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The Seventh Man by Max Brand, Chapter VI. The Rifle

Chapter VI. The Rifle

Dawn found him over the first crest; at noon he was struggling up the slope of the second range, whose rise was not half so sharp as the upward plunge out of the Asper, but in spite of that easier ground Grey Molly could not gain. She went with shorter steps, now, and her head hung lower and lower, yet when a down stretch opened before her she went at it with a gallop as light, almost, as her race out of Murphy's Pass. Not once had she offered to stop; not once had she winced from the labor of some sharp up-pitch; but still six horsemen hung behind her, and at their head rode a little dusty man on a little dusty roan. It was the lack of training as well as the rough going which held Molly back.

Beyond that second range, however, the down slope stretched smoothly, evenly, for mile on mile and mile on mile; perfect going for Grey Molly over easy hills with patches of forest here and there where he might double, or where he might stop with the hunt sweeping past. All this the sheriff must have known perfectly well, for he no longer kept back with his pack of five, but skirted on ahead, hunting alone. Again and again Vic heard the little shrill whistle with which Pete Glass encouraged the roan. Vic used the spurs twice, and then he desisted from the useless brutality for Molly was doing her best and no power on earth could make her do more. After all, her best would be good enough, for now Vic looked up and his heart leaped into his throat; there was only one more rise above him, and beyond lay the easy ground and a running chance for Molly's slender legs. Even as he raised his head something whined evilly over him, followed by a sound like two heavy hammers swung together, face to face, and shattered by the stroke. A rifle!

He looked back, saw the roan standing broadside towards him, watched the sun waver and then flash in a straight steady line along the barrel of the sheriff's gun. The line of light jerked up, and before the sound reached him a blow on his right shoulder sent Vic lurching forward against the pommel. Afterwards the voice of the rifle rang around him and a sharp pain twitched up and down his side, then ran tingling to his fingertips.

It was the stunning blow which saved him, for the sheriff had the range and his third bullet would have clipped Vic between the shoulders, but Glass had seen his quarry pitch forward in the saddle and he would not waste ammunition. The thrift of his New England ancestry spoke in Pete now and then and he could only grit his teeth when he saw Vic, disappearing on the other side of the crest, straighten in the saddle; the next instant the top of the hill shielded the fugitive.

Well and nobly, then, Grey Molly repaid all the praise, all the tenderness and care which Vic had lavished upon her in the past years, for with her legs shaking from the struggle of that last climb, with a rider who wobbled crazily in his seat, with reins hanging loose on her neck, with not even a voice to guide or to encourage her, she swept straight across the falling ground, gaining strength and courage at every stride. By the time Vic had regained his self-control and rallied a little from that first terrible falling of the heart, the dusty roan was over the crest and streaking after the game. Grey Molly gained steadily, yet even when he gathered the reins in his left hand Vic knew that the fight was done, in effect. How could he double or dodge when his own blood spotted the trail he kept, and how long could he keep the saddle with the agony which tore like saw teeth at his shoulder?

Grey Molly plunged straight into the shadow of pine trees, and the cool gloom fell like a blessing upon Vic in his torment; it was heaven to be sheltered even for a few moments from the eyes of the posse. At the opposite edge of the wood he drew rein with a groan. Some devil had prompted Gus Reeve and some devil had poured Reeve's horse full of strength, for yonder down the valley, not a hundred yards away, galloped a rider on a black horse; yet Vic could have sworn that when he looked back from the crest he had seen Gus riding the very last in the posse. An instant later the illusion vanished, for the black horse of Gus was never an animal such as this, never had this marvelous, long gait. Its feet flicked the earth and shot it along with a reaching stride so easy, so flowing that only the fluttered mane and the tail stretching straight behind gave token of the speed. For the rest, it carried its head high, with pricking ears, the sure sign of a horse running well within his strength, yet Grey Molly, fresh and keen for racing, could hardly have kept pace with the black as it slid over the hills. God in heaven, if such a horse were his a thousand sheriffs on a thousand dusty roans could never take him; five minutes would sweep him out of sight and reach.

