Florence
 
 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR
 
 OV CAtJF. UMIAK. I.OS
 
 MR 
 
 
 I $* 
 
 "HE SMILED DOWN AT HER GLOWING YOUNG FACE, AND HIS EYES 
 
 SHONE WITH ADMIRATION " [Page 26]
 
 THE 
 
 DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 BY 
 
 FLORENCE FINCH KELLY 
 
 Author of" With Hoops of Steel" etc. 
 
 WITH FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR 
 BY MAYNARD DIXON 
 
 CHICAGO 
 A. C. McCLURG & CO. 
 
 1909
 
 COPYRIGHT 
 
 A. C. MCCLURG & Co. 
 1909 
 
 Published March 6, 1909 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 I. VENGEANCE AVOWED 9 
 
 II. THE EVIL THAT MEN DO 32 
 
 III. MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 39 
 
 IV. THE POWERS CONFER 52 
 
 V. CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 64 
 
 VI. A STERN CHASE 78 
 
 VII. TALK OF MANY THINGS 90 
 
 VIII. SPECTRES OF THE PAST 114 
 
 IX. PERILS IN THE NIGHT ....... 136 
 
 X. BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 145 
 
 XI. BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 160 
 
 XII. THE FIRST SHOT 177 
 
 XIII. THE SECOND SHOT 192 
 
 XIV. THREE LETTERS 210 
 
 XV. VILLAINY UNMASKED 221 
 
 XVI. A DOUBLE BLUFF 238 
 
 XVII. SENTENCE OF DEATH 256 
 
 XVIII. PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 278 
 
 XIX. THE WORD UNSPOKEN 299 
 
 2130785
 
 vi CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 XX. NARROWING THE QUEST 321 
 
 XXI. THE SILENT DUEL 345 
 
 XXII. REFLECTION AND REACTION 360 
 
 XXIII. LOVE TO THE RESCUE 380 
 
 XXIV. THE HEAVENS OPEN 397 
 
 XXV. FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 414
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 " He smiled down at her glowing young face, and his 
 
 eyes shone with admiration " Frontispiece 
 
 " Upon man and beast the sand-storm beat bitterly" . 168 
 
 " Like a flash Josh's arm swung back, . . . and Curtis 
 sprang lightly aside as the knife struck deep into 
 the tree" 308 
 
 " It had come, the question she had meant not to let 
 
 him ask" 404
 
 THE 
 
 DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 
 
 CURTIS CONRAD turned from super- 
 intending repairs on the adobe wall, 
 and walked across the corral to the 
 gate at the opposite side. As he filled his pipe 
 he looked across the wide, greenish-gray New 
 Mexican plateau stretching far to east and 
 south and west. It was dotted here and there 
 with little groups of grazing cattle, and he 
 noted a straggling procession of the creatures, 
 their figures wavering and distorted in the 
 heat haze, coming down from the distant foot- 
 hills. They were following a trail that cut 
 across the plain in a straight line to the 
 pond across the road from the house, beyond 
 a grove of cottonwood trees. 
 
 "Poor devils!" he thought. "They're 
 tramping miles for a drink of water, and to- 
 morrow they '11 tramp back again for their 
 breakfast. The Castletons are going to lose 
 big money in dead cattle this Summer, unless
 
 io THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 there 's more rain than there was last. It 's 
 awful to see the poor brutes dropping in their 
 tracks. I '11 begin looking for a job in a wetter 
 country if this Summer does n't bring more 
 rain." He turned his attention to his pipe, 
 sheltering bowl and match in his hollowed 
 hand. " No use, in this wind," he muttered. 
 "What a blast it's blowing to-day! Well, 
 there 's no sand in it." 
 
 The plain stretched away from the ranch- 
 house in low, rolling hills, so evenly sized that 
 it gave the impression of a level surface. Up 
 from one of the little valleys rose a horseman, 
 as if he had sprung suddenly from the depths 
 of the earth. Through the heat that wavered 
 over the plain his horse's legs drew out into 
 long, knobby sticks, and both man and steed 
 became an absurd caricature of the sinewy 
 pony and cowboy rider that presently cantered 
 up to the gate with the mail for which Conrad 
 had been waiting. 
 
 ' Three cow-brutes are down on the pond 
 trail, just where it crosses the road. One of 
 'em 's got a calf." 
 
 "Are they dead?" 
 
 " Mighty nigh will be by night." 
 ' You and Red Jack go and skin them in 
 the morning." Conrad turned toward the
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 11 
 
 house, looking at his letters. His mind still 
 lingered over the calf. " Poor little devil, 
 it ought to have a chance," he was thinking, 
 when his eye caught the name on one of the 
 envelopes. He turned upon the cowboy a 
 gaze suddenly grown preoccupied. 
 
 " No, Peters/' he said; " the calf won't go 
 with the other cattle while its mother is alive, 
 and I saw that gray wolf skulking along the 
 draw this afternoon. You and Red Jack 'd 
 better go down now and put the cows out of 
 their misery. Skin them and bring the calf 
 into the corral till night, and then put it down 
 by the pond with the other cow-brutes." 
 
 His eyes quickly returned to the letter that 
 had attracted his attention. " Tremper & 
 Townsend ! " he exclaimed with eager sur- 
 prise. "Why, they were Delafield's attor- 
 neys!" He tore open the envelope with an 
 impatient jerk and the rushing wind almost 
 blew from his fingers the check it contained. 
 As his eye ran quickly down the half-dozen 
 lines of the letter his face lighted with satis- 
 faction and amusement. 
 
 The sound of a carriage distracted his at- 
 tention. It turned in at his house-gate and he 
 hastened forward, a lean, long-legged figure 
 of a man, hat doffed and hand outstretched.
 
 12 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " How are you, Bancroft ? Glad to see 
 you! And Miss Bancroft, too! Of course 
 you 're coming in. Thirsty ? I '11 bet you 
 are ! And you know we 've got the best water 
 in Silverside County here. How much better 
 your daughter 's looking, Aleck ! If you keep 
 on like this, Miss Bancroft, you '11 soon for- 
 get you were ever ill." 
 
 " Oh, I 've forgotten that already, there 's 
 such magic in the winds you have here," the 
 girl replied laughingly as he lifted her to the 
 ground. " They 're strong enough to blow 
 the past out of your memory and make you 
 forget even your own name ! " Her father 
 suddenly turned away and began to hitch the 
 horses. He sent back a covert glance at her 
 as she stood at Conrad's side, a slender figure, 
 her face still thin from recent illness but 
 aglow with the pink of returning health, the 
 breeze fluttering the short brown curls that 
 clustered over her bare head. 
 
 "Oh, my hat, please ! " she exclaimed, with 
 sudden remembrance of the head-covering she 
 had left hanging in the carriage top. Curtis 
 took it down for her and looked on with 
 undisguised admiration while she tied it with 
 a big bow of ribbon under her chin. Ban- 
 croft came back, explaining that they had
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 13 
 
 driven since mid- forenoon from the base of 
 Mangan's Peak, and asking if Conrad did 
 not think they had made pretty good time 
 with their new team of horses. Curtis looked 
 them over critically, praising their good 
 points, and approving heartily when Bancroft 
 told him they had been bought for both rid- 
 ing and driving, for he wanted Lucy, now 
 that she was growing strong again, to be- 
 come an expert horsewoman. 
 
 A big cottonwood tree grew beside the gate, 
 and a little plot of grass, enclosed on three 
 sides by whitewashed adobe walls, made a 
 square of welcome green. Lucy Bancroft ex- 
 claimed with delight as they entered the tiny 
 yard, stepping mincingly across the grass with 
 lifted gown, and smiling back at the two men, 
 while fleeting dimples played hide-and-seek 
 in her cheeks. 
 
 " I 'm so glad, Mr. Conrad," she laughed, 
 " that you have n't any signs up to ' keep off 
 the grass/ for I simply must walk on it. I 
 never saw anything so lovely as this little 
 lawn and this beautiful big green tree, after 
 our long ride across the plain. It makes me 
 think of that line in the Bible about ' the 
 shadow of a great rock in a weary land.' ' 
 
 " Yes," replied Curtis as he threw open the
 
 i 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 door. " I never knew until I came to New 
 Mexico how much comfort and pleasure there 
 can be in a few blades of grass. When I 
 come in from a long ride and look at this 
 little checker-board square of turf I feel as 
 if I uncurled a whole yard of wrinkles and 
 squints from around my eyes." 
 
 The Socorro Springs ranch-house was a 
 rambling sequence of adobe rooms, so joined 
 one to another that they formed the eastern 
 and part of the northern side of the big 
 square corral. It was low and flat-roofed, 
 and struggling tufts of weeds and grass grew 
 along the top and trailed over the edge, add- 
 ing their chapter to Nature's endless tale of the 
 unwearied determination of Life to evade and 
 overcome Death. The rooms opened out of 
 one another in a long row, all with outside 
 doors looking toward the east and some with 
 additional doors into the corral. A bare adobe 
 yard sloping eastward was bordered by a 
 trickling stream of water along which grew 
 some willows and cottonwoods. Beyond it 
 spread a golden-green field of young alfalfa, 
 and beyond that the greenish-gray plain 
 stretched to the far horizon. Across the front 
 of the house was a narrow wooden porch, 
 and house and porch, walls and sheds, were
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 15 
 
 all a dazzling white that in the vivid sun- 
 shine smote the sight like a blow across the 
 eyeballs. In the low, large room in front 
 gayly colored Navajo rugs were spread on 
 the floor, white muslin curtains hung at the 
 windows, and rose-bedecked paper covered 
 the walls and ceiling. Unpainted shelves of 
 pine above a battered, flat-topped desk were 
 filled with books, and the round table in the 
 middle of the room was littered with news- 
 papers, magazines, tobacco pouches, and 
 pipes. 
 
 The housekeeper, Mrs. Peters, brought a 
 pitcher of water, and Conrad explained to 
 Lucy that the springs from which the ranch 
 took its appellation, Los Ojos del Socorro, 
 ' The Springs of Succor," had been so named 
 nearly three hundred years before by a party 
 of Spanish explorers, because they had come 
 unexpectedly upon the pure waters when they 
 were almost dead from thirst. At the house- 
 keeper's suggestion Lucy went into the next 
 room to lie down for a half-hour's rest be- 
 fore they should start for their home in 
 Golden, twenty miles farther westward. The 
 door, accidentally left ajar, swung part way 
 open and she could hear plainly the voices of 
 her father and Conrad as she lay with eyes
 
 16 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 closed and thoughts wandering, scarcely heed- 
 ing what they said. 
 
 The two men were absorbed in a discussion 
 of local politics. " Dan Tillinghurst is all 
 right," said Conrad. " He 's made a good 
 sheriff and he ought to have the office again. 
 I shall do all I can to have him renominated 
 and to help elect him afterwards. But Dell- 
 mey Baxter for Congress again ! That 's 
 where I buck, and buck hard, and keep 
 a-buckin'." 
 
 " But he 's the head of the party in the 
 Territory," objected Bancroft. "He can bring 
 out more votes than any other man we can 
 put up. If we turn him down in the con- 
 vention they '11 beat us at the polls." 
 
 :e We '11 deserve to be beaten if we nomi- 
 nate him, anyway. I can't stomach him any 
 longer, Aleck, and I don't see how you 
 can." 
 
 " Oh, you 're prejudiced, Curt," said the 
 other, good-naturedly. " You know you can 
 never see any good in a man you dislike, 
 and you took a dislike to Baxter the first day 
 you set foot in the Territory." 
 
 "Maybe I am prejudiced; but in Dell 
 Baxter's case there 's ample reason to be, and 
 I 'd be ashamed of myself if I was n't. I
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 17 
 
 know he 's a friend of yours, but that does n't 
 prevent him from being the worst scoun- 
 drel in the whole Territory. I tell you, 
 Aleck, there 's nothing that man would n't 
 do, unless it was something square and 
 honest." 
 
 " Come, come, Curt, that 's rank exaggera- 
 tion. I 've been associated with Dell Baxter 
 financially ever since I located in this part 
 of the country, and I Ve always found him 
 strictly on the square." 
 
 ' Then it was because it was to his interest 
 to be square. He '11 do you up yet, if he gets 
 the chance and thinks it worth while. He 's 
 had his finger in every crooked scheme that 's 
 been put through from Raton to El Paso, and 
 his hands are as bloody as his pockets are 
 dirty." 
 
 " Don't you think it 's going a little too 
 far," asked % Bancroft, smiling calmly, "to 
 accuse a man in that wholesale way when 
 you have n't any basis for your assertions but 
 the merest idle gossip ? " 
 
 Conrad gave an indignant snort. " Oh, 
 I 'm not saying he 's done the jobs himself. 
 He thinks too much of that fat paunch of 
 his to put that into any danger. But why 
 does he keep those Mexican thugs hanging
 
 i8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 around him if it is n't to use them for 
 things he wouldn't dare do himself? Why, 
 I heard from Santa Fe only last week that 
 he 's taken into his pay that Mexican cut- 
 throat, Liberate Herrara, whom he saved 
 last Winter from conviction for the Paxton 
 murder." 
 
 " No, Aleck," he went on. " I buck when 
 it comes to Dell Baxter for Congress again. 
 If he gets the nomination and the other side 
 puts up Johnny Martinez, as it 's likely they 
 will, I 'm going to support Johnny." 
 
 " But he 's a Mexican." 
 
 " I don't care what he is as long as he 's 
 a decent man. He won't be a disgrace to 
 the Territory in Washington, and that 's more 
 than you can say of Baxter." 
 
 Bancroft's impassive face lighted with a 
 bantering smile. ' There 's no limit to your 
 bad opinion of a man, is there, Curt, if he 
 once gets into your disfavor? By the way, 
 is it true that the Castletons are behind Johnny 
 Martinez ? " 
 
 " I don't know, and I don't care. I 'm their 
 hired man here on the ranch, but my vote 's 
 my own, and so 's what little influence I may 
 have, and I '11 do with both of 'em just 
 what I damn please. And if it came to a
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 19 
 
 show-down, I 'd be perfectly willing to lose 
 my job if that would keep Dell Baxter from 
 going back to Congress." 
 
 Bancroft laughed again. Conrad's eye, as 
 he turned to his desk for more cigars, fell 
 upon the little pile of letters and papers he 
 had just received. On the top lay the 
 Tremper & Townsend envelope. " By the 
 way, Aleck, you 're from Boston, ain't you? " 
 he exclaimed impulsively. 
 
 In the next room, Lucy, listening sleepily 
 to the two voices, had been noting the dif- 
 ference in their quality. Conrad's was high 
 and clear, his speech rapid and incisive. Her 
 father's, lower and more deliberate, had in it 
 a subtle, persuasive quality. " Dear daddy! " 
 she whispered softly, her heart warm with 
 affection. Then the new, sharp edge in Con- 
 rad's tone gripped her attention and sent her 
 eyes flying open. Wide awake on the instant, 
 she listened for the sound of her father's 
 voice again. Had she been on the scene, she 
 might have noted that he turned an instant's 
 keen gaze upon his companion before he an- 
 swered, carelessly enough: 
 
 ' Yes ; originally. But I 've come from so 
 many other places since then that I almost 
 forget it, unless somebody reminds me. I
 
 20 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 have n't been back there, or known much 
 about the old place, for years." 
 
 Conrad's boyish smile illuminated his face 
 and twinkled in his blue eyes. ' Yes," he 
 said ; " 'most everybody out here is so ever- 
 lastingly on the lope that it 's no wonder some 
 of 'em lose their names every once in a while 
 and have to pick up 'most anything that comes 
 handy. I 'm no exception, though I Ve not 
 yet forgotten ' what was my name back in the 
 States.' But did you know anything about 
 the Delafield affair in Boston, fifteen or six- 
 teen years ago ? " 
 
 " I heard of it at the time, but it was after 
 I left the city. It was so long ago that I 
 forget the details. Skipped, did n't he, with 
 a lot of funds? Or was he the one who de- 
 faulted and jumped into the Charles River? " 
 
 Conrad had an eagerness of speech and 
 manner that in a man of less vigor would 
 have been accounted nervousness. Voice, 
 face, and gesture were alive with it as he 
 responded: " Jump nothing! except to get out 
 of reach of his creditors ! He 's alive yet and 
 making money somewhere, and I mean to find 
 him! I've got a particular interest in that 
 man, and when I come up with him he '11 have 
 a particular interest in me. For I 'm going
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 21 
 
 to give him such a song-and-dance as he 's 
 never had before." 
 
 Bancroft listened calmly, his face and man- 
 ner as impassive as usual, but his eyes nar- 
 rowed as they met his companion's excited 
 gaze. Smiling slightly, he replied, " What 
 has he done to stir you up so? You must 
 have been too young to be interested in finan- 
 cial investments then." 
 
 " So I was, directly. Nevertheless, it hap- 
 pens, Aleck, that the Delafield affair has in- 
 fluenced me and my life more than any other 
 one thing. My father lost everything he had 
 in Sumner L. DelafiekTs smash-up. I was 
 fifteen years old then, and getting ready to 
 go to Michigan University afterward I 
 was to study law and be a prominent citi- 
 zen. My father met Delafield first during a 
 business trip to Boston we lived in central 
 Illinois, and father was well-to-do and, just 
 like everybody else, he gave the man his en- 
 tire confidence. You remember, of course, 
 how Delafield came to the top as a regular 
 young Napoleon of business, and soon made a 
 reputation as one of the big financiers. When 
 he turned up missing one fine morning, and it 
 was found that the bottom had dropped out 
 of everything, most people believed he had
 
 22 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 killed himself. But he had n't, I happen to 
 know, and he 's still alive. Well, my father 
 had been so influenced by Delafield the 
 fellow must have been a persuasive cuss 
 that he had put everything he could raise 
 into the man's schemes, and had even mort- 
 gaged our home. He had a weak heart, and 
 when he read the news of Delafield's default 
 and disappearance he fell out of his chair 
 dead. The sudden shock of it all prostrated 
 my mother, and she died in giving prema- 
 ture birth to a child. So there was I, a 
 fifteen-year-old boy, suddenly dropped to the 
 bottom of poverty, with two younger sisters 
 and a little brother to take care of. 
 
 " I tell you, I swore vengeance on that 
 man. I promised myself I 'd hunt him down 
 if it took a lifetime. I 'm on his trail now, 
 and I 'm not going to leave it until I run him 
 into his hole. Then I 'm going to stand him 
 up and call him to his face all he deserves; 
 and give him a gun, so he can have a fair 
 chance for his worthless life, and take one 
 myself; and then I'll put a bullet through 
 his scoundrel brain if I have to hang for it 
 afterward ! " 
 
 In the adjoining room Lucy Bancroft, with 
 wide eyes and heightened color, was listening
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 23 
 
 to Conrad's story. The thrill of keen-edged 
 purpose in his tense and eager tones had set 
 her nerves to vibrating until her body was 
 a-tremble. At his last sentence Curtis brought 
 his fist down on the table with a crash that 
 almost startled her into outcry. A moment 
 of silence followed, and then she heard her 
 father's cool and even voice, " But suppose 
 he should put one through yours first?" 
 
 " Oh, he 's welcome to do that if he can 
 draw quicker or shoot straighter than I can. 
 He '11 get one through his head before the 
 baile is over, and that 's all I care about. The 
 round-up 's coming, and I reckon he knows 
 it. For to-day I got a letter from Tremper 
 & Townsend of Boston, who settled up his 
 affairs after his disappearance, enclosing a 
 check for five hundred dollars, saying he 
 wished it sent to me as the first instalment 
 of the amount he owed my father, which he 
 hopes, before long, to be able to pay in full." 
 
 Bancroft flicked the ash from his cigar with 
 unusual care, looked at it with contemplative 
 interest, and drew a whiff or two before he 
 spoke. Turning to Conrad with a quizzical 
 smile, he said : " Well, Curt, does n't that 
 rather take the edge off your purpose ? Why 
 are you still shaking your gory locks and
 
 24 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 roaring like a wounded bull at him when 
 he 's evidently doing the square thing by you ? 
 Why don't you let up on your chase and give 
 him a chance ? " 
 
 " Not on your life," was Conrad's emphatic 
 rejoinder. " It 's too late in the game for me 
 to take repentance and an honest purpose on 
 the hoof ! He 's found out that I 'm getting 
 hot on the scent and he wants to buy me off 
 that 's all that check means. It 's not the 
 loss of the money that sticks in my craw; 
 it 's the deviltry he worked years ago. When- 
 ever I find that he 's discharging his debts 
 to all his other creditors, who aren't after 
 him hot-foot, then I '11 consent to wait for 
 my parley until he has settled the whole 
 
 score." 
 
 Lucy arose from the bed depressed with 
 a vague sense of trouble. The longing seized 
 her to be out-of-doors again, alone with her 
 father on the wide plain, with the wind smit- 
 ing her face and filling her lungs and making 
 her forget everything but her own joy in 
 being alive. She rubbed her eyes, smoothed 
 her face, and forced herself to smile at the 
 reflection in the mirror until her agitation 
 was subdued. And presently, smiling and 
 self-possessed, she opened the door into the
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 25 
 
 front room, just as her father was finishing 
 some friendly advice to Conrad. 
 
 " Well, Curt, it 's your affair," he had said, 
 " and if you are so dead-set on getting that 
 kind of revenge I suppose you '11 go ahead 
 and get it. But you 'd better be careful ; if 
 this man is desperate he might try to head 
 you off by the same means. And you could n't 
 exactly blame him for objecting to being shot 
 in his tracks, or for taking measures to keep 
 you from doing it. For my part, I never 
 thought revenge was a paying investment, 
 and I still believe you 're foolish to waste 
 your time, energy, and money in that sort 
 of business. 
 
 "Ah, Lucy, is that you?" he went on, as 
 she opened the door. " Come in, dear. Have 
 you had a nap, and do you feel better ? " 
 
 " Yes, thank you, I Ve rested beautifully, 
 and I 'm ready to start whenever you wish," 
 she replied. 
 
 Conrad produced a bottle of port wine, tell- 
 ing them as he filled their glasses that it had 
 been sent him by a friend in California in 
 whose cellars it had lain for twenty years, 
 and that it would be a good tonic for Miss 
 Bancroft. The friend had promised to send 
 him more, and with her permission he would
 
 26 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 take a bottle to her the next time he went 
 to Golden. 
 
 As they stepped out of the house Lucy 
 looked toward the west, whence the wind 
 came, and as it struck her full in the face 
 she gasped for breath and her slender body 
 swayed in its rushing current. She grasped 
 her wide hat brim with both hands and held 
 it down so that it made a frame for her face. 
 Laughing with joy she turned to Curtis. 
 
 " Oh, I love these winds, Mr. Conrad ! I 
 know they blow sand into your eyes and pelt 
 your face with gravel, but they make you feel 
 so good ! I always want to dance when I Ve 
 been out in a wind like this for a minute or 
 two." She took half a dozen dancing steps 
 across the little lawn. " And they are so pure 
 and sweet," she went on more seriously, " and 
 make you feel so so right that it seems as 
 if they ought to blow all the wickedness out 
 of one's mind." 
 
 " Jiminy ! I wonder if she heard what I 
 said in there ! " thought Conrad with inward 
 panic. But he smiled down at her glowing 
 young face and his eyes shone with admira- 
 tion as he replied : " That is a beautiful the- 
 ory, Miss Bancroft, but I 'm afraid it does n't 
 pan out much in practice. It rather seems
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 27 
 
 to me that most people who come to New 
 Mexico have that sort of thing blown into 
 them instead of out of them. As for my- 
 self," and he grinned broadly, " I can't say 
 that I feel any increase in righteousness, no 
 matter how much I waltz around in these 
 zephyrs." 
 
 " And you must have given them a fair 
 trial, too ! " she laughed back. " But you may 
 make all the fun you like of my little pet 
 theory, Mr. Conrad. I shall believe in it just 
 the same, and like the country just as much." 
 
 " No ; she did n't hear, and, besides, she 
 said she 'd been asleep, so it 's all right," 
 thought Curtis with much relief, as he went 
 on eagerly : " I 'm glad you 're pleased with 
 us and our winds, so that you '11 want to stay. 
 I assure you, Miss Bancroft, you can't find 
 such a superior quality of wind anywhere else 
 in the United States." 
 
 " Oh, I 'm going to stay, not on account 
 of the wind, but on account of my father, 
 who, I assure you, Mr. Conrad, is the most 
 superior quality of father to be found any- 
 where in the United States ! I Ve been away 
 from him so much that now I 'm perfectly 
 happy to be with him all the time. You see, 
 when my dear mother died five years ago,
 
 28 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 father put me in a boarding-school, and after- 
 ward sent me to Chicago for a year to study 
 music, and there I had that attack of typhoid 
 fever that came so near to killing me. But 
 I 'm here with him at last, and I mean to 
 stay. And I 'm learning to ride now, Mr. 
 Conrad, and father thinks I 'm getting on 
 very well; don't you, daddy?" She turned 
 to her father, as he came beside them at the 
 carriage wheel, with a fond smile and a touch 
 of her hand upon his arm. 
 
 " Oh, yes," he answered, returning her 
 smile and patting her shoulder ; " you are 
 doing bravely, Lucy. You '11 soon be scour- 
 ing the plain like the heroine of a dime 
 novel." 
 
 " No New Mexican girl," said Conrad as 
 he helped her into the carriage, " thinks she 
 can really ride until she can rope a steer. If 
 you 're going to be such an enthusiastic New 
 Mexican you '11 have to learn tricks of that 
 sort. Get your father to bring you out here 
 some day, and I '11 give you lessons in cowboy 
 riding." 
 
 " Agreed ! that would be great fun ! " she 
 exclaimed, smiling down at him, her eyes 
 twinkling and the dimples dancing in and out 
 of her cheeks. " We '11 come out, won't we,
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 29 
 
 daddy, after Miss Dent comes. I shall re- 
 member your promise, Mr. Conrad." 
 
 Curtis waved a last good-bye as they turned 
 the corner of his corral, and went back to his 
 desk and his interrupted mail. " A mighty 
 good fellow Aleck Bancroft is," he said in 
 a half-aloud tone. " He does n't palaver a 
 lot, but he makes you feel he J s your friend. 
 I wonder if I said too much about Delafield. 
 That check had wound me up and I sure 
 talked more than I meant to." Long hours 
 of solitude out of doors with only a silent 
 plain around him and a silent sky above are 
 likely to make a man so yearn for the sound 
 of a human voice, though it be only his own, 
 that he falls into the habit of thinking aloud. 
 Conrad had the social temperament and it had 
 not taken the wide and silent spaces of earth 
 and air long to engender in him the habit of 
 making companionship out of his own speech. 
 
 He pulled thoughtfully at his sunburned 
 moustache for a moment as he considered the 
 matter. " It might have been just as well if 
 I hadn't said so much," he went on aloud, 
 " but he 's close-mouthed and a good friend 
 of mine. No, she did n't hear me that 's 
 sure. How pretty she is when her eyes 
 twinkle and her dimples come and go! I
 
 3 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 hope that wine will come in time for me to 
 take her a bottle the next time I go to Golden. 
 Well, I can call on her, anyway, and apolo- 
 gize because it has n't. Hello ! Here 's a 
 letter from Littleton! Has he got hold of 
 something new about Delafield?" 
 
 " I was down in the northern part of your 
 Territory last week on other business," he 
 read, " and I happened to meet a man who 
 is, I think, on the trail of the very same per- 
 son we 're after, though he 's been working 
 it from the other end. If I 'm right about it, 
 the man we want is now some prominent and 
 respected citizen of New Mexico, and maybe 
 some good friend or enemy of yours at 
 this moment. The man I met is Rutherford 
 W. Jenkins, of Las Vegas. You probably 
 know him " 
 
 " Sure ! And know him to be a skunk ! " 
 Conrad exclaimed with a contemptuous snort. 
 
 " I could n't get much out of him," the letter 
 went on, " although I gave him a tip about 
 the trail we 're on and a little of Delafield's 
 history as a bait. He snapped at it, and then 
 began to dissemble his satisfaction, so I 'm 
 sure it is of value to him. But not even fire- 
 water would make him give up anything more. 
 However, I feel pretty sure that he either
 
 VENGEANCE AVOWED 31 
 
 knows already who Delafield is or expects 
 soon to find out. I think he 's working at it 
 with an eye to the possibilities of blackmail 
 of one sort or another. Perhaps if you see 
 him yourself you can get something out of 
 him." 
 
 Conrad's face glowed with satisfaction as 
 he finished the letter. " The birds won't get 
 a chance to make any nests in my hair this 
 trip ! I '11 sashay up the line this very night 
 and I '11 find out who Delafield is from Jen- 
 kins, if I have to choke the life out of him 
 to do it. God ! " His vengeful desire glowed 
 like a blue flame in his eyes. He jumped to 
 his feet, stretched out his arms, and clenched 
 his fists. " Sumner L. Delafield, it 's getting 
 time for you to say your prayers ! "
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 THE EVIL THAT MEN DO 
 
 LUCY BANCROFT and her father 
 were unusually silent as they drove 
 toward home. After an effort to 
 chatter gayly she grew quiet to her father's 
 surprise, for she was ordinarily a vivacious 
 companion. Speculating uneasily whether 
 or not she had heard Conrad's story, and 
 reassuring himself that it could mean noth- 
 ing to her in any event, he made several 
 efforts to draw her into speech. But she an- 
 swered with her mind so evidently intent 
 elsewhere that he gave up the attempt. The 
 fear grew on him that she had overheard the 
 conversation and that it had left an undue 
 impression on her mind. 
 
 A mirage of singularly perfect illusion lay 
 across the plain to their left, and he drew 
 her attention to its silvery surface, the trees 
 bordering its unreal banks, the cattle stand- 
 ing knee-deep in its waters, and the steam- 
 boat puffing across its breast. Lucy admired
 
 THE EVIL THAT MEN DO 33 
 
 and wondered for a moment, then turned the 
 other way and looked back at the green tree 
 clusters and white buildings of the ranch they 
 had left. Her gaze lingered there until they 
 crossed the hill, and its summit hid the scene 
 from view. 
 
 Bancroft sought to reassure himself. Did 
 she not say she had been asleep? And the 
 door was shut. Surely she could not have 
 heard! Even if she had why should she 
 care about it? Nevertheless, her silence 
 made him anxious. It annoyed him to think 
 that her mind was intent upon Conrad's 
 story. He made another effort to draw her 
 out of her abstraction by asking how soon she 
 expected their friend, Louise Dent, who was 
 coming to spend the Summer with them. 
 Lucy showed interest in this and they dis- 
 cussed plans for her entertainment. But 
 presently she fell silent again, looking straight 
 ahead with a little frown on her brow. 
 
 The conviction gripped Bancroft's mind 
 that she had overheard the cattleman's re- 
 cital of his wrongs. Alarm stirred in his 
 heart as he tried to imagine what impression 
 it had made upon her. Would she sympa- 
 thize with Conrad? For the moment he for- 
 got everything else business deals and 
 
 3
 
 34 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 political contests, friendships and enmities, 
 in his desire to know what had been the 
 effect upon the girl beside him of Conrad's 
 outburst. But much as he wished to know," 
 he feared still more the surety of what her 
 feeling might be, and he could not bring him- 
 self to ask the questions that would draw 
 her out. 
 
 Presently Lucy's voice broke suddenly 
 upon their silence. " I wonder what became 
 of his sisters ! " Her color rose as she spoke 
 and she gazed with exaggerated interest at a 
 tall, yellow-flowered cactus beside the road. 
 
 "Whose sisters, Lucy?" her father asked 
 carelessly, flicking the horses to a faster 
 pace. But his heart sank as he thought, 
 "She did hear it all!" 
 
 " Why, Mr. Conrad's. You know he said 
 he was left when he was only fifteen with 
 two younger sisters and a little brother to 
 take care of." 
 
 " Oh Conrad I don't know. They are 
 probably married by this time. That was a 
 long time ago. I 've heard him mention his 
 sisters before, I think. Yes; I recall now 
 that he has told me they are both married 
 and prosperous somewhere in Illinois or 
 Iowa."
 
 THE EVIL THAT MEN DO 35 
 
 " And his younger brother ? " 
 
 " Oh, he 's just a young fellow, and Curtis 
 is putting him through college. Conrad banks 
 with me, and I 've noticed his checks some- 
 times when they come back/' 
 
 " How good he is to them ! It must have 
 been very hard on him/' Lucy's tone was 
 sympathetic, but her father replied briskly: 
 
 " Oh, I don't know ! Responsibility is 
 sometimes just the thing to bring out all the 
 good there is in a young fellow and show 
 what sort of stuff he 's made of." 
 
 (< I suppose that 's why he 's never mar- 
 ried," Lucy went on, following her own line 
 of thought,, her voice still sounding the sym- 
 pathetic note, " because he had to take care 
 of the others." 
 
 " I don't suppose that 's a fault in your 
 eyes, my dear." 
 
 " Of course not, daddy ! " Lucy flashed 
 back, smiling and dimpling. " Of course a 
 girl likes a young man better because he 's 
 more interesting and can pay her more at- 
 tention. You would yourself, daddy, if you 
 were a girl." 
 
 "Very likely, my dear. But I like Curtis 
 Conrad well enough, even if I 'm not as 
 young as you are and of your sex. I was
 
 36 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 disappointed in him to-day, though, and sur- 
 prised as well. You must have heard what 
 he said; how did it strike you to hear a 
 young man boast of his intention to commit 
 murder ? " 
 
 He spoke so earnestly and the persuasive 
 quality in his voice was so insistent that Lucy 
 turned upon him a quick look of surprise and 
 question. Then her eyes fell as a sudden rush 
 of emotion, coming she knew not whence or 
 why, almost choked her utterance. 
 
 " I don't know/' she began tremulously, 
 " perhaps he would n't really do it I don't 
 believe he would he seems too good and 
 kind to be really wicked or cruel." She 
 stopped a moment, only to break out 
 abruptly : 
 
 " And it was such a wicked thing that 
 man Delafield did! Oh, he must have been 
 a villain ! As wicked and cruel oh, as bad 
 as he could be! I can't blame Mr. Conrad 
 for feeling as he does. I know it seems an 
 awful thing for me to say, but I really can't 
 blame him, daddy, when I think what that 
 man made him suff er and he was only one ; 
 there must have been many others. I might 
 even feel the same way if I were in his place 
 and it had been you that was killed ! " There
 
 THE EVIL THAT MEN DO 37 
 
 was a thrill in her voice that seemed in her 
 father's ears to be the echo of that which had 
 vibrated through Curtis Conrad's words when 
 he so passionately declared his purpose. Her 
 words were as knife-thrusts in his heart as 
 she went on, " Oh, how I should hate him ! 
 I know I should hate him with all my 
 strength ! " 
 
 He made no immediate reply, leaning for- 
 ward to tap the horses with the whip-lash. 
 Lucy choked down a sob or two, turned, 
 threw her arms around his neck, and burst 
 into tears. He put his arm about her with 
 a sudden close pressure, and she, with her 
 eyes hidden against his shoulder, could not 
 see that his face had gone suddenly white 
 and that underneath his brown moustache and 
 pointed beard his lips were pale and tense. 
 
 ' Well, well, Lucy," he said presently, his 
 voice calm and caressing, " there 's no need 
 to be tragic over it. Is it any of our affair, 
 even if Conrad is our good friend? Possibly 
 Delafield was n't as bad as he says it 's 
 likely Curt exaggerates about him he usu- 
 ally does when he dislikes anybody. And 
 perhaps Delafield suffered as much as the 
 others. Come, dear, brace up and don't be 
 hysterical."
 
 38 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Lucy straightened up and gave her father 
 a wavering, wistful smile. " It was silly of 
 me, was n't it, daddy, to act like that ! I 'm 
 ashamed of myself. I don't know why I cried 
 I guess it was because I am tired."
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 
 
 WITH eager pleasure Conrad gazed 
 from his car window the next 
 morning at the narrow bright rib- 
 bon of verdure with which the Rio Grande 
 pranks itself on its southward course through 
 New Mexico. The unkempt fields, the or- 
 chards and meadows, and the softened and 
 caressing sunlight were as balm to his eyes, 
 accustomed to the pale, grim southern plain 
 and its fierce white sunshine. As the train 
 rushed northward along the banks of the 
 muddy stream, he looked at the little adobe 
 houses, wondering how long these peaceful 
 Mexican homes could withstand the pressure 
 of the dominant American. He became aware 
 that the men behind him were discussing the 
 same question. 
 
 " It will be only a few years," one of them 
 was saying, " until this rich valley with all 
 this water for irrigation will be in American 
 hands."
 
 40 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " The greasers are safe enough," said his 
 companion, " until they begin tO f borrow on 
 mortgages. Then their fate is settled." 
 
 " I heard the other day," responded the first, 
 " that Dell Baxter 's been corralling a lot of 
 mortgages on the land hereabouts." 
 
 The other chuckled. " You bet. Dell ain't 
 the man to let a little chance like this slip by 
 him. These paisanos look on him as a sort 
 of ' little father ' and borrow money of him 
 with utter heedlessness of the day of reckon- 
 ing. He jollies them along and tells 'em 
 they 're good fellows and hard workers, and 
 he 's sure they '11 be able to pay when the 
 time comes. Of course they never pay back 
 a blessed peso, and Baxter gets the ranch. 
 I '11 bet it won't be long till he '11 be exploit- 
 ing a big land improvement company and sell- 
 ing these 'doby farms for ten times what they 
 cost him." 
 
 The talk of the two men drifted into poli- 
 tics, and presently Conrad heard them dis- 
 cussing Bancroft's loyal support of Baxter 
 for Congress. " He 's got to do it," said 
 one of them. " Dell 's been loaning him 
 money and taking mortgages until Bancroft 
 could n't do anything else if he wanted to. 
 Dell knows that Bancroft's support is a
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 41 
 
 mighty important asset on account of the 
 confidence people have in him, and Dell 's 
 been careful to cinch it good and tight." 
 
 As Curtis bought an Albuquerque morning 
 paper from the train-boy he thought indig- 
 nantly, " That 's all poppycock ! Aleck 's got 
 too much grit to let anybody throttle him with 
 a few dirty pesos. Hullo ! What 's this about 
 Jenkins ? " His eye had caught the name of 
 the man he wished to see in a column of local 
 news. As he read, " Rutherford W. Jenkins 
 came down from Las Vegas yesterday and is 
 stopping at the Metropolitan," his face shone 
 with satisfaction. " Good luck ! " he thought. 
 ;< We '11 be in Albuquerque in half an hour, 
 and I '11 go for my man like a steer on the 
 prod!" 
 
 At the hotel he found Jenkins, with a num- 
 ber of other men, smoking and talking on the 
 porch. He did not expect to be remembered, 
 for they had met only once, months before. 
 But Jenkins came forward with his hand out- 
 stretched in greeting. " How do you do, Mr. 
 Conrad! You don't get up to this part of 
 the Territory very often ; but we 're always 
 glad to see you." 
 
 ' Thank you, Mr. Jenkins. I Ve come this 
 time especially to see you, and as soon as you
 
 42 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 have a moment or two to spare I 'd like a 
 private conversation." 
 
 " Certainly ! With pleasure ! Just excuse 
 me for a minute, will you, till I finish up the 
 business I have with these men, and then 
 we '11 go up to my room." 
 
 Conrad waited, tense and expectant, the 
 quite apparent fact that Jenkins was engaged 
 in mere desultory chat and story-telling in- 
 creasing his irritation at the delay. He had 
 jumped to the conclusion that Jenkins knew 
 who Delafield was, and his breath came short 
 and chokingly at the thought that in a few 
 minutes he, too, would know. To know would 
 be to act. His revolver was in his hip-pocket, 
 and he intended to go straight from the in- 
 terview to that meeting which for half his 
 years had been the one goal of his thought. 
 He glanced at Jenkins, saying to himself, 
 " He looks like a weasel, and I reckon he is 
 just enough of one to have wormed around 
 and worked this thing out." Jenkins was tall, 
 slender, and slightly stooped, his face long 
 and thin, with its salient features crowded 
 too close together. " I reckon he knows, all 
 right," Conrad's thought went on, " and he '11 
 tell me if I make the inducement big enough 
 he 'd do anything for money ! "
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 43 
 
 Under cover of the conversation Jenkins 
 had been doing his share of rapid thinking, 
 prolonging the talk for that very purpose. 
 He was putting together, with the acumen 
 of a man in whom detective processes are a 
 natural endowment, enough facts to convince 
 him of the reason for Conrad's visit, con- 
 sidering the while just what he should do. 
 He felt sure that he must expect a direct 
 question about Delafield's identity, but he put 
 off decision upon his response until he should 
 hear the inquiry. 
 
 " Now, Mr. Conrad, we '11 go straight up 
 to my room," he said cordially, laying a 
 familiar hand upon the other's shoulder. 
 Curtis shrank back a little, falling behind 
 with a promptitude that left no doubt of his 
 intention to keep the interview entirely for- 
 mal. Jenkins licked his lips with an unwhole- 
 some smile, and led the way in silence. As 
 the door closed behind them, Conrad became 
 aware of an increase of repugnance toward 
 this man so great that the necessity of deal- 
 ing with him was an irritation. 
 
 " Well, Mr. Conrad," said Jenkins, cheer- 
 fully, giving the other no time to state his 
 mission, " I hear you are putting in some 
 good licks for Johnny Martinez down in
 
 44 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Silverside. What do you think of his chances 
 down there ? Pretty good, are n't they ? " 
 
 " Yes, I think so," Curtis replied curtly ; 
 and plunged into his own affair. " I have 
 understood, Mr. Jenkins, from my friend Mr. 
 Littleton, of Chicago, whom you met last 
 week, that you are interested in a matter of 
 prime importance to me, and that you have 
 some information I want to get hold of." 
 
 " Oh, yes ; I remember meeting Littleton 
 last week," Jenkins broke in. " A good fel- 
 low, too. So he's a friend of yours, is he? 
 Yes; he and I scraped up quite a friendship 
 and had a good time together. But say, 
 Conrad, the amount of throat varnish that 
 man can stand is something amazing ! " 
 
 Curtis straightened himself in his chair im- 
 patiently. " He wrote me that he had some 
 conversation with you about Sumner L. Dela- 
 field, formerly of Boston, but now, I have 
 reason to believe, living here in New Mexico 
 under an assumed name." 
 
 " Yes ; I believe we did have a little talk 
 about Delafield," Jenkins interrupted again. 
 ; ' But I '11 have to confess," he went on jocu- 
 larly, " that my mental condition was n't per- 
 fectly clear and it 's likely my remarks were 
 a little foggy too. But I recall that we did
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 45 
 
 have some conversation about the Delafield 
 affair. Littleton had some personal interest 
 in Delafield's failure, didn't he?" 
 
 " No; all the work he has done on the case 
 has been for me. I have considerable inter- 
 est in it." 
 
 " Have you, indeed ? Now, this is a co- 
 incidence ! For some time past I Ve been a 
 good deal interested in that matter myself. 
 I suppose you were roped into some of his 
 schemes ? " 
 
 For a moment Curtis took counsel with 
 himself upon what and how much he should 
 say, only to thrust back his repulsion against 
 saying anything at all to this man and plunge 
 frankly into his narrative. With the utmost 
 brevity he told of his father's ruin and of 
 his own trailing of the culprit through so 
 many years. Of his motives he said nothing, 
 and of his work in tracking Delafield no 
 more than was necessary. Few, even of his 
 best friends, knew anything about the secret 
 scheme of vengeance he had nursed from boy- 
 hood. Even Littleton, the detective who had 
 aided him in the quest, did not know that he 
 wanted to face Delafield for any reason other 
 than to demand restitution. 
 
 Having briefly outlined his story, Conrad
 
 46 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 V 
 
 went on to say that Littleton had led him to 
 think that Jenkins must be engaged in the 
 same search, and suggested that an exchange 
 of their discoveries might be for their mutual 
 benefit. 
 
 Jenkins listened with evident interest, ask- 
 ing questions here and there concerning cer- 
 tain points in the other's long chase of the 
 fugitive. " Yes ; you 've done very well, Con- 
 rad," he said, admiration in his voice, " very 
 well indeed. That was a damned crooked 
 trail and you Ve done a fine piece of work 
 in following it through." 
 
 Curtis gnawed his moustache and frowned. 
 Jenkins's evasive speeches were increasing his 
 irritation and repugnance almost beyond his 
 control. " The amount of the matter is," he 
 burst out, " I Ve got the notion that you know 
 who Delafield is, and I 'm willing to pay you 
 for the information. I shall undoubtedly be 
 able to find out for myself if I keep at it a 
 little longer, but it happens that I want to 
 know at once. If you know positively who 
 he is, I am willing to pay you three hundred 
 dollars for the knowledge." 
 
 Jenkins walked to the window and stood 
 there silently. He was weighing one thing 
 against another, and deciding whether he
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 47 
 
 should tell the whole truth, a part of it, or 
 none at all. Presently he said to himself that 
 a bird in the hand to-day is worth a whole 
 flock that may be in the bush to-morrow. 
 
 " Before I decide about your offer, Mr. 
 Conrad," he began cautiously, " there are two 
 or three things I would like to know. You 
 are doing some good work for Martinez for 
 Congress, I understand." 
 
 " The best I can," answered Curtis with 
 surprise. 
 
 ;< Well, as you know, I am warmly in his 
 favor myself. I want to get him the support 
 of as many leading men in the Territory as 
 possible. This man Delafield is one of Bax- 
 ter's influential lieutenants, and I particularly 
 want to win him over to Martinez. You, I 
 happen to know, have some influence with 
 him." 
 
 A nervous start betrayed the strain Conrad 
 was under, and an eager look lighted his 
 face. Jenkins saw it, smiled blandly, and in- 
 wardly decided to demand another hundred 
 dollars. " It has occurred to me," he went 
 on, " that you might be able to influence 
 him when I could n't. Combine this leverage 
 with your friendship, and I believe almost 
 anything is possible. If I let you have this
 
 48 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 information will you agree to use it and 
 your influence in such a way as to induce 
 him to join in with Johnny Martinez ? " 
 
 The look that blazed in Conrad's eyes, 
 coupled with the same involuntary shrinking 
 movement that he had made in escaping 
 Jenkins's hand at the foot of the stairway, 
 showed the rapid ebbing of his self-control. 
 Jenkins noticed both look and movement, and 
 a gleam of angry resentment flashed into his 
 dark eyes. But it was quickly repressed, as 
 he suavely asked, " Well, what do you say? " 
 
 " I don't know that I can promise," said 
 Curtis, stiffly, " that my influence would count 
 as much as that. Possibly it will be enough 
 to keep him from supporting Dellmey Baxter. 
 Yes," he went on with a grim look, " I think 
 I can assure you he will be neutral through 
 the rest of this campaign." 
 
 ' That might perhaps be satisfactory," said 
 Jenkins meditatively, inwardly deciding to 
 raise the price another hundred dollars in lieu 
 of the aid for Martinez. " But if that is all 
 you 're sure of doing I shall have to ask more 
 money for the information. It has cost me 
 a great deal of time and effort, and if I can't 
 bring about this result with it I must repay 
 myself some other way. I will tell you what
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 49 
 
 you want to know, Mr. Conrad, if you will 
 give me five hundred dollars and your prom- 
 ise to do your best to get him to support 
 Martinez." 
 
 ' That is what I said I could not do ; and 
 you are asking more money because I could 
 not promise it." 
 
 ' Well, then, if you will promise to induce 
 him to remain neutral during this campaign." 
 
 ' Yes ; I will promise that, and I will give 
 you the five hundred dollars." 
 
 "Very well; it's a bargain." 
 
 Curtis wrote his check for that sum on the 
 First National Bank of Golden. Jenkins ex- 
 amined the bit of paper, folded it away in his 
 pocket-book, rubbed his hands, and smiled at 
 Conrad. 
 
 ' You will be surprised/' he said, " when 
 you hear the man's name. He is well known 
 to you, and he is universally regarded, all 
 over New Mexico, as a model citizen, as 
 square and honest as any man in the Terri- 
 tory and much more so than most of 
 them." 
 
 ' Yes ? " said Conrad, rising and reaching 
 for his hat. 
 
 ' Yes, you will be astonished, I promise 
 you," Jenkins went on, rising and facing
 
 5 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Curtis, still smiling and rubbing his hands 
 together in satisfaction. " For Sumner L. 
 Delafield, the fugitive from justice/' he 
 began speaking slowly and impressively, 
 " the absconding defaulter, the man who sank 
 the fortunes of hundreds of people, the man 
 who had to hide in Canada and slink around 
 in out-of-the-way places for so many years, 
 is now known as " there was a brief pause 
 to give his revelation its fullest dramatic 
 effect " is now known in New Mexico as 
 Alexander Bancroft, president of the bank on 
 which your check is drawn." 
 
 Conrad started, and his attitude of eager 
 attention stiffened. For an instant half a 
 dozen Jenkinses seemed to be whirling about 
 the room. Out of the repugnance, contempt, 
 and anger boiling in his veins shot a definite 
 idea, the desire to choke the man who had 
 said this thing about his best friend. He 
 leaped forward, seized Jenkins by the collar, 
 and shook him as if he had been a ten-year- 
 old boy. Although his arms were flying hither 
 and yon Jenkins grabbed wildly for the pistol 
 in his pocket. Curtis saw the movement, and 
 with his left hand seized the butt. As he 
 pulled it out Jenkins caught its barrel; but 
 with a twist of his right arm and a jerk with
 
 MISTAKE, OR BLUNDER? 51 
 
 his left Conrad wrested the gun from the 
 other's hand and threw it under the bed. 
 
 His face white and his eyes blazing, he 
 grasped Jenkins by the shoulders and jammed 
 him against the wall until the windows rattled. 
 With two quick, backward strides he gained 
 the door. Opening it with a hand stretched 
 behind him, Curtis spoke with deliberate em- 
 phasis, pointing his words with a menacing 
 forefinger : 
 
 " Rutherford Jenkins, you are the damned- 
 est liar and vilest skunk that ever made tracks 
 in New Mexico, and if you ever tell that lie 
 about Bancroft to another living soul I '11 
 wring your neck ! " 
 
 Jenkins sprang toward the door, but as it 
 closed from without he stooped, shook him- 
 self together, and swore under his breath. 
 He took out the check, and chuckled. " I '11 
 get it cashed before he changes his mind," 
 he thought. Then a wave of anger and re- 
 sentment rolled over him and he shook an 
 impotent fist at the closed door. " Damn 
 him ! " he said aloud, " I '11 get even with 
 him yet."
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 
 
 ECY BANCROFT bade a smiling good- 
 bye to her father at the door of 
 the First National Bank, and crossed 
 the street to a store on the corner oppo- 
 site. Lingering in the doorway for her 
 turn to be waited upon, she watched him 
 with admiring eyes. " What a handsome 
 man daddy is," she was thinking; " I like 
 a man to be tall and straight and broad- 
 shouldered; and I 'm glad he 's always so well 
 groomed ; I 'd love him just as much if he 
 was n't, but I could n't be quite so proud of 
 him." 
 
 Another man was coming up the street 
 toward her father, and Lucy smiled as her 
 eyes fell upon him. " There 's Congressman 
 Baxter," her thought ran on. " How slouchy 
 and dumpy he seems beside daddy! They 
 say he 's one of the smartest men in the 
 Territory; but I'm sure daddy is just as 
 smart as he is, and he 's certainly a great deal
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 53 
 
 handsomer and nicer looking. And he 's just 
 as nice as he looks, too, my dear daddy ! " 
 
 Bancroft appeared the man of substance 
 and of consequence, confident alike in him- 
 self and in the regard of the community, as 
 he stood in the door of his bank and met the 
 Congressman with friendly greeting. " Glad 
 to see you, Baxter ! Come in ! I want to have 
 a talk with you." 
 
 Dellmey Baxter shook hands cordially, 
 pleasure at the meeting fairly radiating from 
 his round, sunburned face, even his cold gray 
 eyes borrowing warmth from his gratified 
 and shining countenance. One of these eyes 
 was set at an angle slightly oblique, its pecu- 
 liarity made more prominent by the loose hang- 
 ing of the upper lid from the outer corner. 
 The expression of cunning thus given to the 
 upper part of his face was curiously at vari- 
 ance with his jovial look and manner. 
 
 In Bancroft's private office Baxter's first 
 question was if the other had yet visited the 
 mine at the base of Mangan's Peak, concern- 
 ing which they had had correspondence. 
 
 'Yes; I was there this week. The man 
 who owns it has n't sabe enough about mines 
 to know what a good proposition he 's got. 
 He '11 sell cheap for cash, for he needs the
 
 54 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 money. I think it 's a first-class investment, 
 and we 'd better snap it up. Shall we make 
 it half and half?'' 
 
 " I don't know about going in as a partner, 
 Aleck. I 'm getting too much tied up in all 
 kinds of enterprises, and I don't want to have 
 more on my hands than I can attend to. But 
 if it 's a good thing I 'd like to help you get 
 hold of it ; I know you 'd hustle its develop- 
 ment and make all there is in it tell for the 
 reputation of New Mexico. I Ve got too 
 many other things on hand to go in as a 
 partner, but if you haven't the ready cash 
 to buy it yourself I'll advance you what you 
 need and take a mortgage on the property." 
 
 In the persuasive tones of Bancroft's reply 
 there was no hint of the reluctance and dis- 
 appointment he inwardly felt at this prospect 
 of having to increase his indebtedness to Bax- 
 ter, concerning which he already felt some 
 anxiety. 
 
 ' That hardly seems fair, Dell. You gave 
 me the hint about the mine, and you ought to 
 make more than that out of it. I 'm satisfied 
 it 's an almighty good proposition and can be 
 made to pay for itself and for the money 
 needed in initial development inside the first 
 year."
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 55 
 
 " Oh, that 's all right," Baxter responded 
 heartily. " I 'm glad to let the chance come 
 your way, because you Ve got more sabe and 
 more hustle than any other man I know, and 
 you '11 do something worth while with it. 
 Think about it, and we '11 talk it over again 
 before I go back. I 'm down here now mainly 
 for politics. You know Silverside County as 
 well as any man in it how do things 
 look?" 
 
 ' Well, it 's always a close county, you 
 know. But you '11 probably get the delegates 
 to the convention, and I reckon you '11 stand 
 as good a chance on election day as Johnny 
 Martinez." 
 
 The other chuckled. ;< Well, I rather 
 guess ! Why, he 's got no money to put into 
 the fight!" 
 
 "No; but there are the Castletons." 
 
 " I heard that their superintendent at So- 
 corro Springs ranch what's his name? 
 Conrad ? had come out strong in his favor. 
 What do they care about it? Neither one of 
 'em spends two weeks out of the year in the 
 Territory." 
 
 " Oh, if they really have any interest in 
 it I suppose it 's that everlasting ' cousin ' 
 business of the Mexicans. You know Ned
 
 56 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Castleton married a first cousin of Johnny's, 
 although she 's half American." 
 
 Baxter looked thoughtful. "If he's got 
 the Castleton money back of him," he began 
 doubtfully, but broke off with an opposing 
 idea : " I 've heard that the wives of the two 
 brothers fight each other to the limit on every 
 proposition that comes along, and I reckon 
 if Turner's wife found out that Ned's wife 
 wanted Martinez boosted into Congress she 'd 
 see to it that Turner blocked the game if he 
 could." 
 
 " If Ned Castleton should back up Marti- 
 nez with a bagful or two of his loose cash it 
 would make mighty hard sledding for us," 
 observed Bancroft. 
 
 Baxter pursed his lips and whistled softly. 
 " I reckon it would ! " he said, with an air 
 of taking the other into his innermost coun- 
 sels. Then he broke out warmly : " That was 
 damn good of you, Aleck, to come out for me 
 as squarely as you did in the Albuquerque 
 Leader the other day! It 's a good thing for 
 me, all over the Territory, to have people know 
 that Alexander Bancroft is supporting me. 
 They 've got confidence in you, Aleck. I ap- 
 preciate it, I tell you, and I won't forget it, 
 either."
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 57 
 
 Baxter had already served two terms in 
 Congress, and some members of his party 
 thought he should be willing to stand aside 
 and give some one else the prize. This made 
 him anxious about the outcome of the ap- 
 proaching convention, and set him to inter- 
 rogating the banker regarding the intentions 
 of this, that, and the other man of local con- 
 sequence. At last he came back to the sub- 
 ject of the Castletons. 
 
 " Do you really think, Aleck, that Ned 
 Castleton's money is behind Martinez? If 
 it is, that would explain Conrad's attitude." 
 
 Bancroft saw that the Congressman was 
 worried by the possibility of such effective 
 opposition. On the instant an idea was pro- 
 jected into his mind, born of his own secret 
 anxiety and his knowledge of Baxter's repu- 
 tation. It came so suddenly and so vividly 
 that it took him unawares, sending a telltale 
 light into his eyes and across his usually im- 
 passive countenance. His lids were quickly 
 lowered, but Baxter had already seen the 
 revealing flash and was wondering what it 
 might mean. The banker hesitated for a mo- 
 ment, his thoughts confused by the force of 
 the bolt which had shot into his mind. 
 
 " Of course I don't know anything about
 
 58 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 it," he went on cautiously, the other watch- 
 ing him for signs of self-betrayal, " but it 
 looks to me as if Conrad might be acting as 
 Ned Castleton's agent, so that Ned won't 
 have to be mixed up in it. That would take 
 away the chance of Mrs. Turner's trying to 
 make her husband block the game. And Con- 
 rad is violently opposed to you. He handles 
 you without gloves, and is doing all he can 
 against your nomination. He says he '11 bolt 
 you if you get it, and that if the other side 
 puts up Martinez he '11 jump in and fight for 
 him with both feet and his spurs on." 
 
 The smile faded from Baxter's face, and 
 his left eyelid drooped lower than usual a 
 sign that his mind was busy with some knotty 
 problem. But he was not considering the 
 pros and cons of the Castleton money. He 
 was wondering why that sudden purpose had 
 flashed in Bancroft's eyes, why he had shown 
 that momentary discomposure, and why he 
 was now dwelling so much more strongly on 
 the fact of Conrad's opposition. He drew 
 his chair nearer and in confidential tones 
 began to inquire about the young cattleman : 
 11 Has Conrad got much influence?" 
 
 * Yes ; a good deal. He 's a bright, ener- 
 getic fellow, and he 's made lots of friends."
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 59 
 
 " Know anything about him, Aleck ? " 
 
 " Not much. Ned Castleton ran across him 
 in San Francisco, I believe, where he was 
 agent for one of the big cattle ranches in 
 southern California. He 's been their super- 
 intendent at Socorro Springs for two years, 
 and he 's put the ranch in better shape and 
 made it pay better, in spite of the drought, 
 than anybody else they Ve had since their 
 father died." 
 
