Chapter XXVII
"A Lucky Guy"
Lee had the affrighted look of one roused suddenly from troubled dreams.The whimper that had drawn the attention of Prince must have come fromher restless, tortured sleep. Not till his second match flared had shebeen really awake.
"Thank God!" he cried brokenly, all the pent emotion of the long nightvibrant in his tremulous voice.
She began to sob, softly, pitifully.
The match went out, but even in the blackness of the pit he could notescape the look of suffering he had seen on her face. Her habit was to doall things with high spirit. He could guess how much she had endured tobring those hollow shadows under her dusky eyes. The woe of the girltouched his heart sharply, as if with the point of a rapier.
He stooped, lifted her gently, and gathered her like a hurt child intohis arms. "You poor lost lamb," he murmured. And again he cried, "ThankGod, I came in time."
Her arms crept round his neck. She clung to him for safety, fearfully,lest even now he might vanish from her sight. Long, ragged sobs shook thebody resting in his arms. He whispered words of comfort, stroked gentlythe dark head of blue-black hair, held her firmly so that she might knowshe had found a sure refuge from the fate that had so nearly devouredher.
The spasmodic quivering of the body died away. She dabbed at her eyeswith a rag of a handkerchief and withdrew herself from his arms.
"I'm a nice baby," she explained with a touch of self-contempt. "But it'sbeen rather awful, Billie. I ... I didn't know whether ..."
"It's been the worst night of my life," he agreed. "I've been in hell forhours, dear. If--if anything had happened to you--"
The heart of the girl beat fast. She told herself he did not mean--couldnot mean what, with a sudden warmth of joy, her soul hunger had readinto his words.
Prince uncorked his canteen and she drank. He gave her sandwiches and shedevoured them. After he had helped her from the fissure he fired threeshots. Faintly from the left came the answering bark of a revolver. Whatmight almost have been an echo of it drifted from the right.
Lee Snaith was the most competent young woman the sheriff had ever met.He knew her self-reliant and had always guessed her sufficient toherself. Toward him especially he had sensed a suggestion of coolhostility. They had been friends, but with a distinct note of reservationon her part.
To-night the mask was off. She had come too close to raw reality to thinkof her pride. The morning light was sifting into the sky now. Billiecould see the girl more clearly as she sat on a slab of rock waiting forthe other searchers to join them. Was it his imagination that found inher an unwonted shyness of the dark eyes, a gentle timidity of mannerwhen she looked at him?
His emotion still raced at high tide. What an incomparable mate she wouldbe for any man! The rich contralto of her voice, the slow, graceful turnof the exquisite head, the vividness she brought to all her activities!How easy it was to light in her fine eyes laughter, indignation, the raresmile of understanding! Life with her would be an adventure into thehill-tops. With all his heart he yearned to take it beside her.
There were strange flashes in his eyes to-night that signaled to her amessage she had despaired of ever receiving. The long lashes of the girlfell to the hot cheeks. A pulse of excitement beat in her blood. A fewminutes before she had clung to him despairingly. Now she wanted to runaway and hide.
He stepped close to her and let his hand fall lightly on her arm.
"I've been blind all these years, Lee," he told her. "It's you I love."
She stole a little look at him with shy, incredulous eyes. "Have youforgotten--Polly?"
"I haven't been in love with her for years, but I didn't know it tillabout the Christmas holidays. She was a habit with me. There never wasa sweeter girl than Polly Roubideau. I'll always think a heap of her.But--well, she had more sense than I had--knew all the time we weren'tcut out for each other." He laughed a little, flushing withembarrassment. It is not the easiest thing in the world to explain to agirl why you have neglected her in favor of another.
Lee trembled. The desire was strong in her to seize her happiness whileshe could. Surely she had waited long enough for it. But some impulse offair play to him or of justice to herself held back the tide of love shelonged to release.
"I think ... you are impulsive," she said at last. "If you have anythingyou want to tell me, better wait until ..."
"Not another moment!" he cried. "I've been in torment all night. I ... Ithought I'd lost you forever. You don't care for me, of course. Younever have liked me very well, but--"
"Haven't I?" she breathed softly, not looking at him.
