“Hush, Ma,” cut in the voice of Hank Basset. “Joe done his best by us. His hands is tied, drat it, the same as ours is. Now, big feller, how come that Joe Kipp ’lowed that you should come here? Don’t try no lyin’ er we turns loose these shotguns. Yuh read the sign on the cottonwood and me’n ma is within’ our rights when we shoots. Git tuh talkin’, dang yuh.”
“Me’n my li’l’ pardner is strangers, Basset, and we ain’t takin’ up no man’s fight fer him. Kipp done told us tuh take Fox up on it, when Fox give us the offer uh the job. We was in jail at the time and the ol’ buzzard was aimin’ tuh cold-deck us into the pen, savvy? It was either take this job er go over the road fer a few years. We ain’t doin’ dirty work fer no man, mister. We’re cow hands, me and Shorty is, not gun-toters. We come here peaceful and we stays thataway, lessen we’re crowded bad.
“If I was a gun man, Basset, and was aimin’ tuh th’ow lead in yore direction, I’d be doin’ it now. That there bush yo’re a squattin’ behind ain’t so thick as she might be. I kin see yuh plain. Yuh’d orter pick a boulder fer shelter.”
A muffled curse and cracking of twigs came from the brush as Hank Basset shifted his position. Tad’s eyes followed the moving brush tops. His ruse had worked. He now knew where the cow man crouched. Shorty grinned his approval at Tad’s clever lying.
“Good guessin’, Taddie. Now shoo that there settin’ hen of a female from her nest and we’ll feel easier,” he whispered. “If it comes to the wust, we gotta run. We can’t noways shoot no female women. I might try a pot shot at Basset.”
“Hush up, runt.” Then, in a louder tone. “I said my say, Basset. She goes as she lays. We ain’t burnin’ no powder here ner elsewhere fer Luther Fox. Yo’re the doctor, sabe? If we’re messin’ into ary range war er such, we’ll go back the way we come, with our guns in the scabards, and leave the job tuh them that wants it. From what I seen of the LF hands, there’s plenty of ’em that’ll take it. There’s our proposition, Basset. Take it er leave it.”
There was a long silence, broken only by whispering between the cow man and his wife. Then the answer came from behind the boulder in the voice of Ma Basset.
“Shed yore guns and light. As long as we gotta be pestered with LF men, it’d as well be you two as them others. Keerful how you handle yore hands while yo’re coming through the fence. Keep to the middle of the wagon road that leads to the house. Hank and me’ll have yuh covered, every step.”
Tad and Shorty exchanged a quick look. Tad nodded briefly.
“Shed the cannon, pard, and we’ll take her up.”