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The big man crossed the floor with one vast stride, and, seizingDonnegan by both shoulders, dragged him under the full light of thewindow; and still the crazy laughter shook Donnegan and made himhelpless.
"They tied me to a board--like a papoose," said Donnegan, "and theystraightened my back--but they left me this way--wizened up." He wasstammering; hysterical, and the words tumbled from his lips in a jumble."That was a month after you ran away from home. I was going to find you.Got bigger. Took the road. Kept hunting. Then I met a yegg who toldabout Rusty Dick--described him like you--I thought--I thought you weredead!"
And the tears rolled down his face; he sobbed like a woman.
A strange thing happened then. Lord Nick lifted the little man in hisarms as if he were a child and literally carried him in that fashion tothe bunk. He put him down tenderly, still with one mighty arm around hisback.
"You are Garry? You!"
"Garrison Donnegan Reardon. Aye, that's what I am. Henry, don't saythat you don't know me!"
"But--your back--I thought--"
"I know--hopeless they said I was. But they brought in a young doctor.Now look at me. Little. I never grew big--but hard, Henry, as leather!"
And he sprang to his feet. And knowing that Donnegan had begun life as acripple it was easy to appreciate certain things about his expression--acold wistfulness, and his manner of reading the minds of men. Lord Nickwas like a man in a dream. He dragged Donnegan back to the bunk andforced him to sit down with the weight of his arms. And he could notkeep his hands from his younger brother. As though he were blind and hadto use the sense of touch to reassure him.
"I heard lies. They said everybody was dead. I thought--"
"The fever killed them all, except me. Uncle Toby took me in. He was adevil. Helped me along, but I left him when I could. And--"
"Don't tell me any more. All that matters is that I have you at last,Garry. Heaven knows it's a horrible thing to be kithless and kinless,but I have you now! Ah, lad, but the old pain has left its mark on you.Poor Garry!"
Donnegan shuddered.
"I've forgotten it. Don't bring it back."
"I keep feeling that you should be in that chair."
"I know. But I'm not. I'm hard as nails, I tell you."
He leaped to his feet again.
"And not so small as you might think, Henry!"
"Oh, big enough, Garry. Big enough to paralyze The Corner, from whatI've heard."
"I've been playing a game with 'em, Henry. And now--if one of us couldclear the road, what will we do together? Eh?"
The smile of Lord Nick showed his teeth.
"Haven't I been hungry all my life for a man like you, lad? Somebody tostand and guard my back while I faced the rest of the world?"
"And I'll do my share of the facing, too."
"You will, Garry. But I'm your elder."
"Man, man! Nobody's my elder except one that's spent half his life--as Ihave done!"
"We'll teach you to forget the pain I'll make life roses for you,Garry."
"And the fools outside thought--"
Donnegan broke into a soundless laughter, and, running to the door,opened it a fraction of an inch and peeped out.
"They're standing about in a circle. I can see 'em gaping. Even fromhere. What will they think, Henry?"
Lord Nick ground his teeth.
"They'll think I've backed down from you," he said gloomily. "They'llthink I've taken water for the first time."
"Why, confound 'em, the first man that opens his head--"
"I know, I know. You'd fill his mouth with lead, and so would I. But ifit ever gets about--as it's sure to--that Lord, Nick, as they call me,has been bluffed down without a fight, I'll have every Chinaman thatcooks on the range talking back to me. I'll have to start all overagain."
"Don't say that, Henry. Don't you see that I'll go out and explain thatI'm your brother?"
"What good will that do? No, do we look alike?"
Donnegan stopped short.
"I'm not very big," he said rather coldly, "but then I'm not so verysmall, either. I've found myself big enough, speaking in general.Besides, we have the same hair and eyes."
"Why, man, people will laugh when they hear that we call ourselvesbrothers."
Donnegan ground his teeth and the old flush burned upon his face.
"I'll cut some throats if they do," he said, trembling with his passion.
