tellin' what more he's ben up to. Hetole Jeb Case's Willie 'bout it; an' bragged on it, by gum. 'Nenny waywe know Paynter and Abigail Prim was last seed with this here OskaloosaKid, durn him."
"Thanks," said Bridge politely, "and now may I make my final statementbefore going to meet my maker?"
"Go on," growled the man.
"You won't interrupt me?"
"Naw, go on."
"All right! You damn fools have made up your minds to hang us. I doubtif anything I can say to you will alter your determination for thereason that if all the brains in this crowd were collected in oneindividual he still wouldn't have enough with which to weigh the mostobvious evidence intelligently, but I shall present the evidence, andyou can tell some intelligent people about it tomorrow.
"In the first place it is impossible that I murdered Abigail Prim, andin the second place my companion is not The Oskaloosa Kid and was notwith Mr. Paynter last night. The reason I could not have murdered MissPrim is because Miss Prim is not dead. These jewels were not stolen fromMiss Prim, she took them herself from her own home. This boy whom youare about to hang is not a boy at all--it is Miss Prim, herself. Iguessed her secret a few minutes ago and was convinced when she criedthat the jewels and money were her own. I don't know why she wishes toconceal her identity; but I can't stand by and see her lynched withouttrying to save her."
The crowd scoffed in incredulity. "There are some women here," saidBridge. "Turn her over to them. They'll tell you, at least that she isnot a man."
Some voices were raised in protest, saying that it was a ruse to escape,while others urged that the women take the youth. Jeb Case steppedtoward the subject of dispute. "I'll settle it durned quick," heannounced and reached forth to seize the slim figure. With a suddenwrench Bridge tore himself loose from his captors and leaped toward thefarmer, his right flew straight out from the shoulder and Jeb Case wentdown with a broken jaw. Almost simultaneously a car sped around a curvefrom the north and stopped suddenly in rear of the mob. Two men leapedout and shouldered their way through. One was the detective, Burton; theother was Jonas Prim.
"Where are they?" cried the latter. "God help you if you've killedeither of them, for one of them must know what became of Abigail."
He pushed his way up until he faced the prisoners. The Oskaloosa Kidgave him a single look of surprise and then sprang toward him withoutstretched arms.
"Oh, daddy, daddy!" she cried, "don't let them kill him."
The crowd melted away from the immediate vicinity of the prisoners. Noneseemed anxious to appear in the forefront as a possible leader of amob that had so nearly lynched the only daughter of Jonas Prim. Burtonslipped the noose from about the girl's neck and then turned toward hercompanion. In the light from the automobile lamps the man's face wasdistinctly visible to the detective for the first time that night,and as Burton looked upon it he stepped back with an exclamation ofsurprise.
"You?" he almost shouted. "Gad, man! where have you been? Your father'sspent twenty thousand dollars trying to find you."
Bridge shook his head. "I'm sorry, Dick," he said, "but I'm afraid it'stoo late. The open road's gotten into my blood, and there's only onething that--well--" he shook his head and smiled ruefully--"but thereain't a chance." His eyes travelled to the slim figure sitting sostraight in the rear seat of Jonas Prim's car.
Suddenly the little head turned in his direction. "Hurry, Bridge,"admonished The Oskaloosa Kid, "you're coming home with us."
The man stepped toward the car, shaking his head. "Oh, no, Miss Prim,"he said, "I can't do that. Here's your 'swag.'" And he smiled as hepassed over her jewels and money.
Mr. Prim's eyes widened; he looked suspiciously at Bridge. Abigaillaughed merrily. "I stole them myself, Dad," she explained, "and thenMr. Bridge took them from me in the jail to make the mob think he hadstolen them and not I--he didn't know then that I was a girl, did you?"
