“Stop!” shouted Two-gun Pete. “I know whar they’ve went to. The gang forgot ’bout the gulch thar, if they knowed ’bout it at all. Leastwise, they didn’t see it in the smoke till it war too late, an’ over they went. They won’t rustle no more steers, I reckons, bad luck to ’em.”
The whole party was now gathered about the mountain girl. The dead man, those who now knew him, was identified as Mexican Charlie.
“It’s Pap,” said Judy when they peered down into the face of the man whose head lay in her lap. She gazed up at the Overland girls with a pitiful look in her face.
Hornby opened his eyes, recognized her and began to speak.
“That’s all right, Pap. Don’t say it,” begged Judy.
“I got ter talk, Kid. I’m sorry I made ye mad yesterday. I told ye thet them friends of yours war shot at Red Gulch ’cause I knew the rest of their gang would be up heah, an’ we’d git ’em all. I wish we had! I wish we had, but the boys got looney ’cause your friends could shoot better’n they could, and ran over the edge.”
“Why did you an’ Mex fight, Pap?” asked Judy.
“’Cause he said I’d double-crossed him, an’ sent his gang to death to git rid of ’em, too. Then we fit. He set the fire, but I told him to.”
“Oh, Pap! How could you? These folks ain’t never meant you no harm. They ain’t done nothin’ but fight when you made ’em,” protested the mountain girl.
“Yes, they did! They come up heah lookin’ fer trouble. They wanted to drive us out er business. I know ’cause I had it from a feller who knowed. An’ ye helped ’em, Judy!” he exclaimed, blazing up into her face with something of the old fire in his eyes.