RY RAY BW Zs ALLL (Continued from last week). SYNOPSIS CHAPTER I1-—Arriving at the lonely tle railroad station of El Cajon, New co, Madeline Hammond, New York ], finds no one to meet her. While in e waiting rocm a drunken cowboy en- asks she is married, and departs, ving her terrified, He returns with a est, who goes through some sort of remony, and the cowboy forces her to say “SL” Asking her name and learning her identity the cowboy seems dazed. In shooting scrape outside the room a xican is killed. The cowboy lets a 1, “Bonita,” take his horse and escape, en conducts Madeline to Florence ey, friend of her brother. CHAPTER II.—Florence welcomes her, rns her story, and dismisses the cow- y, Gene Stewart, Next day Alfred mmond, Madeline's brother, takes Slowant to task. Madeline exonerates of any wrong intent. CHAPTER IIl.—Alired, scion of a Foalthy family, had been dismissed from 8 home because of his dissipation. Madeline sees that the West has re- deemed him. She meets Stillwell, Al's employer, typical western ranchman. Madeline learns Stewart has gone over the border. CHAPTER IV.—Danny Mains, one of Btillwell’'s cowboys, has disappeared, with some of Stillwell’'s money. His Jtienas link his name with the girl Bo- CHAPTER V.—Madeline gets a glimpse of life on a western ranch, CHAPTER VI.—Stewart’s horse comes to the ranch with a note on the saddle asking Madeline to accept the beautiful animal. With her brother’s consent she does s0, naming him ‘‘Majesty,” her own pet nickname. Madeline, independently rich, arranges to buy Stillwell’s ranch nd that of Don Carlos, a Mexican neigh- Tr, CHAPTER VII.—Madeline feels she bas found her right place, under the light of the western stars. CHAPTER VII1.—Learning Stewart had been hurt in a brawl at Chiricahua, and knowing her brother's fondness for him, Madeline visits him and persuades him to come to the ranch as the boss of her cowboys. CHAPTER IX.—Jim Nels, Nick Steele, and ‘“‘“Monty” Price are Madeline's chief riders. They have a feud with Don Car- los’ vaqueros, who are really guerrillas. Madeline pledges Stewart to see that peace is kept CHAPTER X.—Madeline and Florence, returning home from Alfred’s ranch, run into an ambush of vaqueros. Florence, knowing the Mexicans are after Made- line, decoys them away, and Madeline gets home safely but alone. CHAPTER XI.—A raiding guerrilla band carries off Madeline, Stewart fol- lows alone. The leader is a man with whom Stewart had served in Mexico. He releases the girl, arranging for ransom. Returning home with Stewart, Madeline finds herself strangely stirred. CHAPTER XII. — Madeline’s sister Helen, with a party of eastern friends, arrives at the ranch, craving excitement. CHAPTER XIII.—For the guests’ enter- talnment a game of golf is arranged. Stewart interrupts the game, insisting the whole party return at once to the house. He tells Madeline her guests are not safe while the Mexican revolution is going on, and urges them to go up to the mountains out of danger. They de- cide to do so. He sald good-night and turned. Madeline wonderingly watched him go down the path with his hand on the black horse’s neck. She went in to rest a little before dressing for dinner and, being fatigued from the day’s riding and excitement, ghe fell asleep. When she awoke it was twilight. She wondered why her Mexican maid had not come to her, and she rang the bell. The maid did not put in an appearance, nor was there any answer to the ring. The house seemed unusually quiet. It was a brooding silence, which presently broke to the sound of footsteps on the porch. Madeline recognized Stillwell’s tread, though it appeared to be light for him. Then she heard him call softly in at the open door of her of- fice. The suggestion of caution in his voice suited the strangeness of his walk. With a boding sense of trouble she hurried through the rooms. He was standing outside her office door. “Stillwell!” she exclaimed. “Please come out on the porch.” She complied and, once out, was en- abled to see him. His grave face, paler than she had ever beheld it, caused her to stretch an appealing hand to- | wary him. Stillwell intercepted it and held it in his own. “Miss Majesty, I'm amazin’ sorry to tell worrisome news. But it can’t be avoided. The fact is we're in a bad fix. If your guests ain’t scared out of their skins it'll be owin’ to your nerve an’ how you carry out Stewart's orders.” “You can rely upon me,” replied Madeline, firmly, though sh® trembled, “Wal. what we're up against is this: that gang of bandits Pat Hawe was chasin’—they’re hidin’ in the house!” “In the house?’ echoed Mndeline, aghast. “Miss Majesty, it’s the amazin’ truth, an’ shamed indeed am I to admit it. Stewart—why, he's wild with rage to think it could hev happened. You see, it couldn’t hev happened if I hedn’t sloped the boys off to the gol-lof links, an’ if Stewart hedn’t rid out on the mesa after us. It's my fault. But now we've got to face it—to figger. Now, listen. When Stewart left you an hour or so ago he foliered me direct to where me an’ the boys was tryin’ to keep Pat Hawe from tearin’ the ranch to pieces. At that we was helpin’ Pat all we could to find them bandits. But when Stewart got there he made a dif- ference. Pat was nasty before, but Stewart made him wuss. 1 seein’ reckon Gene to I'at is the same as red to a Greaser bull. Anyway, when the sheriff set fire to an old adobe hut Stewart called him an’ called him hard. Pat Hawe hed six fellers with him, an’ from all appearances