She laughed lightly, amused over the sudden change that she saw and felt in him. "Of course the gun-man doesn't really intend to kill the rustler," she said. "I don't believe I shall have any one killed in the story. The gun-man is merely attracted by the sum of money promised him by the ranch owner, and when he accepts it is only because he is in dire need of work. Don't you think that could be possible?"
"That could happen easy in this country, ma'am," he returned.
She laughed delightedly. "That vindicates my judgment," she declared.
He was regarding her with unwavering eyes. "Is that gun-man goin' to be the hero in your story, ma'am?" he asked quietly.
"Why, of course."
"An' I'm to be him?"
She gave him a defiant glance, though she blushed immediately.
"Why do you ask?" she questioned in reply. "You need have no fear that
I will compel my hero to do anything dishonorable."
"I ain't fearin' anything," he returned. "But I'd like to know how you come to think of that. Do writers make them things up out of their own minds, or does someone tell them?"
"Those things generally have their origin in the mind of the writer," she replied.