"Of him," she answered, her voice breaking—"of Manuel del Rey!"
"Well," replied Hooker bluntly, "I've got nothing to do with that—I can't interfere in your love-affairs—but if the's war and they try to take the town, you can count on me."
"Oh, thank you," she said, bowing satirically. "And do you expect a war?"
"Not with that bunch of hombres!" returned Bud, waving a disparaging hand toward the noise of the shouting. At this she broke down and laughed. Evidently she was not so fearful of discovery after all.
"You forget, sir," she said, "that I am a Mexican!"
Then, as he failed to show any signs of contrition, she changed her mood again.
"But wait!" she ran on, her eyes flashing. "Perhaps we are not so eager to defend our government when we have a new one every year. But if the men who are gathering in Chihuahua invade our country, you will find that as Sonorans those men will fight to the death.
"You laugh because you do not understand. But why should we Sonorans fight side by side with the Federals and rurales? Are they not the soldiers of Diaz, who have simply changed to another master? That Manuel del Rey was last year hunting down Maderistas in the hills; now he is fighting for Madero! And to-morrow? Who can say?"
She shrugged her shoulders scornfully, and Hooker perceived that she was in earnest in her dislike of the dashing captain, but prudence warned him to say nothing if he would escape being drawn into the quarrel.
"No," she went on, after an expectant pause, "let the rurales pursue these bandits—they are hired for that purpose! But if Orozco and Salazar join this ladrón, Bernardo Bravo, and seek to capture our towns, then, Señor Americano, you will see real war and men fighting to the death! Ah, you laugh again—you are a Texan and judge us Sonorans by the cowardly Chihuahuans—but it is the truth. And I, for one," she added naïvely, "would be almost glad to have war. Do you know why? To see if you would really defend me!"