"Then I guess it's about time we got back," returned Peter Levine, and the two men moved as if to leave that vicinity.
"We don't want them to get away," Allen whispered excitedly to Rawlinson. "I want to get hold of that paper if possible."
"I reckon that will be easy, Washburn," returned the head cowboy. "I'm armed, you know, and I'll take my chances against those two rascals any time. Just follow me."
Without waiting for Allen to reply to this, Andy Rawlinson ran forward swiftly and silently, and in a few seconds had confronted the rascally pair. He had drawn his pistol, but he did not raise the weapon.
"Halt, both of you!" he cried, sharply. "Hands up there!"
"Hi! what's the meaning of this?" cried Levine, in astonishment. "Who are you?"
"It's Rawlinson, the head man here," muttered the man called Jim.
"Right!" answered the cowboy. "And here is a particular friend of yours, Levine," he added, as Allen stepped closer.
"Washburn!" muttered the rascally lawyer from Gold Run. And then he added quickly: "Have you been spying on us?"
"If we have, that's our affair," answered Allen coolly. "You'd better keep those hands up," he went on quickly, as he saw the two rascals making a move as if to start something.