Before the horseman ran a tall dog, wolfish in head and wolfish in the gait which carried it like a cloud shadow over the ground, but it was over-large for any wolf Vic had ever seen. It turned its head now, and leaped aside at sight of the stranger, but the rider veered from his course and swept down on Vic. He came to a halt close up without either a draw at the reins or a spoken word, probably controlling his mount with pressure of the knees, and Gregg found himself facing a delicately handsome fellow. He was neither cowpuncher nor miner, Vic knew at a glance, for that face had never been haggard with labor. A tenderfoot, probably, in spite of his dress, and Vic felt that if his right arm were sound he could take that horse at the point of his gun and leave the rider thanking God that his life had been spared; but his left hand was useless on the butt of a revolver, and three minutes away came the posse, racing. There was only time for one desperate appeal.

"Stranger," he burst out, "I'm follered. I got to have your hoss. Take this one in exchange; it's the best I ever threw a leg over. Here's two hundred bucks—" he flung his wallet on the ground and swung himself out of the saddle. The wolfish dog, which had growled softly all this time and roughed up the hair of its neck, now slunk forward on its belly.

"Heel, Bart!" commanded the stranger sharply, and the dog whipped about and stood away, whining with eagerness.

The moment Gregg's feet struck the ground his legs buckled like saplings in a wind for the long ride had sapped his strength, and the flow of blood told rapidly on him now. The hills and trees whirled around him until a lean, strong hand caught him under either armpit. The stranger stood close.

"You could have my hoss if you could ride him," said he. His voice was singularly unhurried and gentle. "But you'd drop out of the saddle in ten minutes. Who's after you?" A voice shouted far off beyond the wood; another voice answered, nearer, and the whole soul of Gregg turned to the stallion. Grey Molly was blown, she stood now with hanging head and her flanks sunk in alarmingly at every breath, but even fresh from the pasture she was not a rag, not a straw compared to the black.

"For God's sake," groaned Vic, "loan me your hoss!" "You couldn't stick the saddle. Come in here out of sight; I'm going to take 'em off your trail." While he spoke, he led, half carried Vic, into a thicket of shrubs with a small open space at the center. The black and the wolf-dog followed and now the stranger pulled at the bridle rein. The stallion kneeled like a trained dog, and lying thus the shrubbery was high enough to hide him. Closer, sweeping through the wood, Vic heard the crash of the pursuit, yet the other was maddeningly slow of speech.

"You stay here, partner, and sit over there. I'm borrowin' your gun"—a swift hand appropriated it from Vic's holster and his own fingers were too paralyzed to resist—"and don't you try to ride my hoss unless you want them teeth in your throat. Lie quiet and tie up your hurt. Bart, watch him!" And there sat Gregg where he had slipped down in his daze of weakness with the great dog crouched at his feet and snarling ominously every time he raised his hand. The voices came closer; the crashing burst on his very ears, and now, through the interstices of the shrubbery he saw the stranger swing into the saddle on Grey Molly and urge her to a gallop. He could follow them for only an instant with his eyes, but it seemed to Vic that Molly cantered under her new rider with strange ease and lightness. It was partly the rest, no doubt, and partly the smaller burden.

A deep beat of racing hoofs, and then the dusty roan shot out of the trees close by with the sheriff leaning forward, jockeying his horse. It seemed that no living thing could escape from that relentless rider. Then right behind Vic a horse snorted and grunted—as it leaped a fallen log, perhaps—and he watched in alarm to see if the stallion would answer that sound with start or whinney. The black lay perfectly still, and instead of lifting up to answer or to look, the head lowered with ears flat back until the long, outstretched neck gave the animal a snaky appearance. The dog, too, though it showed murderous fangs whenever Vic moved, did not stir from his place, but lay flattening into the ground.

