登陆注册
15449600000005

第5章 CHAPTER II(2)

It dawned upon him all at once that he was nervous, watchful, sleepless. The fact caused him surprise, and he began to think back, to take note of his late actions and their motives. The change one day had wrought amazed him. He who had always been free, easy, happy, especially when out alone in the open, had become in a few short hours bound, serious, preoccupied. The silence that had once been sweet now meant nothing to him except a medium whereby he might the better hear the sounds of pursuit. The loneliness, the night, the wild, that had always been beautiful to him, now only conveyed a sense of safety for the present. He watched, he listened, he thought. He felt tired, yet had no inclination to rest. He intended to be off by dawn, heading toward the southwest. Had he a destination? It was vague as his knowledge of that great waste of mesquite and rock bordering the Rio Grande. Somewhere out there was a refuge. For he was a fugitive from justice, an outlaw.

This being an outlaw then meant eternal vigilance. No home, no rest, no sleep, no content, no life worth the livingl He must be a lone wolf or he must herd among men obnoxious to him. If he worked for an honest living he still must hide his identity and take risks of detection. If he did not work on some distant outlying ranch, how was he to live? The idea of stealing was repugnant to him. The future seemed gray and somber enough. And he was twenty-three years old.

Why had this hard life been imposed upon him?

The bitter question seemed to start a strange iciness that stole along his veins. What was wrong with him? He stirred the few sticks of mesquite into a last flickering blaze. He was cold, and for some reason he wanted some light. The black circle of darkness weighed down upon him, closed in around him.

Suddenly he sat bolt upright and then froze in that position.

He had heard a step. It was behind him--no--on the side. Some one was there. He forced his hand down to his gun, and the touch of cold steel was another icy shock. Then he waited. But all was silent--silent as only a wilderness arroyo can be, with its low murmuring of wind in the mesquite. Had he heard a step?

He began to breathe again.

But what was the matter with the light of his camp-fire? It had taken on a strange green luster and seemed to be waving off into the outer shadows. Duane heard no step, saw no movement;nevertheless, there was another present at that camp-fire vigil. Duane saw him. He lay there in the middle of the green brightness, prostrate, motionless, dying. Cal Bain! His features were wonderfully distinct, clearer than any cameo, more sharply outlined than those of any picture. It was a hard face softening at the threshold of eternity. The red tan of sun, the coarse signs of drunkenness, the ferocity and hate so characteristic of Bain were no longer there. This face represented a different Bain, showed all that was human in him fading, fading as swiftly as it blanched white. The lips wanted to speak, but had not the power. The eyes held an agony of thought. They revealed what might have been possible for this man if he lived--that he saw his mistake too late. Then they rolled, set blankly, and closed in death.

That haunting visitation left Duane sitting there in a cold sweat, a remorse gnawing at his vitals, realizing the curse that was on him. He divined that never would he be able to keep off that phantom. He remembered how his father had been eternally pursued by the furies of accusing guilt, how he had never been able to forget in work or in sleep those men he had killed.

The hour was late when Duane's mind let him sleep, and then dreams troubled him. In the morning he bestirred himself so early that in the gray gloom he had difficulty in finding his horse. Day had just broken when he struck the old trail again.

He rode hard all morning and halted in a shady spot to rest and graze his horse. In the afternoon he took to the trail at an easy trot. The country grew wilder. Bald, rugged mountains broke the level of the monotonous horizon. About three in the afternoon he came to a little river which marked the boundary line of his hunting territory.

The decision he made to travel up-stream for a while was owing to two facts: the river was high with quicksand bars on each side, and he felt reluctant to cross into that region where his presence alone meant that he was a marked man. The bottom-lands through which the river wound to the southwest were more inviting than the barrens he had traversed. The rest or that day he rode leisurely up-stream. At sunset he penetrated the brakes of willow and cottonwood to spend the night. It seemed to him that in this lonely cover he would feel easy and content. But he did not. Every feeling, every imagining he had experienced the previous night returned somewhat more vividly and accentuated by newer ones of the same intensity and color.

In this kind of travel and camping he spent three more days, during which he crossed a number of trails, and one road where cattle--stolen cattle, probably--had recently passed. Thus time exhausted his supply of food, except salt, pepper, coffee, and sugar, of which he had a quantity. There were deer in the. brakes; but, as he could not get close enough to kill them with t a revolver, he had to satisfy himself with a rabbit. He knew he might as well content himself with the hard fare that assuredly would be his lot.

Somewhere up this river there was a village called Huntsville.

