The Brand Burners of Cimarron — page 5: what you’re looking at

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

The Brand-Burners of-Cimarron. 3 “King’s yer°man !” “ Yes, I run just such a place,” Burton King hastily averred. “In fact both barn an’ camp-house.” A strange hush came over the little circle of auditors at mention of the camp- house, and Redrock fancied there was a elight tremor in King’s full tones. “Of course, I’d be glad ter have ye putt up with me. Use of ther camp-house, ye understand, is free ter patrons of my barn. But it is only fair ter tell ye thar’s a@ corpse thar now.” “ A corpse, eh ?” “Yas; a man died thar last night. But he is ter be buried in a couple of hours. Ther place will then be open for use.” “A gun-play ?” “Oh, no! Heart disease, I reckon, for ther chap went off sudden an’ nacherel.”’ Hercules Redrock pondered a moment, then nodded. “Wal, I’ll go down with you, an’ put up. I’ll get my money, an’ we'll be off.” Thus speaking, the sport carefully re- coiled his lariat, then rode forward and stepped from the saddle to the platform. Spanish Jobn hailed his appearance with an ill-concealed grimance of chagrin. “Pay the gentleman the money,” he tersely ordered, turning to the staxehold- er. “He wins.” “Mr. Redrock, I trust you will afford me a chance for revenge in the near fu- ture.” “You bet!” and with that curt res- ponse the sport thrust the roll of bills into his pocket, mounted and rode away, rejoining Burton King on the outskirts of the crowd. =o" About three hundred yards off the street, in the edge of the open prairie ly- ing east of the little town, stood a long, low building, and toward it the livery- man led the way. Redrock dismounted just inside the huge door. Then terms * were quickly agreed upon, and in another minute the splendid roan was in a com- fortable stall. A hasty inspection of the interior of the building showed the sport that a space in one corner, probably twelve by sc feet, had been securely boxed in, and h readily inferred that it was the camp- house Of which King had spoken. “ Yas, that’s ther place,” the latter ob- served, following the sport’s glance. “ In- side, ye’ll find a stove fer cookin’ an’ a good bunk.” “ll sleep there, ter be near my hoss, but will get my meals up town.” “As ye please. Ther place is locked now. I thought best ter keep et closed till—Would you like a look at ther corpse ?” Redrock nodded. “Thar’s nothin’ ter hinder, Who was ther critter ?” “A stranger hyar, name o’ Brown— I reckon. John Brown. He got in jest before dark. Thar was a gal with him—a bound crit- ter called Ruby Ranger. He made ar- rangemerts fer her ter pass ther night at Zebulon Peggs’ s, an’ thar she went, right after supper.” . “Oh, she’s thar yet. Thar was no love jost ’twixt her an’ Brown, I reckon, for she’s refused ter see ther corpse. But I tell ye, Redrock, she’s a peach—a cher ry- - fipped hummer from Beauty Town, an’ I'll bet my claim ag’in’ a wet ca ‘tridge she’s as good as she’s purty.” The sport smiled at the liveryman’s earnestness. Then the two walked for- ward, and with a key taken from his poc- ket, King unlocked the camp-house door. The apartment was shrouded in gloom, ¥ F put Redrock could distinguish the form of the dead traveler, reposing on a num- ber of boards placed upon trestles, near the centre of the room. | ' Then King swept aside the dingy cur- } 4 y tains covering the two small windows in the front wall, and a flood of light pour- ed into the place, The face of the corpse, thus brought “into bold relief, showed that John Brown haa beet, a mes of repulsive appearance: erin: y z Dea een yp RS ie 4 ee Le Tae c The features were heavy and of sullen, almost brutal cast. A look of terrible agony rested upon the waxen visage, and the hands, large and calloused by years of toil, were tightly clinched. As the sport noted these facts, a pecu- liar look flashed from his blue eyes, and he turned abruptly to Burton King. “Was Brown alone when he died ?” he asked. “No. After ther gal went away, Span- ish John an’ Rupert Belmont came in. They seemed ter be old friends. Ther three sat in ther camp-house an’ talked fer upwards of an hour. Then thar was an outcry, an’ whenI[ ran in Brown was on ther floor—dead.”’ Redrock nodded quickly. Then he grip- ped the liveryman’s shoulder with a steel- like clutch, and in a low tone exclaimed : “King, 1 am goin’ ter trust ye with a secret. That was foul play hyar!” “Shorely, they diden’t—diden’t—” “Kill him? Yas! John Brown died by poison an’ ther crime lies betwixt Ru- pert Belmost and Spanish John. CHAPTER III. A PLOT. Rupert Belmont was rated the wealth- iest man in Tiptop City. He was nearly forty years of age, a bachelor, and of fine appearance. He owned a section near the town, and made his home there, with a widowed half-sister, a Mrs. Quantrell. “The Silver Shades,” Tiptop’s single saloon and gambling house, was also own- ed by Belmont, and report said that the rancher had found it a veritable bonanza. It was here that Spanish John held sway, having full control of the various games, and it was generally understood that he received a fixed percentage of the earnings of the