“You tried to murder him, Harry? My God, you didn’t do that!”
“Blaze Nolan was there,” said Harry huskily. “Oh, it was a fool thing to do, dad. I admit being a fool, and there was murder in my heart. I could see you goin’ broke, sheep all over Painted Valley. I didn’t know Jane was in there.”
Harry walked away, but came back to stand beside the old man’s chair.
“You don’t know what we went through—waitin’ for Blaze Nolan to show up at Marsh’s place. We figured he’d come at night; so I spent half of the nights in the shrubbery near the big house. I felt like a cheap burglar all the time. That letter you got from Lew Miller at the penitentiary didn’t give us any idea how long he would take to get to Marsh’s place, if he came at all.
“Jane stayed at the hotel, when she wasn’t at the depot in Los Angeles, watching for Blaze to arrive, and we were about to give up the job. She went with me this last night, when Blaze came in. I had this balcony all spotted. In fact, I’d been in there before, where I could see Kendall Marsh at his desk. Jane was to stay outside the window, while I listened to what they might plan, but she came in and I didn’t know it.
“I listened to their schemes against the people of Painted Valley, and when Kendall Marsh told Blaze that he was to rustle all your cattle and run them through Lost Trail, I reckon I kinda saw red. Anyway, I showed my gun through them velvet curtains and cut loose. And that’s the true story, dad.”
The lines on the old man’s face were deeper now, as he shook his head sorrowfully.
“The worst of it was,” said Harry slowly, “Blaze Nolan found Jane in there, after I ducked out, and he thinks she fired that shot.”
“Blaze Nolan caught her?” choked his father.
“Yeah, he found her. I lost my gun. I guess it caught on somethin’ and jerked out of my hand. But he found it and gave it to her, and then he took her out to a street car. I saw them come off that low balcony, and I followed ’em to the car.”