“Well, you see, her hair is plumb long and plumb straight, except at the far end it curls up, like a drake’s tail. You see that? You know what that means? Well, any woman that has hair like that can practice magic. I read that in a dream book oncet. Them sort is witches, and it’s no manner of use trying to stop ’em. That’s what the book said. Living along twenty-two year with Miss Taisie, taking out three I spent in the war, I’m here to say the book didn’t tell no lie. So here we all are, sixteen fools that can’t no ways help theirselves, all along of the boss having that kind of red hair that curls up on the end. Well, like you say, we all done our best. I can’t look fifty horses and two wagons of grub in the mouth—not yet.
“Del, ride back and tell the boys to throw the herd all closter to the road chute. Let’s get as many as we can in the iron before she gets too dark to work. We’ll put half at roping and branding on the flat and the balance can work ’em through the chute.”
The three turned toward the dust cloud where the main herd was held by the men. A rider was coming out, top speed.
“Hello!” began Nabours. “What’s a-eating him?”
The horseman drew up his mount squatting, throwing up a hand—old Sanchez, all his life a Del Sol rider, and the only Mexican allowed to go with the trail herd.
“_Pronto, Señor Jeem!_” he called. “_Los hombres—baja_!” He pointed to the herd.
“Read-a our brand—cutta our herd. They say-a we gotta their _vacas_. They goin’ take!”
“Cut our herd? On our own ground. Not none! The man don’t live that’s going to cut a Del Sol herd without my consent and my help. Come on!”
He set spurs, rode through the thin fringe of mesquite that made the shortest path.
“Come on, McMasters!” he called across his shoulder. “I want you for witness here!”
But as he and his two riders burst free and spurred down the slope to where the great herd was made he looked back, not hearing hoof beats. McMasters was not with them.
Nabours smothered the remainder of a volley of hot-headed oaths. He did not understand a man who sidestepped when he was needed.
NABOURS, Del Williams and old Sanchez spurred down the saucerlike flat in which the Del Sol herd was held. They arrived none too soon.