Nyland nodded and the man sighed. He closed his eyes for an instant, but opened them slightly at Nyland's question:
"What did you do to Peggy? Where is she?"
The man was sinking fast, and it seemed that he hardly comprehended Nyland's question. The latter repeated it, and the man replied weakly:
"She's over in Okar—at Maison's—in his rooms. She——"
He closed his eyes and his lips, opening the latter again almost instantly to cough a crimson stream.
Nyland got up, his face chalk white. Standing beside the man he removed the two spent cartridges from the cylinder of his pistol and replaced them with two loaded ones. Then he ran to his horse, tore the reins from the rail of the corral fence, mounted with the horse in a dead run, and raced toward Okar.
CHAPTER XXIX
NYLAND'S VENGEANCE
Just before the dusk enveloped Okar, Banker Maison closed the desk in his private office and lit a cigar. He leaned back in the big desk chair, slowly smoking, a complacent smile on his lips, his eyes glowing with satisfaction.