lone, and I'll have to begin the job
again."

Sadie paused, with tears in her eyes, and then pulled herself together.
"Pshaw!" she said, "I'm a silly fool. Before you came I thought I'd quit
and let Bob go his own way; but I'm not beaten yet. If Wilkinson wants
him, there's going to be some fight. Now, I want you to ride over with
me to the fellow's place."

Helen felt sympathetic. Sadie's resentment was justified, and she looked
rather refined when angry. Her stiff pose lent her a touch of dignity;
her heightened color and the sparkle in her eyes gave her face the charm
of animation. Moreover, her want of reserve no longer jarred. Reserve is
not very common on the plains.

"But you must tell me something about it first," Helen replied. "How did
you find out he had written the cheque?"

"I suspected something after he'd gone and looked for his cheque-book.
He'd torn out a form, but hadn't filled up the tab. Bob's silly when
he's cunning and didn't think about his blotter. The top sheet was
nearly clean and I read what he'd written, in a looking-glass."

"Why did he give Wilkinson the money?"

"I guess it's to speculate in wheat or building-lots, and Bob will
certainly lose it all; but that's not what makes me mad. After all, it's
his money; he's been saving it since he steadied down. I can manage Bob
if he's left alone, and thought I'd cut out the friends he shouldn't
have. Wilkinson was the only danger left, but he's a blamed tough
proposition."

Helen knew Festing disliked the man, but she felt puzzled. "The sum is
not very large," she said. "I don't quite see why Wilkinson thought it
worth while----"

"It shows he's pinched for money, and there's some hope in that. Then
he doesn't like me, and I imagine he has a pick on your husband. Stephen
froze him off one day when he was getting after Bob. Anyhow, I mean to
get the money back."

"But can you? It is Bob's cheque."

"I'm going to try. The bank deals with _me_," Sadie answered. "But come
along; I hear the hired man bringing the rig."

When they got into the vehicle, Helen remarked that Sadie had brought
a flexible riding whip. Since the quirt was useless for driving, Helen
wondered what she meant to do with it. The trail they took ran through
the grass, a sinuous riband of hard-beaten soil that flashed where it
caught the light. It was seamed by ruts and fringed by wild barley but
in places the grass had spread across it, leaving gaps, into which the