“Silver Jim cut some sign,” Bobby told him. “Him and Lujan took off thataway. Told me to stay here.”
Dooley and his party reined up and Dooley jumped off his horse. Smoke pointed to the pistol, still where Silver Jim had found it.
“That’s hers,” the father said, a horrified look in his eyes. “I give it to her and taught her how to use it.”
“Look!” Bobby pointed.
Heads turned. Silver Jim was holding a girl in his arms, Lujan leading the horse, some of its harness dragging the ground.
The cook from the D-H came rattling up in a wagon, Mrs. Hanks on the seat beside him. “I filled it with hay, Boss,” he told Dooley. “Just in case.”
Dooley nodded.
Smoke took the girl from Silver Jim and carried her to the wagon and to her mother. She had been badly beaten and her clothing ripped from her. One of her eyes was closed and discolored and blood leaked from a corner of her mouth. Silver Jim had wrapped her in a blanket.
“How did you ... I mean,” Dooley shook his head. “Had she been ... ?”
“I reckon,” Silver Jim said solemnly. “Her clothes and ... underthings was strewn over about a half a mile. Looks like they was rippin’ and tearin’ as they rode. Two men took her, a third joined them over yonder on that first ridge.” He pointed. “He’d been waitin’ for some time. Half a dozen cigarette butts on the ground.”
“She say who done this?” Dooley’s voice was harsh and terrible sounding.
“No, senor,” Lujan said. “She was unconscious when we found her.”
“Shorty!” Dooley barked. “Go fetch that old rummy we call a doctor. If he ain’t sober, dunk him in a horse trough until he is. Ride, man!”
Smoke had walked to the wagon bed and was looking at the young woman, her head cradled in her mother’s lap. He noticed a crimson area on the side of her head. “Bobby, bring me my canteen, hurry!”
He wet a cloth and asked Mrs. Hanks to clean up the bloody spot.
“Awful bump on her head,” the mother said, her voice calm but the words tight.
“For sure she s got a concussion,” Smoke said. “Maybe a fractured skull. Cushion her head and drive real slow, Cookie. She can’t take many bumps and jars.”
Smoke and his people stood and watched the procession start out for the ranch. Dooley had sent several of his men to follow the trail left by the rapists. “Bring them back alive,” he told them. “I want to stake them out.” He turned his mean and slightly maddened eyes toward Smoke. “Ain’t that what you done years back, Jensen?”
“That’s what I did.”
The man’s gone over the edge, Smoke thought. This was all it took to push him into that shadowy, eerie world of madness.
“They’re going to find out what we didn’t tell them, Smoke,” Lujan said. “The trail leads straight to Circle Double C Range.”
“And one of them horses has a chip out of a shoe. It’ll be easy to identify.” Silver Jim said.
Smoke thought about that. “Almost too easy, wouldn’t you think.”
“That thought did cross my mind,” the old gunfighter acknowledged, rolling a cigarette.
“I better get over there.” Smoke swung into the saddle and turned the mustang’s head.
He looped the reins around the hitchrail and walked up tothe porch, conscious of a lot of hard eyes on him as he knocked on the door.
A very lovely young woman opened the door and smiled at him. “Why, Mister Jensen. How nice. Please come in.”
Smoke removed his hat and stepped inside the nicely furnished home just as Cord stepped into the foyer. “Trouble, Cord. Bad trouble.” He looked at Sandi.
“Go sit with your mother, girl,” the father said.
Sandi smiled sweetly and leaned up against the wall, folding her arms under her breasts.
Cord lifted and spread his big hands in a helpless gesture. “Boys are bad enough, Smoke, but girls are impossible.”
Smoke told them both, leaving very little out. He did not mention anything about the chipped shoe; not in front of Sandi. Nor did he say anything about the trail leading straight to Circle C Range.
“I’ve got to get over there,” Sandi said, turning to fetch her shawl.
“No.” Smoke’s hard-spoken word stopped her, turning her around. “There is nothing you can do over there. Rita is unconscious and will probably remain so for many hours. Dooley is killing mad and likely to go further off the deep end. And those who ... abused Rita are still out there. Your going over there would accomplish nothing and only put you in danger.”
She locked rebellious eyes with Smoke. Then she slowly nodded her head. “You’re right, of course. Thank you for pointing those things out. I’ll go tell Mother.”
Smoke motioned Cord out onto the porch where they could talk freely, in private. He leveled with Cord.
“Damn!” the man cursed, balling his fists. “If the men who done it are here, we’ll find them and hold them for the law ... or hang them,” he added the hard words. “No matter what I feel about Hanks himself, Rita and my Sandi have been friends for years. Rita and her momma is the two reasons I haven’t gone over there and burned the damn place down. I’ve known for years that Dooley was crazy; and his boys is twice as bad. They’re cruel mean.”
“I’ve heard that from other people.”
“It’s true. And good with short guns, too. Very good. As good and probably better than most of the hired hands on the payroll.” He met Smoke’s eyes. “There’s something you ought to know. Dooley has hired a back-shooter name of Danny Rouge.”
“I know of him. Looks like a big rat. But he’s pure poison with a rifle.”
Cord looked toward the bunkhouse, where half a dozen gunhands were loafing. “Worthless scum. I was gonna let them go. Now I don’t know what to do.”
Smoke could offer no advice. He knew that Cord knew that if Dooley even thought his daughter’s attackers came from the Circle Double C, he would need all the guns he could muster. They were all sitting on a powder keg, and it could go up at any moment.
A cowboy walked past the big house. “Find Del for me,” Cord ordered. “Tell him to come up here.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You want me to stick around and help you?” Smoke asked. Cord shook his head. “No. But thanks. This is my snake. I’ll kill it.”
“I’ll be riding, then. If you need help, don’t hesitate to send word. I’ll come.”
Smoke was riding out as the foreman was walking up.
Smoke rode back to the site of the attack. His people had already righted the buggy and hitched up the now calmed horse.
“I’ll take it over to the D-H,” Smoke offered. “I’ve got to get my horse anyway.”
“I’ll ride with you,” Lujan said.
“What are we supposed to do?” Silver Jim asked. “Sit here and grow cobwebs? We’ll all ride over.”
Bobby had returned to chasing strays and pushing them toward new pasture.
The foreman of the D-H, Gage, met them halfway, leading Smoke’s horse. “You boys is all right,” he said. “So I’ll give it to you straight. Don’t come on D-H Range no more. I mean, as far as I’m concerned, me and the regular hands, you could ride over anytime; but Dooley has done let his bread burn. He’s gone slap nuts. Sent a rider off to wire for more gunhands; they waitin’ over at Butte. Lanny Ball found where them tracks led to McCorkle Range and that’s when Dooley went crazy. His wife talked him out of riding over and killing Cord today. But he’s gonna declare war on the Circle Double C and anybody who befriends them. So I guess all bets is off, boys. But I’ll tell you this: me and the regular boys is gonna punch cows, and that’s it ... unless someone tries to attack the house. I’m just damn sorry all this had to happen. I’ll be ridin’ now. You boys keep a good eye on your backtrail. See you.”
“Guess that tears it,” Smoke said, after Gage had driven off in the buggy, his horse and the horse Smoke had borrowed tied to the back. “Let’s get back to the ranch. Fae and Parnell need to be informed about this day.”