doing just that. She failed, for once, and it hurt her pride;
but Rimrock failed as well. After a swift spin through the streets he
returned to his hotel and called up his detective in a rage.

"Say, what kind of an agency are you running, anyhow?" he demanded when
he got his man. "Ain't you been working ten months to find Mary
Fortune? Well, I met her to-night, on the street. What's that you
say? There's three million people! Well, I don't care if there's
six--I want you to find that girl! No, stop her nothing! You lay a
hand on her and I'll come down to your office and kill you. Just tell
me where she is and keep an eye on her and I don't care what you
charge. And paste this in your hat--if you don't find that girl you'll
have to sue for your pay!"

The agency had to sue, for ten days later, Rimrock received a letter
from her hand. It was mailed from Gunsight, Arizona, and was strictly
business throughout. It was, in fact, the legal thirty days' notice of
the annual meeting of the Company

"in the town of Gunsight, county of Geronimo, Territory of Arizona, on
Tuesday, the 22nd day of December, to transact the following business,
viz:

"1--to elect a Board of Directors

"2--to transact any other business that may properly come before the
meeting."

Rimrock read it over and his courage failed him--after all he was
afraid to face her. He did not flatter himself that she hated him; she
despised him, and on account of Mrs. Hardesty. How then could he
hasten back to Gunsight and beg for a chance to explain? She had fled
from his presence ten months before, on the day after Mrs. Hardesty
came; and ten months later, when she met him by accident, he was with
Mrs. Hardesty again. As far as he knew Mrs. Hardesty was a perfect
lady. She went out everywhere and was received even by millionaires on
terms of perfect equality--and yet Mary Fortune scorned her. She
scorned her on sight, at a single glance, and would not even argue the
matter. Rimrock decided to use "the enclosed proxy."

He made it out in the name of L. W. Lockhart and returned it by the
following mail, and then he called up the detective agency and told
them to go ahead and sue. He told them further that he was willing to
bet that Stoddard knew where she was all the time; and if they were
still working for him, as he strongly suspected, they could tell him
she was back in Gunsight. Rimrock hung up there and fell to pacing the
floor