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  CHAPTER IX

  A PEACE TALK

  While his blood was pounding and his heart was high, Wiley Holman wentdown into his mine. He rode down on the bucket, deftly balanced on therim and fending off the wall with one hand, and when he came up he wassmiling. Not smiling with his lips, but far back in his eyes, like a manwho has found something good. Perhaps Blount surprised the look beforeit had fled for he beamed upon Wiley benevolently.

  "Well, Wiley, my boy," he began confidentially as he drew him off to oneside, "I'm glad to see you're pleased. The gold is there--I find thateveryone thinks so--all we need now is a little co-operation. That's allwe need now--peace. We should lay aside all personal feelings and oldanimosities and join hands to make the Paymaster a success."

  "That's right, that's right," agreed Wiley cheerfully, "there's nobodybelieves in peace more than I do. But all the same," he went on almostsavagely, "you've got to get rid of old George. I'm for peace, youunderstand, but if I find him here again--well, I'll have to take overthe property. He's nothing but a professional murderer."

  "Yes, I know," explained Blount, "he's a dangerous man--but I don't liketo let an old man starve. He's got a right to live the same as any ofus, and, since he can't work--well, I gave him a job as watchman."

  "Well, all right," grumbled Wiley, "if you want to be charitable; but Isuppose you know that, under the law, you're responsible for the acts ofyour agents?"

  "That's all right, that's all right," burst out Blount impatiently,"I'll never hire him again. He refused to obey my orders and----"

  "_And_ he tried to kill me!" broke in Wiley angrily, but Blount hadthrown up both hands.

  "Oh, now, Wiley," he protested, "why can't we be reasonable? Why can'twe get together on this?"

  "We can," returned Wiley, "but you've got to show me that you're nottrying to jump my claim."

  "Oh, you know," exclaimed Blount, "as well as I do that a tax sale isnever binding. The owners of the property are given five years'time----"

  "It is binding," corrected Wiley, "until the property is boughtback--and I happen to be holding the deed. Now, here's the point--whatauthority have you got for coming in here and working this property?"

  "Well, you may as well know," replied Blount shortly, "that I own amajority of the stock."

  "Aha!" burst out Wiley. "I was listening for that. So you're the HonestJohn?"

  "What do you mean?" demanded Blount and, seeing the anger in his eyes,he hastened to head off the storm. "No, now listen to me, Wiley; it'snot the way you think. I knew your father well, and I always found himthe soul of honor; but I never liked to say anything, because ColonelHuff was my partner, too. So, when this trouble arose, I tried to remainneutral, without joining sides with either. It pained me very much tohave people make remarks reflecting upon the honesty of your father, butas the confidant of both it was hardly in good taste for me to give outwhat I knew. So I let the matter go, hoping that time would heal thebreach; but now that the Colonel is dead----"

  "Aha!" breathed Wiley and Blount nodded his head lugubriously.

  "Yes," he said, "that is the way it was. Your father was absolutelyhonest."

  "Well, but who sold the stock, and then bought it back--and put all theblame on my father?"

  "I can't tell you," answered Blount. "I never speak evil of thedead--but the Colonel was a very poor business man."

  "Yes, he was," agreed Wiley, and then, after a silence: "How did ithappen that you got all his stock?"

  "Well, on mortgages and notes; and now as collateral on a loan that Imade his widow. I own a clean majority of the stock."

  "Oh, you do, eh?" observed Wiley and rubbed his jaw thoughtfully whileBlount looked mildly on. "Well, what are you going to do?"

  "Why, I'd like to buy back that tax deed," answered Blount amiably, "andget control of my property."

  "Oh," said Wiley, and looked down the valley with eyes that squintedshrewdly at the sun. "All right," he agreed, "just to show you that I'ma sport, I'll give you a quit-claim deed right now for the sum of onehundred dollars."

  "You will?" challenged Blount, reaching tremulously for his fountain penand then he paused at a thought. "Very well," he said, but as he filledout the form he stopped and gazed uneasily at Wiley. Here was a miningengineer selling a possessory right to the Paymaster for the sum of onehundred dollars; while he, a banker, was spending a hundred dollars aday in what had proved so far to be dead work. "Er--I haven't any moneywith me," he suggested at length. "Perhaps--well, perhaps you couldwait?"

