CHAPTER VI
UGLY COMPANY
Larkin's revolver was empty, and his hands mechanically went up.
The captor on his right relieved him of the useless weapon, and, in atrice, produced a rope, with which he bound the sheepman's arms tightlybehind him. With the other end of the rope turned about the pommel of hissaddle, he dropped back into the darkness, while his companion rode to aposition ahead of Larkin.
At a growled word from behind, the little cavalcade advanced, Larkinmystified, uncertain and fuming with impotent rage. Never in his life hadhe been so needed as he was at that time by Sims and the herdsmen; neverin his life had he so ardently desired liberty and freedom of action.
Why these men had captured him he did not know; what they intended doingwith him he had no idea--although his knowledge of plainsmen's charactersupplied him with two or three solutions hardly calculated to exhilaratethe victim. Where they were taking him was almost as much of a puzzle,for Bud, after the first few turns of his captors, completely lost hissense of direction, except for the general compass of the stars.
No longer the friendly loom of the hogback was on his left. He felt thefree wind of the plains on his face, and calculated that they must havereturned to the open range.
Who his captors were was another puzzle. If these men had been driving thecattle why did they not continue to drive them instead of turning aside tomake prisoner a harmless sheepman? If they were not driving the cattle--
A horrible suspicion crossed Bud's mind. If these were punchers from theBar T outfit he was indeed in a bad way, for no one knew better thanLarkin (by hearsay) the wild stories told of Beef Bissell's methods in acattle war.
The young man told himself calmly that if he got away with a few head ofsheep and an entire body he would consider himself fortunate in theextreme.
For seemingly endless ages the leader trotted on ahead--so far, in fact,did he ride that Larkin's arms and elbow joints were racked with pain frombeing held so long in an unnatural position. At the end of what wasprobably three hours, a small fiery glow made itself evident at somedistance across the plain, and the sheepman knew by this camp-fire thatthe goal of his ride was in sight.
A solitary man sat by the fire, rolling and smoking a continuous stream ofcigarettes. Dimly seen in the near-by shadows were the long figures ofother men rolled in their blankets. Bud knew that not far off the hobbledhorses grazed, or had lain down to rest.
"Kick up the boys, Bill," said the man who held the rope. "Got somethin'queer to look into this time."
"Aw, let 'em sleep, chief," drawled Bill without moving. "Some of 'emain't closed their eyes in nigh on three days. What's the matter?"
"Got a young captain here who 'lows he's some brave man, I reckon.Leastways he come drivin' at us with fire a-poppin' out of his gun, an'Shorty and me thinks we better investigate. So we nabs him when his gun'sempty and brings him in. A man that'll shoot around reckless the way thisfeller did is plumb dangerous to have runnin' loose.
"But I guess you're right about the boys, Bill. I'll let 'em sleep an'we'll talk to this maverick in the mornin'. Keep him under your eye."
Things were clearing up for Larkin. These men evidently thought that hewas some ambitious puncher on the lookout for rustlers. Up to this timehe had kept silent, borrowing no trouble and trusting to his ability toidentify himself. But now at the prospect of idling here all night andpart of the day he protested.
"Turn my arms loose, will you?" he demanded. "They're about broke off."
Joe, the chief, after carefully searching him for additional weapons,complied with his request, in so far that he bound his wrists together infront.
"Now, boys," said Bud, crisply, "I wish you'd tell me what this all means.If you want to question me, do it now and let me go, for I've got mightyimportant business up the line a way."
"I allow yuh have," remarked Joe, dryly. "Yuh also got some mightyimportant business right here, if yuh only knowed it."
"What business."
"Fannin' yore gun at us that-a-way. Yore plumb careless, young feller. Butlook here, I'm not a-goin' to stay up all night talkin' to yuh. You'llhave to talk to all the boys in the mornin'."
"But I can't wait till morning, I tell you," cried Bud, exasperated."Every minute I sit here I may be losing thousands of dollars. ForHeaven's sake let me go to-night, and I'll come back any other time yousay. I give you my word for it."
"Can't wait till to-morrer! Stranger, you may wait till the crack o' doombefore you ever get back to that business o' yourn."
"What do you mean by that?" asked Larkin, made strangely ill at ease bysome veiled meaning in the other's tone.
"Got to leave it to the boys," was Joe's evasive reply. "Better lay downand git some sleep; likely to be busy all day to-morrer."
And Larkin, finding that all argument was as futile as trying to crackGibraltar with a cold chisel, relapsed into silence, and prepared to getwhat rest he could until daylight.
