CHAPTER XIX
THE BAR-20 RETURNS.
Hopalong Cassidy stopped swearing at the weather and looked up and alongthe trail in front of him, seeing a hard-riding man approach. Heturned his head and spoke to Buck Peters, who rode close behind him."Somebody's shore in a hurry--why, it's Fred Neal."
It was. Mr. Neal was making his arms move and was also shoutingsomething at the top of his voice. The noise of the rain and of thehorses' hoofs splashing in the mud and water at first made his wordsunintelligible, but it was not long before Hopalong heard somethingwhich made him sit up even straighter. In a moment Neal was near enoughto be heard distinctly and the outfit shook itself out of its wearinessand physical misery and followed its leader at reckless speed. As theyrode, bunched close together, Neal briefly and graphically outlined therelative positions of the combatants, and while Buck's more cautiousmind was debating the best way to proceed against the enemy, Hopalongcried out the plan to be followed. There would be no strategy--Johnny,wounded and desperate, was fighting for his life. The simplest way wasthe best--a dash regardless of consequences to those making it, for timewas a big factor to the two men in Jackson's store.
"Ride right at 'em!" Hopalong cried. "I know that bunch. They'll be tooscared to shoot straight. Paralyze 'em! Three or four are gone now--an'the whole crowd wasn't worth one of the men they went out to get. Thequicker it's over the better."
"Right you are," came from the rear.
"Ride up the arroyo as close as we can get, an' then over the edge an'straight at 'em," Buck ordered. "Their shooting an' the rain will coverwhat noise we make on the soft ground. An' boys, _no quarter_!"
"Reckon _not_!" gritted Red, savagely. "Not with Edwards an' Jacksondead, an' the Kid fighting for his life!"
"They're still at it!" cried Lanky Smith, as the faint and intermittentsound of firing was heard; the driving wind was blowing from the town,and this, also, would deaden the noise of their approach.
"Thank the Lord! That means that there's somebody left to fight 'em,"exclaimed Red. "Hope it's the Kid," he muttered.
"They can't rush the store till they get Lacey, an' they can't rush himtill they get the store," shouted Neal over his shoulder. "They'd be ina cross fire if they tried either--an' that's what licks 'em."
"They'll be in a cross fire purty soon," promised Pete, grimly.
Hopalong and Red reached the edge of the arroyo first and plunged overthe bank into the yellow storm-water swirling along the bottom like aminiature flood. After them came Buck, Neal, and the others, the watershooting up in sheets as each successive horse plunged in. Out againon the farther side they strung out into single file along the narrowfoot-hold between water and bank and raced towards the sharp bend somehundreds of yards ahead, the point in the arroyo's course nearest thetown. The dripping horses scrambled up the slippery incline and then,under the goading of spurs and quirts, leaped forward as fast as theycould go across the level, soggy plain.
A quarter of a mile ahead of them lay the scattered shacks of the town,and as they drew nearer to it the riders could see the flashes of gunsand the smoke-fog lying close to the ground. Fire spat from Jackson'sstore and a cloud of smoke still lingered around a window in Lacey'ssaloon. Then a yell reached their ears, a yell of rage, consternationand warning. Figures scurried to seek cover and the firing fromJackson's and Lacey's grew more rapid.
A mounted man emerged from a corral and tore away, others following hisexample, and the outfit separated to take up the chase individually.Harlan, wounded hard, was trying to run to where he had left his horse,and after him fled Slivers Lowe. Hopalong was gaining on them when hesaw Slivers raise his arm and fire deliberately into the back of theproprietor of the Oasis, leap over the falling body, vault into thesaddle of Harlan's horse and gallop for safety. Hopalong's shots wentwide and the last view any one had of Slivers in that part of thecountry was when he dropped into an arroyo to follow it for safety.Laramie Joe fled before Red Connors and Red's rage was so great that itspoiled his accuracy, and he had the sorrow of seeing the pursued growfaint in the mist and fog. Pursuit was tried until the pursuers realizedthat their mounts were too worn out to stand a show against the freshanimals ridden by the survivors of the Oasis crowd.
Red circled and joined Hopalong. "Blasted coyotes," he growled. "KilledJackson an' Edwards, an' wanted the Kid! He's shore showed 'em whatfighting is, all right. But I wonder what got into 'em all at once togive 'em nerve enough to start things?"
"Edwards paid his way, all right," replied Hopalong. "If I do as wellwhen my time comes I won't do no kicking."
"Yore time ain't coming that way," responded Red, grinning. "You'll diea natural death in bed, unless you gets to cussing me."
"Shore there ain't no more, Buck?" Hopalong called.
"Yes. There was only five, I reckon, an' they was purty well shot upwhen we took a hand. You know, Johnny was in it all the time," repliedthe foreman, smiling. "This town's had the cleaning up it's needed forsome time," he added.
They were at Jackson's store now, and hurriedly dismounted and ran into see Johnny. They found him lying across some boxes, which brought himalmost to the level of a window sill. He was too weak to stand, whilenear him in similar condition lay Barr, too weak from loss of blood todo more than look his welcome.
"How are you, Kid?" cried Buck anxiously, bending over him, while otherslooked to Barr's injuries.
"Tired, Buck, awful tired; an' all shot up," Johnny slowly replied."When I saw you fellers--streak past this windy--I sort of wentflat--something seemed to break inside me," he said, faintly and with aneffort, and the foreman ordered him not to talk. Deft fingers, schooledby practice in rough and ready surgery, were busy over him and in halfan hour he lay on Jackson's cot, covered with bandages.
"Why, hullo, Lacey!" exclaimed Hopalong, leaping forward to shake handswith the man Red and Billy had gone to help. "Purty well scratched up,but lively yet, hey?"
"I'm able to hobble over here an' shake han's with thesescrappers--they're shore wonders," Lacey replied. "Fought like a wholeregiment! Hullo, Johnny!" and his hand-clasp told much.
"Yore cross fire did it, Lacey; that was the whole thing," Johnnysmiled. "Yo're all right!"
Red turned and looked out of the window toward the Oasis and thenglanced at Buck. "Reckon we better burn Harlan's place--it's all that'sleft of that gang now," he suggested.
"Why, yes; I reckon so," replied the foreman. "That's as--"
"No, we won't!" Hopalong interposed quickly. "That stands till Johnnysets it off. It's the Kid's celebration--he was shot in it."
Johnny smiled.