 " But where 'd he come from before Castle- 
 ton got him ? " 
 
 " I don't know, except in a general way. I 
 guess he 's mostly run along with the cattle 
 business in Colorado and California and New 
 Mexico." 
 
 ' You really think his opposition to me 
 down here is important ? " 
 
 " There 's no doubt about it, Dell," Bancroft 
 rejoined, his manner becoming more earnest 
 and his tones more persuasive as he went on. 
 " Curt Conrad is a fighter from the word 
 'go/ and he seems to have started out with 
 the intention of doing you up. He '11 sure 
 do you a lot of damage if you can't find some 
 way of making him change his mind. He 's 
 popular, the sort that everybody likes, you 
 know, and he 's always enthusiastic and
 
 6o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 cocksure, so that he has a good deal of 
 influence of his own, whether or not he's 
 acting for Ned Castleton. And as people 
 generally believe he is it amounts to the 
 same thing." 
 
 " We must get at him some way," said 
 Baxter earnestly, his cold eyes watchful of 
 his companion's manner and expression. 
 " Has n't he done something that would give 
 us a hold on him? " 
 
 " No, there 's nothing in that lead. I Ve 
 tried argument, and you might as well talk 
 to a cyclone." 
 
 " How about money ? " 
 
 Bancroft shook his head decisively. ' That 
 would be the worst mistake you could make. 
 He would n't touch it and he 'd roar about it 
 everywhere. The fact is, Dell, we '11 have to 
 get rid of his opposition some way. I 've 
 done everything I can, and now I '11 have to 
 put it up to you." 
 
 "Well, I'll think it over," said Baxter, 
 rising and looking at his watch. " I '11 see 
 you again about that mine business, while 
 I 'm here, and I want to talk with you about 
 a paisano ranch, up above Socorro, there 's 
 a chance of our getting. I think we '11 be 
 able to get our development company going
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 61 
 
 in less than a year. When it 's organized, 
 Aleck, I want you to be president of it." 
 
 " I don't know about that," Bancroft re- 
 plied slowly, an uneasy recollection of some 
 of Lucy's freely expressed ideas coming into 
 his mind. " I may prefer to stay in the back- 
 ground, as a silent partner, as our arrange- 
 ment is now." 
 
 " It would be good for the company to have 
 you at its head; your reputation would be 
 an asset," Baxter objected persuasively. 
 
 " By the way, Dell, did you foreclose on 
 a man named Melgares, Jose Maria Mel- 
 gares, a month or two ago ? " 
 
 "Melgares? Yes; and I was especially 
 easy on him; let him have three months' 
 extra time. But I had to come down on 
 him finally. Why?" 
 
 " He 's here in Golden now, and he 's been 
 roaring about it. He came down here from 
 the Mogollons, where it 's likely he 'd been 
 doing some horse-stealing. And I guess he 's 
 been lifting chickens and things out of people's 
 back-yards since he 's been here." 
 
 " Next thing he '11 be getting arrested," 
 Baxter chuckled, " and I '11 have to defend 
 him for nothing. These greasers all seem 
 to think I 'm a heaven-sent protector for 'em
 
 62 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 all, no matter what they do. So long, Aleck; 
 I '11 see you again before I leave town." 
 
 Baxter lounged down the street, greeting 
 one acquaintance after another with a jovial 
 laugh, a hearty handshake, or a slap on the 
 shoulder, his round, red face aglow with good 
 fellowship. But his gray eyes were cold and 
 preoccupied. At the court-house door he 
 stopped to talk with Dan Tillinghurst, the 
 sheriff, and Little Jack Wilder, his deputy. 
 
 " Say, Jack," said the sheriff, as the Con- 
 gressman went on up the street, " what sort 
 o' hell do you-all reckon Dell Baxter 's cookin' 
 up now ? He 's too jolly not to have somethin' 
 on hand. The louder he laughs the more sul- 
 phur you can bet he 's got in his pockets." 
 
 " Be careful, Dan," warned Jack, " or that 
 nomination for sheriff will miss fire." 
 
 " Don't you worry about that Dell an' 
 me 's all right; you-all just worry about the 
 fellow that 's made his eyes look like a dead 
 fish's. Dell 's sure got somethin' on his 
 mind." 
 
 There was something on Baxter's mind. 
 He was still wondering why Alexander Ban- 
 croft had insisted so strongly upon the im- 
 portance of young Conrad's opposition, which 
 the Congressman did not believe was of much
 
 THE POWERS CONFER 63 
 
 consequence. He chuckled and his left lid 
 drooped lower as he finally decided : " I reckon 
 he wants me to pull some chestnut or other 
 out of the fire for him. I '11 just let him think 
 I 'm taking it all in. I 'd like to know what 
 it is, though, for if I don't keep a good hold 
 on Aleck he 's likely to get heady and try to 
 step into my shoes/'
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 
 
 DAN TILLINGHURST and Little 
 Jack Wilder sat under the big cotton- 
 wood in front of the court-house, 
 commenting upon things in general, and, 
 presently, more particularly upon Curtis Con- 
 rad and his mare, Brown Betty, when they 
 espied him talking with the landlord in front 
 of the hotel across the stream. The town of 
 Golden lay in a gulch among the foot-hills. 
 It had been a thriving silver camp in the older 
 days. Discovered in the heyday of the pale 
 metal, it had yielded so richly that the men 
 flocking thither, in sheer, exultant contempt 
 of the value of its yellow brother, had named 
 the camp " Golden Gulch." The mines had 
 been in the bottom of the gulch, and near 
 them, along the banks of the stream, had 
 been built all the houses of the mining days. 
 The earliest roads had run along each side 
 of the water, and these were still the main 
 streets of the town. Facing one another across
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 65 
 
 the two streets and the bed of the creek were 
 all the public buildings and business houses, 
 the two hotels, some of the best residences, 
 and many of the poorer ones. The Mexican 
 quarter, called " Doby Town " by the Ameri- 
 cans, straggled along these thoroughfares and 
 up the hillsides just beyond the heart of the 
 town. Down their entire length cottonwoods 
 of notable girth and majesty spread their 
 branches. 
 
 One of the largest and finest of these trees 
 shaded the court-house corner where the 
 Sheriff and his deputy were sprawling their 
 legs and waiting for something to happen. 
 The Sheriff was burly and broad-shouldered, 
 although his legs had not quite been able to 
 keep pace with the growing massiveness of 
 his torso. The occasions were rare when 
 his blue eyes were not twinkling with good 
 humor, while his mouth beneath its absurd 
 little moustache curved in a smile as habitual 
 as his cheerful kindliness and universal op- 
 timism. Little Jack Wilder, who owed his 
 descriptive title to his six feet three of height, 
 was slender and lithe. He wasted neither 
 words in talk nor bullets in pistol fights, and 
 he had the reputation of being one of the 
 best shots in the Southwest, as good even as 
 
 5
 
 66 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Emerson Mead, over at Las Plumas in the 
 adjoining county. 
 
 Curtis Conrad walked across the bridge 
 that spanned the stream, Brown Betty at his 
 heels, and met their "Hello, Curt!" with 
 "Hello! Anything new?" 
 
 "Yes," said Wilder, "anyway, there's 
 likely to be." 
 
 "What sort?" 
 
 "That's what we'd like to know," said 
 Tillinghurst. "Jack 's been sashaying around 
 Doby Town for the last two days with his 
 eye on a Mexican horse thief, waitin' for him 
 to do something he can be arrested for; and 
 the darn' fool won't do a thing! He just 
 sits around respectable and behaves himself. 
 Jack 's gettin' all out of patience with him." 
 
 Little Jack growled a corroborative oath, 
 and took a chew of tobacco. 
 
 " Well, if you know he 's a horse thief, why 
 don't you arrest him? " asked Conrad. 
 
 "We know it all right," said Jack; "but 
 he ain't lifted no critters yet in this county. 
 He 's been doin' some chicken-thieving and 
 that sort o' thing around town the last week, 
 but we ain't goin' to arrest him for that." 
 
 Wilder shut his jaws with a determined 
 snap, while Tillinghurst went on to explain
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 67 
 
 in answer to Conrad's look of surprise : " If 
 we arrest him for that he 'd be taken before 
 a justice of the peace ; and you-all know what 
 kind of a mess Diego Vigil would make of 
 it. He 'd likely fine the man whose chicken- 
 coop had been raided because he did n't have 
 more stuff in his back-yard to be stolen, and 
 he 'd discharge Jose Maria Melgares with a 
 warning not to wake people up o' nights by 
 letting the chickens squawk ! " 
 
 The Sheriff's smile broadened and ran down 
 his throat in a chuckle. Little Jack Wilder 
 burst explosively into brief and profane speech 
 that showed his opinion of Mexicans, and es- 
 pecially of Mexican justices of the peace, to 
 be most contemptuous. 
 
 " Then why do you give them the office? " 
 Curtis demanded. " Both parties do it, all 
 over the Territory, though you all know that 
 every time they get a chance they make jus- 
 tice look like a bobtailed horse. Up north 
 last week one of 'em fined a man five dollars 
 for committing murder and warned him not 
 to do it again or he 'd have to make it ten 
 next time. You folks all knew what you 
 might expect from Vigil when you gave him 
 the place." 
 
 " Oh, well, Curt, you-all ain't run for office
 
 68 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 yet. When you do, you '11 appreciate the fact 
 that the greasers have got to be put where 
 they '11 do the most good. I 'm willin' to give 
 'em that much, and I 'm only too thankful old 
 Vigil and his friends don't strike for the 
 Sheriff's place." 
 
 Tillinghurst chuckled, while Wilder smiled 
 grimly and profanely reckoned he wouldn't 
 serve under Vigil or any other Mexican. 
 " Mebbe that pock-marked Melgares has been 
 up to some mischief by this time," he added. 
 " I hain't set eyes on him for nigh two hours. 
 Let 's go down to the Blue Front, have a 
 drink, and find out if anything 's happened." 
 
 They went down the street together, Brown 
 Betty following with the bridle over her neck. 
 A block farther down stream, a good-looking 
 Mexican came out of the First National Bank 
 and passed them. The Sheriff turned a sec- 
 ond keen glance upon him. " That looks like 
 Liberate Herrara," he said to his deputy in 
 a hasty aside. Raising his voice he accosted 
 the man in Spanish. 
 
 The Mexican turned and replied in precise 
 English with grave courtesy, " Did the senor 
 speak to me? " 
 
 ' Yes ; ain't you Liberate Herrara ? " 
 
 " No, senor. My name is Jose Gonzalez."
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 69 
 
 The Sheriff apologized, and the other bowed 
 politely, fell behind, and crossed to the other 
 side of the stream. Conrad asked Tilling- 
 hurst if he did not believe Herrara guilty of 
 the murder of which he had been acquitted 
 several months before. 
 
 " Of course he was. And it 's likely that 
 ain't the only one either. I 'm glad this man 
 ain't him. If he was down here it would be 
 on some business for Baxter, and it would n't 
 do for me to find out too much about it." 
 
 Conrad snorted contemptuously, and Wilder 
 said, " Dan, you 're talkin' too damn much." 
 
 " Oh, Curt 's all right," replied the Sheriff, 
 placidly. " He could n't hate Baxter any more 
 than he does if he tried, but he don't go back 
 on his friends. This man Melgares," he went 
 on, " that we 're hopin' will make up his mind 
 to do somethin' worth while, tells a queer 
 yarn. He says he used to have a good ranch 
 in the Rio Grande valley, between Socorro 
 and Albuquerque, but he borrowed money on 
 it from Baxter. Of course he could n't pay, 
 Dell foreclosed, and Melgares had to get 
 out." 
 
 " Yes ; I heard the other day about Bax- 
 ter's operations up there," Conrad broke in 
 hotly. " I understand he 's got hold of a lot
 
 7 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 of land in just that way. It 's a cursed, low- 
 down, dirty piece of business." 
 
 " Oh, well, better men than Baxter have 
 done the same sort of thing," the Sheriff re- 
 sponded. " From all I can find out about 
 Melgares I reckon he was honest enough up 
 to that time; but he's been goin' it pretty 
 lively ever since. I think he 's aimin' to work 
 down to the border, where he can do the criss- 
 cross act." 
 
 Conrad turned with an exclamation of 
 sudden remembrance. "By the way! Bill 
 Williams told me just now that Rutherford 
 Jenkins is here, at his hotel. Have you seen 
 him? Do you know what he 's here for? " 
 
 " I have n't talked with him, but I reckon 
 he 's here on some deal for Johnny Martinez." 
 
 Curtis tied the mare to the hitching-post 
 on the corner. " I 've heard," he said cau- 
 tiously, " that he has a venomous tongue and 
 uses it recklessly. Do you know whether he 's 
 been doing any outrageous talking lately?" 
 
 " Well, I reckon nobody would believe any- 
 thing Jenkins said, anyway. But I have n't 
 heard anything. Have you, Jack ? " 
 
 Some other men came along, and they all 
 stopped to talk together. Curtis leaned 
 against the mare and stroked her glossy
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 71 
 
 neck. She poked her nose into his coat pocket 
 and found a lump of sugar, which she ate 
 with much dainty tossing of her head. It 
 was some minutes before they entered the 
 saloon. 
 
 The " Blue Front " was a two-roomed 
 shanty on the edge of the Mexican quarter. 
 Gambling games of various sorts occupied 
 the back room ; and there, too, political deals 
 were arranged and votes bargained and paid 
 for between the American politicians and the 
 leaders of the Mexicans. When Conrad and 
 his friends came down the street a number 
 of men were in the rear room, some talking 
 and others busy at cards. At a table near 
 a side window men of both races were en- 
 gaged in a poker game. One of the players, 
 a pock-marked Mexican with a defective eye, 
 frequently glanced down the street. When 
 he saw the Sheriff and his two companions 
 approach, he rose and watched them. The 
 others wanted to know what he was looking 
 at, and he asked who was the man with the 
 brown mare. A tall, dark American, with 
 slightly stooping shoulders, looked up with 
 interest as he heard them give Conrad's name, 
 and joined the group at the window. Sev- 
 eral of the men spoke with enthusiasm about
 
 72 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Brown Betty, and one, who said he had once 
 worked at Socorro Springs ranch, told them 
 that Conrad thought more of her than of 
 anything else he owned. When the men in 
 front entered the saloon, the pock-marked 
 Mexican cashed in his chips and slipped out 
 through the rear door. 
 
 The sound of Conrad's voice in the bar- 
 room caught the attention of the tall, dark 
 American. An angry flush reddened his face, 
 his beady eyes snapped, and the tip of his 
 tongue licked his lips. Then something amus- 
 ing seemed to occur to him, for his features 
 relaxed into a smile and he glanced briskly 
 around the room. 
 
 " See if you can find Melgares, will you? " 
 he asked the Mexican with whom he had been 
 talking. " Tell him I '11 wait for him outside 
 the back door." 
 
 He stepped out into the bright sunshine, 
 smiling and rubbing his hands together. Back 
 of the shanty was a high adobe wall sur- 
 rounding the corral of the Mexican houses 
 fronting on the next street. A wooden door 
 in the wall opened cautiously, and the pock- 
 marked face looked out. 
 
 ' You sent for me, Sefior Jenkins ? " the 
 Mexican asked.
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 73 
 
 "Yes. It's all right. You needn't be 
 afraid. I want you to do something, Mel- 
 gares." 
 
 They stepped inside the corral and Mel- 
 gares bolted the door. " You saw Conrad's 
 mare just now ? " Jenkins began. " Fine 
 creature, isn't she?" 
 
 " Splendid, sefior. The finest I have seen 
 in a long time." 
 
 " I '11 warrant it ! I never saw a better 
 myself. Looks like a good traveller, does n't 
 she?" 
 
 " Si, senor." 
 
 " And a stayer, too, I guess ! It would n't 
 be hard to get to the Mexican border on her 
 back, would it? " 
 
 Melgares grinned, then shook his head. 
 " But my family I could not take them 
 with me." 
 
 ;< Well see here, Melgares. Here 's fifty 
 dollars. If you '11 get away with Conrad's 
 mare you can have it for your trouble. It 
 will take your family down there all right." 
 
 ' But yon, senor, where do you come 
 in ? " He looked suspiciously at Jenkins. 
 
 " Oh, never mind me. Conrad did me a 
 bad turn a while ago, and I 'm evening up 
 the score. That 's all I want out of it."
 
 74 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " But now, senor ? " 
 
 " Yes ; now 's your chance. He 's in the 
 saloon, and the mare 's tied at the cor- 
 ner." 
 
 "The Sheriff is in there, too. The risk 
 is great." 
 
 " Well, I '11 go in and keep them busy. I '11 
 raise excitement enough inside so that nobody 
 will even look out of the windows. Get out 
 there in five minutes, be quick about it, and 
 ride off down the valley road." 
 
 " Give me the money, senor. I '11 take the 
 chance." 
 
 Jenkins returned, and entered the bar-room 
 with his former companion without attract- 
 ing the attention of Conrad and his friends. 
 The other spoke of the report about the 
 Castleton money and mentioned Curtis Con- 
 rad's name. Jenkins raised his voice in angry 
 reply : 
 
 " Oh, damn Conrad ! Martinez don't want 
 his help!" 
 
 Curtis heard the words and turned sharply 
 around, his face flushing. Jenkins appeared 
 not to see him, and went on: 
 
 ' The Castletons are all right, but Conrad's 
 help would be a disgrace to any party. Mar- 
 tinez don't want it ! " His.voice rang loud and
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 75 
 
 shrill above the silence that had fallen sud- 
 denly upon the room. 
 
 Curtis's face paled, even under its ruddy 
 tan, and his eyes blazed. With head up he 
 strode forward. ' Jenkins," he said, without 
 raising his voice, although it shook with a 
 warning tremor, " I advise you to be careful. 
 You may have your opinion about me, as I 
 have mine about you and you know what 
 that is. But don't you say that again, nor 
 anything else of the sort ! " 
 
 Jenkins turned toward him with an ugly 
 sneer. Recollection of former indignities at 
 Conrad's tongue and hands blazed up in his 
 heart and carried him farther than he had 
 meant to go. With an oath and a vile name 
 he flung his glass in Conrad's face. In an 
 instant the young man's arms were around his 
 body. The others crowded in and tried to 
 stop the quarrel. 
 
 " Let us alone ! " shouted Curtis, pushing 
 his way toward the back room. "Wilder, 
 take his gun, will you? Get mine out of 
 my pocket, too. This won't be a gun 
 play." 
 
 Tillinghurst took Conrad's pistol, and 
 Wilder succeeded in getting Jenkins's revol- 
 ver, at the cost of a kick on the shin, which
 
 7 6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 he repaid in kind. With Jenkins almost help- 
 less in his grasp, Curtis struggled into the 
 rear room. The others were all crowding 
 after him. He turned back a face still pale 
 and set with anger, although a twinkle of 
 amusement was creeping into his eyes. 
 
 " Dan," he called, " shut that door and keep 
 out the crowd ! " 
 
 Instantly there were cries of disapproval. 
 
 " Fair play ! " " You 're bigger than him ! " 
 " We want to see it 's on the square ! " 
 
 Curtis scowled. " If any of you think it 
 won't be on the square, just wait for me till 
 I get through with him," he shouted. 
 
 The Sheriff slammed the door, and set his 
 bulk against it, saying with smiling cheerful- 
 ness : " Well, gentlemen, I reckon Mr. Jen- 
 kins won't get any more than is comin' to him, 
 and as Sheriff I call on all of you to keep 
 the peace and not interfere." 
 
 Alone in the back room with his prisoner, 
 Conrad dropped into a chair, dragged the 
 other over his knees, face downward, then 
 threw out one sinewy leg and caught under 
 it Jenkins's two unruly limbs. Still keeping 
 a firm grip with his left arm, he raised his 
 right hand. 
 
 " Now," he said grimly, " you 're going to
 
 CHASTISEMENT CONDIGN 77 
 
 get the sort of spanking your mother did n't 
 give you enough of." 
 
 One after another the resounding smacks 
 came down, while Jenkins, his strength spent 
 in futile struggle, could do nothing but writhe 
 helplessly under the smarting blows. The 
 sound of them penetrated to the front room. 
 As the men there realized what was happen- 
 ing they broke into laughter so uproarious 
 that it smote upon Jenkins's ears and forced 
 a hysterical shriek from between his gritted 
 teeth. In Conrad's heart it inspired compas- 
 sion and he desisted. 
 
 " I guess that '11 do for this time," he said, 
 releasing his hold and standing the culprit 
 on his feet. " I don't want to have to hurt 
 you, but let me tell you, you damned skunk," 
 and he seized Jenkins's shoulders and gave 
 him a vigorous shake, " if you ever dare talk 
 about me again in that way, or tell another 
 human being what you told me about Ban- 
 croft, I '11 make you wish you 'd never been 
 born." 
 
 With a parting shake he let Jenkins fall 
 back into the chair, sobbing aloud. Then he 
 stalked to the door, not even doing his enemy 
 the slight honor of going out backward.
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 A STERN CHASE 
 
 A" the shout which greeted Conrad's en- 
 trance died away the Sheriff called 
 out, " Now, gentlemen, you must all 
 have one with me," and every one lined up 
 at the bar. A rollicking din of chaff and 
 laughter filled the room, and no one except 
 Little Jack Wilder noticed the entrance of a 
 Mexican at the street door. He heard the 
 step, turned quickly, and recognized the man 
 who had told Tillinghurst that he was not 
 Liberate Herrara. Glancing along the line 
 of backs at the bar, the Mexican singled out 
 Conrad and touched his arm. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, sefior, but did you send 
 some one to ride your mare ? " 
 
 ' To ride my mare ? No ; what do you 
 mean ? " 
 
 Before he could answer Wilder sprang for- 
 ward demanding, "Is she gone?" and Con- 
 rad started for the door. 
 
 " A man has just ridden her away on the
 
 A STERN CHASE 79 
 
 run," the Mexican said excitedly, and every 
 one in the room rushed for the street. 
 
 " She 's gone ! " shouted Conrad. 
 
 "Did you see him? What was he like?" 
 demanded the Sheriff. 
 
 " A pock-marked greaser with a bad eye? " 
 yelled Wilder, towering threateningly above 
 the bearer of the news. 
 
 Gonzalez threw back his head, folded his 
 arms across his breast, and answered delib- 
 erately, " He was a Mexican, senor, he was 
 pock-marked, and he was blind in one eye." 
 
 "Melgares! He's done it at last! 
 Hooray ! " shouted Wilder. 
 
 Far down the street, beyond the last cot- 
 tonwood, against the gray, sunflooded road, 
 they could see a dark object, distorted by the 
 heat haze, but still showing the form of a 
 man on a galloping horse. 
 
 Tillinghurst's smile became an eager grin 
 as he started up the street on a run. '' Every- 
 body come that wants to," he called over his 
 shoulder. Wilder and Conrad were already 
 half a block ahead of him, and several others 
 quickly followed. 
 
 When they presently came pelting back, 
 their horses at top speed, a crowd of men 
 still stood on the sidewalk, where the Blue
 
 8o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Front made a splash of brilliant color against 
 the sombre grays and browns of the surround- 
 ing adobes. Wilder's tall, thin figure was in 
 the lead, bending forward in the saddle like 
 a sapling in a gale, the wide, limp brim of 
 his sombrero flapping in the wind. Conrad 
 and Tillinghurst were pressing him close, and 
 half a dozen others were pounding along be- 
 hind these three, while a stout man, who rode 
 awkwardly, trailed along in the rear. 
 
 The crowd at the Blue Front shouted en- 
 couragingly as they clattered past, and made 
 bets on the chances of catching the fugitive. 
 The Mexican, Gonzalez, watched Conrad 
 closely as he sped by, and said carelessly to 
 the man beside him, " Senor Conrad is a good 
 rider, the best of them all. I hope he will 
 get back his fine mare." 
 
 The horsemen swept down the street past 
 the last straggling houses, and out into the 
 open plain. Fleeing down the road, perhaps 
 two miles ahead of them, galloped the Mexi- 
 can. Tillinghurst measured the distance with 
 a careful eye, and said to Conrad, " He 's 
 our meat. We can get him easy." He glanced 
 backward, chuckled, then turned in his saddle, 
 and called loudly, " Come along there, Pendy ! 
 Don't get discouraged ! "
 
 A STERN CHASE 81 
 
 Another of the party turned his head and 
 yelled, " You 're all right, Pendy ! You '11 get 
 there before Dan does ! " 
 
 The stout man who brought up the rear 
 had made sure of his gray slouch hat by tying 
 it on with a red bandanna handkerchief. He 
 was gripping his bridle with both hands and 
 bouncing in his saddle like a bag of meal. 
 " Don't you worry about me ! " he yelled back 
 good-naturedly; "you can't lose me if you 
 try." 
 
 'Who is he?" asked Curtis. 
 
 "Pendy? Oh, he's a tenderfoot. Blew 
 in from the East two or three weeks ago. 
 Somethin' wrong with his bellows or likely 
 to be, though you-all would n't think it, con- 
 siderin' his fat. He 's grit clear through, 
 though ! Just look at the way he rides ! " 
 
 Conrad glanced back, laughed, and replied, 
 " Oh, it '11 be good for his liver! " Then he 
 went on seriously, " Dan, do you think there 's 
 any truth in the story that this man Mel- 
 gares began horse-stealing because Dell Bax- 
 ter did him out of his ranch?" 
 
 " Oh, I don't know ! Baxter got his ranch 
 all right, but the greaser did n't have to go 
 to stealin' horses on that account. Chickens 
 are safer; and chilis don't even squawk. I 
 
 6
 
 82 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 reckon likely he steals horses because he 'd 
 ruther." 
 
 "Well, anyway, Dan, all I want out of 
 this is to get Brown Betty back. I shall 
 not make any complaint against him. So, 
 if he gives up the mare, I 'd rather you let 
 him go." 
 
 " Huh," grunted the Sheriff, with an ap- 
 prehensive glance at Wilder, a full length 
 ahead. " For God's sake, Curt, don't let Jack 
 hear you say that! He'd be so disgusted 
 he'd turn tail and go straight back to 
 Golden!" 
 
 The fugitive kept his distance well; it 
 seemed to Conrad's eye that he even gained 
 a little. Now and again they could see him 
 look back, and with spur and quirt urge the 
 mare to a fresh burst of speed. 
 
 " Brown Betty 's a stayer," said Curtis, 
 bringing his horse beside Tillinghurst's again, 
 " and she 's fast. I don't believe we '11 catch 
 him unless something happens to her." 
 
 The Sheriff turned a smiling face and said 
 confidently, " If we get a little nearer I reckon 
 somethin' 's likely to happen to him. Hello, 
 Pendleton ! " he exclaimed as the stout man 
 came up on the other side. " That noble steed 
 of yours is sure gettin' a gait on him, ain't
 
 A STERN CHASE 83 
 
 he? If you-all don't wait for the rest of us 
 there '11 be trouble, I 'm tellin' you ! " 
 
 " Say, Sheriff," called Pendleton between 
 his gasps and grunts as he bounced up and 
 down, " are you going to keep up this pace 
 all day?" 
 
 Tillinghurst eyed him benignly. " As long 
 as he does," he said, nodding toward the 
 fleeing spot of black down the road. " Say, 
 Pendy," he went on in a kindly tone, " it 's 
 a pretty stiff gait for you-all, and unless 
 you 're anxious to take your meals standin' 
 for the next month you 'd better drop out 
 and go back. It 's likely to be an all-day 
 job." 
 
 " Not much ! You can't lose me till the 
 fun 's over ! " 
 
 "Hooray for Pendy! He's all right!" 
 yelled a man behind, giving Pendleton's horse 
 a sharp cut across the flank with his whip. 
 The beast jumped, and its rider lurched to 
 one side, fell forward, and saved himself by 
 grabbing the mane with both hands. The 
 men shouted with merriment as Pendleton 
 righted himself, turned a laughing face and 
 shook his fist at the man who had played the 
 joke on him. ' Just wait till I get you where 
 I want you, Jack Gaines," he called, " and
 
 84 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 you '11 be sorry you ever played tricks on a 
 tenderfoot." 
 
 The gulch spread out into a wide, shallow 
 valley a draw, they called it and the 
 waters of the stream disappeared, sucked up 
 by the thirsty earth. The valley curved to 
 the east, the road climbing over its rim and 
 holding straight toward the south. The 
 figure of Melgares, mounted on Brown 
 Betty as on a pedestal, stood out boldly for 
 a moment against the turquoise sky as he 
 crossed the summit, then sank out of sight 
 beyond the hill. The party galloped on, 
 and as they crossed the ridge and saw him 
 on the top of a smaller hill beyond, Con- 
 rad's eye swept the distance lying between 
 and he exclaimed, ''' We Ve gained on 
 him!" 
 
 At the same moment Little Jack Wilder, 
 who had been watching the road intently, 
 shouted joyously, the first words he had 
 spoken since leaving the town, " She 's cast 
 a shoe ! Now it 's a cinch ! " 
 
 Tillinghurst turned his head and shouted, 
 " Get your gun ready, Pendy ! your chance 
 
 is cominV 
 
 Jack Gaines, riding neck and neck with 
 the Sheriff, looked back and yelled, " Come
 
 A STERN CHASE 85 
 
 a-runnin', Pendy ! The greaser can't wait for 
 you all day ! " 
 
 They were gaining rapidly on Melgares 
 and, as they swept over the top of a little 
 hill and saw him cross the next low rise, 
 Conrad exclaimed, " She 's limping, damn 
 him ! If he hurts Brown Betty " 
 
 " You won't mind so much if we hurt him," 
 quietly put in the Sheriff, who was riding on 
 his lee. Curtis spurred his horse to Wilder's 
 stirrup. 
 
 " Jack," he said, " I don't want the fellow 
 hurt. If he '11 give up my mare I 'm willing 
 to let him go." 
 
 Little Jack grunted contemptuously with- 
 out replying. 
 
 " I want you to understand," Conrad went 
 on, " that if you take him I shall make no 
 complaint against him, provided I get Betty 
 unhurt." 
 
 ' You don't have to make no complaint," 
 Jack growled; " I '11 do that myself." 
 
 They gained steadily on the fugitive, and 
 presently Curtis curved his hands about his 
 mouth and called, " Betty ! Betty B ! " They 
 could see the mare check her speed, and the 
 faint sound of her whinny reached their ears. 
 Conrad called again; and the mare wheeled
 
 86 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 in her tracks. The Mexican jerked her back, 
 lashed her furiously, and set her forward 
 again at a gallop. Curtis called again and 
 again, and every time they could see Mel- 
 gares using whip and spur to force her on. 
 But presently the mare dropped tail and head, 
 arched her back, and, stiff-legged, began to 
 jump up and down. 
 
 Conrad laughed joyously and slapped his 
 thigh. " Bully for Betty B ! I never knew 
 her to buck before." 
 
 They urged on their horses and pounded 
 down the hill toward the small circus Brown 
 Betty was making of herself. She cavorted, 
 shook herself, humped her back, jumped up 
 and down, stood on her front feet and almost 
 sat on her tail, and did everything that equine 
 intelligence could devise to rid herself of the 
 masterful hand on her bridle. But the Mexi- 
 can kept his seat and his grip upon the rein. 
 With spur and quirt and compelling voice 
 he finally forced her into submission. As she 
 quieted down they were facing the pursuing 
 posse and Melgares had just turned the mare's 
 head in another desperate attempt at escape 
 when Conrad's voice rang out once more, and 
 Brown Betty refused to move. She tossed 
 her head, laid back her ears, and whinnied,
 
 A STERN CHASE 87 
 
 but would not lift a hoof. The Mexican drew 
 his revolver and shouted, " Stop ! " 
 
 The horsemen, not more than a hundred 
 yards distant, drew rein at the word all 
 except Pendleton, who came pounding and 
 bouncing to the front, his horse still on the 
 gallop. Gaines, just behind Tillinghurst and 
 Wilder, called out laughingly, " Hooray for 
 Pendy ! Go on and get him, Pendy ! " 
 
 Pendleton had been too much occupied with 
 keeping his seat to try to stop his horse, and 
 as it went on half a length in advance of the 
 rest Gaines leaned forward and gave it a cut 
 across the flank with his quirt. It leaped for- 
 ward smartly and Pendleton, taken unawares 
 again, bobbed down on its neck and grabbed 
 for its mane. Melgares saw the horse start 
 forward and instantly his revolver flashed. 
 The bullet left a singed streak across the back 
 of Pendleton's coat, whistled on, and found 
 refuge in Gaines's side. 
 
 Wilder's gun was out and cocked. He saw 
 Pendleton lying on his horse's neck, and heard 
 Gaines cry out, " I 'm hit ! " as he fell for- 
 ward across his pommel. " Stop that ! " 
 he called. " Fire again and you 're a dead 
 man!" 
 
 Melgares leaped from the mare's back and
 
 88 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 ran at full speed down the valley, away from 
 the road. Brown Betty came trotting to Con- 
 rad's side, whinnying joyfully. Pendleton sat 
 upright, calling out, " Say, fellows, is there 
 any blood on my back ? " They told him no 
 and as he climbed down from his saddle 
 clumsily he grinned and said: 
 
 " Well, I can still die of consumption, 
 then!" 
 
 Tillinghurst, Wilder, and several of the 
 others were galloping after Melgares, who 
 was running for his life down the valley 
 toward a clump of cactus and juniper. 
 
 "Wing him, Jack!" called the Sheriff. 
 " There 's a crack in the ground down there 
 where he can hide and pick us off as he 
 pleases." 
 
 Little Jack brought his horse to a sudden 
 stop, aimed low, and the Mexican reeled and 
 fell, the blood gushing from a wound in the 
 calf of his leg. He scrambled to his feet, 
 and fired his second shot. The bullet nicked 
 the brim of the Sheriff's hat. There was 
 another flash, and Wilder heard the bullet sing 
 past his ear. 
 
 " Stop it, you damned greaser ! " he yelled, 
 " or I '11 let daylight through your head." In 
 quick succession he put two holes through the
 
 A STERN CHASE 89 
 
 Mexican's sombrero. ' The next one is for 
 your other eye ! " he called, and Melgares 
 dropped his weapon. 
 
 Wilder leaped to the ground and ran toward 
 him. He glanced at the group of horsemen, 
 each with revolver drawn, and at Wilder com- 
 ing with his gun at cock, then threw back his 
 head with his own pistol at his temple. Little 
 Jack grabbed his arm, but Melgares fought 
 desperately. The others came running to 
 Wilder's assistance, and it was not until they 
 had taken his revolver, put handcuffs upon 
 him, and taken from his clothing another 
 pistol, a knife, and a belt full of cartridges, 
 that he gave up his struggles. 
 
 They put him on the horse that Conrad 
 had ridden, with his feet tied under its belly. 
 Tillinghurst and Wilder, revolvers in hand, 
 rode on either side of him. Conrad, mounted 
 on his own mare, and another were side by 
 side with Jack Gaines laid across their laps. 
 Two more went on at a gallop to bring out 
 a doctor and a carriage for the wounded man. 
 The rest rode slowly back through the hot 
 sunlight and the high wind, guarding their 
 captive and carrying his victim.
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 
 
 GOLDEN prided itself upon being " the 
 most American town in the Terri- 
 tory," but for all its energy and pro- 
 gressiveness it had not developed an ordinary 
 regard for its own safety. After the mines 
 which had given it birth had been worked 
 out, it became the depot of supplies for the 
 widespread miles of cattle country in the 
 plains below, the mining regions in the moun- 
 tains above, and the ranches scattered along 
 the streams within a radius of fifty miles. As 
 its importance increased a railway sought it 
 out, the honor of being the county seat came 
 to it, and the ruthless Anglo-Saxon arrived 
 in such numbers and so energetically that 
 its few contented and improvident Mexicans, 
 thrust to one side, sank into hopeless nonen- 
 tity. When Lucy Bancroft first set upon it 
 the pleased eyes of youthful interest and filial 
 affection, it was a busy, prosperous place of 
 several thousand souls.
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 91 
 
 But it still clung to the gulch wherein had 
 been the beginning of its life and fortune. 
 All the houses of its infancy had been built 
 along the stream that sparkled down from 
 the mountains, and there the town had tried 
 to stay, regardless of the floods that occa- 
 sionally swept down the canyon during the 
 Summer rains. At first its growth had been 
 up and down the creek; afterward cross 
 streets had been extended far out on either 
 side, especially where gradual hill slopes gave 
 easy grades, and roads had also been made 
 lengthwise along the hillsides and even on 
 their crests, where now a goodly number of 
 homes looked out over the plains and down 
 upon the town-filled valley at their feet. 
 
 Newcomers gazed curiously at the high 
 sidewalks, raised on posts above the level of 
 the thoroughfares, asking why, if there was 
 such possibility of flood, the people continued 
 to live and do business along the bottom of 
 the gulch. The residents thought the walled 
 sidewalks rather a good joke, a humorous dis- 
 tinction, and laughed at the idea of danger. 
 
 Lucy Bancroft's eyes grew wide and solemn 
 as she listened to the tale Dan Tillinghurst 
 told her of the first year he was in Golden, 
 years before, when a mighty torrent roared
 
 92 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 down the gulch, carried away most of the 
 houses, and drowned a dozen souls. " But 
 the very next day," he added proudly, " the 
 people began rebuildin' their houses on the 
 identical sites from which they had been 
 swept." 
 
 "Why didn't they rebuild on higher 
 ground?" Lucy asked. "And aren't you 
 afraid there will be another flood that will 
 destroy all these houses and perhaps kill a 
 great many people ? " 
 
 " Oh, there 's no danger now," he assured 
 her confidently. " The climate 's changin'. 
 There 's not nearly so much rain as there 
 used to be. The creek is dry half the time 
 nowadays, and in my first years here it never 
 went dry at all. Just look at these flood- 
 marks," and he pointed out to her on the side 
 of the brick building that housed her father's 
 bank the lines to which had risen the high 
 waters of each Summer. She saw that those 
 of recent years were all very low. " Yes," 
 he assured her, " the climate 's changin', 
 there's no doubt of that. There won't be 
 any more floods." 
 
 Between Lucy and the Sheriff a mutual 
 admiration and goodfellowship had arisen, 
 such as might exist between an elephant and
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 93 
 
 a robin. The day after her arrival Tilling- 
 hurst had told Bancroft that his* daughter 
 was " the prettiest piece of dry goods that 
 had ever come to Golden, and if he ever let 
 her pull her freight he 'd sure deserve nothin' 
 less than tarrin' and featherin' at the hands 
 of an outraged community." 
 
 Notwithstanding her confidence in the big 
 Sheriff, Lucy did not like the idea of living 
 in the gulch, and persuaded her father to 
 build their home on the brow of the mesa 
 overlooking the town from the west. She 
 had no definite fear of the floods nor, after her 
 first few weeks in the place, did she so much 
 as think of danger from such a source. She 
 liked the site on the mesa, although it was 
 new and raw and treeless, because it com- 
 manded a far-reaching view, to the moun- 
 tains on the west and north and, in front, 
 across the town and the valley to the wide 
 gray level of the plains. 
 
 She sat on the veranda of her new home 
 with Miss Louise Dent, telling her friend 
 what pleasure she was taking in its arrange- 
 ment and direction. " At first daddy did n't 
 want me to do it. He thought it would be 
 too much care and responsibility for me, and 
 that we 'd better board. But I said if a girl
 
 94 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 eighteen years old was n't old enough and big 
 enough to begin to take care of her father 
 she never would be, and so he gave up. 
 And now ! Well, you '11 see how he enjoys 
 our home! He just beams with happiness 
 every time he comes into the house. And 
 I 'm perfectly happy. Daddy is so good, and 
 it 's such a pleasure to make things nice and 
 comfortable for him ! " 
 
 " I 'm so glad," Miss Dent replied, " that 
 you are happy here with him. He has had 
 so many years of lonely wandering. And I 
 know that he has long been looking forward 
 to the time when you and he could have a 
 home together. Your father has n't had an 
 easy life, dear. You could never guess all 
 that he has been through. But he is a strong 
 and determined man, and he 's finally won 
 success just as I always knew he would. 
 That 's what I admire in him so much that 
 he never would give up." She stopped, a 
 faint flush mounting to her brow. Lucy 
 threw both arms around her neck and kissed 
 her. 
 
 " Of course, Dearie," she exclaimed, " you 
 must appreciate my father, for you Ve known 
 him so long; but it makes me love you all 
 the more to hear you say so and oh, Dearie,
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 95 
 
 I 'm going to make such a beautiful home out 
 of this place ! " Lucy looked about, her girl- 
 ish face glowing with proud and pleased pro- 
 prietorship. " I know how new and barren 
 it looks now, but just wait till I Ve been at 
 work at it for a year ! " 
 
 She went on to speak of her plans, asking 
 Miss Dent's advice. In the back-yard the 
 gaunt wings of a big windmill gave a touch 
 of ultra modern picturesqueness and prom- 
 ised the fulfilment of the girl's hope of a 
 lawn and flowers, trees and shrubbery, in 
 the near future. A little conservatory jutted 
 from the southern side of the house, while 
 a deep veranda ran halfway across the eastern 
 front and around the other two sides. The 
 neutral, gray-green color of the structure 
 melted into the hue of the hills and the sur- 
 rounding mesa, leaving its barren newness 
 less aggressive. 
 
 As they talked Lucy now and then cast a 
 lingering glance down the street that climbed 
 the hill from the town below, and Miss Dent 
 thought that sometimes a shade of disap- 
 pointment dimmed the bright face for an in- 
 stant. She was twenty years Lucy's senior, 
 although both looks and manner gave the lie 
 to the fact. The loving friendship between
 
 96 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 them was one of those unusual ties between a 
 younger and an older woman which, when 
 they do occur, are apt to be marked by an 
 overflowing measure of enthusiasm and loy- 
 alty. Louise Dent had been the intimate 
 friend of Lucy's mother and, after her death, 
 had given the bereaved girl such love and 
 care and sympathy as had won her instant 
 and ardent devotion, and the relationship thus 
 established had grown stronger and closer as 
 the years passed and Lucy matured into 
 womanhood. The girl's enthusiastic affec- 
 tion had enabled her to find in Louise Dent 
 intimate friend, elder sister, and mother com- 
 bined. This complicated feeling making it 
 impossible for her to address the elder woman 
 by either formal title or first name, she had 
 soon settled upon " Dearie " as a substan- 
 tive term expressing their relationship, and 
 " Dearie " Miss Dent had been to her ever 
 since, whether between themselves or among 
 her own intimate friends. 
 
 As the shadows grew longer and the hot 
 white sunlight became less vivid, Lucy seemed 
 to grow restless. She rose and moved about 
 the veranda, or ran down into the yard and 
 back upon some trivial errand, each time 
 stopping on the steps to send an inquiring
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 97 
 
 eye down the street. Standing there, when 
 the afternoon was far spent and the fierce 
 westerly wind had ebbed into a gentle breeze, 
 she pointed out to Louise the statuesque 
 sapphire mass of Mangan's Peak against the 
 turquoise blue of the eastern sky, and told 
 her of the drive thither and back she and her 
 father had taken a fortnight before, and of 
 their call at Socorro Springs ranch. " It 's 
 an interesting place," she went on ; " such a 
 huge ranch ! Why, its grazing rights extend 
 more than a hundred miles south, away across 
 the Mexican border. Father knows the super- 
 intendent very well, and we '11 get him to 
 drive us out there some day." A higher color 
 rose in her cheeks ; she quickly turned away, 
 drew her chair well back, and sat down. 
 ' There 's Mr. Conrad, the superintendent, 
 coming up the hill now ! " she exclaimed. 
 " Daddy told me at luncheon that he was in 
 town." 
 
 Lucy bore her new role of hostess with a 
 dignity so easy and gracious that it surprised 
 Louise, and made Conrad think her more at- 
 tractive than ever. Bancroft came a little 
 later, and Curtis was urged to stay to dinner. 
 Lucy showed him in her conservatory the col- 
 lection of cactus plants she had begun to
 
 98 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 make and listened with eager interest while 
 he gave her information about the growth of 
 the species she already had, and told her 
 where she could find others less common. She 
 was anxious to have his opinion whether it 
 would be possible to make a hedge of mes- 
 quite to replace the wooden paling around the 
 yard; he did not know, but offered to help 
 her try the experiment. 
 
 They dined on the side veranda, where 
 Lucy, with the help of a screen or two and 
 some plants from her green-house, had con- 
 trived an out-of-doors dining-room. The 
 high spirits of the two younger people domi- 
 nated the conversation, as they jested and 
 bantered, laughed, and crossed wits in little 
 wordy sword-plays that called forth applause 
 and encouragement from the others. Lucy 
 sparkled and dimpled, and her color rose, 
 while Curtis's eyes darkened and flashed. 
 Miss Dent, watching them, realized what an 
 attractive young woman Lucy had grown to 
 be, and how much she had blossomed out even 
 in the few months since their last parting. 
 " She will have plenty of admirers," the older 
 woman thought, with a little twinge at her 
 heart. Still, she was very young, and it would 
 be a long time yet before she would think of
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 99 
 
 marriage. But if she were to marry and 
 leave her father he would be very lonely 
 perhaps and then she felt her cheeks 
 grow warmer, and hastened to resume her 
 part in the conversation. 
 
 Louise was pleased with Conrad's face. 
 It seemed full of character, with its broad 
 brow, tanned cheeks, large nose, and well- 
 set chin. She noted especially the strong, 
 firm jaw and chin, saying to herself that 
 they betokened a strength of will and 
 constancy of purpose that foretold success 
 in whatever he might undertake. He was 
 amusing them with an account of the 
 feud between the wives of the Castleton 
 brothers. 
 
 " But don't the men take up the quarrels of 
 their wives," Louise asked, " or allow any 
 feeling to come between them?" 
 
 " Not in the least ; nor does there seem to 
 be any ill-feeling between the ladies. They 
 are always good friends, and the men look 
 upon the whole thing as a good joke. If 
 Mrs. Turner, for instance, cooks up some new 
 scheme for getting the better of Mrs. Ned, 
 she tells her husband about it, he tells Ned, 
 and they laugh over it and make bets about 
 which will win."
 
 ioo THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Lucy was interested in the Castleton ladies. 
 Conrad said that Mrs. Turner Castleton was 
 considered a great beauty, but that he liked 
 Mrs. Ned, who was half Mexican, much the 
 better and thought her the more interesting 
 and charming. She asked if they ever visited 
 the ranch. " Yes," said Curtis; " Ned and his 
 wife come up for a few days every Spring. 
 This year they '11 be there after the round-up 
 is over and the cattle shipped. Would you 
 like to meet them ? All right, we '11 arrange 
 it. While they are there I '11 get up a bar- 
 becue and a baile, and ask some people. You 
 and Miss Dent and your father must all 
 come." 
 
 The American in the Southwest, arrogant 
 and contemptuous as the Anglo-Saxon al- 
 ways is when brought face to face with a 
 difference in race, a difference in ideals, or a 
 difference in speech, regards the Spanish lan- 
 guage with frank disdain and ordinarily re- 
 fuses to learn it. But where the Mexicans 
 are present in large numbers, as in New 
 Mexico, he adopts from the other's language 
 a good many words which soon supplant their 
 English equivalents. An evening party of any 
 sort, whether a public dance in the town hall, 
 a select affair in the house of a prominent
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 101 
 
 resident, or a gathering in the Mexican quar- 
 ter, is always a " baile," a thriftless, insignifi- 
 cant person of either race a " paisano," while 
 upon " coyote " the American has seized with 
 ready tongue, applying it to any creature, hu- 
 man or other, for which he wishes to express 
 supreme contempt. 
 
 Miss Dent had to have baile explained to 
 her, and their talk drifted to the subject of 
 the Mexican people. Bancroft told her the 
 story of the bold theft of Conrad's mare, 
 the chase and capture of Melgares, and the 
 wounding of Gaines. " It is thought that 
 poor Jack cannot live," he said in conclusion, 
 " and the Mexican is held in jail to await 
 the result. If he dies the fellow will be tried 
 for murder." 
 
 " I 've heard a queer story about Melgares," 
 said Conrad, and went on to tell how the 
 Mexican had lost his little ranch. Lucy lis- 
 tened attentively, with indignant eyes fixed on 
 Curtis's face. 
 
 " How shameful ! " she broke out. " What 
 a detestable way of getting money ! The poor 
 Mexicans! Just think of their being turned 
 out of their homes in that way, with nothing 
 to fall back on! I don't wonder poor Mel- 
 gares became a thief but he ought to have
 
 102 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 gone to Santa Fe and stolen Mr. Baxter's 
 horses ! " 
 
 Bancroft's eyes were fixed on his plate. 
 Had the others been watching him closely 
 they would have seen no more than a flicker 
 of his eyelids as his face took on a stony im- 
 passiveness. But they were looking at Lucy 
 who/ with head erect, face flushed, and eyes 
 sparkling, made a pretty picture. 
 
 " I 'm glad you feel that way, Miss Ban- 
 croft," Curtis exclaimed, his face alight with 
 approval and admiration. " I think my- 
 self it 's about as despicable a way of getting 
 money legally as man ever devised. Baxter 
 knows when he loans the money that the poor 
 wretches will never be able to pay back a cent 
 of it. He would n't loan it to them if he 
 thought they could, for it 's their land he 's 
 after. I Ve heard that he 's getting control 
 in this way of a big tract in the Rio Grande 
 valley and that he intends to form a company, 
 advertise it through the East, and sell the 
 land, which is really valuable, at big prices." 
 
 ' Well, I think it 's a shameful piece of 
 business, and I 'm surprised that Mr. Bax- 
 ter is engaged in it ! " said Lucy with decision. 
 
 '' Before you condemn him so severely, 
 daughter," interposed Bancroft, his eyes still
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 103 
 
 lowered, " you should remember that the busi- 
 ness of the loan mortgage companies has the 
 full sanction of law and custom, and that 
 many of the most reputable business men of 
 the United States have engaged in it." 
 
 " I can't help it, daddy, if all the Con- 
 gressmen and lawyers and business men, and 
 preachers too, in the United States are en- 
 gaged in it that does n't make it right. 
 Somehow it seems a different matter with 
 these poor Mexicans, they are so helpless. 
 Why, it 's almost like stealing their homes. 
 I 'm sorry, daddy, to speak so about Mr. Bax- 
 ter, but that 's really the way I feel about it; 
 I suppose he does n't realize what an injury 
 he 's doing them. Oh, daddy," and she leaned 
 forward eagerly, her face flushing, " you and 
 he are such good friends, maybe you could tell 
 him what harm he 's doing and persuade him 
 to give up that part of his business ! " 
 
 Conrad smiled grimly. " It 's plain, Miss 
 Bancroft," he said, without waiting for her 
 father to reply, " that you are not intimately 
 acquainted with Dell Baxter. I 'm sorry about 
 this Melgares business, for I can't help feel- 
 ing a sort of responsibility. If the fellow 
 is hung his family will be left destitute. 
 Yes, he has a wife and four children," he
 
 io 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 continued in answer to Miss Dent. " I had a 
 talk with him about the affair, and he asked 
 me to send for his family for him. He had 
 money with which to pay their fares, though 
 where he got it probably wouldn't bear too 
 close an inquiry." 
 
 Lucy was looking at him eagerly, her face 
 full of sympathy. " The poor things ! " she 
 exclaimed. " When they come you must let 
 me know, Mr. Conrad." 
 
 Bancroft abruptly changed the subject, and 
 presently the talk drifted to a story that had 
 just come out about the postmaster at Randall. 
 " It 's a characteristic New Mexican tale," said 
 Curtis, turning to the ladies. " You '11 soon 
 find out, Miss Bancroft, if you don't know it 
 already, that the cowboy song of ' What was 
 your name in the States ? ' can often be ap- 
 plied in earnest." 
 
 " Confound the fellow," thought Bancroft 
 irritably, " why is he always harping on that 
 subject ! " 
 
 ' This is a particularly audacious case, 
 though don't you think so, Aleck? " Curtis 
 went on. " Here this man has been living for 
 several years in Randall, a respected citizen, 
 holding office, with influence in the commun- 
 ity, when, behold, it is discovered that just
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 105 
 
 before coming here he had skipped from some 
 town in Missouri, where he was postmaster, 
 with all the money in his office and another 
 man's wife. But his sin has finally found 
 him out." 
 
 " It always does," observed Lucy coolly. 
 
 Louise Dent was conscious of a fluttering 1 
 in her throat and realized that her heart 
 was beating loudly. The moment's pause that 
 followed seemed to her so long that she rushed 
 into speech, without thought of what she 
 said: "I'm afraid it does." 
 
 " Why do you say 'afraid,' Dearie? " asked 
 Lucy, with surprise. " Is n't it right that it 
 should?" 
 
 Louise made brief and noncommittal reply 
 and Bancroft hurriedly asked Curtis how the 
 round-up w r as getting on. 
 
 ' Well, we 've got the thing started, and 
 are ready to move the cattle on the north part 
 of the range toward Pelham. We '11 begin 
 shipping within two or three weeks. But 
 something seems to have struck the cowboy 
 market this year ; I Ve been short of hands 
 all the Spring." 
 
 " Perhaps I can give you some help," said 
 Bancroft. " A Mexican from up North has 
 been to me looking for work. He came the
 
 io6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 day you had the chase after Melgares and 
 was in again to-day. He has worked for 
 Baxter, and Dell says he is an expert cow- 
 boy and sure to give satisfaction/' 
 
 " He must be an unusual sort of greaser 
 if he 's looking for work," laughed Conrad. 
 " If he 's that sort, I guess he '11 strike my 
 gait." 
 
 They found the Mexican sitting on the 
 steps of the front veranda when they finished 
 dinner. 
 
 " Why," exclaimed Curtis with hearty in- 
 terest, " he 's the same chap that told me my 
 mare was stolen. I hope you can ride and 
 throw a rope ; I 'm obliged to you already, 
 and I 'd like to do you a good turn. I '11 meet 
 you down town presently, and if you know 
 anything about the business I '11 take you be- 
 hind me on my mare to the ranch to-night, 
 and you can go to work in the morning." 
 
 The moon had just risen, and its huge white 
 disk seemed to be resting on the plain only 
 a little way beyond the town. Its brilliant 
 silvery light was already working weird trans- 
 formations in the landscape. 
 
 " Oh, are you going to ride home to-night, 
 through this wonderful moonlight ! " Lucy ex- 
 claimed. " How I envy you ! "
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS jo; 
 
 ' Yes," he answered, lowering his voice and 
 speaking in a tone different from any she 
 had before heard from his lips; "and it is 
 indeed a wonderful ride! I don't know any- 
 thing more impressive than the landscape of 
 this country under a marvellous moon, like 
 that over there. I hope we can have a ride 
 by moonlight together, some time, when the 
 moon is full. Does Miss Dent ride?" His 
 voice went back to its usual tone. " I know 
 your father is a fine rider. Perhaps we can 
 make up a party some night, when I don't 
 have to hurry home. I expect my brother 
 here this Summer, to spend his vacation with 
 me. You and Miss Dent will like him, I 'm 
 sure, for he 's a fine lad. I hope we can all 
 have some pleasant excursions together." 
 
 At the sound of his softened voice Lucy 
 felt herself swept by sudden emotion, and 
 hastily put her hands behind her lest he should 
 see that they were trembling. And later that 
 night, when she looked out from her window 
 at the white moon floating in the violet sky, 
 suddenly her nerves went a-quiver again and 
 her eyes sought the far, dim plain as she softly 
 whispered, " Under a marvellous moon, like 
 that over there ! " 
 
 The Mexican asked Bancroft how to reach
 
 io8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the place where Conrad was to meet him, and 
 the banker walked to the gate and pointed 
 out the streets he was to follow. As he fin- 
 ished Gonzalez bent a keen gaze upon him 
 and asked, significantly, " Has the senor 
 further instructions for me ? " 
 
 Bancroft's start and the shade of annoy- 
 ance that crossed his face as he realized that 
 it had been noticed were not lost upon the 
 man, whose searching look was still on him. 
 His equanimity had been well tried already 
 that evening, and this sudden touch upon a 
 half-formed and most secret desire startled 
 him for an instant out of his usual self- 
 control. Heretofore he had merely dallied 
 with the thought that Conrad's removal would 
 mean his own safety, for the rest of his life. 
 It had appeared to him merely as something 
 the consequences of which would be desir- 
 able. His hand could not be concerned in 
 it, he wished to know nothing about it but 
 if Baxter thought best to further his own 
 ends why had the Mexican come to him 
 with this impudent question? 
 
 " I 'm not hiring you," was his curt answer. 
 
 " Certainly not, senor," the man answered 
 calmly, his head erect, his arms folded, and 
 one foot advanced. The trio on the veranda
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 109 
 
 noted and laughed over his attitude. Lucy 
 said he looked like a hero of melodrama tak- 
 ing the limelight. Miss Dent added that he 
 was handsome enough for a matinee idol, and 
 Conrad declared that there was no telling how 
 many sefioritas' hearts he had already broken. 
 Bancroft turned to go back to the house, but 
 paused an instant, and the Mexican quickly 
 went on in a softly insinuating voice : " But 
 if the senor should wish to say anything par- 
 ticular ? Don Dellmey thought it might 'be 
 possible." 
 
 Bancroft lingered, flicking the ashes from 
 his cigar. " I I know nothing about it," he 
 blurted out, uncertainly. " If Don Dellmey 
 had anything to say to you I suppose he 
 said it." 
 
 As he turned away he heard the man say 
 gently, " Thank you, Senor Bancroft. I shall 
 not forget our talk." There was no reply, 
 and the Mexican, whistling a Spanish love 
 tune, disappeared down the hill in the weird 
 mixed lights of the fading day and the bril- 
 liant moon. 
 
 Alone on the veranda, Alexander Bancroft 
 walked restlessly to and fro, stopping now and 
 again as if to listen to the music from within, 
 which he did not hear, or to look at the
 
 i io THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 moonlit landscape, which he did not see. Over 
 and over he was saying to himself that he 
 had no idea what Dellmey Baxter had said 
 to this Mexican, and, whatever it was, he 
 had distinctly told the creature that he knew 
 nothing about it. The man had come to him 
 recommended as an expert cowboy, he had 
 passed the recommendation on to Conrad, and 
 that was all there was about it. 
 
 Nevertheless, he knew he had reason to 
 believe the Congressman had intimated as 
 much in his letter that the man who called 
 himself Jose Gonzalez was in reality Liberate 
 Herrara, guilty of at least one murder and 
 probably of others, whom Baxter's legal skill 
 had saved from the gallows. Curtis had said 
 that he should carry the man behind him to 
 the ranch that night. Before Bancroft's in- 
 ward eye a sudden vision opened: wide miles 
 of silent plain, a great white moon hanging 
 low in the sky, a long stretch of deserted 
 road, and then two men on a single horse 
 and the light gleaming on a long knife ! He 
 shuddered as the blade flashed, and turned his 
 face away from the plain. Then, as there 
 came to him a sudden sense of tremendous 
 relief, with breath and thought suspended he 
 turned slowly, fascinatedly, and with greedy
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS in 
 
 eyes searched the distant plain, as if eager 
 to find in it some proof, at last, of his own 
 safety. 
 
