Adventure Magazine Cover — page 72: what you’re looking at

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

~~ You are wonderful,” he bested ~ Do you think so?” ‘she asked with level- eyed honesty that fairly took his breath aes ~ Before he could formulate an answer “Mr. Bradley aid me the money Mr. =: Sawyer owed us for the spring. He said _ there would be no more difficulty, and that ae Be it would be foolish for me not to take the _money. I should have been more economi- cal but I simply had to have some good s = clothes. Honestly, Dal, I’d have died if Td had to wear those rags another day.” — "You made the rags appear glorious,” Dal surprized himself by saying. : ae — x a. - _ pleasure. 2 _ “Why, Dal,” she smiled, “I never ex- - pected to hear anything like that from you.” "You are goin’ home?” he asked “7’m leaving on the two o’clock train,” _ Dal could find nothing to say. Va 5 TS a > ¢ ie 3; once?” she asked difidently. ‘Or will that _ trouble you told me about prevent it?” Ps Zz “No; I’m goin’ back to—to Topaz,” he Se ‘replied slowly. = “Dal, won’t you please take a half-in- a > the pleaded in that mine? It belongs to you,” e “No,” = smiled, and the corners of aS mouth were white, - ain’t got the “8 4 Ess ee least bit o’ use for money.” pe At noon Annamucca was given another ~ surprize when Pet Bradley rode into town _ with Tom Cutler under arrest. The de- ' tective lodged his prisoner in the jail and pe shottly before train time joined Dal and _ Vincie at the depot. The eyes of both men were hard and expressionless as they clashed. Vincie caught the hostility be- a tween them and puzzled vainly over what = itwasabout. — aan The train thundered up and Vincie 3 faced the two men for a final instant. ae -by, Dal,” she~ said, her eyes ‘ - luminous, “you must come and see me some time. 9? < = ‘There was much less cordiality in her tone as She added—‘And you, too, Mr. Bradley. ‘ ‘All aboard, ” sang out the conductor. The girls scrambled up the steps, and as - Vincie turned for a final good-by Dal saw a ~ that her Zak were full of tears. aa 2 he - that lovely ranch you told me about she ae ts: * 0 lle = aA = bag ae = Sec =e Gis a SG Be a = ii The girl did not try to conceal her _ “J—I wonder if you are going back to Adventure The train rolled away and Dal stood looking after it until it was only a blur against the smoky haze of the desert. - Suddenly Bradley touched him roughly onthearm. - “The parole is off,” he said curtly. go.” “Let’s CHAPTER XVIII A GRIM CHOICE NOSTENTATIOUSLY the detective removed Dal’s gun and slipped it into an extra holster on his own belt. “T’ve a notion to go through the hills to Topaz on them horses of yours.. If I knew you'd be good I would. What d’ye say?” “The first chance I git I’m gone,” Dal said promptly. ““Chances to git away is the one thing you shore ain’t a goin’ to git,” Bradley retorted with a suggestion of a smile on his straight gash of a mouth. “T don’t know—you ain’t showed any great amount of ability yet,” Dal jeered, determined to goad the man into going through the mountains if it were possible.’ _ There were no restrictions now on his try- ing to escape, and a great deal might happen in the three or four days they would be on trail. Bradley refused the bait. “I’ve sure enough had a winnin’ streak of luck which is a heap better than seis * he replied without rancor. “There has been other folks mixed up in it all the time before,” Dal reminded. ‘Now the issue lays between us two alone.”’ “You know,” Bradley said easily, “T could easy git somebody to help me take you through the mountains, an’ you wouldn't stand a ghost of a chance gittin’ away.” Dal’s disappointment showed keenly in his face. corollary that Dal was confident of his ability to escape if they were alone. .It touched his pride—his one susceptible feeling. “We'll go through the hills—alone,”’ he stated. Bradley was in no hurry to start. loafed around the town the rest of the day, seemingly two very good friends killing time together, but the detective’s eye was never entirely away from his prisoner, nor his hand far from his gun. 200 Bradley noted it at once, and its © They | (Co)