“Johnny knows how Traynor was killed,” Kelsey answered. “If it’s any comfort to you, you can bank on it that we’ll get Mr. Gallup—and he’ll talk.”
CHAPTER XXX
MADEIRAS APPEARS AT LAST
Johnny got to his feet in a daze, leaving it to Kelsey to close the dead man’s eyes. The boy had easily grasped Gale’s dramatic story, but his brain was so busily engaged in separating the many details into their proper sequence that it was impossible for him to think clearly.
Out of the jumble of confused facts one thing came to overwhelm him. Molly was not Kent’s daughter! That was his big surprise.
In a way, Gale’s story explained things about as Johnny had fancied them. Beyond question Gallup had been the actual murderer. Kent was almost equally guilty, though. Johnny realized how impossible it was going to be to keep the cattleman from spending the rest of his days in jail.
“Thank God, he ain’t her father!” he said to himself. “He’s guilty, and he’ll have to pay for it.”
The other men were bunched about Kelsey, and Johnny heard him say:
“Gallup shot him. Gale had so much on the man that Gallup had to kill him. Johnny had enough on Aaron to satisfy me; Tobias clinched it. He swore that Jackson Kent and the coroner of this county killed Crosbie Traynor—it was to hide a crime committed twenty years ago. It’s a strange story, boys; but the thing to do now is to get going. We want Kent and Gallup alive—remember that.”
“Best thing to do, I guess, is to unhitch the team, and put Gale back in the rig and leave him here,” Doc suggested. “Did you notice this, Jim? Gale’s gun? It’s been shot twice. He must have tried to get in a lick.”
“No,” Johnny cut in. “They fired it after they’d got him; threw it in the wagon and gave the horses hell. If it hadn’t been for us Gale’s body wouldn’t have been found until the team got to town. That would have looked like suicide to a lot of people.”