 Lucy's voice rose in a gay little song above 
 the piano and fell upon his ears. With a 
 deep, long-drawn breath his thought leaped 
 out and seized upon all that freedom from 
 Curtis Conrad's pursuit would mean for him. 
 Jose Gonzalez would sink out of sight, and 
 Liberato Herrara would be back in his own 
 home, unsuspected and silent. Some excite- 
 ment would follow, search would be made, a 
 body would be found in a mesquite thicket, 
 and then the interest would die out, and there 
 would be only another grewsome tale of mys- 
 tery to be added to the hundreds already told 
 through the Southwest. And he Alexander 
 Bancroft would be safe secure in fortune 
 and reputation and the love and honor of his 
 daughter as long as they should live. 
 
 The music within ceased and Lucy's voice 
 rippled out in girlish laughter. His heart sank 
 as he seemed to hear again her hot denuncia- 
 tion of Baxter's loan and mortgage opera- 
 tions. " I '11 sell out to Dell and she '11 never 
 know I Ve had anything to do with it," he 
 thought. Then there came ringing through 
 his memory, as he had heard them so many
 
 ii2 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 times since they rode home from the Socorro 
 Springs ranch, her passionate words, " He 
 must have been a wicked man," and " I should 
 hate him, with all my strength," and again his 
 longing face turned impulsively toward the 
 plain. 
 
 " I 'd kill him myself, rather than let her 
 find out," he whispered, with teeth set. " And 
 a man has got to protect himself out here ! " 
 his urgent thought went on. " I '11 be a fool if 
 I don't stop him before he gets his chance at 
 me ! " With a sudden stirring of conscience 
 he remembered that this man whose death he 
 was so ardently desiring was his friend and 
 trusted his friendship. "I I don't want 
 him stuck in the back," he muttered. " I 
 might warn him. He may not have started 
 yet." 
 
 He walked uncertainly toward the veranda 
 steps. There was a flutter of white drapery 
 and Lucy was laying an affectionate hand on 
 his arm. " Oh, daddy dear," she coaxed, 
 " won't you come in and try this duet with us ? 
 Dearie will play the accompaniment for us to 
 sing. She brought it to me, and I 'm dying to 
 try it." 
 
 ' Yes, if you wish it, daughter," the banker 
 replied, hesitation in his voice, " but I was
 
 TALK OF MANY THINGS 113 
 
 thinking of going down town." He saw the 
 shade of disappointment that crossed her face, 
 and drew her hand into his arm. " It does n't 
 matter," he went on, " and I would rather stay 
 at home." To himself he said as they moved 
 to the door, " Conrad has gone by this time, 
 and, anyway, I 've no reason to think this 
 Mexican intends to do him any harm."
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 
 
 RESTLESS was the night that followed 
 for Alexander Bancroft ; his sleep was 
 troubled by many a dream in which 
 one friend after another moved swiftly on to 
 violent death. With the coming of dawn he 
 arose to look out from the eastern windows of 
 his room. The sky was a dome of rosy light 
 and below lay the vast plain, dim but color- 
 ful, its gray-green mottled with vague bands 
 and patches of opalescent lights and shadows 
 and dotted with little islands of vivid green. 
 His eyes clung to these darker spots, which 
 he knew to be thickets of mesquite; piercing 
 their shade his inner vision showed him the 
 still body of his friend. So real was the 
 mental picture that he turned pale about the 
 lips and abruptly left the window. 
 
 If anything had happened, he kept reassur- 
 ing himself, it had been at Dellmey Baxter's 
 instigation. He himself had had nothing to 
 do with it. If Baxter had decided that his
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 115 
 
 affairs would go more smoothly with Conrad 
 out of the way, why should he, Alexander 
 Bancroft, trouble himself further ? And if 
 anything had happened again he felt the 
 loosening of mental strain and his spirits rose 
 in exultation at the prospect of freedom and 
 safety. Life was more attractive than ever 
 with that menacing figure no longer threaten- 
 ing him with disclosure, disgrace, and death. 
 He could go on with his plans for the accumu- 
 lation of fortune and the enjoyment of life. 
 He could still hold Lucy's love and honor, 
 travel with her, marry again, work his way 
 to a commanding place in the world of busi- 
 ness. The future opened before him as easy 
 and inviting as the stairs down which he went 
 to breakfast. 
 
 Lucy ran to meet him with a good-morning 
 kiss and a rose for his buttonhole. " It 's the 
 prettiest I could find in my conservatory," she 
 smiled at him ; " but it is n't half nice enough 
 for my daddy dear. You don't look well this 
 morning, daddy," she went on anxiously. " Is 
 anything the matter?" 
 
 His hand slipped caressingly down over her 
 curls and drew her to his breast in a quick 
 embrace, instinct with the native impulse of 
 the animal to protect its offspring. " She
 
 n6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 shall never know," was the thought in his 
 mind. 
 
 " Daddy ! What a bear hug that was ! " 
 she laughed, " like those you used to give me 
 when I was a little girl. It did n't feel as if 
 you were ill." 
 
 " I 'm not," he answered lightly, kissing her 
 pink cheek. " I guess I smoked too much 
 yesterday, and so did n't sleep very well. Yes ; 
 I promise; I '11 be more careful to-day." 
 
 At breakfast his eyes dwelt much upon 
 Louise Dent's face, gentle and pleasant. He 
 had always liked her, and since her coming on 
 this visit she had seemed very attractive. He 
 knew she had strength and poise of character 
 and a nature refined and cheerful. These 
 qualities in her, with a certain genial, unob- 
 trusive companionableness, had long ago won 
 his warm friendship. But was there not in 
 her steady gray eyes a hint of passionate 
 depths he had never thought of before? It 
 stirred him so deeply that for a little while, 
 as they lingered over the breakfast table, he 
 forgot the other facts of life, noting the faint 
 rose flush in her cheeks, the graceful turn of 
 her wrists, and the soft whiteness of her throat 
 as she threw back her head and laughed. And 
 Lucy loved her so devotedly! If she were
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 117 
 
 willing to marry him their household would 
 surely be harmonious and happy. 
 
 Lucy fluttered beside him to the gate, her 
 arm in his, as she chattered to him of the 
 funny things her. Chinese cook had been say- 
 ing and doing. She lingered there, her eyes 
 following his figure, until he turned, half a 
 block away, to wave his hat in response to her 
 farewell handkerchief. 
 
 By the time he reached the foot of the hill 
 Bancroft's mind was once more engrossed 
 with the need of knowing whether or not he 
 was at last secure from ignominious exposure. 
 He no longer disguised from himself the fact 
 that news of Conrad's death would be most 
 welcome. He looked eagerly up and down the 
 main streets ; there was no sign of excitement. 
 Had nothing happened, then? But it was still 
 early ; moreover, news of the affair might not 
 reach the town for a day or two. The sound 
 of horses' feet coming at a swift trot down the 
 street on the other side of the stream made his 
 heart beat quickly. He lingered at the door 
 of his bank until the horseman came into view 
 under the big cottonwoods at the next corner. 
 It was Red Jack from the Socorro Springs 
 ranch. At once his heart leaped to certainty. 
 He turned to enter the bank, but stopped and
 
 ii8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 looked back, undecidedly. Red Jack had not 
 dismounted, but had drawn rein in front of the 
 court-house at the next corner, and was sit- 
 ting there quietly, looking up and down the 
 road as if expecting somebody. He led a 
 saddled horse. Perhaps he was to take a 
 physician back with him. But he seemed in 
 no haste, and in his manner there was neither 
 excitement nor anxiety. Bancroft could wait 
 no longer to learn what had happened. With 
 hands in pockets he sauntered down the street. 
 
 " Hello, Jack," he said indifferently to the 
 waiting horseman. " You 're in town early 
 this morning." 
 
 " I sure hiked along from the ranch early 
 enough," the cowboy replied. " The boss 
 hired a new man last night ; and I had to come 
 over this morning after him." 
 
 Bancroft's eyes were on the cigar he was 
 taking from his pocket, which he handed to 
 the cowboy, saying idly, " Why, he intended 
 last night to carry the man behind him. Did 
 he change his mind? The man was a Mexi- 
 can, wasn't he? " 
 
 ' Y-e-s ; a measly coyote ! The boss did n't 
 bring him last night because he thought it 
 would be too hard on Brown Betty to carry 
 double. I wonder if mebby that ain't my man
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 119 
 
 comin' down the street right now ! I Ve 
 done forgot his name ; do you happen to know 
 it, Mr. Bancroft?" 
 
 " I think it 's Jose Gonzalez. He came here 
 from Dellmey Baxter, who recommended him 
 to me as a first-rate cowboy." 
 
 " Well, he '11 have to be a peach if he strikes 
 the boss's gait," Red Jack rejoined, motioning 
 to the Mexican. 
 
 Bancroft walked back to his place of busi- 
 ness with brows knitted and mouth drawn 
 into grim lines. His mind was acting rapidly 
 and ruthlessly. The sudden collapse of his 
 house of cards, the knowledge that danger was 
 still as imminent as ever, left him savage with 
 desire for Curtis Conrad's death, or, rather, 
 for the delectable land that lay beyond it. 
 Nobody but this young hothead with his in- 
 sensate desire for revenge knew or cared any- 
 thing about that old affair now. With him 
 out of the way there would be no danger from 
 anybody or anything. Why was n't the man 
 sensible enough to take the money he was will- 
 ing to pay, and be satisfied ? Perhaps the re- 
 ceipt of another check or two would soften his 
 purpose ; it was worth trying. And there 
 was still the Mexican! Baxter had surely 
 said something to him, and the fellow seemed
 
 120 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 to understand that he, also but he had said 
 nothing about it, and whatever the creature 
 suspected was his own inference. Evidently 
 the Mexican did suspect something and had 
 some purpose in his mind. With Conrad so 
 intent upon his destruction had he not every 
 right to protect himself and his child? Of 
 course he had, he told himself fiercely, and 
 what means he might use were his own affair. 
 
 At the door of the bank Rutherford Jenkins 
 met him with a smiling salutation: "Good- 
 morning, Mr. Bancroft ; this is lucky ! I was 
 waiting for you here, but I 've got so much to 
 do that I 'd begun to be afraid I would n't be 
 able to see you before I go back." 
 
 Bancroft greeted him pleasantly. " What 
 do you mean, Jenkins," he went on, " by de- 
 serting to Martinez ? Had n't you better think 
 again about that? We need you on our side." 
 
 '* That 's exactly what I want to see you 
 about," said Jenkins in a confidential tone. 
 " Can't you come over with me to Bill Wil- 
 liams's hotel for a few minutes? I want to 
 have a talk with you." 
 
 They went back together, Bancroft wonder- 
 ing if Jenkins, who was regarded as a desir- 
 able ally by both parties, notwithstanding his 
 character, was about to make overtures to him
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 121 
 
 for deserting the Martinez fold and coming 
 back to Baxter's. " Perhaps that spanking 
 Curt gave him has set him against the whole 
 Martinez following/' he thought. " Baxter 
 will be mighty glad to get him back, and I '11 
 do my best to cinch the bargain so he can't 
 crawl." 
 
 When they entered the hotel room Jenkins 
 moved leisurely about, got out a bottle of 
 whiskey, and hunted up some cigars, talking 
 all the time glibly about other matters and 
 jumping inconsequently from one subject to 
 another. Bancroft made several attempts to 
 bring the conversation to the point, but each 
 time Jenkins either blandly ignored or skil- 
 fully evaded his leading. Finally Bancroft 
 said, looking at his watch : " Well, Jenkins, 
 I 've got to be at the bank very soon, and if 
 there 's anything particular you want to say 
 suppose we get down to business." 
 
 ' Yes, yes, certainly," Jenkins replied un- 
 concernedly. ' That 's what I 'm coming to 
 right now." He gave Bancroft a cigar, 
 lighted one himself, made some jokes as he 
 bustled aimlessly around the room, and at 
 last sat down on the foot of the bed, facing 
 the banker, who occupied the only chair in 
 the little room. He ceased speaking, and
 
 122 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Bancroft, looking up suddenly, caught in his 
 face an expression of expectant triumph. The 
 tip of his tongue was darting over his lips, and 
 his small dark eyes were fixed on his guest with 
 a look of malicious satisfaction. Instantly 
 Bancroft's nerves were alert with the sense of 
 coming danger. He blew out a whiff of smoke 
 and calmly returned the other's gaze. Their 
 eyes met thus, the one gloating, the other out- 
 wardly unmoved but inwardly astart with sud- 
 den alarm. Then Jenkins began, in a blandly 
 insinuating tone: 
 
 " Before we come to that matter about Mar- 
 tinez, I want to ask you, Mr. ah Mr. 
 Dela ah, I beg your pardon, Mr. Bancroft 
 
 I thought I would ask you you 've poked 
 about a good deal, out here in the West and 
 in out-of-the-way places, too and I 've been 
 wondering I thought I 'd ask you if 
 you 've ever run across a gentleman of the 
 name of of Dela Dela let me see 
 
 yes, Delafield that 's it Sumner L. 
 Delafield, of Boston. Do you remember 
 whether or not you've ever met him ? " 
 
 Bancroft did not blanch nor flinch. For 
 so many years he had schooled himself to 
 such constant watchfulness and incessant 
 self-control that an impassive countenance
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 123 
 
 and manner had become a habit. Lucy, with 
 her uncompromising moral decisions and her 
 swift, unsparing condemnations, could come 
 nearer to unnerving him than could any bolt 
 from the blue like this. He flicked the ash 
 from his cigar, hesitating a moment as if 
 searching his memory, but really wondering 
 whether Jenkins knew anything or was merely 
 guessing and trying to draw him out. The 
 latter seemed much the more likely. 
 
 " I can't say on the instant whether I ever 
 met such a man or not. As you say, I have 
 gone about a good deal and, as my business 
 most of the time has been that of mining and 
 trading in mines, it has often taken me into 
 out-of-the-way places, and I have met a great 
 many people. At this moment I don't recall 
 the name." 
 
 " Don't you ? I 'm sorry, for I thought per- 
 haps you could verify for me a curious story 
 about the man that has just come to my 
 knowledge. You know I 'm always picking 
 up information about people I find it comes 
 in handy now and then. Well, if you Ve 
 never met him, have you ever, in the course 
 of your Western travels, run across a man 
 he was a mining man, too a mining 
 man named Hardy John Mason Hardy?
 
 124 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 There 's a curious story about him, too, or, 
 rather, about a man who was associated with 
 him in a mining enterprise down in old 
 Mexico. The other man's name was Smith 
 a very serviceable name is Smith ; sort of 
 like a black derby hat; no distinguishing 
 mark about it and easy to exchange by mis- 
 take if you 'd rather have some other man's." 
 
 Bancroft rose and looked at his watch. 
 " If there 's anything of particular interest 
 or importance in this, Mr. Jenkins, I '11 be 
 very glad to listen to it some other time; but 
 I can't stay any longer this morning. I ought 
 to have been at my desk half an hour ago." 
 
 Jenkins sat still and waved him back with 
 insistent politeness. " One moment more, Mr. 
 Bancroft, if you please. I 'm coming to the 
 point right away. This story is of some con- 
 sequence to me, and I 'd like to know if you 
 can verify it. Have another drink." 
 
 Bancroft swallowed the whiskey at a gulp 
 and Jenkins noticed that his fingers trembled 
 as he took the glass. He was thinking, " I 'd 
 better stay and find out exactly how much he 
 knows." Jenkins smiled under his hand as 
 he smoothed his straggling moustache and 
 watched Bancroft wipe the sweat from his 
 forehead.
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 125 
 
 " This man Smith," Jenkins continued, 
 " John was his name, too John Smith and 
 John Mason Hardy were partners in a min- 
 ing enterprise down in Mexico. One of them 
 died down there died, you know, in a quiet, 
 private sort of way, and the one that came 
 up to the States again was named Hardy, 
 but it was n't the same Hardy that had gone 
 down there. You might guess, if you wanted 
 to, that Smith killed Hardy and took his 
 name " 
 
 He stopped and drew back suddenly, for 
 Bancroft had sprung forward with a white, 
 angry face and was shaking a trembling fist 
 under his nose. 
 
 " Stop there, you liar ! " he exclaimed in 
 low, tense tones. " I did n't do that. He 
 died a natural death of fever and I took 
 care of him and did my best to save his life." 
 
 Jenkins recovered his self-possession first. 
 " Oh ; then you know all about it ! " he said 
 dryly, with a malicious smile. 
 
 Bancroft sank back in his chair drawing 
 his hand across his eyes and wondering why 
 his self-control had so suddenly gone to pieces. 
 He had thought himself proof against any sur- 
 prise, but this man's sudden blow and persist- 
 ent baiting had screwed his nerve tension to
 
 i 2 6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the snapping point. But he told himself that 
 it probably did not matter anyway, as Jen- 
 kins evidently knew the whole story. With 
 a desperate, defiant look he turned upon his 
 tormentor. 
 
 " Well, what do you want ? " he demanded 
 sharply. " Why have you raked up this old 
 story?" 
 
 "Oh, I found it interesting," Jenkins re- 
 sponded in a leisurely way, " as an instance 
 of the way things are done on the frontier 
 and, as I told you at first, I thought you 
 might be able to verify it. For I was inclined 
 not to believe it, especially as it was about 
 one of the most prominent and respected citi- 
 zens of New Mexico. But since you Ve con- 
 fessed its truth yourself well, I Ve got to 
 believe it now. It has been a very blind trail 
 I Ve followed, crooked and well hidden 
 wonderfully well hidden, Mr. Bancroft and 
 the number of names you Ve hoisted along its 
 course has been bewildering. But I Ve man- 
 aged to track you through 'em all, and to 
 discover in Alexander Bancroft, the upright, 
 honored, public-spirited citizen of New Mex- 
 ico, the identical person of Sumner L. Dela- 
 field, the defaulting and absconding financier 
 of Boston."
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 127 
 
 Bancroft looked Jenkins sullenly in the eye. 
 " Well, now that you have it all, what are 
 you going to do about it ? " 
 
 " Pardon me, Mr. Bancroft," said Jenkins 
 with exaggerated suavity, " ah, excuse me, 
 I mean Mr. Delafield that is for you to 
 say." 
 
 The banker considered for a moment only. 
 Evidently this man knew exactly what he was 
 about and exactly what he wanted, so that 
 it would be of no use to beat around the 
 bush. ' Will you please say precisely what 
 you mean?" was his answer. 
 
 ' That is just what I have been doing, Mr. 
 Delafield." 
 
 " Excuse me, Jenkins, but my name is Ban- 
 croft, not Delafield. I have a legal right to 
 the name of Bancroft, given me by the legis- 
 lature of Arizona. You will oblige me by ad- 
 dressing me in that way." 
 
 " Oh, yes ; I know that ; and a lot of trouble 
 I had with this chase until I found it out! 
 But I thought you might like to hear your- 
 self called Delafield once more sort of like 
 meeting an old friend, you know. Won't 
 you have another cigar, Mr. Bancroft? No? 
 Well, then, let 's have another drink." He 
 poured out two glasses of whiskey. Bancroft
 
 i 2 8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 drank his without demur, but Jenkins barely 
 touched his glass to his lips. 
 
 "Well, now, Mr. Bancroft," Jenkins went 
 on affably, smiling and rubbing his hands to- 
 gether, " let 's get down to the practical side 
 of this romantic story from real life. You 
 are getting on so well here under your pres- 
 ent name, and you have a young daughter ' 
 he saw his listener wince at this, and then 
 carefully repeated his words " and you have 
 such a beautiful and charming young daugh- 
 ter, who, as the heiress of a father who is 
 making a fortune with clean hands and no 
 cloud on his past, can be taken about the 
 world and can make a good marriage some 
 of these days; considering all this, I take it 
 for granted that you would prefer to have 
 this story buried too deep for resurrection. 
 And it is for you to say whether it shall be 
 buried or not." 
 
 Bancroft sat in silence for a full minute, 
 glaring at the man opposite, his lips set in a 
 livid line. Jenkins grew nervous in the dead 
 stillness of the room, and began to fidget. 
 He cautiously rested his right hand on the 
 bed close by his pistol pocket, and kept his 
 eyes on the banker, watchful for the first 
 hostile movement. There was need of
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 129 
 
 wariness, for Bancroft was debating with him- 
 self whether it would be better to go on to 
 the dreary end of this business and leave the 
 room with a blackmailer's noose around his 
 neck, or to whip out his gun, put a bullet 
 through this man's brain, and another through 
 his own. 
 
 But the fragrance of life rose sweet to his 
 nostrils, and his innate virility spurred him 
 on to keep up the fight. Apparently he had 
 brought up against a stone wall, but he had 
 fought too long and too desperately to be will- 
 ing to confess himself beaten until he could 
 struggle no longer. He felt sure that money 
 would keep Jenkins quiet, and after a while 
 he might find some other means of stopping 
 the man's mouth for good. The fellow was 
 always in some dirty job or other, and before 
 long doubtless some hold on him would be- 
 come possible. There was Conrad still to be 
 reckoned with but that could wait, at least 
 until this man was silenced. 
 
 " Well," he said quietly, " what do you 
 want ? For God's sake, come to the point ! " 
 
 Jenkins drew a breath of relief. " Well, 
 Mr. Bancroft, I 'm interested this year in the 
 success of Johnny Martinez. It 's a matter 
 of the first importance to me for him to be 
 
 9
 
 I 3 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 elected. But I 'm afraid he has n't got much 
 chance if Silverside County and the rest of 
 the South should go against him. Now, 
 you 've got more influence down here then 
 anybody else, and you can swing it for him 
 if you want to. That 's what I want you 
 to do." 
 
 Bancroft looked up in sudden dismay. 
 He had not expected anything of this sort. 
 " You know I 'm committed to Baxter/' he 
 said. 
 
 " Oh, yes ; I know. But that 's nothing. 
 In New Mexico it 's not difficult to change 
 your politics. Why, I thought of coming out 
 for Baxter myself at first ; but I 'm solid for 
 Martinez now." 
 
 Bancroft rose and began pacing the half- 
 dozen steps to and fro that the room af- 
 forded, seeking some loophole of escape from 
 his obligations to Baxter. There were mort- 
 gages the Congressman could foreclose that 
 would balk some of the banker's most prom- 
 ising plans should he attempt political treach- 
 ery. He could, and undoubtedly would, reveal 
 his associate's connection with the loan and 
 mortgage operations in the Rio Grande val- 
 ley; and Bancroft winced as he thought of 
 this coming to Lucy's ears. And in that
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 131 
 
 matter of Curtis Conrad and Jose Gonzalez 
 had he not put himself at Baxter's mercy? 
 In this moment of supreme necessity the naked 
 truth came before him; and he knew it to 
 be true that he was primarily responsible for 
 any harm that might come to the young cattle- 
 man through Gonzalez. If he did not keep 
 faith with Baxter the Congressman would tell 
 Curtis who it was that desired his death ; and 
 then Conrad would know where to find Dela- 
 field. In short, he knew that Baxter would 
 stop at nothing to compel his loyalty or punish 
 his treason. Having contemplated no course 
 except that of fidelity in his business and 
 political relations with Baxter, the closeness 
 of their alliance had heretofore given him 
 little uneasiness; and now, in this crisis, he 
 found himself wholly in the other's power. 
 He flung himself into his chair, his face pallid 
 and the perspiration standing in great drops 
 on his forehead. His breath came hard and 
 his voice was thick as he asked: 
 
 " Is there no alternative? " 
 
 " Well, no ; none that I can accept," Jen- 
 kins replied meditatively. " You see, it 's a 
 very important matter for me to be able to 
 make this present to Johnny. If he wins this 
 fight there '11 be something big in it for me.
 
 i 3 2 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 No ; I '11 have to insist upon this as the first 
 condition." 
 
 Bancroft's lips moved soundlessly as he 
 stared at the man sitting on the edge of the 
 bed, nursing his knee and showing his white 
 teeth in a triumphant smile. Then, suddenly, 
 without a word of warning, the banker leaped 
 forward and seized his companion around the 
 throat. Jenkins, taken entirely off his guard, 
 succeeded only in grasping his assailant's coat 
 as they went down on the bed together in a 
 noiseless scufHe. Bancroft's hands closed 
 around his tormentor's throat, and a savage, 
 elemental satisfaction thrilled in him and 
 goaded him on. More and more tightly his 
 fingers clutched as Jenkins struggled under 
 his grip. Neither of them uttered a sound, 
 and the silence of the room was broken only 
 by the creaking of the bed or the occasional 
 knocking of a foot against the chair. 
 
 Bancroft's face was snarled like that of a 
 wild beast as he watched Jenkins's visage grow 
 livid and his struggles weaken. Of a sudden 
 reason returned to him. If this man were to 
 die under his hand there would be grewsome 
 consequences and he had enough to deal 
 with already. He stood up, trembling, and 
 looked anxiously at the still form on the bed.
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 133 
 
 " You you 're not dead, Jenkins, are 
 you ? " he stammered awkwardly. 
 
 Jenkins stirred a little, opened his eyes, put 
 his hand to his throat, and got up, looking 
 warily at his assailant. " It 's no thanks to 
 you that I 'm not," he responded sullenly. 
 
 " I did n't mean to kill you but you 
 you struck me too hard it drove me wild 
 and for a minute I did n't know what I 
 was doing." Jenkins scowled, rubbed his 
 throat again, and drank a glass of whiskey. 
 Bancroft helped himself likewise, following 
 it with a copious draught of water. As they 
 faced each other again Jenkins edged away 
 suspiciously toward the door; but Bancroft 
 went back at once to the unsettled question. 
 
 " It would ruin me, financially and in every 
 other way, to go back on Baxter. You might 
 just as well kill me outright as insist upon 
 that." 
 
 !< But I 'm going to insist upon it," was 
 Jenkins's sullen answer. 
 
 Bancroft made a despairing gesture. " But 
 I tell you, Jenkins, the thing 's impossible! It 
 would ruin me just as surely as for you to 
 tell all you know. You '11 have to be satisfied 
 with something else." 
 
 Jenkins leaned against the bed and stared
 
 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 angrily at Bancroft. Physical pain had made 
 him obstinate and determined him to press his 
 point, more to return injury for injury than 
 because he wanted that particular thing. 
 
 " I tell you now," Bancroft went on, " that 
 I 'd rather take the last way out than try to go 
 back on Baxter. It would n't be the healthiest 
 thing in the world for you if I should kill 
 myself shut up in this room with you, would 
 it?" 
 
 "Well, I'll waive that for the present," 
 Jenkins replied unwillingly ; " but, mind you, 
 it 's only for the present. We '11 talk about it 
 again, later in the season. For the present 
 I want a good, big sum before you leave this 
 room, and hereafter I 've got to have a regu- 
 lar monthly payment, a check on the first of 
 every month when I don't come after the 
 cash myself." 
 
 Bancroft considered for only a moment. 
 His dilemma was clear: he must either buy 
 this haltered freedom from Jenkins or kill him 
 in his tracks. This latter alternative was not 
 to be considered; and doubtless before long 
 it would be possible to turn the tables on the 
 creature and escape from his clutches. 
 
 Jenkins folded away in his pocketbook a 
 check and a roll of bills and smiled as he
 
 SPECTRES OF THE PAST 135 
 
 looked at Bancroft's haggard face. " I hope, 
 Mr. Dela ah, pardon me, Mr. Bancroft, 
 that I have not kept you too long from your 
 affairs at the bank." As his eyes followed the 
 banker's disappearing figure with a gleam of 
 satisfaction, he patted his breast pocket and 
 whispered : 
 
 " Now for the other score ! "
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 PERILS IN THE NIGHT 
 
 KLD JACK and Jose Gonzalez joined 
 the forces of the Socorro Springs 
 ranch while the cattle of the morn- 
 ing's round-up were being driven to the 
 watering-place near the ranch house. Across 
 the road from the house stood a large grove 
 of cottonwoods; a little beyond that, in the 
 valley, a deep pond had been dug, into which 
 flowed the outlets from the several springs. 
 The cattle from a score of miles roundabout 
 were accustomed to come to this pond, with 
 its circling belt of trees, for water and for 
 midday rest in the shade. 
 
 Here the round-up was in progress, and 
 Conrad galloped out to meet the new hand 
 and give him instructions. As he rode off 
 toward the hills after a bunch of straggling 
 cattle Curtis looked after him with an ap- 
 proving eye. " He knows how to fork a horse, 
 at least," he thought. In the afternoon Jose 
 was set to work cutting out and bunching the
 
 PERILS IN THE NIGHT 137 
 
 two- and three-year-old steers and later at 
 helping with the branding. Conrad watched 
 his handling of the branding irons, and he 
 and all the rest stopped their work to follow 
 his movements with critical eyes as he roped 
 and brought to the ground a belligerent steer. 
 The superintendent was well satisfied. " At 
 last I 've got a man who knows the business 
 and has some sabe," he thought. " If he goes 
 on as well as he begins I '11 keep him after 
 the shipping is done." 
 
 The next day the round-up crept slowly 
 southward, accompanied by the chuck-wagon 
 and a drove of fresh horses. At noon the 
 cattle gathered during the morning were 
 bunched at Adobe Springs, the next watering- 
 place toward the Mexican border. Gonzalez 
 was the only Mexican among the cowboys, 
 the rest being Americans of one sort or an- 
 other from Texas, Colorado, the North- 
 west, and the Middle West. All felt toward 
 him the contemptuous scorn born of difference 
 in race and consequent conviction of superior 
 merit. They had no scruples about making 
 known their prejudice, and more than once his 
 face flushed and his hand darted toward the 
 knife hidden in his bosom. Yet, as the day 
 wore on and they saw that he excelled the
 
 138 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 best of them in handling the lasso and in the 
 cunning of his movements when cutting out 
 the steers from the herd, they began to show 
 him the respect that skill of any sort inspires 
 in those who know with what effort it is 
 acquired. 
 
 After supper, when they gathered about 
 the campfire, smoking, and scoffing good- 
 naturedly at one another's tales of wondrous 
 experiences, and talking over the events of 
 the day just gone, they received him upon 
 an equality with themselves which was only 
 slightly grudged. He told them, in English 
 more precise than any of them could speak, 
 of Conrad's encounter with Rutherford Jen- 
 kins in the Blue Front, and their appreciation 
 of the tale completed the work which his skill 
 as a cowboy had begun. Thereafter they 
 looked upon Jose as a comrade and a good 
 fellow. 
 
 Three small adobe houses, of one room each, 
 with flat roofs and earthen floors, had been 
 built here, as the large and never-failing 
 springs made the spot a sure rendezvous for 
 every round-up. The locality was infested by 
 skunks, and the cowboys, who greatly feared 
 midnight bites from the prowling animals, 
 believing hydrophobia a sure consequence,
 
 PERILS IN THE NIGHT 139 
 
 usually preferred to sleep inside the houses, 
 on bunks filled with alfalfa hay. If they ven- 
 tured to sleep out-of-doors, they kept small 
 cans of coal oil ready and, whenever a wake- 
 ful man saw one of the small creatures near, 
 a quick turn of the wrist drenched its fur 
 with the fluid and a brand from the smoulder- 
 ing campfire tossed after it sent a squealing 
 pillar of flame flying up the hill and saved 
 them from further disturbance that night. 
 
 A board nailed across a corner of the 
 largest house served Conrad as a desk. He 
 kept there a lamp, writing materials, and a 
 few books. While the men sprawled around 
 the campfire and the last gleams of dusky red 
 faded from the west and the moon bounded 
 up from behind the eastern hills, he made his 
 memoranda, wrote a letter to be sent to the 
 post-office by the first chance comer, and lost 
 himself for an hour in a volume of Shake- 
 speare. When he went outside the men were 
 walking about, yawning and stretching, ready 
 for sleep. Curtis's imagination was still astir 
 from his reading, and the presence of any 
 other human being seemed an impertinence. 
 But he said, genially: 
 
 " Well, boys, you begin to look as if you 
 wanted to turn in. Take whatever bunks you
 
 i 4 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 like, if you want to go inside. I 'm going to 
 sleep out here." 
 
 " Better have a tin of ile handy," said Red 
 Jack. " The polecats are sure likely to nibble 
 your toes if you don't. The night I slept here 
 last week I never saw the cusses so bad; 
 durned if one of the critters did n't get inside 
 and wake me up smellin' of my ear. I was 
 some skeered of him stinkin' up the place so 
 it couldn't be slept in for a year, so I jest 
 had to lay low and wait for him to go out- 
 side, and then I doused him good with ile 
 and throwed the candle at him. I sure reckon 
 he 's holed up somewhere now, waitin' till he 
 can afford a new sealskin sacque before he 
 shows hisself in good sassiety ag'in." 
 
 " I don't think they '11 bother me to-night," 
 Curtis responded. At that moment he felt 
 that nothing could disturb him, if only he 
 could be left alone with the moonlight and 
 the plain. " I '11 sleep with my boots on, and 
 my cheeks are not as fat as yours, Jack, so 
 there '11 be no temptation. Where do you 
 want to bunk, Jose? You can sleep outside 
 or in, just as you like." 
 
 Gonzalez replied respectfully that he would 
 rather go in. But presently he came out again 
 with his blanket and chose a spot against the
 
 PERILS IN THE NIGHT 141 
 
 wall of one of the houses. Conrad had gone 
 out to the herd to speak with the man on 
 patrol and to make sure that all was well. 
 When he returned the men had disappeared. 
 " Good! " he said to himself. " They 've all 
 gone inside and I Ve got the universe to my- 
 self." He did not see the still form in its 
 gray blanket close against the wall. 
 
 Curtis took the red bandanna from his neck 
 and tied it over his ears, to keep out the tiny 
 things that crawl o' nights, and couched him- 
 self in his blanket on the gently rising ground 
 with his saddle for a pillow. He lay down 
 with his face to the east, where the dim and 
 mellow sky, flooded with moonlight, seemed 
 to recede far back, to the very limits of space, 
 and leave the huge white globe suspended 
 there in brooding majesty just above the plain. 
 With long legs outstretched and muscles re- 
 laxed, he lay as still as if asleep, his eyes on 
 its glowing disk. He knew all that science 
 had discovered or guessed about the moon's 
 character and history. But it had compan- 
 ioned him on so many a silent ride across 
 long miles of dimly gleaming plain, and on 
 so many nights like this as he lay upon the 
 earth it had gathered his thoughts into its 
 great white bosom, that he could not image
 
 142 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 it to himself as a mere dead and barren satel- 
 lite of the earth. More easily could he under- 
 stand how the living Cynthia had once leaped 
 earthward and been welcomed with belief and 
 love. 
 
 Conrad's mind busied itself at first with the 
 play he had just been reading, but presently 
 wandered to his own affairs and the purpose 
 that had been the dominant influence of half 
 his life. He chuckled softly as he remembered 
 the check he had recently received. " I 've 
 got him on the run," he thought, " and I 'm 
 bound to lay him out sooner or later. Lord, 
 but it will be a satisfaction to face him finally ! 
 And he '11 not get the drop on me first, either, 
 unless Providence takes as good care of ras- 
 cals as they say it does of fools." He re- 
 called himself now and then to listen to the 
 sounds from the sleeping herd, to the hoof- 
 beats of the horse as the cowboy on watch 
 rode round and round the bunch, and to his 
 voice singing in a lulling monotone. But 
 gradually thought and will and sense sank 
 back toward the verge of that great gulf out 
 of which they spring. 
 
 When next he opened his eyes the moon 
 was dropping toward the western horizon, 
 but he had turned in his sleep and its light
 
 PERILS IN THE NIGHT 143 
 
 was still upon his face. Lying motionless, 
 Curtis listened to the sounds from the herd, 
 his first thought being that something unusual 
 there must have awakened him. The coyotes 
 were yelping at one another from hill and 
 plain, but through their barking he could hear 
 the snorting sigh of a steer turning in its 
 sleep, the tramp of the horse, and the cowboy's 
 lullaby. He recognized the voice as that of 
 Peters, who was to have the third watch, and 
 so knew that it must be well on toward morn- 
 ing. He was about to sink into slumber again 
 when his gaze fell upon a small black and 
 white animal nosing among some rocks near 
 by. " Poor little devil ! If it wakens any of the 
 boys it will get a taste of hell out of propor- 
 tion to its sins," he thought, and decided that 
 he would drive it away before any one else 
 discovered it. But the languor of sleep still 
 held him and not a muscle moved as his eye- 
 lids began to droop. Then, through his half- 
 shut eyes, he became conscious that something 
 was moving, over against one of the houses, 
 among the shadows. His eyelids lifted again 
 and he saw the Mexican rise out of his blanket, 
 look about, and in a crouching posture move 
 stealthily toward him. Something in his hand 
 glittered in the moonlight.
 
 i 4 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " It 's Jose," thought Conrad. " He 's com- 
 ing for the skunk with a can of oil. Quick, 
 or I '11 be too late ! " He sprang to a sitting 
 posture and flung out one arm. As he did so 
 he noticed with sleepy surprise that Jose was 
 not facing toward the animal but was com- 
 ing toward him. Then, before he had time 
 to speak, the Mexican turned, a flying some- 
 thing shone in the moonlight like an electric 
 flash, and Conrad's eyes, following the gleam, 
 saw the little creature pinned to the ground 
 with a long knife through its neck and the 
 gray sand darkening with its blood. 
 
 ' Why, Jose, that was a wonderful throw ! " 
 he exclaimed. 
 
 ' Yes, sefior," the man replied quietly, as 
 he stooped to draw out the knife and wipe 
 it on the sand, " I am rather good at that sort 
 of thing."
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 
 
 CURTIS CONRAD rode to the farther 
 side of a hill sloping gently north- 
 east of the houses as the outfit was 
 getting under way the next morning. He re- 
 membered having seen there a rather uncom- 
 mon species of cactus, and he thought to 
 make sure of it in order to secure a specimen 
 for Lucy Bancroft's collection when next he 
 should pass that way on a homeward trip. 
 Jose Gonzalez noted his action and presently, 
 when a steer broke wildly from the herd and 
 ran back, it was Jose who dashed after it. 
 But, instead of heading it off and driving it 
 back, he so manoeuvred that he contrived to 
 get it around the hill behind which he had 
 seen Conrad disappear. The superintendent 
 was digging busily in the ground with his 
 pocket-knife, having decided to take up the 
 plant and leave it in the house in readiness 
 for his return journey.
 
 146 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Assured that the rest of the outfit was out 
 of sight beyond the hill, Gonzalez left the 
 steer to its own devices and galloped straight 
 toward and behind the kneeling figure, his 
 long knife drawn but concealed against his 
 leg. Conrad's attention was engrossed in 
 what he was doing and his thoughts were all 
 of Lucy Bancroft, of how pleased she would 
 be to get this rare specimen, and of how 
 necessary it would be for him to help her 
 plant it. Jose checked his horse into a walk 
 and leaned forward, his eyes fastened on the 
 other's back, his knife lying half hidden in 
 his palm. On the soft ground the hoof -beats 
 of the horse made little sound and their faint, 
 unresounding thud was masked by the noises 
 from the moving herd. 
 
 Gonzalez drew rein within a few yards of 
 his object and lifted his arm, with the knife 
 balanced in his hand. At that instant the 
 steer bellowed, and Curtis leaped to his feet, 
 on the alert at once lest something had gone 
 wrong with the herd. He saw the single steer 
 and, wheeling around to look for others, his 
 glance took in the Mexican, swerving his horse 
 down the hill and deftly returning the knife 
 to his belt. " Are you after the steer, Jose ? " 
 he called. " Is that the only one loose ? "
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 147 
 
 " Yes, sefior. The rest are all right. This 
 one has given me a chase, but I '11 have him 
 back right away." 
 
 " Stop a minute, Jose. Would you mind 
 letting me use your knife? Mine 's too short 
 and I have n't anything else." 
 
 Gonzalez rode up, dismounted, and held out 
 the knife with a courteous smile. As he stood 
 back with one leg forward, arms folded, and 
 head held high, Curtis thought him an image 
 of dashing, picturesque, masculine comeliness. 
 " Jose," he said, " how did you get such skill 
 in throwing the knife? I never saw any- 
 body do the trick better than you did it 
 last night. I shouldn't like to have you," 
 and he smiled as he returned the weapon, 
 " aim this thing at me as you did at that 
 polecat." 
 
 An answering smile flashed over Jose's 
 dark face, lighting up his eyes and showing 
 a row of white teeth beneath his moustache. 
 " I have practised it much, sefior. It is not 
 easy." 
 
 The next day, Conrad, Gonzalez, and sev- 
 eral others were getting together some cattle 
 in the foothills when three of the largest steers 
 broke away and raced wildly back toward 
 their grazing grounds. The superintendent
 
 148 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 called the Mexican to help him, and told the 
 others to take the remainder of the cattle, 
 with all they might find on the way, back to 
 the day herd. 
 
 Two gallant figures they made as they gal- 
 loped across the plain, the wind blowing up 
 the wide brims of their hats, the grace and 
 freedom of strength and skill in every move- 
 ment of body and limb. Lariats were at their 
 saddle horns, and Curtis carried a six-shooter 
 in his belt, but Gonzalez had only his knife, 
 thrust into his boot leg. They circled and 
 headed off the steers, which eluded and dashed 
 past them again and again, until presently 
 Conrad noticed that the largest of the three 
 acted as a sort of leader. " Rope him, Jose," 
 he called, " and then we can manage the 
 others." 
 
 As Gonzalez in response came galloping 
 toward the animal from one side, Curtis 
 rushed past it on the other to prevent it from 
 getting away and giving another chase. He 
 glanced at the loop that came whirring 
 through the air and his heart gave a bound 
 of vexation. ' The fool greaser is throwing 
 too far," he muttered. With an instinct of 
 sudden peril he dug in his spurs and his horse 
 made a quick, long leap. He whirled about
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 149 
 
 in time to see the snakey noose fall on the 
 spot whence they had jumped. 
 
 "What's the matter with you, Jose?" he 
 shouted. " You nearly roped me instead of 
 the steer! Try it again." Gonzalez coiled 
 his rope and galloped after the steer and 
 half an hour later the two men rode into the 
 round-up, driving the panting and humbled 
 animals. 
 
 One of the younger and less experienced 
 men, Billy Black, generally known as " Billy 
 Kid," happened to lame his horse and bruise 
 himself that day, and was ordered to stay in 
 camp to nurse his knee. At Rock Springs, 
 where they made camp next day, a man who 
 gave his name as Andy Miller rode up and 
 asked for a job. He explained that he had 
 been working on a little ranch over toward 
 Randall but had got tired of the place and 
 was pushing for the railroad. Hampered by 
 Billy Black's accident, Conrad was glad of 
 the opportunity and tested his skill with horse 
 and rope. 
 
 " You '11 do," he said. "I 'm short of hands, 
 and you can stay with us until we get to the 
 railroad if you like." 
 
 The new man was stockily built, and looked 
 strong and agile. Around the campnre that
 
 150 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 night he won his way at once into the good 
 graces of the other men, cracking jokes, tell- 
 ing stories, and roaring out cowboy songs until 
 bedtime. They were so hilarious that Conrad 
 joined their circle, smoked his after-supper 
 pipe with them, and laughed at Miller's jokes 
 and yarns. 
 
 The Rock Springs watering-hole was in a 
 hilly region, broken here and there by stony 
 gulches. The outflow from the springs ran 
 through a ravine which furrowed the hillside 
 to its foot, turned abruptly westward, and wid- 
 ened out into a goodly pool, where the cattle 
 waded and drank. The camp lay on the hill- 
 side above the springs, and the cattle were 
 bunched over its brow on the other side. 
 
 Conrad wakened early and an inviting 
 image came to him of that pool, lying still 
 and clear in the dim gray light, untroubled by 
 the miring hoofs of the cattle. No one else, 
 except the Chinese cook, busy with his break- 
 fast fire, seemed to be awake, and no one 
 stirred as Curtis moved down the hill, past the 
 springs, and over the rise beyond. But Gon- 
 zalez, motionless in his blanket, watched his 
 departure. And presently, when the cook had 
 disappeared in the chuck-wagon, Jose rose, 
 cast a cautious glance over the sleeping camp,
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 151 
 
 and followed Conrad, taking advantage of oc- 
 casional boulders, clumps of mesquite, grease- 
 wood, and yucca to conceal his movements. 
 At the springs he turned down the gulch, fol- 
 lowing its course to the basin of the drinking 
 hole, where he hid behind a great boulder, 
 barely ten feet from the bank where lay the 
 other's clothing. 
 
 With wary eyes he watched while the super- 
 intendent waded out to the deepest part of the 
 pool, ducked and splashed, swam a little, and 
 presently returned to the shore. Through the 
 brightening air the lean and sinewy body with 
 its swelling muscles gleamed like rose-tinted 
 marble below the tanned face and neck. Be- 
 hind the boulder Jose crouched closer and 
 drew the knife from his belt, while his body 
 grew tense as he watched Conrad rub himself 
 down and put on his clothes. 
 
 " Will he never keep still a second? " Gon- 
 zalez asked himself impatiently, as he poised 
 his knife. Curtis sat down on a flat stone and 
 reached for his shoes and stockings, whistling 
 a gay little melody from the last comic opera 
 he had heard in San Francisco. 
 
 A sound of shouting and the muffled noise 
 of rushing cattle broke through the morning 
 air, which had been as still and untroubled
 
 i 5 2 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 as the surf ace "of the pool. Conrad, his music 
 silenced and nerves alert, faced quickly toward 
 the camp, turning his body from the waist 
 upward and giving Gonzalez a fair three- 
 quarters view of his torso. 
 
 The Mexican, ready and waiting, seized an 
 instant of arrested motion, and sent the poised 
 weapon straight for his heart. As it left 
 Jose's hand, the stone on which Curtis sat, 
 yielding to the twisting motion of his body, 
 slipped under him, and he threw out his left 
 arm to preserve his balance. He was aware 
 of something bright cleaving the air, of a 
 sudden pain in his arm, and a stinging point 
 in his side. But before his brain could realize 
 what had ' happened, he saw Jose Gonzalez 
 leap from behind the boulder and rush toward 
 him, befouling the air with a string of Spanish 
 oaths. 
 
 Conrad sprang to his feet and wheeled, with 
 right fist ready to meet the attack, before 
 Jose could reach him. The Mexican flew at 
 him with both arms outstretched, meaning to 
 seize his throat and throttle him before he 
 could comprehend his danger. Curtis saw 
 the open guard and landed a blow on his 
 chest which sent him staggering backward. 
 But he returned at once, with left arm raised
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 153 
 
 in defence and right hand ready to seize the 
 other's shirt collar and choke him senseless. 
 
 For a moment only was Conrad at a dis- 
 advantage by reason of the suddenness of the 
 assault. But with the knife still bedded in 
 his bleeding and helpless left arm, his only 
 weapon was his right fist, which he must use 
 for both defence and attack. The Mexican's 
 eyes were fired with the passion of combat, 
 and the other, ignorant of why they were 
 fighting, knew only, by his blanched face and 
 set jaws, that his purpose was deadly. 
 
 Gonzalez, after that first blow upon his 
 chest, was wary. He danced around Conrad, 
 making feints and trying to get inside his 
 guard. But Curtis, whose brain was working 
 in lightning-like flashes, did not waste his 
 strength pounding the air. He kept his as- 
 sailant eluding his feints and jumping to es- 
 cape pretended charges, thinking to wear him 
 out in that way. He soon saw that he was 
 the superior in boxing skill, as well as being 
 both taller and heavier than his foe, and he 
 began to feel assured of final victory, not- 
 withstanding his useless hand and disabled 
 arm. 
 
 Jose's effort was constantly toward Con- 
 rad's left side, and Curtis guessed that he was
 
 i 5 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 trying to get possession of the knife still stick- 
 ing in his arm. He knew that if Gonzalez 
 recovered that weapon his chance of life would 
 be small indeed. His bare feet were bleeding 
 from the sharp little stones on the bank of 
 the pool, but he was conscious neither of that 
 nor of pain in arm or side, though the blood 
 from his wound was making a red streak 
 down his shirt and trousers. But he con- 
 tinued to hear, with a kind of divided con- 
 sciousness, the sound of shouts, the rushing 
 of cattle, and the hoofs of galloping horses. 
 In the back of his brain he knew that there 
 had been a stampede of the herd, and with 
 attention absorbed in his fight for life, the 
 thought that he was needed at the camp 
 spurred him on to more desperate effort. 
 
 Jose made a dash for his left side, but Curtis 
 turned and with all his force sent a blow 
 which caught the Mexican, intent on the knife, 
 with shoulder unguarded. Gonzalez spun half 
 round and reeled backward. Conrad had 
 planted one foot on a rounding stone, and 
 as he delivered the blow it slipped and sent 
 him headlong. He was up again in an in- 
 stant, barely in time to save himself from 
 Jose's fingers, which clutched at his throat. 
 But Gonzalez had got inside his guard and
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 155 
 
 they gripped, the one with one arm and the 
 other with two, for what each felt must be 
 the final struggle. The American caught 
 Jose's left arm between their two bodies and, 
 reaching around him, grasped the other wrist 
 in his right hand. They swayed back and 
 forth, Jose exerting all the strength of his 
 muscles to free his arms, while Conrad, grip- 
 ping him close, used all the remnant of his 
 strength to throw him down. 
 
 By this time the Mexican's eyes were 
 gleaming with an ugly light and his olive 
 cheeks were flushed with anger. Whatever 
 the purpose that had moved him at first, 
 Curtis saw that he was fighting now with 
 the aboriginal rage of conflict, with the fierce 
 hate born of the blows he had received. He 
 kicked wildly at the superintendent's shins 
 and accidentally planted the heel of his boot 
 squarely upon the other's bare foot. Conrad's 
 face twitched with the hurt, and with a snarl- 
 ing grin Gonzalez lifted the other for similar 
 purpose, forgetting shrewd tactics of battle 
 in the lust of giving pain to his opponent. 
 But Curtis caught the momentary advantage 
 of unstable balance and with a twist and a 
 lunge they came down together, Conrad's left 
 shoulder striking against a stone beside which
 
 156 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the Mexican fell. Thrilling with the surety 
 of triumph, his enemy pinned to the ground, 
 Curtis was barely conscious of a snapping in 
 his shoulder and a sharp pain in his collar 
 bone. With one knee on Gonzalez's chest, he 
 pulled the knife from his left arm, broke it 
 across the boulder, and threw the blood- 
 stained pieces far out into the pond. His as- 
 sailant was at his mercy now and the heat 
 and anger of combat ebbed from his veins as 
 he looked down at the Mexican's unresisting 
 figure. 
 
 " You have bested me this time, Don Cur- 
 tis," said Gonzalez quietly. 
 
 " Get up, Jose," replied Conrad rising, and 
 the two men, panting from their conflict, faced 
 each other. Jose stood with his arms folded 
 and head erect and looked at his employer 
 with unafraid eyes, in which smouldered only 
 the traces of his recent rage. Conrad sur- 
 veyed him thoughtfully for a moment before 
 he spoke. 
 
 " Jose, what did you do it for? " 
 
 The Mexican smiled but made no reply. 
 
 " Have you got anything against me ? " 
 Conrad persisted. " Do you think I 've mis- 
 treated you or injured you in any way ? " 
 
 " No, sefior, I have nothing against you."
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 157 
 
 " Then what by God, are you one of Dell 
 Baxter's thugs ? Has he sent you down here 
 to stick me in the back?" Impelled by the 
 flash of sudden conviction, Conrad thrust his 
 face close to the other's and glared into his 
 eyes. Gonzalez stepped back a pace and 
 looked gravely across the hill at the reddening 
 sky. His composed face and closely shut lips 
 showed that he did not intend to answer. 
 
 "Oh, all right!" Curtis exclaimed. "I,. 
 don't expect you to peach on your pal. But 
 I reckon I 've sure struck the right trail this 
 time. And look here, Jose! Was it me you 
 were after when you stuck your knife in that 
 skunk?" 
 
 The Mexican's eyes fell and his black brows 
 met in a frown. He was thinking how much 
 trouble this man had given him by springing 
 up so unexpectedly that night. But for that 
 it would all have been so easy and simple! 
 
 " I reckon it was ! " Conrad went on hotly. 
 " And I reckon it was me instead of the steer 
 you rode after the next morning, with your 
 knife ready when I looked up. And I reckon 
 it was me instead of the steer you tried to 
 rope when you made that remarkable miss. 
 I Ve been a fool to trust a damned greaser, 
 even when he was in plain sight. But look
 
 158 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 here, Jose Gonzalez ! " Conrad stopped and 
 glared into the Mexican's sombre and inscru- 
 table eyes. Holding his bleeding left arm in 
 his right hand he leaned forward, head thrust 
 out and eyes blazing. 
 
 " Just you look here, Jose Gonzalez ! " he 
 repeated. " I 'm onto your little game now, 
 and if I can't be a match for any greaser that 
 ever tried to stick a man in the back, I '11 de- 
 serve all I '11 get ! Just come on and try it 
 again whenever you like ! Keep at work with 
 the round-up if you want to I 'm not going 
 to give you your time for this. But I am 
 going to write to Dell Baxter that I 'm onto 
 his scheme and that the minute you make 
 another crack at me there '11 be a bullet in 
 your brain and another in his as soon as 
 I can get to Santa Fe to put it there, and that 
 he 'd better call you off if he wants to save 
 his own skin. But if you can get me with- 
 out my catching on first you 're welcome, 
 that's all!" 
 
 The rush of running cattle swept across 
 their preoccupied ears, and both men turned 
 to see a dozen steers sweep past the other 
 end of the pond and up the hill. 
 
 " Quick, Jose ! Help me head them off and 
 turn them into the pond ! " Conrad exclaimed
 
 BY A HAIR'S BREADTH 159 
 
 as he started off in his bare feet. His long 
 strides covered the distance quickly, and with 
 hoots and yells and waving arm he soon 
 turned their course down the hillside toward 
 the water. Gonzalez was close behind, and 
 together they manoeuvred the frightened 
 beasts to the pond, where the animals forgot 
 their panic, waded in quietly, and began to 
 drink. 
 
 " Jose," said the superintendent, as he sat 
 down at the water's edge and began to bathe 
 his muddy, bleeding feet, " I shall not men- 
 tion this affair to any one here. I '11 say that 
 a steer horned me just now. I Ve broken 
 my collar bone, I think, and I Ve got this cut 
 in my arm, and I '11 have to go to Golden at 
 once to get patched up. When I come back 
 I want you to remember what I just told you 
 about getting daylight through your skull if 
 you try any of your tricks on me again. 
 There comes Red Jack after these cattle. Go 
 and help drive them back to camp."
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 
 
 THE shadows of the little rolling hills 
 still sprawled across the intervening 
 valleys when Curtis Conrad started 
 back at a gallop over the road which his out- 
 fit had been slowly traversing for four days. 
 To his foreman, Hank Peters, he had said 
 that he had been thrown and gored by a steer 
 and must go to Golden to have his collar bone 
 set, and ordered him to stay where he was, 
 cutting out and branding, that day and night, 
 and camp the day after at Five Cottonwoods, 
 where he would rejoin them. 
 
 The men puzzled and gossiped about the 
 accident to their employer. " I don't see how 
 it was possible," said Peters, " for such a 
 thing to happen to a man that 's got the boss's 
 gumption about cow-brutes." 
 
 " None of 'em was on the prod when I got 
 to the pond," Red Jack declared. " Jose, you 
 was with him. Did you see the scrimmage ? "
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 161 
 
 " I did not see the boss when he was down," 
 Gonzalez replied in his precise, slightly ac- 
 cented English. " I was at the spring and 
 heard him yell and I ran down to the pond 
 at once, for I thought he needed help. I 
 stumbled and fell and sprained my shoulder 
 it hurts me yet so that when I reached 
 the pond he was on his feet again and 
 trying to drive the cattle into the water. I 
 helped him and then we went back to 
 where his shoes were. That was where 
 Jack saw us. His arm bled a good deal 
 there." 
 
 " Somethin' happened," observed Hank 
 Peters, " and if the boss says it was a steer 
 on the prod, I sure reckon it was. But the 
 thing that 's troublin' me most is what started 
 them critters off. I did n't see or hear a 
 blamed thing likely to set 'em goin'. Did any 
 of you?" 
 
 " I did n't," Texas Bill spoke up; " but Andy 
 was there first. Did you see what it was, 
 Andy?" 
 
 Andy Miller, the new hand, stopped to 
 draw several deep whiffs from his newly 
 lighted pipe before he replied. " No ; I 
 could n't make out anything, and I was right 
 at the edge of 'em, too. They jumped and
 
 i6a THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 started all at once, as crazy as I ever see a 
 bunch of critters." 
 
 " Mebbe you skeered 'em some, they not 
 bein' used to you," suggested Billy Kid. 
 
 Andy grinned. " Well, I sure ain't boastin' 
 none about the beauty of my phiz, but no gal 
 ain't told me yet that I was ugly enough to 
 stampede a herd of cow-brutes," and the sub- 
 ject was dropped with the laugh that followed. 
 
 Conrad's mare, larger and of better breed 
 than the cow ponies, put the ground rapidly 
 under her feet throughout the early morning. 
 Though never trained for range work and 
 used only for riding, he always took her on 
 the round-up, in readiness for emergencies. 
 His habit of talking to himself, engendered 
 by much solitary riding, was often varied by 
 one-sided conversations with the mare, and 
 whatever the subject which occupied his 
 thoughts and found fragmentary utterance in 
 speech, his sentences were interspersed with 
 frequent remarks to Brown Betty. Appar- 
 ently she found this custom as companionable 
 as he did, for she was sure to protest at a 
 long period of silence. 
 
 " So, ho, my pretty Brown B.," said Conrad 
 gently, as he patted the mare's sleek neck, 
 " that 's the pace to give 'em ! " A sharp
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 163 
 
 twinge in his shoulder set his lips together, 
 and an oath, having Congressman Baxter as 
 its objective, came from between his teeth. 
 " I '11 write that damned Baxter a letter," he 
 broke out savagely, " that will singe his eye- 
 lashes when he reads it ! " 
 
 His thoughts went back to the subject which 
 so frequently occupied them his lifelong, 
 vengeful quest of the man who had despoiled 
 his father, wrought destruction upon their 
 home, and changed the current of his own 
 life. His heart waxed hot as he recalled his 
 interview with Rutherford Jenkins. Never 
 for an instant had he doubted that Jenkins's 
 statement was a deliberate lie. Smiling 
 grimly, he stroked the mare's mane. " I was 
 a fool, was n't I, Betty, to suppose I J d get 
 straight goods out of him. It cost me five 
 hundred dollars to find out that he 's a skunk, 
 which I knew before. I deserved all I 
 got, didn't I, Betty, for not having more 
 gumption." 
 
