Gale, her revolver clasped firmly in her right hand, and the knife with which she was to free Valerie secure in her left, crept forward to the door. What if the door was bolted on the inside? That would spoil everything! With her foot she pushed on the heavy panels and, creaking protestingly, the door swung inward.

The Mexican had wheeled sharply when the door first moved, and now he stared in amazement at the slender girl on the threshold and then at the business-like revolver in her hand.

“Oh, Gale!” was all that Valerie could manage to utter, so great was her joy and relief.

“Hands up, SeÑor,” Gale commanded.

The knife clattered to the floor as the Mexican obediently raised his arms above his head. Gale walked forward to Valerie.

“O. K., Val?”

“Yes--now,” Val said, with answering smile. The Mexican, thinking to catch Gale off guard, slowly lowered his arms, but she was watching him.

“Reach for the sky, you!” she said savagely. “I’m not afraid to shoot, so be careful.”

But the Mexican, his pride outraged that such a slip of a girl should dare oppose him, lunged forward and caught Gale’s wrist in his hand. Gale’s finger pressed the trigger, but the bullet sped harmlessly past him. His fingers were like steel talons about her wrist, hurting so she had to drop the revolver. It fell to the floor by her foot and a kick sent it spinning into the corner. At the same time she pulled herself free of the man and darted to the other side of the rickety table. He retrieved his knife from the floor and took a few catlike steps toward her.

Gale retreated until she stumbled against a stool. She gripped it firmly and watched her enemy.

“Don’t come near me!” she warned.

Forgotten was the knife she still had. Now she had another plan of defense and, desperate as it was, she meant to use it. The Mexican came nearer and she swung the stool up with a crashing blow against his head. It was an effective means of subduing him, for he crumpled to the floor without a sound.

“That was the one I owed him,” Val muttered.

Gale shivered, and turning away, secured her gun and went across to Val, her back deliberately upon her fallen enemy. It took but a moment to slash Valerie’s bonds.

“Oh, Gale!” Valerie said, almost sobbing, her head on Gale’s shoulder. Now that there was no longer any reason for her to be brave, reaction had set in. “It was--horrible!”

“You were marvelous!” Gale said soothingly.

“I was scared!” Val contradicted with a nervous laugh. “And now I’m acting like a silly goose. Oh, Gale, how did you get here? Where did you come from?”

“I was here all the time,” Gale said, “ever since this afternoon. But we’ll have explanations later. Come along, we have to get out of here.”

“Slowly my young friends!” an oily voice spoke behind Gale.

The latter could see Val’s face whiten with sudden terror. She heard her catch her breath and felt her tremble.

“Gale--he was shamming--it was a trick. He’s got a gun!” Val whispered brokenly. Gale put Valerie from her and turned about. The Mexican was peering along the barrel of a rifle leveled at them. Her gaze went beyond him to the corner where lay the saddle and where, this afternoon, she had found the same rifle he now held. Her hand went into her breeches pocket and she smiled broadly.

The more the Mexican glowered over the gun at them, the more Gale smiled. Valerie watched her friend with amazement. Had the evening’s events mentally unbalanced Gale? It was no situation at which to laugh. At least she didn’t see the funny side.

“Gale! What’s the matter?” Val asked, shaking Gale’s arm vigorously. “Are you crazy? He’ll shoot!”

“No, he won’t,” Gale said, shaking her head. “He can’t. The gun isn’t loaded.” For an instant the rifle wavered. “Look for yourself,” she invited, hoping desperately that it hadn’t been reloaded.

Pedro did so and with a muttered exclamation of disgust flung the gun aside.

“And now we’ll let you take Val’s place,” Gale said, leveling her revolver at him. “Come on, sit down there!” It took but a moment to fasten him as securely as Valerie had been. He glared at them all the while.

“W’en I am free I will keel you!” he promised balefully.

“Ah, but you won’t be free,” Gale assured him happily. “The Sheriff will take care of that.”

“You t’ink so, eh?” he laughed. “The gringo jail cannot hol’ me!”

“Sure of yourself, aren’t you?” was Gale’s opinion.

He nodded. “I know. An’ I weel fin’ you and wit’ my knife I weel slash so----”

“Never mind the details,” Valerie interrupted. “Come on, Gale, let’s leave him.”

“Right you are,” Gale said cheerily. “Well, Pedro, the next time we see you I hope you are behind bars.”

“I weel not be,” he said confidently.

Outside was the sound of voices. Valerie turned startled eyes to Gale. The Mexican laughed and then Gale understood why he had talked so loud and confidently. He had talked to cover the sound of approaching horses and he had succeeded. His friends had returned and they were trapped.

Gale’s mind worked with lightning rapidity. If their plans had worked only two outlaws were to return here. The other three would be busy taking cattle across the border into Mexico. But even two----

“What will we do, Gale?” Valerie’s voice was steady. The emergency had brought back her courage.