It was distant about a hundred miles from Wellston, and had a reputation throughout southwestern Texas. He had never been there. The fact was this reputation was such that honest travelers gave the town a wide berth. Duane had considerable money for him in his possession, and he concluded to visit Huntsville, if he could find it, and buy a stock of provisions.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 赤月传

    赤月传

    阅读本书,对读者的要求是必须有强大的记忆力和思维能力,否则,你丫就混乱了!双主模式,打造史上最混乱小说,涵盖修真、杀戮、校园、职场、僵尸、鬼怪、悬疑、穿越……
  • 穿越梦回之四娘子之呀樊花

    穿越梦回之四娘子之呀樊花

    她是南疆国开国以来的第一位郡主,她集万千宠爱为一身,她因救了南疆国的皇帝而被册封为郡主,她因为撮合了太子和民间女子而被册封为天下第一媒,她因为出逃,而遇到了自己的亲生爹爹,她因为闲不住,收了几个手下,从此浪荡天涯,为天下有情人撮合良缘,她因为新皇让她送信而遇到自己命中注定的那个人,她因为好玩,救下了一个狗皮膏药,从此不得安生,不过当一切都看似幸福的时候,却迎来了一场浩劫,当她一位她死了的时候,接过发现一切都只是一场黄粱一梦,不过,这真的是一场梦吗?
  • 赛里奥斯传奇

    赛里奥斯传奇

    从呱呱落地的婴儿到咿呀学语的幼儿;从蹒跚学步的幼童到求知探索的儿童;从学习思考的少年到的怀疑叛逆的青年……从踏入校园的畏惧、好奇到走出大学的迷茫、自信……从无知、无畏、充满幻想和激情,到愤慨、迷茫、知道敬畏……毫无疑问,虽然我们总是不想承认,但是我们的的确确在一点点长大!既然成长是人生中不可避免的事情,那么所谓的迷茫与逃避就显得毫无意义,我们唯有迎头而上!----------这是一个少年在游戏的虚拟世界中不断成长的故事,这里有亲情、友情……嗯,或许还有爱情。
  • 一路童行:想带你去看看这世界

    一路童行:想带你去看看这世界

    这是一位职场遭遇挫折的父亲,送给妻子、女儿和自己的礼物——这一趟,意外的美洲之旅。三个月的旅途中,他们一路星光明月,一路高山坦途,走过巨杉、优胜美地、火山、黄石、红土世界,畅游洛杉矶与拉斯维加斯,并以此作为女儿阿朵三岁生日的礼物;然后,他们以更大的勇气,开始了在墨西哥的探索之旅,寻找失落文明,拥抱雨林,握手危地马拉……对于他们,这不仅仅只是一趟旅程。阿朵说:“明天,我们要去哪儿?”
  • 镇灵皇

    镇灵皇

    眼眸中承载古今未来,主导万物轮回,上击九天神灵,下镇九幽魔皇,横扫六合八荒,为我镇灵皇。
  • 女娲石

    女娲石

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 中外寓言(语文新课标必读书目)

    中外寓言(语文新课标必读书目)

    国家教育部颁布了最新《语文课程标准》,统称新课标,对中、小学语文教学指定了阅读书目,对阅读的数量、内容、质量以及速度都提出了明确的要求,这对于提高学生的阅读能力,培养语文素养,陶冶情操,促进学生终身学习和终身可持续发展,对于提高广大人民的文学素养具有极大的意义中、小学生是未来的主人,必须适应现代竞争激烈和交际广泛的社会生活,在心理、性格、思维、修养等内在素质铸造方面必须做好充分准备,同时在语言表达、社会交往等才能方面也必须打下良好的基础,这样才能顺应未来社会的发展潮流。现代中、小学生不能只局限于校园和课本,应该广开视野,广长见识
  • 太阳与月亮

    太阳与月亮

    以下是他因为愤怒而写的诗:天已不再是昨天,昨天离我们太远。看不到眼前,我们爱上童年。回忆是春天,它让我们安全。别看我的脸,因为你看不见。太阳正中天,我点起了三支烟,烟气浓,升腾到空中。互相缠绵,产生朦胧。朦胧里面,隐约的是我的脸。脚下的草,对着我笑。无聊。有些莫名其妙。我躺在上面,又过了一天。夜黑了,很安静。安静是一种心情。我不想回去,家对我已是无意义。我做梦做得入迷,现实对我没有魅力。我想安息。安息。安息。现实里,有太多秘密。秘密不是秘密。他们假装不知道,他们不说。一个个沉默。一个个沉默。
  • 乱世鏖锋

    乱世鏖锋

    惊雷乍起,九霄浮动,星河摇坠。神秘繁奥的昊光自虚无而来。剑毁万界,秒息瞬至!穹顶崩坏。极致光华一化为数,坠入未知。
  • 荡冥魂

    荡冥魂

    血色的灵魂,即使沉寂。狱血后必然回归!定下终身契约,只愿守候心中佳人。不成神,既疯魔!谁,挡得了我?