CHAPTER VI
A BEAR TRAP
The winding trail led up to the scrub pines and from there north into thehills. Curly had not traveled far when he heard the sound of a gun firedthree times in quick succession. He stopped to listen. Presently therecame a faint far call for help.
Curly cantered around the shoulder of the hill and saw a man squatting onthe ground. He was stooped forward in an awkward fashion with his back toFlandrau.
"What's up?"
At the question the man looked over his shoulder. Pain and helpless rageburned in the deep-set black eyes.
"Nothing at all. Don't you see I'm just taking a nap?" he answeredquietly.
Curly recognized him now. The man was Soapy Stone. Behind the straightthin-lipped mouth a double row of strong white teeth were clamped tightly.Little beads of perspiration stood out all over his forehead. A glanceshowed the reason. One of his hands was caught in a bear trap fastened toa cottonwood. Its jaws held him so that he could not move.
The young man swung from the back of Keno. He found the limb of acottonwood about as thick as his forearm below the elbow. This he setclose to the trap.
"Soon as I get the lip open shove her in," he told Stone.
The prisoner moistened his dry lips. It was plain that he was in greatpain.
The rescuer slipped the toes of his boots over the lower lip and caughtthe upper one with both hands. Slowly the mouth of the trap opened. Stoneslipped in the wooden wedge and withdrew his crushed wrist. By great goodfortune the steel had caught on the leather gauntlet he was wearing.Otherwise it must have mangled the arm to a pulp.
Even now he was suffering a good deal.
"You'll have to let a doc look at it," Curly suggested.
Stone agreed. "Reckon I better strike for the Bar 99." He was furious athimself for having let such an accident happen. The veriest tenderfootmight have known better.
His horse had disappeared, but Curly helped him to the back of Keno.Together they took the trail for the Bar 99. On the face of the woundedman gathered the moisture caused by intense pain. His jaw was clenched tokeep back the groans.
"Hard sledding, looks like," Curly sympathized.
"Reckon I can stand the grief," Stone grunted.
Nor did he speak again until they reached the ranch and Laura Londonlooked at him from a frightened face.
"What is it?"
"Ran a sliver in my finger, Miss Laura. Too bad to trouble you," Soapyanswered with a sneer on his thin lips.
A rider for the Bar 99 had just ridden up and Laura sent him at once forthe doctor. She led the way into the house and swiftly gathered bandages,a sponge, and a basin of water. Together she and Curly bathed and wrappedthe wound. Stone did not weaken, though he was pretty gray about thelips.
Laura was as gentle as she could be.
"I know I'm hurting you," she said, her fingers trembling.
"Not a bit of it. Great pleasure to have you for a nurse. I'm certainly inluck." Curly did not understand the bitterness in the sardonic face and heresented it.
"If the doctor would only hurry," Laura murmured.
"Yes, I know I'm a great trouble. Too bad Curly found me."
She was busy with the knots of the outer wrapping and did not look up. "Itis no trouble."
"I'm too meddlesome. Serves me right for being inquisitive about yourfather's trap."
"He'll be sorry you were caught."
"Yes. He'll have to climb the hill and reset it."
That something was wrong between them Curly could see. Soapy was verypolite in spite of his bitterness, but his hard eyes watched her as a catdoes a mouse. Moreover, the girl was afraid of him. He could tell that bythe timid startled way she had of answering. Now why need she fear theman? It would be as much as his life was worth to lift a hand to hurther.
After the doctor had come and had attended to the crushed wrist Curlystepped out to the porch to find Laura. She was watering her roses and hewent across the yard to her.
"I'm right sorry for what I said, Miss Laura. Once in a while a fellowmakes a mistake. If he's as big a chump as I am it's liable to happen alittle oftener. But I'm not really one of those smart guys."
Out came her gloved hand in the firmest of grips.
"I know that now. You didn't think. And I made a mistake. I thought youwere taking advantage because I had been friendly. I'm glad you spokeabout it. We'll forget it."
"Then maybe we'll be friends after all, but I sha'n't tell you what myfriends call me," he answered gaily.
She laughed out in a sudden bubbling of mirth. "Take care."
"Oh, I will. I won't even spell it."
He helped her with the watering. Presently she spoke, with a quick looktoward the house.
"There's something I want to say."
"Yes."
"Something I want you to do for me."
"I expect maybe I'll do it."
She said nothing more for a minute, then the thing that was troubling herburst from the lips of the girl as a flame leaps out of a pent fire.
"It's about that boy he has up there." She gave a hopeless little gesturetoward the hills.
"Sam Cullison?"
"Yes."
"What about him?"
"He's bent on ruining him, always has been ever since he got a hold onhim. I can't tell you how I know it, but I'm sure---- And now he's moreset on it than ever."