Gale thrust her revolver into Val’s hand and snatched up the rifle. She brought the shells from her pocket and loaded it.

“Get on the other side of the door,” she directed her friend. “We have to take ’em by surprise or else----”

Valerie shivered. “Yes,” she agreed, “or else!”

“Steady,” Gale warned, “here they come.”

There was a ring of a bootheel as the two men approached the cabin unsuspectingly. Gale was on one side of the doorway and Val on the other. As the men stepped into the room and stopped aghast at the sight of the Mexican, the girls stepped forward. The two, taken utterly unaware by the pressure of the gun muzzles in their backs, raised their hands obediently.

“Face the wall,” Gale ordered, and the two turned meekly. She knew if she gave them time to overcome their surprise they would not be so docile. Cautiously she reached forward and secured first one man’s gun and then the other. While Valerie watched the two, Gale emptied the guns, put the shells into her pocket and tossed the revolvers onto the table.

“What shall we do with them?” Valerie asked nervously, indicating the two men standing, faces to the wall, at the rear of the cabin.

“That’s what I’m wondering,” Gale murmured with a frown. “I suppose one should watch them while one goes back to camp for Tom and Jim.”

“Well,” Val said firmly, “I’m sure I couldn’t find the way back to the camp, and I refuse to stay here alone! So what?”

“Indeed, so what?” Gale returned. “We have to do one or the other. Stand still there!” she warned, as one of the outlaws made as though to turn around. “Don’t forget I’ve got a gun and I know how to use it.”

“It’s almost morning,” Val said.

Through the window they could see the sky growing lighter as night faded into dawn. One of the bandits turned about.

“See here you----”

“Keep quiet,” Gale commanded, “and turn around.” “No kid is gonna tell me what to do,” the man returned. “I’ll----”

Deliberately Gale raised her gun and fired a bullet into the wall over his head. “I might hit you next time,” she said sweetly.

The man turned then with a muttered exclamation that only his companion heard. The two of them stood with their faces to the wall while the girls held a conference.

“We have to do something,” Valerie said. “And in a hurry too,” she added.

“What’s that?” Gale asked.

Val went to the window and looked out. Coming into view between the trees were riders, about six of them and all of them carried rifles across their saddles.

“Horses,” Val answered in a low, worried tone. “I wonder if their pals are to come back this morning?”

“Maybe some of them,” Gale replied uneasily. “Now what will we do? I wish we had never got mixed up in this.”

“No more than I do,” Val agreed. “Well?” she asked.

“Can you recognize any of the riders?” Gale wanted to know. “No,” Val answered, gazing out the window. “They are not coming toward the cabin now. They seem to be having a conference about what to do.”

“If they come on here we are lost,” Gale declared. “We’ll have to stop them.”

Val turned to watch the outlaws while Gale took a look out the window. There were men in the distance, but they were indistinguishable in the gray light of dawn and because of the thickness of the trees. While she watched, they started forward toward the cabin. She raised her rifle and fired a bullet that raised a spurt of dust in front of the advancing horses. That had the desired effect. The men retreated to the trees again. There they seemed to spread out fanlike.

“Going to surround the place,” she said to Val. “We’re trapped all right. We might as well invite them in now.”

“We won’t give up without a fight,” Val said staunchly.

At the moment she spoke a well-planted bullet shook the center panel of the door. The girls exchanged looks.

“I don’t think it will be much of a fight,” Gale said. “We have only one rifle bullet left. That won’t be much help.” “I’d like to know who it is,” Valerie said with a frown. “If it is these fellows’ friends why did they stop before they got to the cabin in the first place?”

Another bullet thudded into the door. The outlaws looked about uneasily.

“Why don’t you go out and meet your friends,” one of them demanded of Gale.

She regarded him with a shrewd glance. “Our friends?” she murmured. “Are you sure you weren’t expecting anybody?”

“Shore, the King of England,” the other man drawled loftily.

“Do you suppose it could be our friends?” Valerie asked.

“Too many,” Gale said immediately, but she was uncertain.

Were the outlaws as uneasy over these new arrivals as they seemed? Or was it pretense to trick the girls? Gale wished she knew. To her the terror of the outlaws seemed real enough. There was no mistaking the fear on the face of Pedro when a bullet entered through the window and pinged against the fireplace alarmingly close to him. They feared these men, but why? Were the new arrivals officers of the law or a band of rival outlaws? Were there such things as rival groups of bandits?

Gale pulled Val against the wall beside her. It was safest out of range of any gun that might shoot in the window. Suddenly from the rear of the cabin came a shout. Another voice took it up. A hasty glance out the window showed men running from cover and toward the door.

“Use your gun,” screamed one of the outlaws.

“No,” Gale said firmly. “We’ll see who they are--first!”