The men in the Square made a move forward. Several of them dropped their hands to their gun butts.
Pablo wiped his hand on his handkerchief and looked with interest at the cut on his palm.
“That was careless of me,” he said, looking at Myra.
“Don’t apologize,” Myra returned. “I had a cousin who was also a mental defective. He had to have cast-iron feeding utensils. I dare say I could arrange the same thing for you at a cut rate.”
“When my women are insolent,” Pablo said dreamily, “I peg them out in the hot sun on an ant-hill.”
Myra twisted round, facing him. “But, I’m not your woman, fat boy,” she said. “You can take your little bandits out of here and feed them through a sausage machine.”
I said quickly: “Don’t mind her. That’s just her sense of humour.”
Pablo wrapped his handkerchief round his hand. “Very interesting sense of humour. If my woman talks like that I cut her tongue out. She loses her sense of humour very quick then.”
I felt it was time to take a more active part in the conversation. “Tell me, senor, is there something particular that you wish to discuss with us?” I asked, offering him a cigarette from my case.
“Yes,” he said, waving away the cigarette. “Something very important” He picked up the newspaper which he had dropped on the floor. I recognized the Recorder. “You will see why I am interested in the senorita,” and he spread the newspaper on the table.
I knew what was coming, but even then I hardly dared to look at the splash headlines that were smeared across the front page. Somehow, this thug had got hold of the issue containing Maddox’s story of the kidnapped blonde. There was a big shot of Myra and in the biggest type of all was the announcement about the 25,000-dollars reward.
“Brother,’ I thought. “Have you got to be smart to talk yourself out of this?’
Before I could stop her, Myra had snatched up the paper, while Bogle and Ansell crowded round her.
“That’s quite a good likeness of you they’ve got there,” I said carelessly. “I always thought the
Myra looked at me over the top of the paper. There was a disagreeable look in her eye.
“Isn’t it?” she said, between her teeth. “I’m suffocating with mirth.”
There was a long silence while the three of them went through the article, then Myra folded the paper with slow deliberation and put it on the table.
“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” she said gently. “And I was going to call you by your first name!”
“But there is’ more,” Pablo said, picking at his great white teeth with his thumb nail.
“There is a man called Bastino who lives in the mountains. He is a good friend of mine. He tells me that he is to kidnap this young woman. Later it has been arranged for Senor Millan to rescue her, but Senor Millan says nothing to Bastino about the reward. He pays Bastino a mere three hundred dollars and Bastino feels sore about it. He comes to me and shows me the paper, so I think I had better do something about it.” He waved his fat hand. “So here I am.”
Myra looked at me. “What a lovely little serpent you’ve turned out to be,” she said with terrifying restraint. “You must let me know when your parents marry, I’ll send them a wreath.”
Even Ansell was looking at me with hurt eyes.
I eased my collar which threatened to strangle me. “It’s all a mistake,” I said hurriedly. “If you’ll just let me explain…”
“There is nothing to explain,” Pablo said. “I do the talking now.’
Myra turned on him furiously. “You keep your snout out of this. I’ve got something to say to this two-faced, double- crossing rattle-snake.”
“Now, don’t let us quarrel,” I said hastily. “You wouldn’t have come to any harm and I was keeping the reward as a surprise for you. Just think of all that money and how nice it’ll be to spend.”
“I’m thinking,” Myra said, tapping on the table. “I’m thinking what I’m going to do to you.”
Ansell broke in: “And what about us?” be demanded. “We weren’t going to be in this either.”
I drew myself up. “This is becoming sordid,” I said. “Here am I, trying to give the great American public an epic story and all you can do is to yap about money.”
“So you were not even interested in the reward?” Myra said, smiling at me. “You just wanted to give the great American public an epic story?”
“That’s all,” I said. “Why should I worry about a little thing like 25,000 dollars? I’m a newspaper man.”
“A minute,” Pablo said, “I have not finished. I take the senorita now. Senor Millan writes of the kidnapping. Then we discuss the reward.”
We all four stared at him. “You take the senorita?” I said, suddenly realizing the spot we were in.
“Certainly,” Pablo returned, smiling at Myra. “The newspaper says she has been kidnapped, therefore I kidnap her. I shall hold her for ransom. I shall demand 50,000 dollars and you will pay. If there is much delay, I will send you her right ear and after three days I send you her left ear and then if I do not get the money, I send you a finger every day.”
Myra went a little pale. “That’ll make a swell headline in your rag,” she said to rue. “High rates for piecework or Blonde mailed in installments.”
I said: “I don’t think you’d better do that. It would mean U.S. reprisals. Maybe we’ll send troops as we did a few years ago when we chased Pancho into the mountains.”
Pablo laughed. “I go now,” he said, and reached out, taking Myra’s arm in his great hand. She spun round. “Take your greasy paw off me!” she flared. “Who do you think you are? You can’t scare me, you over-filled sausage!”
Pablo quaked with laughter. “Such spirit,” he said and hit her across her face with the side of his hand.
She and the chair she was sitting on went over backwards. She sprawled on the ground.
The two Mexicans who had remained in the shadows, now pulled their guns and stepped forward. “Sit still,” one of them said to me. The other threatened Bogle and Ansell who had stiffened when Myra went over.
I felt myself go white and ignoring the gunmen I bent over Myra.
Pablo hit me on the back of my neck with the jar of wine. The jar splintered and the wine splashed Myra’s shirt. I found myself on my hands and knees and white hot lights seemed to be exploding in my head.
I heard Pablo laughing a long way away and then I shook my head clear and got to my feet. Myra clutched at me. “Are you hurt?” she asked anxiously.
Before I could assure her, Pablo reached out and jerked her round to face him. “Never, mind him, my little rabbit,” he said, drawing her towards him. “Now I am here, I like to have all your attention.”
Myra caught her breath sharply. She moved in quickly and drove her clenched fist into the middle of his face.
One of the Mexican gunmen kicked her legs from under her. She hit the wooden floor of the verandah with a thud that shook the breath out of her body.
Pablo started to his feet, hissing like a snake. A patch of split skin just by his thick nose showed where Myra had hit him.
“Go for ’em, Sam,” I bawled. And we both went into action together.
With a roar, Bogle tossed the table at the nearest gunman who was covering him. The gun went off; the slug shearing a furrow in the table. I jumped the gunman who had tripped Myra before he could regain his balance. We crashed over, almost on top of Myra.
Ansell who dodged into a neutral corner said afterwards that it was a pretty good scrap. While I was trying to pin my greaser, Pablo got hurriedly to his feet, tittering with excitement. “Come,” he shouted to the other Mexicans in the Square. “They want to fight.”
Sam had closed with the other gunman. Grabbing him round his waist he tossed him into the middle of the surging Mexicans below.
I got a grip on my man’s hair and hammered his head on the boards. He seemed to have a soft head because he went out like a light. As I got up, I heard Myra scream. The Mexicans were pouring up on to the verandah.
Pablo grabbed Myra. She fought him, kicking and scratching like a wild cat, but he handled her effortlessly. He didn’t even get up from his chair. He captured her hands in one of his, grinding and squeezing her fingers. White and furious, she dragged away from him, kicking at him wildly.