"It was in the jail that I first guessed; but I didn't quite realizewho you were until you said that the jewels were yours--then I knew. Thepicture in the paper gave me the first inkling that you were a girl, foryou looked so much like the one of Miss Prim. Then I commenced to recalllittle things, until I wondered that I hadn't known from the first thatyou were a girl; but you made a bully boy!" and they both laughed. "Andnow good-by, and may God bless you!" His voice trembled ever so little,and he extended his hand. The girl drew back.
"I want you to come with us," she said. "I want Father to know you andto know how you have cared for me. Won't you come--for me?"
"I couldn't refuse, if you put it that way," replied Bridge; and heclimbed into the car. As the machine started off a boy leaped to therunning-board.
"Hey!" he yelled, "where's my reward? I want my reward. I'm WillieCase."
"Oh!" exclaimed Bridge. "I gave your reward to your father--maybe he'llsplit it with you. Go ask him." And the car moved off.
"You see," said Burton, with a wry smile, "how simple is the detective'sjob. Willie is a natural-born detective. He got everything wrong from Ato Izzard, yet if it hadn't been for Willie we might not have cleared upthe mystery so soon."
"It isn't all cleared up yet," said Jonas Prim. "Who murdered Baggs?"
"Two yeggs known as Dopey Charlie and the General," replied Burton."They are in the jail at Oakdale; but they don't know yet that I knowthey are guilty. They think they are being held merely as suspects inthe case of your daughter's disappearance, whereas I have known sincemorning that they were implicated in the killing of Baggs; for after Igot them in the car I went behind the bushes where we discovered themand dug up everything that was missing from Baggs' house, as nearly asis known--currency, gold and bonds."
"Good!" exclaimed Mr. Prim.
On the trip back to Oakdale, Abigail Prim cuddled in the back seatbeside her father, told him all that she could think to tell of Bridgeand his goodness to her.
"But the man didn't know you were a girl," suggested Mr. Prim.
"There were two other girls with us, both very pretty," replied Abigail,"and he was as courteous and kindly to them as a man could be to awoman. I don't care anything about his clothes, Daddy; Bridge is agentleman born and raised--anyone could tell it after half an hour withhim."
Bridge sat on the front seat with the driver and one of Burton's men,while Burton, sitting in the back seat next to the girl, could not butoverhear her conversation.
"You are right," he said. "Bridge, as you call him, is a gentleman.He comes of one of the finest families of Virginia and one of thewealthiest. You need have no hesitancy, Mr. Prim, in inviting him intoyour home."
For a while the three sat in silence; and then Jonas Prim turned to hisdaughter. "Gail," he said, "before we get home I wish you'd tell me whyyou did this thing. I think you'd rather tell me before we see Mrs. P."
"It was Sam Benham, Daddy," whispered the girl. "I couldn't marry him.I'd rather die, and so I ran away. I was going to be a tramp; but I hadno idea a tramp's existence was so adventurous. You won't make me marryhim, Daddy, will you? I wouldn't be happy, Daddy."
"I should say not, Gail; you can be an old maid all your life if youwant to."
"But I don't want to--I only want to choose my own husband," repliedAbigail.
Mrs. Prim met them all in the living-room. At sight of Abigail in theill-fitting man's clothing she raised her hands in holy horror; but shecouldn't see Bridge at all, until Burton found an opportunity to drawher to one side and whisper something in her ear, after which she wasgraciousness personified to the dusky Bridge, insisting that he spend afortnight with them to recuperate.
Between them, Burton and Jonas Prim fitted Bridge out as he had not beendressed in years, and with the feel of fresh linen and pressed clothing,even if ill fitting, a sensation of comfort and ease pervaded him whichthe man would not have thought possible from such a source an hourbefore.
He smiled ruefully as Burton looked him over. "I venture to say," hedrawled, "that there are other things in the world besides the openroad."
Bur
ton smiled.
It was midnight when the Prims and their guests arose from the table.Hettie Penning was with them, and everyone present had been sworn tosecrecy about her share in the tragedy of the previous night. On themorrow she would return to Payson and no one there the wiser; but firstshe had Burton send to the jail for Giova, who was being held as awitness, and Giova promised to come and