threats to Diane; how impotent they
seemed now. But the smile died out when he remembered he, himself, had
yet to face the rancher on the delicate subject of his daughter. He
remembered only too well Jake's reference to a cyclone, and he made
his way to the bunkhouse with no very enlivening thoughts.

In the meantime the two men he had just left remained silent until the
sound of his footsteps had quite died out. Then Marbolt spoke.

"Jake, you are a damned idiot!" he said abruptly.

The foreman made no answer and the other went on.

"Why can't you leave the boy alone? He's harmless; besides he's useful
to me--to us."

"Harmless--useful?" Jake laughed bitterly. "Pshaw, I guess your
blindness is gettin' round your brains!"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean it 'ud have been better if you'd let me--wipe him out. Better
for us--for you."

"I don't see; you forget his money." The blind man's tone was very
low. "You forget he intends to buy a ranch and stock. You forget that
he has twenty-five thousand dollars to expend. Bah! I'll never make a
business man of you."

"And what about your girl?" Jake asked, quite unmoved by the other's
explanation.

"My girl?" Marbolt laughed softly. "You are always harping on that. He
will leave my girl alone. She knows my wishes, and will--shall obey
me. I don't care a curse about him or his affairs. But I want his
money, and if you will only see to your diabolical temper, I'll--we'll
have it. Your share stands good in this as in all other deals."

It was the foreman's turn to laugh. But there was no mirth in it. It
stopped as suddenly as it began, cut off short.

"He will leave your girl alone, will he?" he said, with a sneer. "Say,
d'you know what he was doin' around this house last night when he saw
those hoss-thief guys, or shall I tell you?"

"You'd better tell me," replied the rancher, coldly.

"He was after your girl. Say, an' what's more, he saw her. An' what's
still more, she's promised to be his wife. He told me."

"What's that? Say it again." There was an ominous calmness in the
blind man's manner.

"I said he was after your girl, saw her, and
she's--promised--to--be--his--wife."

"Ah!"

Then there was a silence for some minutes. The red eyes were frowning
in the direction of the window. At last the man drew a deep breath,
and Jake, watching him, wondered what was coming.

"I'll see her," he said slowly, "and I'll see him--after he comes back
from Willow Bluff