Chapter IX
Billie Stands Pat
Clanton came back out of the haze to find his friend's arm around hiswaist, the sound of his strong, cheerful voice in his ears.
"Steady, old fellow, steady. Where did they hit you, Jim?"
"In the shoulder. I'm sick."
Billie supported him to a chair and called to the bartender, who wascautiously rising from a prone position behind the bar. "Bring a glass ofwater, Mike."
The wounded man drank the water, and presently the sickness passed. Hesaw a little crowd gather. Some of them carried out the body of HughRoush. They returned for that of his brother.
"Dave ain't dead yet. He's still breathing," one of the men said.
"Not dead!" exclaimed Clanton. "Did you say he wasn't dead?"
"Now, don't you worry about that," cautioned Prince. "Looks to me likeyou sure got him. Anyhow, it ain't your fault. You were that quiet andgame and cool. I never saw the beat."
The admiration of his partner did not comfort Jim. He was suspiciouslynear a breakdown. "Why didn't I take another crack at him when I had thechance?" he whimpered. "I been waitin' all these years, an' now--"
"I tell you he hasn't a chance in a thousand, Jim. You did the jobthorough. He's got his,"
Prince had been intending to say more, but he changed his mind. Half adozen men were coming toward them from the front door. Buck Sanders wasone of them, Quantrell's trooper another. Their manner looked likebusiness.
Sanders was the spokesman. "You boys ride for the Flying V Y, don't you?"he asked curtly.
"We do," answered Billie, and his voice was just as cold. It had in itthe snap of a whiplash.
"You came in here to pick trouble with us. Your pardner--Clanton,whatever his name is--gave it out straight that he was goin' to killRoush."
"He didn't mention you, did he?"
"The Roush brothers were in our party. We ride for the Lazy S M. We don'tmake distinctions."
"Don't you? Listen," advised Prince. In five sentences he sketched thecause of the trouble between Jim Clanton and the Roush brothers. "Mybunkie didn't kill any of the Roush clan because they worked for Snaithand McRobert. He shot them for the reason I've just given you. That's hisbusiness. It was a private feud of his own. You heard what was saidbefore the shootin' began," he concluded.
"Tha's what you say. You'll tell us, too, that he got Ranse Roush in afair fight. But you've got to show us proof," Sanders said with a sneer.
"I expect just now you'll have to take my word and his. I'll tell youthis. Ranse Roush was a renegade. He was ridin' with a bunch of broncobucks. They attacked the Roubideau place an' we rode--Jim an' I did--tohelp Pierre an' his family. We drove the 'Paches off, but they picked upMiss Pauline while she was out ridin' alone. We took after 'em. I gotwounded an' Jim here went up a gulch lickety-split to catch the reddevils. He got four 'Paches an' one hell-hound of a renegade. Is there awhite man here that blames him for it?"
When all is said, the prince of deadly weapons at close range is thehuman eye. Billie was standing beside his friend, one hand restinglightly on his shoulder. The cowpuncher was as lithe and clean of buildas a mastiff, but it was the steady candor of his honest eye that spokemost potently.
"Naturally you tell a good story," retorted the foreman with dryincredulity. "It's up to you to come through with an explanation of whyWebb's men have just gunned three of our friends. Your story doesn't makeany hit with me. I don't believe a word of it."
"You can take it or let it alone. It goes as I've told it," Prince cutback shortly.
Another man spoke up. He was a tinhorn gambler of Los Portales and forreasons of his own foregathered with the Snaith-McRobert faction. "Lookhere, young fellow. You may or may not be in this thing deep. I'm willin'to give you the benefit of the doubt if my friends are. I'd hate to seeyou bumped off when you didn't do any of the killin'. All we want isjustice. This is a square town. When bad men go too far we plant 'em onBoot Hill. Understand? Now you slide out of the back door, slap a saddleon your bronc, an' hit the high spots out of here,"
"And Clanton?" asked Billie.
"We'll attend to Clanton's case,"
A faint smile touched the sardonic face of Prince. "What did you ever seeme do to give you the notion that I was yellow, Bancock?"
"This ain't your affair. You step aside an' let justice--"
"If those that holler for justice loudest had it done to them there wouldbe a lot of squealin' outside of hogpens."
"You won't take that offer, then?"
"Not this year of our Lord, thank you."
"You've had your chance. If you turn it down you're liable to go out ofhere feet first."
