"Sleepin"," he said.
"An" before? _Porque_, the sheriff he has been. To mek an arres" of you, I t"eenk."
"Me?" said Jeff, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I haven"t done anything that I can remember now!"
"Sure? No small leetle cr-rime? Not las" night? Me, I jus" got up. I have not hear"."
Jeff considered this suggestion carefully. "No. I am sure. Not for years. Some mistake, I guess. Or maybe he just wanted to see me about something else. Why didn"t he come in?"
"I mek r-reques" of heem that he do not," said Monte.
"I see," Jeff laughed. "Come on; we"ll go see him. You don"t want to get into trouble."
They crossed the bridge and met the sheriff just within the fortifications, returning in a crowded automobile. Jeff held up his hand. The machine stopped and the posse deployed--except Billy, who acted as chauffeur.
"You wanted to see me, sheriff--at the hotel?"
"Why, yes, if you don"t mind," said the sheriff.
"Good dinner? I ain"t had breakfast yet!"
"First-cla.s.s," said the sheriff cordially. "Won"t your friend come too?"
"Ah, senor, you eshame me that I am not so hospitabble, ees eet not?"
purred Monte, as he followed Jeff into the tonneau.
The sheriff reddened and Billy choked.
"Nothing of the sort," said the sheriff hastily, lapsing into literalness. "You were quite within your rights. For that matter, I know you were at your own bank, dealing, when the crime was committed. I am holding you for the present as a possible accessory; and, if not, then as a material witness. By the way, Monte, would you mind if I sent some men to look through your place? There is a matter of some thirty thousand dollars missing. Lake asked us to look for it. I have papers for it if you care to see them."
"Oh, no, senor!" said Monte. He handed over a key. "_La casa es suyo!_"
"Thank you," said the sheriff, with unmoved gravity. "Anything of yours you want "em to bring, Bransford?"
"Why, no," said Jeff cheerfully. "I"ve got nothing there but my saddle, my gun and an old football suit that belongs to "Gene Baird, over on the West Side; but if you want me to stay long, I wish you"d look after my horse."
"I too have lef" there my gun that I keep to protec" my leetle house,"
observed Monte. "Tell some one to keep eet for me. I am much attach" to that gun."
"Why, yes, I have seen that gun, I think," said the sheriff. "They"ll look out for it. All right, Billy!"
The car turned back.
"Oh--you were speaking about Monte being an accessory. I didn"t get in till "way late last night, and I"ve been asleep all day," said Jeff apologetically. "Might I ask before or after exactly what fact Monte was an accessory?"
"Bank robbery, for one thing."
"Ah!... That would be Lake"s bank? Anything else?"
The sheriff was not a patient man and he had borne much; also, he liked Lars Porsena. Perfection, even in trifles, is rare and wins affection.
He turned on Jeff, with an angry growl.
"Murder!"
"Lake?" murmured Jeff hopefully.
The sheriff continued, ignoring and, indeed, only half sensing the purport of Jeff"s comment:
"At least, the wound may not be mortal."
"That"s too bad," said Jeff. He was, if possible, more cheerful than ever.
The sheriff glared at him. Billy, from the front seat, threw a word of explanation over his shoulder. "It"s not Lake. The watchman."
"Oh, old Lars Porsena? That"s different. Not a bad sort, Lars. Maybe he"ll get well. Hope so.... And I shot him? Dear me! When did it happen?"
"You"ll find out soon enough!" said the sheriff grimly. "Your preliminary"s right away."
"h.e.l.l, I haven"t had breakfast yet!" Jeff protested. "Feed us first or we won"t be tried at all."
Within the jail, while the sheriff spoke with his warder, it occurred to Billy that, since Jimmy Phillips was not to be seen, he might as well carry his own friendly message. So he said guardedly:
"Buck up, old man! Keep a stiff upper lip and be careful what you say.
This is only your preliminary trial, remember. Lots of things may happen before court sets. The devil looks after his own, you know."
Jeff had a good ear for voices, however, and Billy"s mustache still kept more than a hint of Mephistopheles. Jeff slowly surveyed Billy"s natty attire, with a lingering and insulting interest for such evidences of prosperity as silken hosiery and a rather fervid scarfpin. At last his eye met Billy"s, and Billy was blushing.
"Does he?" drawled Jeff languidly. "Ah!... You own the car, then?"
Poor Billy!
Notwithstanding the ingrat.i.tude of this rebuff, Billy sought out Jimmy Phillips and recounted to him the circ.u.mstances of the arrest.
"Oh, naughty, naughty!" said the deputy, caressing his nose. "Lake"s been a cowman on Rainbow. He knew the brand on that horse; he knew Jeff was chummy with Monte. He knew in all reason that Jeff was in there, and most likely he knew it all the time. So he sneaks off to see Lars--after shooting him from ambush, d.a.m.n him!--and sends you to take Jeff. Looks like he might be willing for you and Jeff to damage either, which or both of yourselves, as the case may be."
"It looks so," said Billy.
"Must be a fine girl!" murmured Jimmy absently. "Well, what are you going to do? It looks pretty plain."
"It looks plain to us--but we haven"t got a single tangible thing against Lake yet. We"d be laughed out of court if we brought an accusation against him. We"ll have to wait and keep our eyes open."
"You"re sure Lake did it? There was no rubber nosepiece at Monte"s house. All the rest of the football outfit--but not that. That looks bad for Jeff."
"On the contrary, that is the strongest link against Lake. I dare say b.u.t.tinski--Mr. Bransford--is eminently capable of bank robbery at odd moments; but I know approximately where that noseguard was at sharp midnight--after the watchman was shot." Here Billy swore mentally, having a very definite guess as to how Jeff might have lost the noseguard. "Lake, Clarke, Turnbull, Thompson, Alec or myself--one of the six of us--brought that noseguard to the bank after the robbery, and only one of the six had a motive--and a key."
"Only one of you had a key," corrected Jimmy cruelly. "But can"t Jeff prove where he was, maybe?"