James Jackson

“ The Vigilantes of Custer had made one mistake. Tom Terror had been permitted to ride his own horse to the spot chosen for his exit.
A word to his horse had been sufficient.
A wild snort, a leap forward like a startled stag, a dozen pistol-shots, a lot of charging men, told the story of how the bird in the hand got back to the bush.
And now Tom Terror had returned to the canyon through which he had galloped with a rope around his neck.
An Indian, keen-eyed and acute, might have passed him and never have seen man or horse. ”

“ He said that his secret concerned me; he said it with his last breath, Myra. I believe him. Men like Dan Darrell don’t die with lies on their lips.”
For several minutes the pair stood face to face, speechless but thoughtful.
“I would give my right arm if Rosebud Dan was alive,” cried the boy judge, starting forward. “His stubbornness hung him, more than my hatred or my revenge. Look at the legacy he left behind—a tortured, doubting mind. Girl—girl, you cannot know how I have suffered since I left that wretch and his secret hanging together.”
“Maybe, Hal—”
Myra, the waif, hesitated. ”

“ With eyes full of eagerness and suspense, the boy dropped his companion’s hand, and crept forward. He was almost afraid to look over the cliff. Deadly Dan might be hanging there with the secret locked in a heart as dead and cold as a stone.
Earnestly trusting otherwise, the boy lyncher shut his lips, and was about to solve all mental questions when a stern voice rung in his ears.
“Hello thar! youngster. Do you want to go over the edge o’ Cut-throat, or die whar ye ar’?”
A piercing cry fell from the girl’s lips as the boy started back, sprung erect, and wheeled quickly. ”

“ The Indians, too, had sprung toward her.
“Back! you infernal stranglers,” thundered the Wolf, as he turned upon them, a heavy revolver cocked in his right hand. “Stand where you are with your hands on your cords, but draw one if you dare. This creature [28] doesn’t deserve your strings. From this moment she is mine. Deadly Dan is her protector, and he’s going to make her the wife of the greatest gold-bug in the States.”
The Thugs of Cut-throat, almost consumed with rage, were cowed by Deadly Dan and his revolver.
“Make ’er what you please, pard,” said Tom Terror, breaking the silence. ”

“ See! see! it is the Wolf of the Rosebud!” the Indian cried, turning to the boy. “He is on the trail once more!”
A startling cry came from the youngster’s throat as he sprung forward.
Deadly Dan instinctively shrunk from the revolver which the boy thrust madly into his face. He was not ready for the fatal bullet.
“No!” suddenly cried the boy. “Brave men die by the pistol; cowards and murderers by the rope. Seize him, Red Crest!”
A panther-like bound carried the Indian forward; he fell upon Deadly Dan, tore the knife from his hand, and made him captive. ”

“ The Indian, who had not removed his eyes from Maverick Joe for a second, made a sign for him to proceed.
“I propose that the boy take command of the Vigilantes of Custer—that we swear to follow whar he leads—that we stand by him through thick and thin, and let him hang when he wants to. That’s the ticket that Maverick puts into the box. Boys, I want Cut-throat cleaned out. When the Mining Commission comes hyar to report on our wealth, I want ’em to ride through that grand old canyon and never feel any o’ them infernal strings around their silken necks. ”

“ A startling cry pealed from Darrell’s throat; he thrust his face between Tom and the girl’s, and the next moment, with the wildest of looks in his eyes, he sprung up as Myra fell from his arms.
“Thunder and guns!” fell from his lips, as he gazed first at Tom and then at the unconscious waif. “Is it possible that I’ve been tracking the wrong person the best years of my life? Tom, you stare but don’t speak. Can’t you say a word, and confirm—no! dispel my terrible suspicions?”
Tom Terror shook his head.
“So,” he said, looking up into Rosebud Dan’s startled countenance, “so the baby was a girl?” ”

“ Why, it’s big enough fur death to drive a four-in-hand into a chap’s heart. They’ll hunt for me,” he said. “Ah! I know the place fur me to rest in. I found it last summer. Lodgepole, you have not forgotten—the cave in the old ravine. Take me thar.”
A few moments later the band moved slowly from the spot where the Tiger received his wound. The progress made was painfully slow, for the fact that Tom Terror lay heavily upon the scarlet arms that supported him on either side, with his dark eyes hid and teeth glued together, told that he was suffering the agonies of twenty deaths. ”