 The frontiersman's caution, which grows 
 almost instinctive in one who rides much 
 alone over plain and mountain, sent his eyes 
 now and again to search the long stretch of 
 road that trailed its faint gray band across 
 the hills behind and before him and to scan
 
 164 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the sun-flooded reach from horizon to hori- 
 zon. A red stain accentuated the meeting line 
 of sky and plain in the west. 
 
 " Betty Brown, do you see that red mark 
 yonder ? " he said, gently pulling her ear. 
 " That means a sand-storm, and we 've got 
 to hike along at a pretty stiff pace while we 
 can. What do you think about it, my lady? " 
 The mare raised her head and gave a little 
 snort. "Smell it, don't you?" he went on 
 as he patted her approvingly. " Well, that 's 
 where you 're smarter than I am, for I reckon 
 I sha'n't be able to do that for another hour." 
 
 He fell silent again, thinking of the Dela- 
 field matter and Jenkins's assertion that Ban- 
 croft was Delafield. " He sure knows who 
 Delafield is," was his conclusion, announced 
 aloud, " but he 's not going to tell. He 's 
 probably blackmailing the man, whoever he 
 is, and he won't take any chances that would 
 be likely to spoil his income. Well, that 
 proves that Delafield is somebody in New 
 Mexico rich enough and prominent enough 
 to make it worth while for Jenkins to keep 
 his knowledge to himself. I Ve got that much 
 for my five hundred, anyway. Lord, Betty, 
 was n't I a tenderfoot ! " and he swore under 
 his breath, half angrily, half amusedly, as he
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 165 
 
 turned again to study the road and the plain. 
 The heat haze was rising, and the clear white 
 sunlight was master of earth and sky. Far 
 to one side he noted the silvery lake of a 
 mirage. But the red line had mounted higher, 
 and become a low, dirty-red wall that seemed 
 to fence the western expanse from north to 
 south. " It sure looks like a bad one, Betty, 
 and I 'm afraid we shan't be able to get home 
 to-night after all. But we '11 make Adobe 
 Springs anyway, if it does n't catch us too 
 
 soon." 
 
 The pain in his shoulder brought his mind 
 back to the conviction that Baxter had in- 
 stigated the assault upon him, and he began 
 searching for the motive. Did the Congress- 
 man think his political opposition important 
 enough to make his taking off desirable? 
 Suddenly he slapped his thigh and broke out 
 aloud : " Lord ! what if Baxter should be 
 Delafield ! He sure ought to be if there 's 
 anything in the eternal fitness of things. If 
 he should be ah-h," and he broke off with 
 a hard, unmirthful laugh. Ransacking his 
 memory for all he knew of Baxter's life he 
 presently shook his head regretfully. " No ; 
 the facts are against it. There 's nothing in 
 that lead. It 's a pity, though, for it would
 
 1 66 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 be a satisfaction to say nothing of the public 
 benefit to knock 'em both off the roost at 
 one pop." His mind busied itself with con- 
 jectures about Delafield's identity, as he con- 
 sidered first one and then another of the more 
 prominent men in the Territory. He was 
 silent so long that the mare tossed her head 
 impatiently and whinnied. Curtis smiled and 
 stroked her mane. 
 
 " Hello, old girl ! " he said aloud, " getting 
 lonesome, are you, and you want to be talked 
 to. Oh, you 're spoiled, Betty B., that 's what 
 you are. We '11 go up the hill and see Miss 
 Bancroft, won't we, Betty, while we 're in 
 Golden ; and we '11 take that cactus to her, 
 and help her plant it. And she '11 come out 
 to the fence to see you, Betty ; and she '11 give 
 you a lump of sugar, and pat your nose, and 
 look as sweet as a pink rose with brown 
 velvet eyes. She 's a bully fine girl and we 
 like her, don't we, Betty Brown? The way 
 she sticks by her father is great ; he could n't 
 help being a first-class fellow, could he, B. B., 
 with such a daughter as that ? " 
 
 The red wall was rising in the sky, devour- 
 ing its sunlit blue and spreading out into 
 smoky-red, angry-looking clouds. A high 
 wind, hot and dry, swept across the plain
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 167 
 
 from the west. All the cattle within Conrad's 
 range of vision had turned their heads to the 
 east and, although they were still grazing, 
 moved only in that direction. Seeing a herd 
 of antelope headed the same way, Curtis took 
 the red bandanna from his neck and waved 
 it toward them. As the bright signal floated 
 in the wind their leader turned, stared, and 
 began to walk back, the whole herd following 
 with raised heads and gaze fixed in fascinated 
 interest. He flaunted the red square and they 
 came steadily on, until presently the warning 
 of danger in the hot wind and the odor of 
 the approaching storm overcame the compul- 
 sion of curiosity, and they wheeled again, 
 away from the threatened peril. 
 
 The small life of the plain was fleeing 
 before the furnace-like breath of those red, 
 surging clouds. Jackrabbits leaped across the 
 road on fleet legs, and occasionally Conrad 
 saw coyotes, singly or in packs, running east- 
 ward as for their lives. Fat carrion crows 
 hurried their unwieldy flight and, higher in 
 the air, a frequent lone hawk sailed out of 
 the west, while now and then a road-runner 
 cut across his path with hasting feet. 
 
 " It 's going to be a bad one, I guess," 
 Curtis muttered, jamming his soft hat down
 
 i68 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 closer on his head. The mare seemed to be 
 trying of her own accord to escape the storm, 
 and her swinging lope was steadily leaving 
 the miles behind. " Keep it up, Betty, keep 
 it up," he said encouragingly. " I want to 
 reach Adobe Springs and get this message 
 to Baxter off my mind. My shoulder 's ach- 
 ing, old girl, but it ain't aching a bit more 
 than I am to tell him what I think of him." 
 
 Soon the sand-storm was upon them, con- 
 cealing the landscape and covering the sky 
 with its clouds. Upon man and beast it 
 beat as bitterly as a sand-blast. It pelted and 
 stung Conrad's face and neck, and filled his 
 eyes and ears and nostrils until he was forced 
 now and again to pull his hat over his face 
 for a moment's respite in which to draw a 
 less choking breath. " It looks as if all Ari- 
 zona had got up and dusted, and was hell- 
 bent to get out of here," he jested grimly, 
 as he bent over the mare's neck and encour- 
 aged her with voice arid gentle stroke. ' That 
 shows good sense, Betty, though it 's mighty 
 hard on us. Come right along, old girl; we 
 must get to Adobe Springs." 
 
 As the air grew thicker there shone from 
 the sky, instead of the vivid white sunshine 
 of a few hours before, only a dim, diffused,
 
 " UPON MAN AND BKAST THK SAND-STORM BKAT BITTERLY "
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 169 
 
 lurid light. Even to Curtis, sitting quarter- 
 ing in the saddle with his back twisted toward 
 the wind, Brown Betty's ears were barely 
 visible. For a while he allowed the mare to 
 follow the road herself, until he found that 
 her sense of duty must be supplemented by 
 authority. For, under the discomfort of the 
 belaboring wind and stinging sand, she began 
 to yield to her instinct to turn tail and drift 
 before the storm. Then he knew that he 
 must keep a firm hand on the bridle, and his 
 attention at the highest pitch, or they would 
 soon be wandering helplessly over the plain. 
 He walked long distances beside the mare, with 
 his body shielding her head and with speech 
 and caress keeping up her courage. Their 
 progress was slow, for the force of the storm 
 was so great that, though it beat against them 
 from the side, they could struggle through 
 it only at a walk. 
 
 Hour after hour went by, and the only sign 
 of its passage was that a dim, yellowish centre 
 of illumination, that had once been the sun, 
 crept slowly across the sky. As the day 
 grew older Conrad's pain from his injury be- 
 came more acute. Most of the time he felt 
 it only as an insistent background to the keen 
 outward discomfort of stinging sand and
 
 i ;o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 pounding wind. But when an occasional 
 sharper twinge brought it more vividly to his 
 consciousness he swore a little between his 
 teeth, and thought of the letter he was going 
 to write to Dellmey Baxter. The particles of 
 sand filled his hair and encrusted his face 
 and neck until they were of a uniform brick- 
 red. Constant effort and encouragement were 
 necessary to keep Brown Betty in the road, 
 and finally he was compelled to walk at her 
 head most of the time and with a guiding 
 hand on her bridle counteract the unflagging 
 urge of her instinct to drift before the blast. 
 
 Thus they battled their way through the 
 hot, beating wind and suffocating sand, while 
 that vague core of light moved athwart the 
 dirty heavens, dropped slowly down the west- 
 ern sky, and was swallowed up in the denser 
 banks of dusk above the horizon. It had been 
 too dark before for the discernment of ob- 
 jects, but a yellowish glare had filtered 
 through the sand-laden air, lending a lurid, 
 semi-translucence to the atmosphere. Now 
 even that was gone, leaving a desert envel- 
 oped in pitchy darkness, while the wind roared 
 about the ears of the travellers and pounded 
 their bodies as with cudgels and the sand 
 pelted their skins.
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 171 
 
 Most of the time Curtis depended upon the 
 feel of the road under his feet to maintain his 
 direction, but now and then it was necessary 
 for him to get down on his hands and knees 
 in order to recover the track from which they 
 had begun to stray. Once his fingers came 
 in contact with a small feathered body. The 
 bird tried to start up under his hand. He 
 knew it must be disabled and placed it inside 
 his shirt. Thus they plodded on through the 
 night and the stornij the pain in his shoulder 
 growing keener and the torture of the wind 
 and sand ever more nerve-racking. 
 
 At last the mare raised her head and gave 
 a long whinny. Conrad felt sure that she 
 was announcing their near approach to the 
 food and shelter within the adobe houses. 
 " What is it, Betty ? Do you know where 
 we are ? " he asked, and she rubbed her nose 
 against his face, nickered, and pulled at the 
 bridle with the evident desire to turn from 
 the direction they were pursuing. Curtis 
 knew they were in a little hollow, and thought 
 it might be that into which the road dipped 
 after leaving the houses. 
 
 " All right, Betty," he said. " I '11 follow 
 your lead a little way, but be cautious, old 
 girl, and don't tie up to any lying hunches."
 
 1 72 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 He slackened his hold on the bridle, and the 
 mare started off eagerly. They climbed a hill, 
 and presently Conrad was aware of a black 
 mass before him. Putting out his hand he 
 felt an adobe wall. The mare crowded close 
 against it, and stopped. She had left the 
 road, which took the hill at a long sloping 
 angle from the foot of the rise, and had 
 climbed straight up the steep incline. He felt 
 his way around the corner, unfastened the 
 door, and entered. An emphatic " Whew ! " 
 gave vent to his feeling of relief. The mare, 
 close at his heels, snorted in response, and 
 Curtis, smiling in the dark, threw his arm 
 across her neck in fellowship and said, " Feels 
 good, does n't it, Betty B., to get out of that 
 hurricane from hell ? " 
 
 By the light of a lantern he led the mare 
 to the spring, stabling her afterward in one 
 of the houses. " In the best society, Betty 
 Brown," he explained, " it 's not considered 
 good form for horses to sleep in men's houses. 
 But you deserve the best I can give you to- 
 night, blest if you don't, old girl, and you 
 shall have it, too." He gathered together, 
 for her food and her bed, the alfalfa hay 
 from several of the bunks, and found for her 
 also a small measure of oats. Then, having
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 173 
 
 attended to her wants, he looked about for 
 something to stay his own hunger. 
 
 It was his custom to keep some canned 
 provisions in the place, as the station was 
 much used by his men. On a little smoulder- 
 ing fire in one corner of the room, he made 
 some tea in a tin can. A frying-pan hung 
 against the wall, and in it, awkwardly fum- 
 bling with his one useful hand, he contrived 
 to warm a stew of tinned chile con came 
 and pilot bread. Fine sand drifted in and 
 settled in a red dust over the food as he 
 ate, and he could feel its grit between his 
 teeth. 
 
 The bird he had carried in his bosom he 
 found to be a Southwestern tanager. Its 
 pinkish-red plumage shone with a silvery radi- 
 ance in the lamplight. One of its legs was 
 broken, and one wing had been injured. " I '11 
 take it to Miss Bancroft," he said aloud, " and 
 she '11 care for it till it can shift for itself 
 v again, poor little devil ! " 
 
 With intense satisfaction Conrad at last 
 sat down to the letter in which he had all 
 day been longing to express his feelings. " I 
 wonder," he thought, " if Dellmey Baxter did 
 it because he don't like the things I say about 
 him. Well, he '11 have to get used to it, then,
 
 174 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 for I 'm not going to quit." There was a 
 grim smile on his face as he wrote: 
 
 " I consider it the square thing to tell you that 
 I am onto the game of your man, Jose Gonzalez. 
 We had our first set-to this morning, in which he 
 winged me, but I got the best of him. I could have 
 killed him if I had wanted to, but he is such a good 
 cowboy I hated to do him up. I am going to keep 
 him in my employ, but I want you to understand, 
 distinctly, that if he makes another crack at me I 
 shall go to Santa Fe as quick as I can get there 
 and make a Christmas gift of you to the devil be- 
 fore you know what 's happening. 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 " CURTIS CONRAD. 
 
 " P. S. I am still shouting for Johnny Martinez 
 for Congress. C. C." 
 
 '* There ! " he exclaimed, as he sealed the 
 envelope and threw it down contemptuously; 
 " I sure reckon he won't be so anxious for 
 me to turn up my toes with my boots on after 
 he reads that." 
 
 The pain in Conrad's arm and shoulder had 
 become so keen that he could not sleep. He 
 lay in his bunk listening to the rattling of 
 the door and the rage of the wind against 
 the house, seeking to keep his mind from the 
 stabbing pain long enough to sink into
 
 BATTLING THE ELEMENTS 175 
 
 unconsciousness. But no sooner did his eye- 
 lids begin to close down heavily than a fresh 
 throb made him start up again wide awake. 
 This irritated him more than did the other 
 suffering, and finally he jumped up angrily, 
 found a copy of Lecky's " History of European 
 Morals," and, with the muttered comment, 
 ' This is about what I need to-night," settled 
 himself on an empty cracker box and read 
 the night away. Toward morning he became 
 aware that the wind was abating, and a little 
 later that less sand was drifting into his 
 retreat. 
 
 Breakfast was eaten and Brown Betty cared 
 for by lamplight and with the first dim rays 
 of morning he set out once more upon the 
 road. The bird was again in his bosom, and 
 the cactus, wrapped in old newspapers, rested 
 at the back of his saddle. The storm had 
 passed, but the air was still full of dust parti- 
 cles through which the sun shone, red and 
 smoky. Curtis knew that these would settle 
 gradually with the passing hours and the sky 
 become as clear as usual. Already he could 
 see the road for several rods in front of him, 
 and that was all he needed to keep it flying 
 under Brown Betty's feet. 
 
 At the ranch house Mrs. Peters told him
 
 176 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 that a man had been there looking for work 
 and described his appearance. "Yes; he 
 overtook us at Rock Springs, and I hired 
 him," Conrad said. Then, remembering the 
 account Andy Miller had given of his previ- 
 ous situation, he asked her if the man had 
 said where he came from. 
 
 "No," she replied; "he didn't say where 
 he 'd been working ; but he came from toward 
 Golden." 
 
 The superintendent thought the discrepancy 
 rather curious, but decided it was nothing 
 more than a not unusual cowboy eccentricity 
 of statement. He resumed his journey with 
 no misgivings, and mid-afternoon found him 
 arguing with the physician at Golden that he 
 might just as well start back to the round-up 
 that same night.
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 
 
 ALEXANDER BANCROFT sat in his 
 private room with Curtis Conrad's 
 return checks before him. They were 
 not many: one in favor of his brother at the 
 University of Michigan, one for a mail order 
 house in Chicago, a small one to a New York 
 publishing concern, and his eyes fell upon 
 the name of Rutherford Jenkins and the 
 amount, five hundred dollars. He stared 
 at the slip of paper for a moment, conviction 
 rushing to his mind that his pursuer knew 
 the truth ; then he took his revolver from his 
 pocket and examined its chambers. " I may 
 have to do him up myself ! " he thought, his 
 lips tightening. But sudden hesitation gripped 
 his heart. Until within a few weeks he had 
 considered Curtis one of his best friends, had 
 liked the young cattleman whole-heartedly, 
 admiring and enjoying his impulsiveness, his 
 geniality, his ardent loyalty to his friends, and 
 his equally ardent hostility to those he disliked. 
 
 12
 
 178 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Now the good-fellowship he had been accus- 
 tomed to feel stopped his hand. " Can it be 
 possible," he asked himself for the hundredth 
 time, " that this eager-hearted, companionable 
 fellow will really carry out his deadly pur- 
 pose ? " He recalled the intensity with which 
 Conrad had spoken of his long quest for re- 
 venge, his vehemence toward his enemies, his 
 impetuosity. Again conviction grew strong 
 upon him that, when the man knew, the end 
 would come. The frontier code by which he 
 had lived so long nerved his heart, and he 
 muttered, " He shan't smash things now ! 
 I '11 smash him before I '11 let him do that ! " 
 He swung the revolver into position and 
 took sight. As his eye glanced down the 
 barrel he saw that it was pointing at Lucy's 
 pictured face, smiling down from the top of 
 his desk; his hand shook as he laid down the 
 weapon. There was a knock at the door, and 
 he made sudden pretence of close attention 
 to the papers before him. The door partly 
 opened and he heard Conrad's voice outside. 
 Surety of imminent peril seized Bancroft's 
 mind. The instinct of self-defence sent his 
 hand to his revolver, and he sprang up, pull- 
 ing the trigger. Curtis rushed in at the re- 
 port, calling out, "What 's the matter, Aleck?"
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 179 
 
 The banker had just time to stay his finger 
 at sight of the friendly face and solicitous 
 manner. 
 
 " I did n't hurt you, did I, Curt? " he asked 
 anxiously, sinking back in his chair and look- 
 ing at Conrad's arm, helpless in a sling. The 
 bullet, they found, had nicked the top of the 
 door and buried itself in the ceiling. " I was 
 looking my revolver over when you knocked," 
 Bancroft explained, " and had just been aim- 
 ing at that spot on the wall. My finger must 
 have pulled the trigger unconsciously. The 
 thing 's set to a hair, anyway. I must have 
 it fixed. What 's the matter with your arm, 
 Curt?" 
 
 In the revulsion of feeling that swept over 
 him as he realized that the cattleman was as 
 friendly as ever and that therefore his secret 
 was still safe, he felt genuinely thankful that 
 his bullet had gone wild. 
 
 Conrad told of his fight with Jose Gonzalez. 
 " You 're getting the truth about it, Aleck," 
 he went on ; " but to everybody else I 'm say- 
 ing that I got horned by a steer, knocked over, 
 and my collar bone cracked. I 'm convinced 
 it 's some of Dell Baxter's work. I reckon 
 I 've been saying out loud just what he is too 
 often to please him. But the letter I Ve sent
 
 i8o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 him will buffalo him quick enough. Jose 's 
 a good cowboy, and I 'm going to keep him. 
 But I don't want the boys to know anything 
 about our little scrap. So I 'm saying it was 
 a steer on the prod that did it." 
 
 Bancroft's thoughts were active as he 
 lighted his cigar. That check it must have 
 been Castleton money, to be handled for 
 Johnny Martinez. Perhaps security might 
 still be compassed without bloodshed. In 
 thankfulness that he had not killed the man 
 who was still his friend he revolted against 
 the purpose of the Mexican, to which he knew 
 in his soul he had given tacit consent. He 
 did not want this cordial, confiding, good 
 fellow struck down if his own safety could 
 be otherwise secured. 
 
 ' You 'd better give the Mexican his time, 
 Curt. He 's locoed probably ; when you get 
 back you may find he 's killed half your 
 men." 
 
 '' Well, if he tries running a-muck in that 
 gang," the superintendent responded cheer- 
 fully, " he '11 never do anybody else any harm. 
 Anyway, I 've settled him for the present ; 
 I busted his knife and threw the pieces into 
 the pond. No ; he 's in Dell's pay ; that 's all 
 there is to it; and when Dell reads my letter
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 181 
 
 he '11 hike to call his man off. I don't expect 
 any more trouble from Jose." 
 
 Bancroft made no reply and Conrad went 
 on : " By the way, Aleck, for a full minute 
 yesterday I thought Baxter must be my man 
 the man I 'm after, you know Delafield. 
 I 've found out that he 's somebody rich and 
 respectable here in New Mexico, and when 
 I felt that Baxter must be responsible for 
 this attack on me, I lit on him for my meat. 
 But it was too good to be true; as soon as 
 I thought it over I saw that Baxter could n't 
 be Delafield. But they 're two of a kind all 
 right. Both of 'em have got their freight 
 loaded ready to pull out for hell at the drop 
 of a hat. Baxter will have to pull his in less 
 than three jumps of a bucking horse if he 
 does n't call off his man. And Delafield will 
 be pulling his mighty soon anyway." 
 
 Bancroft made a gesture of annoyance. 
 " Curt, you talk too easily about killing. 
 You 'd make a stranger think you 're a bad 
 man of the border, instead of the decent citi- 
 zen you are. For Heaven's sake, man, why 
 don't you come to your senses, and see what 
 an ass you '11 be making of yourself if you try 
 to carry out this fool scheme of revenge that 's 
 gtt hold of you? Why don't you accept his
 
 182 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 offer to pay back the money as fast as he can ? 
 Let him make restitution, and keep a whole 
 skin ; perhaps you '11 save your own scalp in 
 the bargain." 
 
 The seeker after vengeance laughed blithely. 
 
 " Aleck, you 've no idea what this thing 
 means to me. Why, man, you talk as if 
 giving up that plan would be no more than 
 changing my coat! You don't know, Aleck 
 why, to get the drop on Delafield and hold 
 him while I tell him what he is in language 
 that will scald him from head to foot, and 
 then deal out to him the death he deserves - 
 that 's the one thing I 've lived for all these 
 fifteen years ! I 'm obliged to you for your 
 advice, Aleck; but I know what I 'm about." 
 
 Bancroft shrank away a little as Curtis 
 talked. His lips tightened as he picked up 
 the revolver and sighted it at a calendar 
 on the wall. After a moment's silence he 
 looked the other full in the eye and said, 
 impressively : 
 
 " You forget one thing, Curt. If this man 
 Delafield knows what you are doing and 
 you seem to feel sure he does he '11 be pre- 
 pared for your attack, and you 're not likely 
 to have things your own way. Unless he 's 
 a fool or a coward he '11 defend himself, even
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 183 
 
 if he has to kill you doing it. And if he has 
 any sabe at all he '11 be loaded for you when 
 you get there, and have the drop on you be- 
 fore you can say a word." 
 
 " Chances of war," Conrad replied serenely. 
 " He 's welcome to all he can get. But I 'm 
 betting my last dollar, and my scalp in the 
 bargain, that he can't draw as quick as I can, 
 nor shoot as straight. You bet your life, 
 Aleck, when that circus comes off I '11 be the 
 star performer." 
 
 "Well," said Bancroft slowly, "if you 
 won't listen to reason I suppose you '11 have 
 to go on, hell-bent, in the gait you 've struck 
 and take the consequences. But you 're 
 a fool to do it, and I hate to see you making 
 such a blind ass of yourself." 
 
 Curtis laughed, undisturbed. ' That 's all 
 right, Aleck. I don't expect you to get the 
 joy out of this business that I shall." 
 
 He went over to Bancroft's desk and 
 picked up the revolver, examining its sights. 
 " They 're not right, Aleck," he said. " When 
 I get the use of my arm again I '11 fix them 
 for you. And you don't use your gun right 
 when you want to take quick aim: you don't 
 swing it up quickly and steadily, as if you 
 were used to it. You ought to practise, Aleck.
 
 184 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Out here a man never knows when he may 
 have to defend himself. I Ve got to stay here 
 several days, the doctor says ; and while I 'm 
 here I '11 show you a few tricks." 
 
 " All right, if you like," Bancroft replied, 
 adding, as he pocketed his revolver, " I 'm 
 not a very good shot and, as you say, out 
 here a man never knows when he may have 
 to defend himself." 
 
 Conrad, turning to go, lingered awkwardly. 
 " By the way, Aleck," he blurted out, " it has 
 occurred to me that perhaps you are getting 
 tied up with Dell Baxter too tight for com- 
 fort. I don't want to seem curious about your 
 affairs, you know, and I have n't got any big 
 pile you know what my balance is ; but 
 whatever I have got you 're welcome to, any 
 time, if you want to cut loose from Baxter 
 and it will help any." 
 
 Bancroft hid a grim smile behind the hand 
 at his moustache as he thought of sundry 
 checks of his own making their way toward 
 Conrad's balance. " Thank you, Curt ; it f s 
 very kind and thoughtful of you to make the 
 offer, and I appreciate it. But I don't need 
 anything. Baxter and I are in partnership 
 in a number of enterprises, but it 's all straight 
 sailing."
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 185 
 
 " That 's good, and I 'm glad to hear it. I 
 was afraid he 'd got you under his thumb. 
 But remember, Aleck, that my small pile is 
 at your disposal any time it will be of use to 
 you." 
 
 As the young man left the bank he saw 
 Lucy Bancroft turn the corner toward the 
 Mexican quarter and was quickly at her side, 
 relieving her of the little bundle she car- 
 ried. She was going to Senora Melgares, she 
 explained, who could wash laces and embroid- 
 eries and all kinds of dainty things beauti- 
 fully with amole root. She was taking her 
 some of Miss Dent's and her own fineries, and 
 hoped to get her a great deal of work from 
 others. ' The poor thing ! " said Lucy ear- 
 nestly, her eyes wide and soft with sympathy. 
 " She is so heartbroken over the affair ! 
 You Ve heard ? Mr. Gaines died the other 
 day, and Melgares has been indicted for mur- 
 der. My father says he '11 surely be found 
 guilty and will probably be hanged. The poor 
 senora ! " 
 
 When they reached the little adobe house 
 Lucy asked Curtis to go in with her, saying, 
 " I 'm not very sure of my Spanish, and I 'd 
 be glad to have you come in and help me 
 out." They found Senora Melgares sitting
 
 i86 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 with her head buried in her arms, her hair 
 dishevelled, and her face, when she raised it, 
 eloquent of grief and despair. But she greeted 
 them with grave and gracious courtesy. Lucy 
 impulsively took her hand and held it in both 
 her own while she presented Senor Conrad. 
 At the name the woman drew her slight fig- 
 ure together with a convulsive movement, her 
 dark face lighting with interest. 
 
 " Don Curtis? Senor Don Curtis Conrad?" 
 she asked eagerly. 
 
 ' The same, sefiora," he answered in Span- 
 ish, bowing gravely. 
 
 ' The same whose mare ? " she began, 
 her expressive countenance finishing the 
 query. Conrad bowed again. The woman 
 sank down in her chair, her face in her 
 hands, swaying back and forth as she moaned 
 and sobbed. Lucy knelt by her side to com- 
 fort her, while Curtis bent over the girlish 
 figure and spoke in a low, changed tone that 
 the girl barely recognized, so different was 
 it from his usual brisk utterance. It set her 
 nerves vibrating in quick, half-conscious con- 
 viction of a depth and quality of feeling in 
 harmony with her own. 
 
 " I am afraid I made a mistake by coming 
 in, Miss Bancroft," he said. " It did not occur
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 187 
 
 to me that she would connect me with her 
 husband's trouble. Won't you please tell her, 
 when she is quieter, that I am very sorry 
 about the whole affair, that I have no feeling 
 against him, and that I '11 gladly do for him 
 whatever I can. I think I 'd better go now, 
 but I '11 wait outside for you, and if I can 
 be of any use you must call me." 
 
 When Lucy joined him a little later her 
 face showed signs of tears, and as they 
 walked back she was preoccupied and per- 
 turbed. She wished to see her father, so 
 Curtis left her at the door of the bank. 
 
 " Daddy ! " Lucy exclaimed as she rushed 
 to his side, her eyes shining and her face 
 aglow. " Oh, daddy, Senora Melgares has 
 just told me the strangest thing! Mr. Con- 
 rad was with me, but he went out because 
 she cried so, and he did n't hear what she 
 said. I tried to quiet and comfort her, and 
 finally she told me that her husband had been 
 persuaded and paid to steal Mr. Conrad's 
 horse by a man who said he wanted to get 
 even with him for something. She told me 
 his name you and Mr. Tillinghurst and 
 Judge Banks were talking about him the 
 other day Mr. Jenkins Don Rutherford 
 Jenkins, she called him."
 
 188 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Anticipation warmed Bancroft's heart as 
 she spoke. If the story was true it might 
 give him just the hold on Jenkins that he 
 wanted. He made her repeat the details of 
 her conversation with the Mexican woman. 
 " Did you say anything about it to Conrad? " 
 he asked in conclusion. 
 
 " No, daddy; I thought I ought to tell you 
 about it first." 
 
 " Quite right, Lucy. You were very pru- 
 dent. And don't mention it now, to him or 
 to anybody." 
 
 " No, of course not. But, daddy, won't 
 that make it better for poor Jose Maria ? Mr. 
 Jenkins is the one that ought to be punished 
 he and Mr. Baxter; and poor ignorant 
 Melgares ought to be let off very easily. 
 Don't you think so, daddy?" 
 
 One of her hands rested on his shoulder. 
 He took the other in both of his as he smiled 
 at her indulgently. Her news had so heart- 
 ened him that he hardly noticed her connec- 
 tion of Baxter with the affair. " I don't know 
 about that, daughter. It is n't likely to have 
 any effect, because his indictment is for mur- 
 der you know he killed Gaines while re- 
 sisting arrest and his motive in stealing 
 the horse has no connection with that crime.
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 189 
 
 I 'm glad you told me about it, dear. I '11 talk 
 with Melgares myself, and see what can be 
 done. I suppose his wife must be having a 
 hard time. You might give her some money. 
 And ask her," he said as he handed Lucy 
 some bills, " not to speak about this Jenkins 
 matter to any one else. Be sure you impress 
 that upon her. It 's a pretty bad case, but 
 you can tell his wife that everything possible 
 will be done for him. Dell Baxter is coming 
 down to undertake his defence; he does it 
 for nothing. So you must n't think so badly 
 of him hereafter, when you see how willing 
 he is to make what amends he can to the 
 poor fellow." 
 
 Lucy threw her arms about his neck and 
 kissed his forehead. " Daddy, you 're awfully 
 good and kind the best man in the world ! 
 About Mr. Baxter, though " she paused to 
 toss her head, and a little sparkle shone in 
 her eyes " well, I 'm glad he has the de- 
 cency to do it, but it 's no more than he 
 ought; and before I think much better of 
 him I '11 wait to see if he drives any more 
 of the poor Mexicans out of their homes." 
 
 Bancroft began to plan hopefully. He 
 would see Melgares and get the exact facts. 
 If this story was true it would be just the
 
 190 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 sword he needed to hang over Jenkins. Evi- 
 dently he had told Conrad nothing ; therefore 
 that check must have been campaign money 
 from Ned Castleton to be used for the benefit 
 of Martinez. Jenkins would not be likely to 
 talk: it would ruin his chance of making 
 money out of it himself. As for Curtis 
 perhaps, after all, he would not be unrea- 
 sonable about the offer to make restitution. 
 Another check would reach him soon, with 
 assurance of more to follow speedily. Surely 
 the man was too sensible to cast aside such 
 a start in life as this money would give him, 
 just to carry out a crazy notion that would 
 end in his own ruin. 
 
 " But if he will go on, he '11 have nobody 
 but himself to blame for whatever hap- 
 pens," he thought. " I Ve given him fair 
 warning." 
 
 The encouragement he felt turned his 
 thoughts toward Louise Dent. In the inti- 
 macy of their daily life since she had been 
 Lucy's visitor he had found her ever more lov- 
 able. He began to think, as he looked into her 
 eyes and felt the restrained sweetness of her 
 manner, that when he should be free to speak 
 she would welcome his feeling, and have for 
 it an intoxicating return. But he could say
 
 THE FIRST SHOT 191 
 
 nothing until the settlement of this affair left 
 no further danger of discovery and disgrace. 
 
 " She must not know neither she nor 
 Lucy shall know never never a word or 
 hint," he thought desperately. True, Louise 
 was not so unsparing in her moral judgments 
 as Lucy; she was older, and, with more knowl- 
 edge of the world, had more tolerance for the 
 conditions under which men lived and worked. 
 But if all that past, the past that he had be- 
 lieved buried beyond resurrection, should sud- 
 denly confront him, she and Lucy would be 
 horrified. They would despise him. The re- 
 spect, honor, and love for which he hungered 
 would die ; if they stayed beside him it would 
 only be for compassion's sake. In the fierce 
 mood that possessed him as he thought of 
 going down again into dishonor he was ready 
 to strike out at anybody's pity. This thing 
 must not be. He had won his way back to 
 position, power, affluence; he held the love 
 and honor of his daughter and of the woman 
 he hoped to make his wife; what he had won 
 he would keep. His lips whitened as he struck 
 the desk with his clenched fist. 
 
 " The past is dead, and it 's got to stay 
 dead," he muttered. " I '11 win out yet, by 
 God!"
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 
 
 FOUR days later the physician gave Con- 
 rad dubious permission to return to the 
 round-up. " Well, I may as well say 
 you can go," he surrendered, " since you are 
 determined to go anyway. But don't blame 
 me if your wounds get worse." 
 
 Most of this time the cattleman spent at 
 the Bancrofts', where Lucy and Miss Dent 
 tried to make an invalid of him, and all three 
 enjoyed the comradeship that straightway 
 sprang up among them. Between Lucy and 
 Curtis there was much bantering gayety, but 
 when alone their talk was sure to flow into 
 serious channels. They had many long con- 
 versations, wherein each was deeply inter- 
 ested in everything the other said. They had 
 much music also, Miss Dent playing and the 
 others singing duets. Lucy was very happy. 
 She beamed and sparkled, with glowing eyes 
 and dimpling smiles, and her manner, the 
 whole being of her, expanded into maturer
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 193 
 
 womanliness. Between Miss Dent and Con- 
 rad there was from the first a mutual lik- 
 ing, which quickly developed into confidential 
 friendship. On his last day in town, while 
 helping Lucy water the plants in her con- 
 servatory, he spoke to her admiringly of Miss 
 Dent. 
 
 " I 'm so glad you like my Dearie ! " she 
 responded warmly, looking up at him with 
 a glow of pleasure. " She 's the dearest, 
 sweetest woman! And you always feel you 
 can depend on her. If you put your hand 
 out you always know just where you can find 
 Louise Dent, and you know she '11 be as firm 
 as a rock. She 's been so good to me ! And 
 she 's always so restful and calm she has 
 so much poise. But, do you know " she 
 hesitated as she stopped in front of the cage 
 that held the tanager Curtis had brought for 
 her care. His physician had splinted its 
 broken leg and bound its injured wing, and 
 together they were anxiously watching its re- 
 covery. " It 's been eating, Mr. Conrad ! " 
 she broke off joyously. " Let 's give it more 
 seeds and fresh water ! " As they ministered 
 to the bird's needs Curtis went on about Miss 
 Dent. 
 
 " Yes ; she seems to have a calm sort of 
 13
 
 194 
 
 nature, but when I look at her I find myself 
 wondering if that is because she has never 
 been moved very deeply, or because she keeps 
 things hidden deep down. Her eyes are set 
 rather close together, which generally means, 
 you know, an ability to get on the prod if 
 necessary; and sometimes there is a look in 
 them that makes you feel as if she might 
 break out into something unexpected." 
 
 Lucy was looking up at him with the keen- 
 est interest in her face. The southwestern 
 sun had kissed her skin into rich browns and 
 reds, and she carried gracefully her slender 
 girlish figure. Her head, with its covering 
 of short brown curls, always held alertly, gave 
 to her aspect a savor of piquant charm. Curtis 
 looked down into her upturned face and eager 
 eyes with admiration in his own. Under her 
 absorption in the subject of their talk she felt 
 herself thrill with sweet, vague happiness. 
 
 " Do you know, I 've been feeling that 
 very same thing about Dearie," she said in 
 confidential tones. " She seems more restless 
 lately, although I know she 's perfectly happy 
 here with us. She has just the same quiet, 
 gentle manner, but it seems as if there might 
 be a volcano under it not really, you know, 
 but as if there might be if if I don't
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 195 
 
 quite know how to say it if things just got 
 ready for it to be a volcano ! " 
 
 " Do you think anybody would know it," 
 asked Conrad, " even if it was really there? " 
 
 " I know what you mean yes, she has 
 wonderful self-control I never saw any- 
 body who could hide her feelings as she can, 
 and always does. I Ve been thinking lately 
 that if Dearie were in love " Lucy hesi- 
 tated a moment while a deeper glow stained 
 her cheek " she 's just the sort of woman 
 to do anything, anything at all, for the sake 
 of it." 
 
 ' Yes ; and not get excited over it, either," 
 added Curtis. 
 
 When Lucy went to attend to some house- 
 hold duties, Conrad sauntered out to the ver- 
 anda, where he found Miss Dent with her 
 sewing. He happened to refer to his boy- 
 hood; and she asked some questions that led 
 him to speak of his youthful struggles. She 
 was interested, and wanted to know the cause 
 of his father's financial ruin. He hesitated 
 before replying, the matter touched so nearly 
 the secret core of his life and thought. Few, 
 even' among his intimates, knew anything 
 about the vengeful purpose that had motived 
 half his life, and he disliked ordinarily to
 
 196 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 say anything about the cause of his early mis- 
 fortunes. But the habit of close and friendly 
 speech into which he and Louise had fallen, 
 coupled perhaps with a softening of feeling 
 toward her sex that had been going on within 
 him, moved him to openness. " It won't mat- 
 ter/' he thought. " She 's such a level-headed 
 woman ; and I Ve told Aleck already." 
 
 " I don't often speak about it," he said, 
 " but I don't mind telling you, for you are 
 such a good friend of the Bancrofts, and 
 Aleck knows the story. Of course, you '11 
 understand that I don't care to have it dis- 
 cussed generally. My father's disasters all 
 came from his getting caught in a specious 
 financial scheme engineered by one Sumner 
 L. Delafield of Boston." 
 
 An indrawn breath, sharp and sudden, made 
 him look quickly at his companion. " Have 
 you hurt yourself ? " he asked solicitously. 
 
 " Oh, I jabbed my needle under my thumb 
 nail. Such an awkward thing to do ! It gave 
 me a little shock, that's all. Go on, please. 
 What sort of a scheme was it? " 
 
 He told her briefly the story of his father's 
 ruin and death, and outlined the transactions 
 that led to Delafield's failure. As he spoke 
 his heart waxed hot against the man who had
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 197 
 
 caused the tragedy, as it always did when he 
 thought long upon the subject, and he went 
 on impulsively to tell her of his long-cherished 
 purpose of revenge. She listened with drooped 
 eyelids, and when she spoke, at his first pause, 
 there was a slight quaver in her voice. 
 
 ' You don't mean that you really intend to 
 kill the man ? " 
 
 " I do, that very thing. What 's more, it 's 
 my notion that killing is too gentle for his 
 deserts. For, of course, my case is only one 
 out of many. And any man who would de- 
 liberately bring ruin and death into so many 
 households don't you think yourself he 's 
 worse than any murderer ? " 
 
 She forced herself to raise her eyes and, 
 once she had met his gaze, her own was 
 cool and steady. But if Curtis had not 
 been so absorbed in their discussion he 
 might have seen that her face was paler 
 than usual and her manner nervous, as she 
 replied earnestly: 
 
 " But you forget, Mr. Conrad, that the man 
 had no intention of doing these things, and 
 that probably he involved himself in as much 
 financial disaster as he did others. I Ve heard 
 of the case before; I knew some people once 
 who were concerned in it who lost money
 
 198 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 by it and I Ve always understood that the 
 failure was due more to Delafield's sanguine 
 temperament and over-confidence in his plans 
 than to any deliberate wrong-doing. Don't 
 you think, Mr. Conrad, that killing is a 
 rather severe punishment for mistakes of 
 judgment? " 
 
 He answered with the rapid speech and 
 quick gestures he was wont to use when under 
 the stress of strong feeling. " I can't take that 
 lenient view of the case, Miss Dent. My con- 
 viction is that he got some money out of the 
 affair, though not as much as he is generally 
 supposed to have taken, and ran away with 
 it. I 've studied the case pretty thoroughly, 
 and I 've trailed him along from one place 
 to another for years. I 'm hot on his tracks 
 now ; and he knows it. I Ve followed him 
 into New Mexico, and I know he 's somebody 
 in this Territory, prosperous and respectable. 
 He can't escape me much longer." 
 
 She had been thinking intently as she 
 studied the expression of his face. " It 's not 
 worth while to try argument or persuasion 
 with him; opposition would only make him 
 obstinate," was her conclusion. Her manner 
 was as composed as usual, and only her eyes 
 showed a trace of anxiety as she spoke,
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 199 
 
 slowly and thoughtfully, her gaze searching 
 his countenance: 
 
 " Well, if you say you are going to take 
 revenge upon him in this savage way I sup- 
 pose you will do it if that chin of yours 
 means anything. You haven't asked my 
 opinion, but I 'm going to tell you anyway 
 that it seems to me unwise and unjust and 
 most unworthy of you to allow such an idea 
 to become the obsession that this one has. But 
 I want to know how you managed to keep 
 your family together. That was a wonderful 
 thing for a boy of fifteen to do." 
 
 " Oh, I don't deserve so much credit for it. 
 Of course, I could n't have done it without 
 help. Our guardian wanted to distribute us 
 children around among the relatives; but I 
 wouldn't have it that way, and begged so 
 hard that at last he gave in. Two of my 
 father's cousins lent money enough to pay off 
 the mortgage on our home, on our guardian's 
 representation that he should be able to save 
 enough out of the wreck to pay it back in 
 time. He did so; and we children kept a 
 roof over our heads. 
 
 " A cousin of my mother's, a widow with- 
 out children, offered to live with us and keep 
 house. We rented part of the place and lived
 
 200 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 in close quarters in what was left. I worked 
 like a Turk at anything and everything that 
 brought in a penny; and so, all together, we 
 had enough to eat and wear, and I was able 
 to keep the girls and Homer in school. I 
 went to night school and sat up reading any- 
 thing I could get my hands on when I ought 
 to have been in bed. It was hard sledding 
 sometimes, but we pulled through. And I 
 had good friends who saw that I was never 
 out of a job of some sort. 
 
 " After a while our cousin married again 
 and left us ; but by that time my sisters were 
 old enough to take charge of the housekeeping, 
 and we got on very well. Ten years ago they 
 both married, and I said to Homer : ' Let 's 
 sell the house and give the money to the girls ; 
 you and I can shift for ourselves, and we 
 don't want them to go to their husbands with 
 nothing at all/ The kid was game, and so 
 we sold the place and divided the money 
 between Helen and Jeannette. Then I put 
 Homer in school and struck out for myself. 
 I 've sent him to college, and he '11 be gradu- 
 ated next year. But he 's worked right along, 
 and helped himself a heap. There 's sure good 
 stuff in the lad. 
 
 " This Summer I 'm not going to let him
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 201 
 
 work; the rest of the way is clear enough 
 now, and I want him to come down here 
 with me, and learn to rope a steer and bust 
 a bronco and go camping, and have a good 
 out-doors time of it for his last college 
 vacation." 
 
 As she listened with her eyes fixed upon 
 his face, Miss Dent's attention had been half 
 upon his story and half upon the man be- 
 hind it, searching out his character through 
 his words. The conviction settled in her 
 mind that his vengeful intention was rooted 
 deep, and that the more he talked of it the 
 more set would he become in his purpose. 
 
 " I like your story," she said. " It is one 
 of those tales of human effort that make one 
 have more faith in human nature. But the 
 climax you intend to put upon it is hor- 
 rible ! " He noticed the slight movement of 
 repulsion with which she spoke the word. 
 " But that 's your affair," she went on. " Did 
 I understand you did you say " In spite 
 of her self-control she was stumbling over the 
 question. She masked her momentary confu- 
 sion with an absorbed interest in getting her 
 sewing together. " Did you say that Mr. 
 Bancroft knows that you have told him this 
 story?"
 
 202 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " Yes ; I told him the outlines of it a little 
 while ago, apropos of a check I had from 
 Delafield. The rascal thinks he can buy me 
 off that way. That shows he 's buffaloed. 
 But he '11 find out I 'm not that sort." 
 
 "No; I shouldn't think you were. But 
 Lucy does she know anything about it?" 
 
 He looked up in surprise. " Why, no ; of 
 course not." 
 
 Bancroft was coming through the gate, 
 bringing Judge Banks with him; and Lucy 
 joined them a moment later. The talk turned 
 on the coming trial of Jose Maria Melgares, 
 the narrow escape of Pendleton from Mel- 
 gares' bullet, and the death of Games as the 
 result of his own foolhardy horse-play. They 
 spoke of Little Jack Wilder's skill with the 
 revolver, and Conrad reminded Bancroft of 
 their agreement to do some target practice 
 together. 
 
 " Let 's all go out in the back yard now," 
 Lucy exclaimed, " and Miss Dent and I will 
 shoot too! Wouldn't you like it, Dearie? 
 Come on ! it will be such fun ! " 
 
 While they were setting up the target 
 Sheriff Tillinghurst came to speak to Judge 
 Banks upon an official matter; and Lucy 
 asked him to stay and help her shoot.
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 203 
 
 " You-all use my gun, Miss Lucy, and then 
 you '11 be sure to have good luck," he replied, 
 drawing his revolver from his pocket. It was 
 a small pearl-handled six-shooter, which the 
 ladies admired, and the men jibed at for its 
 daintiness. 
 
 " That 's all right," he answered good- 
 naturedly. " This gun don't stack up much 
 beside a cannon for size, but I can pervade 
 and pester with it a right smart heap if I 
 want to. It 's a peach of a shooter, and it 
 don't show in my clothes. I never have any- 
 thing on me but that, and I 've never seen 
 the gun play yet where I got the worst of 
 it. You-all try it, Miss Lucy." 
 
 Lucy took the revolver, telling him that 
 now she would be his deputy, and, with plen- 
 tiful instruction from Curtis, placed herself 
 in position and fired. She hit the bull's-eye 
 and won much applause, until she explained 
 that she had fired with both eyes shut and 
 that, if she had made a good shot, it was 
 because she could n't help it with such a splen- 
 did gun as Mr. Tillinghurst's. Miss Dent 
 took careful aim and, without lowering her 
 arm, emptied the remaining chambers, mak- 
 ing an excellent score. She, too, won a round 
 of applause, to which she replied calmly, " Oh,
 
 204 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 I 've known how to shoot for years, and when 
 I am in practice I do fairly well." 
 
 " You two fellows shoot a match," said 
 Tillinghurst to Bancroft and Conrad. " The 
 judge '11 be umpire, and each fellow use his 
 own gun at thirty paces." 
 
 Louise and Lucy stood at one side, where 
 the Sheriff and Judge Banks joined them, 
 leaving Bancroft and Conrad to begin their 
 match. Beneath her calm exterior Miss 
 Dent's thoughts were in a tumult, and fierce 
 resentment against the cattleman was rising 
 in her heart. Had not Aleck suffered enough 
 already? Why should he be hunted down 
 like this when he was willing to make resti- 
 tution, even after all these years ? Oh, cruel ! 
 to beat him down again, when he had won 
 success and respect once more! This man 
 was a savage in his implacable desire for 
 revenge. 
 
 Curtis raised his revolver. With both eyes 
 open and without pausing to take aim, he 
 sent a bullet through the bull's-eye. " Dela- 
 field won't have much chance against a man 
 who can do that ! " he exclaimed in a tri- 
 umphant undertone to Bancroft. 
 
 As the test of skill went on, it developed 
 that the banker excelled if he took time to
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 205 
 
 aim accurately, while he of Socorro Springs 
 was the superior at quick shooting. 
 
 " It 's my specialty in the shooting line," 
 said Curtis. " You 'd better practise it, Aleck. 
 It 's the thing that counts most if you get 
 into a scrimmage." 
 
 He handed his hat, a wide-brimmed, gray 
 felt, to Judge Banks, asking him to throw it 
 up, adding, " I 'd do it myself if my left arm 
 was n't in dry dock/' He raised his revolver 
 as the hat left the judge's hand; there were 
 three quick reports, and he sprang forward 
 and caught the descending sombrero on the 
 muzzle of his pistol. The three perforations 
 in the crown of the hat were so close together 
 that a silver dollar covered them. 
 
 " Bravo ! " exclaimed the judge. " I don't 
 know but two other men who can do that. 
 Little Jack Wilder never misses the trick, and 
 Emerson Mead, over at Las Plumas, does it 
 as if he were a machine and could n't miss. 
 If you ever get a grudge against me, Mr. 
 Conrad, I '11 engage the undertaker and order 
 my tombstone at once ! " 
 
 Bancroft turned away quickly. He swung 
 his arm upward, fired, and found that his 
 bullet had hardly nicked the outer rim of the 
 target.
 
 206 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " Don't pay any attention to your gun," 
 Curtis admonished him. " Keep both eyes 
 open, look at the bull's-eye, and unconsciously 
 you '11 aim right at it. If you get into a gun 
 play, where it 's a choice between giving up 
 the ghost yourself or getting the other fel- 
 low's, you want to fasten your eyes on his 
 most accessible part, point your gun that way, 
 and shoot on the wink. Between the eyes is 
 a good place, for then you can hold him with 
 your own. That 's the way I shall fix Dela- 
 field," he added, dropping his voice. 
 
 Cold anger seized upon Bancroft as the 
 picture of that gun muzzle close to his own 
 forehead came vividly into his imagination. 
 Until now Conrad had not mentioned the sub- 
 ject of Delafield to him since the day of his 
 return to town, and the banker's friendly feel- 
 ings had renewed themselves with the growth 
 of his own confidence and with his desire to 
 compass what he wished without violence. But 
 Curtis had only to speak of his purpose in 
 this cold-blooded manner for the banker to 
 know that he, too, was rapidly becoming as 
 implacable as his pursuer. 
 
 Judge Banks was talking to Miss Dent 
 about the view and the New Mexican climate, 
 and quoting Wordsworth on " the witchery of
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 207 
 
 the soft blue sky." She was compelling an 
 expression of smiling interest, while her 
 thoughts were with Bancroft and his danger. 
 The desire possessed her to stand near him, 
 to hover about him, as if her mere presence 
 would protect him from peril. The friendly 
 revolver practice between the two men made 
 her sick at heart, and she was waiting with 
 inward impatience for the moment when she 
 could propose returning to the veranda. 
 
 Lucy and Sheriff Tillinghurst were laugh- 
 ing and talking together in a running game 
 of playful coquetry on her part and admir- 
 ing badinage on his. " Now, Miss Lucy," he 
 was saying, " if you-all are going to be my 
 deputy, you '11 have to learn to shoot with at 
 least one eye open. I can't have my deputy 
 shootin' around promiscuous with both eyes 
 shut. It might be used against me in the 
 campaign." 
 
 " Oh, I '11 keep both eyes open, just as Mr. 
 Conrad says," she exclaimed, taking the Sher- 
 iff's revolver from his hand. ' Just like this," 
 she went on gayly, pointing the pistol straight 
 at Curtis's face as he came toward them, say- 
 ing, " Now you must have another chance, 
 Miss Bancroft." 
 
 Tillinghurst sprang forward as he saw her
 
 208 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 level the revolver and struck it up with his 
 hand. Her pressure on the trigger had been 
 light, but the contraction of her finger as the 
 Sheriff knocked it upward discharged the 
 weapon. The bullet sang through the air; 
 and she paled and staggered backward, look- 
 ing wildly from one to the other as she 
 exclaimed : 
 
 " Oh, I was sure it was n't loaded ! " 
 
 " A gentleman's gun is always loaded, Miss 
 Lucy/' said the Sheriff, mild reproof in his 
 tone. 
 
 Lucy leaned, trembling, against Miss Dent's 
 supporting arm. "I I was sure we shot 
 out all the bullets," she stammered, looking 
 wistfully at Conrad. " I '11 never, never touch 
 a gun again." 
 
 " Don't feel so worried, Miss Bancroft," 
 urged Curtis, gently. " You were n't pressing 
 the trigger, and I 'd have ducked if you had, 
 for I was watching your hand. I was n't in 
 the least danger, and you must n't think about 
 it again. It '11 be your turn next, Miss Dent," 
 he added jocosely. " Aleck had his the other 
 day, and sent a bullet into the wall just above 
 my head." 
 
 " And you still have confidence in us, 
 you reckless man ! " Louise exclaimed with
 
 THE SECOND SHOT 209 
 
 a little effort at gayety, but with eyes on the 
 ground. 
 
 " Perhaps he thinks he '11 be in less danger 
 if he teaches you-all how to handle your guns," 
 the Sheriff commented, as Miss Dent led the 
 way back to the house.
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 THREE LETTERS 
 
 HELLO, Curt ! When are you going 
 back to the ranch ? " 
 Pendleton, the invalid from the 
 East, accosted Conrad as he emerged from 
 the physician's office, where he had gone for 
 a last dressing of his wounds before return- 
 ing to the round-up. 
 
 " Right now, Mr. Pendleton. Anything I 
 can do for you ? " 
 
 " Say, Curt, I 've been wondering if I 
 could n't flirt gravel along with your bunch 
 for a while. I want to take in everything 
 that 's going while I 'm here. I 've never been 
 on a ranch, or seen a round-up, or a steer on 
 the prod ; and I 'd like to see how things are 
 done. Would a tenderfoot be in your way? " 
 
 " Not a bit of it ! Come right along, Pendy, 
 if you think you can stand it. You '11 have 
 to rough it, you know; sleep on the ground 
 with your saddle for a pillow, ride hard, and 
 eat what comes."
 
 THREE LETTERS 211 
 
 " Oh, I can stand whatever the rest of you 
 do. I don't fork a horse as well as a cowboy 
 or a circus rider, but I can stick on, ajid I 
 can get there 'most as soon as anybody I 
 mighty near got there too soon when we went 
 after Melgares, did n't I ? " 
 
 " All right, Pendleton ! If you think you 
 can stand it, come right along with me this 
 morning. I 'm going to ride the rest of the 
 day and most of the night ; but if that 's too 
 much for you you can stop over at the ranch 
 to-night, and catch up with us to-morrow." 
 
 " I reckon I '11 take it all in along with you, 
 and I '11 meet you in half an hour in front of 
 the court-house," and Pendleton bustled off. 
 Conrad went after his mare, dropping into 
 Bancroft's office for a last word. 
 
 The president of the First National Bank 
 was reading his morning's mail. He frowned 
 over a note from Rutherford Jenkins remind- 
 ing him that the first of the month was ap- 
 proaching, and warning him not to forget the 
 remittance due on that day. He looked at the 
 calendar. No ; he could not take time before 
 the first to go to Las Vegas and crack the 
 whip he was preparing over Jenkins's head; 
 he would have to make this payment. Next 
 he opened a letter from Dellmey Baxter:
 
 212 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " MY DEAR BANCROFT : I think you 'd better 
 correct young Conrad's curious notion that I had 
 anything to do with Jose Gonzalez's attack upon 
 him, or with Jose's going down there. If you don't 
 he might turn his suspicions in some other direction. 
 Of course, there 's nothing in it but that greaser's 
 bad temper. But he thinks there is, and he 's just 
 hot-headed enough to make it uncomfortable for 
 anybody he happens to suspect. I did n't send Jose 
 to him and so, naturally, I can't do anything about 
 it, even if the fellow does get angry and act like 
 the devil. 
 
 " I 'm sorry I can't help you in your desire to 
 retire from our Rio Grande valley land business. 
 I 'm tied up so that I Ve got no ready money with 
 which to buy you out. Of course, if you are deter- 
 mined to get out, you might find a purchaser else- 
 where. But as a friend I advise you not to sell. 
 There 's going to be big money in it, and we can 
 probably launch the enterprise within the next six 
 months. You '11 make a great mistake if you quit. 
 If you decide to stay in I 'm willing for you to 
 keep on as a silent partner, just as we have done 
 so far." 
 
 The banker scowled, swearing softly to 
 himself as he read the first paragraph. 
 " Did n't send him, did n't he," he grumbled. 
 " Then who did? I did n't, that 's sure. He 
 recommended the fellow as a good cowboy,
 
 THREE LETTERS 213 
 
 and Conrad engaged him. I had nothing to 
 do with it." He was silent again as he studied 
 the second part of the letter. A suspicion 
 rose in his mind that Baxter was purposely 
 making it difficult, almost impossible, for him 
 to get out of the land scheme. What was his 
 purpose in so doing? Did the Congressman 
 wish to keep a hold on him to hamper, per- 
 haps even to control, his movements ? "I 
 wonder," Bancroft thought, " if Dell is afraid 
 I '11 try to cut him out politically before he 's 
 ready to step down. I 'd like his place well 
 enough if but that 's something out of my 
 reckoning for a long time yet, even if every- 
 thing goes right." The surmise that Baxter 
 wished to have such a bridle upon him left 
 him uneasy. Well, he would have to let this 
 thing go on as it was. If he tried to sell to 
 any one else knowledge of his connection with 
 it might leak out and reach Lucy's ears. He 
 winced as he thought of her feeling toward 
 Baxter because of this business. And the in- 
 vestment promised well; rich returns might 
 be expected from it soon. Nobody knew of 
 his part in it except Dell, and if he stayed in 
 and kept quiet it was unlikely that anybody 
 else would find it out. That might be the 
 safer plan, after all.
 
 2H THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Conrad came to the door, and after a few 
 minutes' talk Bancroft said to him, remem- 
 bering Baxter's injunction, " Well, Curt, I 
 hope you won't find that your crazy Mexican 
 has been trying to kill off all your men." 
 
 Curtis laughed. " Oh, Jose will be all 
 right ; and he 's the best cow-punch I 've got 
 on the ranch. Dell Baxter will attend to 
 him." 
 
 " That 's an absurd notion of yours that 
 Baxter had anything to do with it," replied 
 Bancroft, the Congressman's letter still in his 
 mind. " You 're not reasonable about Dell. 
 Why should he want you assassinated?" 
 
 " The only reason I can see is that I 've 
 been talking pretty plain about him. But if 
 he does n't like the kind of things I say he '11 
 have to get used to it, or else reform." 
 
