tricky boys with the Dutch-cut on their hair.I'm keeping it all in mind don't worry. But I sure am going to overhaulRamon, if we have to follow him to salt water."
"Well, now, I ain't never turned back on a trail yit, fer want uh nerveto foller it," Applehead stated offendedly. "When I was shurf--"
The enlivened jumble of voices, each proclaiming the owner's hopes ordesires or disbelief to ears that were not listening, quite submergedApplehead's remarks upon the subject of his wellknown prowess when hewas "shurf." The Happy Family were sprawled in unwonted luxury on theshady side of an outcropping of rock from under which a little springseeped and made a small oasis in the general barrenness. They had shade,they Had water and food, and through the thin aromatic smoke of theircigarettes they could watch their horses cropping avidly the green grassthat meant so much to them. The knowledge that an hour later they wouldbe traveling again in the blazing heat of midday but emphasized theirpresent comfort. They were enjoying every minute to its full sixtyseconds. Laughter came easily and the hardships of the trail were pushedinto the background of their minds.
They were not particularly anxious over the success or failure ofLuck's trip to the hogans. They were on Ramon's trail (or so they firmlybelieved) and sooner or later they would overhaul him and Bill Holmes.When that happened they believed that they would be fully equal to theoccasion, and that Ramon and Bill and those who were with him wouldlearn what it means to turn traitor to the hand that has fed them, andto fling upon that hand the mud of public suspicion. But just now theywere not talking about these things; they were arguing very earnestlyover a very trivial matter indeed, and they got as much satisfaction outof the contention as though it really amounted to something.
When Luck had eaten and smoked and had ground his cigarette stub underhis heel in the moist earth beside the spring, and had looked at hiswatch and got upon his feet with a sigh to say: "Well, boys, let's go,"the Happy Family (who by the way must now be understood as includingLite Avery) sighed also and pulled their reluctant feet toward them andgot up also, with sundry hitchings-into-place as to gun-belts and sundryresettlings as to hats. They pulled their horses more reluctant eventhan their riders--away from the green grass; resaddled, recinched thepacks on the four animals that carried the camp supplies, gave them alast drink at the little irrigating ditch and mounted and straggled outagain upon the trail of the six whom they seemed never able to overtake.
They did not know that the silent Indian with the dingy overalls and thebobbed hair had watched every movement they made. Through all that hourof rest not even a papoose had been visible around the hogans--which,while there was nothing warlike in their keeping under cover, was notexactly a friendly attitude. Applehead had kept turning his keen, brightblue eyes that way while he ate and afterwards smoked an after-dinnerpipe, but when they were actually started again upon the trail heappeared to lay aside his misgivings.
Not even Applehead suspected that the Indian had led a pony carefullydown into a draw, keeping the buildings always between himself andthe party of white men; nor that he watched them while they spread outbeyond the cultivated patch of irrigated ground until they picked upthe trail of the six horses, when they closed the gaps between them andfollowed the trail straight away into the parched mesa that was linedwith deep washes and canons and crossed with stony ridges where the heatradiated up from the bare rocks as from a Heating stove when the fire isblazing within. When they rode away together, the Indian ran back intothe draw, mounted his pon
y and lashed it into a heavy, sure-footedgallop.