Honoré Willsie

“ Hugh threw himself into the saddle.
Once more the glory of the winter trail across the plains. It had not snowed for several days and there were many tracks going to and from the ranch. Hugh made no attempt to decipher Pink’s from among them.
The red spots still danced before Hugh’s eyes. If Pink had harmed Jessie! Why, good God, Jessie was his wife! It was to her that the splendor of his boy’s first love had gone. He recalled now with thrilling vividness the madness and the joy of these first few years of his marriage. Jessie!
No one must hurt her. She had been hurt enough. ”

“ If he had hurt as much as a hair of your head, I would have shot him if he were a thousand times your father!”
Jessie, tears brimming her eyes, gently pulled his face down to rest against hers.
But he had not recovered yet from the shock that Pink had given him. After a moment he lifted his head.
“I felt when I thought he’d killed you, things that I’d never felt before, things I hadn’t felt when Uncle Bookie died, or Miriam Page. I’d have shot him and gone to Rawlins. I would have, Jessie. Why, good God, you are my wife!” ”

“ Jessie threw her coat over her arm now and walked firmly to the door. There she stood for a moment, head bowed, Hugh watching her with his whole soul concentrated on the effort to read her mind. But he could not know what force it was within her that caused her to raise her head and, her violet eyes, black with feeling, say to him:
“Let’s end it, Hughie. You don’t know what love is. You never will until you can forget yourself. ”

“ I was brought up with so-called bad men. They are all cowards.”
“Yes, they sure are, and a coward’s always dangerous. Because you can’t count on ’em. I’d rather ride a horse that’ll tackle any jump in sight than one that shies at a leaf on the trail. One’s only foolish, the other one will throw you when you least expect it.”
Hugh nodded, then said with an unexpected grimness of tone, “What’s he got against Jessie?”
Johnny’s good-natured face stiffened. “I don’t like to talk about the hound, I hate him so.”
“Hate him! Why, Johnny, you don’t know what hate is. ”

“ She paused, but Hugh could not phrase what welled up within him. She misinterpreted his silence, and lifted her coat. “If I’ve answered all your questions, Hughie, I’ll be going. I must be back at the ranch tomorrow.”
Hugh took the coat from her and again tossed it to the chair. “Jessie! Jessie! For God’s sake give me truth, utter and absolute. Why, after all the years of contempt for my work, do you answer me so?”
Very white now, Jessie returned his look. “Because,” she replied carefully, “I have suffered for two years as only a woman who can love as I can, is able to suffer. ”

“ Hugh raised his hand.
“Friends and neighbors,” he said, “I don’t suppose there is one among you that hasn’t some inkling of what it means to me to press the button which will set off the blast in the cave below. I fought a long fight with myself before I reached the point where I can stand here, believing that the Old Sioux Tract, at last, is doing the work that Uncle Bookie would have been glad to have it do.” He paused.
“By golly,” shouted Billy Chamberlain, “Hughie Stewart is a man!”
Such a burst of applause met Billy’s exclamation that Thumb Butte echoed again and again. ”

“ The two old warriors looked at each other appraisingly. “Mrs. Ellis,” smiled Whitson, “I come in on the Children's Code, and also, thanks to the Governor, on the Thumb Butte dam.” He suddenly grew serious. “Madam, I have hungered all my life for Wyoming to produce a national possibility. By God, this state is going to ride into Washington on a Gray Stallion!”
“Mrs. Ellis is the big figure in Wyoming,” Hugh’s voice was arresting. “Don’t mistake some trick of personality of which I seem to be the unfortunate possessor for anything but what it is.” ”

“ Only Johnny Parnell saw him twist his long hands together in a gesture of inexpressible pain. Johnny scowled fiercely at Grafton, who would have gone on eagerly with his explanation of the engineering problems connected with the opening of the work. Hugh walked to the window, and slowly returned to Grafton His face was deep-lined, but his voice firm. ”

“ It sounds too good to be true.”
“Come, dad!” Jessie held her hand out to her father. “I’ve sprained my ankle. You’ll have to help me.”
Pink sniffled and obeyed.
They were a disheveled trio, but as they mounted the little platform and turned to face the crowd, no one laughed. Leaving Jessie to lean on her father’s shoulder, Hugh stepped forward.
“My wife had an accident,” he said clearly, “which delayed our getting here. Since Johnny Parnell has taken to politics, the horses up on the Dude Ranch have gone wild. One threw Mrs. Stewart early this morning and sprained her ankle. ”

“ Jessie had no grounds for divorce.” He looked Johnny clearly in the eye.
Johnny returned the look. Then he said, “Well, there ain’t any other man in the world whose word I’d take. But I believe you, old timer. You know, though, don’t you, that I’m the only person in the state that would believe you?”
“Jessie and Mrs. Ellis know,” contradicted Hugh. “Go on with your story, Johnny.”
“Well, when Pink got this jab, he began to clear his skirts by telling a wild story. He said when he found out about Miss Page, he knocked you down and that Jessie interfered and took your side. ”

“ That light aftel Li Wing go bed. What mlatta, boss?”
“She’s not in Fort Sioux, Li Wing.” Hugh hesitated. But Li Wing had been Bookie’s cook in the old blessed days. “Her father tackled me this morning. He’s very drunk. He said he’d fixed Mrs. Stewart up here. He said he’d cut the telephone wires.”
The old Chinaman threw up his withered hands.
“Is Magpie in the stable, Li Wing?” asked Hugh.
“Yes! Yes! But him lame. She lide other pony.”
Li Wing shuffled toward the corral, Hugh following. Li Wing stood beside the gate for a moment examining the horses munching alfalfa in the inclosure. ”

“ Tied up. He’s drunk. Attacked me. I’ve got his gun. Told me he’d got Fred and Red Wolf. And last night, he said, he’d got Jessie! I’m going up to the ranch. She was there, as far as you know, last night? And alone?”
“Yes, she phoned me last night about eight. Was O. K. then. But not alone. Li Wing was there. Everybody else is in town for the opening ceremonies. Better let me call some one else and I’ll go with you, Governor.”
“No! I don’t want a word of this to get out if it can be helped. Jessie has been humiliated enough. I’m going up there. You keep Pink in The Lariat. ”