OUT OF BONDAGE
Long, grey shadows flattened themselves against the walls of the
canyon—moving shadows—five of them. The moonlight, except where it was
cut off by the figures on horseback, flooded the rocky gorge.
The men were almost as silent as these silhouettes while they rode
forward. The ponies, sensing the tenseness in the air, restrained their
tendency to whinny at the ghostly trees along the sides.
After a short ride, Roy, who was leading, slid noiselessly from his
bronco and waited on foot for the others, who, when they saw the boy
dismount, did likewise.
“We’d better picket the ponies here,” Roy whispered. “The ledge is
plenty broad, and we may not find another place like this.”
Without comment, the men obeyed. Then, slowly and cautiously, they crept
forward, Roy and Teddy going first, followed by Nick, Gus, and Bug Eye.
Suddenly a man’s voice cut the silence. It came from behind a rock, not
five feet from the ranchers.
“Makin’ us lose our beauty sleep like this,” the voice grumbled. “An’
for what? Just ’cause that fool took it into his head to get the note to
old man Manley to-night! As if to-morrow wouldn’t do as well!”
“Yea, an’ we got to stand guard over a passel o’ senseless gals!”
growled another. “Crazy, I calls it—plumb crazy! Why, the way old
Reltsur, as he calls himself—wonder what his real name is?—the way he
started with that note fer the X Bar X you’d think he was goin’ to a
fire! Lickety-cut, down the trail like a locoed steer. An’ sometimes I
think he is locoed, too—takin’ to kidnappin’ girls! Why, blame it all,
they’re more trouble than they’re worth. Me, I told him that! But no, he
would have his way. Fer revenge, he said. Huh! Revenge! What’s he want
revenge fer? Couple of hundred head of white-face Durhams ’ud be more to
my notion. Got a match, Bill? This pipe’s gone out. Guess she don’t draw
well.”
Around the corner of the rock came the reflection of a tiny flame, and
Teddy nudged Roy.
“Jump ’em?” he breathed. It was a tense question.
Roy shook his head. “Not yet. We may hear something that’ll help us.
Listen—”
The one who spoke first continued:
“He’s a funny bird, that Reltsur. Now where’d he pick up a name like
that? Sounds like a Russian dressing. You know, before we got mixed up
with that X Bar X outfit he was O. K. Just a regular rustler then, an’
he knew his stuff, let me tell yuh. Almost as good as that other waddy
we had, who got knifed by Froud. What was his name, now? Well, don’t
matter. As I was sayin’, this Reltsur was all right up to then. When we
got nabbed at the fence he tried to slide out from under, but he gits
his right under the left ear. Ever notice how funny he rides—leanin’ to
the left, kind of?”
“Yea, but he don’t ride on his ear, does he?” the other chuckled.
“Anyway, we got to give him credit fer arrangin’ that little affair at
Hawley. He sure turned that out proper. But what ’ud he want to go an’
cart along those billies from New York fer? They ain’t no good. They
can’t even shoot, though they said they could. Know where they are now?
Back in town, playin’ poker with the rest of our outfit. That’s where we
ought to be, ’stead of standin’ here catchin’ cold! What say we duck?
Hey?”
Teddy seized Roy’s arm. These two must be alone! What a chance! But now
the other spoke again:
“Better not, Bill. Reltsur will be back soon, an’ if we’re not here,
he’ll raise Jim Henry. But if you can keep that loose tongue of yors
still fer a while, I’m goin’ to sleep. G’night.”
The boys heard a body move restlessly about, as though trying to find a
comfortable spot for repose. Roy glanced back. At his elbow Bug Eye
crouched, gun out and raised. Close to him stood Gus and Nick.
“Teddy!” Roy whispered. “Get along side of me—like this. When I yell,
we both jump together. You fellows follow. Ready?”
There was no need to answer. Roy saw his brother’s face twitching
eagerly, saw the shoulders hunched, the neck craned forward.
“Ye-o-o-w!”
“Get ’em, boys! Knock’ em cold, if you have to, but get ’em!”
There was a fierce, sudden rush! Yells! Shouts!
“Hey! what in thunder’s this? Hey, you, take that gun outen my mouth!”
“They got us, Bill! Ouch, that’s my nose! All right! You win! Only let
up, fer Pete’s sake!”
A short, desperate scuffle followed. The dull thud of a few blows, and
Bill and his companion were sitting stupidly on the ground, stripped of
their guns, the moon shining on two very much astounded cattle-rustlers
who shook their heads in a dazed manner.
“If we had knowd you was goin’ to roughhouse,” Bill began in an
aggrieved tone, “Sam an’ me would’ve—”
“Nick—” Roy spoke sharply—“you stay here and watch these men! If they
give you any trouble, shoot!”
“With pleasure!” Nick responded, grinning. “But at present they seem to
be perfectly comfortable. Hey, gents?”
The one called Sam looked up dubiously. “Well, I got a pack of cards an’
if yore so inclined, we might—”
Neither Teddy nor Roy heard the rest, for they, followed by Gus and Bug
Eye, were running along the trail. Ahead of them they made out a dark
splotch against the stone walls. As they came closer they saw that it
was an entrance to a cavern.
“The Caves!” Teddy yelled, careless of consequences. “Belle! Ethel! Are
you there? Belle!”
“Teddy!”
A figure ran from the opening of the cavern and toward him. The next
moment it had cast itself into his arms.
“Oh, Teddy! Roy! We thought you’d never come! Three days we were kept in
there! Three days!” Belle was sobbing openly now, catching at Roy and
Teddy by turns and kissing them. But in a moment she regained something
of her composure, and called:
“Nell! Ethel! Come out! It’s all right! The boys are here! They’ve found
us!”
Then on that moonlit ledge was one of the strangest and happiest scenes
in which the boys had ever taken part. Bug Eye cheered and Gus chuckled
in that inimitable way of his, while the rest took turns congratulating
each other. Especially did Nell and Ethel pay outrageous tribute to Roy
and Teddy, insisting that they were:
“Oh, so much better than those old knights who rescued ladies from
dungeons! And would they consent to sign their names in this little
book, please?”
In the midst of all this merriment and hilarity, Clovita came to the
doorway of the cave, wearing a wide grin. She did not seem at all
disturbed at the turn affairs had taken. When the boys saw her they
started back.
“The old woman we saw at the cabin! How did she get here? Why, we left
her on the trail hours ago. She even talked to us! How—”
“She my sister—we twins,” Clovita declared, grinning wider than ever.
“You meet her, yes? She not so nice, maybe?”
“I’ll tell a maverick she wasn’t!” Roy exclaimed. “But never mind that
now. You girls—you’re all right? They gave you plenty to eat and
drink?”
“We’re fine,” Ethel laughed happily. “But won’t it feel great to be home
again! The first thing I’m going to do is—”
She was interrupted by a yell, coming from the place they had captured
the guards. Roy reached for his gun. Then he let out a roar of laughter
as Nick called out:
“Hey, Roy, these two geezers won all my money playin’ seven-up! Come
down here quick, or they’ll have my shirt! An’ bring a new pack of
cards! These are marked, or I’m a ring-tailed dodo-bird!”