.

"I've given them my word to come back alone."

His head bowed. Out of the willows came Satan and Black Bart and stood
beside him, the stallion nosing his shoulder affectionately.

"Dan, dear, won't you speak to me? Won't you tell me that you try to
understand?"

He said at last: "Yes. I'll free Lee Haines."

The fingers of his right hand trailed slowly across the head of Black
Bart. His eyes raised and looked past her far across the running
curves of the hills, far away to the misty horizon.

"Kate--"

"Dan, you _do_ understand?"

"I didn't know a woman could love a man the way you do Lee Haines.
When I send him back to you tell him to watch himself. I'm playin'
your game now, but if I meet him afterwards, I'll play my own."

All she could say was: "Will you listen to me no more, Dan?"

"Here's where we say good-bye."

He took her hand and his eyes were as unfathomable as a midnight sky.
She turned to her horse and he helped her to the saddle with a steady
hand.

That was all. He went back to the willows, his right arm resting on
the withers of Black Satan as if upon the shoulder of a friend. As she
reached the top of the hill she heard a whistling from the willows, a
haunting complaint which brought the tears to her eyes. She spurred
her tired horse to escape the sound.

CHAPTER XXIII

HELL STARTS

Between twilight and dark Whistling Dan entered Elkhead. He rose in
the stirrups, on his toes, stretching the muscles of his legs. He was
sensing his strength. So the pianist before he plays runs his fingers
up and down the keys and sees that all is in tune and the touch
perfect.

Two rival saloons faced each other at the end of the single street.
At the other extremity of the lane stood the house of deputy sheriff
Rogers, and a little farther was the jail. A crowd of horses stood in
front of each saloon, but from the throngs within there came hardly a
sound. The hush was prophetic of action; it was the lull before the
storm. Dan slowed his horse as he went farther down the street.

The shadowy figure of a rider showed near the jail. He narrowed his
eyes and looked more closely. Another, another, another horseman
showed--four in sight on his side of the jail and probably as many
more out of his vision. Eight cattlemen guarded the place from which
he must take Lee Haines, and every one of the eight, he had no doubt,
was a picked man. Dan pulled up Satan to a walk and commenced to
whistle sof