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Pesita's men are all about here. Even Mexicans are not safe from him. No one knows whether he is for Villa or Carranza. If he finds a Villa ranchero, then Pesita cries Viva Carranza! and his men kill and rob.
He looked up as Barbara's figure darkened the doorway. "Jose!" said the girl. The old man rose to his feet and came toward her. "Eh? Senorita, eh?" he cackled. "You are Jose?" she asked. "Si, senorita," replied the old Indian. "What can poor old Jose do to serve the beautiful senorita?" "You can carry a message to one of Pesita's officers," replied the girl.
Ain't you gettin' pretty thick with Pesita's enemies?" "Jose good friends everybody," and the old man grinned. "Grayson have a job he want good men for. Jose furnish men. Grayson pay well. Job got nothin' do Pesita, Villa, Carranza, revolution just private job. Grayson want senorita. He pay to get her. That all." "Oh," said Billy, and yawned. He was not interested in Mr. Grayson's amours.
He led the way to the second floor, where the five took up positions near the front windows. A short distance from the ranchhouse they could see the enemy, consisting of a detachment of some twenty of Pesita's troopers riding at a brisk trot in their direction. "Pesita's with them," announced Bridge, presently. "He's the little fellow on the sorrel.
But when night finally fell and the five men made an attempt to leave the house upon the side away from the office building they were met with the flash of carbines and the ping of bullets. One of the Mexican defenders fell, mortally wounded, and the others were barely able to drag him within and replace the barricade before the door when five of Pesita's men charged close up to their defenses.
"They only repaired the line yesterday since Pesita's men cut it last month. This was our first message. And do you know, Barbara, I can't help feeling sorry. I had hoped that he would get away." "So had I," said the girl.
"I've always wanted to spend a year in Rio," he said. "We'll meet there, when you can make your get-away." "You've said it," agreed Byrne. "It's Rio as soon as we can make it. Pesita's promised to set you both loose in the morning and send you under safe escort Miguel to his happy home, and you to El Orobo Rancho. I guess the old stiff isn't so bad after all."
"Part of them we drove off most and scattered them. We saw the Brazos pony, too," and Benito looked from beneath heavy lashes in the direction of the bookkeeper. "Where?" asked Grayson. "One of Pesita's officers rode him an Americano. Tony and I saw this same man in Cuivaca the night the bank was robbed, and today he was riding the Brazos pony." Again the dark eyes turned toward Bridge.
That at home they might have looked with disgust upon this same man did not alter their attitude here, that no American should take sides against his own people. Barbara said as much to Grayson. "Why this fellow's one of Pesita's officers," exclaimed Grayson. "He don't deserve no sympathy from us nor from no other Americans.
There should be fighting and he loved that that much he knew. The ethics of Pesita's warfare troubled him not. He had heard that some great American general had said: "War is hell." Billy was willing to take his word for it, and accept anything which came in the guise of war as entirely proper and as it should be. The afternoon was far gone when Billy drew rein in the camp of the outlaw band.