  "Sure!" replied Wiley, rising up from where he was seated, "I'll waitfor anything, except my supper. Where's the best place to eat in town,now?"

  "Why, at Mrs. Huff's," returned Blount in surprise. "But about thisquit-claim, perhaps a check would do as well?"

  "What, are the Huffs still here?" exclaimed Wiley, starting off. "Why, Ithought----"

  "No, they decided to stay," answered Blount, following after him. "Butnow, Wiley, about this quit-claim?"

  "Well, gimme your check! Or keep it, I don't care--I came away withoutmy breakfast this morning."

  He strode off down the trail and Blount pulled up short and stood gazingafter him blankly, then he shouted to him frantically and hurried downthe slope to where Wiley was waiting impatiently.

  "Here, just sign this," he panted. "I'll write you out a check. Butwhat's the matter, Wiley--didn't the mine show up as expected?"

  Wiley muttered unintelligibly as he signed the quit-claim which heretained until he had looked over the check. Then he folded up the checkand kissed it surreptitiously before he stored it away in hispocketbook.

  "Why, yes," he said, "it shows up fine. I'll see you later, down at thehouse."

  Blount sat down suddenly, but as Wiley clattered off he shouted awarning after him.

  "Oh, Wiley, please don't mention that matter I spoke of!"

  "What matter?" yelled back Wiley and at another disquieting thoughtBlount jumped up and came galloping after him.

  "The matter of the Colonel," he panted in his ear, "and here's anotherthing, Wiley. You know Mrs. Huff--she's absolutely impossible and--well,she's been making me quite a little trouble. Now as a personal favor,please don't lend her any money or help her to get back her stock;because if you do----"

  "I won't!" promised Wiley, holding up his right hand. "But say, don'tstop me--I'm starving."

  He ran down the trail, limping slightly on his game leg, and Blount satdown on a rock.

  "Well, I'll be bound!" he puffed and gazed at the quit-claim ruefully.

  The tables were all set when Wiley re-entered the dining-room from whichhe had retreated once before in such haste, and Virginia was there andwaiting, though her smile was a trifle uncertain. A great deal of waterhad flowed down the gulch since he had advised her to keep her stock,but the assayer at Vegas was worse than negligent--he had not reportedon the piece of white rock. Therefore she hardly knew, being still inthe dark as to his motives in giving the advice, whether to greet Wileyas her savior or to receive him coldly, as a Judas. If the white quartzwas full of gold that her father had overlooked--say fine gold, thatwould not show in the pan--then Wiley was indeed her friend; but if thequartz was barren and he had purposely deceived her in order to boom hisown mine--she smiled with her lips and asked him rather faintly if hewanted his supper at once.

  But if Virginia was still a Huff, remembering past treacheries andliving in the expectancy of more, the Widow cast aside all pettyheart-burnings in her joy at the humiliation of Stiff Neck George.Leaving Virginia in the kitchen, to fry Wiley's steak, she rushed intothe dining-room with her eyes ablaze and all but shook his hand.

  "Well, well," she exulted, "I'll have to take it back--you certainly didboot him good. I said you were a coward but I was watching you throughmy spy-glass and I nearly died a-laughing. You just walked right up tohim--and you were cursing him scandalous, I could tell by the look onyour face--and then all at once you made a jump and gave him that awfulkick. Oh, ho, ho; you know
I've always said he looked like a man thatwas watching for a swift kick from behind; and now--after waiting allthese years--oh, ho ho--you gave him what was coming to him!"

  The Widow sat down and held her sides with laughter and Wiley's grimfeatures, that had remained set and watchful, slowly relaxed to aflattered grin. He had indeed stood up to Stiff Neck George and bootedhim down the dump, so that the score of that night when he had beenhunted like a rabbit was more than evened up; for George had sneaked upon an unarmed man and rolled down boulders from above, but he hadoutfaced him, man to man and gun to gun, and kicked him down the dump toboot. Yes, the Widow might well laugh, for it would be many a long daybefore Stiff Neck George heard the last of that affair.