“ Reins and revolvers were instantly drawn.
“Form into single rank, an’ come on!” continued the same voice, which came from between two outstretched pistols. “I intend to hunt the big bonanza myself, and the throat of Tiger Tom is my property; it is not to be let out in shares. I’ve staked my claim, and I’m goin’ to work it alone. Form into single rank, an’ ride by. The first hand that goes up, drops.” ”

“ The men with a wild shout of approval on their lips could hardly wait until Maverick Joe concluded, but when he clinched the sentence by a mighty sweep of his arm, a cheer rose that fairly shook the building.
“He will not reject the proposition.”
For a moment the boy leader’s keen eyes swept the score of bronzed faces before him. Then he stepped forward.
“To saddle!” he said, in a voice of command. “The Thugs of Cut-throat are desperate as starving wolves. ”

“ They have added another human being to their catalogue of victims, and he, Old Jack, the man who once looked at me till I felt my heart beat in my bosom like a bird beats herself against the sides of the cage. ”

“ Twenty eager men were at his heels.
The men separated, each to saddle his horse.
Maverick Joe re-entered the hotel; but the place where Old Jack had lain was vacant.
“They took him down to his horses,” explained a man. “He’s got a bed there, and you know the stable is as good as many a house in Custer. He got delirious after you went out and raved about a bonanza bigger than the Emma King. It must have had something to do with his trip to Cut-throat, for he mixed Tom Terror and the big bonanza together all the time.” ”

“ When the party returned to the cavern they found Jennie—Myra no longer, that being the name by which Captain Harry knew her—seated beside the cot holding the dead hand of Bonanza Jack, her father.
His tale had been told; she knew all, and she told Harry that with his last breath he had thanked fortune for preserving his life until he had found his child.
Here we must put aside the pen; but not until we have informed the reader that Maverick Joe, now a veritable gold-bug, has just arrived from the West to witness a wedding ceremony, and to give the blushing bride away. ”

“ Tom Terror is back; he gave Jack his last dose. Think of this boys.”
He got the desired response, oaths of vengeance and looks of eternal hatred.
The band that galloped toward Cut-throat knew every pebble that lay in the road. The Vigilantes went cautiously into the gulch; they glided among its shadows; they waited for their prey at different places with their fingers on their trigger.
“Nothing hyar,” said Maverick Joe, disappointedly, after an hour’s waiting at a certain point. “The game has slipped us for to-night. We must come ag’in. Lilly, Antenat and Moravy, you will remain in Cut-throat. ”

“ The big bonanza ain’t found yet, an’ she ain’t the gold-bug’s wife. I call my red wolves off. Now, bring the gal up to the fire.”
The Indians obeyed their leader, but looked daggers at the man who had cowed them.
“You will pardon me, Tom,” Dan said, coming forward. “This is a prize a fellow doesn’t draw every day. Permit me to present to you the future wife of Rosebud Dan, the future money king of the States.”
Tom Terror grinned as, despite his wound, he bent down to gaze into the finely chiseled face that Dan had lowered into the mellow firelight. ”

“ At Tom Terror’s command, the Indians drew sullenly back, and Myra with a light cry of triumph sprung toward the opening. As she reached Deadly Dan she heard him say:
“Go straight to Custer, girl. I’ll kill the man that touches you.” ”

“ The ex-stage driver soon disappeared, and Hal when he looked down into [26] the canyon once more, saw the Thugs and Deadly Dan staring at the wound ghastly and terrible in the Tiger’s breast.
“Men don’t often recover from such a wound,” murmured the boy. “But he’s got the constitution of an ox, and that’s in his favor.”
“The man what says that Tom Terror ar’ goin’ to pass in his checks lies like sin. His time will not come till he’s paid the rascal Jack fur this gapin’ hole in his life chest. Don’t look long-faced an’ down-hearted, pard. I’m goin’ to help you to the big bonanza. ”

“ The time has come!” she heard him say as if the words gave him a sort of wolfish pleasure. “Thar’s to be a good deal of dyin’ with boots on in the old Cut-throat. Whar’s the gal?”
“Here, Captain Tom,” answered Myra, and the next moment she stood before the robber of the gulch, from whom a few hours since she would have fled with a shriek.
“So hyar ye ar’!” he said. “I’m goin’, never to come back. I’ll never pull my boots off ag’in. Stay hyar till somebody comes; it won’t be me; it won’t be Deadly Dan. ”

