CHAPTER XIV.

CAYUSE TURNS A TRICK.

When Little Cayuse crept down to the mouth of the mine, in the inky blackness of the very early morning, after the moon had gone down, it was the native instinct that led him in the narrow trail along the brink of the abyss. His tread was noiseless, in spite of the uneven footing and unseen obstacles. Looking up toward the sky, he could follow the dim outline of the mountaintop and knew he was near the entrance to the mine. Then the strong odor of tobacco smoke came to his nostrils. For an instant the Indian youth felt that the smoker must be within reach of his arm. In breathless silence he listened:

“P’ff, p’ff, p’ff,” came the soft forcing of the smoke through enjoying lips. Then a moist piece of tobacco in the pipe sizzled spitefully, and minute sparks shot up from the bowl for an instant, disclosing the half-closed eyes of the guard.

Cayuse crouched low and awaited some movement of the man that would drown the slight rustle of his own advance.

Deliberately and comfortably the guard puffed away until his pipe had gone out. Then he yawned and dropped his pipe, during which performance Cayuse had passed him and felt the more even footing of the interior under his moccasins.

But he had barely passed into the mouth of the mine, and while not ten feet from the guard, when the latter suddenly became stiff and silent, as if listening intently. Then Cayuse heard the faint swish of clothing for a moment, and then the sudden scrape of a match along a trouser leg, followed by the splutter and bright glare of a match.

The boy’s hand was on his revolver, and his muscles were tense as whipcords, as the guard held the match aloft and peered out into the night, trying to pierce the darkness beyond the narrow circle of light.

It was a critical moment for the Piute. If the guard turned his head ever so slightly before the match went out, he could catch a glimpse of the intruder, and neither would know what action the other might take.

Cayuse’s black eyes watched the man’s head as the match flickered and went out. He was not discovered.

For a moment there was silence, and then Cayuse heard the guard fumbling on the floor for his pipe, swearing softly the while.

Once more Cayuse advanced, while the other was occupied.

The guard was filling his smoker again, and Cayuse gained many feet.

Now another match flared up, and in the intermittent flashes, as the guard sucked the blaze into his bowl, Cayuse plainly saw the features of the man.

It was Bloody Ike.

With catlike movements the Indian boy felt his way down the slope. Here and there the rotting brattice crumbled at his touch, and pieces fell with a soft thud, but he was now far from the guard at the mouth.

He was tempted to strike a match, but denied himself the comfort of a glance at his surroundings, fearing another guard might be posted where there was a divergence of slopes or at the spot where Pa-e-has-ka and Hickok were held.

After a time a faint light glimmered ahead, and loomed larger as he advanced. It was a lantern hung overhead, which shed feeble rays on its surroundings.

Along the walls were tiered many bales in various forms and sizes. It was the storehouse of the gang. Leaning against the bales in the full glare of the lantern sat a man on a box. His cooling pipe had fallen on his breast, the under jaw had dropped, and the inner guard of the mine stronghold was breathing stertorously.

Cayuse looked for other men of Price’s gang, but none were within reach of the lantern’s rays.

But the keen eyes of the Piute fell on something that interested him far more. His heart jumped with joy, for there, only a few feet from the sleeping guard, lay two men, both seemingly asleep.

They were Pa-e-has-ka and the Laramie man.

Both were bound, hand and foot, and were lying on a little pile of hay, over which a blanket had been thrown.

To advance boldly into the light might precipitate a shot from some unseen guard. But every moment was precious. What should he do first? The sleeping sentry, heavily armed, was a dark-visaged, vicious-looking fellow. If Cayuse first attempted to release Pa-e-has-ka and Hickok and he was fired upon, he would be imperiling lives more valuable than his own.

But Little Cayuse’s head was clear, his determination strong, and his heart brave.

Advancing softly, Cayuse, expecting every instant to hear the crack of a revolver and feel the lead burning through his vitals, reached the lantern, and turned the blaze low.

The heavy breathing of the guard and the prisoners continued.

Very gently the keen knife of the Indian boy slipped through the bonds of Pa-e-has-ka. Then the ropes fell from the wrists and ankles of Wild Bill.

The three men slept on.

Cayuse hesitated for a moment, then slightly shook Pa-e-has-ka. The scout awoke to find Cayuse’s finger pressed to his lips.

Cayuse shook Hickok, and the latter would have started up and spoken but for the restraining hand of the Piute.

Into the hand of each Little Cayuse pushed a revolver, and then they understood. Pressing his mouth to the scout’s ear, Cayuse whispered:

“Guard asleep; Pa-e-has-ka shut off wind.”

The scout arose noiselessly. Cayuse turned on the light a little. Buffalo Bill crept up to the sleeping man, Cayuse slipping close to one side. Then, as the scout suddenly seized the man’s wrists in a grip of iron, Cayuse clapped both hands over his mouth.

The struggle was short and almost noiseless. Hickok brought a rope and prepared a gag. Then the lantern was turned low, and behind an angle in the wall the three men whispered council. Two more men were to be disposed of--Ike and another, one at each opening into the mine.

The scout had heard the guards say they would await relief from town till two hours after sunup; then they would come in for breakfast. But they expected two more of Price’s gang before that time.

