Cassidy, Hopalong (Fictitious character) -- Fiction; Western stories
Idaho had stopped under the window pointed out to him, and his two
companions, leaving their boots in his tender care, were swallowed
up in the darkness. They opened the squeaking front door, cautiously
climbed the squeaking stairs and fairly oozed over the floor of the
upper hall, which wanted to squeak, and did so a very little. Hopalong
slowly opened the door of his room, thankful that he had oiled its
one musical hinge, and felt cautiously over the bed. It was empty,
and his sigh of relief was audible. And he was further relieved when
his groping hand found his possessions where he had left them. He was
stooping to loosen the coil of rope at the pommel of his saddle when he
heard a sleepy, inquiring voice and a soft thud, and anxiously slipped
to the door.
"Kid!" he whispered. "_Kid!_"
"Shut yore fool face," replied the object of his solicitude, striking
a match for one quick glance around. The room was strange to him,
since he never had been in it before, and he had to get his bearings.
The inert man on the bed did not get a second glance, for the sound
and weight of the blow had reassured Johnny. There were two saddles,
two rifles, two of everything, which was distressing under the
circumstances.
Hopalong had just lowered his own saddle to the waiting Idaho when the
catlike Johnny entered the room with a saddle and a rifle. He placed
them on the bed, where they would make no noise, and departed, catlike.
Soon returning he placed another saddle and rifle on the bed and
departed once more.
Hopalong, having sent down both of Johnny's first offerings, felt over
the bed for the rest of Red's belongings, if there were any more, and
became profanely indignant as his hand caressed another rifle and then
bumped against another saddle.
"What'n h--l is he doin'?" he demanded. "My G--d! There's more'n a
_dozen_ rooms on this floor, an' men in all of 'em! Hey, Kid!" he
whispered as breathing sounded suddenly close to him.
"What?" asked Johnny, holding two slicker rolls, a sombrero, a pair of
boots, and a suit of clothes. Two belts with their six-guns were slung
around his neck, but the darkness mercifully hid the sight from his
friend.
"D--n it! We ain't _movin'_ this hotel," said Hopalong with biting
sarcasm. "It don't _belong_ to us, you know. An' what was that whack I
heard when you first went in?"
"Somebody jumped Red's bed, an' wanted to know some fool thing, or
somethin', an' I had to quiet him. An' what'n blazes are _you_ kickin'
about? I've moved _twice_ as much as you have, more'n twice as _far_.
Grab holt of some of this stuff an' send it down to Idaho. He'll think
you've went to sleep."
"You locoed tumble-bug!" said Hopalong. "Aimin' to send down th' bed,
with th' feller in it, too?"
A door creaked suddenly and they froze.
"Quit yore d--d noise an' go to sleep!" growled a sleepy, truculent
voice, and the door creaked shut again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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