Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 4, 1922 — page 21: what you’re looking at

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

TWO-GUN SUE. Daisy spoke suddenly. “She also men- tioned a town with a hotel further along if we preferred that to the ranch. Who is she, Garry? She was quite a remarkable looking young person, who sat her horse like a man and issued orders as though she were accustomed to being obeyed. I believe that you know her!”’ “IT don’t!” he exclaimed. ‘“ I never saw her in my life, but if it is the young woman I think it may be, I should feel inclined to believe that she had some very urgent reason which justified her, in her own mind at least, for commandeering your car even at the point of a gun—two guns! This road leads to the Circle Six ranch, and I have met the chap who owns it. Let me show you the way and I am sure that you will be received with all the hospitality in the world!” “ And it is actually your opinion that my car and the hand luggage will be returned to me intact, to say nothing of Briggs?” Acheson demanded. The ghost of a smile flickered in Garry’s eyes, but he responded gravely: “Tf I were you I should feel quite as assured of both Briggs and the car as though they were in the garage at home.” CHAPTER ITI. AN UNEXPECTED ALLY. HE heart of the girl in the car had given a wild leap of exultation when Briggs spoke of the dead “ calico pony ” lying by the road where the wires were down. Lee had been able to put up a fight, at least, and an examination of the pinto’s body might reveal how far he could have run before he dropped so that she might calculate the approximate dis- tance to where Lee must be lying. She did not even glance back at the trio left stranded in the road, but covertly stud- ied the part of the chauffeur’s face which was visible beneath his visored cap and gog- gles. His nose was short and impudently upturned, but the smooth-shaven lips were firm and the square jaw lean and pugna- cious and healthily tanned. The red-brown hair beneath the cap showed a tendency to dol curl, close-cropped though it was, and there was a boyish jauntiness to the set of his broad shoulders, as if instead of being cowed by this adventure he was thoroughly enjoy- ing it. “* ‘Was the man hurt bad, ma’am?” Briggs did not take his eyes from the road ahead as he asked the question, but the friendly interest in his tone was disarming after the strain of the last few minutes, and the girl replied frankly: “TI don’t know. I’mafraidso. His horse was making for home, shot in the shoulder.” ‘* T thought as much, when I see the other one lyin’ there. I says to myself that there’d been some sort of a scrap and I would have stopped right then, only—well, you saw the kind of folks I’m workin’ for, ma’am. Don’t you think I’d have run you down, though; I’d have ditched this bus first!”” He spoke with an honest sincerity there was no mistaking, and the girl relaxed her tense vigilance with a sigh of relief. ““T wasn’t afraid, and whatever trouble there has been here, your people won’t be molested. They’ll reach the ranch I spoke of safely and be well cared for if the old lady can walk a few miles.” The shoulders beside her heaved slightly and a chuckle came from Briggs’s lips. “It would be worth a month’s pay to have Mrs. Acheson hear you call her that, ma’am, and I guess she can make it, though I don’t believe she has walked a block in ten years!” He added abruptly in a changed, sobered tone, “ We're gettin’ near there now, and you needn’t keep that gun trained on me, for I’m*with you! You may want both of yours if there’s likely to be any little mix-up, and I guess from what I just seen that you’re able to handle ’em, ma’am, but if you feel you could trust me with my own it’s right under your seat there. Of course, you’ve got only my word for-it that I won’t double-cross you—” He turned then for an instant to face her and the girl looked into a pair of deep brown eyes as confident of being accepted on good faith as those of a friendly, intrepid dog. Accustomed to quick decisions the girl nodded and slipped her pistol back once more into its holster. COmiClboolks.Gonmn