They arrived home about dusk and put their horses up. Mason went at once to the house. On the porch he found Bud and Josephine talking earnestly. “Good evening, Miss,” he greeted her as he came up to the porch. “I suppose that Bud has told you all about me getting in Dutch at the Post and how I came near getting shot only for Bud here.” “I heard all about it, sir,” she said with icy coolness. “And also about the girl,” she added as a parting shot, disappearing in the house. Mason was taken completely by surprise. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he said weakly to himself. CHAPTER IV A NEW ARRIVAL The few remaining days of June passed swiftly and it was nearing the time set for the annual games at the ranch, which were to be held on the Fourth of July. Mason had received word that his car had arrived, and starting out early one morning for Trader’s Post with Scotty and Buck Miller, he drove the machine back to the ranch, giving Scotty the ride of his life. Buck Miller was left behind with orders to bring the horses in, a job he accepted with relief when he saw Mason and Scotty flash by him at express speed. “Don’t want to ride in any contraption like that,” he growled to himself as he watched the car disappear in a cloud of dust. There still remained two days for the men to get ready for the various sports, and they were hard at it when Mason drove his racer into the midst of them with Scotty clinging on for dear life. Mason said afterwards that he left his finger prints on the car door. The boys crowded about the machine, making various comments and kidding Scotty who was trying to catch his breath. “Well, boys, what do you think of her?” queried Mason as he stood off and looked his racer over. “A hoss is plenty good enough for me,” spoke up Joe Turner with a drawl. “What do you think about it?” He turned to Scotty with a grin. “That’s not a fair question for Scotty to answer on his first ride.” Mason interposed, with a hearty laugh. “We burned the wind some in getting here and Scotty was up in the air most of the time.” Josephine and her father had now joined the group and Mason noticed the eyes of the girl sparkle as she stood close and admired the trim lines of the racer. He had not found a chance to talk with her since the Trader’s Post incident. It appeared to him that she had deliberately tried to avoid him, a fact which puzzled him not a little bit. He had learned on inquiry that the incident at the Post had been settled by the ranch owner. He had learned the particulars from his foreman and was for discharging the halfbreed on the spot, but Josephine had interceded with such good results that her father had relented and promised to give the roan another chance. The ranch owner had warned him to go straight in the future or he would be kicked off the ranch.