The Double K cowboys and their supporters from Dugout had, in fact, the harder task, and Lanky--who had been appointed leader--muttered grotesque oaths as he surveyed the narrow approach, with its perpendicular cliff on one side and precipice on the other.
'What we want is wings, an' the on'y kind we're liable to git'll have a harp thrown in,' he grumbled. 'Hey, Jansen, what's that young cannon yo're totin'?'
'She's an old Sharps buffalo gun,' the store-keeper replied. 'Kicks like a mule, but throws a two-ounce slug what'll go through a man like he ain't there.'
'Can yu use her?'
'I expect there's some here could shoot better,' Jansen confessed.
'Yu take my Winchester an' lemme try her,' Lanky suggested.
Flattened out in a little hollow, he cuddled the stock of the weapon, took careful aim, and fired. The shrill burst of profanity and tornado of lead which followed the boom of thebig gun denoted that damage had been done. Afterwards they learned that the shot had passed through a loophole, shattered the chest of a bandit about to fire, and permanently crippled another behind him.
'She's bully,' Lanky said, ejecting the empty shell and pushing in a second. 'If we had six o' these, we'd knock that blame' gate to hellangone.'
Meanwhile, Sudden and his party were preparing to get into the game. The topmost cave, at least, seemed to be unguarded, and a rope having been adjusted, Sudden and Lagley slid down to investigate. A cautious peep at the street below showed it to be deserted; the ladder for the next step in the descent was in position.
'Anybody watchin' will be at the bottom,' Sudden said. 'Call the boys.'
Keith and the other four joined them. In the cave below they again found a ladder, and silence, save for the dulled, spiteful voices of the guns outside. A third stage, and a querulous remark drifted up to them: 'Just our luck to be tied here, missin' all the fun. I told Turvey they wouldn't know--hello, Flicksy, how's it goin'?'
'Bad,' came the reply. 'Th' gate can't last much longer--they got a buffalo gun what's makin' matchwood of it. Turvey an' two more is cashed an' most of us chipped some.'
'What about them?'
'I sent one over th' edge an' I reckon he won't feel th' bump when he lands, but we dassen't show a nose. I du no who cut them damn loopholes, but ...' The stream of blasphemies died away in the distance.
'Mebbe we ain't so unlucky arter all,' a new voice said. There were two of them, squatting near the entrance to the cave, rifles within reach. Noiselessly as cats, the cowboys crept down the ladder, and before the surprised sentinels could utter a sound, they were roped, gagged, and carried to the floor above. So far, all had gone well, but the crucial moment had come. Sudden had his plan ready.
'Jeff an' Frosty will come with me to search out Miss Keith an' Satan,' he said. 'The rest o' yu can drive these dawgs from the Dugout gate an' let our lads in.'
With his two companions, he ran swiftly across the open space, kicked wide the door of the Chief's quarters and dashed in, only to hear the slam of the trap as it fell into place.
'Damnation, he must have seen us,' he cried.
They uncovered the opening to see the ladder lying below. Sudden did not hesitate; hanging by his hands, he dropped, landing safely; the others followed. Flinging back a second trap-door, they raced down into the room Jeff knew so well; it was empty. Sudden sprang to the window just in time to see the man they sought leap into the saddle of his black and spur the animal into the undergrowth. 'You taught me that trick, Sudden,' came the shouted taunt. The swinging rope-ladder seemed a further mockery.
'Can't we follow?' Keith asked despairingly.
'Yeah, when we get hosses. He had his getaway all fixed, if the cards went against him. But he was alone. C'mon, we're wasting time.'
They made their way up again to find a very different scene. The eastern gate had fallen, and the Double K cowboys, shouting and shooting, were driving the remnant of its defenders before them. From the drifting clouds of thin blue smoke came spits of flame and the crack of exploding cartridges. Yells of defiance, curses and groans of stricken men added to the clamour. Though the outlaws fought with the courage of cornered beasts, Sudden could see that victory was but a matter of time.
'We gotta find someone who can give us news o' Miss Keith,' he said.
At that moment, Lazy emerged from one of the caverns with a prisoner; it was Anita.
'Hi, yu Frosty fella, look what I found,' he called out.
Sudden went to them. 'yu've found a very good friend o' mine, Lazy,' he said. 'I'm obliged to yu for takin' care of her.' The cowboy let go the captive's wrist as though it burned him. The girl's dark eyes asked a question.
'He escaped--for the time,' Sudden told her. 'We are looking for Miss Keith.'
'He sent her away yesterday, with Silver, and the other woman,' she replied. 'I saw them pass along the valley, going west.'
She could tell them no more, having had but a glimpse, but the news drove the blood from Jeff's cheeks and brought an oath to his lips. A burst of cheering from the other gate, and flying figures seeking sanctuary in the cave-dwellings from the pitiless leaden pellets, announced the triumph of the Twin Diamond contingent. Hell City was taken. The firing died out, a little breeze dispelled the veil of smoke and acrid smell of burnt powder; here and there, arms outflung, face downwards, lay the form of what had lately been a man.
The sheriff and Merry came hurrying up, both with the same question. The answer left them glum indeed.
'Me, Frosty, an' Jeff is takin' the trail soon as we get our hosses,' Sudden told them.
'I'm with you,' Dealtry said. 'Mart, you ain't built for speed; s'pose you stay to clean house, an' then come along if we ain't back?'
'Suits me,' the rancher replied.
'An' Mart, look after Miss Anita here--we owe her a lot.' Sudden requested. 'C'mon, fellas, let's get goin'.' He started and stopped. 'Which I'm shorely dumb. Where'd yu leave yore broncs, Mart? Just outside? We'll use some of 'em --that'll save time.'
Shortly afterwards they were travelling westward at full speed. When they reached the split in the trail, they had to decide which turning to take. Sudden got down and studied the surface.
'Several hosses have gone to the left recent,' he said, 'an' one of 'em was in a hurry. Hello, what's this?'
His searching eyes had caught a gleam of white in the grass, and he picked it up. The find proved to be a tiny fragment of linen, embroidered with the letters, 'J.K.' He passed it to Jeff, who needed only a glance.
'It's a bit of Joan's handkerchief--she must have dropped it in the hope that someone would follow.'
'Smart of her to leave a signpost,' Sudden remarked, and smiled as he saw the boy slip the said 'signpost' into a pocket. 'It's a safe bet Satan is on his way to join her.'
Frosty was enjoying a private joke. 'We are now leavin' the place where I staged my on'y hold-up an' got away with thirty thousand cold, belongin' to the Bosviile bank,' he stated, with a sly look at Dealtry.
'Best tell a straight story, or the sheriff will pull yu in,' Sudden bantered. 'An' keep agoin' while yo're doin' it.'
The Double K rider obliged, telling the tale in a whimsical way which made two of his hearers laugh; Dealtry listened with grave intentness, his gaze on the man pounding along a pace ahead of him.
'yo're an odd number, Jim,' he said. 'If ever you take the crooked trail, I hope it don't lead you to these parts; you'd get us all guesin'--wrong.'
The compliment brought a sardonic smile to the puncher's lips; the sheriff did not know that the man to whom he paid it had already a price on his head.
Chapter XXVI
Some eight miles past the Devil's Bowl was a similar but smaller hollow, one side of which sloped gently to the sagebrush plain which rose and fell unendingly to the horizon, while the other climbed abruptly to a jagged ridge. At the farther end, hedged in by pines, stood a great tooth of rock, streaked and splashed with reds, greens, and yellows. At the foot of it, some ten yards apart, were a couple of caves, and in front of them, a level expanse of scorched grass.
