Wild Horse Mesa by Zane Grey

Author:Zane Grey
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

THE first glimmer of dawn was lightening the east when Chane Weymer, with Chess and Alonzo, rode away from camp, down into the dark melancholy void of Stark Valley, to begin their part in Melberne’s great wild-horse drive.

“Chane, I’ll bet we owe it to Manerube that we got the hardest job today,” complained Chess.

“I reckon. But what difference does it make?” returned Chane. “Well have a day of tough riding. No worse than Utah’s, though. Believe I’d rather have the wide level valley to cover, than that rough ground to the west. Anyway, the harder it is the better I’ll like it, till we get the bloody business over.”

“You think one drive will be enough for the boss, huh?” inquired Chess.

“Reckon I know it. Melberne’s a white man, Chess. If he’d known about this barbed-wire game he’d never have gotten so far along.”

“But if it’s a success? The boss’s keen to make money.”

“If he made ten thousand dollars on this drive he’d never tackle another. I’m gambling on his daughter. She’d keep him from it.”

“I’m not so sure of Sue, lately,” returned Chess, thoughtfully. “One day she’s this way and the next day that. But I was surprised when she spoke up to you the other night. Weren’t you?”

“Boy, I told you twice,” said Chane, trying to steer the conversation, away from the charming topic Chess always led round to. It was not that Chane ever tired of eulogies to Sue, or the events of any day that included her, but Chess had an obsession. Some day Sue would be his sister! And when her name came up, which inevitably happened every time Chess came near enough to talk, he would dreamily or unconsciously or cunningly return to the shibboleth which had its pangs for Chane. But Chane never regretted Chess’s beautiful and romantic love for Sue Melberne, for he believed it had been the turning-point toward good in the boy’s wild life. Chane’s pangs were selfish. For it had been his misfortune to worship at first sight the dark-eyed Sue. Chane’s dreams, if he had any at this fruitless time of his hard desert experience, never dared to verge on the extreme edge of Chess’s enchanted visions.

“Horses, senor,” said Alonzo, his lean hand pointing.

“Yes, there’s the first bunch,” returned Chane, peering through the opaque dawn at some horse shapes that moved like specters. “Reckon they’ll run down valley for a while anyhow.”

“Si, senor,” said the Mexican.

They trotted their horses on, keeping to the edge of the oval valley. The black mountain range loomed above, tipped with paling stars. The valley itself was losing its density of space at night, responding to the invisible influence that hid far under the gray widening mantle of the east. It was a frosty morning, nipping cold, and the iron-shod hoofs rang like silver bells on the stones.

Chess had lighted a cigarette, something he always did when Chane was not responsive to his favorite topic of conversation. His horse was mettlesome and wanted action.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.