Harry Castlemon

“ After a tedious, fatiguing ride of half an hour, during which time the music of the hounds continued to ring out louder and clearer, as the trail grew warmer, they reached the top of a spur of the mountain, and were on the point of descending into the ravine on the opposite side, when Dick Thomas, who was leading the way, suddenly uttered an exclamation, and stopped his horse.
“What is it?” asked his companions in a breath.
“We’d better be getting away from here, fellows,” replied Dick, so excited that he could scarcely speak plainly. “There’s the old rascal himself.” ”

“ The farmers smiled, said that misery loved company, and seemed to think no more about the matter; but they were wide awake, and every man was watching his neighbor. Mr. Winters had been a heavy loser, and now Frank and Archie had come in for a share of the trouble. Roderick and King James (that was the name of the horse that had taken the place of Sleepy Sam in Archie’s affections) were gone, and of course the boys were highly indignant. One thing that made Archie so angry was the fact that no one, except Johnny and Dick, seemed to sympathize with him. ”

“ During the race that followed, nothing but the clatter of the horses’ hoofs, and an occasional angry yelp from Marmion, broke the stillness of the night. Across the prairie went pursuer and pursued at furious speed, into the woods, over logs and rocks, up hill and down, through darkness so intense that one could scarcely see his hand before him, and finally Frank began to wonder at the endurance exhibited by the little black under his double load. ”

“ I’ve been on King James’s back, too; and I tell you it felt natural to find myself flying through the air once more, like a bird on the wing. I would have got them out of here, if the gate hadn’t been shut. I am afraid you can’t stand,” added Archie, who was holding fast to his cousin’s arm. “Your face is all bloody.”
“It is nothing serious. If I get a chance, I will show you that I am still able to beat the swiftest runner on the rancho in a fair race.”
“But you are trembling like a leaf,” continued Archie, anxiously. “If you are not badly hurt, what is the matter with you? ”

“ Archie had come to believe, with Dick Lewis and Bob Kelly, that there was not a Mexican in the world who possessed the least particle of courage; and consequently he did not watch his prisoner as closely as he ought to have done. Although Beppo was very much terrified at the sight of the pistols, he kept his wits about him, and while his captor was talking to him in his free-and-easy way, the young Mexican’s mind was busy with plans for escape. While Archie was exchanging his jacket and sombrero for those belonging to Beppo, the latter thought he saw a chance to turn the tables on him. ”

“ A boy who had courage enough to keep a secret with death staring him in the face, and who, after being nearly strangled, could fight with the desperation which Frank had exhibited in his encounter with Pierre Costello, was not one to be approached with impunity. The Mexican had never taken the trouble to look closely at him before, and now he was astonished to discover what a powerful young fellow he was. ”

“ Now they had an opportunity to try their skill on Old Davy, and this was the time to make good their boasts. The result of this day’s work would be a fair test of their abilities as bear-hunters. There were no dogs to worry the grizzly, and no experienced men, with quick eyes and steady hands, to ride up and rescue them if they came to close quarters with their enemy. They had no one to depend upon but themselves; and, if they killed the bear, the glory would be all their own. ”

“ He laid his hand upon his cousin’s arm, and they sprang back to the roof, and concealed themselves behind the parapet.
“Something is always bothering us,” said Archie, straining his eyes through the darkness in the direction from which the sound came. “What’s up now, I wonder!”
If Frank had known just what was about to transpire, he could not have described it in less time than the scene occupied in taking place. While Archie was speaking, the sound of the horses’ hoofs ceased, and a faint light, like that emitted by a match, blazed up in the bushes on the opposite side of the creek. ”

“ Suppose the man should happen to meet the genuine Beppo, and should find out that he had given the keys to somebody else! Would he not try to ascertain who that some one else was, and wouldn’t he call for help, and begin a thorough search of the rancho?
“I haven’t a single instant to lose,” said Archie, to himself. “Let me see! I must follow this gang-way and open the first door on my left, and be sure and lock it after me. I don’t much like to do it, for there is no knowing what I may find in that room. I hope one of these keys will let me out of this den of robbers.” ”

“ A person thinks rapidly when in danger, and during the moment’s pause that followed the question thus unexpectedly propounded to him, Archie thought over and rejected a dozen wild schemes which suggested themselves to him. One, however, he accepted. He would reveal himself to the man, and if the latter would agree to show him the way above ground, it would be all right; he would then be willing to believe that Don Carlos was an honest man, and that there was nothing wrong about him or his rancho. ”

“ Keeping his eyes fastened upon Frank, and holding his gun in position with one hand, he uncoiled with the other a lasso which hung over his shoulder. The prisoner began to tremble in every limb. He understood the meaning of this movement, and told himself that there would be a desperate fight in those bushes before the Mexican should use that lariat on him. He did not intend to allow himself to be strangled half to death if he could prevent it. ”

