Below them on a little shelf of promontory stood a saddled horse, a blue horse. A yearling was hog-tied there, and a branding fire burned beside. As they looked, a young man knelt over the yearling and earmarked it. Close by, Adam Forbes slouched in the saddle, leaning with both hands on the horn. He gave a letter to the young man, who stuck it into his shirt and then went back to the yearling. He loosed the hogging-string. The yearling scrambled to his feet, bawling defiance, intent on battle; the young man grabbed the yearling's tail and jerked him round till his head faced down the cañon. Adam Forbes made a pass with his horse and slapped with his hat; the yearling fled. "Wait! Wait!" whispered Jody. "I know that man! That's Johnny Dines. Wait! Adam wants to get back and feel that gold in his fingers. Ten to one Dines is going across the river; I can guess his business; he's hunting for the John Cross. Adam gave him the location-papers to mail. If Adam goes back--there's your scapegoat--Dines! He'll be the man that killed Forbes!" "Friend of yours, Jody?" "Damn him! If they both start down the cañon, you fellows get Forbes. I'll get Dines myself. That's the kind of friend he is. Get your guns ready--they'll be going in a minute, one way or the other." "Curiously enough, I know Johnny Dines myself," muttered Hales. "Very intelligent man, Dines. Very! I would take a singular satisfaction in seeing young Dines hung. To that laudable end I sure hope your Mr. Forbes will not go down the cañon." "Well, he won't! Didn't you see him give Dines the papers?" said Caney. "Lay still! This is going to match up like clockwork." The men below waved their hands to each other in friendly fashion; Forbes jogged lazily up the cañon; Dines stamped out the branding fire and rode whistling on the riverward road. "Weir, you're dead sure you can pull the trick about the papers? All right, then--you and Hales go over there and write out joint location papers in the names of the three of us. Got a pencil? Yes? Burn the old notices, and burn 'em quick. Burn his kegs and turn his hobbled horse loose. We will bring his tools as we come back, and hide 'em in the rocks. Any old scrap of paper will do us. Here's some old letters. Use the backs of them. After we get to Hillsboro we'll make copies to file." These directions came jerkily and piecemeal as the conspirators scrambled down the hillside. "Where'll we join you?" Caney paused with his foot in the stirrup to give Jody Weir a black look. "I'll join you, young fellow, and I'll join you at our mine. Do you know, I don't altogether trust you? I want to see those two sets of location papers with my two eyes before we start. So you'll have lots of time. Don't you make no mistakes. And when we go, we go together. Then if we happen to find Adam Forbes by the fire where he caught young Dines stealin' a maverick of his--" "How'll you manage that? Forbes is halfway to the head of the cañon by now."