Fifteen Western Tales, January 1953 — page 26: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

2%6 | FIFTEEN WESTERN TALES cabin, he saw three horses and knew that one of them was Les Gunther’s grulla dun. The horses stood spread legged, heads down. They had been ridden to death and that ex- plained to him the reason for Les Gunther’s stop here at the line shack. “Why in the devil didn’t you give him horses, if that’s what he wanted?” Chet thought fiercely. “Why did you have to get mixed up in this?” He saw a man run from one cover to an- other out there in the corral and he thought he recognized the man as Metzger. Chet jerked his rifle from the saddle boot, shoved in a shell and rode straight in toward the cabin, intending to thrust himself between the cabin and the men there in the corral. At that moment Les Gunther and Kraft broke from cover and ran straight toward the cabin, crouched low, ducking from side to side. There was no answering fire from the cabin and Chet remembered with a sick- ening realization that he had let Jane Bryan give him the only rifle. Big Sam had a six- shooter and probably not much ammunition. Chet saw Gunther and Kraft plunging their shoulders against the flimsy door as he raced toward them and he was positive ne heard a woman scream. Chet threw himself from his horse, ripping open the old wound in his shoulder. He felt the throbbing pain of it, felt the blood seeping through his shirt. He ran on foot, the rifle still gripped in his hand, and now he was yelling Les Gunther’s name. Gunther half turned and in that second, the door opened and Big Sam came rushing through, his tremendous fists flailing. “Stand back, Sam,” Chet yelled, unable to fire now for fear of -hitting Sam. But Big Sam didn’t. hear. Miss Jane was in danger and Big Sam knew only one thing to do. Chet saw the big man’s hands lock around Kraft’s neck. He saw Kraft jerked from the ground and swung from side to side and then Sam threw him half way across the yard. Kraft lit in a crumpled heap, his neck broken, and Sam turned toward Les Gunther. . There was a muffled sound of a pistol shot and Sam kept pushing forward, bearing Gunther down to the ground, still fighting with every ounce of breath that was in him. Chet heard Gunther scream. There were two shots from the corral and dust puffed from Big Sam’s shirt as the bullets tore into him. Big Sam got to his feet and Les Gunther darted inside the cabin. There were three more shots from the corral and Big Sam stood there, taking the lead, shaking like.a tree under an ax with each smash of a bullet. He seemed to be totally blind and totally unable to realize his position. He started to walk directly toward the rifle there in the corral. mined gait that became a long shuffle and Chet could stand it no longer. He too started running toward the corral, calling Sam’s name. | Bullets kicked around Chet’s feet and now Big Sam had reached the corral fence. He tried to climb it. He got one foot on the bottom rail and that was as far as he could go. He fell that way and hung across the fence, his feet touching on one side, his finger tips touching on the other. Chet threw him- self flat on the ground and started firing, reloading, firing again. He had never known he was capable of the savage rage that was in him now. There was the sound of furious Struggling | inside the cabin but no shots from that di- rection. Over in the corral, Metzger was fighting to keep cover behind a double cor- ner post. Chet saw the man’s shoulder. He snapped to his feet, threw the heavy Springfield to his shoulder and fired. Metzger spun out from behind the post, gripping his shoulder, and Chet fired again. Metzger fell and Chet loaded and deliberately put another shot into the man’s body before running toward the cabin. Les Gunther had knocked Jane to the floor. At the sound of the door flinging open, he whirled to face Chet,.a gun in his hand. Chet swung the rifle barrel and crashed it across Gunther’s shoulder. The impact knocked the six-shooter out of Gunther’s hand and in the second he was off balance, Chet swung the rifle again. This time Gunther was ready. He reached up and gripped the rifle barrel and twisted savagely, tearing it out of Chet’s single hand grip. Chet’s left arm hung uselessly at his side. An evil grin distorted Les Gunther’s face. He came rushing in and Jane, there on the floor, reached out and gripped one of his ankles. Gunther fell hard and Chet was on top of him, slugging with his right fist, beating at the face of the man who had turned a dream into senseless slaughter. Coniiclboooks.c© He walked with a steady, deter- | inn