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Her father shook his head. "A young man of Mr. Alton's description does not do anything of the kind without a motive," he said. "Now I wonder if there are minerals upon the ranch." The colour crept into his daughter's cheeks again. "They would in any case belong to the Crown," she said.
Alton stared at him a moment. "Now I had " he commenced, and then stopped abruptly. Once more Seaforth smiled. "Then you had thought about it, Harry?" Alton's eyes closed a little. "I'm not one of the folks who go round telling people all they think," he said. "There's no way down that canon."
Seaforth understood what was passing in his comrade's mind, and knew that Alton had not kept silence because of the risk to himself, for whatever was done the chances were equally against him. "I'm afraid we can't contradict you, but we shall discover to-morrow whether you are right or not," he said. Alton's glance grew a little less direct. "I would stop you if I could."
"You soon fixed him, packer," said the city man. Alton laughed. "The boys mostly call me rancher," said he. "Still, it don't count for much, and I do some packing occasionally." "That's all right," said the stranger sharply, for there was something in Alton's answer which made him inclined to assert his dignity.
That wouldn't possibly have counted for so much, but it also got about that she made use of her place to give you information that was worth a good deal about the business of Hallam and the folks she worked for." Alton's face grew almost purple, but the dark hue faded and left it unusually pale again. "That," he said very slowly, "is a damnable lie.
He fancied for a moment that the girl would have retreated. She, however, looked at him quietly, though something in her manner checked Alton's outstretched hand. "Are you staying here?" she said. "No," said Alton. "I'm going away to-morrow, but I want quite a long talk with you." "I do not wish to hear anything about Somasco," said the girl.
I was more of a fool than usual then." Alice Deringham laughed softly but graciously. "I could not blame you and you may have been right," she said. Then she passed into the room, and saw the light creep into Alton's eyes, which had apparently been fixed upon the door. Her blood tingled and her neck grew hot, for it was evident that while his mind was clear at last he remembered a little.
"Charley!" cried Alton, and there was an exclamation of astonishment followed by a scrambling, and presently Seaforth stopped with a little gasp by his comrade. Alton's face showed drawn and grey in the creeping light, and there was another more blanched one in the wet fern beside him. "Good Lord!" said Seaforth. "What's the meaning of this, Harry?" "Look at him," said Alton gravely.
That means tolerably bad times for Somasco." "I," said Seaforth, "wasn't exactly thinking about Somasco." Alton's face was very grim. "Well," he said dryly, "it means a good deal less to one of us than it would have done a few weeks ago."
You see they drove my father out because he had the grit to marry the woman who loved him instead of another one who had the money, but you know all that?" Deringham nodded, and Alton's face showed grim in the moonlight as he continued: "But what you don't know is how he fought his way uphill in this country, and what my mother suffered helping him.
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