‘Not the slightest, Mr. Lane. I don’t remember a thing from the time that man stepped out to speak to me until I woke up in your home.’
‘You had been hit hard, Morgan. You’ve got a hard head, young man. That blow would have killed most men. I dunno,’ he said wearily. ‘I almost wish I hadn’t tried to buck the 6X6. My son is a fugitive, you know. I’ve tried to induce him to leave the country, but he won’t go. Swears he never killed Leach. He won’t get a square deal with a Mesa City jury, nor a jury from any other part of this range; and if the 6X6 outfit catch him, they’ll lynch him on the spot; so what can he do?’
‘But who killed Peter Morgan?’ asked Nan.
‘I don’t know,’ replied her father. ‘If he was killed here, he could only blame himself. I told him what would happen. I drew a deadline for the 6X6. Morgan knocked me down on the street in Mesa City.’
‘They’ll swear you killed him, Dad. Don’t you see what it means? No matter where they find the horse with the body, the sheriff found Morgan’s gun in our corral.’
‘That’s true, Nan. We’ll just have to wait and see how it turns out.’
He turned to Rex. ‘If I was you, young man, I’d head for Mesa City as quick as possible. This is a dangerous place to be found. You haven’t any interests here. I’m just telling you this for your own benefit.’
‘But we haven’t done anything, Mr. Lane. I don’t know anybody in Mesa City—and I’m not afraid.’
‘That’s because you’re ignorant of what it might mean. This is my home. I’m too old to stand trial for murder. My best days are behind me. I’ve got to fight.’
‘I never have fought,’ said Rex slowly. ‘I don’t know how well I could fight. But I’m not going to run away and leave you and Nan here.’