"I love horses," Hugh said, "and Prince, as I have called him, has been my companion night and day for eighteen months. We have hunted together, and roped-in cattle, and fought Indians, and divided out last crust together."
Don Ramon led the way into the house, and then into a room where an elderly lady and two young ones were sitting. They rose as he entered.
"What news, Ramon?" the elderly lady asked.
"Such news as there is is bad, Maria. These caballeros, Don Hugh Tunstall and—" (he hesitated and looked at Royce, with whose name he was not acquainted). "Bill Royce, without any Don!" the cow-boy put in. The Mexican repeated the name—"have been good enough to ride over here with me, in order that you, as well as I, might question them as to what they know of our son. Unhappily they know little. We were not misinformed. Don Hugh has indeed our son's horse, but he bought it, as he has proved to me, from two strangers, who tally exactly with the description we have received of the two hunters who left the caravan with our son. I feared all along that these men were at the bottom of whatever might have befallen Estafan. I fear now that there is no doubt whatever about it. Caballeros, this is my wife, Donna Maria Perales. These are my two daughters, Dolores and Nina."
For an hour Hugh and his companion remained answering the questions of Donna Perales; then Hugh rose, feeling that the ladies would be glad to be alone in their grief, for the confirmation of their fears respecting Don Estafan had brought their loss back to them freshly. Don Ramon and his son accompanied them to the door.
"I pray you," the former said, "that if at any time you come upon the villains you give them in custody. I and my son will make the journey to appear against them, however far it may be."
"You need not trouble on that score," Royce said. "If we meet them, I warrant you we can manage their business without any bother of judge or jury. They will have a cow-boy trial, and after the evidence Hugh and I can give, you may be sure that a rope will very soon settle their affair."
"I must ask you, Don Ramon," Hugh said, "to lend me a horse back to the town, and to send a vaquero with me to bring it back."
"But why, sir?" the Mexican asked in surprise. "You have your own horse."
"No, señor, Prince is not mine. He was your son's, and is yours. A man who buys stolen property is liable to lose it if he meets the proper owner, and when I bought Prince for half his value I knew that I was running that risk."