Not a muscle twitched in the lean, brown face of the young cowpuncher."Cut loose whenever you're ready."
"Hold yore hawsses, friend," advised the ex-guerrilla, not unkindly."There's no occasion whatever for you to run on the rope. We are six totwo, countin' the kid, who's got about all he can carry for one day.We're here askin' questions, an' it's reasonable for you to answer 'em."
"I have answered 'em. I'll answer all you want to ask. But I'd think youwould feel cheap to come kickin' about that fight. My friend fought fair.You know best whether your friends did. He took 'em at odds of two toone, an' at that one of your gunmen hunted cover. What's troublin you,anyhow? Didn't you have all the breaks? Do you want an open an' shutcinch?"
"You're quite a lawyer," replied Dumont, the man who found the climate ofTexas unhealthy. "I reckon it would take a good one to talk himself outof the hole you're in."
Billie looked at the man and Dumont decided that he did not have aspeaking part in the scene. He was willing to remain one of the mob. Inpoint of fact, after what he had seen in the last few minutes, he was notat all anxious to force the issue to actual battle. A good strong bluffwould suit him a great deal better. Even odds of six to two were notgood enough considering the demonstration he had witnessed.
"What is it you want? Another showdown?" asked Clanton unexpectedly.
Quantrell's man laughed. "I never did see such a fire-eater."
He turned to his companions. "I told you how it would be. We can't provea thing against the kid except that he was lookin' for a fight an' gotit. He played the hand that was dealt him an' he played it good. I reckonwe'll have to let him go this time, boys."
"We'll make a mistake if we do," differed Sanders.
"You'll make one if you don't," said Prince pointedly.
He stood poised, every nerve and muscle set to a hair-trigger for swiftaction. Of those facing him not one of the six but knew they would haveto pay the price before they could exact vengeance for the death of theRoush brothers.
"What's the use of beefing?" grumbled a one-armed puncher in the rear."They shot up three of our friends. What more do you want?"
"Don't be in a hurry, Albeen," advised Billie. "It's easy to startsomething. We all know you burn powder quick. You're a sure-enough badman. But I've got a hunch it's goin' to be your funeral as well as mineif once the band begins to play."
"That so?" replied Albeen with heavy sarcasm. "You talk like you washoldin' a royal flush, my friend."
"I'm holdin' a six-full an' Clanton has another. We're sittin' instrong."
Dumont proposed a compromise. "Why not just arrest 'em an' hold 'em atBluewater till we find whether their story is true?"
"Bring a warrant along before you try that," Billie countered. "Think wewere born yesterday? No Lazy S M sheriff, judge, an' jury for me, if youplease."
The old guerrilla nodded. "That's reasonable, too. We haven't got a legto stand on, boys. This young fellow's story may be true an' it may not.All we know is what we've seen. Clanton here took a mighty slim chance ofcomin' through alive when he tackled Dave an' Hugh Roush. I wouldn't havegive a chew of tobacco against a week's pay for it. He fought fair,didn't he? Now he's come through I'll be doggoned if I want to jump onhim again."
"You're too soft for this country, Reb," sneered Albeen. "Better go b
ackto Arkansas or wherever you come from."
"When I get ready. You don't mean right away, Albeen, do you?" demandedthe old-timer sharply.
"Well, don't hang around all day," said Prince, his eye full in that ofthe foreman. "Make up your minds whether you want to jump one man an' awounded boy. If you don't mean business I'd like to have a doctor look atmy friend's shoulder."
Sanders's eyes fell at last before the quiet steadiness of that gaze.With an oath he turned on his heel and strode from the gambling-hall. Hisparty straggled morosely after him. The old raider lingered for a lastword.
"Take a fool's advice, Prince. There's a gunbarrel road leads out of townfor the north. Hit it pronto. Stay with it till you come up with Webb'sherd. You won't see his dust any too soon."
"I guess you're right, Reb," agreed Prince.
"You know I'm right. Just now you've got the boys bluffed, but it isn'tgoing to last. They'll get busy lappin' up drinks. Quite a crowd of towntoughs will join 'em. By night they'll be all primed up for a lynching.I'd spoil their party if I was you by bein' distant absentees."
"Soon as I can get Jim's shoulder fixed up we'll be joggin' along if he'sable to travel," promised Billie.
"Good enough. And I'd see he was able if it was me."