Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 164: what you’re looking at

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

- rid! - dear! _ _“¥_J ain’t done up yet, honey!” Val- ~ jantly the Californian tried to rise, but Bo- _ -nita held tightly. : < eo = tS e < ef Atay. ai ~o y kata Nee ee agg etn TUE gee eT aes EAS eae ATA _ filtered through Link’s puffed lips. suspicion had assailed him. nails, Link had won some little reputation as a fighter in the past; but he was finding Sinclair a worthy foe. Once the foreman thought he heard Bonita’s voice screaming for them to stop, but he was too busy to pay any atten- tion. At the end of four or five minutes the foreman’s superior stamina began to tell. Sinclair’s blows lost force. Finally a sledge hammer left from Link tumbled him off his feet. Gamely he started to clamber up, and the foreman unsteadily tried to set him- self for a finishing wallop. ‘To his utter amazement then, a small fury flashed at him and two little fists beat against his battered visage. “You awful brute, you!” cried Bonita Barrymore. The next instant she was kneeling by ~ the side of Sinclair, who was too weak to rise. Her arms went about him. 7 “Oh, Ed!” she sobbed. ‘“‘ I’ve been hor- It’s all my fault! Please forgive me, 19? ‘Say, who is this hombre, Miss Bonita?” A dark “He is my iiusband!” flashed the girl. “ But—but ain’t yuhr name Barrymore and his Sinclair?” stammered the dazed foreman. “My name is really Sinclair. Bonita Barrymore is my old stage name, if I must explain to you.” “Reckon I made a big mistake, Miss— Missus Sinclair.. I’m plum’ sorry. J had no idea Ed Sinclair was yuhr hubby. None uv us at the ranch knowed it.” ““We had a terrible quarrel and sepa- ‘rated several months ago,” confessed Boni- ta, still at her Racbands side. ~‘‘ Both of us got foolishly mad, and I thought Ed most unreasonable—and he was. So I came to Dusty Creek and started giving dancing ~ lessons under my stage name. “First thing I knew Ed was working on your ranch. He’s always been jealous of me, and he used to ride in and tell me I must quit because all the wranglers were ° . << u —_—s Co eS + a eg ie Te ted a OE tone co Oe ees ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. in love with me. I was stubborn and wouldn’t listen, and then I guess he’d go and drink. _ “ However, I was pretty careful. I start- ed some of the cow hands working cross- word puzzles to keep them occupied. J couldn’t get you, though, and I was rather afraid of you. All the time following me with greedy eyes!” “T didn’t know yuh was married, darn it!” gulped poor Link. ‘Well, you’re to blame for a lot, any- way!” she accused. ‘‘ Ed was very angry about this dance to-night, because of all the talk over it around the ranch. He came to me this afternoon, saying he had quit. He wanted me to make up. I near- ly did, and then got mad again. All I did this evening was worry on account of it, and finally Ed came and saw me danc- ing with you. He got me outside and in his jealousy said some things that made me flare up. Next I knew he’d grabbed me and was running away. I don’t know where we were going, and I didn’t really care. But you had to follow and start a fight and—-”’ “T'll get even with him yet, honey!” Sin- clair mumbled. “Never you mind, dear!” Tenderly she patted his bruised features. ‘‘ I’ve learned my lesson, Ed. We won’t quarrel any more. As for you, you ranch bully, I hope I never see you again! I hate you!” There were several things the luckless Link might have said. But he combined them all into the one whole-souled phrase. “Oh, hell!” exclaimed the foreman of the Kickin’ K. Mounting Swiftfoot, he rode dejectedly away. Nor did he head the sorrel toward Dusty Creek. He had no desire to re- enter the dance hall in his present gory condition, and explain. He craved the soli- tude of the bunkhouse, for Bonita’s words had hurt him more than the fists of her husband. He was asleep when the four wranglers returned early Sunday morning, though it had taken him some time to drop off to slumber. Aware of swollen Gee an empurpled eye | ‘Comicboo <SuiGO