“ Come, brother. Red Crest has heard the spirits that speak in the gulches of the Rosebud. They foller him here. If we ride like the storm, they cannot catch us.”
And the next moment the Sioux urged his horse forward, and left his young companion to follow at his leisure.
“Somebody has witnessed the hanging,” he said. “But, never mind! the deed is done, and the villain, who basely attempted my life on the Rosebud, will never lift another knife, or burn another town.”
Then he rode under the suspended man, and rejoined the Indian.
The two went down the canyon together. ”

“ Let every man remember this. They may not be death with their strings in every instance, but with the rifle and the revolver they never miss. So, avengers of Colorado, I grant you five minutes for good-byes to wives and sweethearts.”
“I don’t think thar’s a chap hyar who owns any such property!” cried Maverick Joe; “least-wise, thar’r’ only sixty women in Custer, an’ they b’long to luckier fellars. No kissing when we go to battle, captain.”
With wild eyes, flashing with triumph, Jack Drivewell sat once more on his horse, his haggard face turned toward Cut-throat. ”

“ Tom seemed to experience the pleasure that fills the heart of an exiled chief when he finds himself once more with his men.
The Indians were lightly attired. Not one of the party possessed a gun, but each of them carried a weapon of death more horrible than the singing bullet. ”

“ If the lasso slipped from its rocks, Deadly Dan will never divulge the secret.”
He silently took the pistol from Myra’s hand and looked at Tom.
“For the present you can mount your horse and go where you please,” he said.
“Honest Injun, jedge? So, you’re goin’ to hang me, boy?”
“I am.”
“You’re a sneakin’ little liar!” came over the gray steed’s ears. “On the contrary, I’m goin’ to make a widow outen thet livin’ doll at yer side, then I’ll leave Cut-throat an’ work a bonanza bigger nor twenty Emma Kings. You heard what that fellow said down in the canyon awhile ago? He war right ”

“ When a halt was made Deadly Dan found himself before two horses that stood in the shadow of the gulch walls.
“One moment, boy,” said Dan, turning to the strange youth. “I want to know what this means? Tell Deadly Dan what you are going to do with him. I’m the Wolf of the Rosebud again. I can hear anything.”
A smile flitted across the boy’s handsome countenance, and he answered by thrusting a card into the Sport’s hand.
Dan glanced at it curiously, and threw himself back in the saddle until his body was in the moonlight. Then, holding the card before his eager eyes, he read—
“JUDGE LYNCH, Jr. ”

“ Hal, the lyncher, gazed after him like a person just emerging from a trance.
“He’ll try to keep his word!” exclaimed Myra.
“Then you have not guessed,” he said, wheeling upon her. “Tom Terror knows the secret that died with Deadly Dan—if he is really dead. My life is sought for a purpose. Oh, Heaven, what is this mystery?”
CHAPTER IV.
Than Lilly, Antenat and Moravy, the three Vigilantes detailed by Maverick Joe to remain in Cut-throat for certain purposes, a trio of braver men never crossed the rushing river of the Great West. ”

“ The boy turned upon the speaker.
“Tom Terror himself, by the Land of Nod!” he exclaimed. “But you will not serve your warrant here. Back! back!” he held a pistol in his hand. “You can find me almost any day in Cut-throat Canyon. I’ve been holding court at Satan’s Tree. Go down and look at the culprits. I’m glad you’ve come back. We will make this gap our battle-ground. I try, condemn, and execute. I’ve a kind of travelling court that sits constantly. I’m judge, jury, prosecuting attorney, and sheriff. Have a care, Tiger Tom! ”

“ But, somebody will come an’ take you away. You’re the biggest bonanza in Colorado, ef you ar’ but a mite. One o’ these days you’ll be a gold queen. Dan got on the wrong trail, an’ now he’s run away from the right one. Run off an’ left the work for my boys with the cords. I told ’im to give you the strings last night, but I’m kinder glad thet Rosebud interfered an’ saved yer life.”
The old fellow dropped Myra’s hand, and started toward the mouth of the cave where two bronzed faces waited for him; but the girl bounded forward. ”