“Then I can’t figure out what anyone was doing in our corral,” said Joe.
“Maybe he was going to run off with the horses and Slim came along just in time to give him a scare,” suggested Doug.
“Well, maybe,” agreed Joe, but it was plain that such an explanation did not satisfy him.
When they left the cookhouse, Joe turned to Slim.
“Feel like riding over to the Double O with me?”
“I’ll be all right in a few minutes. Count me in. I want to be along when you talk with the boss of the Diamond Dot.”
Slim went to the bunkhouse while the others hastened down to the corral to get their mounts. The cowboy detective was firmly convinced that someone in the bunkhouse had slugged him the night before and left him hog-tied along the creek.
With quick, deft hands he searched one bunk after another. It was not until he reached Doug Huston’s duffel bag that he found anything. Wadded in the bottom was a black cloth which might easily be tied around the lower part of the face to form a mask. Slim nodded grimly. His suspicions that Doug was the rustlers’ key man on the ranch were rapidly being confirmed.
Slim rammed the black cloth back into the duffel bag and slipped on his chaps, slung his gun belt around his hips, and started for the corral.
An excited group was gathered at the gate, looking at tracks which led into the corral.