 " Nonsense, Curt. And even if he does 
 think you 're handling the Castleton money 
 against " 
 
 Curtis made a gesture of impatience. " I 
 hope you don't take any stock in that talk, 
 Aleck. The Castletons don't care a hang 
 about this campaign, and Dell knows it. 
 They 're not putting up a cent, or, if Ned is 
 doing anything for his wife's sake, he 's deal- 
 ing with Johnny Martinez direct."
 
 THREE LETTERS 215 
 
 Bancroft looked at him narrowly. " Is that 
 right, Curt? Are you sure of it?" 
 
 " As sure as I am of anything," the cattle- 
 man responded with emphasis. ' They Ve 
 never mentioned the subject to me." 
 
 After Conrad had gone the banker walked 
 the floor in anxious thought. What, then, did 
 that five-hundred-dollar check mean that Cur- 
 tis had given to Jenkins? Perhaps he was 
 holding the young man off, saying he was 
 not yet sure of Delafield's identity and needed 
 money to carry on his investigation, intend- 
 ing to give up his secret if he should find 
 that he could bleed Bancroft no longer. That 
 would be like Jenkins, he decided. As soon 
 as he could get away he would go to Las 
 Vegas and see if the fellow could be cowed 
 by the knowledge that had come to him so 
 opportunely. As for Conrad, it would be 
 better to wait until he could learn whether 
 those checks would produce the effect desired. 
 
 In front of the court-house the ranchman 
 met Tillinghurst and Little Jack Wilder. The 
 Sheriff had a subpoena commanding him to 
 appear as a witness for the State in the Mel- 
 gares trial, set for June. Curtis remarked, 
 as they talked of the case : " I reckon you '11 
 have Pendleton as a witness ; he '11 want to
 
 2i6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 take in the whole thing. Have you seen any- 
 thing of him ? He promised to meet me here. 
 He 's going back with me ; says he wants to 
 take in a round-up and see a steer on the 
 prod. I sure reckon I '11 have my hands full 
 if I keep the boys from taking him in." 
 
 " Let 'em run him, Curt, let 'em run him," 
 said the Sheriff. " He 's good-natured, and 
 he '11 soon strike their gait. He was never 
 outside - of New England before, and he 's 
 tryin' mighty hard to be tougher than any- 
 body else on the border. He 's been in town 
 three weeks, and he calls everybody by their 
 first names, from Judge Banks down to my 
 Mexican stable-boy. He writes down all the 
 slang he hears every day, sits up nights to 
 study it, and the next day slings it around 
 as free and easy as an old-timer. Is that him 
 comin' yonder ? Say, Curt, he '11 stampede 
 every cow-brute you Ve got on the range ! " 
 
 Pendleton, short, stout, and large of girth, 
 had dressed himself for roughing it accord- 
 ing to his own idea of custom and comfort. 
 He wore a Mexican straw sombrero tied down 
 over his ears with a red bandanna, a red 
 flannel shirt, a long linen coat, huge spurs, 
 and sheepskin chaparejos. 
 
 "Oh, where did you get that coat?" the
 
 THREE LETTERS 217 
 
 three men sang out as he came within hear- 
 ing distance. Pendleton caught the tails in 
 his finger tips and danced some sidewise steps. 
 
 "Ain't she a beaut?" he shouted. "I 
 found it in a store down in Dobytown." 
 
 " Say, Pendy," called the Sheriff, " if you 
 go pervadin' and pesterin' around among 
 Curt's steers in those duds I '11 have to send 
 Jack down there to arrest you for breach 
 of the peace." 
 
 " All right, Tilly ! I 'm here for my health, 
 but I 'm takin' in on the side everything that 
 comes my way ! " 
 
 Conrad found a letter at the ranch ad- 
 dressed to Jose Gonzalez, in his care, and 
 grinned with satisfaction .as he recognized 
 Baxter's handwriting. " He 's buffaloed all 
 right and is calling off his man," he thought 
 as he opened with eager curiosity a missive 
 from Baxter for himself: 
 
 " MY DEAR YOUNG FRIEND i I assure you that 
 you are barking up the wrong tree when you 
 try to connect me with any attack the Mexican, 
 Jose Gonzalez, may have made upon you. In 
 fact, it is so much up the wrong tree that I 
 feel pretty sure there isn't any tree there at all! 
 His assault was probably the result of sudden 
 anger. The man has worked for me a good deal,
 
 2i8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 and I know that such is his character. I have some 
 influence with him, and I shall write him at once 
 and give him a lecture on the necessity of control- 
 ling his temper. I have had occasion to do this 
 several times in the past, not without effect. I 
 shall tell him that you are a man of your word, 
 and a crack shot, and that if he does n't keep cool 
 he 's likely to die with his boots on. Nobody could 
 blame you, my dear Mr. Conrad, if you should 
 shoot him under such a necessity of self-defence. 
 I take it ill, however, that you should connect me 
 with this greaser's outrageous temper and crazy 
 actions. I assure you again that you are entirely 
 mistaken in your assumption, which, permit me to 
 say, is what might very well be called gratuitous. 
 
 " I congratulate Johnny Martinez upon having 
 the support of a gentleman so energetic, influential, 
 and enthusiastic as yourself, and I remain, 
 " Yours very cordially, 
 
 " DELLMEY BAXTER." 
 
 Conrad laughed aloud over the letter, ex- 
 claiming as he finished it, " He 's a slick one, 
 he is!" 
 
 Another letter bore the imprint of Tremper 
 & Townsend, and contained a check for five 
 hundred dollars and a brief note saying that 
 their client, Sumner L. Delafield, wished them 
 to send him this money as a second instal- 
 ment of the amount due his father's estate,
 
 THREE LETTERS 219 
 
 and to add that like sums would follow in 
 rapid succession. Conrad scowled and gnawed 
 his moustache as he read the letter the second 
 time. He was considering whether he had 
 any right to accept the money and continue 
 his quest of vengeance. Delafield evidently 
 meant to buy him off with it and, if he ac- 
 cepted, did he not tacitly accept that condition ? 
 " I '11 send it back to him," was his first 
 thought, as he reached for a pen. But an- 
 other idea stayed his hand. The former check 
 he had divided between his brother and sis- 
 ters, and, as they knew nothing of his scheme 
 of revenge, this also ought to go to them. 
 But Delafield must know upon what terms he 
 accepted the money. With a grim look on 
 his face he wrote to the Boston attorneys: 
 
 " I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of 
 a second check for five hundred dollars from your 
 client, Sumner L. Delafield. I am reasonably grate- 
 ful that an unexpected sense of remorse has led 
 him to loose his purse-strings, even at this late day, 
 and on behalf of my brother and sisters will ask 
 you to send him their thanks. As for myself, you 
 may tell him that I hope the sending of the money 
 has eased his conscience, for it will procure him no 
 other benefit. Every cent of money he sees fit to 
 send me I shall turn over to my father's other
 
 220 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 children, while I shall find entire satisfaction in 
 following out my revenge. What that is he doubt- 
 less knows, for the sending of these checks con- 
 vinces me that he is moved, not by the honest wish 
 to do what he can toward righting a dastardly 
 wrong, but by the desire to save his own skin. 
 Please tell him, from me, that he cannot buy im- 
 munity from my purpose, even though he should 
 send me the whole of the debt three times over."
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 
 
 PENDLETON, bouncing in his saddle as 
 they galloped southward, bent admir- 
 ing glances upon the erect figure of 
 his companion, whose seat was as steady as 
 if horse and rider had been welded together. 
 " Say, Curt," he finally called out, " how do 
 you do it? I 'd give my bad lung if I could 
 ride like you." 
 
 Conrad gave him some instruction, and 
 Pendleton turned all his attention toward 
 learning how to bring his body into rhythmic 
 accord with the movements of his horse. The 
 cattleman, pounding along in silence, thought 
 with satisfaction of the progress his search 
 for Delafield was making and planned how 
 he should carry it on after the round-up, when 
 he would have more leisure. He would make 
 a list of the men in New Mexico rich and 
 prominent enough to come under suspicion, 
 investigate their records, one by one, and so 
 by elimination discover the person he wanted. 
 Then would come the meeting!
 
 222 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 His thoughts full of the climax of his 
 search, he rode on in a sort of exaltation, 
 unconsciously humming a song he and Lucy 
 Bancroft had been practising. Presently, 
 through the silence, the sound entered his 
 conscious hearing, and took his thoughts back 
 to the pleasant hour he and she had spent 
 over it. But a vague uneasiness stirred his 
 feelings as the image of Lucy floated past the 
 background of that grisly, dominating pur- 
 pose. The thought of her persisted; as it 
 clung there, along the edge of his absorption, 
 it brought a sharp and curious suggestion 
 of the maimed bird he had carried in his 
 bosom. He was suddenly conscious of dis- 
 comfort, as if he had hurt some helpless 
 thing, when his reverie was broken by a series 
 of wild yells from his companion. Pendleton 
 had been lagging behind, but he now came 
 dashing forward, giving vent to his delight 
 because he had so far mastered the art of 
 riding that he no longer bounced all over the 
 horse's back nor fell forward and seized its 
 mane at each change of gait. 
 
 A spring welled alluringly from a dim- 
 ple in the hillside. Pendleton dismounted, 
 saying he was thirsty. " Don't drink from 
 that spring, Pendy," Conrad admonished
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 223 
 
 him. It 's alkali, and you '11 wish you 
 had n't" 
 
 " It looks all right, and it 's cool," said the 
 tenderfoot, dipping his hand in the water. 
 " My throat 's as hot and dry as that road. 
 What harm will it do?" 
 
 " Well, pretty soon you '11 think you 're 
 chewing cotton; and it may make you sick, 
 though this spring is n't strong enough of 
 alkali to do you much harm." 
 
 " I '11 risk it," Pendleton declared, scooping 
 up some water in his hat-brim. " It 's wet 
 when it goes down, anyway. And I reckon 
 I might as well take in an alkali spring, too, 
 while I 've got the chance. Everything goes !" 
 An hour later he galloped alongside of Con- 
 rad, working his jaws and licking his lips. 
 " Say, Curt," he mumbled, " I know a fellow 
 back home who 'd give a thousand dollars for 
 such a thirst as I 've got ! " 
 
 It was midnight when they passed Rock 
 Springs, where the superintendent had left 
 his outfit. Two hours later, when Brown 
 Betty put out her nose and neighed, an an- 
 swering whinny came back from beyond the 
 next hill. ' That 's only Five Cottonwoods," 
 thought Curtis. " It can't be they 've got no 
 farther than that ! " They gained the top of
 
 224 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the hill and below them, in the light of the 
 waning moon, they saw the white top of the 
 chuck- wagon, the dark patch of sleeping cattle 
 patrolled by a single horseman, and the fig- 
 ures of the men sprawled on the ground 
 around the dying coals of their evening fire. 
 
 "Here we are, Pendy!" said Curtis. "I 
 thought they would have got farther than this, 
 and that we J d have at least two hours more 
 of travel. Now we '11 have time for a little 
 sleep before you begin busting those broncs." 
 
 They stretched themselves on the ground 
 and almost instantly fell asleep. But it was 
 not long before Conrad, rousing suddenly, 
 sprang to his feet, realizing even before he 
 was fairly awake that the cattle were stam- 
 peding. From down the hill came a thunder- 
 ing, rushing sound, the noise of hundreds of 
 hoofs pounding the ground. He called his 
 foreman, seized his saddle, and rushed to the 
 bunch of tethered cow-ponies, Peters, Texas 
 Bill, Red Jack, and Jose Gonzalez close be- 
 hind. As they dashed after the flying herd 
 Curtis could see in the dim light the figure 
 of the cowboy who had been patrolling the 
 sleeping cattle. He was following the stam- 
 pede at what his employer thought a leisurely 
 pace.
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 225 
 
 "Who was riding herd?" he yelled to 
 Peters, who replied, " Andy Miller." 
 
 " Is he trying to drive them farther away? " 
 Conrad muttered angrily, pressing home his 
 spur. 
 
 The cattle tore wildly down the hill, but at 
 its foot their leaders turned up the course 
 of the dry shallow valley instead of pressing 
 up the other side. The men saw the move- 
 ment, and by cutting across the hillside gained 
 rapidly upon the fleeing animals. As they 
 passed Andy Miller, Curtis shouted to him 
 that he might return to the camp, as they 
 should not need him. The draw soon began 
 to grow deeper and narrower, and the dense 
 mass of cattle was forced to lessen its pace. 
 Conrad remembered that farther on the valley 
 came to an abrupt end against a steep rise. 
 If the brutes stayed in it a little longer they 
 would not be able to get out, and when they 
 came to the end of this blind alley of the hills 
 they would have to stop. So he and his 
 companions galloped easily along beside the 
 shadowy stream of moving backs with its 
 spray of tossing horns that filled the draw, and 
 presently found the leaders, their heads to the 
 bluff, chewing their cuds as quietly as if they 
 had never been frightened in all their lives. 
 
 15
 
 226 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 As they rode back to camp behind the 
 staidly moving herd, Conrad asked Peters if 
 he knew what caused the stampede. The 
 foreman did not know, he had been sound 
 asleep when it began. But he went on to 
 tell an excited tale of mysterious accidents 
 that had followed close upon one another 
 ever since the morning of the superintendent's 
 departure. Only the edge of the sand storm 
 through which he had ridden touched them, 
 though it had kept them in camp all day. 
 Nevertheless, there had been two stampedes, 
 and they had had much trouble getting the 
 brutes together again. Every day since there 
 had been at least one stampede of the herd. 
 He and the others had been kept busy gather- 
 ing in the flying cattle. This was why they 
 had got no farther than Five Cottonwoods. 
 It seemed as if the devil himself had taken 
 possession of every cow-brute on the range; 
 never in all his years as a cow-puncher had 
 he had such a time. 
 
 "Don't you know what starts them?" 
 ' That 's the mischief of it. Nobody ever 
 knows. The darned critters just get up and 
 hike. Some of the boys are gettin' skeery 
 about it, and they 're likely to pull their freight 
 if it keeps up. They 're tellin' ghost stories
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 227 
 
 now after supper, and Andy Miller has been 
 reelin' off the whoppin'est yarns ever you 
 heard. Between the ghost stories and the 
 way the cow-brutes act the boys are gettin' 
 plumb fidgety, and I 'm mighty glad you Ve 
 got back." 
 
 "How does Andy get on with the work? 
 Does he sabef " 
 
 ( Yes ; he 's first rate ; the best we Ve got, 
 except Jose. But Andy does have main bad 
 luck with the cow-brutes. This makes four 
 times they Ve stampeded under him." 
 
 Promise of day was flushing the eastern 
 sky and faintly warming the gray semi- 
 darkness when Pendleton's eyes flew open, 
 to instant conviction of illness. From head 
 to foot he ached with weariness, and he felt 
 wretchedly sick. For a moment he kept quiet, 
 feeling that it would be more comfortable 
 to lie still and die than to try to move. But 
 presently he thought, " I '11 never live to die 
 of consumption if I don't get up quick and 
 find my whiskey ! " 
 
 He scrambled to his feet and looked around. 
 Not nearly so many men were stretched on 
 the ground as he had expected to see, and 
 his friend was not in sight. He looked for 
 his saddle-bags, where he kept his flask.
 
 228 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Conrad had taken them from the horse when 
 they unsaddled, and Pendleton had not no- 
 ticed what he did with them. He could not 
 find the bags, everybody left in camp was 
 sound asleep, and Curtis had disappeared. 
 Wrapped in his blanket he was wandering 
 around forlornly, squirming with pain, when 
 he saw some one moving in the group of 
 horses farther down the hill. He started in 
 that direction and saw the man stoop beside 
 Conrad's mare, Brown Betty. 
 
 "Hello, pard! Where's Curt?" Pendle- 
 ton called loudly. The man straightened up 
 quickly, and put away a knife. He looked 
 at the curious figure coming toward him, and 
 burst into a loud guffaw. " Gee whillikens, 
 stranger ! where 'd you drop from ? " he 
 shouted back. 
 
 Pendleton explained, and asked the other 
 to help him find his saddle-bags. They were 
 discovered in the chuck-wagon, and the in- 
 valid offered his flask, with a cordial admoni- 
 tion to " drink hearty, pard." The cowboy 
 responded literally, and made several other 
 visits to the saddle-bags before breakfast. By 
 that time he was good-naturedly obstreper- 
 ous, and had the camp in an uproar with his 
 horse-play and noisy pranks. Conrad asked
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 229 
 
 Peters where Andy got his whiskey. The 
 foreman did not know, and said that this was 
 the first time he had shown any signs of drink. 
 The superintendent went to Pendleton. 
 
 " Has Andy Miller been taking a pull at 
 your flask ? " 
 
 "The cow-punch that's feeling so happy? 
 Sure, Curt. He helped me find my saddle- 
 bags, and I thought I 'd be sociable with him. 
 I told him to drink hearty; and by thunder, 
 Curt! you ought to have seen him. He 
 sure had a worse thirst on him than I had 
 yesterday/' 
 
 " I '11 have to ask you not to do it again 
 with any of them. And you 'd better let me 
 put your flask in a locked box I have in the 
 chuck-wagon, if you don't carry it in your 
 pocket, or you may not have any left by 
 night." 
 
 Gonzalez came up with a question, and 
 Conrad remembered the letter he had for 
 him. The Mexican took it with an uncon- 
 cerned face, and went ofif behind the chuck- 
 wagon. " I don't need to see the inside of 
 it," thought Curtis; "but I'd like to all the 
 same. Well, he '11 be all right now, and I 'm 
 glad of it, for I 'd hate to have to kill as 
 good a roper as he is."
 
 230 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 A few minutes later Jose strolled toward 
 the cook's fire, twisting the letter in his fingers. 
 He was about to thrust it into the coals when 
 Andy Miller jumped at him with a yell, and 
 caught his hand. "Here, boys; Jose's got 
 a love letter ! Let 's read it ! " he shouted. 
 Gonzalez resisted; Miller bore him down; 
 and they rolled, struggling, over the ground. 
 Jose's dark face was pale with anger and his 
 teeth were set as he gripped the bit of paper 
 in one fist and pummelled Andy's face with 
 the other. Miller tried to shield himself from 
 the blows with his arms, while he bent his 
 energies to getting possession of the letter. 
 
 "You're fightin', Andy; don't fergit to 
 punch ! " yelled Nosey Ike from the group of 
 cowboys looking on. Miller was the stronger 
 of the two, and almost had the Mexican in 
 his power when Conrad came beside them, 
 saying, " If you want the letter burned, Jose, 
 give it to me." 
 
 Gonzalez cast at him one doubtful, desper- 
 ate look, and threw the twisted paper toward 
 him. The superintendent thrust it in the fire, 
 and he and Peters separated the two men. 
 Gonzalez flashed at him a look of gratitude 
 and walked away without a word. 
 
 " Andy," said Conrad, " you 're making too
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 231 
 
 much trouble this morning. If you want to 
 work with this outfit you 've got to keep 
 straight. If you don't want to do that vou 
 can pull your freight right now." 
 
 The man turned away sullenly. " I 'm not 
 ready to pull my freight yet," he muttered. 
 The other cowboys were saddling their ponies 
 and making ready to begin the day's work. 
 The bunched cattle, with the red rays of the 
 morning sun warm upon their backs, were 
 quietly grazing a little way down the hillside. 
 Andy Miller started toward his horse, but 
 turned and ran rapidly at the cattle. No one 
 noticed what he was doing until, in a moment 
 more, he was jumping, yelling, and swinging 
 his hat at the edge of the herd. Snorting 
 with sudden surprise and fright, the beasts 
 were away again as though fiends were at 
 their tails. Conrad rushed for his horse, but 
 Peters, already mounted, yelled that they 
 would not need him; and the foreman, with 
 half a dozen others, dashed after the stampede. 
 
 Andy Miller was coming slowly back, now 
 and then stopping to smite his thigh and 
 laugh. Curtis walked out to meet him. 
 " Andy," he said, " I reckon I don't need you 
 any longer. You can take your time this 
 morning. Here 's your money."
 
 232 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 The cowboy looked up, grinning, and thrust 
 the bills in his pocket. Then, as quickly and 
 lightly as a cat, he sprang upon the super- 
 intendent and pulled him down. Conrad, 
 taken completely by surprise, with his left 
 arm in a sling and at something less than 
 his best of strength, for a moment could do 
 nothing but struggle in the other's grasp. 
 Miller was holding him, face downward, 
 across one advanced leg, when Pendleton, still 
 wrapped in his blanket, bustled up to see 
 what was happening. With upraised hand, 
 Miller yelled: 
 
 " Now, then, you '11 get it back, every 
 dam' spank, an' more too! Jenkins ain't big 
 enough to spank you himself, but I can do 
 it for him ! " His hand descended, but into 
 an enveloping blanket suddenly thrown over 
 him from behind, muffling head, body, and 
 arms. 
 
 " I Ve got him, Curt ! Get up, quick, and 
 we '11 do him up ! " shouted the tenderfoot as 
 he twisted the blanket around Andy's strug- 
 gling figure. 
 
 Conrad wrenched himself free and sprang 
 up, his face white. " Let him up, Pendy," 
 he said, drawing his revolver. The other 
 unwound the blanket, and Miller scrambled
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 233 
 
 out, blinking and cursing. " You make tracks 
 out of this camp as fast as you can go," said 
 Curtis, " and don't let me catch you within 
 gunshot of this outfit again! Clear out, this 
 minute, damn you ! " 
 
 Miller walked away in silence toward his 
 staked horse, the two men following him part 
 way down the hill. 
 
 " He' d better clear out before the boys get 
 back, if he wants to keep a sound neck," said 
 Conrad, his revolver in hand and his eyes 
 on the retreating cowboy. " I understand it 
 all now. And it was a lucky thing, Pendy, 
 that you gave him that whiskey this morn- 
 ing; it got him just drunk enough to show 
 his hand. If it had n't been for that I might 
 not have caught on till he 'd done the Lord 
 knows how much mischief. It 's just like that 
 damned skunk, Jenkins, to go at it in this 
 sneaking, underhand way. He 's not through 
 with me yet ! " 
 
 They watched while Miller saddled his 
 horse, hung his rope at the saddle-horn, and 
 mounted. Then they turned back toward the 
 camp, but presently, at a whinny from Brown 
 Betty, Curtis faced about. Miller had ridden 
 to where she was standing, a little apart from 
 the other horses, had leaped to the ground,
 
 234 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 and was making toward her hind-quarters. 
 His body was in profile, and as he stretched 
 out his arm Conrad saw the flash of sunlight 
 upon a knife blade. Instantly his arm swung 
 upward, and there was an answering flash 
 from the muzzle of his revolver. The report 
 boomed across the valley, and Andy's right 
 arm dropped. He rushed toward them, yell- 
 ing foul names, but halted when he saw the 
 pistol levelled at his breast. 
 
 " No more tricks, Andy," called the super- 
 intendent, " or it '11 be through your heart 
 next time. Git, right now ! " 
 
 From up the valley came the shouts of the 
 men. They had turned the cattle and were 
 hurrying them back to camp. Miller cast one 
 quick glance in their direction, and leaped 
 to his saddle. He made a wide detour, the 
 tail of his eye on Conrad's gun, and galloped 
 away on the road over which the outfit had 
 come. The others trooped up where Curtis 
 and Pendleton, at the top of the hill, were 
 watching his lessening figure. 
 
 " Boys," said the ranchman, " that 's the 
 chap that 's been stampeding the cattle ! " 
 Peters swore a mouth-filling oath and smote 
 his thigh. " He was just on the point of 
 ham-stringing Brown Betty," Curtis went on,
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 235 
 
 his eyes blazing, " and I put a bullet through 
 his arm barely in time to prevent it." 
 
 A light broke upon Pendleton. " Darn my 
 skin, if that was n't the trick the critter was 
 up to this morning, when he saw me and 
 stopped ! " 
 
 " Let 's go after him, boys !" shouted Peters. 
 The group of riders shot forward, like racers 
 starting at the word, and thundered down the 
 road after the culprit. Conrad looked after 
 them grimly, his eyes flashing blue fire, and 
 Pendleton, wrapped in his blanket again, 
 danced about and yelled, " Go it, boys, go it ! 
 I wish I was with you ! " 
 
 For an hour they chased him. He, know- 
 ing what his fate would be if he fell into 
 their hands, put spurs to his horse until he 
 brought out its utmost speed. Having so 
 much the start he kept well in the lead, and 
 finally they gave it up and returned to camp. 
 
 With his left arm still in a sling and his 
 shoulder bandaged, Conrad kept at the head 
 of the round-up, which went on without fur- 
 ther accident. He was too busy to think of 
 the pain, except at night, when it often kept 
 him awake. At such times his mind was 
 sure to busy itself, sooner or later, with the 
 trailing of Delafield, reaching out in every
 
 236 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 direction for some clew to guide his next step. 
 By some trick of subconscious mental action, 
 thoughts of Lucy Bancroft began to intrude 
 upon his mind when it was thus engaged. 
 It pleased him well enough to think of Lucy 
 at other times, of her bright, piquant face, 
 of the positive opinions she was in the habit 
 of pronouncing with that independent little 
 toss of her curly head, and of her dimpling 
 smiles. But it annoyed him that the thought 
 of her should come into conflict with his one 
 absorbing idea. And, just because he had 
 been consciously disturbed by it twice or 
 thrice, association of ideas brought back the 
 image more and more frequently. Once, 
 when he had been vainly wooing sleep for 
 an hour, he caught himself wondering what 
 Lucy would say about the Delafield affair. 
 He muttered an angry oath at himself, and 
 with a mighty effort put both subjects out of 
 his mind. It was not until they reached 
 Pelham, the railway station whence the cattle 
 were to be shipped, that his shoulder became 
 free enough from pain for him to sink into 
 sleep as soon as he lay down; and thereafter 
 his mind forbore its irritating trick. 
 
 During all that time, although Conrad did 
 not believe he had anything to fear from
 
 VILLAINY UNMASKED 237 
 
 Jose Gonzalez, he never left his revolver out 
 of easy reach, and never turned his back upon 
 the Mexican. But Gonzalez kept on his way 
 as calmly and apparently as unconsciously as 
 if he had had no part in that episode beside 
 the pool at Rock Springs. Near the end of 
 the shipping Curtis asked him if he would like 
 steady work at the ranch. 
 
 The Mexican gave a little astonished start 
 and cast at the superintendent a glance of 
 suspicion. Conrad frowned and his eyes 
 flashed. Then he grinned good-naturedly, 
 showing his strong white teeth under his sun- 
 burned moustache. " That 's all right, Jose. 
 I 'm not that sort. As long as you behave 
 yourself I 'm your friend. If you don't, I 've 
 told you what will happen. You Ve struck 
 my gait in the cow business, and I want to 
 keep you. If you want to stay you can under- 
 stand right now that you run no risks, unless 
 you make 'em yourself." 
 
 Gonzalez threw at him a keen glance. 
 ' You know I have nothing against you, Don 
 Curtis," he began, hesitating a moment be- 
 fore he went on ; "I like to work for you 
 very well, senor, and I will stay."
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 
 
 AEXANDER BANCROFT read Con- 
 rad's defiant letter, duly forwarded by 
 his Boston attorneys, with a nearer 
 approach to desperation than he had known 
 in years. He had hoped so much from that 
 money; and it had been thrown away! The 
 man was inflexible, and to attempt to turn 
 him from his deadly purpose by peaceful 
 means would be a waste of time. And time 
 was precious, for, now that he and his de- 
 tective knew so much, one clew that they 
 might discover any day would throw the door 
 wide open. He must be foiled before he had 
 time to make another move. Bancroft laid 
 on his desk the letter he had been reading, 
 feeling to the bottom of his heart that he 
 would be justified in taking any course that 
 would halt the feet of his pursuer. 
 
 A clerk came to ask his presence in the 
 outer room, and he went out hastily, intend- 
 ing to return at once. But a man with busi-
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 239 
 
 ness in which both were interested awaited 
 him, and after a moment's conversation they 
 went to find a third who was concerned in 
 the same matter. 
 
 They had only just gone when Lucy came 
 in and asked for her father. She looked 
 sweet and dainty in a white gown with a 
 wide white hat tied under her chin, her curls 
 clustering around a face all aglow with warm 
 browns and rich reds. The clerk who pressed 
 forward with pleased alacrity to answer her 
 question was one of her ardent admirers. Mr. 
 Bancroft had just gone out, probably for only 
 a few minutes ; would n't she wait ? It was 
 of no consequence, she said; she only wished 
 to see if he had any mail for her. But she 
 looked disappointed, and the clerk suggested 
 that as he had left his office door unlocked 
 she might go in and wait. She saw a pile 
 of unopened letters on her father's desk and 
 glanced through it, finding two for Miss 
 Dent and one for herself. ".I '11 just sit here 
 and read mine," she thought, " and maybe 
 daddy will be back by that time." 
 
 A little gust of wind came through the open 
 window, blowing a sheet of paper from the 
 desk to the floor. Her eye caught the signa- 
 ture as she picked it up. " Curtis Conrad! "
 
 2 4 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 she read. " Oh, how like him his writing 
 looks ! " she exclaimed, a wave of color surg- 
 ing into her cheeks. " Why, it seems as if 
 I just knew it would be like this ! How easy 
 it is to read ! " She was looking at the letter, 
 her attention absorbed in the fact that it had 
 come from Conrad's own hand, when Dela- 
 field's name stood out from the other words. 
 "Delafield! Sumner L. Delafield! I re- 
 member that name. It 's the name of the 
 man that ruined his father why, it 's a re- 
 ceipt for that money! How does daddy hap- 
 pen to have it ? " Her eyes ran eagerly along 
 the lines. " It 's just like him ! I 'm glad he 
 would n't take the money ! What a horrid, 
 wicked man that Delafield must be! I won- 
 der how daddy happens to have this letter, 
 when it was written to Tremper & Townsend, 
 in Boston ! " Her glance fell on the torn en- 
 velope bearing the imprint of the Boston firm, 
 addressed to her father, and thence to their 
 letter beside it. With mind intent upon the 
 bewildering problem her eyes rushed over the 
 brief missive: 
 
 " As you requested, we deposited your check for 
 five hundred dollars to our account, and foi warded 
 our check for the same amount to Mr. Curtis Con- 
 rad. We enclose his letter in receipt, which he evi- 
 dently wishes sent on to you."
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 241 
 
 Lucy dropped the sheet of paper and sprang 
 to her feet, her mind awhirl with protest. No, 
 no! this could not be meant for her father 
 he was not Delafield it was impossible ! 
 But something clutched at her throat, and 
 her head swam. She must go home; she 
 must think out the puzzle. Sudden unwill- 
 ingness to meet her father seized her. He 
 must not know she had been there, that she 
 had seen anything. She was not yet think- 
 ing coherently, only feeling that she had 
 thoughtlessly surprised some secret, which 
 had sprung out at her like a jack-in-the-box, 
 and that she must give no sign of having 
 seen its face. 
 
 She sped homeward, her brain in a turmoil, 
 and it was not until she had shut herself in 
 her room that she began to think clearly. 
 A troop of recollections, disjointed, half- 
 forgotten bits and ends of things swarmed 
 upon her. The shock had roused her mind 
 to unusual activity, and little things long past, 
 forgotten for years, again came vividly into 
 her memory. 
 
 So suddenly that it made her catch her breath 
 there flashed upon her the recollection of how 
 once, when she was a tiny child, some one had 
 halted beside her mother and herself in a city 
 
 16
 
 242 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 street and exclaimed " Mrs. Delafield ! " Her 
 mother had hurried on without noticing the 
 salutation, and had satisfied her curiosity 
 afterward by explaining that the person was 
 a stranger who had mistaken her for some- 
 body else. But Lucy had thought the name 
 a pretty one and used it in her play, pretend- 
 ing that she had a little playmate so called. 
 Their wanderings during her childhood came 
 back to her, when they had gone often from 
 one place to another, at first in Canada, 
 afterward always in the West. Much of 
 the time she and her mother were alone, but 
 her father came occasionally to spend with 
 them a few days or weeks. Her devotion 
 to him dated from those early years, when 
 she thought so much about him during his 
 long absences, wished so ardently for his 
 return, and enjoyed his visits with unalloyed 
 delight. 
 
 With new significance came the recollec- 
 tion of the beginning for them of the name 
 of Bancroft. While she was still a little girl 
 her mother had told her their name would 
 no longer be Brown, but Bancroft, because 
 they had been allowed to change it. She had 
 liked the new name much better, had accepted 
 it with the unquestioning acquiescence of
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 243 
 
 childhood, and the old name had soon become 
 but a dim memory. 
 
 Like a blow at her heart, because of the 
 conviction it brought, the remembrance rushed 
 upon her of an occasion not long after the 
 change of name. She had wakened in the 
 night and, drowsily floating in and out of 
 sleep, had heard snatches of talk between her 
 parents. Something regarding danger to her 
 father had won her attention. He had re- 
 plied that it would be quite safe, because only 
 when he visited them would he be known as 
 Bancroft, and that henceforth he would prob- 
 ably be able to spend more time with them. 
 Her mother had feared and questioned, but 
 he had reassured her and insisted that Lucy 
 must be kept more steadily in school and that 
 both mother and daughter must have a settled 
 home. She could not remember all that he 
 said, but meaningful scraps came back which 
 had impressed her because they were con- 
 cerned with that vague peril which her 
 mother seemed to fear. He had said some- 
 thing about there being " no danger now," 
 " nobody would recognize him," " everybody 
 had forgotten it by this time " ; finally, her 
 childish anxiety assured that he was not really 
 in jeopardy, she had sunk back happily into
 
 244 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 sleep and thought little more about it. After 
 that she and her mother lived part of the 
 time in Denver and part in San Francisco, and 
 her father was with them more than before. 
 
 Every recollection that emerged from that 
 dubious past strengthened the fear that had 
 gripped her heart with the reading of the 
 letters. One by one she was forced to give 
 up the suppositions with which she tried to 
 account for her father's possession of those 
 letters. With all her strength she fought 
 against the one evident conclusion. But at 
 last the conviction fell upon her with chill 
 certainty that they were on her father's desk 
 because they were meant for him, and that 
 he was the Sumner L. Delaneld of that long 
 past, disgraceful affair. 
 
 With hands clenched against her heart, 
 which was aching with the soreness of bruised 
 flesh, she whispered, " To take the money of 
 all those people, and ruin them; and it killed 
 some oh, daddy, daddy, it was you who 
 did it ! " All the world had suddenly become 
 one great, enveloping pain that wrung her 
 heart anew with every recurring realization 
 that her adored father had been so wicked 
 to her mind so abominably wicked. It was 
 significant of her youth and inexperience, and
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 245 
 
 also of her moral quality, that she did not 
 attempt to palliate or excuse his offence. He 
 was guilty of wrongdoing, as Dellmey Baxter 
 was guilty, but in a far worse measure, and 
 the fact that he was her father would never 
 temper her condemnation of his sin. In the 
 midst of her anguish she grew conscious that 
 her feeling toward him had changed, and 
 knew that the life had gone out of her old 
 honoring, adoring love. It was as if half 
 her heart had been violently torn away. For 
 the first time sobs shook her, as she moaned, 
 " Daddy, daddy, I loved you so ! " Forlorn 
 and anguished, her longing turned back to 
 the dead mother with imperious need of sym- 
 pathy, understanding, and companionship. 
 
 Then came the thought that her mother 
 had known this dreadful truth, and yet had 
 stanchly held by him and shared its con- 
 sequences. The sense of duty arose within 
 her, trembling, apprehensive, but insistent. 
 It seemed almost as if her mother had be- 
 queathed this secret to her keeping that she 
 might the better fill her place beside him with 
 daughterly solicitude. The idea crystallized 
 into whispered words as she tossed back her 
 head and dried her eyes, " My mother stood 
 by him, and so shall I ! "
 
 246 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 He must never even suspect that she knew 
 this horrible thing; she felt instinctively that 
 it would cut him to the heart to learn that 
 she had discovered his secret. For a moment 
 she broke down again and moaned, " Why 
 did I go into his office this morning! I wish 
 I hadn't, I wish I hadn't! And then I 
 would n't have had to know ! " She quickly 
 put aside this useless repining, to face the 
 grim, painful fact once more. No; he must 
 never guess that she knew he was other than 
 he seemed, and he must never feel any change 
 in her manner toward him. She must hide 
 the secret deep, deep down in her heart, and 
 she must keep their mutual life as it had 
 always been. And there was Dearie but 
 she must know nothing of it; oh, no, never 
 in the world must Dearie learn the least thing 
 about this trouble! 
 
 Lucy felt very much alone, quite shut off, 
 in her poignant need, from every one who 
 might give her help, advice, or sympathy. As 
 she sat there, encompassed by her loneliness 
 and pain, her thoughts turned half uncon- 
 sciously toward Curtis Conrad with instinc- 
 tive longing for his protecting care and 
 strength. Then she remembered. With a 
 sharp flash that made her wince it came back
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 247 
 
 to her that he meant to have revenge on 
 Delafield ; that she had heard him say he was 
 on the man's trail, and would track him down 
 and kill him! For a moment it staggered 
 her, with a fierce new pain that struck through 
 the keen ache in her breast, making her catch 
 her breath in a gasping sob. But all her 
 heart rose in quick denial. A faint smile 
 held her trembling lip for an instant as she 
 thought : 
 
 " Oh, no ; he would n't ! He would n't hurt 
 daddy; and he wouldn't kill anybody! I 
 know he would n't ! " 
 
 She almost feared to meet her household; 
 it seemed as if this awful knowledge which 
 had come to her must be writ large upon her 
 countenance. Would it be possible to take 
 up the daily life again as if nothing had hap- 
 pened? A chasm so horrible had riven it, 
 since the morning, that surely it could never 
 be the same again. But when she finally 
 summoned her resolution and went down to 
 take up her daily duties, she found it not so 
 hard as she had feared. That benign routine 
 of daily, commonplace life, with its hourly 
 demands upon thought and feeling and atten- 
 tion, which has saved so many hearts from 
 breaking, met her at the very door of her
 
 248 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 room. She quickly learned to lean upon it, 
 even to multiply its demands. At the outset 
 it gave her the strength and courage to pass 
 through her ordeal steadfastly; and after the 
 first day it was not so hard. She began to 
 feel pity for her father and a new tenderness 
 as she thought of the years through which 
 he had lived, knowing who he was and what 
 he had done, and dreading always to be found 
 out. But all her pity, tenderness, affection, 
 and the old habit of lovingness that she was 
 resolute to sustain were not always sufficient 
 to overcome the revulsion that sometimes 
 seized her. 
 
 One of these moments of revolt came to her 
 as they lingered over the breakfast table a 
 few days after her discovery. She made an 
 excuse to attend to something in the kitchen, 
 and hastily left the room. Her father had 
 told them at the table that he was going to 
 Las Vegas that morning. He waited, expect- 
 ing her to return and go with him to the 
 gate, and wave a last good-bye as he looked 
 back on his way down the hill. She did not 
 reappear, and at last he told Miss Dent 
 that he would have to go or lose his train. 
 Louise watched him from the window with 
 yearning eyes that would not lift themselves
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 249 
 
 from his figure until it disappeared from her 
 view. 
 
 As he waited at the station Lucy rushed 
 breathlessly to his side. " I was so afraid I 
 should be too late ! " she panted as she slipped 
 her hand through his arm, " I ran all the 
 way down the hill." 
 
 She clung so affectionately to him and 
 looked up into his face with an appeal so 
 wistful that he was touched, thinking only 
 that she was sorrowing over his going away. 
 It was the first time he had been separated 
 from her since she had come to make her 
 home with him. The conductor called, " All 
 aboard! " and he kissed her tenderly, saying, 
 " I '11 be back day after to-morrow, little 
 daughter." 
 
 She went home with that " little daughter " 
 ringing in her ears and her heart. It brought 
 back a wealth of memories of those childish, 
 happy, longed-for times when her father came, 
 so glad to see his " little daughter " that the 
 days were not long enough to hold all the 
 pleasures he wished to give her. It filled her 
 breast with tenderness and a sort of yearning 
 affection, more maternal than filial in quality, 
 and made more ardent her desire to stand 
 by him with perfect loyalty. But the old,
 
 250 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 joyous love that had been rooted deep in ad- 
 miration, esteem, and honor no longer stirred 
 within her. She knew that it would never 
 fill her life again with its warmth and glad- 
 ness, and that now and again she would have 
 to struggle with that same aversion which 
 had sent her that morning to hide herself in 
 her room against his accustomed affectionate 
 farewell. Nevertheless, she was pleased that 
 a returning tide of tenderness, which was 
 almost remorse, had swept over her in time 
 for her to join him at the station. 
 
 Lucy's breathless rush to overtake him 
 and the appealing tenderness of her manner 
 during their moment together were sweet 
 thoughts in Bancroft's mind as the train bore 
 him northward. Dear little daughter! she 
 grew dearer every day, and so did his pride 
 and happiness in her. He longed to give her 
 all the pleasures that his money could buy, 
 just as he used to fill his pockets for her 
 delight when she was a little girl. Once 
 past these threatening dangers, they should 
 have good times together. All his business 
 enterprises were promising well; it would 
 not be long before money would be plenty. 
 Then, with clear sailing ahead and no ominous 
 clouds, he could ask Louise to marry him.
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 251 
 
 They would have to give up Lucy some 
 time, but not for many a day. She was the 
 sort of girl that is always attractive to men 
 why, half the young fellows in Golden 
 were already dancing devoted attendance ! 
 but she was very young; he and Louise still 
 had many years in which to enjoy her, to 
 travel with her and show her the world. 
 Once past these threatening dangers, how 
 fair was the world beyond! He would van- 
 quish them yet, by whatever means might 
 come to his hand! Each day's anxiety for 
 the present and its longing for the fair future 
 made his heart more desperate and reckless. 
 He was hopeful that this coming interview 
 with Rutherford Jenkins would make things 
 easier for him in that quarter. Money would 
 always keep Jenkins quiet, but to give up 
 money to a blackmailer was like pouring it 
 down a rat hole ; if he kept it up the process 
 was sure to cripple him in time. 
 
 Jenkins received him with smiling cordiality. 
 " I 'm very glad to see you, Mr. Delafield 
 oh, I beg your pardon! Mr. Bancroft. I 
 always think of you as ah, by the othe,r 
 name and I sometimes forget in speaking." 
 
 " You 'd better not forget again," Bancroft 
 interposed. " And, speaking of forgetting,
 
 252 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 there is a little matter concerning you that 
 I 'm willing to let drop out of my memory. 
 You know, of course, about the case of Jose 
 Maria Melgares. Doubtless you know, also, 
 how Melgares happened to steal Curtis Con- 
 rad's horse; and you could tell to a cent 
 to a jury, if necessary how much money 
 was given to Melgares in the rear of the Blue 
 Front saloon to induce him to undertake the 
 theft. I take it, however, that you would not 
 care to have it brought into court, as a con- 
 viction on a charge of conspiracy would be 
 sure to follow. I have all the evidence in 
 my possession quite enough to convict. I 
 got it from Melgares' wife in the first place, 
 and I have since secured his affidavit. But 
 I have stopped her mouth, and his, and no- 
 body else knows anything about it. I am 
 quite willing to forget it myself if you will 
 show equal courtesy concerning certain 
 other matters." 
 
 Jenkins grinned and licked his lips. " Really, 
 my dear Mr. Delafield excuse me my 
 dear Mr. Bancroft I don't know what you 
 are driving at! I suppose you mean that 
 Melgares has been saying that I hired him 
 to steal Conrad's horse. The thing is as false 
 as it is absurd. If it were to come into court
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 253 
 
 I should deny it absolutely, exactly as I do 
 now. And the word of Rutherford Jenkins 
 would stand for considerably more with a jury 
 than that of a Mexican horse-thief." 
 
 ' You are probably the only man in the 
 Territory, Mr. Jenkins, who holds that opin- 
 ion. Unless you take a more reasonable view 
 of the matter I shall feel it my duty to see 
 the district attorney as soon as I get home." 
 
 " See him, and be damned ! " Jenkins broke 
 out. ;< If you do, Curtis Conrad shall know 
 before the week is out that you are Sumner 
 L. Delafield." 
 
 Bancroft's eyes fell, but his reply came 
 quickly enough : " Well, and what is that to 
 me?" 
 
 " I guess you know what it will mean to 
 you," Jenkins answered with a sneer. He 
 did not know himself what it would mean to 
 the banker, but he felt sure that it would 
 answer quite as well to make pretence of 
 knowledge. He watched his antagonist fur- 
 tively in the momentary silence that followed. 
 
 " You don't seem to understand the full 
 significance of the attitude you are taking," 
 Bancroft presently went on. " Of course, I 
 do not wish, just now, to have Conrad, or 
 any one else, know all the events of my past
 
 254 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 life. I have been living an honorable life 
 in this Territory, and you can very well com- 
 prehend that I do not wish my reputation and 
 business success smashed by you or any- 
 body else. That is the only reason why I 
 was willing to enter into an understanding 
 with you. But my affairs are getting in such 
 shape that I can soon snap my fingers at you 
 or any one who tries to disclose my identity. 
 At best, you '11 be able to get little more out 
 of me, and I am amazed that you should be 
 willing to risk this trial, with its certain dis- 
 grace, conviction, and sentence to the peni- 
 tentiary, for the sake of the few hundred 
 dollars of blackmail let us call it by its 
 right name that you may be able to extort 
 from me." 
 
 " I am quite willing to take whatever risk 
 there is," Jenkins interposed, " especially as 
 my counsel could readily bring out the fact 
 that you had tried to 'blackmail let us 
 call it by its right name to blackmail me 
 before you gave the information. Do as you 
 please about going to the district attorney; I 
 don't care a damn whether you do or not. 
 But, if you do, you '11 have to settle with 
 Curt Conrad before the week is out ! " 
 
 Bancroft arose, perceiving acutely that the
 
 A DOUBLE BLUFF 255 
 
 only course left for him was to make a strong 
 bluff and retreat. " Very well," he said, with 
 an indifference he was far from feeling, " do 
 as you like about that. Only don't delude 
 yourself by supposing that Curt Conrad's 
 knowing about that old affair will mean any 
 more to me than anybody else's knowledge. 
 When you think this proposal of mine over 
 carefully I 'm sure you '11 change your mind, 
 and I shall expect to hear from you to that 
 effect."
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 
 
 A the Spring days passed, in unbroken 
 procession of rosy dawns, cloudless 
 and glowing noons, and gorgeous 
 sunsets, Louise Dent's resentment against 
 Curtis Conrad grew keen and bitter. She 
 saw the lines of worry appearing in Ban- 
 croft's face, and surprised now and then in 
 his eyes an anxious abstraction; and in her 
 heart she stormed against the man she sup- 
 posed to be the sole cause of it all. Dreading 
 his next visit lest she might betray her feel- 
 ing, she longed to drive him from the house, 
 when he should come, with burning, shaming 
 words. But Bancroft, who knew as much of 
 his intention as she did, was on terms of 
 cordial friendship with him, and she must take 
 her cue from her friend and host. 
 
 Toward Bancroft himself her heart grew 
 more tenderly solicitous as her womanly in- 
 stincts divined his feeling toward her. A 
 thousand unconscious touches of tone and
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 257 
 
 manner had already revealed his love, and 
 she surmised that he would not speak because 
 of the imminence of this sore danger. She 
 longed to give him her open sympathy, to 
 counsel with him, to lock hands with him so 
 that they might face the trouble together. 
 Yet she was stopped from word or action by 
 the necessity of seeming to know nothing. 
 The fact of Bancroft's identity had been dis- 
 closed to her by his wife, her dear and inti- 
 mate friend, who, at point of death, had told 
 her, under solemn promise of secrecy, the 
 whole story, that she might the better shield 
 Lucy should disclosure ever threaten. Now, 
 her heart melting with pity, love, and sym- 
 pathy for her friend, and burning with angry 
 resentment against his foe, she must perforce 
 sit in apparent ignorance of it all, be calm 
 and cheerful toward Bancroft, and smile 
 pleased welcome upon Conrad. That hidden 
 volcano in her breast, whose possibility Lucy 
 and Curtis had half seriously discussed, had 
 become a reality, and the concealment of it 
 demanded all her self-control. 
 
 The only relief she dared give herself was 
 occasional disapproval of the young cattle- 
 man in her talks with Lucy. Louise was 
 surprised and puzzled by the varying moods 
 
 17
 
 258 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 in which the girl received these criticisms. 
 Sometimes she kept silence or quickly changed 
 the subject. Rarely she tossed her head and 
 joined in the condemnation with an angry 
 sparkle of the eye. Or, again, with flushing 
 cheek, she defended him from Miss Dent's 
 aspersions. Louise decided, with a fond smile, 
 that her vagaries of mood were due to pique 
 at the lack of more constant attentions from 
 Conrad. For the young woman, to her 
 father's and Miss Dent's loving amusement, 
 was proving herself adept in the art of queen- 
 ing it over a court of masculine admirers. 
 What with walks over the mesa, rides and 
 picnics up the canyon, music of evenings, 
 and Sunday afternoon calls, Lucy was lead- 
 ing a gay life, and Louise, as her chaperon, 
 a busy one. Being a normal, buoyant-hearted 
 girl, Lucy enjoyed the gayety and the at- 
 tention and admiration showered upon her 
 in such copious measure for their own sake, 
 and she was glad of them also because, to- 
 gether with her household cares, they kept 
 her too well occupied for sad thoughts. 
 
 So the days passed until mid- June was at 
 hand and the time come for the trial of Jose 
 Maria Melgares. Curtis Conrad was in Gol- 
 den as one of the principal witnesses for the
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 259 
 
 prosecution his first visit to the town since 
 the Spring round-up. Lucy, glancing fre- 
 quently down the street, was trying to inter- 
 est herself in Miss Dent's conversation as 
 they sat together on the veranda. They spoke 
 of the trial, and Lucy said she had seen Mr. 
 Conrad on his way to the court-house when 
 she went down town to market. 
 
 " I Ve been disappointed in Mr. Conrad," 
 said Louise ; " I don't understand how he can 
 talk so recklessly about people needing to be 
 killed. To me it is very repellent. You know 
 how he speaks about Mr. Baxter." 
 
 Lucy's head went up. " But Mr. Baxter is 
 a very bad man ! " she exclaimed. " He has 
 been responsible for a great deal of suffering. 
 Just think of Melgares and his poor wife! 
 But for Mr. Baxter they might still be living 
 happily on their little ranch. And he 's done 
 many other things just as wicked and unjust. 
 Oh, he 's a very bad man, and I can't blame 
 Mr. Conrad for feeling that way about him." 
 She broke off, flushing to her brows, then 
 went on more quietly : " But I don't think, 
 Dearie, that Mr. Conrad means half he says 
 when he talks that way; it 's just his way of 
 feeling how brave he is." 
 
 "If he does not mean it, he should not
 
 260 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 speak so recklessly of serious matters," Louise 
 responded with decision. " He must have a 
 cruel nature, or he would not harbor such 
 ideas." 
 
 Lucy leaned forward, her face aglow. " In- 
 deed, no, Dearie ! Mr. Conrad is n't cruel ; 
 he's really very tender-hearted just think 
 of the way he carried that wounded bird all 
 the way to Golden to have its leg fixed. And 
 one day when we were walking on the mesa, 
 he was so distressed because he accidentally 
 stepped on a little horned toad. It 's unjust 
 to call him cruel, Dearie ! " 
 
 Her glance darted down the street again, 
 and she saw Curtis nearing her gate. His 
 quick, energetic stride and eager face were 
 like a trumpet call to her youth and her 
 womanhood. Forgetting all but the fact 
 of his presence, she felt her heart leap to 
 meet him with joyful welcome. But in- 
 stantly came remembrance and reaction, and 
 she greeted him with unusual gravity of 
 manner. 
 
 Conrad wanted them at the ranch for the 
 Fourth of July. " We are to have a big bar- 
 becue and baile," he said. " Both the Castle- 
 tons are coming this year to look things 
 over, and I wrote Ned that if Mrs. Ned was
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 261 
 
 coming with him perhaps it would amuse her 
 if we did something of the sort. The idea 
 seemed to just strike his gait, and he wrote 
 back at once to go ahead and whoop it up 
 for all I 'm worth. Mrs. Ned and Mrs. 
 Turner are both coming, and I 'm asking a 
 lot of people from all over the Territory. I 
 want you two ladies and Mr. Bancroft to be 
 sure to come out the day before the Fourth 
 and stay at least until the day after, and as 
 much longer as you find convenient. My 
 brother Homer is coming on next week for 
 the rest of the Summer, and he '11 be there 
 too." 
 
 Lucy was delighted, clapped her hands, 
 and declared it would be great fun of course 
 they would go. Repugnant to the idea but 
 knowing that only one course was seemly, 
 Miss Dent gave smiling acquiescence. As 
 they talked, Curtis telling them of the great 
 wealth of the Castleton brothers, the rivalry 
 of the two ladies, the dash and beauty and 
 vogue of Mrs. Turner, and the Spanish an- 
 cestry of Mrs. Ned, Lucy's eyes continually 
 sought his face. Her spirits began to rise, 
 and soon they were gayly tilting at each other 
 after their usual custom, she all smiles and 
 dimples and animation, and he beaming with
 
 262 THE DELAF1ELD AFFAIR 
 
 admiration. They went to the conservatory 
 to see the tanager and presently brought it 
 back with them, telling Miss Dent that they 
 were going to set it free. Lucy stood beside 
 him as they watched it soar away through 
 the sunlight, a flash of silvery pink flame, and 
 it seemed to her that their mutual interest 
 in the little creature had made a bond be- 
 tween them and given her an understanding 
 of his character deeper and truer than any 
 one else could have. 
 
 Conrad went down the hill, whistling softly 
 a merry little tune, his thoughts dwelling ten- 
 derly upon Lucy. He wished her to enjoy 
 the barbecue and baile even more than she 
 expected it was to be her first experience of 
 that sort and he began to plan little details 
 that might add to her pleasure. So absorbed 
 was he and so pleasant his thoughts that for 
 a time he quite forgot the Delafield affair. 
 But it came to mind again when Bancroft 
 asked him, as they talked together at the door 
 of the bank, if he had had any more trouble 
 with Jose Gonzalez. 
 
 " Oh, no; Jose 's all right. He 's the best 
 cowboy I 've got and as docile as a yearling. 
 He's agreed to stay right on at the ranch 
 with me. I 'm glad to have such a smart,
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 263 
 
 competent fellow to leave under Peters, for 
 after the Fourth I expect to be away a 
 good deal. I '11 have some time for myself 
 then and I 'm going into this hunt after 
 Delafield for all I 'm worth ; I don't think 
 it will take me long to run him down 
 
 now." 
 
 Bancroft hesitated a moment, then, laying 
 his hand on Conrad's arm he spoke earnestly: 
 " For God's sake, Curt, give up this fool no- 
 tion of yours. If you don't, you '11 never get 
 through alive. No sane man is going to let 
 you get the drop on him, as you seem to think 
 you can. He 's undoubtedly watching you 
 right along, ready to put an end to the busi- 
 ness as soon as he thinks you 're really danger- 
 ous. Let him pay you if he will; but stop 
 this foolishness." 
 
 Conrad laughed heartily and slapped Ban- 
 croft's shoulder. "Why, Aleck," said he, "the 
 most satisfaction I 've ever had comes out of 
 knowing that I 'm so hot on his tracks that 
 I 've got him buffaloed. Give it up ? Not 
 much ! I 'm going to lope down that trail at 
 a two-minute gait, and Sumner L. Delafield 
 is mighty soon going to wish he 'd never been 
 born." 
 
 Bancroft turned half away, with a tighten-
 
 264 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 ing of his lips under his brown moustache. 
 " Very well. I '11 not trouble you with any 
 more advice on the subject. But when you 
 meet with disaster, as you undoubtedly will, 
 you must remember that you 've got nobody 
 but yourself to blame. How 's the trial 
 going? " he asked abruptly. 
 
 " Pretty fast; the case will go to the jury 
 to-morrow. It won't take them more than ten 
 minutes to reach a verdict. You ought to 
 come in and hear Judge Banks's charge, 
 Aleck. Dan tells me it 's sure to be interest- 
 ing. He says you never can tell whether 
 Banks will deliver an original poem or 
 make up his charge out of quotations from 
 Shakespeare." 
 
 As the banker went up the hill to his home 
 he remembered that he had heard Rutherford 
 Jenkins was in town. To-morrow he must see 
 the man and try again to induce him to con- 
 sider the dangers of an indictment for con- 
 spiracy. At any rate, he would hold that 
 affidavit of Melgares' up his sleeve, and the 
 time might come when it would be efficacious, 
 even should Jenkins still scoff at it now. Con- 
 rad he had given Conrad another warning, 
 as plain as day, and if the man would rush 
 on recklessly he must take the consequences.
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 265 
 
 Jose Gonzalez was still at Socorro Springs 
 an accident could happen and there was no 
 time to lose! 
 
 Lucy saw her father coming when he was 
 a block away and, instead of running to the 
 gate to meet him, pretended not to have no- 
 ticed him, and hastened into the house. Louise 
 Dent remained on the veranda, pushing for- 
 ward a lounging chair for him as he mounted 
 the steps. She saw that he looked paler and 
 more haggard than usual, and she longed to 
 put her arms about him, as a mother might 
 around a suffering child, and charm away his 
 trouble and wretchedness. In her maiden life 
 the innate mother-longing had found little ap- 
 peasement; and so, when this youthful love 
 came into her enriched and mellowed heart 
 of middle life, it gathered into itself the re- 
 pressed yearning of her nature, and the ma- 
 ternal side of it was strong and fierce. She 
 neither condoned nor belittled the sins of the 
 man she loved. For his wrongdoing and the 
 suffering he had caused she felt sorrow, pity, 
 remorse remorse almost as keen as if she 
 herself had been the guilty one. But her love 
 enfolded him in spite of his sins, and even 
 included them. For she told herself that if 
 he had not been guilty she might never have
 
 2 66 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 known him, their paths might never have 
 crossed. 
 
 In gentle, unobtrusive ways she ministered 
 to his comfort; then, sitting beside him, her 
 calm brow and steady eyes giving no sign of 
 the tumult in her heart, she talked with sym- 
 pathy and interest, gradually leading his 
 thoughts away from the present into happy 
 plans for the future. With keen satisfaction 
 she saw the weary, desperate look fade from 
 his face and eyes, giving place to one of com- 
 fort and content, and the assurance that she 
 had made him forget his troubles, even for 
 a little while, filled her heart with pleasure. 
 
