He managed to smile, although the words were poison
to him. He had loved her as long as he could
remember, and sooner or later she would be his wife,
but the period remained indefinitely in the future
as the whims of the girl changed. It was for
that reason, as Hal very well knew, that her father
became furious when she smiled at another man.
The rich marriage was his goal; and when a second man
stepped onto the stage, old Jack Hood was ready to
fight. Hal saw a way of stopping her gibes and
proving his good intentions toward Hunter all in a
breath.
“He saved my life, Mary. I lost a stirrup,
and the devil of a horse threw me.”
Briefly he sketched in the story of the rescue, and
how Bull Hunter afterward had ridden the horse without
spurs, without a bridle. Before he ended her
eyes were shining.
“That’s what he meant when he said he
hadn’t beaten Diablo. I understand now.
At the time I thought he was a little simple, Hal.”
“He’s not exceptionally clever, Mary,”
said Hal, “and that’s where the point
comes in of what I want you to do. Hunter is apt
to take a fancy that he isn’t wanted here—that
he’s being kept out of charity because he saved
my life. Nothing I can say will convince him.
I want you to give him a better reason for staying
around. Will you do it—as a great
favor?”
She dropped her chin into her hand and studied him.
“Just what are you driving at, Hal?”
“You know what I mean well enough. I want
you to waste a smile or two on him, Mary. Will
you do that? Make him think you like him a good
deal, that you’re glad to have him around.
Will you? Take him out for a walk this afternoon
and get him to tell you the story of his life.
You can always make a man talk and generally you turn
them into fools. You’ve done it with me,
often enough,” he added gloomily.
“Flirt with that big, quiet fellow?” she
said gravely. “Hal, you’re criminal.
Besides, you know that I don’t flirt. It’s
just the opposite. When I like a man I’m
simply frank about it.”
“But you have a way of being frank so that a
poor devil usually thinks you want to marry him, and
then there’s the devil to pay. You know
it perfectly well.”
“That’s not true, Hal!”
“I won’t argue. But will you do it?”
“Absolutely not!”
“It might be quite a game. He may not be
altogether a fool. And suppose he were to wake
up? Suppose he’s simply half-asleep?”
He saw a gleam of excitement come in her eyes and
wisely left her without another word. After things
had reached a certain point Mary could be generally
trusted to carry the action on.
Jack Hood had ridden out on his rounds with a new
horse that morning, and the new horse developed the
gait of a plow horse. The result was that grim
old Jack reached the house that night with a body racked
by the labor of the day and a disposition poisoned
for the entire evening. He was met at the stable
by Riley, and the sight of him brought a spark for
the moment into the eye of the foreman.