Curly thought he could guess why, but he wanted to make sure. "Because youare Sam's friend?"
The pink flooded her cheeks. "Yes."
"And because you won't be Soapy Stone's friend?"
She flashed a startled look at him. "How do you know?"
"Jealous, is he?"
Her face, buried in the blooms she had been cutting, was of the same tintas the roses.
"And so he wants to hurt you through him?" Flandrau added.
"Yes. If he can drag Sam down and get him into trouble he'll pay off twogrudges at once. And he will too. You'll see. He's wily as an Indian. Forthat matter there is Apache blood in him, folks say."
"What about young Cullison? Can't he make a fight for himself?"
"Oh, you know how boys are. Sam is completely under this man's influence."Her voice broke a little. "And I can't help him. I'm only a girl. He won'tlisten to me. Besides, Dad won't let me have anything to do with himbecause of the way he's acting. What Sam needs is a man friend, one justas strong and determined as Soapy but one who is good and the right sortof an influence."
"Are you picking me for that responsible friend who is to be such apowerful influence for good?" Curly asked with a smile.
"Yes--yes, I am." She looked up at him confidently.
"Haven't you forgotten that little piece in the _Sentinel_? How does itgo? An example had ought to be made of the desperadoes, and all the restof it."
"I don't care what it says. I've seen you."
"So had the editor."
She waved his jests aside. "Oh, well! You've done wrong. What of that?Can't I tell you are a man? And I don't care how much fun you make of me.You're good too."
Curly met her on the ground of her own seriousness. "I'll tell yousomething, Miss Laura. Maybe you'll be glad to know that the reason I'mgoing to the horse ranch is to help Sam Cullison if I can."
He went on to tell her the whole story of what the Cullisons had done forhim. In all that he said there was not one word to suggest such a thing,but Laura London's mind jumped the gaps to a knowledge of the truth thatCurly himself did not have. The young man was in love with Kate Cullison.She was sure of it. Also, she was his ally in the good cause of romance.
When Curly walked back into the house, Stone laid down the paper he hadbeen reading.
"I see the _Sentinel_ hints that Mr. Curly Flandrau had better belynched," he jeered.
"The _Sentinel_ don't always hit the bull's-eye, Soapy," returned theyoung man evenly. "It thinks I belong to the Soapy Stone outfit, but weknow I haven't that honor."
"There's no such outfit--no
t in the sense he means," snapped the man onthe lounge. "What are your plans? Where you going to lie low? Picked aspot yet?"
"I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on the way," Curly assured himgaily.
Soapy frowned at him under the heavy eyebrows that gave him so menacing aneffect.
"Better come back with me to the ranch till you look around."
"Suits me right down to the ground if it does you."
Someone came whistling into the house and opened the door of the room. Hewas a big lank fellow with a shotgun in his hands. "From Missouri" wasstamped all over his awkward frame. He stood staring at his unexpectedguests. His eyes, clashing with those of Stone, grew chill and hard.
"So you're back here again, are you?" he asked, looking pretty black.
Stone's lip smile mocked him. "I don't know how you guessed it, but I suream here."
"Didn't I tell you to keep away from the Bar 99--you and your whole cursedoutfit?"
"Seems to me you did mention something of that sort. But how was I to knowwhether you meant it unless I came back to see?"
Laura came into the room and ranged herself beside her father. Her handrested lightly on his forearm.
"He got caught in one of your bear traps and this young man brought himhere to wait for the doctor," she explained.
"Hmp!"
The Missourian stared without civility at his guest, turned on his heel,and with his daughter beside him marched out of the room. He could notdecently tell Stone to leave while he was under the care of a doctor, buthe did not intend to make him welcome. London was a blunt grizzled oldfellow who said what he thought even about the notorious Soapy Stone.
"We'll pull our freights right away, Curly," Stone announced as soon ashis host had gone.
The young man went to the stable and saddled Keno. While he was tighteningthe cinch a shadow fell across his shoulder. He did not need to look roundto see whose it was.
"I'm so glad you're going to the horse ranch. You will look out for Sam. Itrust you. I don't know why, but I have the greatest confidence in you,"the owner of the shadow explained sweetly.
Curly smiled blandly over his shoulder at her. "Fine! That's a gooduplifting line of talk, Miss Laura. Now will you please explain why you'refeeding me this particular bunch of taffy? What is it I'm to do for you?"
She blushed and laughed at the same time. Her hand came from behind herback. In it was a letter.
"But I do mean it, every word of it."
"That's to be my pay for giving Master Sam his billy doo, is it?"
"How did you guess? It is a letter to Sam."
"How did I guess it? Shows I'm sure a wiz, don't it?"
She saw her father coming and handed him the letter quickly.
"Here. Take it." A spark of mischief lit her eye and the dimples came outon her cheeks. "Good-by, _Curly_."