 Lucy, sitting in her room, heard the mur- 
 mur of their voices through her open win- 
 dows. Her high spirits of the hour before 
 were gone, and she sat dejected, her face 
 mournful, and her head hanging like a flower 
 broken on its stem. Presently she slipped 
 down to the conservatory, took the pot of 
 cactus Conrad had given her, ran across the 
 back-yard, and threw it over the fence. Then 
 she joined her father and Louise, seating her- 
 self on the arm of his chair and throwing her 
 arm around his neck as she asked with lov- 
 ing concern about his welfare, told him he 
 had not been looking well of late, and that he
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 267 
 
 was working too hard and ought to have a 
 rest. But that evening, after dinner, she 
 rushed across the yard and out of the gate, 
 and gathered up the cactus pot in her arms 
 as if it were some small animal she had hurt. 
 She returned it to its place in the conserva- 
 tory, pressing her hands around it until its 
 spines brought little drops of blood. 
 
 " I can't help it ! " she exclaimed in a vehe- 
 ment whisper. " I have to like him, and I 
 shan't try any more not to! He wouldn't 
 hurt daddy, I know he would n't because 
 
 because he wouldn't and because he 
 loves me ! " A tiny smile curved her lips as 
 she touched the plant caressingly and pres- 
 ently her whisper went on : "If I could 
 only tell daddy that he need n't be afraid 
 or worried! Oh, I wish I could! But he 
 must n't guess I know." Her lips ceased 
 moving and she stared unseeingly at the 
 cactus, as her thought slowly took shape: 
 " It 's worrying daddy awfully, and I must n't 
 let it go on any longer. I '11 tell Mr. Conrad 
 who Delafield is and he '11 stop right then 
 
 I know he will. He '11 despise us after- 
 ward oh, he won't love me after that ! 
 but poor daddy ! he won't be worried any 
 more."
 
 268 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Bancroft and Miss Dent were alike con- 
 vinced that his pursuer would be ruthless in 
 the fulfilment of revenge. Arguing from 
 their knowledge of men, their experience of 
 the world, and their observation of his char- 
 acter, each had come to the fixed conclusion 
 that no softening of heart or staying of hand 
 could be expected from him when he knew 
 the truth. Lucy, having neither knowledge 
 of men nor experience of the world to guide 
 her, had not reasoned about the matter at 
 all. She had jumped at once to her conclu- 
 sion, as soon as she knew her father's iden- 
 tity, that he had nothing to fear from Curtis. 
 Her decision was partly due to her own tem- 
 perament, which she instinctively felt to be 
 somewhat akin to Conrad's, and partly to her 
 knowledge of a side of his character of which 
 Louise knew little and her father still less. 
 It was further strengthened by her intuition 
 that he loved her something the young man 
 himself had not yet realized. Other than this 
 belief in his love she could have offered no 
 reason for her assurance that he would give 
 over his purpose as soon as he learned to 
 whose door his quest was leading him. But 
 neither her father nor Louise, had it been pos- 
 sible for them to argue with her, could have 
 shaken her conviction.
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 269 
 
 The next day Bancroft, Conrad, and Pendle- 
 ton went together to the court-house to see 
 the closing scenes of the Melgares trial. The 
 leading men of the town were there, as well 
 as the usual hangers-on of a court-room, and 
 a few women, both Mexican and American, 
 sat in a little railed space at one side. Every 
 seat was filled, and a standing line of late 
 comers fringed the walls. Across the room 
 Bancroft saw Rutherford Jenkins. The crowd 
 was disappointed by the judge's charge to the 
 jury, which was brief, simple, and confined 
 to bare statements of law and fact. So it sat 
 still and waited after the jury had filed out, 
 feeling sure that the deliberation would not be 
 long, and that something interesting might 
 be expected afterward from the judge; for 
 he had the reputation of doing and saying 
 whimsical things. He was a bookish man, 
 who studied his law volumes much, but for 
 relaxation turned often to romance and poetry. 
 He had a knack for making jingles himself, 
 and his pronouncements from the bench, 
 whether he was charging a jury, calling for 
 order, sentencing a prisoner, or making peace 
 between warring attorneys, were as likely as 
 not to be in rhyme of his own improvisation 
 or in aptly applied quotations from the words 
 of the mighty.
 
 270 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 The jury came back presently with a ver- 
 dict of murder in the first degree. Judge 
 Banks asked the prisoner if he knew of any 
 reason why the court should not sustain the 
 finding of the jury. Melgares said nothing, 
 and Dellmey Baxter, his counsel, who had 
 made the best fight for the Mexican that he 
 could, shook his head; he had given his ser- 
 vices, and cared to take no further trouble. 
 All that now stood between the prisoner and 
 the gallows was a little space of time. The 
 judge looked out of the window into the 
 trembling green depths of the cottonwoods 
 beside the court-house, and for a moment there 
 was silence in the room. He was a slight 
 man, with dreamy blue eyes, and a square, 
 fine face, framed by side-whiskers, short and 
 thin. It was quite like him to be trying to 
 realize, in that brief moment, just how it 
 would seem to have the gallows looming in 
 one's path so short a way ahead. 
 
 He ordered the prisoner to stand. Sheriff 
 Tillinghurst, his usual smile absent from his 
 kindly face, helped Melgares to his feet. The 
 Mexican's wife, who had been seated beside 
 him, drooped forward, her breast shaken with 
 sobs and her lips moving in whispers of 
 prayer.
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 271 
 
 " Jose Maria Melgares, you have heard the 
 finding of the jury," began the judge, and 
 waited for the sonorous voice of the court 
 interpreter to send the words rolling in mu- 
 sical Spanish over the room, " and it is now 
 necessary for me to pronounce upon you the 
 sentence of this court. The rains will soon 
 be here, Jose Maria Melgares, the grass will 
 spring forth, the flowers bloom, and all the 
 plains and hillsides grow green and luxu- 
 riant. But you will not be here to see and 
 enjoy their beauty, Jose Maria Melgares. 
 The rains of Summer, the golden days of 
 October, the storms of Winter, will all alike 
 pass unknown and unheeded over your head. 
 Spring will come again with its new life, and 
 the lambs will frolic beside their mothers and 
 the little calves bleat in the valleys. But your 
 eyes will not see the sights, nor your ears 
 hear the sounds, Jose Maria Melgares. It 
 will not matter to you that the skies of New 
 Mexico bend blue and beautiful above your 
 head. The stars will march across the mid- 
 night heavens, proclaiming that God is good, 
 and that He holds the universe in the hollow 
 of His hand. Day after day the sun will rise 
 in his fiery might and blazon forth upon earth 
 and sky the goodness and the glory of the
 
 272 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Almighty. The moon will swim across the 
 violet skies of night, wax from slender cres- 
 cent to fair white disk, and wane again. But 
 to you, Jose Maria Melgares, it will all be as 
 nothing. For you, life is a tale that has been 
 told; there is nothing more for you now, 
 Jose Maria Melgares, save the moral, and 
 even that is no longer of interest to you. For 
 you have been guilty of a heinous crime, Jose 
 Maria Melgares; you have taken the life of 
 your fellow-man, and therefore your life is 
 forfeit. It is the sentence of this court, Jose 
 Maria Melgares, that you be hanged by the 
 neck until dead. And may God have mercy 
 upon your soul ! " 
 
 The last melodious syllables of the inter- 
 preter's voice resounded through the room, 
 and died in sudden silence. Then the mo- 
 ment's hush was broken by a shriek as Sefiora 
 Melgares sprang to her feet, stretching her 
 arms out wildly to the judge. 
 
 " No, no, Senor Judge ! It is not right that 
 my husband should die," she cried out in 
 Spanish. " He was made to steal the mare, 
 and the man who hired him to do it and 
 brought all this trouble upon us he is the 
 one who should die ! There he sits over there ! 
 Senor Jenkins, Don Rutherford Jenkins ! He
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 273 
 
 is the one who made my husband steal the 
 mare, who gave him money to do it, because 
 he had a grudge against Sefior Conrad; and 
 he is the one " 
 
 Sheriff Tillinghurst, his hand on her shoul- 
 der, was urging her to sit down, her husband 
 was ordering her to stop, and there was a 
 sudden hubbub all over the room. The judge 
 rapped on his desk and threatened to have 
 the room cleared. Jenkins sat quite still, 
 glaring wrathfully at Bancroft. Conrad 
 clenched his fist, his blue eyes blazing as he 
 exploded an oath into Pendleton's ear ; it was 
 his first intimation that the man from Las 
 Vegas had been behind the attempted theft 
 of his mare. 
 
 Jenkins was waiting for Bancroft at the 
 door of the bank. " I want to see you at once, 
 in private," he said curtly, and without a word 
 the banker led the way to his office. " A nice 
 trick you played me," Jenkins began, his 
 voice hot and sneering. " I thought of going 
 straight to Conrad ; and that 's what I ought 
 to have done, to serve you right." 
 
 " Well, why did n't you? " Bancroft asked, 
 impassively. 
 
 Jenkins took quick alarm. Had the young 
 ranchman, with his impetuous loyalty, told his 
 
 18
 
 274 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 friend what had happened in the Albuquerque 
 hotel? But perhaps Bancroft was only bluff- 
 ing, in which case he himself could bluff as 
 well as another. " I did n't because I thought 
 it would be the square thing to see you first, 
 and find out if you have any explanation to 
 offer of that woman's performance. Unless 
 you can satisfy me you had nothing to do 
 with it, I shall see Conrad and tell him every- 
 thing he does n't know about you before I 
 leave town to-night." 
 
 Bancroft reflected. If Jenkins approached 
 Curtis in that young man's present mood 
 there was ample likelihood that the black- 
 mailer would never trouble him again. Yet 
 there was the chance that he might say in 
 time to save himself the word that would stay 
 Conrad's hand. He dared not take the chance. 
 
 " I advise you," he said slowly, "if you value 
 a whole skin, not to go near Curt Conrad 
 while he is in the state of mind in which I 
 just left him. As for Sefiora Melgares, are 
 you crazy enough to suppose I had anything 
 to do with that?" 
 
 " It 's evident, Bancroft, that you put her 
 up to something you were afraid to do your- 
 self. You wanted to put me in a hole, and 
 you got her to do it for you."
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 275 
 
 Bancroft made a gesture of annoyance. 
 " Oh, well, if you Ve got no more sabe than 
 that " he began, but went on quietly, " I 
 give you my word of honor " 
 
 ' The word of honor of Sumner L. Dela- 
 field ! " Jenkins sneered. 
 
 The banker's eyes flashed as he made an 
 impulsive start, but he went on with quiet 
 emphasis : "I give you my word of honor 
 that I knew no more than you what the Mel- 
 gares woman was going to say when she 
 jumped up. You ought to see yourself that 
 it would have been to my advantage to keep 
 this knowledge entirely in my own hands." 
 
 " Nevertheless," Jenkins replied sullenly, 
 " you could have prevented her outbreak if 
 you 'd wanted to ; and if there are any legal 
 proceedings started against me because of 
 what she said I expect you and Dell Baxter 
 to stop them at once. And I want you to 
 give me, before I leave this room, a sum of 
 money or a check equal to what I receive on 
 the first of every month. And understand 
 that this has no connection with that pay- 
 ment, which will come on the first of next 
 month, as agreed. It 's little enough, after 
 this outrage." 
 
 Bancroft glared at his companion for a
 
 276 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 moment ; Jenkins sat up with a defiant look and 
 glared back. The banker turned to his desk 
 and wrote the check without a word. " And 
 the woman's charge? " the other asked threat- 
 eningly, as he took it. 
 
 " If any action is begun I '11 do my best 
 to stop it." 
 
 Well satisfied with the result, Jenkins has- 
 tened down the street, intending to cross over 
 to his hotel at the next bridge and wait in 
 the privacy of his room until train time. As 
 he approached the court-house corner Sheriff 
 Tillinghurst, Little Jack Wilder, Pendleton, 
 and Conrad came out of the building. Curtis 
 saw the hurrying figure, and the light of battle 
 leaped into his eyes. He rushed past the 
 others, and before Jenkins had time to draw 
 his revolver was upon him and had pinioned 
 his arms. 
 
 Pendleton ran forward, shouting, " Give it 
 to him, Curt ! He deserves it ! " 
 
 " Jack," smiled the sheriff, " I reckon this 
 is goin' to be a sure good scrap, but we don't 
 need to see it. We 'd better hike." And they 
 disappeared up the side street. 
 
 Jenkins was vainly struggling to reach his 
 hip pocket. Conrad got him down, set one 
 knee on his chest, plucked forth the gun, and
 
 SENTENCE OF DEATH 277 
 
 threw it to Pendleton. " Now, you damned 
 skunk," he exclaimed, " you 're going to get 
 every lick that 's coming to you ! I won't 
 dirty powder by using my gun on you, but 
 I 'm sure going to set the standard for lick- 
 ings in this town." 
 
 And to this day, in the city of Golden, the 
 pummelling that Rutherford Jenkins forth- 
 with received is spoken of as the utmost 
 measure of punishment that a man may take 
 and live. At the end Conrad took the limp 
 body under one arm and carried it to the 
 physician's office. " Here, Doc," he said, " is 
 some work for you. Send the bill to me."
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 
 
 FOURTH of July was at hand, and Lucy 
 Bancroft made ready for their stay at 
 the Socorro Springs ranch with a re- 
 solve in her heart. Some time during their 
 two days' visit she would tell Curtis Conrad 
 the truth about her father. Of course, many 
 people would be there, and the superintendent 
 would be busy, but she expected to see a good 
 deal of him he was sure to show her much 
 attention and it would not be hard to find 
 the few minutes of privacy in which to im- 
 part the secret. She was quite sure that the 
 knowledge would bring to a harmless end his 
 long quest of vengeance, and that at once he 
 would cease his pursuit of Delafield. But she 
 was equally sure that he would no longer love 
 her or be friendly with her father. " He can't 
 respect either of us after that," she mused. 
 " He '11 feel toward us just as he does toward 
 Mr. Baxter ; and I can't blame him, for we 're 
 worse than Mr. Baxter is." Her heart pleaded
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 279 
 
 eagerly for a little period of grace in which 
 to feel his love and live it, to take delight 
 in his favor and admiration. She need not 
 tell him at the outset. 
 
 While Lucy was considering and deciding 
 upon her action, on the morning before the 
 Fourth, Mrs. Ned Castleton was saying to 
 her husband in the privacy of the great, empty 
 plain across which they were taking an early 
 gallop : 
 
 " I know why Lena was so willing to come 
 down here with Turner and us. You 'd never 
 guess, Ned." 
 
 " Of course I could n't, Francisquita. So 
 you '11 have to tell me." 
 
 " I know I shall have to, for you 'd never 
 discover it yourself, until too late to do any- 
 thing about it. She did n't come because she 
 wanted to see the place, though she 's never 
 been here before, you know, nor because 
 she thought it would be something unusual 
 to do, nor because she cares any more about 
 Turner's affairs than she did last year, nor 
 even because she wanted to keep track of me, 
 nor because " 
 
 " Never mind the did n'ts, Fanny ! Let 's 
 skip ahead to why she did." 
 
 " That 's just like you, Ned. You never
 
 2 8o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 can understand what a flavor it gives to some- 
 thing that really is to consider first all the 
 things that it is n't." 
 
 " Well, you 've had the flavor, now you 
 can give me the fact. I Ve wondered myself 
 why she was so gracious about coming with 
 us/' 
 
 "Yes; wasn't it surprising? It puzzled 
 me so that I could n't give up thinking about 
 it until I solved the mystery." 
 
 " And are n't you going to let me into the 
 secret? " 
 
 "Of course I am, Ned; that's what I'm 
 doing right now! I studied about it on the 
 way here, and I managed to find out a lot 
 of things it was n't. But I did n't discover 
 what it was till after we reached the ranch." 
 
 "Well, what did you find out then?" 
 
 :( Why, Ned, I 'm telling you just as fast 
 as I can! Although I think I know Lena 
 pretty well, and am quite accustomed to her 
 doing things that nobody else would think of, 
 really, Ned, I was so surprised at this freak 
 that you could have knocked me down with 
 a feather!" 
 
 Ned Castleton looked caressingly at the 
 slender, graceful figure of his wife, erect upon 
 her horse, and smiled broadly. " Fanny, I 'm
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 281 
 
 in that condition right now, from unassuaged 
 curiosity. Please knock me down with a 
 feather and then go on and tell me this deep, 
 dark secret." 
 
 She tickled his cheek with her quirt. "Why, 
 Ned, I Ve been telling you all about it for the 
 last five minutes, but you won't understand 
 what I mean. It 's all because she 's im- 
 mensely taken with your handsome superin- 
 tendent, and she 's deeply interested in the 
 cattle business because she wants him to ex- 
 plain it to her ! " 
 
 Castleton gave an incredulous laugh. 
 " Nonsense, Francisquita ! You are a clever 
 woman, my dear, especially when it comes 
 to divining what your dearly beloved sister- 
 in-law is planning to do year after next. But 
 you two women do get most remarkable no- 
 tions about each other sometimes." 
 
 Mrs. Castleton shrugged her shoulders, 
 tapped her horse, and bounded ahead. They 
 raced for a mile before she allowed him to 
 regain his place at her side. " Granting that 
 you 're right, Francisquita," he said, " what 
 makes you think so ? " 
 
 " Why, Ned, it 's perfectly plain. I Ve seen 
 Lena pave the way for too many flirtations 
 not to know exactly what she 's doing now.
 
 282 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 And she 's preparing to have a perfectly furi- 
 ous affair with Mr. Conrad." 
 
 Castleton kept discreet silence for some 
 moments and studied the horizon. When he 
 turned again to his wife he asked, " Well, 
 dear, what are you going to do about 
 it?" 
 
 Francisquita Castleton was half Mexican, 
 and on her mother's side could trace descent 
 through a long line of dons back to a valiant 
 governor and captain-general of the province 
 who had done great deeds nearly two hun- 
 dred years before. Her heritage had dowered 
 her well with the instinctive coquetry, the 
 supple, unconscious grace, the feminine, art- 
 less art that are the birthright of the women 
 of Spanish blood. All of it was in the move- 
 ment of her arm, the turn of her neck, and 
 the poise of her head as she raised her veil 
 and lifted her face toward her husband. Her 
 voice was as soft as velvet and as caressing 
 as an infant's palm as she exclaimed: 
 
 "Do anything? I? Why, Ned Castleton, 
 how you surprise me! Why should I inter- 
 fere with Lena's whims ? " 
 
 Castleton laughed. " Ask me something 
 easy, Fanny ! I 'm sure I don't know why 
 you should, but I 've noticed that Lena's plans
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 283 
 
 sometimes shrivel up like a stuck balloon. Of 
 course, it may be mere chance." 
 
 " No, Ned ; it is n't chance at all. It 's only 
 because Lena does n't plan carefully enough." 
 
 He took time for reflection. " I say, Fran- 
 cisquita," he presently broke out, " if you 're 
 right about this and I must admit you don't 
 often miss it about Lena it may be a seri- 
 ous matter." 
 
 " Of course I 'm right, Ned. You '11 soon 
 see for yourself just how things are going. 
 You know Lena likes admiration and she likes 
 having her own way and she dearly loves 
 making Turner jealous and she's positively 
 unhappy if every man in sight is n't prancing 
 along in her train. Mr. Conrad is a fine- 
 looking young man, and he made a very good 
 appearance when she saw him in San Fran- 
 cisco last year. I suppose she thought he 
 did n't yield to her fascinations as he should, 
 so she decided to come down here and gather 
 him in. She knows she '11 be awfully bored 
 unless she can make her flirtation with him 
 well ardent enough to keep her inter- 
 ested. I know enough about Lena to see that 
 she 's planning to have an affair that will 
 keep her and Turner and Mr. Conrad simply 
 sizzling as long as we stay."
 
 284 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Castleton gave a long, low whistle. " Tur- 
 ner gets more jealous with every flirtation 
 Lena has, and this whim of hers may prove 
 serious. Conrad is the best superintendent 
 this ranch ever had, and we want to keep 
 him. But if Turner gets jealous he '11 have 
 to go and mighty quick, too. And if he 
 does n't promptly succumb to Lena's fascina- 
 tions well, she 's just vain enough to carry 
 some story about him to Turner, so that we 'd 
 have to let him out for the sake of peace. We 
 can't afford to lose Conrad, Fanny. I '11 pro- 
 pose to Turner that we cut our stay short 
 and go the day after the Fourth. We '11 have 
 to be here for the barbecue, of course." 
 
 " Really, Ned, that 's just like a man ! Don't 
 you know Lena can't be managed that way? 
 She 'd suspect at once that I was at the bot- 
 tom of it and wanted to get her away from 
 here, and then nothing could induce her to 
 go. And you know, Ned, she always winds 
 Turner around her finger as if he were a piece 
 of silk. I can't understand why American 
 wives take so much pleasure in managing 
 their husbands; we Mexican women don't 
 care to do that sort of thing." It was a prim 
 little figure that pronounced the last sentence
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 285 
 
 save for the coquettish turn of the head 
 and a melting glance of dark eyes that flashed 
 for a moment upon her husband. 
 
 He bent toward her a lover's face. " But 
 you know how to manage just the same, 
 Francisquita, mi corazon. Can't you think of 
 some way to head Lena off and get her away 
 before she does any mischief ? " 
 
 Francisquita turned a contemplative eye 
 upon the forest of crimson-flowered cactus 
 through which they were riding. ' Well, I 
 don't know that I can do anything still, 
 Lena's methods are always so broad! I 
 suppose I might try, if you 'd like me to. It 
 might have some effect if I stepped in right 
 away you wouldn't mind it, would you, 
 Ned? and did a little flirting with Mr. 
 Conrad on my own account; not very much, 
 you know; but I could manage to keep him 
 busy about things oh, you understand! 
 just make it pleasant for him to be with me. 
 Really, Ned, Lena has n't much chance if I 
 start even with her ; we 've tried it before 
 you remember I told you all about it at the 
 time and I think she '11 quit right away and 
 want to go home, or somewhere, as soon as 
 she sees what I 'm doing."
 
 2 86 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Castleton laughed aloud. " And poor Con- 
 rad ! What 's to become of him in the midst 
 of all these sighs and glances ? " 
 
 She threw him a smiling glance, and broke 
 into a little, low laugh. " Oh, he won't mind ! 
 He 's no silly ! And he does n't care anything 
 about the ladies, anyway." 
 
 " But suppose, Fanny," her husband teased, 
 "that he should prefer Lena's methods after all, 
 and cast himself at her feet instead of yours?" 
 
 She shrugged her shoulders and turned 
 toward him with a smile trembling at the cor- 
 ners of her mouth. " Oh, in that case he 
 would quite deserve to lose his position." 
 
 "But what about me? Should I deserve 
 to lose him ? " 
 
 She tapped her horse and darted ahead, 
 throwing back a laughing retort : " Of course 
 you would, for not having married a more 
 attractive wife ! " 
 
 Later in the day Mrs. Ned Castleton was 
 busily engaged with Curtis Conrad and his 
 brother Homer in the grove of cottonwoods 
 across the road from the ranch house, show- 
 ing them where to hang the last of the Jap- 
 anese lanterns. Many people had already 
 arrived and were scattered through the grove, 
 or were wandering about the corral. Others
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 287 
 
 were in the stockade behind the house, where 
 Red Jack, Nosey Ike, and Jose Gonzalez were 
 quartering the steer for the barbecue, and 
 Hank Peters and Texas Bill were heaping 
 wood on the fire where it was to be roasted. 
 In the grove long tables had been made of 
 planks and a floor laid for dancing. The lan- 
 terns hung in festoons around the platform 
 and depended from the branches of the trees. 
 Conrad saw Bancroft, Lucy, and Miss Dent 
 driving up, and went to meet them. 
 
 Mrs. Ned Castleton beckoned to her hus- 
 band. " I 'm sure Lena is going to do some- 
 thing perfectly outrageous," she said softly 
 as they went to greet the arrivals, " some- 
 thing that will fairly knock us off our feet. 
 She has looked so indifferent and so innocent 
 all day and has been so sweet to me that I 'm 
 expecting a thunder clap every minute. I 
 hope it won't be anything disgraceful." 
 
 It was one of Mrs. Ned's important occu- 
 pations, and she considered it her chief duty, 
 for the sake, as she often told her husband, 
 " of preserving at least a shred of the Castle- 
 ton reputation," to discover the daring whims 
 of her sister-in-law and nip them in the bud 
 before they were ready to blossom upon the 
 world. Francisquita knew also that Mrs.
 
 288 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Turner enjoyed saying and doing audacious 
 things, quite as much because they shocked 
 Mrs. Ned as because they gave her a piquant 
 vogue in San Francisco society. " I won- 
 der what it is going to be," she repeated in a 
 whisper to her husband as they came back 
 with Conrad and the Bancroft party and went 
 in search of Mrs. Turner. They found her 
 sitting beside one of the tables, the centre of 
 a group of men. Lucy, looking with interest, 
 saw a large, golden-haired woman in a blue 
 linen gown, that fitted perfectly her well cor- 
 seted figure, and a blue picture hat, that 
 matched the hue of her eyes. Her complexion 
 of exquisite fairness and delicacy of coloring, 
 and features of perfect regularity and propor- 
 tion, made Lucy own to herself that she de- 
 served her reputation as " the beautiful Mrs. 
 Castleton." 
 
 !< What are we going to do all the rest of 
 the day? " Mrs. Turner presently said, hiding 
 a little yawn behind diamond-decked fingers. 
 " It is n't three o'clock yet, and it seems as 
 if it ought to be the day after to-morrow. 
 Let 's go in the house and play I 'm a barber. 
 Mr. Conrad, will you let me shave you ? " 
 
 A thrill of shocked astonishment went 
 through the group. Lucy dropped her eyes
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 289 
 
 and felt her cheeks burn and Miss Dent turned 
 uneasily away. Some of the men looked at 
 one another and grinned ; others caught their 
 breath and avoided their neighbors' eyes. 
 Conrad masked a moment's hesitation with 
 a gay laugh. 
 
 ; ' I would, with pleasure, Mrs. Castleton, 
 if I had time ; but just now I 'm pretty busy. 
 Here 's a lot of fellows with nothing to do, 
 who '11 be delighted to help you amuse 
 yourself." 
 
 Mrs. Castleton glanced up at the men with 
 a confiding smile. " I believe it 's really be- 
 cause he 's afraid ; and he need n't be, for I 
 do it very well don't I, Ned?" Her 
 brother-in-law gave gallant, if vague, con- 
 firmation, and she went on : " And he knows, 
 for I shave him every time he comes to our 
 house. But there 's too much wind out here, 
 it would dry the lather too quickly ; let 's go 
 in the house." She rose, and one of the men 
 hastened to open her sunshade, another picked 
 up her fan, a third her handkerchief, and the 
 statuesque blue figure with its group of satel- 
 lites left the grove. 
 
 "What does it mean, Fanny? Is this a 
 new fad?" Ned Castleton asked his wife. 
 (< I never heard of it before, and she took my 
 
 19
 
 290 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 breath away when she told those people she 
 always shaved me." 
 
 " You backed her up splendidly, Ned ; and 
 I think you 'd better go in now and let her 
 shave you along with the others." 
 
 " Fanny ! I 'd as soon allow her to black 
 my boots ! " 
 
 " But if she wants to, Ned ! And I don't 
 think she 'd hurt you much, because she 's 
 been practising on their butler for a month 
 so her maid told mine, though I 'd for- 
 gotten all about it. As Turner's brother I 
 really think you ought to go in and seem to 
 join in the fun, so it won't look quite so bad." 
 
 " If Lena does n't care about the looks of 
 it, why should I, or you? " 
 
 " But you ought to care on Turner's ac- 
 count. It would be dear of you, Ned, if you 
 would go in, for Turner's sake, and lend your 
 countenance to the affair." 
 
 " My countenance, Francisquita, but not my 
 face. Since you 're so anxious, dear, I '11 go 
 in and chaperon this shaving party if you '11 
 tell me the real reason why you want me to 
 do it. Is it a bargain ? " 
 
 She leaned toward him with a delighted 
 little chuckle. " Don't you see, Ned, that if 
 you go in and I stay out she '11 think that
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 291 
 
 I 'm keeping Mr. Conrad out of doors, and 
 she will be so angry about it that it will make 
 her nervous, so she will cut their faces dread- 
 fully, and that will make her freak such a 
 failure that she '11 have to drop it. Do go 
 along, Ned ; for I 'm going to keep your man- 
 ager busy for the next two hours. And, by 
 the way, dear, if you should come out and 
 not see me anywhere, it 's likely to be because 
 he 's asked me to drive to the post-office with 
 him." 
 
 She sauntered through the grove toward 
 the pond where a group of people had gath- 
 ered under a big tree. She knew that Curtis 
 was there, with the Bancrofts. Her cousin 
 Juan " Johnny " Martinez was with them, 
 and so was Dellmey Baxter. Dan Tilling- 
 hurst leaned against the tree, and beside him 
 were Emerson Mead and his young wife, from 
 Las Plumas. Judge Harlan and Colonel Whit- 
 taker, the former with his wife and the latter 
 with his daughter, had also come from Las 
 Plumas, where a political peace of unusual 
 length and stability enabled them to leave 
 town at the same time, and together. 
 
 Mrs. Castleton came smiling down the hill 
 and joined in the general talk. But in five 
 minutes the assemblage had broken into little
 
 292 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 groups of two or three, of which she, her 
 cousin, and Conrad made one. She sent Mar- 
 tinez to do some small service for Miss Whit- 
 taker, and began to tell Curtis that she feared 
 there were not lanterns enough. Would he 
 come and look at them? As they went back 
 to the grove she suggested that they might 
 get paper bags from the store at White Rock, 
 fill each half full of sand, put a candle in it, 
 and set them in rows wherever there was 
 room for them. She had often seen her na- 
 tive town illuminated in this way on festa 
 nights, and the effect was really very beauti- 
 ful. He thought it a good idea and asked if 
 she would mind driving over to White Rock 
 with him to help select the best sizes and 
 colors. Five minutes later Lucy watched them 
 driving away. " I saw how Mrs. Castleton 
 was manoeuvring," she thought with an angry 
 throb of the heart. " But it does n't matter 
 the least bit. I can have quite as good a time 
 with anybody else." 
 
 Presently she seemed greatly pleased when 
 Homer Conrad asked if she and Miss Dent 
 would like to see the horses. They made the 
 round of the stables, and went to see the an- 
 gora goats in their enclosure beyond the cor- 
 ral, and the dog kennels, and the chicken
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 293 
 
 yard. They walked across the alfalfa field, 
 and amused themselves in the prairie dog vil- 
 lage on the hillside beyond. Lucy was so 
 interested in everything, and said so many 
 bright and pleasant things, and was so viva- 
 cious, and looked so pretty with her dimples 
 and her color coming and going and her big 
 brown eyes sparkling, that Homer thought 
 her quite the nicest, jolliest girl he had seen 
 in a long time. He was much like his brother 
 in build, though less sinewy and a trifle fleshier 
 in body; while in manner he was slower and 
 less eager and alert. His eyes showed the 
 same bright blue tint, but their expression 
 was mild and trustful, while his brother's had 
 always a dauntless look, as if challenging the 
 world. His face was of the same general 
 type, but the features were not so strongly 
 marked, although he had the same firm mouth 
 and strong chin. His countenance gave the 
 impression of a character phlegmatic but 
 forceful. 
 
 That evening Lucy told Miss Dent that she 
 liked Don Homer very much, adding, " And 
 he 's been more polite and pleasant to us this 
 afternoon than Mr. Conrad himself." Mrs. 
 Ned Castleton had applied the Spanish title 
 to the younger Conrad to distinguish him
 
 294 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 from his brother, and the rest had followed 
 her example. Louise was secretly pleased at 
 this dissatisfaction with Curtis, for her aver- 
 sion to him was so great that she disliked 
 even to see them together. But she reminded 
 the girl that with so many people there he 
 could not pay much attention to special ones. 
 Lucy tossed her head and replied, " He had 
 plenty of time for Mrs. Ned Castleton." 
 
 Evening came, and with it a huge white 
 moon that poured upon earth and air and sky 
 a flood of silvery white radiance in which the 
 illuminations at the ranch shone with a mel- 
 low, golden glow. Mrs. Ned Castleton sat 
 on the edge of the porch, her guitar in her 
 lap, looking with satisfaction at the rows of 
 paper bags, each containing a lighted candle 
 in its bed of sand, set thickly upon the window- 
 sills, the adobe walls, and the tables in the 
 grove. They were not only effective, but they 
 had enabled her to keep Curtis Conrad out 
 of the hands of her sister-in-law the entire 
 afternoon. Mrs. Turner had only just gone 
 across to the grove, in the belief, subtly en- 
 gendered by Francisquita, that the superin- 
 tendent was to be found there, where most 
 of the company had gathered and the danc- 
 ing was about to begin. She knew, however,
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 295 
 
 that he was overseeing the stowing of some 
 cases of beer in the ice house in the back-yard. 
 And she had not forgotten that when he was 
 at their house in San Francisco he had been 
 much pleased by her rendering of Spanish 
 airs on the guitar. " He does n't need to 
 appear in the grove," she thought, " until 
 Lena has had time to engage several dances." 
 She began to play " La Golondrina," and as 
 the sweetly plaintive notes rose higher, Lucy, 
 looking houseward, saw a tall figure vault 
 the wall around the grass plot and disappear 
 in the shadows of the porch, whence came the 
 strains of Mrs. Ned's guitar. A little later 
 she saw them come across the road together, 
 and at once became deeply interested in the 
 talk of Don Homer, her partner, as they made 
 their way to the dancing floor. Lucy danced 
 twice with him, once with Martinez, and once 
 with Emerson Mead before she made it pos- 
 sible for Curtis to speak with her. She knew 
 he had been hovering near more than once, 
 but she would not see him, and appeared al- 
 ways to be gayly interested with her partner. 
 She gave him only one dance during the 
 evening. But, noting his movements, she had 
 seen with much bitterness of heart that he 
 danced frequently with Mrs. Ned Castleton,
 
 296 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 She began to wonder, with chill doubt in her 
 breast, if she had deceived herself in thinking 
 he cared for her. She had expected to see 
 so much of him ; and yet, except for the first 
 half-hour after their arrival, he seemed to 
 have ignored her. She began to realize that 
 she had depended much on her belief in his 
 love when she resolved to tell him the secret 
 of her father's identity. She still had con- 
 fidence that her words would turn him from 
 his purpose but it was going to be a hard 
 thing to do! 
 
 " Mrs. Ned is just amusing herself," she 
 thought angrily. " She ought to be ashamed 
 
 a married woman flirting like that ! Well 
 
 he 's not the only one ! " And before the 
 evening was over Homer Conrad had neither 
 eyes nor ears for any one but Lucy Ban- 
 croft. 
 
 The house was given over to the ladies for 
 the night. The men had a blanket apiece, and 
 all the wide outdoors in which to couch them- 
 selves. Some climbed to the flat adobe roof 
 of the house, or to the brush thatch of the 
 stables, while others declared the ground in 
 the grove good enough for them. It was de- 
 cided by unanimous outcry that the dancing 
 platform should be turned over to Dellmey
 
 PLOTS AND COUNTERPLOTS 297 
 
 Baxter and Johnny Martinez, the opposing 
 candidates for Congress. 
 
 First they all went trooping, each with his 
 blanket stringing over his shoulder, to the 
 kitchen door, where Conrad and the two 
 Castletons dispensed nightcaps of varied con- 
 coction. The women heard them talking, 
 story-telling, laughing, and now and then 
 singing a snatch from some rollicking song. 
 When the last light disappeared from within 
 the house, a group of men began singing 
 " Good-Night, Ladies." A round of vigor- 
 ous applause from the darkened windows re- 
 warded them, and they went on with " Annie 
 Laurie," " Comin' through the Rye," and 
 " How Can I Bear to Leave Thee." Johnny 
 Martinez sang a Spanish love song in a fal- 
 setto voice, and received much applause from 
 within. 
 
 The men sang their way along the win- 
 dows, up one side of the long, rambling house, 
 across the front, and down the other side. 
 They climbed to the roof, and serenaded the 
 men who were trying to sleep there, varying 
 the line or two of song accorded to each with 
 much chaffing and guying. When the last 
 straggling half-dozen of singers finally went 
 off to seek their own resting-places in the
 
 298 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 grove, they marched in single file round and 
 round the dancing floor, where Baxter and 
 Martinez had already stretched themselves, 
 and sang in a solemn croak : " John Brown 
 had one little, two little Indian boys ; one went 
 to Congress, the other stayed at home." 
 
 When peace settled at last over the Socorro 
 Springs ranch house it was near the dawn 
 of another day.
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 
 
 THE sun was high in the brilliant blue 
 heavens and blazing hot upon the 
 gray-green plain when the com- 
 pany came together in the grove the next 
 morning to listen to speeches. One or an- 
 other well-known resident of the Territory 
 was called forth, with applause and cheers, 
 to mount an improvised rostrum, where he 
 complimented the ladies, chaffed the men, told 
 funny stories, submitted to guying from the 
 audience and repaid it in kind, until he was 
 able to turn a joke upon some one else so 
 deftly that he could retreat under cover of 
 the hand-clapping and laughter and the calls 
 for the other man to step up and defend 
 himself. 
 
 At dinner they spent a jovial hour. Half 
 a dozen cowboys carried the big platters of 
 roasted meat to the tables, where they were 
 flanked by smoking dishes of frijoles and chile 
 con came, platters of bread, and piles of
 
 300 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 roasted potatoes and hard-boiled eggs. Pails 
 of lemonade and bottles of beer, just brought 
 from the ice house, were scattered down the 
 tables, and steaming pots of coffee and tea 
 passed from hand to hand. Everybody was 
 in the highest spirits; every jest or bit of 
 fun was caught, bandied back and forth, and 
 passed on with new trimmings. As they 
 gathered around the tables, Conrad asked 
 Lucy Bancroft to save a seat for him beside 
 her. She smiled at him without replying; 
 but when Homer presently came and asked 
 for the vacant place she gave him a gracious 
 welcome. 
 
 Conrad, much occupied with his duties as 
 host, soon saw that his brother was at her 
 side, paying her devoted attention, and that 
 apparently she was quite happy. " It 's all 
 right," he thought. " He '11 have time to look 
 out for her better than I could, anyway; she 
 seems to be having a good time, and that 's 
 the main thing." Yet he was conscious of 
 keen disappointment; he had seen so little of 
 her much less, he was suddenly aware, than 
 he wished. But he had been very busy. Not- 
 withstanding the planning beforehand, some- 
 thing new had been constantly cropping up 
 and demanding his attention. But Homer
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 301 
 
 had been taking good care of her, and she 
 seemed to be enjoying everything. That even- 
 ing, after the fireworks, he could surely let 
 things go for a little while, and ask her to 
 walk with him in the moonlight to the top 
 of the hill. 
 
 At that moment he was passing Mrs. Tur- 
 ner Castleton. With an inviting smile she 
 made room for him beside her. He sat down, 
 poured her a glass of lemonade, and then, 
 noticing that Emerson Mead and his wife 
 were not comfortably seated, went off to look 
 after them. Mrs. Ned, who had seen her 
 sister-in-law's manoeuvre, asked him to go 
 into the house with her to see how the lemons 
 were holding out. When they came out she 
 protested that she was starving, that he must 
 be too, and could n't they sit right down and 
 have something to eat? The seats she chose 
 were at some distance from Mrs. Turner, 
 though directly in range of her eye. They 
 chanced also to be in plain sight from where 
 Lucy was sitting. She, seeing them dining 
 together on such friendly, jolly terms, was 
 more charming than ever to Homer Conrad. 
 Her pique made the task she had set herself 
 no easier; but she held to her determination, 
 telling herself that, even if Curtis did not
 
 3 02 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 show her some attention that afternoon, she 
 would try to see him in the evening. For 
 they were to go home in the morning. 
 
 After dinner the games began. Cowboys 
 of the ranch and others from small neighbor- 
 ing ranches gave exhibitions of quick roping 
 and throwing and of broncho busting. Curtis 
 Conrad and Emerson Mead had a riding and 
 shooting match. Jose Gonzalez, dressed in 
 Mexican holiday attire of straw sombrero, 
 braided jacket, and close-fitting trousers, 
 showed his skill as an expert lasso thrower. 
 He made a picturesque figure as he stood in 
 the roadway, striking graceful attitudes and 
 making his rope leap, run, circle, and swirl 
 about him as if it were alive. The visitors 
 crowded to the edge of the grove, watching 
 and admiring. 
 
 " He 's a sure peach at the fancy racket," 
 said Dan Tillinghurst, " but I reckon Emer- 
 son Mead can flirt gravel faster than he can 
 when it comes to the real practical business. 
 Say, Emerson," he called, " can't you give us 
 an imitation of the way you slipped out of 
 Antone Colorow's rope and broke his wrists 
 before he had time to draw his noose? I 
 reckon that was a show sure worth seeing." 
 
 Those who knew the story added their
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 303 
 
 voices, " Yes, Mead ; show us how you did 
 it ! " Others who had never heard of the in- 
 cident wanted to know about it; and soon 
 everybody was talking about how a cowboy 
 once tried to rope Emerson Mead. Mrs. 
 Turner Castleton was standing beside Curtis. 
 
 " Really, Mr. Conrad," she said, " is it true 
 that they ever rope men? And why do the 
 men allow it? " 
 
 " Sometimes, Mrs. Castleton, when the men 
 who are roped can't help it." With a sudden 
 smile he threw back his head and his eyes 
 flashed. " We '11 show you the game," he 
 went on ; " Jose shall try to rope me, and I '11 
 see if I can keep out of his way. Come, Jose, 
 get your horse, and bring mine, and then do 
 your best." 
 
 The Mexican stooped to coil his rope. As 
 he rose his glance darted across the faces of 
 the crowd under the trees until it met the 
 eyes of Alexander Bancroft, standing beside 
 Dellmey Baxter, at the end of the long group. 
 Baxter saw the two pairs of eyes meet and 
 hold each other for an instant, and his curi- 
 osity was aroused. But he seemed to notice 
 nothing, and saying, " Come, Aleck, let 's go 
 and see what they 're up to now," he led the 
 way to the upper end of the grove.
 
 3 o 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 The two horsemen cantered out into the 
 open and began their manoeuvres. The people 
 crowded along at the edge of the shade, and 
 some of the men stepped out into the sunlight 
 to get a better view. Emerson Mead was 
 much interested and walked out farther than 
 the rest. The snakey rings and lengths of the 
 Mexican's rope were whistling through the 
 air, and the two men were wheeling, stop- 
 ping, rushing forward, jumping sidewise, 
 in graceful evolutions. The noose circled 
 through the space between them, poised over 
 Conrad's head, and darted downward like 
 some voracious bird of prey. An exclamation 
 ran through the intent crowd, " He 's got 
 him ! He 's got him this time ! " But the 
 superintendent jerked his horse to its hind 
 legs, swung it to one side, galloped a little 
 way, and came back laughing. " Good ! that 
 was first rate ! " Emerson Mead called out. 
 
 Jose wound his rope for another trial, and 
 cantered leisurely back and forth, making 
 sudden feints of throwing and watching his 
 employer's movements of evasion. Suddenly 
 he wheeled, charged, and threw the loop from 
 a distance of only a few paces. He had cal- 
 culated on the other's spurring forward to 
 escape; instead Conrad brought his horse to
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 305 
 
 a standstill, and the noose fell over its ears. 
 A cheer went up from the grove, and Curtis 
 turned to wave his broad-brimmed hat. In 
 the one swift glance he was aware of Lucy, 
 watching so eagerly that she had stepped for- 
 ward into the sunshine, and of his brother, 
 raising a sunshade over her head. 
 
 Gonzalez also waved his sombrero to the 
 company, and coiled his rope anew. It darted 
 out like a serpent's tongue, and this time it 
 caught Conrad unawares ; he had thought his 
 antagonist would not throw so soon and for 
 the instant was off his guard. The noose fell 
 over his head just as his horse was at mid- 
 bound. He heard it whistle as it dropped 
 past his ears, and as quick as a flash jerked 
 his pony backward to a sudden stop. Ap- 
 parently Jose had expected the horse to leap 
 forward, for, as he felt the slacking of the 
 rope, there was a dextrous turn of his wrist, 
 and a dig of his spur that sent his pony danc- 
 ing to one side. The noose tightened around 
 Curtis's neck. Instinctively he clutched it, 
 and his fingers, caught against his windpipe, 
 ground into his own throat. 
 
 ' The greaser did that on purpose ! " ex- 
 claimed Emerson Mead in a hard, swift under- 
 tone, as his hand gripped the revolver at his
 
 306 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 waistband. But Gonzalez was already be- 
 side Conrad, and lifting the noose from his 
 neck. The American choked and gasped for 
 breath once or twice. 
 
 " You you caught me square that time, 
 Jose," he said. 
 
 " We are even now, sefior," replied the 
 Mexican ; " you gave me my life once, and 
 now I give you yours. It would have been 
 only a second more; and it was plainly an 
 accident ; nobody would have known. I have 
 paid my debt." 
 
 The people were cheering. Both men faced 
 toward the grove and waved their hats. 
 ' You damned impudent coyote ! " said Cur- 
 tis through his teeth. Then he grinned, and 
 added, " But I like your nerve, though." 
 
 At the grove side the manager threw his 
 bridle to the Mexican, but turned impulsively 
 and called, " Here, Jose, wait a minute. I 
 want you to show these people how you can 
 throw the knife." A stride or two took him 
 to Jose's side. " And I '11 be your target, 
 damn you ! " he added in an undertone. He 
 walked back where Lucy, Miss Dent, and his 
 brother were standing, humming a stave or 
 two from a comic opera under his breath. 
 Homer noticed that his face was rather pale
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 307 
 
 and that his eyes were blazing, but thought 
 it due to his annoyance at having been 
 roped. 
 
 Gonzalez came back from the corral, care- 
 fully testing with his finger the edge and 
 point of his knife. Conrad, his head held 
 high, a smile on his face and exhilaration 
 in his manner, was telling the company to 
 stand a little to one side, to make sure they 
 were out of the way of the knife. As Gon- 
 zalez came up, he stepped in front of the 
 nearest tree, with the Mexican facing him 
 ten or twelve paces distant. Judge Banks 
 called to him to watch out for the knife him- 
 self, and he turned a smiling face for an in- 
 stant as he answered gayly, " Oh, I 'm all 
 right ! " In the same tone he called, " Start 
 her up, Jose! And remember, you're to do 
 your level best." 
 
 Jose's teeth shone in a gleaming smile as 
 he replied significantly, " I shall, Don Curtis ! " 
 He took an alert, graceful posture, one foot 
 set back and head thrust slightly forward. 
 The muscles of his arm were still relaxed 
 as his knife slid along his wrist and nestled 
 into place. Conrad drew himself up tensely 
 and his eyes narrowed as he fixed them upon 
 the Mexican's. For an instant they eyed each
 
 3 o8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 other; then, like a flash, Jose's arm swung 
 back. 
 
 Not until that moment did any member of 
 the company understand that Curtis was de- 
 liberately making himself a target ; even then 
 many did not realize the significance of the 
 game with death he had set himself to play. 
 Ned Castleton's face Went white, and his voice 
 died in his throat as he tried to call to Jose 
 to stop. Alexander Bancroft stared with de- 
 vouring eyes, his breath coming hard. The 
 overmastering desire for freedom and safety 
 was upon him, and he could not take his gaze 
 from the Mexican's poised figure. Louise 
 Dent, beside him, drew one gasping breath 
 and covered her face with her hands. After- 
 ward she knew that she had not done this 
 so much to shut from her eyes the next mo- 
 ment's expected sight as to hide from her 
 soul's vision the glimpse she had caught of 
 the desire springing to life in her own heart. 
 
 Homer Conrad, sitting beside Lucy, his at- 
 tention fixed upon some small damage to her 
 fan which he was trying to repair, did not 
 see what was going on until a sudden stiffen- 
 ing of her attitude and a sharp, indrawn 
 breath made him look up. She was leaning 
 forward, with face white and eyes staring and
 
 
 " LIKE A FLASH JOSH'S ARM SWUNG BACK, . . . AND CURTIS SPRANG LIGHTLY 
 ASIDE AS THE KNIFE STRUCK DEEP INTO THE TREE"
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 309 
 
 hands clenched against her breast. He fol- 
 lowed her gaze and saw the knife flash from 
 Jose's hand. His heart went sick and he sat 
 powerless to move as his eyes marked the 
 long blade, dark against the sunshine, but 
 with little sparkles on its edge, through what 
 seemed an interminable flight. 
 
 Then Curtis sprang lightly aside as the 
 knife struck deep into the tree at the level of 
 his throat, pulled the weapon out, waved it at 
 Gonzalez, and called out triumphantly, " Try 
 again, Jose ; and be quicker next time ! " 
 
 Ned Castleton sprang forward, with Turner 
 close behind, and grasped his arm. " Are you 
 crazy, Curt? " he exclaimed. " This is fool's 
 play ! We don't want any more of it ! " 
 
 ' There 's no danger," Conrad replied 
 jauntily. " I knew I could jump quicker than 
 he could throw, and I wanted to prove it to 
 him. There 's not a bit of danger ; I can 
 do it every time. But if you don't like it we '11 
 have something else. Hello, kid ! " he said 
 as Homer rushed up and seized his arm ; the 
 young man's face was pale and tears stood 
 in his eyes. ' You Ve no reason to be fright- 
 ened," Curtis went on easily. " All I had to 
 do was to watch his eyes. If there had been 
 any real danger I would n't have tried it."
 
 3 io THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Lucy Bancroft sat quite still for a few mo- 
 ments, her eyes on the ground, but presently 
 she started toward the house, contriving to 
 pass Conrad when there was no one beside 
 him. She touched his arm and he wheeled 
 toward her as if he had felt an electric shock. 
 " It was a most foolish thing to do," she said 
 in a low voice, " but you are the bravest 
 man I ever saw/' and hastened on without 
 giving him time to reply. 
 
 At night there were fireworks and dancing. 
 After the knife-throwing episode Curtis tried 
 again and again to have speech with Lucy, 
 but whenever he came near she seemed not 
 to see him, and was so interested in conver- 
 sation with her admirer of the moment that 
 he could find no opportunity. Homer attended 
 her like her own shadow. The hours hur- 
 ried past, and still, piqued and wilful, she 
 postponed making the opportunity for her 
 revelation. 
 
 Conrad was master of the fireworks ; while 
 he was busy setting off sky-rockets and mines 
 Lucy and Homer called to him that they were 
 going to the top of the hill beyond the al- 
 falfa field to see how the display looked from 
 there. It was the very walk Curtis had in- 
 tended to ask her to take with him, and he
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 311 
 
 glanced after them, keenly disappointed. But 
 he said to himself that as soon as he could 
 get the fireworks out of the way there would 
 be nothing to demand his attention for the 
 rest of the evening, and then he could surely 
 get a little time with her. 
 
 Half an hour later he saw her, through a 
 glare of red fire, setting off fire-crackers with 
 his brother and Pendleton. Dan Tillinghurst 
 had just joined them, and she turned to him 
 with a laughing threat, a lighted cracker in 
 her hand. He called to Pendleton, whose 
 pockets were bulging with packs of the 
 crackers, to see fair play and give him 
 weapons of defence. The cool night wind 
 was tossing her brown curls, her bright face 
 was full of animation, and the red light en 
 veloped her in a rosy sheen. He looked at 
 her, his face aglow with admiration, then 
 turned back to the sky-rockets. As he stooped 
 over the box he heard a scream in a girlish 
 voice, followed by the stern command, " Sit 
 down ! Sit down ! " in Dan Tillinghurst's 
 heavy tones. Springing up, he saw a white 
 heap sinking to the ground amid leaping 
 tongues of flame and the three men stripping 
 off their coats and beating the fire. He 
 rushed forward, taking off his coat as he ran,
 
 3 i2 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 and in a moment they had whipped the flames 
 down to a ring of charred muslin and flicker- 
 ing sparks. A dozen others had hurried to 
 the spot, but it was Curtis's outstretched hand 
 that Lucy took as he bent anxiously over 
 her, his arm upon which she leaned as she 
 staggered to her feet. She went at once into 
 the house with Miss Dent, and did not re- 
 appear that evening. When Louise returned 
 she explained that Lucy had gone to bed, but 
 that, except for the nervous shock, she had 
 suffered no harm. 
 
 Curtis Conrad went on sending off sky- 
 rockets and Roman candles in the amaze of 
 a new knowledge. That moment of Lucy's 
 peril, brief as it was, had revealed to him the 
 love that, unconsciously to himself, had been 
 bourgeoning in his heart throughout the 
 Spring. So absorbed had he been in his own 
 grim purpose that he had not realized the 
 meaning of his liking for Lucy and his en- 
 joyment of her society. But in the light of 
 the flames by which he had seen her circled 
 her dearness had flashed upon him its real 
 significance. When she leaned upon him as 
 she arose, it had demanded all his self-control 
 to keep from taking her in his arms. His 
 nerves were thrilling yet with the slight
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 313 
 
 pressure of her body upon his arm as she re- 
 gained her footing. So sudden and forceful 
 was the rush of his emotion that it swept 
 him from his accustomed moorings, and filled 
 heart and mind to the exclusion of every 
 other idea. Lucy Lucy Lucy he said 
 her name over and over in his innermost 
 thought, even while he danced with Mrs. 
 Turner, strolled with Miss Whittaker to the 
 hilltop, as he had wished to do with Lucy, 
 - talked with Martinez, or listened to Judge 
 Harlan's stories. The thought of her was 
 constantly with him, enveloped in a wonder- 
 ful tenderness; his memory was incessantly 
 recalling images of her as she looked leaning 
 against this tree, seated beside that table, walk- 
 ing across the road. He hovered around Miss 
 Dent until she, to escape from his attention 
 and his solicitude about Lucy, which intensi- 
 fied the aversion and resentment she already 
 felt, retired to the house early in the evening. 
 But, when all the merrymakers had gone 
 to bed and quiet had settled upon the ranch, 
 Conrad began to feel a violent wrenching of 
 his heart. When he stretched himself upon 
 the roof of the house and gazed into the sil- 
 very violet sky his lifelong purpose reasserted 
 itself. For so many years it had been his
 
 3 i4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 habit, as he composed himself for sleep, to 
 think over his plans for the pursuit of Dela- 
 field and feed his heart with the desire for 
 revenge that he quickly felt its tyranny. For 
 a moment all emotion ceased and his mind 
 stood back, aghast at itself, bewildered. Then 
 the old idea took possession again, and he 
 said to himself, almost with anger, " What 
 business have I to fall in love?" To think 
 of Lucy in connection with his own dark and 
 bloody aims was repellent, and his thoughts 
 turned away in quick reaction. Then came 
 the remembrance of Homer's devotion to her 
 and of how welcome, apparently, had been 
 his attentions. So, for that time at least, Lucy 
 and love were turned out of his heart and his 
 last waking thoughts were of his plan to go 
 to Albuquerque and Santa Fe within a few 
 days, there to run down the clews that prom- 
 ised most. 
 
 Because of all that had gone on in his mind 
 and heart as he lay on the roof that night 
 Conrad's manner toward Lucy the next morn- 
 ing was graver and more restrained than usual. 
 He was keenly alive to the magic of her pres- 
 ence, but for that he rebuked himself and 
 went near her no oftener than he could help. 
 Lucy tried in vain to find an opportunity for
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 315 
 
 private speech with him. And so the time 
 came for their departure and the fateful words 
 had not been said. " Well," she consoled her- 
 self, " he will come to see us in Golden before 
 long, and I will tell him then." 
 
 As they drove away the house was filled 
 with the bustle of leave-taking. The guests 
 who had come by rail were being driven to 
 the station at White Rock to catch the fore- 
 noon train. Others were leaving by horse or 
 carriage for Golden or Randall. As the dust 
 from the last of the departing vehicles rose 
 in thin gray stains against the vivid blue of 
 the sky Ned Castleton called to his wife from 
 the shade of the tree beside the gate. She 
 had been saying good-bye to the Bancrofts 
 and had stopped in the sun beside the adobe 
 wall to play with a horned toad that Gon- 
 zalez had caught for her. 
 
 " Fanny," he said, " I know I have n't got 
 horns, but if you '11 come here in the shade 
 I '11 prove that I can be just as interesting 
 as that toad." 
 
 She came, holding the weird little creature 
 on her palm. " Look at him, Ned ! Is n't he 
 cunning? He 's the dearest thing I ever saw 
 except you." 
 
 " Oh, thanks ; it 's kind of you not to put
 
 316 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 me in the same class. As a reward I '11 tell 
 you some news. Your little scheme for balk- 
 ing Lena's designs on Conrad has succeeded 
 perfectly. Turner has just told" me that she 
 has suddenly decided she wants to go to Santa 
 Barbara at once, and they 're leaving this 
 afternoon. I told him to go ahead, and I 'd 
 stay here a few days longer and finish things 
 up with Curt." 
 
 "That's just splendid, Ned! We'll have 
 some lovely rides, won't we? And it will be 
 such a rest not to have to keep an eye on 
 Lena. I felt sure last night that she was 
 going to give up the game and pretend she 
 hadn't been playing, because she suddenly 
 lost all interest in the cattle business." 
 
 " Of course you know, Francisquita, that 
 you have been behaving shamelessly ; but I '11 
 forgive you, because you 've saved our model 
 superintendent for us." 
 
 " Ned, you know very well that I did n't 
 do a thing but just help Mr. Conrad make 
 it pleasant for all the people except, per- 
 haps, Lena. I 'm afraid she 'd have had a 
 better time if I had n't been here. But I 've 
 been thinking this morning, Ned, that maybe 
 it wasn't necessary for me to help quite as 
 hard as I did. What do you think about it? "
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 317 
 
 " I think I don't know what you 're talking 
 about. As the cowboys say, you 've flung 
 gravel along the road a little too fast for my 
 gait." 
 
 " Ned, you 're the blindest thing ! What 
 could I mean except that Mr. Conrad did n't 
 need to be distracted from Lena, especially as 
 her methods are so broad ? " 
 
 " Well, go on, dear. We '11 get there after 
 a while." 
 
 " Go on ! Why, Ned, that 's all ! Is n't that 
 enough ? Why should a man want more than 
 one pretty girl to protect him from the de- 
 signs of a lady who well who wants to 
 shave him? You never needed anybody but 
 me." 
 
 ' True, Fanny ! But you always were equal 
 to an army in yourself, and now you are 
 equal to two which is only another way of 
 saying that you grow more fascinating every 
 day. And now I think you might be gra- 
 cious enough to tell me what you 're talking 
 about." 
 
 "Why, Ned, I'm afraid Miss Bancroft 
 did n't enjoy it any more than Lena. I was n't 
 quite sure of it until this morning; but I 
 really think, Ned, that Lena would have been 
 left out in the cold just the same if I hadn't
 
 3 i8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 hadn't helped Mr. Conrad entertain the 
 people quite so much." 
 