tables as payment for his services. On the evening that John Brown and his protegee arrived in Tiptop, the ranch- er and the gambler were seated together in a small apartment on the second floor of the building occupied by the Silver Shades. Belmont’s dark face wore a frown, while Spanish John was explain- ing certain points in a daring scheme they had in hand. While they were thus engaged a sharp rap sounded at the door, and in response to the rancher’s call a boy of fourteen years stepped briskly into the room. “Good evenin’, gents,” he saluted. “Howdy, Gimps,” Spanish John re- sponded. “ What’s up now?” “ A galoot at King’s camp-house wants ter see ye. Says his name’s Brown, an’ that ye’re old friends o’ his.” “ Brown, eh?” “Yas, sir—John Brown. He got in Psi an hour ago. Brought a gal witb him,” “And the girl?” * “He sent her over ter Peggs’s, ther cobbler, ter stay ter night.” This bit of news was evidently displeas- ing to the men. They exchanged uneasy glances, Then the gambler again spoke, saying: “ All right, Gimps. Run down and tell Brown we'll be there presently.” The boy nodded and withdrew, closing the door. “Brown is a fool!” the rancher ex- claimed, rising angrily. @ “Yes; but the matter can’t be helped, now. Perhaps no harm will come of it. I suspect he is alarmed by the chase that accursed detective has given him.” * Goldspur?”’ ee Yes. ””? nett I too, suspect we are in danger from m.’ “No! If he is yet on the trail, he must take one of three fords on the Cim- arron to reach Tiptop. All of the fords are guarded. He’ll find a grave in the treacherous quicksands of the river!” The rancher shuddered. “TI had not counted on going so far,” he sigh ont er | OM EST, GREY oi a ve 2 see ab eg ie 8. y ae aS aS aoe mere | a: ut - oa “$a “You should have considered all possi- bilities,’ Spanish John retorted, and his single eye glittered balefully. ‘In play- ing for a stake of such magnitude, your plans should have comprehended every contingency.” “ That is true, partner. But are you sure Brown has the right girl?’ “Yes. He kidnapped her at my com- mand ten years ago. Her father had de- stroyed my eye—had made me an outcast, and the abduction was part of my re- venge. “That revenge is nearly complete. For ten years Major Duncan has traveled far and near in search of his lost child. He has used money with a lavish hand, but to no avail. And during this time his two properties, Ten-Bar Ranch and the Touchstone Mine, have easily quadrupled in value.” “The girl inherits all?” '“T have so assured you on numerous occasions, Rupert. Do you doubt me?” “Hardly that. But I wonder that you do not plot to marry the girl yourself, and thus secure all.” “ Humph ! There is an insuperable barrier between us; just what need not now be stated. Now, are you willing to abide by the terms of our compact?” “Yes. I have never seen the girl, but her superb fortune will certainly atone - for my physical defect or mental—” “ Rest easy on that score, Rupert! Ruby Ranger is as beautiful as an angel, and as good as beautiful. Nor has her educa- tion been neglected. In short, she is fitted both by nature and by art to grace the highest circles to which her great wealth may command an entrance. “ Brown’s wife was a woman of edu- cation and refinement, and Ruby was her especial charge. She died only a few weeks ago, and it is that fact which has brought this matter to a head.” i T’ll do my best, but if fair means f es “Tf fair means fail, we must resort to coercion. Leave the matter in my hands. I assure you I am quite com- petent to arrange it. Now, let us go. Brown will become impatient.” Belmont offered no objection. Indeed, he seemed eager to move, his last scruples having been swept aside by the cunning gambler. On the way tothe camp-house no word passed between them; but Spanish John’s heavy brows wore a frown, and his single optic stared straight ahead, gleaming with a bold, evil light. John Brown had been anxiously await- ing their appearance, and he greeted them in a tone expressive of relief. Mo- tioning them to seats, he partially closed . the camp-house door, then sat down, saying: “T am here pursuant to agreement, but Spanish. Bar—” “"Sh ! Not that name, John, old friend!” quickly interrupted the gambler, with a wary glance at the half-open door. ‘ Let us touch as light- ly upon the past as possible.” Brown nodded coolly. : “As you will. Let it answer, then, that I am ready to fulfill the compact > between us. Shall we proceed with that business now?” “Yes; you may speak freely before my friend, Mr. Belmont,” the gambler as- sured. “Very well, then. The girl is here, per agreement. It has been a tight chase. 1 have been followed all the way from Den- ver by detectives, andj as I wrote, escaped ° only by repeatedly doubling on the trail. Yet, they were not far behind me when I left Arkansas City, here not later than midnight.” “You have the money ready?” “Every dollar.” “Very good. Zebulon Peggs. As I understand it, you | desire to restore her to her father, Major Duncan?” | “ Exactly. ” PSR aly ate here In a ae =p ee and I must leave I arranged to have the - girl spend the night at the house of one | - a)