"I can hear them say it. 'Lord Nick walked in on Donnegan prepared toeat him up. He measured him up and down, saw that he was a fightingwildcat in spite of his size, and decided to back out. And Donnegan waswilling. They couldn't come out without a story of some kind--with thewhole world expecting a death in that cabin--so they framed a crazycock-and-bull story about being brothers.' I can hear them say that,Donnegan, and it makes me wild!"
"Do you call me Donnegan?" said Donnegan sadly.
"No, no. Garry, don't be so touchy. You've never got over that, I see.Still all pride and fire."
"You're not very humble yourself, Henry."
"Maybe not, maybe not. But I've been in a certain position around theseparts, Don--Garry. And it's hard to see it go!"
Donnegan closed his eyes in deep reverie. And then he forced out thewords one by one.
"Henry, I'll let everybody know that it was I who backed down. That wewere about to fight." He was unable to speak; he tore the stock loose athis throat and went on: "We were about to fight; I lost my nerve; youcouldn't shoot a helpless man. We began to talk. We found out we arebrothers--"
"Damnation!" broke out Lord Nick, and he struck himself violently acrossthe forehead with the back of his hand. "I'm a skunk, Garry, lad. Why,for a minute I was about to let you do it. No. no, no! A thousand timesno!"
It was plain to be seen that he was arguing himself away from thetemptation.
"What do I care what they say? We'll cram the words back down theirthroats and be hanged to 'em. Here I am worrying about myself like aselfish dog without letting myself be happy over finding you. But I amhappy, Garry. Heaven knows it. And you don't doubt it, do you, oldfellow?"
"Ah," said Donnegan, and he smiled to cover a touch of sadness. "I hopenot. No, I don't doubt you, of course. I've spent my life wishing foryou since you left us, you see. And then I followed you for three yearson the road, hunting everywhere."
"You did that?"
"Yes. Three years. I liked the careless life. For to tell you the truth,I'm not worth much, Henry. I'm a loafer by instinct, and--"
"Not another word." There were tears in the eyes of Lord Nick, and hefrowned them away. "Confound it, Garry, you unman me. I'll be weepinglike a woman in a minute. But now, sit down. We still have some thingsto talk over. And we'll get to a quick conclusion."
"Ah, yes," said Donnegan, and at the emotion which had come in the faceof Lord Nick, his own expression softened wonderfully. A light seemed tostand in his face. "We'll brush over the incidentals. And everything isincidental aside from the fact that we're together again. They canchisel iron chain apart, but we'll never be separated again, Godwilling!" He looked up as he spoke, and his face was for the moment aspure as the face of a child--Donnegan, the thief, the beggar, the liarby gift, and the man-killer by trade and artistry.
But Lord Nick in the meantime was looking down to the floor andmustering his thoughts.
"The main thing is entirely simple," he said. "You'll make oneconcession to my pride, Garry, boy?"
"Can you ask me?" said Donnegan softly, and he cast out his hands in agesture that offered his heart and his soul. "Can you ask me? Anything Ihave is yours!"
"Don't say that," answered Lord Nick tenderly. "But this small thing--mypride, you know--I despise myself for caring what people think, but I'mweak. I admit it, but I can't help it."
"Talk out, man. You'll see if there's a bottom to things that I cangive!"
"Well, it's this. Everyone knows that I came up here to get young JackLandis and bring him back to Lebrun's--from whic
h you stole him, youclever young devil! Well, I'll simply take him back there, Garry; andthen I'll never have to ask another favor of you."
He was astonished by a sudden silence, and looking up again, he saw thatDonnegan sat with his hand at his breast. It was a singularly femininegesture to which he resorted. It was a habit which had come to him inhis youth in the invalid chair, when the ceaseless torment of hiscrippled back became too great for him to bear.
And clearly, indeed, those days were brought home to Lord Nick as heglanced up, for Donnegan was staring at him in the same old, familiaragony, mute and helpless.