The Brand Burners of Cimarron — page 16: what you’re looking at

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to 14 “ Pity we didn’t use our guns. ter will shore kill somebody.” Dandy nodded, and uttered an oath. “ What’ll we do?” he asked. “Do? Wait till ther cap’n comes. Ef we stays hyar, we're safe; ef we wentures out, thar’s a chaince fer another tussle with thet critter. I reckon he dens byar, an’ so won’t go far.” Again Dandy nodded. Then he started and looked up. “ Noolan, you said something then,” he asserted. “‘ This madman is the chap who lives in the loft.” “4 P’r’aps.” “No, sure ! was coming home. and he attacked us. up there, after all !” ‘But ther woice, pard? like a goriller !” “Assumed, doubtless, to hold us off till the old man came.” “ Pard, yer argies like one o’ these hyar perfessors !”’ “We must look into the matter, at once, Noolan.” Noolan agreed. Seizing the gun barrel, Dandy thrust open the trap door. Then he placed ‘his hat on the muzzle, and slow- ly raised it just above the level of the loft floor. As anticipated, no shot answered the ruse. In another minute, the two out- laws had ascended the ladder and enter- ed the attic. “Hmpty !” grumbled Noolan, flashing the rays of *the lantern from side to side. “Just look at ther windy, over yon!” True enough! ‘The window was open, The birds had flown ! : With a muttered malediction, Dandy seized the lantern, approached the case- ment, and looked out. A large branch of the elm grew against the house. The light disclosed numer- ous small twigs, bent or broken. ‘ Out o’ ther windy, an’ down ther tree !’”’ mutter- ed Noolan. Dandy Dave made no reply just then. Thrusting his ally back, he turned, quick- ly walked the length of the attic, and descended the ladder. Noolan kept at his heels, ‘Get your guns ready,” Dandy advised, unfastening the door. ‘‘ We must get out of this at once, and warn the captain.” “ But thet he-old critter—” “ Shoot to clear the way, if you have to. Remember just this: if Polly Peggs reaches Tiptop, there’ll be for us small choice between the Vigilante’s rope and the captain’s knife !” ‘Noolan merely nodded, like one who had heard a well-known truth. Then Dandy pushed open the door, and the two passed out of the east room, weapons in hand, and a moment later quitted the house. The madman had disappeared. With ejaculations of relief, the two out- laws ‘hastily crossed the glade, and en- tered the timber, where they had left their horses. There, a disagreeable surprise awaited them. The animals were missing ! Thet crit- Don’t you see it all? He We were in the way ’'Twas a girl I saw Et sounded CHAPTER XVII. ON THE TRAIL. — To explain Luke Lightfoot’s agitation when he saw all around him, in the eastern room on the second floor of the old ranch house, those evidences of a fearful struggle, it is only necessary to say that there existed, between himself and Ruby Peggs, a secret betrothal. True, it was not yet established that Polly had been carried to the old house; but intuition often does much in such - eases. Then, Luke had tracked the mad- man, John Brown, to the very threshold, and here were all the signs of a frightful struggle. What did it mean? Had poor Polly indeed fallen a victim the dementia of the unfortunate a % . ih The Brand-Burners of Cimarron. Long before the bewildered brain of | the sport could work out a solution, the ; he merely said: face of Goldspur appeared in the opening above, as has been narrated. Like a dash of cold water to a fainting man came the detective’s words, rally- ing Luke from his stupid inertia, and in another minute he had swung himself up | the ladder, and placed himself, cool and resolute once more, at Goldspur’s side. “One of the girls has been here, per- haps both,” the detective repeated, point- ing to the distant bunk. “ There are im- prints of a small shoe in the dust. There has been red work, too, for there are traces of blood from the edges of this trap all the way to the window yonder, and the sill bears the same red stain. Some one escaped through the window, I think. You read the sign here, while I go below.” Luke simply nodded, and quickly bent to the task in hand, while Goldspur des- cended and passed out of the house. At the foot of the elm the detective found a number of strips, torn from a blanket, securely knotted together, This improvised rope he carefully put aside, then stooped to examine the soft earth beneath the tree. What he saw there was evidently high- ly pleasing, for he rose with a smile and slowly followed the faint trace across the glade and into the timber. At a certain point, he stopped, turned and retraced his steps to the front door of the old house, where he again stooped and searched the earth, moving to and fro like a hound seeking the scent it has momentarily lost. Some minutes passed thus. Then he straightened up, smiled, and walked back to the house, where he calmly’ sat down in the doorway. Presently Luke appeared. “ Well?” asked the detective, looking up, ‘“ Both girls were in the loft, sir, and both escaped through the window, creep- ing down a branch to the body of the elm, where they swung off and descended by means of a rope made from part of a blanket. I don’t think either of them was