quiet voice, and Apgar's glance went nervously to the famous badge, Then to Gibbons' face for reassurance. He stayed in Mulch a y’ s way.
Tm all the law that's needed," Gibbons repeated to the Ranger. "Ride out."
""No," Keroon said, then swung so that he faced the expectant men behind him."I'm here to arrest c Gibbons," he told them. "Him alone. If your orders to interfere, then I rescind them —and I speak for the State of Texas!"
The six of them shifted uneasily. Then one of them said, "Ride out like you were told to mist er . Rangers ain't no special breed to Gibbons' Militia." Keroon sighed, turned back to Gibbons. "I arrest you in the name of the people of Texas," he said and reached for the warrant. Some gunman thought he was going for a breast gun. He drew and fired, the slug catching the lawman in the small of the back. Four more times he was hit in that many seconds, the bullets driving him lifeless from the saddle.
"You foul cowards!" Mulchay cried at them. "You miserable butchers —" Apgar raised his gun high, brought it down with sickening force on the man's head. Mulchay went to his knees, fell head down and lay there.
The door at Gibbons' back swung open and Rosemarie stepped onto the porch, dressed again and wide-eyed with terror. Her glance took in the murdered man and the crumpled figure of Mulchay, but when she would have gone to him, Gibbons' arm circled her waist and held her back.
"What have you done?" she demanded brokenly. "What have you done?"
"Get your things together, missy. We're traveling fast . . ."
"No! I won't go with you!"
"You will —or you can stand here and watch Mulcha y take a bullet in the back of his head!" "You wouldn't!"
"Apgar, at the count of three finish the old meddler One! Two —" The stolid Apgar thumbed the hamm er back.
"No, no!"
"Get packed in three minutes," Gibbons ordered, and the girl reentered the house. Gibbons then had the dead man and the unconscious one tied across their saddles Rosemarie came down the steps, carrying a small duffl e bag, and a horse from the small remuda was made read y for her. Leaving one man behind to take Lauren into custody, the strange party rode off.
TWELVE
I t was Angus Mulchay's nature to speak and to act im petuously—and on the morning that he had taken it into his mind to ride off to Austin for help, the man had done so without informing any of his friends what he was up to. Naturally, those cronies wondered about him—it was all they talked about during the first few days of his disap pearance—but when two weeks had passed without a word, Hamlin, Macintosh were of the opinion that a delegation of Gibbons' hardcase army had put the fear of God into him and packed him off.
"He'll be back in the country soon," they told each other confidently.
"Ay, and denyin' that Gibbons was the cause." And when they gathered at the Glasgow this hot Tues day evening they had no idea that Mulchay had, indeed, come back. But there were other things to talk about to night, for the families of the Tompkins, the Alreds and t h e Bryans were in town lock, stock and barrel, and the three heads of those families were hopping mad about it. " 'Load up your wagon, you're moving,' this dirty-faced g u nman tells me," Jock Bryan reported to the assemblage ii the saloon. " 'And why am I moving?' I asks him. 'Be c au se you're in a battle zone,' he tells me in that surly voic e. Imagine! The land I've ranched for twenty-five yea rs is a battle zone!"
"The same as they did to me," Cy Tompkins added. "Only I was told it was for the safety of my family. So I s a id I'd decide about the safety of my family, as I've al ways done—and he says, no, Captain Gibbons does all the deciding in the Big Bend for everyone."
"Well?" the big-chested Alex Aired demanded. "What are we going to do about Captain High-and-Mighty Gibbons?"
"Turn him and his rascals out!" shouted the usually retiring Bryan. "I'm a Godfearing man, and violence of fends me —but
Tm all the law that's needed," Gibbons repeated to the Ranger. "Ride out."
""No," Keroon said, then swung so that he faced the expectant men behind him."I'm here to arrest c Gibbons," he told them. "Him alone. If your orders to interfere, then I rescind them —and I speak for the State of Texas!"
The six of them shifted uneasily. Then one of them said, "Ride out like you were told to mist er . Rangers ain't no special breed to Gibbons' Militia." Keroon sighed, turned back to Gibbons. "I arrest you in the name of the people of Texas," he said and reached for the warrant. Some gunman thought he was going for a breast gun. He drew and fired, the slug catching the lawman in the small of the back. Four more times he was hit in that many seconds, the bullets driving him lifeless from the saddle.
"You foul cowards!" Mulchay cried at them. "You miserable butchers —" Apgar raised his gun high, brought it down with sickening force on the man's head. Mulchay went to his knees, fell head down and lay there.
The door at Gibbons' back swung open and Rosemarie stepped onto the porch, dressed again and wide-eyed with terror. Her glance took in the murdered man and the crumpled figure of Mulchay, but when she would have gone to him, Gibbons' arm circled her waist and held her back.
"What have you done?" she demanded brokenly. "What have you done?"
"Get your things together, missy. We're traveling fast . . ."
"No! I won't go with you!"
"You will —or you can stand here and watch Mulcha y take a bullet in the back of his head!" "You wouldn't!"
"Apgar, at the count of three finish the old meddler One! Two —" The stolid Apgar thumbed the hamm er back.
"No, no!"
"Get packed in three minutes," Gibbons ordered, and the girl reentered the house. Gibbons then had the dead man and the unconscious one tied across their saddles Rosemarie came down the steps, carrying a small duffl e bag, and a horse from the small remuda was made read y for her. Leaving one man behind to take Lauren into custody, the strange party rode off.
TWELVE
I t was Angus Mulchay's nature to speak and to act im petuously—and on the morning that he had taken it into his mind to ride off to Austin for help, the man had done so without informing any of his friends what he was up to. Naturally, those cronies wondered about him—it was all they talked about during the first few days of his disap pearance—but when two weeks had passed without a word, Hamlin, Macintosh were of the opinion that a delegation of Gibbons' hardcase army had put the fear of God into him and packed him off.
"He'll be back in the country soon," they told each other confidently.
"Ay, and denyin' that Gibbons was the cause." And when they gathered at the Glasgow this hot Tues day evening they had no idea that Mulchay had, indeed, come back. But there were other things to talk about to night, for the families of the Tompkins, the Alreds and t h e Bryans were in town lock, stock and barrel, and the three heads of those families were hopping mad about it. " 'Load up your wagon, you're moving,' this dirty-faced g u nman tells me," Jock Bryan reported to the assemblage ii the saloon. " 'And why am I moving?' I asks him. 'Be c au se you're in a battle zone,' he tells me in that surly voic e. Imagine! The land I've ranched for twenty-five yea rs is a battle zone!"
"The same as they did to me," Cy Tompkins added. "Only I was told it was for the safety of my family. So I s a id I'd decide about the safety of my family, as I've al ways done—and he says, no, Captain Gibbons does all the deciding in the Big Bend for everyone."
"Well?" the big-chested Alex Aired demanded. "What are we going to do about Captain High-and-Mighty Gibbons?"
"Turn him and his rascals out!" shouted the usually retiring Bryan. "I'm a Godfearing man, and violence of fends me —but
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