A STARTLING VISIT.
Night came and Buffalo Bill was on guard at the gate with Winfield.
The cattle and horses had not been driven in, as the scouts had
returned home, and there were enough for four for night duty and
four for day duty, with the others to look to the duties about the
hacienda, and be ready for any service they might be called upon to
do.
As Buffalo Bill had signified his intention of going on an expedition
the next day, he carried his blankets down to the entrance to sleep
there, and have Texas Jack call him.
Jack awoke the chief just at dawn, asking:
“Now, what does it mean, chief?”
“I am going to make a call--in fact, a couple of them, for I shall
dine with Señor Otega, and from there go on to the hacienda of the
fair hermit.”
“Do you mean it, chief?”
“Certainly.”
“Don’t go there.”
“Is it the fair hermit you distrust, or her cowboys?”
“It is the king of the cowboys I have no faith in, and his men will
do as he tells them, as my dying friend said.”
“I do not doubt that.”
“He is bitter over our coming here, as all of them are, and he will
seek to do you harm in some way, I am sure.”
“My dear Jack, that is just why I want you and the boys along.”
“Ah!”
“You are to follow my trail, you know, and, stopping at the Otega
ranch later in the afternoon, some time after my departure from
there, he will give you a couple of men to accompany you, guiding you
to the hacienda of the fair hermit.
“You can then go as near as you dare, meet me upon my departure, and
on the return, instead of having one man to waylay, as they will
expect, they will find half a dozen, and I will not fall into the
trap.”
“I see.”
“I do not know that they would kill me, I rather think they would
not; but just now I wish to take no chances--wish to keep out of
trouble--as I am playing a little secret game myself, which you will
all be let into as soon as I make a discovery or two I hope to.
“Now, follow in a couple of hours, and when you reach the Otega ranch
go there alone, leaving the men in hiding.”
With this Buffalo Bill rode along the trail, now well known to him,
leading to the home of Señor Otega. He was watchful as he rode
along, as he deemed it necessary that he should be.
It was within half an hour of dinner time when he reached the Otega
ranch, and he was received by the señor and his lovely wife most
cordially.
“You are going to be our guest for several days, I hope?”
“Thank you, no, for I must go on my way this afternoon.”
“I am sorry; but we will soon have dinner.”
Señora Otega left the room to see to it, when the señor remarked:
“Now, which way, señor, for I am sorry to see you alone on a trail?”
“I have company, sir, but they are not visible.”
“Good!”
“My friend, Texas Jack, will be here this afternoon, and will you
give him a couple of men whom you feel that you can really trust as
guides?”
“I can give him a dozen men, Señor Cody, but candidly, and with shame
I say it, I know of but one man on my ranch whom I would fully trust.
The fact is, I do not know in whom to place confidence. They may be
all faithful, and yet one may not be so, and that one might be the
person I select for you.”
“That is very true.”
“But one man I am sure of, Palma, my cowboy chief, and he will go
with you where you please.”
“Thanks, señor, he will do, and if you will allow him to go with
Texas Jack I will feel obliged.”
“But you, señor?”
“I am going to make a visit, señor, to the hacienda of the fair
recluse.”
“Oh, señor!”
“Yes, and I wish you to give me full directions for reaching there.”
“I will, yet---- I do not wish to see you go there.”
“Why not?”
“The cowboy king.”
“Is not the Señorita Suelo a protection upon her own ranch?”
“Yes, but----”
“Well?”
“She will not see you.”
“I will make the trial at least.”
“But why go there?”
“I have a special desire to see her.”
“In your mysterious but seemingly sure way you are working for an
end, señor, and I say Heaven speed you.”
“When I come back from my visit to the hacienda of the Señorita
Suelo, I will get your cowboy chief to come to the Mission Ranch for
a visit of several days, and he will guide us around to the other
side of that range, for up there is the retreat of the secret foes.”
“I believe you are right. But I also will go, for you, a stranger,
must not run all the risk in working for us here in this valley, who
have suffered at the hands of the secret foes. I will accompany you,
señor, and you may need my aid, as well as that of Palma.”
“I shall be only too happy to have you go, señor, for I shall go
there for work, deadly work.”
Buffalo Bill rode away from the home of Señor Otega half an hour
after he had enjoyed one of the señora’s most substantial dinners.
The ranchero was sorry to see him go, yet he was beginning to feel
that all the scout understood he would accomplish. He had given him
full directions for reaching the hacienda of the fair recluse.
It was situated down the valley from him, at the foot of the lake,
and just half a score of miles from the Otega ranch.
As he drew near it, after a brisk ride, Buffalo Bill was glad to
discover that there were innumerable hiding places for Texas Jack
and his men, and their approach could not be seen by any one in the
hacienda.
Some of the cowboys herding cattle gazed at the scout with interest
as he rode along, but he seemed neither to avoid nor care to meet
them.
One, however, rode in such a way as to cross his trail, and he said,
as he drew near:
“Going to the hacienda, señor?”
“Yes.”
“The cowboy king is not there.”
“I wish to see the Señorita Suelo.”
“She receives no strangers, señor.”
“I shall at least try to see her.”
“It will be useless.”
“Has she not cattle and horses for sale?”
“Yes, señor, but the cowboy chief attends to that.”
“In his absence who does?”
“You will have to come again, señor.”
“I will ride on, however, and request to see the señorita.”
“It will only be refused.”
“Very well, I can then turn back. But when will the cowboy king
return?”
“To-night, señor.”
Thanking the man, Buffalo Bill rode on, and soon approached the heavy
gate of the hacienda.
A man stood within, looking through a small window, and said,
somewhat rudely:
“The señorita entertains no strangers beneath her roof.”
“I have not asked it, my man. But you will go and say to the señorita
that the Señor Cody desires to see her for a few minutes.”
“I’ll go, señor, but she will not see you.”
He returned within ten minutes and said:
“The señorita regrets to decline to see the señor, and that she is
not able to offer him hospitality beneath her roof.”
Buffalo Bill smiled, and, taking from his pocket a notebook, he tore
out a leaf and wrote upon it:
“‘If taken from the wrist the charm is broken.’ The Señor Cody begs
to restore the charm.”
“Hand this to the señorita, my man.”
A silver dollar slipped into the hand prevented any reply, as the man
had upon his lips a refusal to bear the message. But he walked off,
and Buffalo Bill waited with no show of anxiety as to the result.
This time the gatekeeper was gone for a much longer time than before,
and when he returned there was a puzzled look upon his face, as he
said:
“I’ll allow you to enter, señor, for the señorita will see you?”
“I felt that she would see me,” was the quiet reply of Buffalo Bill.
“She has done so, but----”
“But what?” asked Buffalo Bill, looking the evidently greatly
surprised gatekeeper straight in the eye.
“The señor is doubtless an old friend of the señorita?”
This was ventured as though the man was cautiously feeling his way.
“I may and may not be a friend.”
The man halted at this and said:
“Well, I am very sure of one thing, señor.”
“It matters nothing to me what you think; do as you were told to
do--lead me to the presence of the señorita.”
The man had a dogged look and manner. He appeared as though he meant
not to obey the bidding; but there was that in the look of the scout
which commanded obedience.
And so he moved on once more.