“Why, Joe Marino—you know, boss, The Pup—he come to me an’ said that Teddy, here, told him to tell me he was to take my place, an’ I was to ride fence. He an’ Gus been on the job all week. I’ve been workin’ on the fence. An’ believe me, it sure needs fixin’. You mean to say that The Pup lied, Teddy?”
Teddy nodded his head.
“That’s just what he did, Nick. I guess it’s all my fault. I should have been more careful and checked up. But what on earth did The Pup do a thing like that for? It sure beats me!”
“Nick, where’s The Pup?” Mr. Manley demanded sharply.
“You got me, boss,” Nick confessed. His eyes were troubled. Somehow, this thing that had happened seemed partly his fault, and he found it a strange experience to be in wrong with the boss.
CHAPTER IV
Joe Marino
Always, as long as Nick Looker had been on the ranch—five years this coming winter—he had done his work cheerfully and well. The men on the X Bar X had more than mere employees’ interest in the ranch. They looked upon it as a home, and, as such, to be well cared for.
“This here Pup—” Nick observed, “now, I don’t like to say nothin’ against a man when he ain’t here fer a come-back; but—well, boss, The Pup sure likes his liquor. I don’t mind a man takin’ a nip now and then, if he’s built that-away. But not during workin’ hours.”
“Do you mean to say Joe Marino has been drunk while he’s on the job?” Teddy asked quickly.
“Now, maybe we’d better wait till The Pup shows up,” Nick countered, shifting his shoulders uneasily. “He’ll be around soon. Maybe he’s rode to town with Gus Tripp. Most likely that’s it.”