"Don"t be tryin" to find trouble, d.i.c.k," advised Bud. "That Mex is just as good as the next one. But it is funny why he should be lingering around here when all the rest lit out. And to have this food all ready for us. Well----"
"Got a few suspicions up your own sleeve, eh?" laughed d.i.c.k.
"Boys," Billee said slowly, "I want to tell you something. You remember what your Dad said about smugglin", Bud?"
At the word the men at the table gave a slight start.
"Yes, smugglin". You"d forgot all about it, hadn"t ye? Well, I ain"t.
While we were in Hawkins"s office I noticed a bill-head on his desk. I took it. Here it is."
He pa.s.sed over the paper to the Kid. The others got up and leaned over the Kid"s shoulder, reading it.
"Two thousand dollars" reward," said the Kid haltingly, "for the a-rest and con-viction of--the person whose picture is below, and who is known in New York as Dapper Dan Craven. He is wanted for smuggling Chinese.
Escaped custody at----"
He stopped. His eyes sought the picture.
"By the ghost of my aunt Lizzy"s cat!" he exclaimed. "If it ain"t our friend Delton!"
Bud reached over and slowly took the paper from the Kid"s nerveless hand.
"Delton!" he cried, as he saw the picture. "Just as sure as I"m living, that"s who it is!"
"But why didn"t Hawkins arrest him, then?" Nort asked in a puzzled tone of voice. "He knew where he was. He could have come out any time and put the bracelets on him and he"d have his man."
"Now, boys, if you"ll give me a little time, I"ll--" started Billee Dobb in a calm voice.
"Go ahead!"
"We"re listenin"!"
"Well, in the first place, I don"t think Joe Hawkins ever saw this Delton. You know what a hard job we had gettin" to the ranch--I bet if we had had Hawkins with us we would have had to fight our way in.
That"s what that guard was out for--the one that tried to stop us. He knew we weren"t deputies, so he let us go through.
"Also, that bill was just printed and sent to Hawkins. Perhaps he didn"t have time to look at it. And say--that accounts for Delton"s quick get-away, too. One of his men rode in an" told him that there was a price on him, and he got, fast. He must have made this ranch his headquarters. No wonder he didn"t have no sheep around! Boys, we can expect some right excitin" things to happen, in the next few weeks!"
Silence followed Billee"s long speech. The veteran rancher had thrown a veritable bombsh.e.l.l into camp. Delton--the man lying asleep upstairs--the head of the smugglers! Two thousand dollars" reward!
Why, all they had to do was to tie him up and carry him to town--over to the deputy"s house. Capturing the smuggling king the first night at the Shooting Star! It seemed too good to be true.
"There"s a catch in it somewhere," commented d.i.c.k. "No man with a reward like that on his head is going to dump himself into our hands."
"Why not? It wasn"t his fault. He came sneakin" around the place to spy on us and got caught by the cyclone. Then a board or something hit him on the head and he fell where we found him. Nothing strange about that! We got him and got him good! Wow, what can"t we do with two thousand dollars!"
"There"s one thing we forgot, boys," the Kid broke in.
"And what"s that?"
"We"re downstairs, an" Delton is upstairs."
"That"s soon fixed!" Bud cried, as he sprang for the steps. "Let"s go, boys!"
"Take it easy!" cautioned the Kid quickly. "What"s the use of scarin"
him? We"ll just go up there and truss him up while he"s asleep. Won"t hurt him. That cut on the head was all that ailed him. Now, take your time!"
The ranchers moved quietly toward the room in which they had left Delton. As he reached the door, Bud opened it slowly and peered in.
Not a sound. Then he stuck his head in a bit further. Still no action. In the darkness he could see the outline of the bed but faintly.
Softly he turned the covers down. Farther--farther! Then he let out a yell.
"Hey, come here! Quick!"
"What"s the trouble?" The Kid called as he entered the room.
"He"s gone! He beat it! Look!"
In the bed, molded into the shape of a man, were two pillows. Delton had escaped, leaving the pillows in such a way as to make it appear that he was still in the bed.
"Here"s a note!" Bud cried. "He left it on one of the pillows. Let"s have that candle, d.i.c.k."
By the flickering spluttering light of the candle Bud read aloud:
"Sorry I got to go so sudden, but this bed is too hard. I wouldn"t sleep well. If you guys want a little advice, you"ll move along out of this section. It ain"t healthy. A word to the wise. J. D."
CHAPTER XI
JOE HAWKINS"S VISIT
"Can you beat that!" Nort e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed when Bud finished reading.
"Nerve--that Delton certainly has his share of it!"
The feeling which the note aroused was not just one of disappointment.
The Kid seemed highly amused at the turn events had taken. Billee Dobb a.s.sumed an "I-told-you-so" expression which sat comically on his grizzled features. The rest looked slightly bewildered.
"Got away, didn"t he?" d.i.c.k asked in a flat tone of voice. "Through the window, I guess. Yep. Slid down the rain water leader. Well----"
"An" he took with him your wireless and your new bunch of cattle," the Kid remarked sardonically. "Never count the chickens before they scratch. Mr. Delton is a slicker article than we figgered on."
"Let"s see the note a minute, Bud," Nort said. "Huh--"bed too hard--couldn"t sleep!" Wise sort of a bird; isn"t he? Say, he must have written this as soon as we left the room."
"Why?"
"Because if he waited too long he couldn"t have seen to write--too dark. That means he"s far away by this time. He probably----"
"The horses! Ten to one he grabbed one of them an" beat it!" Yellin"
Kid cried.