CLOSING IN
"Now let's have the whole yarn," urged Bud Merkel.
The rescue party of cowboys had returned to Diamond X ranch, after
meeting Nort and Dick who were riding their saddleless horses on their
way of escape from the mysterious camp.
Thereupon the two brothers told everything that had happened since they
rode off together two days before, to haze back the bunch of wild
steers.
"Hum! That's quite a yarn," commented Bud's father who, with Slim
Degnan, Babe Milton and several of the cowboys, had listened to the
lads' story.
"Did they harm you at all?" asked motherly Mrs. Merkel.
"No, they were very polite about it," answered Nort. "But of course we
weren't going to stay with them on that account."
"I should say not!" chuckled Bud. "So you put paregoric in the
Greaser's coffee! That was rich! Even Zip Poster couldn't have done
better!"
"Oh, Zip! He'd 'a' drugged the whole camp, and brought 'em away one at
a time on his shoulder," said Slim, with a wink at the others.
"Hum! You know a lot--don't you?" murmured Bud, but it was easy to see
he did not like any fun poked at Zip Foster, a very mysterious
personage, it appeared.
"How'd you come to find us?" asked Nort, when his own tale, and that of
his brother, had been sufficiently told.
"Well, it was mainly luck, in a way," Bud answered. "After you two
rode off that time, we didn't pay much attention to you for a while, as
we had our hands full with the cattle. Then we didn't worry, even when
it began to get dark, for we figured that the steers had given you more
of a run than usual. We didn't worry, for I told dad that you were
getting to be real ranchers."
Nort and Dick smiled proudly at this tribute.
"But," resumed Bud, "when you fellows didn't come back in the early
hours of the morning, we did begin to get a little leery. And then we
started off to look for you as soon as it was light. We needn't say we
didn't find you. But we kept on hunting, and we were just about to
give up again, and ride off in another direction, when we saw you
heading for us."
"That camp of the professors' is pretty well hidden," spoke Nort. "I
wonder if we can find it again?"
"Bet your boots!" cried Bud. "I could find it in the dark, but we
won't wait until then to close in on the rustlers!"
"That's what they are!" cried Nort "They're cattle rustlers, and
something else! Why, they had the nerve to drive some of our Diamond X
branded cattle right in under our noses, and they never even
apologized!"
"Such fellows don't generally beg your pardon," commented Mr. Merkel,
dryly. "But have you any idea what their game is, boys?" he asked the
two brothers.
"They're digging, blasting and excavating for something that's hidden
in the ground," answered Nort. "Whether it's gold or diamonds I don't
know."
"I don't see how it can be either," said Bud, with a shake of his head.
"Nothing like that has ever been found around here."
"There's always a first time," said Mrs. Merkel, with a smile. "And
wouldn't it be wonderful if there should be a diamond mine on our
ranch? I'd rather it would be diamonds than gold," she went on, "as it
doesn't take so many diamonds to amount to a fortune."
"Well, all I've got to say is that if those rascals rustle off enough
of my steers they'll be making a fortune that I ought to have,"
commented the head of Diamond X ranch. "I think it's time we closed in
on 'em, boys!" he added sharply. "Up to now we didn't have any direct
evidence. But if Nort and Dick saw some of our cattle driven into
their camp, and held there, that's proof enough of what they are."
"That's what I say!" cried Bud. "Let's get after the rustlers, Del
Pinzo and the rest! I always did suspect that slick Greaser, and now
we've got the goods on him. Shouldn't wonder but what that Double Z
outfit was mixed up in this, too."
"Don't go jumping too fast," counseled his father. "Zip Foster
wouldn't like it!"
"Oh--er--well, you'll see if I'm not right!" said Bud, somewhat
confused.
It was planned, in the light of what Nort and Bud had seen and heard,
to close in and raid the mysterious camp of the professors' the next
day. This talk had taken place during the night and early morning
hours, following the meeting of the refugees with the rescue party.
"Maybe we ought to close in on 'em this morning," suggested Bud, as the
conference broke up, when the first streaks of dawn were coming in the
ranch house windows.
"No," decided his father. "Nort and Dick want to get a little sleep,
and we want them with us when we close in. Then, too, I want to
circulate the word around a bit, and have some deputies from the
sheriff's office on hand to see that everything is done regular. Of
course I'd have a right to go in there, right off the reel, and take my
cattle. But I'd rather do it regular."
So it was planned. Nort and Dick, indeed, were glad to get some sleep
and rest, for they had had a hard time during the last two days. But
they were hardy, healthy lads, and their life almost continually in the
open since coming to Diamond X ranch had made them able to endure
hardships they could not, otherwise, have stood. So, after a short
rest and sleep, they were as eager as Bud and the cowboys to start on a
raid.
Meanwhile Mr. Merkel had not been idle. He had sent word of what had
happened to several adjoining ranches, being careful, however, not to
let news of what was afoot trickle through to Hank Fisher, owner of the
Double Z. As a matter of fact, while there was no evidence to directly
connect Hank with the mysterious operations at the professors' camp,
this man was believed to have been involved in more than one cattle
rustling operation.
It was hinted that he branded more mavericks than were rightfully his,
and on several occasions cattle with "blurred brands" had been found on
his ranch. But he always managed to explain matters, though his
association with Del Pinzo, who gave it out that he was officially
attached to Double Z, did not raise the value of Hank Fisher's
reputation. So it was thought best not to include him or his cowboys
in the raid.
But others from adjoining' ranches assembled at Diamond X on the
morning selected for the start, and by this time saddles and bridles
had been provided for Blaze and Blackie, and Nort and Dick sported new
guns in their holsters.
"Now do be careful, won't you?" pleaded Mrs. Merkel, as the cavalcade
started off, with none of the usual whooping and yelling that marked
many cowboy affairs. This was thought too serious to be decorated with
horse play.
"We'll be careful," promised her husband. "But I don't imagine
there'll be any serious trouble. We'll surround the place and if those
fellows have any sense they'll give up and take what's coming to them."
"Look out for the boys!" she said in a lower voice, nodding toward her
own son, and Nort and Dick.
"I will," promised Mr. Merkel. "But from what I've seen," he added,
with a twinkle in his eyes, "they're middlin' well able to look after
themselves. Paregoric for that Greaser! That's pretty good!" and he
chuckled as he rode off with the others.
The plans had been carefully made and each cowboy knew what he was to
do. The idea was to surround the camp, if possible without arousing
the suspicions of the inmates, and then make a sudden rush on it from
all sides. This would be comparatively easy to do, since the camp was
in the valley, with hills all around it. It was simple enough to
follow the trail to the point where Nort and Dick had been met with as
they were escaping. And when this point was reached, it was left to
the two young ranchers themselves to say which way to go, since the
camp was not in sight, nor were there any known trails leading to it.
"Well, as near as I can tell this is the way we came," said Nort, after
studying over the matter a bit, and consulting with Dick.
"All right," decided Mr. Merkel. "You lead a party that way, and I'll
take Dick, and bear off more to the south. It may be you haven't just
hit it, and this will give us two shots at it. We'll keep within sight
of one another as long as we can, and the first one who sights the
right trail, leading in, will build a fire and send up smoke puffs."
This much settled, two parties rode off, Nort leading one and Dick the
other.
They were closing in on the mysterious camp.