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"Say," the other went on at once, "ther's suthin' doin' thick 'tween Jake an' blind hulks. Savee? I heerd Jake an' Miss Dianny gassin' at the barn one day. She wus ther' gittin' her bit of a shoe fixed by Jacob him allus fixin' her shoes for her when they needs it an' Jake come along and made her go right in an' look at the new driver he wus breakin' fer her.
Yes, sir, guess her tongue's like velvet mostly, but when she turned on that blind hulk of a father of hers wal, ther', ef I was a cat an' had nine lives to give fer her they jest wouldn't be enough by a hund'ed." "Say, Arizona," said one of the men quietly, "what was you yarnin' 'bout? Guess you allus was sweet on Miss Dianny." Arizona turned on the speaker fiercely.
'But, sez I. An' he cut me short wi' a curse. 'Out of here! he roared. 'I give you ten minutes to git! Then she, Miss Dianny, bless her, she turned on him quick, an' dressed him down han'some. Sez she, 'Father, how can you be so unkind after what Arizona has done for you?
Tresler asked the question, but he knew that Joe was referring to Diane; Diane's welfare was his other interest in life. The little man turned with a start "Eh? Miss Dianny o' course." "And the weeds?" "Jake an' her father." And the two men became silent, while their horses ambled leisurely on toward home. It was Tresler who broke the silence at last.
Wal, I tell you his money an' his stock an' his land won't help him a cent's worth ef he don't give you to me. I ken make him lick my boots if I so choose. See? Ther' wa'n't another word spoke. An' I heerd 'em move clear. Then I dropped, an' pushin' my head down through the hay-hole, I see that Jake's goin' out by hisself. Miss Dianny had gone out clear ahead, an' wus talkin' to Jacob."
Wot does Jake do but grab up a brandin' iron an' lay it over the boy's head. Dave jest dropped plumb in his tracks. Then we got around and hunched him up, an' laid him out in his bunk, bleedin' awful. We plastered him, an' doctored him, an' after a whiles he come to. He lay on his back fer a month, an' never a sign o' Jake or the blind man come along, only Miss Dianny.
Diane paid little heed to him, and as soon as her share of the work was finished, prepared to retire up-stairs. "There's just the sweeping up, Joe," she said. "When you've finished that we are through. I must go up to him." Joe glanced round from his washing-trough, but went on with his work. "He ain't showed no sign, Miss Dianny?" he asked eagerly. "No, Joe."
Miss Dianny, she likes a feller to git yarnin', an', seein' as I've been punchin' most all through the States, she kind o' notioned my yarns. Which I 'lows is reasonable. She'd fixed my chest up, an' got me trussed neat an' all, an' set right down aside me fer a gas. You know her ways, kind o' sad an' saft.
"Say, Tresler," Joe went on, ignoring the other's objection. "Go easy; jest say nothin'. Kind o' fergit this thing fer the time. Ther's other work fer you. I'd a heap sooner I'd bin killed than you git roped into this racket. It's Miss Dianny you're to look to, not me; an' now, mebbe, they'll run you off'n the ranch." Tresler shook his head decidedly.
"Say, boy," he observed, "that's the barn yonder. 'Fore we git ther' ther's jest one thing more. Jake's goin' to play his hand by force. Savee? Mebbe we've a notion o' that force Miss Dianny an' me " "Yes, and we must think this thing thoroughly out, Joe. Developments must be our cue. We can do nothing but wait and be ready. There's the sheriff " "Eh? Sheriff?"