"Cut to the right! Cut to the right, Harry!" came the voice of the sheriff, already piping from the distance as the last of the posse brushed out from the trees. "Yo hoi! Gus, take the left arroyo!" Two answering yells, and then the rush of hoofs fell away. They were cornering the stranger, no doubt, and Vic struggled to lift himself to his feet and watch until a faint sound from the dog made him look down. Bart lay with his haunches drawn up under him, his forepaws digging into the soft loam, his eyes demoniac. Instinctively Vic reached for his absent gun, and then, despairing, relaxed to his former position. The wolf-dog lowered his head to his paws and there remained with the eyes following each intake of Gregg's breath. A rattle of gunshots flung back loosely from the hills, and among them Vic winced at the sound of the sheriff's rifle, clear and ringing over the bark of the revolvers. Had they nailed the stranger? The firing recommenced, more faintly and prolonged, so that it was plain the posse maintained a running fusilade after the fugitive. After that fear of his own growing weakness shut out all else from the mind of Gregg as he felt his senses, his physical strength, flowing out like an ebb tide to a sea which, he knew, was death. He began to work desperately to bind up the wound and stop the flow of blood and it was fear which gave him momentary strength to tear away his shirt and then with his teeth and left hand rip it into strips. After that, heedless of the pain, he constructed a rude bandage, very clumsily, for he had to work over his shoulder. Here his teeth, once more, were almost as useful as another hand, and as the bandage grew tight the deadly, warm trickle along his side lessened and his fingers fell away from the last knot. He fainted.

Chapter VI. The Rifle Rozdział VI. Karabin Глава VI. Винтовка

Dawn found him over the first crest; at noon he was struggling up the slope of the second range, whose rise was not half so sharp as the upward plunge out of the Asper, but in spite of that easier ground Grey Molly could not gain. À l'aube, il franchit la première crête ; à midi, il luttait sur la pente de la deuxième chaîne, dont la montée n'était pas aussi abrupte que le plongeon de l'Asper, mais en dépit de ce terrain plus facile, Grey Molly n'arrivait pas à gagner. She went with shorter steps, now, and her head hung lower and lower, yet when a down stretch opened before her she went at it with a gallop as light, almost, as her race out of Murphy's Pass. Elle allait maintenant à pas plus courts et sa tête pendait de plus en plus bas, mais lorsqu'une ligne droite s'ouvrait devant elle, elle se lançait dans un galop aussi léger, presque, que sa course à la sortie de Murphy's Pass. Not once had she offered to stop; not once had she winced from the labor of some sharp up-pitch; but still six horsemen hung behind her, and at their head rode a little dusty man on a little dusty roan. Pas une seule fois elle n'a proposé de s'arrêter, pas une seule fois elle n'a grimacé à cause d'une montée brusque, mais six cavaliers se tenaient derrière elle, avec à leur tête un petit homme poussiéreux sur un petit rouan poussiéreux. It was the lack of training as well as the rough going which held Molly back. C'est le manque de formation et les difficultés rencontrées qui ont freiné Molly.

Beyond that second range, however, the down slope stretched smoothly, evenly, for mile on mile and mile on mile; perfect going for Grey Molly over easy hills with patches of forest here and there where he might double, or where he might stop with the hunt sweeping past. Au-delà de cette deuxième chaîne, cependant, la pente descendante s'étendait en douceur, uniformément, sur des kilomètres et des kilomètres ; un chemin parfait pour Grey Molly sur des collines faciles avec des parcelles de forêt ici et là où il pouvait doubler, ou s'arrêter avec la chasse qui passait devant lui. All this the sheriff must have known perfectly well, for he no longer kept back with his pack of five, but skirted on ahead, hunting alone. Tout cela, le shérif devait le savoir parfaitement, car il ne restait plus en arrière avec sa meute de cinq, mais continuait à longer la route, chassant seul. Again and again Vic heard the little shrill whistle with which Pete Glass encouraged the roan. Vic used the spurs twice, and then he desisted from the useless brutality for Molly was doing her best and no power on earth could make her do more. After all, her best would be good enough, for now Vic looked up and his heart leaped into his throat; there was only one more rise above him, and beyond lay the easy ground and a running chance for Molly's slender legs. Après tout, son mieux serait suffisant, car Vic regarda vers le haut et son cœur bondit dans sa gorge ; il n'y avait plus qu'une montée au-dessus de lui, et au-delà s'étendait le terrain facile et une chance de courir pour les jambes fines de Molly. Even as he raised his head something whined evilly over him, followed by a sound like two heavy hammers swung together, face to face, and shattered by the stroke. Alors même qu'il relevait la tête, quelque chose gémit méchamment au-dessus de lui, suivi d'un bruit semblable à celui de deux lourds marteaux frappés l'un contre l'autre, face à face, et brisés par le coup. A rifle!