* * * * *

When Price’s men reached town and told him of meeting Fighting Dan in the foothills, the agent became alarmed. He feared the proximity of such men who might take a notion to investigate the trail that led to the mine. If they should discover that the place was guarded their curiosity would be correspondingly heightened, and who could tell what they might do?

Price hurriedly called the sheriff and all the men he could muster on whom he could depend, and had them sworn as deputies. He would go prepared to have his own way. If Fighting Dan had captured his plunder he would have Dan and his men arrested, charged with robbing a mine in operation.

Price would swear that he and his men were getting ready to work the old claim. The sheriff and his deputies would take oath to the same. The municipal judge would know what to do. He had fixed many cases for Price and the cattlemen, who were his friends.

With the sheriff and posse of twenty men the Indian agent hurried away.

The townspeople were full of wonder, and not a few rode out toward the foothills, hoping to have their curiosity relieved. Many rumors were started, among them that a pocket had been opened in the mountains, and insiders were staking claims.

Finally so much excitement had been aroused that later in the day fully one hundred men were hastening toward the hills, a few with picks and spades, some with rifles and guns, some mounted, and others on foot.

The trail was plain and easily followed, and as those in the lead entered the mountains they heard the sound of battle. There was a rattle of shots, followed by silence for a moment, and another volley; then a continuous popping of revolvers and rifles.

The cavalcade paused and sent on scouts to investigate. It was evident that the sheriff and his posse had found plenty of business.

After a time the scouts reported that a general engagement was going on, in which it seemed that several small parties were taking part, each for itself. From the top of a bluff just beyond the battlefield could be safely viewed. Hither the crowd rushed, those with mounts going as far as possible on horseback, and then, hitching their animals, clambering up the rocks on foot.

A strange picture was presented. At the furthermost point of the engagement, several men were huddled in the mouth of the lower entrance to the mine slopes. They were shooting from behind rocks and timbers outward at another party among the bowlders, ten rods away.

A third party, which could now be made out as the sheriff and his posse, had taken a hand from a position higher up and commanding an equal rake of both the others.

All were well among the broken granite and in little danger except of getting pinked when poking out a head or hand to get a shot at the other fellows. If any damage had been done the victims had been concealed in the rocks by their friends.

The country was too rough to attempt a charge, and the sheriff’s party, which numbered as many men as the others combined, could not dislodge either of them.

Suddenly the men at the mouth of the slope arose and darted back into the murky interior out of view. The second party seemed to be greatly surprised and disconcerted for a moment, and then turned their whole attention to the sheriff’s posse, popping away as often as a bit of flesh or apparel appeared.

It was amusing to the onlookers to see a man bob up like a Jack-in-a-box in one place and then another, to bang away at the enemy, and then drop out of sight.

Presently the second party made a sudden dash for the cover of the mine, where their erstwhile enemies had disappeared.

After a few minutes the sheriff and his men arose, one after another, and stared helplessly at the place where the enemy had disappeared. They could not understand this manoeuvre. They had come upon two bands of fighting men, and had taken a hand at settling the dispute by attempting to wipe out both parties. Now the former enemies had nested together--either had come to an understanding or had gone beyond reach of the third party to fight it out alone.

Agent Price rubbed his eyes and stared at the hole in the mountain, then held conversation with the sheriff. It seemed to the onlookers that they must have agreed upon some plan, for they at once began a movement which eventually placed them in the position just vacated by the last party to take refuge in the mine.

Here the sheriff halted, not daring to enter the frowning interior, where a dozen or so well-armed men might pour a disastrous volley into them from the darkness beyond.

The sheriff and Price held council behind the shelter of the bowlders.

Then the watchers saw another sight that puzzled them still further. Out from the upper entrance to the mine filed a column of men. They ranged themselves along the upper shelf without a sound, each man with ready rifle or revolver, and then crept slowly up to the brink, where they could look down upon the unprotected sheriff and his men. They had nearly reached the objective point when in the lower entrance appeared a figure with wildly waving arms, who shouted:

“In here, quick! It’s a trap! They’re over your heads!”

Before Price and the sheriff could understand, the men above had risen with leveled guns, and a big voice shouted:

“Hands up, or we’ll blow you into the rocks!”

And their hands went up as their weapons dropped, for resistance was useless. The rocks which sheltered them from an enemy on a level with their footing protected them no longer.

While all but two of the men above kept them covered those two descended and disarmed the entire party. The sheriff protested, and threatened, and proclaimed his authority, but he was made a prisoner, together with the man who represented the United States Government in its Indian service.

The surrender had barely been affected when the entire mountaintop seemed to shiver for a moment and then settle, together with terrific rumble and roar that threw men to the ground.

From the mouths of the mine blew volumes of rock, timbers, and débris. Then columns of black smoke and gaseous vapors poured out until the sky overhead was darkened.

The mine had been wrecked and rendered impenetrable by some gigantic upheaval.

For a few minutes all were overwhelmed with surprise and awe, then Price, who was the first to recover, said:

“It’s the work of Bloody Ike, and he’s in there, buried under a million tons of rock!”