bandit-huntin’ was some fiesta. There was a row, an’ it looked bad fer a little. But Gene was cool, an’ he controlled the boys. Then Pat an’ his tough de-pooties went on huntin’. That huntin’, Miss Majesty, petered out into what was only a farce, Pat Hawe wasn't lookin’ hard fer any bandits; he wasn't daid set huntin’ anythin’, unless it was trouble fer Stewart. Finally, when Pat's men made fer our storehuse, where we keep ammunition, grub, liquors, an’ sich, then Gene called a halt. An’ he ordered Pat Hawe off the ranch. It was hyar Hawe an’ Stewart locked horns. An’ hyar the truth come out. There was a gang of bandits hid some- wheres, an’ at fust Pat Hawe hed been powerful active an’ earnest in his hunt- vl, NNN “ln the House?” Echoed Madeline, Aghast. in’. But suddenlike he'd fetched a po coolier change of heart. He had been some flustered with Stewart’s eyes a- pryin’ into his moves, an’ then, mebbe to hide somethin’, mebbe jest nat'rul, he got mad. He hollered law. He pulled down off the shelf his old stock grudge on Stewart, accusin’ him over again of that Greaser murder last fall, Stewart made him look like a fool— showed him up as bein’ scared of the bandits or hevin' some reason fer stopin’ off the trail. Anyway, the row started all right, an’ it might hev amounted to a fight. In the thick of it, when Stewart was drivin’ Pat an’ his crowd off the place, one of them de-pooties lost his head an’ went fer his gun. Nels throwed his gun an’ crip- pled the feller’s arm. Monty jumped then an’ throwed two forty-fives, an’ fer a second or so it looked ticklish. But the bandit-hunters crawled, an’ then lit out.” Stillwell paused in the rapid deliv- ery of his narrative; he still retained Madeline’s hand, as if by that he might comfort her. “After Pat left we put our haids to- gether,” began the old cattleman, with a long respiration. ‘We rounded up a lad who had seen a dozen or so fellers —he wouldn’t say they was Greasers— breakin’ through the shrubbery to the back of the house. That was while Stewart was ridin’ out to the mesa. Then this lad seen your servants all runnin’ down the hill toward the vil lage. Now, heah’s the way Gene fig- gers. There sure was some deviltry down along the railroad, an’ Pat Hawe trailed bandits up to the ranch. He hunts hard an’ then all to onct he quits, Stewart says Pat Hawe wasn’t scared, but he discovered signs of somethin’, or got wind in some strange way that there was in the gang of bandits some fellers he didn't want to ketch. Sabe? Then Gene, quicker'n a flash, springs his plan on me. He'd go down to Padre Marcos an’ hev him help to find out all possible from your Mexican servants. I was to hurry up hyar an’ tell you—give you orders, Miss Majes- ty. Ain’t that amazin strange? Wal, you're to assemble all your guests in the kitchen. pretend, as your help has left, that it'll be great fun fer your guests to cook dinner. The kitchen is the safest room in the heuse. While you're joshin’ your party along, makin’ a kind of picnie out of it, I'll place cowboys in the long corridor, an’ also ofitside in the corner where the kitchen joins on to the main house. It’s pretty sure the bandits think no one's wise to where they're hid. Stewart says they're in that emd room where the alfalfa is, an’ they'll slope in the night. Of course, with me an’ the boye# watchin’, you-all will be safe to go to bed. An’ we're to rouse your guests early before daylight, to Se ee Make a grand bluff an’ |. hit the trail up into the mountains. Tell them to pack outfits before goin’ to bed. Say as your servants hev sloped, you might as well go campin’ with the cowboys. That's all. If we hev. any luck your friends’ll never know they've been sittin’ on a powder- mine. Now, Miss Majesty, I've used up a lot of time explainin’. You'll sure keep your nerve?” “Yes,” Madeline replied, and was surprised at herself. “Better tell Florence. power of comfort to you. now to fetch up the boys.” Instead of returning to her room Madeline went through the office into the long corridor. It was almost as dark as night. She fancied she saw a slow-gliding figure darker than the sur- rounding gloom; and she entered upon the fulfillment of her part of the plan in something like trepidation. Her footsteps were noiseless. Finding the door to the kitchen, and going in, she struck lights. Upon passing out again she made certain she discerned a dark shape, now motionless, crouching along the wall. But she mistrusted her vivid imagination, It took all her boldness to enable her unconcernedly and natur- a'ly to strike the corridor light. Then she went on through her own rooms and thence into the patio. Eer guests laughingly and gladly en- teed into the spirit of the occasion. They trooped merrily into the kitchen. Madeline, delaying at the door, took a sharp but unobtrusive glance down the great, barnlike hall. She saw nothing but blank dark space. Suddenly from one side, not a rod distant, protruded a pale, gleaming face breaking the even blackness. Instantly it flashed back out of sight. Yet that time was long enough for Madeline to see a pair of glittering eyes, and to recognize them as Don Carlos’. Without betraying either hurry er alarm. she closed the door. It had a heavy bolt which she slowly, noiseless- ly shot. Then the cold amaze that had all but stunned her into inaction throbbed into wrath. How dared that Mexican steal into her home! What did he mean? Was he one of the ban- dits supposed to be hidden in her house? She was thinking herself into