He looked back, saw the roan standing broadside towards him, watched the sun waver and then flash in a straight steady line along the barrel of the sheriff's gun. Il regarda en arrière, vit le rouan qui se tenait face à lui, regarda le soleil vaciller puis clignoter en une ligne droite et stable le long du canon de l'arme du shérif. The line of light jerked up, and before the sound reached him a blow on his right shoulder sent Vic lurching forward against the pommel. La ligne de lumière se souleva, et avant que le son ne l'atteigne, un coup sur l'épaule droite envoya Vic vers l'avant, contre le pommeau. Afterwards the voice of the rifle rang around him and a sharp pain twitched up and down his side, then ran tingling to his fingertips. Ensuite, la voix du fusil a retenti autour de lui et une douleur aiguë l'a parcouru de haut en bas, puis a couru en picotant jusqu'au bout de ses doigts.

It was the stunning blow which saved him, for the sheriff had the range and his third bullet would have clipped Vic between the shoulders, but Glass had seen his quarry pitch forward in the saddle and he would not waste ammunition. C'est le coup d'assommoir qui l'a sauvé, car le shérif avait le champ de tir et sa troisième balle aurait touché Vic entre les épaules, mais Glass avait vu sa proie s'avancer sur la selle et il ne voulait pas gaspiller de munitions. The thrift of his New England ancestry spoke in Pete now and then and he could only grit his teeth when he saw Vic, disappearing on the other side of the crest, straighten in the saddle; the next instant the top of the hill shielded the fugitive. L'économie de ses ancêtres de Nouvelle-Angleterre s'exprimait de temps à autre dans Pete et il ne put que serrer les dents lorsqu'il vit Vic, disparaissant de l'autre côté de la crête, se redresser en selle ; l'instant d'après, le sommet de la colline protégeait le fugitif.

Well and nobly, then, Grey Molly repaid all the praise, all the tenderness and care which Vic had lavished upon her in the past years, for with her legs shaking from the struggle of that last climb, with a rider who wobbled crazily in his seat, with reins hanging loose on her neck, with not even a voice to guide or to encourage her, she swept straight across the falling ground, gaining strength and courage at every stride. En effet, les jambes tremblantes à cause de la lutte de la dernière montée, avec un cavalier qui vacillait sur son siège, les rênes pendantes sur son cou, sans même une voix pour la guider ou l'encourager, elle a balayé directement le sol qui tombait, gagnant en force et en courage à chaque enjambée. By the time Vic had regained his self-control and rallied a little from that first terrible falling of the heart, the dusty roan was over the crest and streaking after the game. Le temps que Vic retrouve sa maîtrise de soi et se remette un peu de cette première chute terrible du cœur, le rouan poussiéreux avait franchi la crête et s'élançait à la poursuite du gibier. Grey Molly gained steadily, yet even when he gathered the reins in his left hand Vic knew that the fight was done, in effect. Grey Molly gagnait régulièrement du terrain, mais même lorsqu'il rassembla les rênes dans sa main gauche, Vic sut que le combat était terminé, en fait. How could he double or dodge when his own blood spotted the trail he kept, and how long could he keep the saddle with the agony which tore like saw teeth at his shoulder? Comment pouvait-il doubler ou esquiver quand son propre sang tachetait la piste qu'il suivait, et combien de temps pouvait-il garder la selle avec l'agonie qui lui déchirait l'épaule comme des dents de scie ?