wounded, for there are no traces of blood on the branch.” “No, neither of them was injured in the least,” Goldspur assented. “ Peggs brought Ruby Ranger here early in the night. Later, his daughter was captured and carried here by two men, who forced the trap-door and placed her in the loft. Some time after that, Brown appeared, and attacked the two men. He wounded both, and was himself injured and driven off. The girls escaped from the loft, doubtless while the struggle was in pro- gress. They helped themselves to the outlaws’ horses, and rode away. Brown and the outlaws departed afoot, the form- er going north, the latter northeast, in the direction of Tiptop. “Such, at least, is my theory, and the various trails in and around this place go to sustain it.” Luke gazed at the detective in surprise. Before he could speak, however, Goldspur arose, saying: “ Get your horse, now, and join me yon- der in the timber. We shall let Brown go for the present, and try to follow the girls.” “Tt is singular they went westward,” Luke observed. “Tt was very dark, you must remember, ‘and they were doubtless greatly ex- cited.” Securing his horse, Goldspur returned to the point where the fugitive girls had mounted the outlaws’ animals. While awaiting Luke’s approach, he again care- fully scanned the ground. . Signs were there which he had not men- tioned as yet—signs plainly proving that three horsemen were in pursuit of Ruby Ranger and Polly Peggs. It was this fact which had determined him to aban- don the search for the madman for the present. Lightfoot wasted little time in fetching up his horse. His face fell when the 7 Mom - ie, ae detective pointed out the double trail, but! “ "Twill be the easier to follow !” Then they mounted, and the pursuit be- gan. Both understood that the outlaws had taken the trail since daybreak, and hoped to overtake them ere the latter should sight the girls. | For some miles the trail ran nearly | due west, through timber comparatively free of undergrowth. Then it bore off to the northward, and finally entered a’ region badly cut up with dry canyons and | overgrown with thickets of haw and wild | plum. The sky, beclouded from daybreak, had become further obscured by a sombre haze about sunrise. The warm south | breeze had gradually died away, and as the forenoon advanced this haze shut down over all, like a dense fog. It was late in the afternoon when Gold-_ spur and his ally crossed the “ bad lands ”’ just mentioned, and they found it impos- sible to see objects distant a few paces distinctly, so dense had become that im- palpable curtain, and they were com} pelled to proceed at a slower pace. “There have been prairie fires off to the southward,” Luke informed. “If a good breeze springs up, it will soon roll aside this curtain.” “It can’t come too soon, then, for, un-) der this haze we are in momentary dan- ger of ambush.” Lightfoot’s black eyes flashed, and his grip involuntarily tightened on the hand- some repeating rifle he carried. He nod4 ded quickly and drew rein. “That is true. Let us proceed differ-) : ently,’ he suggested. “What do you propose?” . “That we leave the trail, and quarter off to the northeast, and thus get hatwedia the outlaws and the girls. The river is only three-or four miles north of us, When the girls reached it, they had t turn either east or west. If they left i to the horses, they went east.” “On the other hand, they may hav turned to ‘the west, and ridden up stream.” ‘‘ Not if they left it to the horses, sir, for the animals belong in or near Tiptop I suspect. It is evident the girls are lost,’ and are riding at random.” ‘We have passed a number of house where they could have inquired the way Lightfoot.” “They could have done s0, yes, sir But let me explain. This tract throug which we are passing is known as th Big Timber, and is very thinly settled For months past, there has been muc talk of an organized band of brand-burn- ers and horse thieves, and it is general] believed that at least a number of th settlers through here are members or al lies of the band. Polly Peggs is familia with these reports. Doubtless, she attri butes her abduction to some of these very marauders, so would hesitate to stop at any of the cabins.” ) The two trailers parleyed some little time, and decided to separate. A simple code of signals was arranged, then Luke rode off to the northwest, while Goldspur changed his course to the northeast. An hour’s ride carried the detective tc the river, where he dismounted and care fully examined the only passable route an old Indian trail running along thé low bank. No trace of fugitives or pur suers was to be discovered. “ Lightfoot was wrong,” he muttered “Tf not recaptured, or driven across the river, the girls have gone up-stream.” There was but one course to pursue Remounting, Goldspur rapidly rode west ward, keeping in the old trail. The deepening shadows warned him that night was near at hand, and there was not a moment to lose. Presently, a breath of cool air from th north stirred the treacherous haze, I was followed by similar puffs at short in tervals; then came a stiff, cold breezé chilling alike to horse and rider. | The gloom deepened rapidly. 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