“Yuh went huntin’ a dentist?” queried Honey foolishly. “Wh-where didja expect to find one?”
“Sounds kinda queer,” grinned Hashknife. “Yuh see, we was actin’ as a couple of chambermaids to a train of cows, but the bridge caught on fire and we got stalled. Sleepy’s tooth shore needed help; so we started out to find the wagon-bridge, figurin’ to find this Pinnacle City. But we didn’t find the bridge.”
“Oh, yeah,” Honey scratched his head. “The railroad bridge caught fire. Uh-huh. Ho-o-o-old on!”
He ran across the room, grabbed up a washbasin and placed it under a fresh leak. Then he came back and introduced the girls to Hashknife and Sleepy.
“My name’s Bee,” he said. “B-e-e.”
“Last or first?” asked Hashknife.
“Last. Say, I better rustle some wood for that fireplace. Kinda take the chill off the air. Gosh, you fellers shore are wet.”
Honey hurried away for some wood, while Hashknife moved some of the containers to more advantageous spots. There seemed to be no end to the leaks in the HJ ranch-house.
“Terrible, isn’t it?” smiled Peggy.
It seemed to her that these two strange cowboys, even with their wet garments and muddy boots, had brought a warmth and cheer to the ranch that was sorely needed.