the place might have been designed for our purpose. You understand?'
'Shorely. Do I play a lone hand?'
'No, Scar and his men will go with you--five should be sufficient. They have their orders.'
Somehow, the last four words had an ominous sound. Why had these men, with whom he had clashed more than once, been chosen? Sudden asked himself. But if the masked man expected protest he was disappointed.
'Suits me,' Sudden said off-handedly. 'I'll go hunt them fellas up right away. See yu to-morrow-- mebbe.'
'Yes,'' Satan said, and when his visitor had gone, added the one word, 'Maybe.'
The puncher did not at once seek his assistants, it was early 'et, and there was time to spare. Instead, he routed out oung Holt.
'Still honin' for a chance to get outa here?' he asked, and when he saw the eager look come into the lad's eyes, went on, 'I'm givin' yu one. Got a hoss? Good. Know Red Rock?'
'On'y where it is--never bin there.'
'Yo're goin', right away, an' when yu make it, search out the sheriff an' tell him to take a strong posse to meet the coach to-night 'bout seven mile out an' escort her to town. Sabe?'
Holt looked dubious. 'I ain't stuck much on meetin' sheriffs,' he muttered.
'Shucks,' Sudden replied. 'Yore trouble was down South, huh? Red Rock won't know nothin' of yu. Tell 'em yu been held prisoner by the gang what's aimin' to rob the coach, an' gettin loose, yu came to warn 'em. They'll be too grateful to ask questions.'
'I'll risk it,' the boy said. 'It's mighty good o' you, mister, but how'll I get outa Hell City?'
Sudden gave him certain instructions and then went to the saloon, where, as he expected, he found his men huddled round a table, drinking.
'We start in twenty minutes from the west gate,' he said. 'The main trail from Dugout is easier,' Scar objected. 'I'm handlin' this,' the puncher replied curtly, and went to make his own preparations.
'Quite the boss, ain't he?' Scar sneered. 'Well, we can stand it for a while, seein' it means a double-barrelled chance to pay off a score an' collect a stake.'
'Ten thousand bucks apiece, fair handed to us at that,' Daggs chuckled. 'I can swaller a lot o' lip at the price.'
'Saine here,' Squint agreed. 'When do we square with that--?'
'After the stick-up, o' course,' Scar told him. 'Five ain't too many, an' besides, if anythin' goes wrong, he's in charge an' takes the blame.'
The other applauded the wisdom of this course and complimented the maker of it upon his foresight. Meanwhile, Sudden had ridden to the gate and prevailed upon the custodian to open it on the plea that his party was late, and they had no time to lose.
'Dunno what's keepin' 'em,' he said impatiently. 'The Chief'd comb their wool good an' plenty if he knowed.'
'Here's one a-comin' now,' the man said, as Ben Holt loped up.
'He ain't with me, but mebbe he has a message,' Sudden replied, and swung round so as to leave the exit clear.
Instantly Holt put spurs to his horse, dashed through the opening, and went thundering down the road. With an oath of dismay, the gate-man snatched out a pistol.
'Don't be an ass, friend,' Sudden said sharply. 'D'yu wanta advertise that yu let him pass?'
'This'll git me in bad,' the man said angrily.
'Shore, if it's knowed, but I ain't yappin' an' if yu don't, who's to guess he didn't use the other gate?' the puncher argued. 'Hello, here's them loafers.'
As Scar and his company trotted up he surveyed them with a frown. 'Yo're late,' he snapped. 'What d'yu think this is--a pleasure trip? Get goin'.'
The went out and the keeper closed and bolted the gate behind them. 'Gawd!' he soliloquized. 'If I was takin' a ride with that bunch I wouldn't start with fault-findin', even if I had put Butch outa business. No, sir.'
Outside, Sudden had paired with Roden, telling the others to ride ahead. 'We want the shortest road to Red Rock, an'keep yore broncs movin',' he said, and to Scar, 'Yu know what we're after?'
