Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 18, 1928 — page 18: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

816 only a short distance apart, remained there for a moment silently facing each other. “T was coming over to see you, Tom,” said Steele in a friendly voice. ‘“‘ There was some questions I wanted to ask you.” Tolliver’s answering voice, still tinged with a mere trace of the accent of his orig- inal Southland, fairly quivered with rage. “And there’s a few questions that I want to ask you, Steele!” he flung back. “T’m weary of your dirty depredations, suh, and I warn you that the time has come to end them!” The face of Steele flushed red at the in- sult. When he spoke again his voice had none of its original softness, There was a metallic ring to it. “ Tolliver,” he snapped, “I have never raised my hand against you in any way, and as one gentleman to another I ask you to apologize for that uncalled-for accusa- tion.” “ Apologize?” sneered Tolliver. “ I know what you’ve been up to, Steele. Apologize! Tll add to my last remark, suh, and brand you as a thievin’ liar!” As he fairly spat out the words, Tom Tolliver went for his guns. At the same instant Jerry Steele’s right hand reached for his holster. Their shots rang out as one, and then for a moment all was silent. Then Tom Tolliver, with a hole through the middle of his forehead, fell inertly into the dusty road and lay unmoving ey the side of the feet of his restive horse. Steele, blood streaming down the side of his face, slumped forward in his saddle, and then slipped sidewise from his mount and down to the ground, where he too lay motion- less. The horses, frightened by the scent of blood, wheeled away from the prostrate, crumpled figures. Moments went by, and still all was si- lent. A buzzard, with its weird and morbid in- stinct for death, came out of nowhere and wheeled lazily around in ever decreasing circles as it drifted downward. Then, out of a cloud of dust, which had ‘been approaching from the eastward, a horseman appeared. ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, It was Blackie Sanderson, and he was riding alone. He galloped swiftly up to the scene of the encounter between Steele and Tolliver, and then leaped lightly to the ground. He bent over Steel, who was lying on his back with his arms flung outward. Then he went over to Tolliver, who was prone on his face, and turned his body over. After one glance at the wound in the fore- head, Blackie saw that here was death. He went back to Steele again, and made a closer examination of him. “ Creased” muttered Blackie to himself as he fingered a red welt where a bullet had grazed the left temple of his employer. “ Creased, that’s all!” Even as he was on his knees in the dust beside Steele, the blue eyes of the latter fluttered open. ‘They stared uncompre- hendingly for a moment, and then the light of recognition shone forth from them. “ Blackie,” murmured the old man, “What— Where— Oh, yes, I remem- ber.” Then the injured man strove to rise, but Blackie restrained him. “You been creased along the side o’ the head, Mr. Steele,” he said sympathetically. “ Jes’ lay right whar y’are for a mite till you ain’t feelin’ so dizzy. I thought mebbe thar’d be trouble, an’ I come a-ridin’ after you to help you in case you needed a friend. Jes’ shet yore eyes an’ rest a minute now, an’ I'll be right back to you.” Steele, with a little sigh, did close his eyes and relaxed in the dusty roadway. Blackie Sanderson went over to where the body of Tolliver was lying and picked up the gun that had fallen from the lifeless fingers of the dead man. He broke it open, and saw that there were still five unex- ploded shells in the gun. He stood there, for a moment and looked carefully around him in every direction. The coast was clear. He padded softly back toward the side of Steele, whose eyes were still closed; but something intuitive must have inrpelled the rancher to open them at that moment. It was only for an instant—the instant of life left to Jeremiah Steele. comic ,00KS Gon