Argosy All-Story Weekly, December 4, 1926 — page 43: what you’re looking at

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

EXCITEMENT TRAIL. Nothing happened, and finally Rusty went to the lodging house where he had en- gaged a room. “Mrs. Rusty Towers,” he muttered, grinning to himself at the sound of the words, as he pulled off his boots. ‘ Yes, sir, I’ve met her, and looks like the halter’s tied on me for fair. No more drifting around the range, footloose and free. But good gosh! Anybody’d be tickled pink to settle down with a girl like little Rose to keep him company. “ Dad Il sure be pleased to get the news. He’s always been after me to get married.” Rusty stretched out on his bed, but sleep did not come immediately. Before him he could still see two marvelous black eyes, in turn glowing with soft tenderness, like stars of a warm summer night, or sparkling in a roguish spirit of mischief; in his ears still sounded the entrancing cadences of a girlish voice, and musical laughter, that again and again recalled the tinkle of fall- ing water, high up in the majesty of the Panamints. The next day was a total loss for Rusty Towers. He wandered restlessly about like a lost soul, thinking only of the coming night—and Rosita. Never before in his life had the hours dragged so slowly. But all things have their end, and that wearisome day was no exception. ~ Nine thirty found Rusty seated in the little alcove, their trysting place. It oc- curred to him that Rosita might perhaps be ‘early, and he wished to be on the spot, waiting, when she arrived. Ten came, but no Rosita. ‘“ Probably had to hang around a little while longer till that dag-goned Aunt Maria of hers went to sleep,” he reasoned hope- fully. Relentlessly the minutes passed, while - Rusty, a prey to vague fears, consumed in- numerable cigarettes. By eleven these fears had reached the acute stage, for it now began to look quite definitely as if Rosita was not coming. ‘“Mebby something’s happened so she couldn’t get away to-night,” he mused gloomily. ‘‘ The hell of it is, there ain’t a thing I can do. Why, I don’t even know where she’s staying.” 3 A 353 At last a clock in a church tower some- where boomed midnight. Rusty was like a caged animal, and though reason told him that further waiting was useless, he still refused to leave the alcove. It was not until one thirty that he finally departed, a host of disquieting conjectures seething riotously through his brain. Of one thing only was he certain: Rosita had not deliberately played him false. 7 “She’d kept her promise,” he moodily told himself, ‘if she could. Something stopped her. Gosh, if I knew what it was!” About then a belated ray of hope came to Rusty, and feeble though it was, he clutched desperately at it. ‘““Mebby her dad stayed home himself, so Rosita didn’t have any chance for a sneak,” he reflected. “‘ That being the case, she'll get out when she can, day or night, and strike for the meeting place.on the chance that I’ll be there. Always assuming she really wants to see me again, and if I sized her up correctly she liked me fairly well. - Guess that’s my best and only bet. I'll hang around the little hole in the wall like steers about a water hollow in dry weather.” Rusty carried out this plan throughout the day, but results were zero. His hopes were high for the second night, but no slim, graceful little figure materialized magically from the shadows; no voice called softly to him: “ Rus-tee! Amigo mio!” In swiftly mounting panic Rusty realized how little he really knew of Rosita; he was. ignorant of where she lived; of her last name, even. Guarded inquiries among Mexicans of the town brought no information as to the identity of a certain Don Eugenio, who possessed a beautiful daughter. Either they did not know, or they refused to tell; which it was, made little vital difference. Baffled, blocked at every turn, Rusty’s desperation knew no bounds. ‘“ Why, I’ve just got to find her,” he mut- tered unhappily. The fiesta was over, and the border town settled down to its usual humdrum exist- ence; the influx of visitors had vanished overnight. (E@) JOOKS-C AMIE TE . ee ee 5 i. t : AVP ah BND at ‘Y ON Basle lt ia (f . 4 ,v mined £ A}, »> 9" Ri