Grey Molly plunged straight into the shadow of pine trees, and the cool gloom fell like a blessing upon Vic in his torment; it was heaven to be sheltered even for a few moments from the eyes of the posse. Grey Molly s'enfonça directement dans l'ombre des pins, et la fraîcheur de l'obscurité tomba comme une bénédiction sur Vic dans sa tourmente ; c'était le paradis d'être à l'abri, ne serait-ce que quelques instants, des regards de la troupe. At the opposite edge of the wood he drew rein with a groan. À la lisière opposée du bois, il tira la rêne avec un gémissement. Some devil had prompted Gus Reeve and some devil had poured Reeve's horse full of strength, for yonder down the valley, not a hundred yards away, galloped a rider on a black horse; yet Vic could have sworn that when he looked back from the crest he had seen Gus riding the very last in the posse. Un diable avait incité Gus Reeve et un diable avait rempli de force le cheval de Reeve, car là-bas, dans la vallée, à moins de cent mètres, galopait un cavalier sur un cheval noir ; pourtant Vic aurait pu jurer qu'en regardant en arrière depuis la crête, il avait vu Gus chevauchant l'avant-dernier du détachement. An instant later the illusion vanished, for the black horse of Gus was never an animal such as this, never had this marvelous, long gait. Un instant plus tard, l'illusion s'évanouit, car le cheval noir de Gus n'a jamais été un tel animal, n'a jamais eu cette merveilleuse et longue démarche. Its feet flicked the earth and shot it along with a reaching stride so easy, so flowing that only the fluttered mane and the tail stretching straight behind gave token of the speed. Ses pieds battaient la terre et l'entraînaient dans une foulée si facile, si fluide, que seules la crinière et la queue qui s'étiraient tout droit derrière lui donnaient une idée de la vitesse. For the rest, it carried its head high, with pricking ears, the sure sign of a horse running well within his strength, yet Grey Molly, fresh and keen for racing, could hardly have kept pace with the black as it slid over the hills. God in heaven, if such a horse were his a thousand sheriffs on a thousand dusty roans could never take him; five minutes would sweep him out of sight and reach. Dieu du ciel, si un tel cheval était à lui, mille shérifs sur mille rouans poussiéreux ne pourraient jamais le prendre ; cinq minutes suffiraient à le mettre hors de vue et hors de portée.

Before the horseman ran a tall dog, wolfish in head and wolfish in the gait which carried it like a cloud shadow over the ground, but it was over-large for any wolf Vic had ever seen. Devant le cavalier courait un grand chien, à la tête de loup et à l'allure de loup qui le portait comme l'ombre d'un nuage sur le sol, mais il était plus grand que tous les loups que Vic avait jamais vus. It turned its head now, and leaped aside at sight of the stranger, but the rider veered from his course and swept down on Vic. Elle tourna la tête et fit un bond de côté à la vue de l'étranger, mais le cavalier dévia de sa trajectoire et fondit sur Vic. He came to a halt close up without either a draw at the reins or a spoken word, probably controlling his mount with pressure of the knees, and Gregg found himself facing a delicately handsome fellow. He was neither cowpuncher nor miner, Vic knew at a glance, for that face had never been haggard with labor. Il n'était ni tondeur de vaches ni mineur, Vic l'a su au premier coup d'œil, car son visage n'avait jamais été hagard par le travail. A tenderfoot, probably, in spite of his dress, and Vic felt that if his right arm were sound he could take that horse at the point of his gun and leave the rider thanking God that his life had been spared; but his left hand was useless on the butt of a revolver, and three minutes away came the posse, racing. Vic pensait que si son bras droit était sain, il pourrait s'emparer de ce cheval à la pointe de son fusil et laisser le cavalier remercier Dieu d'avoir épargné sa vie ; mais sa main gauche était inutile sur la crosse d'un revolver, et trois minutes plus tard arrivait le posse, en pleine course. There was only time for one desperate appeal. Il ne restait qu'un appel désespéré à lancer.

