Jim Waring of Sonora-Town | Page 5

who came. Waring answered with his name.
"Si! Si!" exclaimed Armigo. "The se?or is welcome."
Waring dismounted. "Juan, I have two of your friends here; Jos�� Vaca and Ramon Ortego."
Armigo seemed surprised. "Jos�� Vaca is wounded?" he queried hesitatingly.
Waring nodded.
"And the horses; they shall have feed, water, everything--I myself--"
"Thanks. But I'll look after the horses, Juan. I'm taking Vaca and Ramon to Sonora. See what you can do for Vaca. He's pretty sick."
"It shall be as the se?or says. And the se?or has made a fight?"
"With those hombres? Not this journey! Jos�� Vaca made a mistake; that's all."
Armigo, perturbed, shuffled to the house. Waring unsaddled the horses and turned them into the corral. As he lifted the saddle from Vaca's horse, he hesitated. It was a big stock saddle and heavy; yet it seemed too heavy. On his knees he turned it over, examining it. He smiled grimly as he untied the little canvas sacks and drew them from the tapaderas.
"Thought he showed too much boot for a hard-riding chola," muttered Waring.
He rose and threw some hay to the horses. He could hear Ramon and Armigo talking in the ranch-house. Taking his empty canteen from his own saddle, he untied the sacks and slipped the gold-pieces, one by one, into the canteen. He scooped up sand and filled the canteen half full. The gold no longer jingled as he shook it.
While Waring had no fear that either of the men would attempt to escape, he knew Mexicans too well to trust Armigo explicitly. A thousand dollars was a great temptation to a poor rancher. And while Armigo had always professed to be Waring's friend, sympathy of blood and the appeal of money easily come by might change the placid face of things considerably.
Waring strode to the house, washed and ate with Juan in the kitchen; then he invited the Mexican out to the corral.
"Jos�� and Ramon are your countrymen, Juan."
"Si, se?or. I am sorry for Ramon. This thing was not of his doing. He is but a boy--"
Waring touched the other's arm. "There will be no trouble, Juan. Only keep better track of your horses while I ride this part of the country."
"But--se?or--"
"I've had business with you before. Two of your cayuses are astray down the Agua Fria. One of them is dragging a maguey lead-rope."
"Se?or, it is impossible!"
"No, it isn't! I know your brand. See here, Juan. You knew that Vaca was trying to get away. You knew I'd be sent to get him. Why did you let him take two spare horses?"
"But, se?or, I swear I did not!"
"All right. Then when Ramon rode in here two days ago and asked you for two horses, why didn't you refuse him? Why did you tell him you would sell them, but that you would not lend them to him?"
"If Ramon says that, he lies. I told Ramon--"
"Thanks. That's all I want to know. I don't care what you told Ramon. You let him take the horses. Now, I'm going to tell you something that will be worth more to you than gold. Don't try to rope any stock grazing round here to-night. I might wake up quick and make a mistake. Men look alike in the moonlight--and we'll have a moon."
"It shall be as the se?or says. It is fate."
"All right, amigo. But it isn't fate. It's making fool mistakes when you or your countrymen tackle a job like Vaca tackled. Just get me a couple of blankets. I'll sleep out here to-night."
Juan Armigo plodded to the adobe. The lamplight showed his face beaded with sweat. He shuffled to an inner room, and came out with blankets on his arm. Vaca lay on a bed-roll in the corner of the larger room, and near him stood Ramon.
"The se?or sleeps with the horses," said Armigo significantly.
Ramon bent his head and muttered a prayer.
"And if you pray," said Armigo, shifting the blankets from one arm to the other, "pray then that the two horses that you borrowed may return. As for your Uncle Jos��, he will not die."
"And we shall be taken to the prison," said Ramon."
"You should have killed the gringo." And Armigo's tone was matter-of-fact. "Or perhaps told him where you had hidden the gold. He might have let you go, then."
Ramon shook his head. Armigo's suggestion was too obviously a question as to the whereabouts of the stolen money.
The wounded man opened his eyes. "I have heard," he said faintly. "Tell the gringo that I will say where the money is hidden if he will let me go."
"It shall be as you wish," said Armigo, curious to learn more of the matter.
At the corral he delivered Vaca's message to Waring, who feigned delight at the other's information.
"If that is so, Tio Juan," he laughed, "you shall have your share--a hundred pesos.