declared. "You haven't even got the ghost of her. She's seen the truth about you, Cary, and she smiles when she thinks about you!"
Cary pulled back his foot and kicked Clonmel in the face. I saw blood come to answer the blow, but Clonmel kept on laughing. Cary stood trembling and cursing over his man, for a moment, and then went out and ordered the others out ahead of him. When it came to the killing of Clonmel, at the will of the old man, I had an idea that Will Cary would have the ordering of it. If superior hate counted, he would certainly be selected for the job.
We could hear the voices muttering outside the smoke-house, now, and there was an occasional glinting of a lantern through one of the chinks as a guard walked up and down, carrying his light with him.
"I'm sorry," said Clonmel, "but better to have tried that than to be twiddling our thumbs. Talk to me, Bill. Talk to me about Will Cary. Fine, upstanding fellow to look at, isn't he?"
"As handsome as I ever saw, barring one," I answered. I did not tell him that the exception was himself. "I hated to see what he did to you, Harry."
Clonmel actually laughed again. What a man he was!
"I'm going to sing a little serenade for my girl. D'you think she cares a rap about me, Bill?"
"Cares about you? She's dizzy about you. But she's not for you, maybe."
"She's up here, I think," said Clonmel, "and if she is, she has to know that I'm out here."
He rolled over and put his mouth close to one of the chinks through which the lantern light glowed, now and again. Then he opened his throat and sang such a rollicking, thundering, ringing song as I'd never heard come out of a human being before.
A hand beat on the door of the smoke-house almost at once.
"Be still!" called Will Cary.
Clonmel kept on with his song until it ended. But by that time Cary had torn the door open and rushed in with his lantern in one hand and a gun in the other. He was a raging devil.
"I ought to empty the lantern on you and let you burn for a wick!" said Cary. "By thunder, I think I'll do it."
"Tell her that I was singing for her when you murdered me, Will," said Clonmel. "No, you won't have to tell her. She's heard me and the song both, by this time."
Cary swung up the lantern. I thought he would bring it down with a crash across the face of Clonmel, but instead he held his hand and stepped back. Whatever was in him for utterance, he could not get it past his lips, and he turned and walked slowly back through the open door. It slammed heavily behind him. The key ground in the lock, and I heard it rattle as it was withdrawn again.
"What possessed you?" I asked Clonmel.
"She had to know that I'm here," said Clonmel. "If she cares a rap about me, it'll keep her from mating with any Cary after I'm gone. Even if she doesn't care about me, she may ask a few questions that'll make them tell a few lies. And so, something of me lives after me."
I thought that over. There was a good deal in what he said, though his mind was not like the minds of others. I was still lying there, pondering him even more than I thought about our danger, when I thought I heard a very light, scratching sound, as though a cat were sharpening its claws against the wall outside. But this noise progressed steadily up the logs toward the roof.
CHAPTER XV
Guns in the Dark
AFTER a moment, I rolled myself over toward Clonmel and whispered to him what I thought I heard. He agreed. He had heard the same thing. He pointed out that the sound now seemed to be coming forward along the roof.
"Is it Silver?" he murmured.
"I don't know," I said. "Unless he has more than one man to help him, what can he possibly manage to do here?"
"He doesn't doubt himself as much as you doubt him!" suggested Clonmel. "But they can't work up the logs of that roofing—not without crowbars and a lot of noise. What'll they do ? They'll simply try the front door."
"While a man's walking up and down in front of it, on guard?" said I.
"That's all
Cary pulled back his foot and kicked Clonmel in the face. I saw blood come to answer the blow, but Clonmel kept on laughing. Cary stood trembling and cursing over his man, for a moment, and then went out and ordered the others out ahead of him. When it came to the killing of Clonmel, at the will of the old man, I had an idea that Will Cary would have the ordering of it. If superior hate counted, he would certainly be selected for the job.
We could hear the voices muttering outside the smoke-house, now, and there was an occasional glinting of a lantern through one of the chinks as a guard walked up and down, carrying his light with him.
"I'm sorry," said Clonmel, "but better to have tried that than to be twiddling our thumbs. Talk to me, Bill. Talk to me about Will Cary. Fine, upstanding fellow to look at, isn't he?"
"As handsome as I ever saw, barring one," I answered. I did not tell him that the exception was himself. "I hated to see what he did to you, Harry."
Clonmel actually laughed again. What a man he was!
"I'm going to sing a little serenade for my girl. D'you think she cares a rap about me, Bill?"
"Cares about you? She's dizzy about you. But she's not for you, maybe."
"She's up here, I think," said Clonmel, "and if she is, she has to know that I'm out here."
He rolled over and put his mouth close to one of the chinks through which the lantern light glowed, now and again. Then he opened his throat and sang such a rollicking, thundering, ringing song as I'd never heard come out of a human being before.
A hand beat on the door of the smoke-house almost at once.
"Be still!" called Will Cary.
Clonmel kept on with his song until it ended. But by that time Cary had torn the door open and rushed in with his lantern in one hand and a gun in the other. He was a raging devil.
"I ought to empty the lantern on you and let you burn for a wick!" said Cary. "By thunder, I think I'll do it."
"Tell her that I was singing for her when you murdered me, Will," said Clonmel. "No, you won't have to tell her. She's heard me and the song both, by this time."
Cary swung up the lantern. I thought he would bring it down with a crash across the face of Clonmel, but instead he held his hand and stepped back. Whatever was in him for utterance, he could not get it past his lips, and he turned and walked slowly back through the open door. It slammed heavily behind him. The key ground in the lock, and I heard it rattle as it was withdrawn again.
"What possessed you?" I asked Clonmel.
"She had to know that I'm here," said Clonmel. "If she cares a rap about me, it'll keep her from mating with any Cary after I'm gone. Even if she doesn't care about me, she may ask a few questions that'll make them tell a few lies. And so, something of me lives after me."
I thought that over. There was a good deal in what he said, though his mind was not like the minds of others. I was still lying there, pondering him even more than I thought about our danger, when I thought I heard a very light, scratching sound, as though a cat were sharpening its claws against the wall outside. But this noise progressed steadily up the logs toward the roof.
CHAPTER XV
Guns in the Dark
AFTER a moment, I rolled myself over toward Clonmel and whispered to him what I thought I heard. He agreed. He had heard the same thing. He pointed out that the sound now seemed to be coming forward along the roof.
"Is it Silver?" he murmured.
"I don't know," I said. "Unless he has more than one man to help him, what can he possibly manage to do here?"
"He doesn't doubt himself as much as you doubt him!" suggested Clonmel. "But they can't work up the logs of that roofing—not without crowbars and a lot of noise. What'll they do ? They'll simply try the front door."
"While a man's walking up and down in front of it, on guard?" said I.
"That's all
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