'Firebrand' Trevison by Charles Alden Seltzer (ebook reader for manga .TXT) đ
But Miss Benham had caught her first glimpse of Manti and the surrounding country from a window of her berth in the car that morning just at dawn, and she loved it. She had lain for some time cuddled up in her bed, watching the sun rise over the distant mountains, and the breath of the sage, sweeping into the half-opened window, had carried with it something stronger--the lure of a virgin country.
Aunt Agatha Benham, chaperon, forty--maiden lady from choice--various uncharitable persons hinted humorously of pursued eligibles--found Rosalind gazing ecstatically out of the berth window when she stirred and awoke shortly after nine. Agatha climbed out of her berth and sat on its edge, yawning sleepily.
"This is Manti, I suppose," she said acridly, shov
Read free book «'Firebrand' Trevison by Charles Alden Seltzer (ebook reader for manga .TXT) đ» - read online or download for free at americanlibrarybooks.com
- Author: Charles Alden Seltzer
- Performer: -
Read book online «'Firebrand' Trevison by Charles Alden Seltzer (ebook reader for manga .TXT) đ». Author - Charles Alden Seltzer
âMiss Benham done tolâ me she am not to be disturbed till eight oâclock,â he objected. But the telegram in Bramanâs hands had instant effect upon the black custodian of the car, and shortly afterward Miss Benham was looking at the banker and his telegram in sleepy-eyed astonishment, the door of her compartment open only far enough to permit her to stick her head out.
Braman was forced to do much explaining, and concluded by reading the telegram to her. She drew everything out of him except the story of the fight.
âWell,â she said in the end, âI suppose I shall have to go. So his name is âBrandâ Trevison. And he wonât permit the men to work. Why did Mr. Corrigan destroy the check?â
Braman evaded, but the girl thought she knew. Corrigan had yielded to an impulse of obstinacy provoked by Trevisonâs assault on him. It was not good businessâit was almost childish; but it was human to feel that way. She felt a slight disappointment in Corrigan, though; the action did not quite accord with her previous estimate of him. She did not know what to think of Trevison. But of course any man who would deliberately and brutally ride another man down, would naturally not hesitate to adopt other lawless means of defending himself.
She told Braman to have the money ready for her in an hour, and at the end of that time with her morocco handbag bulging, she emerged from the front door of the bank and climbed the steps of the private car, which had been pulled down to a point in front of the station by the dinky engine, with Murphy presiding at the throttle.
Carson was standing on the platform when Miss Benham climbed to it, and he grinned and greeted her with:
âIf ye have no objections, maâam, Iâll be ridinâ down to the cut with ye. Me nameâs Patrick Carson, maâam.â
âI have no objection whatever,â said the lady, graciously. âI presume you are connected with the railroad?â
âAnâ wid the ginneys thatâs buildinâ it, maâam,â he supplemented. âIâm the construction boss av this section, anâ Iâm the mon that had the unhappy experience av lookinâ into the business end av âFirebrandâsâ six-shooter yisterday.â
ââFirebrandâsâ?â she said, with a puzzled look at him.
âThot mon, Trevison, maâam; thatâs what they call him. Anâ he fits it bedadâbegginâ your pardon.â
âOh,â she said; âthen you know him.â And she felt a sudden interest in Carson.
âEnough to be certain he ainât to be monkeyed with, maâam.â
She seemed to ignore this. âPlease tell the engineer to go ahead,â she told him. âAnd then come into the carâI want to talk with you.â
A little later, with the car clicking slowly over the rail-joints toward the cut, Carson diffidently followed the negro attendant into a luxurious compartment, in which, seated in a big leather-covered chair, was Miss Benham. She motioned Carson to another chair, and in the conversation that followed Miss Benham received a comprehensive estimate of Trevison from Carsonâs viewpoint. It seemed unsatisfying to herâCarsonâs commendation did not appear to coincide with Trevisonâs performances.
âHave you heard what happened in Manti yesterday?â she questioned. âThis man, Trevison, jumped his horse against Mr. Corrigan and knocked him down.â
âI heard av it,â grinned Carson. âBut I didnât see it. Nor did I see the daisy scrap that tuk place right after.â
âFight?â she exclaimed.
Carson reddened. âSure, ye havenât heard av it, anâ Iâm blabbinâ like a kid.â
âTell me about it.â Her eyes were aglow with interest.
âThereâs devilish little to tellâbegginâ your pardon, maâam. But thim that was in at the finish is wagginâ their tongues about it beinâ a dandy shindy. Judginâ from the talk, nobuddy got lickedâit was a fair dhraw. But I shâud judge, lookinâ at Corriganâs face, that it was a darlinâ av a scrap.â
She was silent, gazing contemplatively out of the car window. Corrigan had returned, after escorting her to the car, to engage in a fight with Trevison. That was what had occupied him; that was why he had gone away without seeing her. Well, Trevison had given him plenty of provocation.
âTrevisonâs horse knockinâ Corrigan down was what started it, theyâve been tellinâ me,â said Carson. âBut thim that know Trevisonâs black knows that Trevison wasnât to blame.â
âNot to blame?â she asked; âwhy not?â
âFor the simple rayson thot in a case like thot the mon has no control over the baste, maâam. âFirebrandâ told me only yisterday morninâ thot there was no holdinâ the black whin somebuddy tried to shoot wid him on his back.â
The girl remembered how Trevison had tried to speak to her immediately after the upsetting of Corrigan, and she knew now, that he had wanted to explain his action. Reviewing the incident in the light of Carsonâs explanation, she felt that Corrigan was quite as much at fault as Trevison. Somehow, that knowledge was vaguely satisfying.
She did not succeed in questioning Carson further about Trevison, though there were many points over which she felt a disturbing curiosity, for Agatha came in presently, and after nodding stiffly to Carson, seated herself and gazed aloofly out of a window.
