“Not so bad as that, I hope, Señor Otega. The fact is, I fell in love with your beautiful valley, and, anxious to find a home, I decided to settle here, and the old hacienda was the only place I could get. So I came here from the northward, bringing my cattle, horses, outfit, and cowboys with me, and I assure you we shall be most comfortable. You see, I took an early opportunity to call upon you.”
But Señor Otega seemed to be lost in thought, and said, in an absent-minded way:
“Come in, come in! Why did you come to this valley, señor?”
“To settle here, at least for a while.”
“You have your people with you?”
“Yes, all of them, and real men, too.”
“I am glad. But why did you seek a home beneath that doomed roof?”
“Do you remember telling me the curse that rested upon this valley? You told me that your daughter had been taken from you by an unseen foe.”
“Yes.”
“Has she been restored to you?”