CHAPTER XX
BATTLE ON THE MESA
"Oh, the cowboy sings so mournful on the Rio! To the dark night herd, so mournful and so sad, And I'd like to be in the moonlight on the Rio, Wheah good men are good, and bad men are bad!"
Kid Wolf sang the tune softly to the whispering wind, as the trioclimbed under a New Mexican moon to the top of a vast mesa.
"Guess yuh'll find some plenty bad ones here in Skull County, eh, Kid?"laughed Red grimly.
The Texan, brightly outlined on his beautiful horse in the moonlight,looked like a ghost on a moving white shadow.
"Bad men," mused Kid Wolf, "aren't so plentiful. Usually theah's somegood in the blackest. The men we're goin' to fight to-night, fo'instance, are probably just driftahs who've drifted the wrong way. ButGentleman John--well, he's one of the few really bad men I've met.He's really the one we want."
The splendor of the night had a sobering effect on them. To bethinking of possible bloodshed in all that dream beauty seemedterrible. Yet it was necessary. It was a hard land. A man had to behis own law. And in Kid Wolf's case, he had to be the law for others,in a fight for the weak against the strong.
"Listen!" cried Lefty suddenly.
"And look!" whispered Red. "See those black dots against the sky overthere? And there's a camp fire, too."
He was right. The glow of a fire reddened the horizon and the distantbawling of uneasy cattle could be heard on the night wind.
The rustlers had made a camp on the mesa until the dawn. The big herdwas shifting, restless and milling.
"A gun fight will stampede that herd," observed Red.
"Then," said The Kid, "we'll be sure to stampede them in the rightdirection. Let's make a wide circle heah."
They rode to the west, so that they would not be outlined against themoon. A full, curving mile slipped under their horses' pounding hoofsbefore The Kid gave the signal for the turn. He had the outlawsspotted, every one, and all depended now on his generalship. He knewthat the two riders on the far side of the night herd would be out ofit--for the time, at least. When the herd started their mad stampedetoward the Diamond D, they would have a high time just taking care ofthemselves. The others, five in number, would be dealt with first.
The trio slipped closer as silently as moving phantoms. The Kid sawthree mounted men--two blocking their path, and the other on the farwing. Two other outlaws were at the fire. The Texan sniffed andsmiled. They were making coffee.
"The two at the fiah make excellent tahgets," murmured Kid Wolf. "I'llleave them to yo', Red. Lefty, start now and ride toward the fahridah. I'll try mah hand with these two. We'll count to fifty, Lefty;that'll give yo' time to get in range of yo' man. And then I'll givethe coyote yell, and we'll start ouah little row. Don't kill unlessnecessary, but if they show fight, shoot fast."
Lefty grinned in the moonlight, roweled his horse lightly and drifted.Red and the Texan waited--ten seconds--twenty--thirty--forty----
"_Yipee yip-yipee-ee!_" The coyote cry rose, mournful and lonely.
Then came a terrific rattle of gunfire, with the dull drum of horses'hoofs as a bass accompaniment. Red spurred his horse toward the fire,shouting his battle cry and throwing down on the two startled men wholeaped to their feet, reaching for their guns. Kid Wolf's great whitecharger burned the breeze at the two guards on the west wing.
"Throw up yo' hands!" The Kid invited.
But they didn't. Lead began to hum viciously. Bending low in theirsaddles, they drew and opened up a splattering fire. Their guns winkedred flashes.
Lefty's man had shown fight, Lefty had bowled him over with a doubletrigger pull, and Lefty came racing back to help Red with the tworustlers at the camp fire.
There were fireworks, and plenty of them! The herd, mad with fear,started moving away--a frantic rush that became a wild stampede. Theirplunging bodies milled about, and with uplifted tails and tossinghorns, they were on the run northward toward the home range--theDiamond D!
Although it was a case of shoot or be killed now, The Kid was aiming tocripple. A leaden slug burned a flesh wound just below his leftarmpit, as he opened up on the two rustlers. His gun hammers stuttereddown, throwing bullets on both sides of him, as he drove Blizzardbetween his two enemies at full tilt. One, raked with lead throughboth shoulders, thudded from his pony to the ground. The other leanedover his saddle and dropped his Colt. Two bullets, a few inches apart,had nipped his gun arm.
