ut there's no harm in trying. Have the old man
stir up a big dust at Washington. After plenty of red tape an official
representation will be made to Pasquale. He will lie himself black in
the face. More correspondence. More explanations. Finally, if the
prisoners are still alive, they will start home. Mebbe they'll get here.
Mebbe they won't."

"Then you don't think it's worth trying?"

"Sure I do. Every little helps. It might make Pasquale sit steady in the
boat till I get a chance to pull off something."

When Daisy Ellington heard of the plan she went straight to Yeager.

"What's this I hear about you committing suicide?" she demanded.

"News to me, compadre," smiled the puncher.

"You're not really going down there to shove your head into that den of
wolves, are you?" Without waiting for an answer she pushed on to a
prediction. "Because if you do, they'll surely snap it off."

"Wish you'd change your brand of prophecy, nina. You see, this is the
only head I've got. I'm some partial to it."

"Then you had better keep away from that old Pasquale and Chad Harrison.
Don't be foolish, Steve." She caught the lapels of his coat and shook
him fondly. "If you don't know when you're well off, your friends do.
We're not going to let you go."

"Threewit and Farrar," he reminded her.

"They'll have to take their chance. Besides, Pasquale isn't going to
hurt them. There wouldn't be any sense in it. So there's no use us
getting panicky."

"I don't reckon I'm exactly panicky, Daisy. But it won't do to forget
that Pasquale is one bad hombre. Harrison is another, and he's got it in
for the boys. We can't lie down and quit on them, can we? I notice they
didn't do that with me."

"What good will it do for you to go and get trapped too? It's different
with you. They've got it in for you down there. It's just foolhardiness
for you to go back," she told him sharply.

"You're sure some little boss," he laughed. "I'm willing to be
reasonable. If I can prove to you that I stand a good chance to pull it
off down at Noche Buena, will you feel different about it?"

"Yes, if you can--but you can't," she agreed, flashing at him the
provocative little smile that was one of her charms.

"Bet you a box of chocolates against a ham sandwich I can."

"You're on," she nodded airily.

"Better order that ham sandwich," he advised, mocking her lazily with
his friendly eyes.

"Oh, I don't know. You're not so much, Cactus Center. I expe