oor which he slammed after him to let Jerry know that he was
coming, and walked halfway to the bunk-house before he veered off around
the corner of the machine shed and ran.

Jerry was waiting by the old shed, and without a word he led Bud behind
it where Sunfish was standing saddled and bridled.

"You got to go, Bud, while the going's good. I'd go with yuh if I
dared," Jerry mumbled guardedly. "You hit for Crater, Bud, and put that
money in the bank. You can cut into the stage road where it crosses
Oldman Creek, if you go straight up the race track to the far end, and
follow the trail from there. You can't miss it--there ain't but one way
to go. I got yuh this horse because he's worth more'n what the other two
are, and he's faster. And Bud, if anybody rides up on yuh, shoot. Don't
monkey around about it. And you RIDE!"

"All right," Bud muttered. "But I'll have to go down in the pasture
and get my money, first. I've got my own private bank down there, and I
haven't enough in my pockets to play penny ante more than one round."

"Hell!" Jerry's hand lifted to Bud's shoulder and gripped it for a
minute. "That's right on the road to the Sinks, man!" He stood biting
his lips, thinking deeply, turning his head now and then as little
sounds came from the house: the waltz Honey was playing, the post-office
door slamming shut.

"You tell me where that money's cached, Bud, and I'll go after it. I
guess you'll have to trust me--I sure wouldn't let yuh go down to the
pasture yourself right now. Where is it?"

"Look under that flat rock right by the gate post, where the top bars
hit the ground. It's wrapped up in a handkerchief, so just bring
the package. It's been easy to tuck things under the rock when I was
putting up the bars. I'll wait here."

"Good enough--I'd sure have felt easier if I'd known you wasn't carrying
all that money." Whereupon Jerry disappeared, and his going made no
sound.

Bud stood beside Sunfish, wondering if he had been a fool to trust
Jerry. By his own admission Jerry was living without the law, and this
might easily be a smooth scheme of robbery. He turned and strained his
eyes into the dusk, listening, trying to hear some sound that would
show which way Jerry had gone. He was on the point of following
him--suspicion getting the better of his faith--when Sunfish moved his
head abruptly to one side, bumping Bud's head with his cheek. At the
same instant a hand touched Bud's arm.

"I saw you from