Carson, ill at ease in Agathaâs presence, soon invented an excuse to go out upon the platform, leaving Rosalind to explain his presence in the car.
âWhat on earth could you have to say to a section bossâor he to you?â demanded Agatha. âYou are becoming veryâerâindiscreet, Rosalind.â
The girl smiled. It was a smile that would have betrayed the girl had Agatha possessed the physiognomistâs faculty of analyzation, for in it was much relief and renewed faith. For the rider of the black horse was not the brutal creature she had thought him.
When the private car came to a stop, Rosalind looked out of the window to see the steep wall of the cut towering above her. Aunt Agatha still sat near, and when Rosalind got up Agatha rose also, registering an objection:
âI think your father might have arranged to have some man meet this outlaw. It is not, in my opinion, a proper errand for a girl. But if you are determined to go, I presume I shall have to follow.â
âIt wonât be necessary,â said Rosalind. But Agatha set her lips tightly. And when the girl reached the platform Agatha was close behind her.
But both halted on the platform as they were about to descend the steps. They heard Carsonâs voice, loud and argumentative:
âThereâs a lady aboored, I tell ye! If ye shoot, youâre a lot of damned rapscallions, anâ Iâll come up there anâ bate the head off ye!â
âStow your gab anâ produce the lady!â answered a voice. It came from above, and Rosalind stepped down to the floor of the cut and looked upward. On the crest of the southern wall were a dozen menâcowboysâarmed with rifles, peering down at the car. They shifted their gaze to her when she stepped into view, and one of them laughed.
âCorrect, boys,â he said; âitâs a lady.â There was a short silence; Rosalind saw the men gather closeâthey were talking, but she could not hear their voices. Then the man who had spoken first stepped to the edge of the cut and called: âWhat do you want?â
The girl answered: âI want to speak with Mr. Trevison.â
âSorry, maâam,â came back the voice; âbut Trevison ainât hereâheâs at the Diamond K.â
Rosalind reached a decision quickly. âAunty,â she said; âI am going to the Diamond K.â
âI forbid you!â said Agatha sternly. âI would not trust you an instant with those outlaws!â
âNonsense,â smiled Rosalind. âI am coming up,â she called to the man on the crest; âdo you mind?â
The man laughed. âI reckon not, maâam.â
Rosalind smiled at Carson, who was watching her admiringly, and to the smile he answered, pointing eastward to where the slope of the hill melted into the plains: âYouâll have to go thot way, maâam.â He laughed. âYouâre perfectly safe wid thim min, maâamâtheyâre Trevisonâsâanâ Trevison wud shoot the last mon av thim if theyâd harm a hair av your pretty head. Go along, maâam, anâ God bless ye! Yeâll be savinâ a heap av throuble for me anâ me ginneys, anâ the railroad company.â He looked with bland derision at Agatha who gave him a glance of scornful reproof as she followed after her charge.
The girl was panting when she reached the crest of the cut. Agatha was a little white, possibly more from apprehension than from indignation, though that emotion had its influence; but their reception could not have been more formal had it taken place in an eastern drawing-room. For every hat was off, and each man was trying his best to conceal his interest. And when men have not seen a woman for a long time, the appearance of a pretty one makes it rather hard to maintain polite poise. But they succeeded, which spoke well for their manliness. If they exchanged surreptitious winks over the appearance of Agatha, they are to be excused, for that ladyâs demeanor was one of frigid haughtiness, which is never quite impressive to those who live close to nature.
In an exchange of words, brief and pointed, Rosalind learned that it was three miles to the Diamond K ranchhouse, and that Trevison had given orders not to be disturbed unless the railroad company attempted to continue work at the cut. Could she borrow one of their horses, and a guide?
âYou bet!â emphatically returned the spokesman who, she learned later, was Trevisonâs foreman. She should have the gentlest âcayuseâ in the âbunch,â and the foreman would do the guiding, himself. At which word Agatha, noting the foremanâs enthusiasm, glared coldly at him.
But here Agatha was balked by the insurmountable wall of convention. She had ridden horses, to be sure, in her younger days; but when the foreman, at Rosalindâs request, offered her a pony, she sniffed scornfully and marched down the slope toward the private car, saying that if Rosalind was determined to persist she might persist without her assistance. For there was no side-saddle in the riding equipment of the outfit. And Rosalind, quite aware of the prudishness exhibited by her chaperon, and not unmindful of the mirth that the men were trying their best to keep concealed, rode on with the foreman, with something resembling thankfulness for the temporary freedom tugging at her heart.
Trevison had camped all night on the crest of the cut. It was only at dawn that Barkwell, the foreman who had escorted Rosalind, had appeared at the cut on his way to town, and discovered him, and then the foremanâs plans were changed and he was dispatched to the Diamond K for reinforcements. Trevison had ridden back to the Diamond K to care for his arm, which had pained him frightfully during the night, and at ten oâclock in the morning he was stretched out, fully dressed and wide awake on the bed in his room in the ranchhouse, frowningly reviewing the events of the day before.
He was in no good humor, and when he heard Barkwell hallooing from the yard near the house, he got up and looked out of a window, a scowl on his face.
Rosalind was not in the best of spirits, herself, for during the ride to the ranchhouse she had been sending subtly-questioning shafts at the foremanâquestions that mostly concerned Trevisonâand they had all fell, blunted and impotent, from the armor of Barkwellâs reticence. But a glance at Trevisonâs face, ludicrous in its expression of stunned amazement, brought a broad smile to her own. She saw his lips form her name, and then she waited demurely until she saw him coming out of the ranchhouse door toward her.
He had quite recovered from his surprise, she noted; his manner was that of the day
Comments (0)