remembered the statement of
the priest that he evidently did not know the lady well, and realized
in a flash that he certainly did not, also that he would feel more
comfortable elsewhere.

"Senora, I beg a thousand pardons for my foolishness," he implored.
"My--my faulty Spanish caused me to speak the wrong word. Will you not
forgive me such a stupid blunder? Everyone knows the German brute
could not be a friend of yours, and that you could have only hatred of
his kind."

She regarded him steadily with the ever ready suspicion against an
Americano showing in her eyes, but his regret was so evident, and his
devotion to her interests so sincere, that the tension relaxed, and
she sank back in her chair, her hand trembling as she covered her eyes
for a moment.

"It is I who am wrong, senor. You cannot know how the name of that man
is a poison, and why absolution is refused me because I will not
forgive,--and will not say I forgive! I will not lie, and because of
the hate of him my feet will tread the fires of hell. The padre is
telling me that, so what use to pray? Of what use, I ask you?"

Kit could see no special use if she had accepted the threat of the
priest that hell was her portion anyway.

"Oh, I would not take that gabble of a priest seriously if I were
you," he suggested. "No one can beat me in detesting the German and
what he stands for, but I have no plans of going to hell for it--not
on your life! To hate Conrad, or to kill him would be like killing a
rattlesnake, or stamping a tarantula into the sand. He has been let
live to sting too many, and Padre Andreas tells me you heard him boast
of an American killing at Granados!"

"That is true, senor, and it was so clever too! It was pleasure for
him to tell of that because of clever tricks in it. They climbed poles
to the wires and called the man to a town, then they waited on that
road and shot him before he reached the town. The alcalde of that
place decided the man had killed himself, and Conrad laughed with Jose
Perez on account of that, because they were so clever!"

"They?" queried Kit trying to prevent his eagerness from showing in
his voice. "Who helped him? Not Perez?"

"No, senor, in that sin Jose had no part. It was a very important man
who did not appear important;--quite the other way, and like a man of
piety. His name, I am remembering it well, for it is Diego,--but said
in the American way, which is James."

"Diego, said in the American w