Morning disclosed the fact that the group of men numbered about ten, eachwith a horse near by, and all fully supplied with arms. In fact, there wasnot a man among them who could not have "rolled a gun" with both hands ifnecessary, and at the same time carried a knife between his teeth. Thismatter of complete armament, together with Joe's ambiguous speeches of thenight before, wholly convinced Larkin that he had fallen in with a band ofrustlers.
Breakfast was prepared for himself by each man, Joe attending to the wantsof the prisoner, but no attempt was made to rope or saddle the horses.They were evidently waiting for something. What this was became evidentshortly when another group of five men appeared around a distant rise andloped to the rendezvous. Larkin reasoned that these must be the men whocontinued the cattle drive after Joe and Pike had captured him.
The sheepman could not but admire the natural advantages of the placechosen by his captors for the meeting. Rolling hills surrounded the littlepocket on all sides, and here and there a red scoria butte thrust its uglyheight out of the plain. The chances of discovery were infinitesimal.
The evolution of the rustler was logical but rapid, and started with thegeneral law that any ranch-owner was at liberty to brand with his mark anymaverick found on his range. As it was the cowboy who discovered thesestrays, he was usually provided with a branding-iron and put the seal ofhis employer on the animal wherever found.
From this it was but a step for unscrupulous punchers, or those with ashrewd eye for business, to drive off unbranded cattle and ship themindependently to market, or to mark them with a private brand of theirown. All this was before the introduction of brand inspectors at thestockyards of Omaha, Kansas City, or Chicago.
Therefore, among the men at this rendezvous Larkin noted types of cowmenequal to any on the range for horsemanship and ability to handle cattle.With his naturally quick eye, the sheepman observed them closely, butfailed to recognize any of them.
His case came up quickly.
By various papers in his possession he proved his identity.
"What were you doing out on the range last night?" asked Joe.
Bud hesitated for a minute and then, deciding that his safest and quickestcourse would be to make a clean breast of things, replied:
"I was driving two thousand head of sheep north on the Bar T."
"Then you're not a cattleman?"
"No." Larkin produced his bills of sale for the sheep and these werehanded gravely about from one to another, although it was certain thatsome of the men could not read them.
"How long are you going to stay in this country?"
"Just as long as it takes to get my sheep north. I come from Montana."
Joe beckoned a number of the men aside out of Larkin's hearing.
"We're plumb lucky," he announced. "If I know my book, old Bissell willforget all about a few missin' calves when he knows this feller has sentsheep up his range. Now we've got to run off about a hundred more head tothat railroad camp north of here, and I think we can use this Larkin."
r /> A dark, sullen-looking puncher shook his head slowly.
"It's takin' chances," he growled. "String him up, I say. He knows us allnow, and I'd sooner he'd look through a rope than me."
"You shore are ornery, Pete," said a third, "an' plumb set on stretchin'yore neck. Cain't yuh see that if yuh hang this feller we'll have both thesheep and cattlemen ag'in us?"
"Shore, that's sense," broke in another. "Less hear Joe's scheme."
"'Tain't so blame much, boys," countered the chief modestly. "We'll makethis Larkin swear never to give word agin us if we don't kill him. Thenwe'll run him off into the hills for four or five days with a guard,finish our own drive, and clear out, lettin' him go. What d'ye think ofthat?"
"It's a reg'lar hum-dinger, Joe," said one man, and the others concurredin the laudatory opinion.
But at the first sentence to Larkin, that young man upset their well-laidplans.
"Larkin," said Joe, "we allow as how we'd like to make a bargain withyuh?"
"If you are going to bargain with me to break the law, you had better notsay anything about it," was the reply.
"I was jest about startin' one of them mutual protective, benefit andliterary sassieties," suggested Joe tactfully as a feeler, while hiscomrades grinned.
"Don't want to hear about it," retorted Bud, divining the intention. "Youcan do anything you like with me, but don't tell me your bargains. I'vegot troubles enough with my sheep without signing on any more. Now, lookhere, men, I don't want to interfere with you, and it only wastes yourtime to bother with me. Suppose you let me go about my business and you goabout yours."
"Swear on oath never to recognize or bear witness against us?"
"No. What kind of a crook do you think I am? If I were put under oath by asheriff, I would have to accuse you, and I'd do it."
Joe Parker's face lost its expression of genial amiability and he lookedabout on a circle of dark countenances.
"I'm plumb sorry you act this-a-way," he said aggrievedly. "Boys, where'sthe nearest tree?"
"Ten miles."
"After dinner everybody saddle up," came the order.