Love irradiated and warmed her. She forgot all she had suffered duringthe years she had waited for him to know his mind. She forgot theprivations of the past two days. Her eyes were tender with the mist ofunshed tears.
"It's going to be the biggest thing in my life. If there's any chance atall I'll wait as long as you like. Of course, the idea's new to youbecause you haven't ever thought of me that way--"
"You know so much about it," she replied, a faint smile in her darkeyes that had in it something of wistfulness, something of self-mockery.She looked directly at him and let him have it full in the face. "I oughtto be ashamed of it, I suppose, but I'm not. I've thought of you--thatway--lots of times. All girls do, when they meet a man they like."
"You like me?"
She might have told him that her heart had been his ever since that firstweek when she had met him and Clanton on the river. She might have addedthat all he had needed to do was to whisper "Come" and she would havegalloped across New Mexico to meet him. But she made no such confession.
"Yes, I ... like you," she said, a little tremor in her voice.
He noticed that she did not look at him. Her eyes had fallen to thefingers laced together on her lap. Under compulsion of his steady gazeshe lifted her lashes at last. What he read there was beyond belief.The wonder of it lifted his feet from the earth.
"Lee!" he cried, joy and fear in the balance.
She answered his unspoken question with a little nod.
His hand shook. "I've been a blind idiot, dear. I never guessed such athing."
"You were thinking about Polly all the time. I don't blame you. She's thesweetest thing I ever knew."
Billie sat down on the spar of rock beside her. His hand slipped down herarm till it covered hers. With the contact there came to him a flood ofcourage. He took her in his arms and kissed her with infinite tenderness.
Still unstrung from her adventures, she wept a little into his shoulderout of a full heart.
"D--don't mind me," she urged. "It's just because I'm so happy."
If Clanton, when he found them together a few minutes afterward, guessedwhat had happened, he gave no evidence of it but a grin, unless his latercomment had a cryptic meaning. "I'll bet Billie is the glad lad atfindin' you. He always was a lucky guy."
"I think I'm a little lucky too," Lee said with a grave smile.
Before starting, Prince examined the soles of the girl's boots. Out ofhis hat he fashioned a pair of overshoes and fastened them with stringsto her feet.
"They'll help some," he promised. "I reckon you're not goin' to do muchwalkin' anyhow with three husky men along."
By this time the searcher on the other flank had joined them. The returntrip was a long, hard one, but with Billie on one side of her, and Jim onthe other, Lee found it easy travelling. They aided her over the sharprocks and lifted her across the rougher stretches of lava.
At the edge of the lava bed a buggy was waiting to take Lee to Live-Oaksin case she should be found. Prince helped Lee in and took the place ofthe boy who had driven it out.
Clanton put his foot on the hub of the wheel. "Just a minute, Billie. I'mwanted for the killin' of Homer Webb. I didn't shoot him an' I don'tknow who did. Somebody must have been lyin' there in the chaparralwaitin' for him. I'll give myself up an' stand trial if you'll guaranteeme fair play. No lynchin' bee. No packed jury.
All the cards dealt fairan' honest above the table."
The sheriff had smiled at Pauline Roubideau's implicit faith in JimClanton's word. But now, face to face with his friend, he too believedand felt a load lift from his heart.
"That's a deal, Jim. You won't have to reckon with any mob or anyhand-picked jury, I'll tell you the truth. I thought you did it. But ifyou say you didn't, that goes with me. I'll see you through."
"Good enough. I'll drop in to-morrow an' we can fix things up. I'd liketo be tried outside of Washington County. There's too much prejudice hereone way an' another. Well, take this little lady home an' scold her goodfor the way she's been actin'. She'd ought to get married to a man thatwill look after her an' not let her go buckin' into cyclones."
Billie smiled. "I'll talk to her about that, old scout."
Miss Snaith blushed furiously, but the best she could do was a bit ofweak repartee. "I used to have hopes that you would ask me, Jim."
Jimmie-Go-Get-'Em laughed with friendly malice. "I used to have hopes,too, in that direction, Lee, but I haven't any more. You be good to heror we also-rans will boil you in oil, Billie."