“ When Frank dismounted at the captain’s door, his cousin was not in sight.
“Where’s the little one?” asked the fur-trader, who was seated on the porch, enjoying his long Indian pipe.
“He is coming,” replied Frank. “Whenever he is on horseback he can’t be easy unless he is racing with somebody,” he added, to explain how he came to leave him so far behind.
“And do you always beat him?”
“Always. He grumbles and scolds about it at a great rate, but it doesn’t seem to help the matter any. He has tried every horse on uncle’s rancho, too; but has never been able to find one that can beat Roderick.” ”

“ Seeing that the grizzly was gaining rapidly, and that he would certainly overtake them before they could work their way out of the bushes, he very deliberately slung his rifle over his shoulder, and drew one of his revolvers. Reining in his plunging, frantic horse, he faced about in his saddle, and took a deliberate aim at the bear’s head.
“Shoot close, Frank,” said Johnny, whose horse seemed to be hopelessly entangled in the bushes. “If you miss, somebody is done for.” ”

“ Frank might be captured, confined in one of those rooms, and die a lingering death there, and no one would ever know what had become of him.
“I wish I had never seen or heard of California,” said Archie, bitterly, allowing himself for a moment to become utterly disheartened. “If I had only known that I was going to get myself into this miserable scrape, I’ll bet you that I would have let the robbers take my horse, and welcome. There they are!” ”

“ A dozen oarsmen could not have sent it through the water as rapidly as it was moved by that invisible power. It was not more than half-a-minute in crossing the creek, and as soon as it touched the bank, the horsemen rode out on the bridge of clouds, and came toward the rancho. Frank and Archie kept close watch of their movements, thrusting their heads as far over the parapet as they dared, and it seemed to them that the horsemen went into the wall. ”

“ In this wall was a door, which opened upon the wing. The boys merely glanced at it, and scarcely thought of it again; but they afterward had good cause to remember it. They looked all around them, but there was no one in sight; they listened intently, but could hear nothing.
“The coast seems to be clear,” said Archie, walking to the parapet and looking cautiously over, “and we had better be off. It isn’t more than fifteen or twenty feet to the ground, and we can hang by our hands and drop without much danger of injuring ourselves.”
“Be careful,” said Frank. ”

“ I am all right now, however, and if I ever meet you, after I deliver you up to Don Carlos, you are a goner. But that is not at all likely,” added the Mexican, “for when the gate of that rancho once closes upon you, it will never open for you again. The Don knows how to deal with men who learn his secrets. You are always meddling with other people’s business, but you have done it now for the last time.”
Frank listened in silence to this disheartening speech, and told himself that this was the worst predicament he had ever got into. ”

“ I own the swiftest horse in the settlement, thanks to Captain Porter, and I have just thought of an appropriate name for him. The genuine Roderick, the rebel your horse is named after, had things all his own way for a while, but met his equal, at last, in King James, who whipped him in a fair fight. Your Roderick has found his match now, and I don’t know any better name for the gallant little nag that has beaten him, than King James. That is what I shall call him.”
Frank had boasted loudly of the mustang’s victories over Sleepy Sam, and now Archie paid him back in his own coin. ”

“ They were already out of sight, and yelping fierce and loud as they swept up the mountain in pursuit of the grizzly.
“I’ve seen my hounds for the last time,” said Dick.
“And I’ll never put eyes on Marmion again,” chimed in Frank. “What made you send them on, Archie?”
“Now look here, fellows,” replied the latter. “We have said a hundred times that we wanted to see Old Davy, and I’d like to know if we’ll ever have a better chance than we’ve got now. Let’s follow the dogs, and when they bring us within sight of the bear, we’ll call them off. ”

“ He knew that he would have to fight somebody, and he prepared for it by putting a small revolver into his pocket, as did Frank, also. He was satisfied, too, that Bob had seen his horse go into the Spaniard’s rancho; and, if he was still there, Archie would have him out, or he would raise a fuss about the old fellow’s ears that would make him think he had stirred up a hornet’s nest.
“Just think of it!” exclaimed Archie, indignantly. “Our horses are being used every night by those robbers! ”

“ If every thing worked according to his calculations, it was probable that his wish would be gratified. How the robbers would fight when they found their stronghold surrounded by the settlers; and what desperate attempts they would make to cut their way out! How the rifles would crack! and how Dick Lewis and Bob Kelly would yell and exult at finding themselves once more in their natural element! Archie became highly excited over the prospect. ”

“ If men like Dick Lewis and Bob Kelly, who had hunted grizzly bears all their lives, could not kill him, they certainly had no business with him. And as for the horse-thieves, they were, doubtless, a band of desperadoes, who used their revolvers or bowie-knives upon any one who came in their way, and the boys were quite sure that they would let them alone also. But, after all, they had a good deal to do with the horse-thieves, and with Old Davy also. ”

“ One would think that the cousins had already seen enough of excitement and perilous adventure, to satisfy any two boys in the world; and that, after their recent narrow escape from the clutches of Old Davy, they would think twice before undertaking so dangerous an enterprise as this, which Archie had called “bearding the lion in his den.” The way they went about their preparations, however, showed that they were in earnest, and that they were fully determined to learn more about the mysterious rancho, that is, if there was any thing more to be learned. Frank did not think there was. ”