 Castleton laughed. " Oh, I begin to see ! 
 You are feeling the pangs of remorse because 
 you 've been putting snags in the course of 
 true love. But you needn't worry, dear. 
 Curt is n't the sort of man, if he cares any- 
 thing about her, to let a little thing like that 
 make any difference." 
 
 " But he '11 be too busy with you to go over 
 to Golden and see her again for a long time, 
 won't he?" 
 
 " Oh, we can get through this week, I 
 think." 
 
 " Good ! Then we can leave on Saturday, 
 and on Sunday he can gallop over to Golden, 
 and by that time she '11 want awfully to see 
 him and she '11 be very sorry she flirted so out- 
 rageously with Don Homer. And next Fall 
 we '11 send them a wedding present, and they '11 
 come to see us on their wedding journey, 
 she 's a dear, sweet girl, Ned, and I like her, 
 
 and I '11 explain to her why I why I 
 helped Mr. Conrad make things pleasant at 
 the barbecue, and we '11 have a jolly laugh 
 over it. There he is now, Ned ! Do go right 
 along and begin your work, so we '11 be sure 
 to leave on Saturday."
 
 THE WORD UNSPOKEN 319 
 
 When Conrad bade the Castletons good- 
 bye at the railway station at the end of the 
 week, Francisquita said to him: 
 
 ' When you see that pretty Miss Bancroft 
 again " here she gave him a significant 
 glance and then demurely lowered her eyes 
 
 " please tell her that I hope to see her 
 again, and that if she ever comes to San 
 Francisco she must let me know you can 
 give her our address. We 'd be delighted, 
 Ned and I, to help her have a good time. 
 She 's a dear, lovely girl and I 'd really like 
 to know her better." 
 
 Curtis drove home, declaring to himself 
 that Mrs. Ned was one of the most charm- 
 ing women he knew. He would ride over 
 to Golden to-morrow afternoon and deliver 
 her message. He lingered fondly over the 
 image of Lucy's slender figure standing at 
 the top of her veranda steps and smiling upon 
 him a gay and gracious welcome, and a strong 
 desire rose in his heart to know just how 
 glad she really would be to see him. But 
 the recollection of his plans for the ensuing 
 week came crashing through his pleasant 
 thoughts like a runaway horse through a 
 flower garden. For a moment the purpose 
 that held his life in thrall seemed strangely
 
 320 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 unworthy. But presently he jammed his hat 
 down on his head and, with compressed lips, 
 said savagely to himself: 
 
 " No ; the Delafield affair is my first love, 
 and I '11 stay with it.' 5 As he thought over 
 his plans and hopes for the immediate future 
 his heart grew hot again with the old in- 
 dignation over all that ruin and struggle, 
 and the old purpose regained its accustomed 
 vigor. 
 
 After a little, nevertheless, he decided that 
 he would ride over to the Bancrofts' the next 
 day and deliver Mrs. Castleton's message. It 
 would do no harm for him to see Lucy oc- 
 casionally, in the friendly way in which they 
 had always met.
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 
 
 THAT evening, while they sat and 
 smoked on the little porch, Curtis 
 Conrad told Homer of his lifelong 
 quest. It was the younger man's first knowl- 
 edge of the motive that had been so potent in 
 his brother's life. He listened in silence while 
 his pipe went out, and sat quite still after the 
 other ceased. " Well, Curt," he said at last, 
 with a little tremor in his voice, " this yarn of 
 yours knocks me silly. I can't say I 'm pleased 
 with it, at least at first view. It does n't seem 
 sensible." 
 
 Curtis laughed good-naturedly. " Very 
 likely, Homer ; I did n't expect it to appeal 
 forcibly to a sensible, practical chap like you. 
 I haven't told you before because there was 
 no use bothering your young head with it 
 when the round-up seemed so far away; but 
 I 'm mighty near the end of the trail now, 
 and you 've come to a man's age and ways 
 of thinking; so I thought it best to tell you. 
 
 21
 
 322 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 There 's a possibility, of course, that I '11 get 
 the worst of it when the mix-up does come; 
 and in that case I 'd like you to know what 
 it was all about. But I 'm not considering 
 that sort of chance as likely to happen." 
 
 " But what do you expect to gain by it, 
 Curt, and why do you want to kill the 
 man?" 
 
 Curtis slowly lighted a fresh cigar. ''' Well, 
 Homer, if you don't see why, it 's no use for 
 me to explain." 
 
 " I know there 's a big difference between 
 us temperamentally; but I don't believe that 
 would keep me from appreciating your motive 
 if it had any basis in right or expediency. 
 Good God, Curt, look at the thing sensibly! 
 Suppose you kill the man when you find him. 
 What earthly good will that do you ? You 'd 
 probably hang for it, or go to the penitentiary 
 for years. And it seems to me the chance is 
 all the other way. Whoever the man is, he 
 must know you 're after him ; and you '11 find 
 him ready and loaded. If you 're not killed 
 you 're likely to be badly wounded perhaps 
 lose an eye or a leg and what can you gain 
 by it? Bless me if I can see any use or sense 
 or right in the whole business." 
 
 Curtis Conrad rose and walked slowly and
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 323 
 
 with bent head the length of the porch and 
 back, his hand resting for an instant on his 
 brother's shoulder as he passed. He stood re- 
 garding abstractedly the lightning that was 
 playing among some low-lying clouds above 
 the Hatchet Mountains, far to the southwest. 
 " One night, soon after father and mother 
 died," he began, in a tone so low that Homer 
 could barely catch his words, " I lay awake 
 almost all night, thinking. You were a little 
 shaver barely out of kilts, the girls were 
 young things with their dresses half way to 
 their knees, and I was only fifteen. I had 
 taken you into bed with me because I was 
 afraid you 'd wake up in the night and feel 
 lonesome and, perhaps, because I did n't 
 want to feel quite so lonesome myself. I 
 made plans for hours about how we could 
 get along and the things I meant to do. You 
 tossed in your sleep, and threw one of your 
 hands against mine. My fingers closed over 
 it, and you gripped one of them fast. Some- 
 how, that grip went to my heart, and I prom- 
 ised myself and you that I would do all I 
 could to make up to you the loss we had suf- 
 fered. I thought of what father had planned 
 for me; and I knew that I should have to 
 give all that up. As I thought of the man
 
 3 2 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 who had robbed us of everything money, 
 opportunity, father and mother I trembled 
 with anger. 
 
 " I had never used an oath until that night. 
 But I sat on the side of my bed, when I 
 could n't lie still any longer, and clenched my 
 fists and cursed him, mildly at first and under 
 my breath, then aloud and in the reddest lan- 
 guage I could think of. As I damned his soul 
 to the hottest corner of hell it seemed to me 
 that he ought to be made to suffer in this 
 life, too, and I said aloud, ' I would like to 
 kill you ! ' The words sounded so plain that 
 they frightened me. But I said them over 
 again, and the next moment the thought 
 leaped up, 'And I will, too, if I live ! ' That 
 was how the idea was born in my mind. It 
 struck root and grew, and I Ve held to it ever 
 since." 
 
 Homer nodded. " Yes ; I can understand 
 how you would hold to a thing you 'd made 
 up your mind to do; I'd hold on just the 
 same way. We Ve both got the bull-dog grip ; 
 it's one of the Conrad characteristics. But 
 even a bull-dog can let go when he knows 
 he should n't hold on any longer." 
 ^ Curtis smiled grimly. " Not always ; some- 
 times you have to pry his jaws loose.
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 325 
 
 Nevertheless, I could let go if I wanted to. 
 But I don't want to, and I don't propose 
 to. The thing has become part of my life, 
 of me, of my very blood." 
 
 " Have you been working at it all this time, 
 Curt?" 
 
 " Oh, of course I could n't do much while 
 I was a boy except to think and brood over it. 
 But during that time I learned all I could 
 about Delafield, his schemes, and his per- 
 sonality. I read every newspaper I could 
 lay hold of that had anything in it about 
 him ; I Ve got them all yet. But I did n't 
 do much in the way of actually chasing 
 him down until after the girls were married 
 ten years ago. After that I earned and 
 saved more money, and was free to go 
 about as I wanted. Since then I Ve spent 
 all the time and money I could spare in 
 hunting him. 
 
 " I had a schoolmate named Littleton who 
 became a detective when he grew up. We 
 were good friends, and when he happened to 
 find out that I was nosing around in my own 
 way he offered to help me. I was to pay him 
 what I could, and he would put in time on 
 this when he had nothing else to do. Between 
 us we tracked Delafield all over the West and
 
 326 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 into Canada, back and forth, and under nearly 
 a dozen different names. I don't think he got 
 as much money out of his Boston smash as 
 he was charged with taking, but he got a 
 good lot ; and he 's since made and lost two or 
 three good-sized fortunes. Most of the time 
 he has been a mining expert, and has owned 
 and dealt in mines ; the fact that he 's stuck 
 pretty close to that business has made it easier 
 to follow him. Once, in Arizona, we lost the 
 trail completely. It was as if the earth had 
 opened and swallowed him; for a while we 
 thought he must be dead. Later we discov- 
 ered his tracks in Utah, under a new name. 
 Since then there have been several gaps of 
 that sort ; but we 've always managed to light 
 on him again after a while. 
 
 " My last knowledge of him is that he is liv- 
 ing somewhere in this Territory, a well-to-do 
 and respected citizen, prominent in politics, 
 and a supporter of Dellmey Baxter for Con- 
 gress. The rest of it will be easy ; there '11 
 be a quick chase and an early show-down be- 
 fore there 's time for another deal. I Ve got 
 my eye on two men, both of whom fit that 
 description. They live up North, and I 'm 
 going up to Albuquerque and Santa Fe next 
 week to look up their records. If it 's either
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 327 
 
 one of them, Delafield will meet his deserts 
 before he 's many days older." 
 
 Silence fell upon them. Curtis leaned 
 against a pillar of the porch and watched 
 the clouds rising higher over the mountains. 
 " It looks as if the rainy season was about 
 to begin at last," he said in a matter-of-fact 
 way. Homer rose and stood with a hand 
 on his shoulder. They looked so much alike 
 in the moonlight that at a little distance it 
 would have been difficult to say which was 
 the younger and which the elder brother. 
 
 " I don't need to tell you, Curt," he said 
 in a tone rich with earnest feeling, " how 
 grateful I am for all you 've done for me, nor 
 how well I know at what cost to yourself 
 you 've done it. You 've been father and 
 mother and brother and best friend to me 
 all in one. If I ever do anything worth while 
 the credit will be yours quite as much as 
 mine. You know I 'm not ungrateful or un- 
 appreciative, don't you, Curt? I can under- 
 stand how this thing has come to obsess you, 
 since you 've explained how it took root in 
 your mind before your ethical ideas were 
 settled. But I can't sympathize with you in 
 this search after vengeance, and I can't ap- 
 prove of what you are planning to do. It
 
 328 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 seems to me you ought to be able to see 
 things straight by this time and shake off 
 your obsession. If you want to find the man 
 and hand him over to the proper authorities 
 that 's all right ; I 'd help you in that my- 
 self ; it 's right that he should be punished 
 and made to give up what he has to his 
 creditors. But to take revenge into your own 
 hands, Curt, and to take it at the cost of 
 everything desirable for yourself why, the 
 thing is so mad that it bewilders me to think 
 it 's you that 's doing it. I wish I could per- 
 suade you to give it up." 
 
 Curtis shook his head emphatically. " You 
 need n't waste your breath, Homer. I rather 
 hoped you'd understand better how I feel 
 about it, and see the whole affair a little more 
 as it looks to me. But you 're different ; and 
 if you can't, you can't, and that's all there 
 is about it. But it's useless to try to per- 
 suade me to give up my plans. A thing that 
 you 've thought about and dreamt about and 
 planned and worked for through fifteen years 
 gets to be part of your very blood, my boy, 
 and it's not so easily cast aside." 
 
 "Well," said Homer, "you are you; and 
 if you've got to do this thing I suppose 
 it can't be helped." He paused, thinking
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 329 
 
 intently. " But when you go North next 
 week if one of those men proves to be 
 Delafield you won't at once He 
 stumbled over his words, unable to put his 
 brother's purpose into plain speech. 
 
 Curtis took up his meaning. " No ; not im- 
 mediately. I 've got to come home again 
 first." 
 
 " Then you '11 be back here before you do 
 anything? That's sure, is it, Curt?" asked 
 Homer, relief in his voice. 
 
 ' Yes ; sure. I 've got some important 
 business that I promised the Castletons I 'd 
 attend to the week after, and I '11 take no 
 chances till I get that fixed up for them." 
 
 The next morning there was a promise of 
 rain in the air and the sky. A dome of 
 pale, bright gray, resting on murky supports 
 of cloud, had taken the place of the usual 
 heaven of vivid blue. But the wind, blow- 
 ing warm and strong from the west, bore 
 little moisture upon its wings, and the air 
 was laden with an electric tingle that stretched 
 and jarred unaccustomed nerves. 
 
 Hank Peters and Jose Gonzalez were work- 
 ing in the corral when Curtis Conrad came 
 across from the door of his room to give them 
 some directions. Presently he asked if they
 
 33 o THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 or any of the boys had seen anything lately 
 of the gray wolf that had skulked about the 
 neighborhood earlier in the season. Nosey 
 Ike, they said, had seen it only the day be- 
 fore in the second draw on the road toward 
 Golden. 
 
 " He did ? " exclaimed Curtis. " I 'm going 
 to Golden to-day, and perhaps I can get a 
 crack at it. I '11 be home by six o'clock, 
 Peters, and I want to talk with you to-night 
 about some work at Adobe Springs to-morrow. 
 But to-day 's Sunday, boys, and we 've come 
 finally where we can stop and take breath 
 once a week. You fellows can do anything 
 you like to-day." 
 
 Peters thought he 'd sleep all day, for he 
 had n't caught up since the barbecue ; but 
 Jose wanted to visit a Mexican family who 
 had a little ranch beside a spring on the road 
 to Golden. 
 
 " All right," said the superintendent. 
 " Take whichever one of the ponies you 
 want, but be sure to get back to-night." 
 
 " Curt," said Homer when they sat down 
 to breakfast, " if you 're not going to use 
 Brown Betty to-day, would you mind if I rode 
 her over to Golden? Or wouldn't you like 
 to go with me ? I 'm going to call at the
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 331 
 
 Bancrofts' to see if Miss Bancroft has re- 
 covered from the shock she had the other 
 night." 
 
 Curtis hesitated a moment as he poured 
 their coffee, his own plan rising before him 
 invitingly. But he remembered how pleased 
 the two young people had seemed to be with 
 each other and recalled his own resolution: 
 " Let the lad have a fair field," he thought. 
 
 " Brown Betty ? Certainly, Homer," was 
 his reply. " I '11 see that she 's ready for you. 
 I can't go because I must ride down to Adobe 
 Springs to see about some work the boys must 
 do there to-morrow. Give my regards to the 
 Bancrofts. By the way, Mrs. Ned Castleton 
 gave me a message for Miss Bancroft that 
 I '11 let you deliver." 
 
 As Homer mounted for his journey he cast 
 an anxious glance at the wet-looking clouds 
 against which rose the purple-blue, statu- 
 esque masses of the Mogollon Mountains, 
 and asked, "Is it going to rain?" 
 
 " It will sure rain in the mountains," re- 
 plied his brother, " if it is n't pouring down 
 by the bucketful there already. There may 
 be a shower in Golden, but the creek will get 
 on the rampage anyway, and maybe carry 
 away some of the bridges. We shan't get
 
 332 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 any here right away, but it 's coming, thank 
 God! I tell you, Homer, it's been a cruel 
 thing to see the cattle dying like flies on ac- 
 count of the drouth. For a while last Spring 
 I thought of throwing up this job, I hated 
 so to see the suffering of the poor brutes." 
 
 For a while all the man in Curtis Conrad 
 clamored in revolt as he galloped southward 
 across the silent, empty plain and thought of 
 Lucy smiling a welcome from her veranda 
 steps and not upon him. His love called 
 imperiously, demanding that he make trial of 
 its strength. Should he give up the girl he 
 loved without an effort, even though his rival 
 be his brother? The primeval man in him 
 was quick with the desire to take her in his 
 arms and bear her away from all the world. 
 But it was not long until he was saying 
 grimly to himself, " What have I to do with 
 love-making and winning a wife? The Dela- 
 field affair is my business, and I 'd better stick 
 to it." 
 
 He pondered over the conversation with his 
 brother on the previous evening, feeling more 
 keenly Homer's condemnation of his purpose. 
 He remembered that every one with whom 
 he had spoken about the matter had sought 
 to dissuade him. Bancroft disapproved, and
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 333 
 
 had begged him many times to desist. Miss 
 Dent called it unworthy of him. Now his 
 brother, upon whose sympathy he had counted, 
 condemned both his feeling and his intention. 
 Nevertheless, he was surely right. It was 
 easy for them to talk, for they had not suf- 
 fered from the man's crimes, they had not 
 struggled as he had, and they had not spent 
 years in the effort to find Delafield and cast 
 his sins in his face. But still, his cherished 
 purpose had lost a little of its savor. He 
 thought of his journey northward, which he 
 so ardently hoped would consummate his 
 years of effort and desire, and there was not 
 quite the usual pleasure in his mental fore- 
 cast. He put the thought of Lucy behind 
 him and went over once more that early 
 struggle and the birth of his purpose, brought 
 more vividly to mind by the talk with Homer, 
 and soon the old ideas and intentions recov- 
 ered their accustomed sway. By the time he 
 galloped homeward in the late afternoon his 
 indignation was once more hot and seething 
 and his mind full of zest for his approaching 
 journey. 
 
 He found Homer in the corral unsad- 
 dling Brown Betty and humming a college 
 tune. " Say, Curt, I think I '11 go hunting
 
 334 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 to-morrow/' said the young man as they 
 walked across to the house. " I want to see 
 if I can't get a shot at that gray wolf you 've 
 been telling me about. As I was coming 
 home your Mexican cowboy had sighted it 
 not far from the road, in that valley beyond 
 the hill yonder, and was just about to shoot 
 when I had the bad luck to come along and 
 scare the thing away." 
 
 Curtis looked up with quick interest. 
 "Jose? What was he doing? Did he 
 shoot?" 
 
 " He jumped from his hiding-place just as 
 I came along, so suddenly that the mare shied 
 and nearly threw me. He was just ready to 
 shoot he said the beast was only a little 
 way down the draw and saw me barely in 
 time to throw up his revolver and send it off 
 at the sky. By that time, of course, the wolf 
 was out of sight. I 'm going back there at 
 daybreak to-morrow to see if I can get a crack 
 at it." 
 
 Just then Gonzalez came riding into the 
 corral, and Curtis moved his chair to the 
 doorway, in front of his brother. " All right, 
 Homer, I wish you would," he said; " it would 
 be just a tenderfoot's luck, you know, if you 
 should get it." He was rolling a cigarette,
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 335 
 
 but keeping one eye on Jose, who was caring 
 for his horse. ;< Was there much rain in 
 Golden to-day?" he asked. 
 
 " Yes ; quite a storm, with lots of fireworks ; 
 I never saw such lightning or heard such 
 thunder in my life. There must have been 
 a flood farther up in the mountains, for the 
 creek came down that ravine fairly booming, 
 just as you said it would. It swept away one 
 of the bridges and washed out parts of the 
 foundations of two or three houses. But it 
 soon went down again." 
 
 'Was the bank building injured?" Curtis 
 asked, still following with narrowed eyes the 
 movements of Gonzalez. " It 's in a danger- 
 ous spot if a really bad flood ever does come 
 down that valley." 
 
 "The First National? That's Bancroft's 
 bank, is n't it ? Yes ; it lost some bricks out 
 of the foundation, and the ground was washed 
 away a little. Nothing of consequence." 
 
 ' Well, that has happened several times 
 already; some of these days it will happen 
 once too often. Long ago, I 'm told, the 
 street and sidewalk had to be moved to the 
 other side of the houses for a block or two 
 along there. You remember the creek elbows 
 toward the bank. If a great mass of water
 
 336 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 ever comes down that canyon it will rush 
 straight against the side of the building 
 and the lives of whoever happens to be inside 
 won't be worth two switches of a cow's tail." 
 
 "I talked with Mr. Bancroft about that 
 possibility to-day," said Homer, "and he 
 doesn't think the situation is dangerous." 
 
 "Yes; nobody in Golden believes there's 
 any danger. And they may be right. They 
 say there is n't as much .rain now as there 
 used to be, and that cloud-bursts of any con- 
 sequence are as rare as six-legged calves. It 
 will all depend on the weather." 
 
 The next morning Jose Gonzalez was hitch- 
 ing up to drive the men to Adobe Springs 
 when Conrad walked up, leaned carelessly 
 against the wheel, and looked him in the eye. 
 The Mexican returned the gaze unflinchingly 
 but respectfully. " Jose," said Curtis in a low 
 tone, " you made a mistake about that wolf 
 last night, didn't you? It wasn't the wolf 
 you thought it was when you made ready to 
 shoot, was it? " 
 
 An amused gleam lighted for an instant 
 Jose's sombre eyes. " It might have been as 
 you say, Don Curtis," he answered cautiously. 
 
 " I don't want any might-have-beens ; I 
 want to know if you are making war on my
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 337 
 
 brother as well as on me. It 's all right about 
 me, but I won't have anything of the sort 
 where he 's concerned. I want the truth, 
 Jose. Is anything of the kind going to hap- 
 pen again ? " 
 
 Gonzalez looked at Conrad squarely as he 
 earnestly replied : " It was a mistake, Don 
 Curtis; I swear to you it was a mistake. 
 Your brother looks much like you, it was 
 your mare, and you had said you would be 
 back from Golden about that hour. I saw 
 it was Don Homer barely in time. After this 
 I shall be more careful." 
 
 Conrad grinned at the closing sentence, and 
 the Mexican scarcely repressed an answering 
 smile. " Well, I am going away to-day," said 
 Curtis, " to be gone for several days. So it 
 won't be necessary for you to make any mis- 
 takes while I 'm gone." 
 
 Jose looked up in quick alarm. " You are 
 not going to Don Dellmey ? " he exclaimed. 
 " He is not the one who wishes your death ! " 
 'What do you say, Jose?" the other de- 
 manded, starting forward eagerly. 
 
 " I swear to you by the Mother of God, 
 Don Curtis," said the Mexican, with voice 
 intense and manner most earnest, " that it is 
 not Sefior Baxter who desires your death."
 
 338 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 "Are you speaking the truth, Jose?" 
 
 " I will swear it on the crucifix, Don' 
 Curtis!" 
 
 Conrad gazed at him steadfastly, and the 
 conviction entered his mind that Gonzalez was 
 speaking the truth. A look of puzzled wonder 
 overspread his face. " In the name of God, 
 then, who is it ? " he said, half aloud. The 
 Mexican shrugged a shoulder and turned 
 away. 
 
 :< Who can it be?" the manager repeated, 
 to himself, but still loud enough for the other 
 to hear. " It must be Delafield ! " he ex- 
 claimed. Jose's ear caught the words, and 
 he listened as his employer went on: "He 
 knows I 'm after him, and he 's trying to kill 
 me first. If I could only make this coyote 
 greaser tell me who his patron is, I 'd know 
 who Delafield is. I 'd like to choke it out of 
 you, you son of perdition ! " He looked so 
 fiercely at Gonzalez that the Mexican took a 
 threatening step forward. 
 
 ' You need n't worry," Conrad exclaimed 
 contemptuously. " I know you would n't tell, 
 even if I choked the life out of you trying to 
 make you peach. It 's your patron I 'm after." 
 Jose stooped to hitch the traces, and Curtis 
 broke out impulsively: "I say, Jose, what
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 339 
 
 makes you do this sort of thing? You 're as 
 square as they make 'em in most things; 
 why do you go into this damned rattlesnake 
 business ? " 
 
 Gonzalez looked up with a confiding smile. 
 
 4 The patron wishes it; and why not? If 
 
 I kill a man he gets me off if he can, and 
 
 then that is all right. If he can't, I pay for 
 
 it in prison and that is fair." 
 
 " Huh ! " grunted the superintendent as he 
 walked away. " So you think you are going 
 to pay for me that way, do you? Well, I 
 guess not ! " 
 
 The same train that carried Conrad north- 
 ward to Santa Fe carried also a brief and 
 hurried letter to Dellmey Baxter which Jose 
 Gonzalez had found time to write before he 
 and the rest started for Adobe Springs, mail- 
 ing it as they passed White Rock station. 
 
 ' You will see Sefior Conrad in Santa Fe," 
 the Congressman read in his office the next 
 morning, " but you need not be anxious. I 
 have sworn to him that it is not you who de- 
 sires his death, and he believes me. I heard 
 him speak to himself, and he said it must be 
 Delafeel who wishes him dead. He said he 
 would like to choke out of me who my patron 
 is, for then he would know who Delafeel is.
 
 340 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Don Curtis is a very brave man. I like him 
 much." 
 
 Baxter chuckled over the closing sentences 
 as he tore the letter into bits. Poking them 
 musingly with a fat forefinger he thought: 
 " It 's a sure bet that his patron just now is 
 Aleck Bancroft; and that makes it look as 
 if Aleck might be this mysterious Delafeel 
 I '11 have to find out who Delafeel is and what 
 he 's done some time or other ; then I sure 
 reckon I '11 have a cinch on Aleck that will 
 keep him from trying to step into my shoes 
 as long as I want him to keep out." He 
 looked out of his window into the little tree- 
 filled plaza, cool and green in the morning 
 sunlight, and saw Curtis Conrad walking 
 across it from the hotel on the other side. He 
 took a six-shooter from his pocket, made sure 
 of its cartridges, and replaced it. From a 
 drawer in his desk he took another, examined 
 its chambers, and laid it on his desk, under 
 an open newspaper. A moment later he was 
 rising from his chair with outstretched hand 
 and beaming smile. 
 
 ''' Why, how do you do, Mr. Conrad ! I 'm 
 sure glad to see you. How did you leave 
 things down in old Silverside? That was a 
 high old time we had at the barbecue, was n't
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 341 
 
 it? Have the Castletons gone yet? A fine 
 figure of a woman is Mrs. Turner Castleton ! 
 And I tell you right now it was a great shave 
 she gave me ! " The Honorable Dellmey Bax- 
 ter rubbed his cheek, and chuckled. But his 
 right hand rested on his desk, close beside 
 the newspaper which he had apparently just 
 thrown down. 
 
 " Mr. Baxter," said Conrad, ignoring the 
 stream of questions and remarks, " some 
 weeks ago I wrote you, saying frankly that 
 I believed you responsible for attempts against 
 my life, made by a Mexican who had come 
 from you to me. I find myself mistaken, and 
 I have come to apologize to you for my 
 suspicions." 
 
 " That 's all right, Curt, that 's all right! " 
 Baxter broke in, relief apparent in his coun- 
 tenance. " I '11 admit I felt hurt by your in- 
 sinuations, but as long as you 've found out 
 you were wrong and are willing to do me the 
 justice of saying so, it 's not worth speaking 
 of again." 
 
 " Understand," Curtis went on, " that I 'm 
 not taking back or apologizing for anything 
 else I J ve said about you, and I 'm still shout- 
 ing for Johnny Martinez for Congress." 
 
 " Johnny is to be congratulated for having
 
 342 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 your support," Baxter rejoined genially ; " I 
 wish I could get it away from him. Has that 
 measly greaser made any more attempts on 
 your life, my dear Conrad ? You 're too good 
 a citizen for the Territory to lose in that 
 way." 
 
 Curtis smiled carelessly. " I don't think my 
 life is in any danger. No damned greaser 
 will get the chance to stick me in the back 
 when I 've got both eyes shut and one foot 
 tucked up in my feathers, if I 'm onto his 
 game. I don't care anything about Jose; it 's 
 his patron I 'm after." 
 
 " His patron! " exclaimed Baxter in appar- 
 ent surprise. " You don't mean to say that 
 Jose's got a patron in that business ! " His 
 visitor nodded and the Congressman went on : 
 ' You don't say so ! I did n't suppose you 
 had an enemy in the Territory. This is in- 
 teresting! We must get at the bottom of 
 this, Mr. Conrad, for we can't afford to lose 
 you. Have you any idea who 's behind the 
 greaser? " 
 
 Curtis considered a moment. He might get 
 some information from Baxter that would 
 help him; it would do no harm to speak 
 cautiously. "Yes, and no, Mr. Baxter. I 
 know who he used to be, but I don't know
 
 NARROWING THE QUEST 343 
 
 who he is now. His name used to be Dela- 
 field, back in the States." 
 
 " Delafield Delafield," mused Baxter. 
 He had got the conversation where he wanted 
 it. "I don't remember having heard that 
 name in New Mexico." 
 
 ' That has n't been his name for a good 
 many years. Don't you remember the Dela- 
 field affair in Boston, some fifteen years 
 ago Sumner L. Delafield, who made a big 
 spread in the financial world, defaulted, and 
 ran away? " 
 
 'Why, of course!" The Congressman 
 brought his fat fist down on the table with 
 a thump. " The Delafield affair! Yes; I 
 remember it, and how Delafield slid out and 
 covered up his tracks completely. And you 
 say he 's living in New Mexico now ? " 
 
 ' Yes ; he 's a rich, prominent, and re- 
 spected citizen of New Mexico. But I 
 have n't discovered which one of 'em, and he 
 does n't want me to find out. My father 
 lost all he had in the smash." 
 
 They talked a little longer, and Curtis 
 learned enough about the history of the two 
 men he had in mind to be satisfied that neither 
 of them was the one he sought. 
 
 After Conrad went away, Baxter leaned
 
 344 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 back and folded his hands across his waist- 
 coat, his left eyelid drooping and his face 
 beaming with smiles. " Now," he thought, 
 ''' I 've got Aleck Bancroft exactly where he 
 can do me the most good ! "
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 
 
 AS July sped on Homer Conrad's visits 
 A\ to Golden grew more and more fre : 
 quent. When Curtis returned from 
 his northern journey, still ignorant of Dela- 
 field's identity, Homer was greatly relieved, 
 and tried once more to dissuade his brother. 
 " Anyway, Curt," he urged, " don't do any- 
 thing more about it now. Let it rest a while, 
 and think about it more coolly and carefully; 
 you '11 see how foolish it is if you do that." 
 As Curtis did not mention the subject again, 
 he concluded that his advice had been taken 
 and that there was no reason for immediate 
 anxiety. His mind at rest on that score, he 
 devoted himself more than ever to Lucy Ban- 
 croft. He talked -of her so much to his 
 brother that Curtis soon saw how complete 
 was his absorption. :< I guess they 're hitting 
 it off together all right," he concluded. 
 
 Curtis Conrad tried to accustom himself 
 to the idea of Lucy as his brother's wife. It
 
 346 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 cost him many a painful twinge, and once the 
 rebellious thought came into his mind, " If 
 it hadn't been for the Delafield affair I 
 might " But a little shock, as if he had 
 fallen away from some ideal or been guilty of 
 an irreverence, stopped the notion. Now and 
 then, too, he had misgivings as to what Lucy 
 would think of him if she knew. He shrank 
 from the feeling that her condemnation would 
 be as unsparing as his brother's, with more 
 of horror and disgust. For the first time he 
 began to think about what might lie beyond 
 that longed-for meeting with Delafield. One 
 day, musing upon Homer and Lucy, he had 
 a sudden vision of himself as a commiserated 
 kinsman, and smiled grimly as he reflected, 
 " It might be a good thing for them if I got 
 my quietus in the scrimmage." 
 
 These signs of a change slowly going on 
 within him sometimes came as a flash of feel- 
 ing, while again the thoughts induced held him 
 for hours. The emotion that had so power- 
 fully rushed over him when he first realized 
 his love for Lucy had jarred his grip upon 
 his purpose ; and afterward intimate daily as- 
 sociation with his brother and knowledge of 
 the young man's severe disapproval united to 
 move him now and then from his old point
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 347 
 
 of view and to give him brief visitations of 
 more wholesome feeling. If his love for Lucy, 
 so suddenly realized, had met with no check, 
 it alone might have been enough in time to 
 turn him from his plans. A man of his 
 temperament cannot be fired by two enthusi- 
 asms at the same time. He must give him- 
 self wholly to his absorbing desire. Since at 
 the core Conrad's nature was sound and sweet, 
 it is likely that after a little his love would 
 have overmastered his desire for revenge. 
 But Lucy's flirtation with his brother, induced 
 by pique and' disappointment at his constant 
 association with Mrs. Ned Castleton, and 
 Homer's prompt infatuation had led him to 
 believe that the two younger people were in 
 love with each other. Consequently he did 
 his best to restrain his own feelings, and so 
 limited their check upon the older sentiment. 
 Francisquita little knew, or would ever guess, 
 what grave consequences were flowing from 
 her innocent effort to keep her sister-in-law 
 within bounds. But for that the outcome of 
 the Delafield affair would have been " another 
 story." 
 
 Conrad returned from Santa Fe much dis- 
 appointed by the failure of the clews that had 
 promised so much. He debated whether it
 
 348 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 would be worth while to try to compel Gon- 
 zalez to disclose the name of his employer 
 should the Mexican attack him again. He 
 was doubtful of the success of such a plan, 
 for he believed Jose as likely to give up his 
 life as his secret. Nevertheless, he decided 
 it would be worth trying. For several weeks 
 after his return it chanced that whenever he 
 went from home it 'was with Peters or some 
 of the men, while there was always somebody 
 about the corral and the house. He knew 
 Gonzalez was watching him constantly, await- 
 ing the moment when they should be alone. 
 Toward the end of July he made up his mind 
 to provide the opportunity and bring matters 
 to a focus. 
 
 On the day he reached this decision his 
 brother returned from Golden looking de- 
 jected. " They 've quarrelled/' was Curtis's 
 inward comment. He said nothing, nor did 
 Homer mention Lucy's name, contrary to his 
 custom of talking much about her after a day 
 in her society. He was also less talkative 
 than usual upon other subjects. During the 
 evening, while Curtis read, Homer sat by the 
 open door and smoked in gloomy silence, 
 listening to the pouring rain and the rolling 
 and echoing thunder. He was wondering,
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 349 
 
 half in lover's anger and half in lover's down- 
 heartedness, why Lucy had been so unrea- 
 sonable that day, and why she had acted as 
 if she did not care whether he came or stayed 
 away. Well, he would not trouble her with 
 his company again very soon. He and Pen- 
 dleton had been talking about a camping and 
 hunting trip in the Mogollon Mountains, and 
 he would see if they could n't get up the party 
 and go at once. 
 
 The next morning a sky of pure, deep, bril- 
 liant blue shone over a freshening, greening 
 plain. Homer rose from the breakfast table 
 and walked out into the corral, throwing back 
 his shoulders and breathing deeply of the dry, 
 cool, exhilarating air. It seemed a different 
 world from that of yesterday. There was no 
 hurry about the camping trip, after all. " I 
 think I '11 ride over to Golden," he said to his 
 brother, " and see if that storm last night did 
 much damage. It looked black in the moun- 
 tains when I was coming home in the after- 
 noon, and a bad flood may have come down 
 the ravine." 
 
 Curtis smiled quizzically. A certain eager 
 masterfulness in the young man's air brought 
 to his mind conviction of the real purport of 
 his brother's errand, and he felt no doubt of
 
 350 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 its result. " A good idea," he assented. " It 
 was a bad storm and may have done a lot of 
 harm. But I '11 have to use Brown Betty 
 myself to-day. You can have your pick of 
 the others." 
 
 He stood by and called out, " Good luck, 
 old fellow ! " as Homer mounted his horse, and 
 laughed and swung his sombrero as the other 
 turned away a blushing face. Curtis gazed 
 after him, a swift vision filling his mind of 
 the look that countenance would wear when 
 he returned to tell him proudly that he had 
 won Lucy's promise to be his wife. " And 
 by that time I 'm going to know who Dela- 
 field is," he thought, his lips compressed, as 
 he turned quickly into the corral. 
 
 ' Jose," he called, " I want you to go to 
 Adobe Springs this morning and see if any 
 of the cattle are mired in the overflow from 
 the storm last night. Then deepen the outlet 
 so the water will all be carried away. You 'd 
 better start at once. I '11 come after you in 
 about half an hour and show you about dig- 
 ging out the outlet." 
 
 As Gonzalez mounted his horse at the corral 
 gate he looked back and saw Conrad standing 
 beside his mare, making her hunt through his 
 pockets for sugar. " A brave man is Don
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 351 
 
 Curtis," his thoughts ran. " He is so brave 
 it does not seem right that he must die. 
 But " and he shrugged his shoulders with 
 the air of one who says, "What would you? " 
 When Jose was well out of sight Conrad 
 started after him, at first at a slower pace 
 than usual. His mind was not upon the ex- 
 pected encounter, with its doubtful issue, nor 
 upon the information, so long and ardently 
 desired, that he hoped to extort from the 
 Mexican. A month previous he would have 
 been intent on that one thing, his thoughts 
 absorbed in it, and his heart on fire with an- 
 ticipation. Now he dwelt upon the idea of 
 marriage between Lucy and Homer. " The 
 lad 's a better man than I," he was thinking. 
 ' There 's more in him, and ten years from 
 now I shan't be able to stack up alongside of 
 him and make any showing at all even if 
 I 'm not in prison or hanged by the neck until 
 dead long before." 
 
 He bared his brow, curiously white above 
 the rest of his sunburned face, to the south 
 wind. His lips tightened and his eyes glowed 
 as he looked out over the gray road stretch- 
 ing before him, while his inward vision flashed 
 down the grim and lonely path that led into 
 the future. It was the way he had chosen,
 
 352 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 the one he had travelled with eager feet for 
 fifteen years, and he must follow it to the 
 end. A few miles farther on that gray track, 
 perhaps just beyond that next hill, the longed- 
 for knowledge was awaiting him. He would 
 force it from Gonzalez, and then Delafield ! 
 The thought fired his heart once more and 
 his eyes blazed with the old indignation as his 
 mind went back to the grief and loss of his 
 early years, to that lonely night of hate and 
 anger when his deadly purpose was born. He 
 touched Brown Betty with his spur, quicken- 
 ing her pace to a smart gallop as he searched 
 the road and plain with ardent eyes. His 
 heart was bounding forward with anticipa- 
 tion, the savor of longed-for vengeance once 
 more strong in his throat. In front of him 
 lay a wide, shallow valley, with steep, storm- 
 torn rims and brows shaggy with mesquite. 
 
 " I reckon, Betty B.," he said aloud, " it 's 
 about time to be looking for Jose, and this 
 draw seems a likely sort of place for him." 
 
 He drew his revolver, glanced at its cham- 
 bers, held it across the pommel in his right 
 hand, and made sure of the handful of cart- 
 ridges he had put in his pocket on leaving 
 home. Brown Betty cantered across the bot- 
 tom of the valley and, as she climbed the steep
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 353 
 
 bank on the other side, lifted her Head and 
 neighed. From somewhere in the distance 
 came an answering whinny. " It 's one of 
 our horses," thought Conrad. 
 
 At the hilltop he carefully searched the 
 plain; a little way down the road, beside a 
 clump of bushes, he saw a riderless horse. He 
 chuckled. " Jose 's sure hiding out around 
 there somewhere," was his instant conviction. 
 His head was high, his eyes flashing, and his 
 face set in hard lines as he started the mare 
 forward at a brisk trot. His gaze travelled 
 toward the other horse, studying every bunch 
 of mesquite and questioning every clump of 
 amole and yucca that grew between. 
 
 His eye caught the motion of branches in 
 a tall, spreading thicket of mesquite a hun- 
 dred yards away, not far from the road. 
 They swayed against the wind for a moment, 
 trembled back and forth, and then bent be- 
 fore the breeze like their fellows. The growth 
 was dense, but behind it he could distinguish 
 the outlines of a darker mass, and an instant 
 later he saw a tiny flash of light reflected 
 from some small, bright object. " That must 
 be the sun on his gun-sight," said Curtis, 
 " and I reckon it 's time to prepare for 
 war." 
 
 23
 
 354 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Dismounting, he threw the mare's bridle 
 over her neck. " No ; she '11 follow me," he 
 thought, " and she does n't need to mix up 
 in the Delafield affair." 
 
 His eye still on the suspicious clump of 
 bushes, Conrad fastened the mare to an 
 outreaching mesquite limb at_ the roadside. 
 " This is a better place for you, Brown Betty, 
 nice old girl," he said, reaching back to pat 
 her neck as she nickered after him. 
 
 His pistol in his hand and his vision hold- 
 ing the dark object behind the feathery green 
 plumes of the mesquite, he went on briskly 
 until he had covered half the distance between 
 them. Then he saw the object move cau- 
 tiously a little to one side, where the leaves 
 were not so thick. Plainly visible now were 
 the straw sombrero, the dusky face below it, 
 the outline of the body, and the revolver held 
 steadily between the branches. 
 
 Half a dozen strides more, and he fixed his 
 eyes upon those of Gonzalez, dark and bril- 
 liant, gleaming through the scant, fern-like 
 foliage like two coals of brown fire. Conrad's 
 six-shooter pointed straight between them as 
 he walked slowly toward the bush. He knew 
 that Jose's was levelled at his breast. Re- 
 volver cocked and finger at trigger he came
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 355 
 
 on, his eyes holding those of the Mexican. 
 Jose's pistol hand he disregarded, trusting to 
 his perception of the change, the instant's 
 flash of decision, that would light Gonzalez's 
 face when he pulled the trigger. He knew 
 that, should he stumble or miss his footing 
 and so give advantage, or should any hesi- 
 tation show in face or eye, that second would 
 the Mexican's bullet fly for his heart. 
 
 It was Curtis's intention not to hurt Jose 
 unless the need became imperative. There- 
 fore he did not fire, but came silently on, and 
 Gonzalez stood, silent and still, behind the 
 sheltering bush, each with pistol cocked and 
 held at steady aim, the gaze of each holding 
 insistently that of the other. It was a silent 
 duel of eyes, of wills behind the eyes, of pur- 
 poses behind the wills, and of temperament 
 behind the purposes. 
 
 " Will he never shoot? " Conrad asked him- 
 self once and again as he approached. 
 
 " A brave man ! A brave man ! " was Jose's 
 thought as he watched that steady advance, 
 secure in his own advantage. 
 
 Curtis came on with resolute step fifteen 
 yards, a dozen yards, ten yards. Barely a 
 score of feet separated the muzzles of the 
 two revolvers, and still the blue eyes and the
 
 356 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 brown stared into each other with dauntless 
 challenge. 
 
 " Why does n't he shoot ? " thought Jose. 
 " A brave, bold man ! It is a pity to kill 
 him." 
 
 " A moment more, and I '11 have him ! " 
 exulted Conrad. Fifteen feet, twelve feet, ten 
 feet still the space between them lessened, 
 and still the silence was unbroken and their 
 guns at unchanging aim. 
 
 Another step, and Curtis saw Jose's eyes 
 waver ; another, and heard him draw a little, 
 gasping breath. He saw irresolution flash 
 across the Mexican's face, saw his finger leave 
 the trigger, his right arm tremble, and drop 
 to his side. 
 
 Conrad felt cold sweat break out over his 
 body and there was a loud buzzing in his ears. 
 Yet neither in face nor eyes was there a sign 
 that he had seen any change. With his gaze 
 still fixed on the other's downcast lids, he 
 moved sidewise around the bush, and stood 
 beside Gonzalez. 
 
 " Give me your gun, butt first," he com- 
 manded in a low, tense voice. Jose raised his 
 eyes to meet the muzzle of the gun looking 
 blankly between his brows. 
 
 " You can take it if you like, Don Curtis,"
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 357 
 
 he said unsteadily. " I am not going to shoot 
 you. Here it is." 
 
 " Now/' said Curtis, pointing both guns at 
 Jose's head, " tell me the name of the man 
 who hired you to kill me." 
 
 The Mexican started in surprise. He 
 shrugged his shoulders, looked at the guns 
 again, shuffled his feet uneasily. " Don Cur- 
 tis, how can I ? " he exclaimed in a reproach- 
 ful tone. " You should not ask that question. 
 It is not fair." 
 
 " Neither was it fair for you to try to stick 
 me in the back before I was onto your game. 
 So we 're even now, as you told me once be- 
 fore. You've got to tell! I don't want to 
 kill you, Jose; but, by God! I will, if you 
 don't give up that man's name. I '11 give you 
 one minute to think it over ; and if you don't 
 speak out then, I '11 blow your head off." 
 
 Gonzalez sent one searching glance into 
 Conrad's set face, and dropped sullen eyes to 
 the ground. He knew there was only one 
 thing to do if he wished to live. For half 
 the minute he stared downward, then looked 
 blankly up at Curtis. " Fifteen seconds more," 
 said the stern voice. His face worked, his 
 lips opened and closed again. Then he seemed 
 to gather himself together for the unwilling
 
 358 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 effort, and the words fairly rushed from his 
 mouth : 
 
 " It is your friend, Senor Bancroft." 
 
 " What ! " exclaimed Curtis, in a voice that 
 had sunk back into his throat. 
 
 Gonzalez repeated his words. Conrad 
 leaned forward, white with anger, and thrust 
 the two revolvers close to the other's face. 
 " Jose," he said slowly, in hard, sharp tones, 
 " a little while ago a man told me that. I 
 shook him as if he 'd been a dog and told 
 him that he lied. I ask you once more, the 
 last time, who is it? " 
 
 Gonzalez threw back his head, crossed his 
 arms, and looked his antagonist angrily in 
 the eye. " I am not a liar, Don Curtis," he 
 said proudly. '' I may kill sometimes, if my 
 patron wishes. But I do not lie." He placed 
 the muzzle of one of the pistols against his 
 heart. " I have told you the truth, Senor 
 Conrad," he went on. " I swear to you, by 
 the Mother of God, that I could not say dif- 
 ferent if you pulled that trigger now." 
 
 Conrad trembled and his white face went 
 suddenly crimson. " It is hard to believe," 
 he said ; but he lowered the pistols. " I know 
 you are not a liar, Jose, and you seem to be 
 speaking the truth. You understand, don't
 
 THE SILENT DUEL 359 
 
 you," he added in a tone almost apologetic, 
 " that it is hard for me to believe what you 
 say?" 
 
 " It is the truth, sefior." 
 
 Curtis put his own pistol away, and looked 
 thoughtfully at the other. " Jose," he said, 
 " I shall have to think about this thing. In 
 the meantime I 'm going to keep your gun." 
 
 " As you like, Don Curtis," replied Gon- 
 zalez, indifferently. " I shall do nothing more. 
 To-morrow I shall ask for my time." 
 
 Conrad eyed him keenly. " Well, then, 
 here 's your gun. Go on to Adobe Springs 
 and do the work, as I told you. To-morrow 
 morning, if you want it, you can have your 
 time." 
 
 Jose took the gun, turned the cylinder, and 
 one by one dropped the bullets to the ground. 
 
 " It is ended, Don Curtis," he said. Mount- 
 ing his horse, he galloped down the road.
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 
 
 CONRAD stood still and stared at the 
 Mexican's lessening figure, galloping 
 down the road. Presently he walked 
 across to his mare, stroked her nose, and said 
 softly, " By God ! Betty B. ! " For some min- 
 utes he gazed at her abstractedly, swearing 
 under his breath, and now and then mutter- 
 ing, " Aleck ! Aleck Bancroft ! " Coherent 
 thought was not yet possible. He felt that 
 Jose had told him the truth, and yet he could 
 not believe it; between the opposing convic- 
 tions his mind lay dazed and inactive. He 
 mounted and turned Brown Betty's nose 
 toward home, riding at a foot-pace with his 
 head down and his attention all indrawn. For 
 a mile or two the mare plodded on quietly. 
 At last, resenting the lack of the companion- 
 able attentions her master was accustomed to 
 bestow upon her when they rode alone, she 
 snorted several times and switched her tail 
 vigorously, flicking his legs. There was no
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 361 
 
 response. She whinnied softly, waited a little, 
 and tried it again. Still her rider was silent. 
 So she stopped, lifted her head, and neighed 
 loudly. Conrad aroused himself. ' What is 
 it, Betty?" he said, looking searchingly around 
 the plain. Nothing was in sight save its usual 
 silent habitants. He dismounted, and exam- 
 ined her anxiously. She nipped him play- 
 fully, nickered gently, and poked her nose into 
 his coat pocket. 
 
 " Betty B., you 're a rogue ! " he exclaimed, 
 pulling her ear. " You 're just lonesome and 
 want me to talk to you ! My, but you 're 
 spoiled ! " He stroked her neck affection- 
 ately, then suddenly leaned against her, buried 
 his face in her mane, and a single deep breath 
 that was half a sob shook his body. " Betty ! " 
 he muttered, " to find that your best friend is 
 the damnedest villain that ever went unhung!" 
 
 The little episode with the mare broke up 
 the paralysis that staggering surprise had 
 set upon both thought and feeling. As he 
 mounted again his heart was hot and his 
 mind working rapidly. ' The damned vil- 
 lain ! " he exclaimed savagely, " to be pre- 
 tending such friendship with me when he 
 knew what he had done ! " 
 
 He spurred Brown Betty to a gallop. The
 
 362 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 tyrannous habit of mind engendered by long- 
 wonted thought and desire urged him on to 
 face at once the man who had despoiled his 
 father and deprived him of his birthright. 
 The old anger and hate surged over him, and 
 his pulses beat swift and hard. For a while 
 he forgot the personality of the enemy he 
 had run to earth at last. Through his set 
 teeth came whispered curses of hatred and 
 contempt, and his tongue clung to the shame- 
 ful epithets he longed to throw in the fellow's 
 face. Not fast enough could he ride to keep 
 pace with his desire. Revenge, so long fed 
 with hope and promise, was calling to be 
 sated. " Faster, Betty, faster ! " he called to 
 the mare, spurring her on. 
 
 But the very violence of his mood presently 
 induced the beginning of reaction. He re- 
 membered who it was that he was riding so 
 fast to expose and strike down. " Aleck ! 
 Aleck Bancroft ! " he murmured, and slowed 
 the mare's racing feet. The tenderness and 
 loyalty of friendship raised still, small voices 
 in his heart. Once again the thing staggered 
 him. It seemed incredible. In the depths of 
 his heart was conviction that Jose Gonzalez 
 had told him the truth. But could he go to 
 his best friend with such a charge, to taunt,
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 363 
 
 insult, and challenge to death, on the word of 
 a Mexican assassin? The idea repelled him. 
 And he was glad of the misgiving, unwilling 
 to believe that the quest he had followed with 
 such eager determination was leading him to 
 the door of Alexander Bancroft. " I ought 
 I ought to have confirmation, I suppose," 
 he said to himself, uncertainly. And so, still 
 undecided, feeling that it was truth and yet 
 unwilling to believe, he came to the gate of 
 his own corral. After he had unsaddled and 
 stabled Brown Betty, he went through the 
 kitchen for a drink of water from the big 
 olla, wrapped in a wet coffee sack, that stood 
 always in the drying wind and the shade of a 
 tree beside the door. 
 
 Mrs. Peters came in from the store-room 
 with a panful of potatoes. " Hank had to 
 go to White Rock this morning," she said, 
 " and he brought some mail for you. It 's 
 on your desk." 
 
 Conrad passed through the series of rooms, 
 opening one out of another, to the front. On 
 his desk lay some papers and a single letter. 
 "Littleton!" he exclaimed as he hastily tore it 
 open. He read: 
 
 " MY DEAR CURT : I have at last got for you 
 the information we 've been searching for so long."
 
 364 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 His eyes eagerly rushed over the next few 
 lines. 
 
 " I have satisfied myself that the man we 've 
 been trailing all these years is Alexander Ban- 
 croft, a banker and prominent man in New Mex- 
 ico, who lives at Golden, is that place anywhere 
 near you ? and for a number of years has been 
 considered one of the most solid, upright, and in- 
 fluential citizens of your Territory." 
 
 The letter dropped from Curtis's fingers 
 and his heart gave a great thump that sent 
 the blood in a crimson wave over his face. 
 " My God, then, it 's true ! " he said aloud, 
 and sat for a moment gazing at the letter 
 in the same stupefied way he had looked after 
 Gonzalez's retreating figure. A grim smile 
 twisted the corners of his mouth as he 
 read on. 
 
 " You may know him. Delafield's history as 
 we've got it now makes his case one of those 
 curious romances of detective work whose equal 
 could hardly be found in fiction. We missed long 
 ago the clew that would have led us to success, 
 in those gaps in his trail we never tried to fill, 
 because we came upon his tracks again so easily 
 a little later. While working on another case 
 recently I had occasion to look through an omni- 
 bus bill passed years ago by an Arizona legislature.
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 365 
 
 It contained an astonishing ruck of things, and 
 among them was a section authorizing William 
 J. Brown to change his name to Alexander Ban- 
 croft. I knew that William J. Brown was one of 
 the names under which Delafield had once traded 
 in mines down there, and that, when we next 
 found him .after he had dropped that name, it 
 was as John Smith, when he went down into old 
 Mexico with John Mason Hardy. This name of 
 Bancroft, sandwiched in there, and with such pains 
 to legalize it, when we had found no track of it 
 elsewhere, made me prick up my ears. I looked 
 deeper into the matter and found that he had used 
 this name of Bancroft only when he went to visit 
 his wife and daughter, who lived most of the time 
 in San Francisco or Denver, and were known by 
 that name. When last we had track of the man, 
 before I ran across Rutherford Jenkins, it was, 
 you will remember, as Henry C. Williams, and 
 then we lost all trace of him. That was because 
 he went then on a visit to his wife and daughter 
 in Denver and stayed there for some months. He 
 had made a good clean-up about that time and in- 
 creased it by some lucky trading on the Denver 
 stock exchange. Then he went to New Mexico, 
 kept the name of Bancroft, engaged in other busi- 
 ness as well as mining, and settled down to be 
 a permanent citizen. 
 
 " I congratulate you upon the successful termi- 
 nation of our long chase. I understand Bancroft
 
 366 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 is a man of considerable property and I hope 
 you will be able to make him disgorge some of 
 the goods he stole so long ago. I have written 
 this much hurriedly, just to give you an outline of 
 my discoveries at once. But I have all the neces- 
 sary proofs, and whenever you want to bring the 
 case to trial they are at your service." 
 
 Conrad folded the letter carefully, and put 
 it in his pocket. He sat quite still, whisper- 
 ing "Aleck! Aleck Bancroft!" Presently 
 his face went red again and starting up he 
 hurried into the corral and threw the saddle 
 again upon Brown Betty. Outside the gate, 
 scarcely looking which way he went, he headed 
 the mare toward Golden and galloped away, 
 across the hills, and into the distance. He 
 never knew just where or how far he rode 
 that day. Afterward he remembered that 
 sometimes he had galloped along a road and 
 sometimes across the trackless plain, that 
 sometimes he had found himself urging Betty 
 to her utmost speed and again had traversed 
 miles at a walk or had stood for a long time 
 stock-still. 
 
 When he left the house the old idea that 
 had enthralled him so long was clamoring 
 in his heart. That may have been why, un- 
 consciously, he rode at first down the road
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 367 
 
 toward Golden. " It was not enough for him 
 to take all my father had, life as well as 
 money, and to make me drudge through my 
 youth, but now he must set a hired killer upon 
 me to stick me in the back ! " So galloped 
 his angry thought as Brown Betty's hoofs 
 sped over the ground toward Bancroft's home. 
 ' Why did n't he come out in the open like a 
 man and tell me who he was, and let us fight 
 it out on the square? To send a man to live 
 under my roof, and hire him to rope me, or 
 stick me, or shoot me from ambush! And 
 to pretend to be my good friend all the time! 
 Coward ! Thief ! Murderer ! " 
 
 Then, somehow, through his seething mind, 
 for the first time came the remembrance of 
 Lucy, and quickly followed the idea that per- 
 haps Bancroft had gone about it in this secret 
 way to save her from all knowledge of his 
 disgraceful past. He checked Brown Betty's 
 gallop to a walk. " He knew I was after him, 
 hot-foot," now ran Curtis's thought, " and he 
 sure had the right to head me off if he could. 
 But he ought to have done it on the square ! " 
 He remembered the warnings Bancroft had 
 given him about Gonzalez and about the 
 danger of pursuing Delafield, and chuckled 
 unmirthfully. " I reckon he was squaring
 
 3 68 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 himself to his own conscience," he said 
 aloud. 
 
 Conrad looked about him and saw that he 
 was on the road to Golden. Then came the 
 flashing idea that he was on his way to kill 
 Lucy's father. Instantly his feeling revolted. 
 Whirling the mare's head he struck off across 
 the plain to the eastward and after some miles 
 struck the road to Randall. By that time he 
 was pondering painfully the matter of Lucy 
 and Homer. That evening, without doubt, 
 Homer would come home, proud and happy, 
 and tell him that he and Lucy were engaged. 
 And this would be his wedding present to 
 the girl he loved and the brother he had cared 
 for almost since babyhood the dead body 
 of her father! 
 
 Then came pelting back the memory of his 
 own wrongs, and Brown Betty was sent scud- 
 ding down the road as remembrance and habit 
 again lashed his heart. He turned about and 
 raced back along the road toward Golden, 
 hot with the old memories and sore with 
 the newly discovered duplicity of his friend. 
 " Even if I don't kill him," he thought, " I '11 
 tell him what he is ! I '11 throw his villainy 
 and his cowardice in his face ! I '11 tell him 
 he 's a sneak and a coward, and to draw if
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 369 
 
 he dares ! " His imagination rushed on 
 through the scene and showed him, at the 
 end, Bancroft's bleeding body at his feet. 
 
 With a shudder he wheeled the mare 
 abruptly, turned from the road, and went 
 galloping across the plain to the south. He 
 began to understand that he could not kill 
 Lucy's father. A sudden bright recollection 
 came to him of how she looked that Spring 
 afternoon when she and Bancroft had stopped 
 at the ranch; how she turned to him in the 
 wind, holding her wide hat down beside her 
 face, and said gayly, " I assure you, Mr. Con- 
 rad, the most superior quality of father to be 
 found anywhere in the United States ! " And 
 Bancroft seemed as fond of her as she was of 
 him. Yes ; there was unusual love and devo- 
 tion between them. Brown Betty was walk- 
 ing more slowly now ; and after a while Curtis 
 realized that she was standing still in the 
 middle of the plain with the road nowhere in 
 sight. And at the same time it was borne 
 in upon him that he did not wish to kill Lucy's 
 father, that the idea had become repugnant 
 to him. 
 