  "And old Blount," laughed the Widow, "he was right there and saw it--hisown hired bully, and all. Say, now Wiley, tell me all about it--what didBlount have to say? Did he tell you it was all a mistake? Yes, that'swhat he tells everybody, every time he gets into trouble; but he can'tmake excuses to me. Do you know what he's done? He's tied up all mystock as security for eight hundred dollars! What's eight hundreddollars--I turned it all in to get the best of my diamonds out of pawn.It made me feel so bad, seeing that diamond ring of yours; I justcouldn't help getting them out. And now I'm flat and he's holding all mystock for a miserable little eight hundred dollars!"

  She ended up strong, but Wiley sensed a touch and his expressions ofsympathy were guarded.

  "Now, you're a business man," she went on unheedingly. "I'll tell youwhat I'll do--you lend me the money to get back that stock and I'll sellit all to your father!"

  "To my father!" echoed Wiley and then his face turned grim and helaughed at some hidden joke. "Not much," he said, "I like the Old Mantoo much. You'd better sell it back to Blount."

  "To Blount? Why, hasn't your father been hounding me for months to gethis hands on that stock? Well, I'd like to know then what you thinkyou're doing? Have you gone back on your promise, or what?"

  "I never made any promise," returned Wiley pacifically. "It was myfather that made the offer."

  "Oh, fiddlesticks!" exploded the Widow. "Well, what's thedifference--you're working hand and glove!"

  "Not at all," corrected Wiley, "the Old Man is raising cattle. You can'tget him to look at a mine."

  "Well, he offered to buy my stock!" exclaimed the Widow, badlyflustered. "I'd like to know what this means?"

  "It's no use talking," returned Wiley wearily, "I've told you a thousandtimes. If you send your stock to John Holman at Vegas, he'll give youten cents a share; but _I_ won't give you a cent."

  "Do you mean to say," demanded the Widow incredulously, "that you don'twant that stock?"

  "That's it," assented Wiley. "I've just sold my tax title for a hundreddollars, to Blount."

  "Oh, this will drive me mad!" cried the Widow in a frenzy. "Virginia,come in here and help me!"

  Virginia came in with the steak slightly scorched and laid his dinnerbefore Wiley. Her eyes were rather wild, for she had been listeningthrough the doorway, but she turned to her mother inquiringly.

  "He says he's sold his tax claim," wailed the Widow in despair, "for onehundred dollars--to Blount. And then he turns around and says his fatherwill buy my stock for ten cents a share in cash. But he won't lend methe money to pay my note to Blount and get my Paymaster stock back."

  "That's right," nodded Wiley, "you've got it all straight. Now let'squit before we get into a row."

  He bent over the steak and, after a meaning look at Virginia, the Widowdiscreetly withdrew.

  "We saw you fighting George," ventured Virginia at last as he seemedalmost to ignore her presence. "Weren't you afraid he'd get mad andshoot you?"

  "Uh, huh," he grunted, "wasn't I hiding behind Blount? No, I had himwhipped from the start. Bad conscience, I reckon; these crooks are allthe same--they're afraid to fight in the open."

  "But _your_ conscience is all right, eh?" suggested Virginiasarcastically, and he glanced up from under his brows.

  "Yes," he said, "we've got 'em there, Virginia. Are you still holdingonto that stock?"

  A swift flood of shame mantled Virginia's brow and then her dark eyesflashed fire.

  "Yes, I've got it," she said, "but what's the answer when you sell outyour tax claim to Blount?"

  "I wonder," he observed and went on with his eating while she pacedrestlessly to and fro.

  "You told me to hold it," she burst out accusingly, "and then you turnaround and sell!"

  "Well, why don't _you_ sell?" he suggested innocently, and she pausedand bit her lip. Yes, why not? Why, because there were no buyers--exceptWiley Holman and his father! The knowledge of her impotence almostdrove her on to further madness, but another voice bade her beware.He had given her his advice, which was not to sell, and--oh, thataccursed assayer! If she had his report she could flaunt it in hisface or--she caught her breath and smiled.

  "No," she said, "you told me not to!"

  And Wiley smiled back and patted her hand.