The two rustlers at the fire were giving trouble. They had dashed outof the dangerous firelight and had opened up on Lefty and Red. KidWolf's heart gave a little jump. Red was down! Lefty and one of thebandits were engaged in a hand-to-hand scuffle, for Warren's horse hadbeen shot under him. The other outlaw had lifted his gun to finishRed, who was crawling along the ground. The range was a good fiftyyards, but Kid Wolf fired three times. The rustler standing over Reddropped. Lefty broke away from his man, just as The Kid rode up withlariat swinging.
"Don't shoot!" the Texan sang out. "I've got him!"
The rope hummed through the air, spread out and tightened. The last ofthe outlaws went off his feet with a jerk.
"One of 'em's runnin' away!" yelled Lefty, pointing to the man Kid Wolfhad shot through the arm. He was making a hot race in the direction ofSkull.
"Let him go," said The Kid. "We don't want him. See how bad Red'shurt."
Outlined against the eastern sky were three riders now, far away andbecoming rapidly smaller. The two north riders were making theirget-away, also. The victory was complete.
To their relief, Lefty and The Kid found that Red had received only aflesh wound above the knee.
Kid Wolf tied the man he had caught with his lariat, then caught Red'shorse and one of the loose outlaw ponies for Lefty.
"Now yo' ought to be able to ease those Diamond D cattle on home," hedrawled. "I'll see how yo' are makin' it in the mo'ning."
"Why, where are yuh goin'?" Red asked in surprise.
"Goin' after Gentleman John." Kid Wolf smiled. "How far is it to hisheadquartahs at Agua Frio?"
"About nine miles straight west, over the mesa. But say, yuh'd betterlet one of us go with yuh."
The Texan shook his head. "I'm playin' a lone hand, Red. Yo' job isto line out yo' steers and get 'em back to the Diamond D feedin'grounds. Adios, amigos!"
And Kid Wolf, on his fleet white horse, swung off to the westward.
Gentleman John sat up suddenly in his bed and opened his eyes. Themoon had gone down, and all was pitch dark. It was nearly morning.
He had heard something--for Gentleman John was a light sleeper. Helistened intently, then sat on the edge of his bed to draw on hisboots. The sound came again from the direction of the patio. Had hisman, Jose, forgotten to lock the gate? Surely he had heard the chainrattling! Some horse, no doubt, or possibly a mule, had strayed intothe little courtyard. Perhaps it was some of his men returning. Andyet hardly that, for they would not dare disturb him at such an hour,but would go to their quarters behind the house until daybreak.Tiptoeing to the door, he put his ear to it. He heard faint noises, asif some one were moving about.
"Jose!" Gentleman John called angrily. "What are yuh fumblin' at inthere? What's the matter? _Me oye usted?_"
There was no reply, and Gentleman John went to one corner of his room,scratched a sulphur match, and with its sputtering flame he lighted asmall lamp by his bedside. Then he slyly drew a derringer from underhis pillow. Again he went to the door, putting his hand on the knob.
"Jose! Come here!" he cried, with an oath.
The door swung open, and the lamplight shone on a human face--a facethat was not Jose's, but a stern white one with glinting blue eyes!
"Jose can't come," said a voice in a soft drawl. "He's tied up. Butif I will do as well, I am at yo' service, sah!"
The color fled from Gentleman John's amazed face.
"Kid Wolf!" he almost screamed, and at the words he whirled up
hisblack and ugly double-barreled pistol!
_Span-ng-g-g-g! Br-r-rang!_ Both barrels of the derringer exploded intwo quick roars. The leaden balls, however, went wild. A steel handhad closed lightning-swift on Gentleman John's right wrist.
"Be careful," the Texan mocked. "Yo' almost put out the lamp."
A terrific wrench made the bones pop in the cattle king's hand, andwith a yell of pain he let go. Kid Wolf took the derringer, empty now,and tossed it contemptuously to one side.