 He turned to seek the road, saying to him- 
 self, "What, then, shall I do?" The wish 
 was still strong within him to make Delafield
 
 370 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 suffer punishment for his misdeeds, to make 
 him atone by his own suffering for all that 
 Conrad himself had suffered. There was still 
 the law. " Homer said he would help me if 
 I wanted to go at it that way," thought 
 Curtis. That recollection helped his self- 
 justification for a moment, then his thoughts 
 went on : " But of course he would n't do 
 anything of the sort now ; and he would n't 
 want me to, either." It occurred to him that 
 such a course as that would bring to Lucy 
 as much pain as would her father's death. 
 She was so proud of him and believed in him 
 so thoroughly. " It would break her heart 
 if she knew all this about his past," he de- 
 cided. Homer, too, how deeply hurt he would 
 be to have Lucy's father disgraced and Lucy 
 herself made utterly wretched ! " The lad 
 would never forgive me," he muttered. Pres- 
 ently he was telling himself that Lucy must 
 never be made to suffer the shame and un- 
 happiness of such a disclosure. Nor should 
 Homer ever know the truth about Delafield's 
 identity. He must be able to love and respect 
 his wife's father. 
 
 With a loving smile Conrad recalled some 
 of Lucy's indignant remarks about Baxter's 
 dealings with the Mexicans of the Rio Grande
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 371 
 
 valley, and saw again her winsome look as 
 she tossed her curly head and her brown 
 eyes sparkled. Then quickly came the self- 
 questioning: What would she think of him 
 if she knew the purpose that had been ani- 
 mating him all his life? Whether it was her 
 father he had tracked or another, how hor- 
 rified she would be if she knew she had made 
 such a man her friend ! He blushed crimson, 
 and pricked the mare to a faster pace. The 
 old longing for revenge, the old belief in the 
 rightfulness of his course, the old sense of 
 satisfaction in his purpose it was all dying 
 hard, but he had come to where he could see 
 it as it looked to others. He began to feel 
 ashamed. 
 
 Still, it was difficult to give up the feeling 
 that Delafield should be made to suffer some 
 sort of retaliation for the wrongs he had in- 
 flicted upon others. Conrad pondered it as 
 he rode aimlessly about, still smarting under 
 the thought of Bancroft's deception during 
 the last few months. He might go to the 
 banker and have it all out by word of mouth. 
 But as he considered that course with cool 
 mind he reached a pretty firm conviction that 
 shots from one or the other, or both, would 
 end the interview. Bancroft was not likely
 
 372 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 to submit tamely to insult from him. And 
 much shame and sorrow for Lucy and Homer 
 would result. He did not want them to suffer. 
 His head lifted and his lips tightened. " I '11 
 give up the whole thing before I '11 let it cloud 
 their happiness," he said aloud. Then he fell 
 to thinking why Bancroft had tried to strike 
 him down secretly. 
 
 " I reckon he was doing his best to head 
 me off in a way that would save him from 
 disclosure and prevent Lucy from knowing 
 anything about it," he thought. "Well, I 
 can't blame him for wanting to keep it dark, 
 at this stage of the game. But why did n't 
 he come and tell me, like a man ! " Suddenly 
 he began to recall the sort of things about 
 Delafield and his own expectations that he 
 had been accustomed to say to Bancroft, and 
 smiled grimly. 
 
 " Lord ! I think likely I 've given him some 
 pretty bad minutes! And I reckon what I 
 said did n't invite his confidence. Good God, 
 what a life the man must have lived all these 
 years! It must have been plain hell since 
 he 's known I was on his track and has had 
 to listen to the things I Ve said ! " 
 
 Compassion for the man he had hounded 
 and, all unknowingly, had so often reviled to
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 373 
 
 his face, began to soften Curtis's heart. He 
 thought of all the years of wandering, the 
 frequent change of name, the ups and downs 
 of fortune, the devious and sometimes crooked 
 ways through which he had traced Delafield, 
 and again he exclaimed aloud : " Good God, 
 what a life ! He must all the time have been 
 wanting to get back where he could be settled 
 and respectable! But he didn't dare try it 
 while he was afraid of detection and punish- 
 ment. And finally he believed he 'd got there, 
 I reckon, and was preparing to be happy 
 with his daughter and then I came along! " 
 Again he mused, for a long time, while the 
 mare took her own pace. At last he lifted 
 his head and said aloud: 
 
 " I guess he 's had his share of punishment 
 after all; and I 've been responsible for a lot 
 of it. Sumner L. Delafield, we '11 call it quits !" 
 
 Brown Betty was standing still in the middle 
 of the road. The sun was dropping down the 
 west, toward masses of sparkling, fleecy white 
 clouds that piled the horizon high. Ten miles 
 away he could see the green groves of Socorro 
 Springs and the white glimmer of the build- 
 ings. He drew a long breath and looked 
 alertly about. The load he had carried so 
 many years had slipped from his back. No
 
 374 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 longer had he any desire for revenge, and 
 in his heart glowed compassion rather than 
 hatred for the man he had tracked with such 
 determination. He felt a curious exhilara- 
 tion as he sat there looking about him, while 
 the mare shifted her weight from one foot to 
 another. 
 
 "Well, Betty B.," he said, patting her 
 neck, " you and I have had a devil of a time 
 to-day, have n't we, old girl ? But we 've 
 come through all right, thank God! And 
 nobody is ever going to know a word about 
 it, Betty ; so don't you give it away. We 're 
 going home now, and you shall have the best 
 supper we can find." 
 
 At the ranch his first inquiry was for 
 Homer. The young man had returned an 
 hour before. Surprised that he was not in 
 beaming evidence, Curtis went in search of 
 him and found him in his own room, bend- 
 ing over his trunk, his belongings scattered 
 about as if a cyclone had been swirling within 
 the four walls. 
 
 ;< Why, Homer," exclaimed Curtis, stopping 
 in astonishment at the door, " what are you 
 doing?" 
 
 Homer lifted a dismal face. " I 'm pack- 
 ing up. I 'm going away."
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 375 
 
 "Why, lad, what's the matter? I 
 thought " Curtis stopped, hesitating and 
 embarrassed. 
 
 Homer energetically jammed some books 
 into a corner of the trunk, and from its 
 depths took up the unfinished sentence. 
 ' Yes ; so did I. That is I hoped. But 
 it was n't so. She she says she 's never 
 going to leave her father that he needs 
 her that she 's always going to stay with 
 him." 
 
 ' Yes," said Curtis, lamely ; " I know she 's 
 very devoted to him." He stopped; Homer 
 went on with his packing. "I I suppose, 
 lad," the elder brother stumbled on, in kindly 
 tone, " it hurts now, but you '11 get over it 
 after a while." There was silence again while 
 Homer threw a litter of neckties, collars, and 
 handkerchiefs into his trunk. " I 'd like you 
 to stay here all Summer with me," Conrad 
 went on presently, " but if you think you 'd 
 be more comfortable somewhere else, it 's all 
 right. I understand." 
 
 Homer looked up. "I 'm going to Denver. 
 I Ve got a classmate up there whose father 
 I know will give me a job till college opens 
 next Fall." 
 
 Curtis walked out into the corral and leaned
 
 376 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 upon the gate. Would there be a chance for 
 him, then? Likely not, for she had surely 
 shown more favor to his brother than to him. 
 But he would try. His heart rose at the pos- 
 sibility. Yes, he would try. He looked at 
 his brown, sinewy hands and thought of 
 Lucy's little white ones lying in them. 
 ''Thank God, they're free from blood!" he 
 said to himself with solemn gladness. Then 
 the crimson dyed his face. Even if Lucy 
 cared for him, which he hardly dared to hope, 
 would she marry a man who had so long 
 guided his life by such purposes as he had 
 cherished? " But I'll tell her," he thought 
 with grim determination, " just how bloody- 
 minded I 've been. It will likely spoil my 
 chance if I have any but she must first 
 know just what I am. I '11 tell her all about 
 it, without giving a hint of who the man is 
 that I 've followed. And after that well, 
 I '11 feel that I 've been square about it, 
 anyway." 
 
 The sun was setting, and the whole sky 
 was ablaze with its glory. The fleecy white 
 clouds of two hours before, which had 
 mounted higher and multiplied themselves 
 many times, had become mountains of glow- 
 ing color, masses of sea-shell tints, wide
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 377 
 
 expanses of pink and pearly gray, hearts and 
 beckoning hands of flame. Curtis gazed at 
 the glowing kaleidoscope of the heavens, feel- 
 ing its gorgeous beauty mingle with the 
 thankfulness that filled his heart. It was 
 good to be done with all those old ideas and 
 feelings and to have come out of it without 
 ruining anybody else's life. 
 
 Through the crimson and purple lights and 
 shadows that enveloped the plain he saw Gon- 
 zalez galloping up the road, a fine, graceful, 
 centaur-like figure. 
 
 "Jose," said Conrad as Gonzalez entered 
 the corral, and his tone struck the Mexican 
 as being unusually gentle, " I know that you 
 spoke the truth to me this morning. But 
 what you told me shall go no further. Mr. 
 Bancroft shall never know that you told me, 
 and neither he nor anybody else shall suffer 
 harm because of it. There is no longer any 
 need of a feud between you and me, and I 
 wish you would stay and work for me. It 
 is n't every day that I can get hold of a cow- 
 boy that knows enough to hit the ground with 
 his hat in three throws." 
 
 Jose smiled, and shook his head. " No, 
 Don Curtis. I like you much, and you are 
 a very brave man. You are a braver man
 
 378 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 than I am. But to-morrow I am going back 
 to Santa Fe." 
 
 " Well, then, if you won't stay I '11 give you 
 your time whenever you want it. But, I say, 
 Jose, why don't you give up this rattlesnake 
 business ? You 're on the level every other 
 way ; and you 're too good a fellow to dis- 
 credit all your race with this sort of work 
 when you could be a first-class cowboy if 
 you wanted to." 
 
 The Mexican looked at him with a wonder- 
 ing smile, shook his head, and went on into 
 the corral. Conrad strolled to the little porch 
 at his front door, stood there a moment watch- 
 ing the sunset colors ; then, with his head in 
 the air, went inside and sat down at his desk. 
 He began a letter to Rutherford Jenkins : 
 
 " I have found that you told me the truth in that 
 interview we had in your room in the hotel at 
 Albuquerque some months ago. I do not know by 
 what mysterious dispensation of Providence this 
 strange thing happened, but I acknowledge now 
 that it was the truth. I still maintain, however, 
 that my final remark to you on that occasion was 
 absolutely correct. 
 
 " I suppose you have been using this informa- 
 tion about Mr. Bancroft's previous life to black- 
 mail him. I advise you to stop it and to let him
 
 REFLECTION AND REACTION 379 
 
 alone hereafter. If you don't, I tell you right now 
 that you will surely wish you had. I shall take 
 pains to find out whether or not you heed my warn- 
 ing, and if you don't I promise you that you will 
 soon be able to sympathize with a skunk after a 
 cowboy has thrown at it a can of oil and a blaz- 
 ing stick. Yours truly, 
 
 " CURTIS CONRAD."
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 
 
 A CLERK brought the morning mail, 
 and as Alexander Bancroft took the 
 handful of letters, his eye caught 
 the handwriting of Rutherford Jenkins. 
 Apprehension seized him. Had that crea- 
 ture found some new screw he could turn? 
 His hand trembled as he tore open the en- 
 velope. For a moment he felt distinct relief 
 when he found nothing more than a demand 
 for additional money. Jenkins reminded him 
 that the first of August was approaching, and 
 added that he was obliged to ask for double 
 the amount he had previously received on the 
 first of the month. The feeling of thankful- 
 ness that the letter contained nothing worse 
 passed quickly, as he realized that he would 
 be afraid to refuse the demand, that he would 
 not dare to refuse anything Jenkins might 
 ask. The full weight of his chains was upon 
 him, and he swore between set teeth as he 
 tore the letter angrily into bits and dashed
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 381 
 
 them into the waste-basket. Impotent rebel- 
 lion was still smouldering in his eyes when 
 a knock came at his door and Dellmey Baxter 
 entered. The Congressman's round, smooth 
 face was beaming and his fat hand grasped 
 Bancroft's with hearty greeting. But the 
 droop of his left eyelid was marked and his 
 gray eyes were cold and hard. They had a 
 prolonged conference about the various en- 
 terprises in which they were jointly interested, 
 and about the progress and prospects of Bax- 
 ter's campaign in the southern part of the 
 Territory, where Bancroft was his chief 
 lieutenant. 
 
 " I tell you, Aleck, you 're handling it fine," 
 said Baxter finally, with friendly enthusiasm. 
 ' You 're bringing Silverside and the whole 
 south right into line in great shape ! I 'm 
 free to say, Aleck, that you 're doing better 
 for me than I could do for myself. You have 
 a remarkable knack for handling people, and 
 everybody has confidence in you. We 've got 
 the party in this Territory where we want 
 it now, and if I decide to quit Congress 
 after another term or two, as it 's likely I 
 shall, I '11 see to it, Aleck, that you step 
 into my shoes if you want to." He went 
 on to ask what certain of his supporters
 
 382 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 and his opponents were doing, and presently 
 inquired : 
 
 " And your young friend Conrad does he 
 still think I have horns and hoofs ? He came 
 to see me in Santa Fe recently, and apolo- 
 gized for having accused me of being at the 
 bottom of that Mexican's attack on him. 
 From what he said to me," the Congressman 
 went on, regarding Bancroft attentively, " I 
 think it 's likely the greaser will get the worst 
 of it if he keeps up that racket." 
 
 The banker moved uneasily, then took 
 cigars from the box on top of his desk. 
 " By the way, Aleck," said Baxter carelessly 
 between whiffs of smoke, " you Ve been 
 around this Territory considerably and mixed 
 with mining men a good deal." His cold 
 eyes were watching his companion from 
 under their shaggy brows. " Do you re- 
 member ever running across a chap named 
 Delafield?" 
 
 The time had been when Bancroft could 
 hear that name without the quiver of a lash 
 or the tremble of a nerve. But those days 
 of cool self-control and impassive seeming 
 had gone by. For many weeks he had 
 been on the rack of constant apprehension, 
 the nervous strain of conflicting emotions
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 383 
 
 concerning Conrad had been great, and re- 
 cently the fear of sudden exposure had grown 
 into a secret, abiding terror. He started, 
 dropped his cigar, and his face paled. 
 
 "Delafield?" he repeated in a low voice. 
 " I do not remember the name and I have 
 a pretty good memory for names, too." The 
 desire seized him to know whether Baxter 
 was speaking out of knowledge or ignorance. 
 'What about him?" he went on. "Is he 
 supposed to be living here?" 
 
 " I don't know much about it," Baxter re- 
 joined, " but I believe the people who are try- 
 ing to locate him make the guess that he is. 
 A party asked me about him not long ago, 
 but I was n't able to place the name, although 
 it has a familiar sound. I told him it was n't 
 any use looking for his man under that name 
 it 's too easy to pick up a new one out here 
 for anybody to keep an old one that 's got 
 dirty." 
 
 When the door closed upon the portly figure 
 and cherubic smile of the Congressman, Ban- 
 croft sat still and stared dully at the wall. 
 " Dell knows," was the conviction that had 
 gone straight to his wretched heart. " Dell 
 knows. He knows the whole story. And 
 now I 've got to do whatever he says."
 
 384 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Apprehension leaped quickly forward. If Bax- 
 ter knew, was the story out ? Was it already 
 going from mouth to mouth ? Second thought 
 brought reassurance. No; for in that case 
 Baxter would not have so discreetly veiled 
 his hint. But how had he found out? Could 
 Jenkins no, not likely, for Jenkins was mak- 
 ing too good a thing out of it as a secret. 
 Baxter said Conrad had been to see him 
 then did Curtis know by this time? His heart 
 took quick alarm, and he had a moment of 
 desperation. Then he recalled the young 
 man's repeated declaration that he meant to 
 lose no time in facing Delafield after learn- 
 ing the man's identity. He soon decided that 
 a little time was still left to him before that 
 encounter could take place and Gonzalez 
 was yet at the ranch. Doubtless Conrad had 
 talked with Baxter about the case, perhaps 
 told him of his own search and asked for 
 information about the men he suspected. 
 Finally, knowing well the Congressman's 
 mental habits, he came to the conclusion that 
 Baxter had put things together and made a 
 shrewd guess. 
 
 " But he knows, all right," Bancroft owned 
 to himself in impotent anger, " and that means 
 another chain on me." Another obstacle had
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 385 
 
 risen in his path that would have to be over- 
 come, one way or another, before he could 
 reach that longed-for security. A little be- 
 fore, safety had seemed so near, and now it 
 was further away than ever ! He should have 
 to fight for it, that was plain and fight he 
 would, to the last inch, Conrad and Jenkins 
 and Baxter. They had pushed him to the 
 wall, but that should not be the end. He 
 would not let them wreck everything if 
 no matter now what he might have to do to 
 protect himself. 
 
 He spent an anxious forenoon, unable to 
 keep his mind off his own troubles and im- 
 pending dangers, thinking and scheming, try- 
 ing to work out effective means of defence 
 and counter-attack. When he left the bank 
 for luncheon at home, it was with a lively 
 sense of how restful and pleasing he should 
 find its atmosphere of love, respect, and con- 
 fidence. He bought a box of candy for Lucy 
 and a magazine for Louise, and hastened up 
 the hill. 
 
 Never before had home seemed to him so 
 delightful. Lucy was gay of spirit, piquant, 
 rosy of cheek and bright of eye, lovingly 
 solicitous for his comfort. Louise was paler 
 than usual, with a touch of wistfulness in 
 
 25
 
 386 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 her manner. Lucy explained that she had a 
 bad headache, and they agreed that it was 
 probably due to the day's peculiar atmospheric 
 conditions. It was hot and still ; a thin, gray, 
 luminous haze veiled the sky and made the 
 sunshine, usually clear and white, look palely 
 yellow; the air was charged with electricity, 
 whose jangling effect upon the nerves only 
 the soundest could withstand. Louise said 
 she felt it acutely. As always, she was 
 gentle and sympathetic, and Bancroft felt 
 her influence at once. Her presence never 
 failed to soothe, tranquillize, and encourage 
 him. 
 
 She saw the anxiety in his eyes, and at 
 once divined a new cause for trouble. With 
 renewed alarm and indignation in her heart 
 her thoughts turned to Conrad. Had there 
 been some new development? The fires of 
 love and solicitude for her friend and of 
 hatred for his enemy were burning brightly 
 in her secret thoughts and shone now and 
 then in her eyes. Bancroft caught their glow, 
 and his heart rose to be warmed in it. What 
 a sweet woman she was, how adorable ! His 
 arms ached with the longing to enfold her 
 and press her dearness to his breast. But 
 no ! with such dangers thickening about
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 387 
 
 him, he must not think of it. It angered him 
 the more that he must thus repress the feeling 
 which was struggling to make itself under- 
 stood, which he felt certain she would wel- 
 come. For half an hour after luncheon they 
 lingered on the veranda. As if drawn irre- 
 sistibly by secret cords of feeling, Bancroft 
 and Miss Dent kept constantly near each 
 other; once, when she accidentally touched 
 his hand, his fingers closed quickly upon hers 
 in a moment's warm grasp. 
 
 After he had gone, Louise walked rest- 
 lessly up and down, her nerves strung to the 
 highest tension by her love and anxiety for 
 Bancroft and her hatred of Conrad. Her 
 headache grew rapidly worse, and her heart 
 was beating like a trip-hammer. She and 
 Lucy agreed that the electrical condition of 
 the atmosphere had become more trying. The 
 sunshine, too, was more dingily yellowish. 
 They noticed that heavy, dark clouds, like 
 huge, sleeping beasts, were lying behind the 
 summits of the Mogollon Mountains. 
 
 " My head is throbbing so I can hardly 
 see," said Louise finally, " and I think I '11 
 go to my room, pull down the shades, and 
 lie down for a while. No; thank you, dear, 
 you can't do anything. Just leave me alone
 
 3 88 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 for an hour or two in the quiet and the 
 dark." 
 
 Lucy sat on the veranda with the maga- 
 zine and the box of candy her father had 
 brought ; but one lay unopened in her lap and 
 the other untouched on the table beside her, 
 while her eyes wandered across the tree- 
 embowered streets of the town and far over 
 the plain, where, beyond the horizon, were 
 the green groves of the Socorro Springs 
 ranch. 
 
 " I Ve got to do it," she whispered to 
 herself, decision in her wrinkling brow. 
 " There 's no other way, and I must. Daddy 
 is looking wretched I Ve never seen him 
 look so anxious and disturbed as he does 
 to-day. I Ve got to do it, right away." 
 
 She had not seen Curtis Conrad since the 
 barbecue. Daily had she watched for him, 
 hoping always to see him climbing the hill, 
 longing greatly to look upon his face, and 
 feeling that she must reveal her secret and 
 so put an end, as she firmly believed she 
 could, to her father's trouble. But he came 
 not; instead, Homer's visits increased in 
 length and frequency, and she, still hurt and 
 angered by the memory of Curtis's atten- 
 tions to Mrs. Ned Castleton at the barbecue,
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 389 
 
 recklessly continued her flirtation with Homer, 
 plunging him more and more deeply in love. 
 She did all this without thought of what was 
 going on in Homer's breast, wishing only to 
 dull the pain in her own aching heart. Fi- 
 nally, when she realized what was happening, 
 she changed her demeanor in sudden girl- 
 panic, only to precipitate the young man's 
 proposal, by which she had been both sur- 
 prised and vexed. 
 
 She was quite sure, by this time, that Cur- 
 tis Conrad did not care for her at all, and 
 she had ceased expecting him to come to their 
 house. Yet she never went out upon the 
 veranda without letting her eyes wander wish- 
 fully down the street. They were there now, 
 scanning the long, steep hill. But they saw 
 only a little, bare-legged Mexican boy toiling 
 slowly up the grade. No, she decided, only 
 one thing was left for her to do: she would 
 have to write and ask him to come and see 
 her. Her heart rebelled at first, and she un- 
 consciously tossed her head and her eyes 
 flashed. " But it 's for daddy," she presently 
 told herself, " and there 's no other way. I Ve 
 got to do it." Of course, it would be a humil- 
 iation ; but so was the whole hateful business, 
 and what was one little thing more or less?
 
 390 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Looking toward the street again she saw 
 that the little Mexican lad was coming to her 
 gate. His baggy, ragged overalls were held 
 by a single strap over his shoulder, and his 
 small, brown face, under his miniature, torn 
 sombrero, was hot and dirty. He peered at 
 her through the palings, and she exclaimed, 
 "Why, it's little Pablo Melgares!" She 
 went down to the gate, saying in Spanish, 
 "Do you want anything, Pablo?" 
 
 Gravely and silently he gave her a letter 
 he had been carrying in his hat. Although 
 she had seen the handwriting but once before, 
 her heart leaped and a delicious thrill ran 
 through her veins as she read the address. 
 
 :< Is there an answer? " she asked, tremu- 
 lously. 
 
 " Si, senorita" said the boy. 
 
 ' Then you sit down here on the steps and 
 eat candy until I come back," she said as she 
 poured the contents of her box into the child's 
 sombrero. 
 
 She ran lightly up the stairs to her room 
 and closed the door before opening the note. 
 It said only: 
 
 " Will you go to ride with me this afternoon up 
 the canyon ? I have something particular I want to
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 391 
 
 say. Please send me word by the boy if I may 
 come up at once." 
 
 She devoured it with shining eyes, and 
 pressed it to her face, her lips, her heart. 
 Her woman's instinct divined what the "some- 
 thing particular " must be, and she laughed 
 softly and joyously, while the color mounted 
 to her brow. But presently, as she donned 
 her riding habit, her look grew serious and 
 grave. For a few minutes she had forgotten 
 what it was she had to do. 
 
 " I must tell him," she thought, " and then 
 that will be the end of everything." The 
 brown eyes filled with tears, and she choked 
 back a little sob. " But I 've got to do it," 
 she repeated with determination. " He won't 
 love me then, but poor daddy will be safe. 
 And I would n't marry him anyway, because 
 I 'm not going to marry anybody. I won't 
 let him say anything to me about about 
 anything; I '11 tell him about daddy before he 
 has a chance. But I won't have to tell him 
 right away when we are coming back, 
 maybe." Her fingers were busy with her 
 collar in front of the mirror. f< Dear me, 
 I 'm dreadfully tanned ! But he told me once 
 he liked the healthy brown skins the girls all
 
 392 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 get down here. No ; I shall not let him have 
 the least idea that I care anything about him ; 
 but " and the smiles and dimples were 
 chasing each other across her face as she 
 started down the stairs. On her way she 
 slipped softly into Miss Dent's darkened room. 
 Louise was awake, and Lucy stood beside her 
 bed, stroking her forehead with affectionate 
 fingers. 
 
 " Poor Dearie ! Can't I do something for 
 you before I go out? Do you think you can 
 sleep? Then you won't mind my going, will 
 you? Mr. Conrad has come to take me to 
 ride. We are going up the canyon. Was n't 
 it jolly of him to think of it this stupid, yel- 
 low afternoon ? " 
 
 ' Yes ; certainly, dear, I 'm glad you 're 
 going, and I hope you '11 have a delightful 
 ride. Don Homer is always so thoughtful." 
 
 Lucy was settling her hat in front of the 
 mirror. " Oh, it is n't Don Homer ! It 's his 
 brother." 
 
 Miss Dent started up. " Curtis Conrad ! 
 You 're not going with him ! " 
 
 Lucy looked at her with surprise. " Why, 
 yes, Dearie. Why not?" 
 
 " Lucy, darling ! You must not go ! " 
 
 Louise was sitting up now, her hands at
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 393 
 
 her temples. Lucy bent over her with an 
 arm about her neck. ' You surprise me very 
 much, Dearie. I thought you liked him." 
 
 ' Yes ; of course. But you must not go 
 with him this afternoon. It will not do." 
 
 The girl sat down on the bed beside her. 
 " But I Ve said I would, Dearie, and he 's 
 already here, waiting for me with the horses. 
 And I must go, Dearie. It would be awfully 
 rude and horrid to try to get out of it 
 now." 
 
 Sudden apprehension filled Miss Dent's 
 mind. It was not like Lucy to hold so per- 
 sistently to anything that was against her 
 wish. Her intense feeling against Curtis 
 Conrad swept over her excited, tingling nerves 
 and filled her mind with the conviction that 
 she must keep Lucy away from him. Things 
 jigged and swam before her eyes, as her 
 thoughts whirled dizzily through her brain. 
 ;< Lucy, dear child ! " she exclaimed, " I wish 
 you would not go. Indeed, you must not 
 go!" 
 
 Lucy arose, clad in a new womanly dignity 
 that sent a half-realized dismay through the 
 turmoil of Miss Dent's mind. Vaguely, with 
 an aching sense of loss, she felt that Lucy 
 had become a woman who would henceforth
 
 394 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 direct her life for herself. With her hands 
 holding her throbbing head, through which 
 excruciating pains were darting, Louise strove 
 to steady her thoughts. 
 
 " I don't understand," said Lucy, gently, 
 " why you speak in this way, or why you 
 wish me to be rude to Mr. Conrad. If there 
 is any good reason why I should not go to 
 ride with him this afternoon, and you will tell 
 me what it is, so that I can judge for myself, 
 I can beg him to excuse me, because you are 
 not well and ask him to stay to dinner 
 instead." 
 
 New alarm seized Miss Dent. In her ex- 
 citement she tried to rise, only to drop back 
 trembling upon the bed. For the moment her 
 one thought was that this man must be kept 
 out of the house. " Lucy," she pleaded, de- 
 spair in her voice, " you do not understand. 
 He is not our friend now. He is your father's 
 enemy and is trying to kill him." 
 
 She stopped in sudden panic at having said 
 so much, and Lucy started back amazed. 
 
 " Oh, Dearie you don't know, do you 
 and daddy you don't know about daddy ? " 
 
 Louise looked up, her face white and 
 drawn, astonishment veiling the pain in her 
 eyes.
 
 LOVE TO THE RESCUE 395 
 
 " Lucy, Lucy ! Do you know about your 
 father and this man and yet you will go 
 with him ? " 
 
 Lucy's curly head was high as she answered 
 deliberately : " Yes, Dearie ! I am going so 
 that I can save daddy from any further 
 trouble. I shall tell Mr. Conrad who daddy 
 is." 
 
 Miss Dent gasped and her mouth worked 
 for a moment before she could speak. " Oh, 
 child, you don't know what you are doing! 
 I beg of you, Lucy, don't go don't do it! 
 If you love me, if you love your father, don't 
 tell him! He will kill " 
 
 The girl drew herself up proudly. :< In- 
 deed, Dearie, you don't know Curtis Conrad 
 as well as I do, if you think he will do the 
 least thing to hurt daddy, after he knows. 
 That 's why I 'm going to tell him to save 
 daddy. I love him, Dearie, but I shall not 
 let him know that I do. And I want to hear 
 him say, just once, that he loves me and 
 then I shall tell him who I am and who 
 daddy is." She turned half away, then rushed 
 back to throw her arms around her friend's 
 neck. " Darling Dearie, I know I am hurt- 
 ing you ! But won't you trust me about this, 
 and love me just the same? I know I am
 
 396 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 doing the best thing for daddy and after 
 to-day, I 'm never going to see Curtis Conrad 
 again ! " 
 
 Louise fell back, exhausted, as Lucy kissed 
 her forehead and ran from the room.
 
 CHAPTER XXIV, 
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 
 
 CONRAD and Lucy rode along a street 
 skirting the brow of the mesa until 
 the houses of the town in the valley 
 below became few and straggling. Down the 
 last roadway cut across the sides of the 
 canyon they descended to the bottom of the 
 ravine. Thence upward it was so narrow 
 that the bed of the creek and the road left 
 only scant margins of rocky soil. In these 
 grew cottonwoods, willows, and a few other 
 trees, whose overarching branches made a 
 green and pleasant vista. The creek wound 
 crookedly down the valley, frequently cross- 
 ing the road, while here and there the walls 
 of the gulch drew so close together that 
 the track was forced into the bed of the 
 stream. Notwithstanding the recent rains, 
 the water was too shallow to reach above 
 their horses' knees. 
 
 The way was quite deserted, and after leav- 
 ing the town they saw no other travellers. A
 
 398 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 cool, damp wind came down the ravine and 
 Lucy took off her hat and let it toss back her 
 brown curls. They had grown longer since 
 the early Spring, and now clustered in soft 
 rings around her ears and neck. A touch 
 of sadness lingered upon her spirits, because 
 of the distressing scene with Miss Dent. It 
 was the first difference that had ever arisen 
 between them. A poignant longing filled her 
 heart, also, because this was to be her final 
 interview with the man she loved. The pain- 
 ful duty she had set herself filled the back- 
 ground of her consciousness and laid upon 
 her manner an unusual reserve. 
 
 But these more sombre emotions mingled 
 with the gladness of the knowledge that she 
 was beloved, and all combined to invest her 
 with a new maturity of womanliness, a sweet 
 dignity that sent filtering through Conrad's 
 eager love a sensation of wonder and rever- 
 ence. It could not be possible that this lovely, 
 this adorable being would receive his homage, 
 would consent to love him! But he would 
 try. She was willing to ride with him, and 
 there was hope in that. And, yes, he would 
 not forget that he must tell her about his 
 unworthy life he must tell her even before 
 he asked her to marry him. But oh, how
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 399 
 
 beautiful she was, how sweet! Every move- 
 ment of her head, her arm, her body, every 
 twinkling smile, every fleeting dimple, poured 
 fresh wine into his blood. A torrent of love 
 and admiration was sweeping through him, 
 and from it were constantly breaking off and 
 flowing over their friendly talk little cascades 
 of compliment, of admiring speech, of sen- 
 tences glowing with hints of his feeling. 
 
 But Lucy quickly caught the trend of every 
 one and turned it back with laughing retort 
 and merry speech. He could not get within 
 her guard, and every deft turn of her jesting, 
 foiling replies made him only the more eager. 
 He forgot that he was going to make con- 
 fession, forgot to watch the dark clouds that 
 were rising above the mountain tops, forgot 
 everything but this alluring creature, who 
 grew more alluring every moment, and yet 
 would not let him loose the torrents of loving 
 speech. And Lucy, in the sweet excitement 
 of letting him say a little, and again a little, 
 and then a little more, yet keeping up her 
 guard and never letting him reach the danger 
 point, Lucy also forgot what she had meant 
 to keep constantly in mind. Now and then 
 duty put out a warning hand. But the ex- 
 hilaration of the present moment, the precious
 
 400 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 consciousness of his love, the thrilling pleas- 
 ure of this Cupid's dance she could not give 
 it up so quickly. Presently she would tell 
 him. 
 
 Thus has it been Love's habit, ever since 
 Love came to live in this world, to dance with 
 happy and forgetful foot over volcanoes ready 
 to engulf him in their fires, beneath clouds 
 ready to drown him with their pouring sor- 
 rows. No matter what the dangers, when the 
 maid lures and the man pursues, Love knows 
 only his own delight. So went Lucy and 
 Curtis up the beautiful canyon road, thrilling 
 with the happiness that can be but once, - 
 before the first kiss has brushed away the ex- 
 quisite bloom of love, forgetting alike the 
 bonds they had put upon themselves and the 
 dangers that lurked in the threatening storm. 
 
 At last the darkening atmosphere caused 
 Conrad to notice how high the clouds had 
 risen. " I 'm afraid there 's going to be a bad 
 storm, Miss Bancroft," he said, " and perhaps 
 we 'd better turn back. When we started I 
 did n't think it would rain before night, but 
 those clouds are piling up fast and they look 
 as if they meant business. I 'm sorry, for a 
 little ways above here there 's a beautiful place, 
 where the walls of the canyon spread out and
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 401 
 
 you get a splendid view. I wanted to take 
 you there, and tell you " It was not so 
 easy after all, to loose the torrents of speech, 
 and for a bare instant he hesitated. It was 
 enough to give Lucy her chance. 
 
 She shot at him a single sparkling glance, 
 and broke in with, " Oh, I '11 race you there ! " 
 As she spoke she touched her horse and darted 
 ahead, leaving him alone in the middle of the 
 road at the very beginning of his declaration. 
 The wind blew her curls into a tangled frame 
 for her laughing face as she looked back 
 over her shoulder. He quickly spurred Brown 
 Betty forward, but she had got so much the 
 start that it was some moments before he 
 was again at her side. 
 
 " You took me by surprise," he said as 
 they slowed their horses at the foot of a 
 steeper incline, " and handicapped me, or you 
 would n't have got so far away. When we 
 go back I '11 race you all the way down the 
 canyon, if you like." 
 
 " Agreed ! " she laughed. " Would n't it be 
 jolly to go at a gallop all the way down the 
 canyon, from the mountains to Golden? But 
 the poor horses ! " 
 
 " I think we 'd better turn back, Miss Ban- 
 croft. I don't like the look of those clouds. 
 
 26
 
 402 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 It 's going to be a regular deluge, I 'm afraid. 
 But first, I want to tell you " 
 
 " Oh, my hat ! I Ve dropped it ! " she ex- 
 claimed. Curtis leaned over easily, picked it 
 up, and hung it on his own pommel. Her 
 eyes were twinkling and the dimples were 
 playing hide-and-seek with a wilful little smile 
 that hovered around her mouth. " So awk- 
 ward of me," she said apologetically, " and 
 how readily you picked it up ! I wish I could 
 do that ! Do you know, Mr. Conrad, you 've 
 never given me those lessons in the cowboy's 
 art, roping and riding and all that, you prom- 
 ised ever so long ago." 
 
 : ' We '11 begin them whenever you say the 
 word. After I tell you ' 
 
 " About that beautiful place ? Oh, yes ! 
 Can't we go that far ? I 'd love to see it ! " 
 She was bounding ahead again, but he was 
 quickly beside her. A quizzical look was on 
 his face and a touch of mastery in his man- 
 ner as he leaned toward her and rested his 
 hand upon her horse's neck. 
 
 " Now, if you try to run away again," he 
 said banteringly, " it 's you who will have the 
 handicap ! " She gathered up her bridle and 
 with a touch of her quirt wheeled her horse 
 half way around and away from his detaining
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 403 
 
 hand. The whim had seized her to start fly- 
 ing back down the road, " just a little way," 
 she thought, " just to tease him." But as she 
 turned she met a glowing look that checked 
 her impulse. 
 
 "Lucy!" he was saying, and his voice 
 lingered over her name like a soft and warm 
 caress, " Lucy! I love you. Will you be my 
 wife?" 
 
 It had come, the question she had meant 
 not to let him ask, and at once it sobered her 
 spirits and brought back the remembrance of 
 what she must tell him. Her head drooped 
 until her brown curls half hid her crimsoning 
 face, and her voice was low and troubled. 
 " Indeed, Mr. Conrad, I can never be any 
 man's wife. My father needs me. I shall 
 never marry, and I shall stay with him as 
 long as he lives." 
 
 " I know how devoted you are to your 
 father, Lucy " he stopped, and repeated 
 her name as if he loved the sound of it 
 " Lucy, and it is so sweet and beautiful that 
 it makes me love you even more. Tell me, 
 Lucy, do you love me ? " 
 
 The question took her unawares, and he saw 
 her hand tremble. She hesitated for a mo- 
 ment before replying, with dignity : " I have
 
 4 o 4 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 told you I could not marry you. Is n't that 
 enough ? " Unconsciously they had again 
 headed their horses toward the mountains and 
 were walking slowly up the canyon. 
 
 " No, Lucy; it is n't enough ! " he exclaimed 
 eagerly. " Something tells me that perhaps 
 you do care a little for me, and if you do I 
 want to know it I must know it ! " 
 
 " I shall never see you again after to-day. 
 You must be satisfied with that," she replied, 
 tossing her head and turning her face away 
 from his shining and pleading eyes. 
 
 " How can I be satisfied " he began, and 
 the wind blew her hair as she turned her 
 head away and showed one little pink-tinted 
 ear nestling among the curls. His gaze de- 
 voured it. " How can I," he went on, " when 
 you when you have such a beautiful ear ! " 
 
 " What difference does it make when we 
 can never see each other again ? " Her man- 
 ner was evasive and her speech hesitating, 
 for she was trying hard to bring herself to 
 the point of telling him the fateful secret. 
 
 " All the difference in the world ! Lucy, 
 sweetheart ! Tell me if you care !" He leaned 
 toward her and took her wrist in his hand. 
 
 " You Ve no right to ask that question 
 again ! I shall say no more than I have said
 
 " IT HAD COME, THIS QUESTION SHE HAD NOT MEANT TO LET HIM ASK
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 405 
 
 already." She made an effort to release her 
 arm, but he would not relax his firm, though 
 gentle and caressing, grasp. 
 
 '' Lucy, I would never beg for a woman's 
 love, nor ask her to try to care for me, if she 
 did n't love me, of herself. But when the 
 woman I love with all my heart won't deny 
 that she loves me, then I must hear her say 
 in her own sweet voice that she does. Lucy, 
 darling, tell me that you love me! " 
 
 She was trembling from head to foot, but 
 she drew herself together with fresh deter- 
 mination and held her head up proudly as 
 she answered, looking straight ahead : " I 
 have told you that I shall never marry, and 
 that after to-day I shall never see you again. 
 That must be enough, for I shall say no 
 more." 
 
 He let go her wrist, and she tapped her 
 horse to a faster pace. She was thinking 
 intently, trying to frame in her mind the best 
 words in which to make her confession. Sud- 
 denly, over the top of a steep incline, they 
 came upon a wide and splendid view. The 
 sides of the canyon seemed to melt and flow 
 back, giving far-ranging sight of the sombre 
 purple mountains towering toward heaven and 
 of the hills dwindling down into the plain.
 
 4 o6 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " Lucy," he exclaimed, " here is the beauti- 
 ful place of which I told you. I wanted to 
 bring you here to tell you of my love, because 
 this is the most beautiful spot I know. Lucy, 
 darling, I love you with all my heart, and 
 if you cannot deny that you love me, then it 
 is my right, the right of my love, to hear you 
 say that you do. Never mind about not leav- 
 ing your father and meaning never to marry. 
 We '11 talk about that afterward. Won't you 
 tell me now that you do love me? " 
 
 Her eyes dropped from the high and wide 
 horizon to her horse's mane. She tried to say, 
 " I do not love you," but her heart rose in 
 rebellion and forbade the untruth. She opened 
 her lips, but no sound came from them. Cur- 
 tis bent toward her, trying to take her hand, 
 but she drew it away. With all her strength 
 she was contending for her determination 
 against both him and the traitor within her 
 own heart. He leaned nearer, pleading in 
 tones that were half loving command and half 
 loving entreaty, " Lucy ! Lucy, love ! Look 
 up ! Let me see your eyes, your dear, beauti- 
 ful eyes ! " 
 
 Lucy clasped her hands together hard and 
 bowed her head. He was bending over her, 
 his shoulder touching hers. She heard his
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 407 
 
 voice, soft and rich with love, whispering, 
 " Lucy, darling!" And suddenly, scarcely 
 knowing what she did, she lifted her head 
 and looked into his eyes. Instantly his arms 
 were about her, and he heard her murmur- 
 ing, " I do love you! Oh, I do love you!" 
 He bent his ardent face to hers, but before 
 their lips met she started away, freeing her- 
 self from his encircling arms. 
 
 " Stop ! " she cried, putting out a forbidding 
 hand, as she moved her horse away. ' You 
 have made me tell you, against my will, that 
 I love you. Now you must listen 'while I 
 tell you who I am." There was a sugges- 
 tion of defiance in the poise of her head and 
 in the flashing of her eyes as they looked 
 squarely into his. 
 
 " And you must understand," she went on, 
 " that after I tell you this I want you to 
 forget everything that has passed between us 
 this afternoon, just as I shall do. For I am 
 the daughter of Sumner L. Delafield!*' 
 
 In an instant his arms were about her 
 again. " Lucy, dearest, you 've told me no 
 news ! I Ve known it since yesterday." 
 
 She struggled to free herself. " But my 
 father you hate him you you wish to 
 kill him I heard what you said to him that
 
 4 o8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 day at your ranch, last Spring and after- 
 ward I happened to find out who he is." 
 
 A wave of crimson deepened the color of 
 his sunbrowned face. " All that is dead and 
 buried," he said, " and I am ashamed of it, 
 now. I want you to help me forget that I 
 allowed such base thoughts to master me so 
 long. I 'm going to your father this after- 
 noon to tell him that I have forgiven the old 
 debt, and everything else, and to ask him to 
 forgive me. My poor little girl! I never 
 dreamed your dear heart was being worried 
 by that affair!" 
 
 She let him fold her in his caress, whisper- 
 ing happily, " I knew all the time you would n't 
 do it I knew you would n't hurt daddy, or 
 anybody." 
 
 A loud clap of thunder rolled and echoed 
 over the mountains, and a splash of raindrops 
 fell on their faces. Conrad looked at the 
 dense black clouds and at the gray veil drop- 
 ping athwart the mountains, and turned to 
 Lucy with alarm in his face. " We must 
 start back at once and ride down that canyon 
 for all we 're worth ! This storm is going 
 to be a corker, but maybe we can beat the 
 worst of it. I 've done wrong to bring you so 
 far but I can't regret it now, sweetheart ! "
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 409 
 
 They started at a gallop down the long 
 canyon road. The patter of big drops that 
 had given them warning quickly increased to 
 a steady, beating downpour that drenched 
 them to the skin. An almost tangible dark- 
 ness was sifting through the atmosphere. It 
 filled the sky overhead, drifted down the 
 ravine, and seemed to settle, making a thick 
 twilight under the arching trees. Blinding 
 zigzags of lightning slashed the clouds and 
 played through the middle air, and a terrific 
 roar and boom and rattle of thunder kept up 
 in the mountains behind them and echoed 
 back and forth between the walls of the 
 gulch. 
 
 The creek was already rising, and each time 
 they had to cross it they found its muddy 
 torrent swifter and higher. The road was 
 rocky, and in many places had been made 
 slippery by the rain, and there were frequent 
 steep inclines down which they dared not go 
 at a rapid gait. They had put behind them 
 hardly more than a third of the distance when 
 Conrad, looking backward, saw a cloud of 
 inky blackness settle and drop upon the earth. 
 A deep, booming sound mingled with a deafen- 
 ing clap of thunder. The ground trembled. 
 The horses quivered with fright and darted
 
 4 io THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 forward at a faster pace. Lucy saw Curtis's 
 face blench in the half darkness. 
 
 "What is it?" she asked, glancing back- 
 ward anxiously. 
 
 " That was a cloudburst," he answered in 
 a tone that thrilled with comprehension. " It 
 struck back there, just this side of our beau- 
 tiful spot, and a mountain of water will soon 
 come tearing down behind us. We 've got 
 to ride like the wind ! Perhaps we can make 
 the first road that crosses the ravine, and you 
 can go up there while I ride on and warn the 
 town." 
 
 "No! I'll ride on with you." 
 
 " I can't let you do that," was his swift 
 reply. "Are you frightened, dearest?" 
 
 "No," she answered in a steady tone; 
 " I 'm not frightened at all. And I 'm going 
 to ride on with you. It would be easy to die 
 with you, if we must but I could n't live 
 without you, now." 
 
 He bent toward her and touched her arm 
 with loving reverence as they galloped on at 
 the swiftest speed possible. The horses needed 
 neither whip nor spur, but with ears laid back 
 and necks outstretched were fleeing down the 
 dim canyon for their lives. As they bounded 
 up a low bank, where the road crossed the
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 411 
 
 creek bed again, Lucy's horse stumbled, 
 slipped, and fell with his forelegs doubled 
 under him. He gave a scream of pain and 
 terror. Lucy, freeing her foot from the stir- 
 rup as he fell, jumped to one side. Curtis 
 checked Brown Betty, leaned over, and 
 grasped the girl around the waist. She 
 helped him with an upward spring, and as 
 he lifted her to the saddle he shifted his own 
 seat to the back, and they galloped on, leav- 
 ing the crippled horse to his certain fate. 
 
 Behind them they could hear the booming, 
 rattling roar of the avalanche of water that 
 was sweeping down between the canyon walls. 
 And presently, piercing through even its 
 rumbling tumult and the crashing thunder, 
 they heard the death cry of the horse they 
 had left behind, and knew that he had been 
 engulfed in the mountainous wave that was 
 rushing toward them at a speed they could 
 not hope to equal. Lucy trembled at the 
 sound and nestled her head against Conrad's 
 shoulder. 
 
 As they neared the first road cutting across 
 the gulch Curtis lowered his head to Lucy's 
 ear : " Sweetheart, we are almost at the first 
 road out. I can put you off and you can 
 run up there and be safe."
 
 4 i2 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 " No," she whispered back; " don't stop for 
 an instant. Every second will mean many 
 lives. I 'm going with you to whatever end 
 there is, and I 'm not afraid." 
 
 Brown Betty's flanks were steaming. The 
 froth from her mouth flecked her neck and 
 legs and body, to be quickly washed off by 
 the drenching rain. Behind them they could 
 hear, coming nearer and nearer, the fateful 
 roar of the rushing waters. The canyon walls 
 opened out, and, looming vaguely in the dim 
 light, they could see the first houses of the 
 town. With full lungs Conrad shouted at the 
 top of his voice: 
 
 " Run ! A cloudburst ! A cloudburst is 
 coming ! Run for your lives ! " 
 
 They dashed on, and the houses became 
 more frequent. There were lights in the win- 
 dows, though it was little past mid-afternoon. 
 Curtis, shouting his warning over and over, 
 put the bridle in Lucy's hands and drew his 
 revolver. They were rushing down the 
 main street, through the most thickly built 
 portion of the town. Pointing upward, he 
 added the noise of pistol shots to his clamor. 
 Men and women came to their doors, caught 
 the meaning of his cries, heard the roar 
 of the coming flood, and rushed out and
 
 THE HEAVENS OPEN 413 
 
 up the side streets, shouting warnings as 
 they ran. 
 
 " My father the bank can we go so 
 far ? " asked Lucy breathlessly. 
 
 ' Yes we '11 call him," Conrad assured 
 her, glancing back over his shoulder. Be- 
 hind them rose a din of shouts and yells and 
 screams of terror, mingling with the peals 
 of thunder and the roar of the waters. The 
 street was full of people running this way and 
 that. And a little farther back, through the 
 dusky light, he saw a brown, foaming wall 
 of water, its crest topping the roofs of the 
 houses, its front a mass of half-engulfed trees 
 and houses and pieces of lumber and arms 
 and legs and bodies of men and animals that 
 boiled up from its foot, tossed and whirled 
 a moment on its breast, and sank into the 
 flood. 
 
 Curtis ground his teeth together. They 
 were still three blocks from the bank. "We '11 
 never make it," he thought; " but we '11 try ! " 
 His arm gathered Lucy closer to his breast, 
 his spur touched Brown Betty's heaving flank, 
 and with another loud shout of warning and 
 an encouraging cry to the mare they darted 
 on with a fresh burst of speed.
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 
 
 ELJISE DENT sank back upon her pil- 
 lows as Lucy hurried from the room, 
 too amazed and horrified for speech 
 by the girl's declaration of her love for Cur- 
 tis Conrad and her determination to reveal 
 to him her father's identity. Ill in body, dis- 
 tracted in mind almost to the point of irre- 
 sponsibility, her thoughts tossed about and 
 took wild shapes in her fevered brain. The 
 one idea looming constantly before her was 
 that Bancroft was in deadly, imminent peril. 
 Her bitter resentment against Conrad and the 
 hate and anger she had nursed so long in 
 secret distorted all her conception of his char- 
 acter. Now, as her thoughts pounded back 
 and forth through her dizzy, aching head, he 
 seemed to her to be capable of any monstrous 
 deed. He would learn from Lucy the secret 
 of her father's identity, and then nothing 
 would prevent him from rushing forthwith to 
 get his fill of bloody vengeance.
 
 FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 415 
 
 She rose and staggered to the window. 
 Dark clouds were overspreading the sky. It 
 would rain soon, they would turn back from 
 their ride, and he would bring her home. 
 Then he would hasten to the bank, and into 
 Aleck's room and she covered her eyes as 
 if to conceal what her mental vision insisted 
 on seeing. If Aleck only knew that Curtis 
 had learned the truth, if he could be warned 
 in time, he might conceal himself until it 
 would be possible for him to go away. Leave 
 the town he must, and go far, far away, where 
 there would be no fear of discovery. 
 
 She alone knew his danger. But could she 
 tell him that she was aware of his secret? 
 She shrank from making him suffer that 
 humiliation. Furthermore, could she do it 
 without betraying her own secret, without 
 laying bare the love that burned in her heart ? 
 Yet what mattered the rest if she could 
 save his life and, perhaps, his future? She 
 followed with her eye the line of the canyon. 
 Where were they now? The clouds were 
 black and lowering and a gray veil of rain 
 hid the purple of the distant mountains and 
 spread an advancing blur over their slopes. 
 If she was to save Aleck she must go at 
 once.
 
 416 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 Her loud and hurried knocking at the door 
 of Bancroft's private office sent to his heart 
 the quick apprehension to which he had be- 
 come an easy prey. He sprang to his feet 
 with his hand upon the revolver that of late 
 lay always ready upon his desk. Not only was 
 it a relief to find that it was nobody but 
 Louise, but the very sight of her was so wel- 
 come and so easeful to his overwrought and 
 desperate mind that unconsciously he ad- 
 dressed her by her Christian name. Her wild 
 eyes and distraught face alarmed him. 
 
 " Louise! What is the matter? You have 
 come in all this rain? How wet you are! 
 Has anything happened ? " 
 
 " No ; not now ; not yet ! Wait, let me 
 get my breath I will tell you. Aleck, 
 how pale you are! Has anything happened 
 to you ? " In their excitement neither of 
 them noticed that she also used his Chris- 
 tian name. 
 
 " No ; nothing has happened to me no 
 more than usual. I am in deep trouble, 
 Louise." 
 
 " I know, I know," she cried, coming close 
 to him. " I know what it is I have come 
 to warn you. Curtis Conrad - 
 
 " What about him ? " Bancroft exclaimed,
 
 FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 417 
 
 starting back. "What do you know about 
 him?" 
 
 " What you know, Aleck that he means 
 to kill you. He is coming here this very 
 afternoon he will be here soon he will 
 kill you. You must hide from him ! " 
 
 He drew back as she spoke, and then turned 
 sharply upon her. " Do you know why ? Are 
 you another who knows ? " 
 
 She moved a step aside and dropped her 
 gaze, but her voice was tender and compas- 
 sionate as she replied, " Yes, Aleck ; I know." 
 
 He looked at her with astonished eyes. 
 ;< How did you find it out? How long have 
 you known ? " 
 
 " For years," she said softly, stretching her 
 hand impulsively toward him. " Josephine 
 told me when she died, so I could guard 
 Lucy against all knowledge of it. I have 
 kept it as secret as the grave. Nobody has 
 ever had from me any suspicion of the truth. 
 It has made no difference to me, Aleck! I 
 have only respected you the more, because you 
 could begin over again and build up a new 
 name and a new life." 
 
 He took her hand. It was wet and cold, 
 and he folded it in his, and as she went on 
 
 drew her closer to his side. He felt the 
 
 27
 
 4 i8 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 soothing comfort of her words and manner, 
 but his eyes were on the floor as he muttered, 
 "I thought nobody knew; I thought it was 
 hidden so well ! " 
 
 The room had grown dark and darker. 
 Outside, the rain was coming down in gray 
 sheets, and dazzling flashes of lightning 
 flooded the heavens. Peal upon peal of thun- 
 der smote their ears. She thought, " They 
 are at home by this time; he will be here 
 soon." Laying her other hand upon Ban- 
 croft's arm she hurried on, in broken, plead- 
 ing speech : " Aleck, you must not stay here ! 
 You must hide somewhere, where he cannot 
 find you ! Conrad I came to warn you 
 he knows, by this time who you are. He 
 will be here soon." 
 
 " Conrad! Does he know? Are you sure?" 
 
 ' Yes. They went to ride up the canyon, 
 he and Lucy. She said she was going to tell 
 him. Aleck, you must not stay here! He 
 may come any minute ! " 
 
 He dropped her hand and started back. 
 " Lucy ! " he cried, and again, " Lucy ! Does 
 she know, too ? " He sank into his chair and 
 buried his face in his arms. Louise stood be- 
 side him, her hand upon his shoulder, her 
 voice soft with loving compassion.
 
 FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 419 
 
 " I don't know how she knew, nor how 
 long she has known. Until this afternoon I 
 had no idea that she, or any one, knew any- 
 thing about it. But she came to my room 
 and told me that she was going to ride with 
 him, that she loved him, and that she was 
 going to tell him who you are." 
 
 He made no. answer; but she guessed by 
 his troubled breathing with what shame and 
 despair he was struggling. She bent over 
 him, her arm across his shoulder, her cheek 
 upon his hair. Above the pealing, echoing 
 thunder and the rattling boom of some sound 
 which in their absorption they had scarcely 
 noted, there came into the room the sudden 
 din of cries and shouts and pistol shots. 
 
 "It's Conrad! He's coming!" cried 
 Louise, running to the window, her excited 
 mind still dominated by the single idea. Ban- 
 croft grasped the pistol. Looking back, she 
 saw him point it at his own temple. Spring- 
 ing to his side, she seized it with both hands, 
 crying out, " Aleck, don't do that ! Don't give 
 up ! Give it to me ! " 
 
 His grasp relaxed and she took the weapon 
 from his hand. 
 
 "Aleck! Bancroft! Aleck!" they heard 
 from outside, in Conrad's voice. More words
 
 420 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 followed, but through the noise of the shout- 
 ing and the thunder and that rattling roar, 
 now grown louder and nearer, they could 
 distinguish only, " your life ! " A galloping 
 horse rushed near the window, there was a 
 pistol shot without, and an answering shot 
 from within. 
 
 A shriek pierced the clamor, and Bancroft 
 cried, " That was Lucy's voice ! " By a flash 
 of lightning which rent for an instant the 
 gray darkness, they saw the horse wheel into 
 the hill street, and saw Lucy in Conrad's 
 arms. 
 
 The pistol dropped from Louise's hand as 
 she cried out in a passion of grief, " Oh, 
 Aleck! Our little girl! Have I killed her? " 
 
 He leaned toward her with compassionate 
 arms. 
 
 Conrad glanced over his shoulder as he 
 wheeled his mare into the cross street, and 
 saw the towering wall of water at their very 
 heels. Brown Betty was staggering under her 
 burden, but with shout and spur he drove her 
 on up the steep incline. A grinding crash 
 mingled with the roar of the flood, and an- 
 other backward glance let him see the bank 
 building toppling, collapsing, embosomed in 
 the awful avalanche of water. A great wave
 
 FULFILMENT OF THE LAW 421 
 
 rushed after them and swept Brown Betty 
 from her feet. Had the mare been less sturdy 
 of spirit they would have been carried back 
 on its retreating current. But Conrad's per- 
 suading, encouraging calls were in her ears 
 and she struck out bravely, swimming against 
 the force of the waves that swirled about them 
 and buffeted her with the debris they carried. 
 But the waters that spread up the cross street 
 soon lost their force, and she regained her 
 footing. Curtis bent over Lucy, saying, " We 
 are safe now, sweetheart ! " Blood was drip- 
 ping over her garments, and she lay white 
 and still upon his arm. 
 
 At last they reached the door of the Ban- 
 croft home, and Curtis carried Lucy, still un- 
 conscious, within, and went in search of Miss 
 Dent. But the house was deserted. Alone, 
 he ministered to the girl's needs. He located 
 the injury, and found that a bullet, as to whose 
 source and intention he made his own secret 
 guess, had pierced her arm, but had left 
 merely a flesh wound. Recovered from her 
 swoon, he carried her up-stairs and left her 
 to change her wet clothing while he went in 
 search of blankets. Wrapped in these, with 
 her arm bandaged, he left her in bed while 
 he hastened down the hill, hoping to find news
 
 422 THE DELAFIELD AFFAIR 
 
 of her father and Miss Dent with which to 
 relieve her anxiety. 
 
 The rain had ceased and the flood had 
 passed, leaving in its wake the wreck of a 
 ruined town. Where the bank building had 
 stood were tottering walls and a shapeless 
 heap of brick and timbers. Beneath the 
 wreckage, where had been the president's of- 
 fice, they found the bodies of Bancroft and 
 Louise, enfolded in each other's arms. 
 
 The sky cleared and only in the east did 
 some low-lying clouds, still wet and angry, 
 give any hint of the storm which had swept 
 over the town and left desolation in its track. 
 As Conrad climbed the hill to tell Lucy of 
 her double bereavement, in the tenderest 
 words his love could make possible, he faced 
 the glories of a setting sun whose resplen- 
 dent pageant filled the sky and touched with 
 its glowing colors the pitiful devastation of 
 the little valley. 
 
 THE END
 
 DC SOUTHERN REGION, 
 
 A 000110992 5
 
 Florence 
 
 <jCel/is