Johnny shrugged his shoulders. "_Quien sabe?_" he asked. "There's a lot of people down here that would have more reason to do a thing like that, even for strangers, than _I_ would. You ain't loved very much, from what I've heard. I don't want any more enemies than I got; but I'm tellin' you, flat, that I ain't goin' back with you; an' neither would you, if you was in my place, in a strange town. Here," he said, letting the hammer down and tossing the gun at the sheriff's feet, "take your gun. I'm glad you ain't hurt; an' I'm cussed glad _I_ ain't. But somebody's shore goin' to be th' next time you pull a gun on me on a guess. You want to be _dead shore_, Corwin. We've had enough of this. Did you get any trace of them two?" The sheriff watched his opponent's gun go back into its holster and slowly picked up his own. "No; I ain't," he admitted, and considered a moment as he sheathed the weapon with great care. "I _ain't_ got nothin' flat agin' you," he said; "but I still think you had a hand in it. That's a good trick you worked, Nelson; I'm rememberin' it. All right; th' next time I come for you I'll _have_ it cold; an' I'm shore expectin' to come for you, an' Idaho, too." "That's fair enough," replied Johnny, smiling; "but I don't see why you want to drag Idaho in it for. He didn't have no more to do with it than _I_ did." "I'm believin' that, too," retorted the sheriff; "since you put it just that way. I haven't heard you say that you _didn't_ do it. Before I go I want to ask you a question: Where was you th' night th' Diamond L lost them cows?" "Right here with Mac an' th' boys." "He was," said McCullough. "Yo're ridin' wide of th' trail, Corwin." "Mebby," grunted the sheriff. "There's two trails. I mebby am plumb off of _one_ of 'em, as long as you know he was down here that night; but I'm ridin' right down th' middle of th' other. When did you meet Long an' Thompson first?" he asked, wheeling suddenly and facing Johnny. "Thinkin' what you do about me," replied Johnny, "I'd be a fool to tell you anythin', no matter what. So, as long as yo're ridin' down th' middle you'll have to read th' signs yoreself. Some of 'em must be plumb faint, th' way yo're guessin', an' castin' 'round. Get any news about them rustlers?" "What's th' use of makin' trouble for yoreself by bein' stubborn?" asked McCullough. He looked at Corwin. "Sheriff, I know for shore that he never knowed any Bill Long or Red Thompson until after he come to Mesquite. What news did you get about th' rustlers?"