'Betcha life--the Chief told me,' was the answer, with a sly look which had meaning for the man at his side.
'There's a dip five miles east o' the town; that's where we strike. Know it?'
'Yeah, it's the very place; lots o' cover an' a good getaway. It'll be the softest thing ever.'
'No doubt,' was the reply. 'When we get there I'll lay out a plan. For now, yu can join yore friends.'
The plain intimation that his presence was not desired brought a scowl to Roden's always unpleasant features, but he obeyed in silence, consoling himself with the thought that it would be his turn to talk presently.
Hours passed, spent in climbing hills, crossing streams, threading dark, winding gulches, with every now and then, an open space where they could put on speed. They were treading no beaten track but the leaders evidently knew their way, wild as the country was. The puncher followed, eyes and mind alert. The possibility that the ruffians might shoot him and decamp with the spoil must, he felt sure, have occurred to the Chief. Was he prepared to pay this price for Sudden's death, or did he rely on the fear which he flattered himself all his followers felt for him?
The puncher could not answer the question. It might even be that the coach robbery was a mere pretext to give these men their opportunity, but the covert backward glances and intermittent burst of rude mirth were not calculated to lull him into a sense of security. With set lips and narrowed eyes he rode on, his right hand never far from a gun; at the first dubious sign he would slay--ruthlessly.
But no occasion arose; the men in front pressed steadily on, seemingly intent only on the journey. At long last, they pulled up on the edge of a pine forest, and Scar nodded as Sudden joined them.
'Here she is,' he said. 'Take a peep through the brush an' you'll see the trail to Red Rock.'
'I'm believin' yu,' the puncher said drily, unwilling that his back should be a target for four guns.
It was indeed a perfect place for an ambush; high bushes fringed the wheel-rutted roadway, and behind them the matted foliage of the pines, defying the rays of the sinking sun, turned daylight into darkness.
'We can stay on our horses,' Sudden decided. 'String out along the trail, an' don't fire a shot till I give the word. I'll do the talkin'.'
Half an hour went by and but for the stamp of a restive pony and a growled curse from its owner, there was no sound. Sudden was beginning to wonder if they had arrived too late when the distant crack of a whip and the muffled beat of hooves announced that the prey was heading for the trap. Presently they saw the coach swing round a bend and come racing down the slope. The puncher's teeth shut down on an oath when he saw that there were no attendant riders; had Holt failed?
'On'y the express-man to deal with,' Scar chuckled. 'Yu leave that to me,' Sudden said sharply.
The clumsy vehicle clattered down the short descent at the gallop, gathering momentum for the coming rise, while Sudden vainly sought a way out of the dilemma in which he found himself. He could see nothing for it but to carry out the robbery and trust to being able to return the booty later, for to fail now without a powerful reason would be the end of his enterprise in Hell City. By the time he reached this decision the coach was slowing up for the climb, and he was just about to step forward and give the command to halt when a rifle spoke and the express messenger swayed in his seat.'Damnation!' Sudden swore. 'Who fired?'
'I did--yo're lettin' 'em git away,' Daggs replied insolently, and urged his horse forward. 'C'mon, boys.' The puncher's face grew bleak. 'I'll shoot the first man who stirs,' he threatened. 'Look, yu fools.'
Round a curve in the trail a band of eight horsemen had appeared. They had arrived on the scene just in time to see the flash of the shot, and were now thundering at breakneck speed for the coach, shouting and shooting as they advanced. A storm of leaden bullets swept through the flimsy wall of brush behind which the bandits were hidden, and Daggs, with a gasping cough, pitched sideways from his saddle. Sudden gave him one glance.
'Cashed,' he said. 'An' we'll be the same 'less we get outa here, an' that soon.'
There was no demur; the death of a comrade, the venomous hum of bullets about their ears, and utter collapse of the enterprise had reduced the road-agents to a state almost of panic; they had no thought but to save their skins. As they wheeled and galloped into the gloom of the forest, they heard the crack of a whip and the
