Disconcerted by the first great mass of water that fell upon them, the
cattle stopped. The leaders turned back upon the herd. Shoz-Dijiji, in
the rear, urged the stragglers forward until, presently, the herd was
milling in a muddy circle; but with the coming of the steady torrent and
beneath the heavy quirt of the Apache they gradually strung out again in
the direction they had been travelling, the storm at their backs.
Shoz-Dijiji, seeing that he was handling the herd alone, looked about
him for his companion; but the blinding torrent hid everything but the
nearer cattle, and Shoz-Dijiji did not know that Luis was driving his
unwilling pony into the teeth of the storm in an effort to escape.
An hour later the storm was over. A full moon shone out of a clear sky.
Directly ahead of him Shoz-Dijiji saw something that was frightening the
leaders of the herd, causing them to stop and then turn aside. A moment
later the Apache recognized the cause of the distraction. It was a man
on foot. At first Shoz-Dijiji thought that it was Luis, but when he had
ridden nearer he discovered that the man was a soldier. Shoz-Dijiji drew
a revolver from the holster at his hip. He would ride close enough to
make sure of his aim before firing. He was not afraid that the other
would fire first, since the soldier, before he fired, would wish to make
sure that Shoz-Dijiji was an enemy. In this Shoz-Dijiji had a great
advantage. Being an Apache he knew that all men were his enemies. He
could make no mistake on that score.
The soldier hailed him in rather lame Spanish, but there was something
in the voice that sounded familiar to the Apache Devil who never forgot
anything. So he rode yet closer.
And then, in perfectly understandable English, he said: “Put up your
hands, King, or I’ll kill you.”
Lieutenant King put his hands above his head. As yet he had not
recognized the other as an Indian. The English, the use of his own name,
mystified him.
“Who the hell are you?” he inquired.
“Turn your back,” commanded Shoz-Dijiji.
King did as he was bid, and the Apache rode up and disarmed him.
“All right,” said Shoz-Dijiji, and King lowered his arms and turned
about.
“Shoz-Dijiji!” exclaimed King.
“Shoz-Dijiji, war chief of the Be-don-ko-he Apaches,” replied the Apache
Devil.
“And you’re on the war path. That doesn’t look so good for me, does it,
Shoz-Dijiji?”
“Shoz-Dijiji not on war trail now. Shoz-Dijiji good Indian now. Go in
cattle business.”
In the moonlight King saw the grim half smile that accompanied the words
of the Indian, but he made no reply. Apache humor was something that he
did not pretend to understand. All he knew about it was that upon
occasion it might be hideous.
“Mebbe so you like go in cattle business with Shoz-Dijiji?” suggested
the Apache.
“I guess that whatever you say goes,” replied the officer.
“All right. Take this horse.” The Indian indicated the led horse at his
side. “Now you help drive _our_ cattle. Sabe?”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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