"I'm ashamed of yo'," he drawled, with a slow smile. "Yo' ought toknow bettah than to use a toy like that. Sit down on the bed, sah. Ihave a few things to say to yo'."
In his left hand The Kid held a big Colt .45. Gentleman John obeyed.
"My men will kill yuh fer this!" he raged.
"Yo' haven't any men, sah. They're done. And now yo' are done." KidWolf rolled a cigarette and lighted it over the lamp chimney."Gentleman John," he drawled, "whoevah named yo' suah had a sense ofhumah. Yo' are a murderah, and a cowardly one, because yo' have othahsdo yo' dirty work."
"Kill me and get it over!" jerked Gentleman John.
"Really, yo' shouldn't judge me by what yo' would do yo'self undah thecircumstances," said The Kid mildly. "I'm not heah to kill yo'. I'mheah to take yo' back to Skull fo' trial and punishment."
"Fer trial!" repeated the cattle king. "Why, there ain't any law----"
"I hope yo' don't think," drawled the Texan, "that I wasted the time Ispent in town. Theah's a new cattlemen's organization theah--andthey've decided on drastic measures."
"Yuh can't prove a thing!" Gentleman John shot at him loudly.
The Kid raised his eyebrows.
"No?" he said softly. "Yo' men slipped up a little and left evidencewhen they murdahed Joe Morton. They left the bill o' sale he wouldn'tsign! It'll go hahd with yo, but I'm givin' yo' one chance."
Kid Wolf glanced around the room, and his eyes fell on paper and pennear the lamp. Placing his gun at his elbow, within easy reach, theTexan wrote steadily for a full minute. Then he turned and handed thecattle king the slip of paper.
"Yo' through in Nueva Mex, Gentleman John," The Kid drawled. "It'sjust a question of who falls heir to yo' holdin's. Read that ovah."
The cattle king read it. It was brief, but to the point:
I, Gentleman John, do hereby give and hand over all my estates, land,holdings, and live stock to Red Morton, of Skull County, New Mexico,for consideration received.
"Theah's a bill o' sale fo' yo' to sign." The Texan smiled grimly.
"If I sign under pressure, it won't hold good," blustered GentlemanJohn.
"Yo' won't be in this country to contest it," Kid Wolf drawled. "Thiswon't in any way repay Red fo' the loss of his brothah, but it'ssomething. Yo' can do as yo' like about signin' it."
"Then of course I won't sign!" snarled the other.
"The honest cattlemen at Skull will probably hang yo'," reminded TheKid softly.
Beads of sweat suddenly stood out on Gentleman John's forehead. Hisown guilty conscience told him that what The Kid said was true. Hisgimlet eyes grew big with fear. There was a long silence.
"If--if I sign, yo'll let me go?" he quavered.
The Texan's face grew hard and stern.
"No," he said. "I haven't any right to do that. Justice demands thatyo' face the ones yo' have wronged. And justice has always been myguidin' stah. I'm a soldier of misfohtune, fightin' fo' the undahdawg. I'm takin' yo' to Skull, sah."
Gentleman John groaned in terror. All the blustering bravado had goneout of him.
"I can't promise yo' yo' life," Kid Wolf went on. "I can, howevah,recommend banishment instead of death, and mah word carries some weightin Skull, undah the new ordah of things. If yo' sign--thus doin' rightby Red Morton, whom yo' wronged--I'll do what I can to save yo' fromthe rope, but I can't promise that yo'll escape it. Are yo' signin'?"
Gentleman John moistened his lips feverishly, and his hand trembled ashe reached for the pen.
"I'll sign," he groaned.
When he had scratched his signature, Kid Wolf took the paper, folded itcarefully and put it in his pocket.
"_Bueno,_" he said softly. "Now get yo' hat and coat. I hate to robyo' of yo' sleep, but I have some othah prisonahs to round up to-night."
And while binding Gentleman John's wrists, Kid Wolf hummed a new verseto his favorite tune, "On the Rio."
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