"Stranger," he burst out, "I'm follered. "Étranger, s'écrie-t-il, je suis trompé. I got to have your hoss. Je dois avoir ton cheval. Take this one in exchange; it's the best I ever threw a leg over. Prenez celui-ci en échange ; c'est le meilleur sur lequel j'ai jamais jeté une jambe. Here's two hundred bucks—" he flung his wallet on the ground and swung himself out of the saddle. Voici deux cents dollars..." Il jeta son portefeuille par terre et descendit de la selle. The wolfish dog, which had growled softly all this time and roughed up the hair of its neck, now slunk forward on its belly. Le chien-loup, qui avait grogné doucement pendant tout ce temps et s'était hérissé les poils du cou, s'avançait maintenant sur le ventre.

"Heel, Bart!" commanded the stranger sharply, and the dog whipped about and stood away, whining with eagerness. ordonna vivement l'étranger, et le chien fit volte-face et s'éloigna en gémissant d'impatience.

The moment Gregg's feet struck the ground his legs buckled like saplings in a wind for the long ride had sapped his strength, and the flow of blood told rapidly on him now. Au moment où les pieds de Gregg touchèrent le sol, ses jambes se dérobèrent comme des jeunes arbres sous l'effet du vent, car la longue chevauchée avait épuisé ses forces, et le flux de sang s'écoulait rapidement sur lui. The hills and trees whirled around him until a lean, strong hand caught him under either armpit. Les collines et les arbres tournoyaient autour de lui jusqu'à ce qu'une main maigre et forte l'attrape sous l'une des aisselles. The stranger stood close.

"You could have my hoss if you could ride him," said he. His voice was singularly unhurried and gentle. "But you'd drop out of the saddle in ten minutes. "Mais tu tomberais de la selle en dix minutes. Who's after you?" A voice shouted far off beyond the wood; another voice answered, nearer, and the whole soul of Gregg turned to the stallion. Une voix cria au loin, au-delà du bois ; une autre voix répondit, plus près, et toute l'âme de Gregg se tourna vers l'étalon. Grey Molly was blown, she stood now with hanging head and her flanks sunk in alarmingly at every breath, but even fresh from the pasture she was not a rag, not a straw compared to the black. Grey Molly était soufflée, elle se tenait maintenant la tête pendante et ses flancs s'enfonçaient de façon inquiétante à chaque respiration, mais même fraîchement sortie du pâturage, elle n'était pas une loque, pas une paille comparée à la noire.

"For God's sake," groaned Vic, "loan me your hoss!" "You couldn't stick the saddle. Come in here out of sight; I'm going to take 'em off your trail." Venez ici à l'abri des regards, je vais les éloigner de votre piste." While he spoke, he led, half carried Vic, into a thicket of shrubs with a small open space at the center. Tout en parlant, il conduisit Vic, à moitié porté, dans un bosquet d'arbustes avec un petit espace ouvert au centre. The black and the wolf-dog followed and now the stranger pulled at the bridle rein. Le noir et le chien-loup suivaient et l'étranger tirait maintenant sur la bride. The stallion kneeled like a trained dog, and lying thus the shrubbery was high enough to hide him. L'étalon s'agenouilla comme un chien dressé, et se couchant ainsi, les arbustes étaient assez hauts pour le cacher. Closer, sweeping through the wood, Vic heard the crash of the pursuit, yet the other was maddeningly slow of speech. Plus près, balayant le bois, Vic entendit le fracas de la poursuite, mais l'autre était d'une lenteur déconcertante.

"You stay here, partner, and sit over there. I'm borrowin' your gun"—a swift hand appropriated it from Vic's holster and his own fingers were too paralyzed to resist—"and don't you try to ride my hoss unless you want them teeth in your throat. Je t'emprunte ton arme" - une main rapide l'a prise dans l'étui de Vic et ses propres doigts étaient trop paralysés pour résister - "et n'essaie pas de monter sur mon cheval si tu ne veux pas avoir les dents dans la gorge. Lie quiet and tie up your hurt. Restez tranquille et attachez votre blessure. Bart, watch him!" And there sat Gregg where he had slipped down in his daze of weakness with the great dog crouched at his feet and snarling ominously every time he raised his hand. Et Gregg était assis là où il avait glissé dans son étourdissement de faiblesse, avec le grand chien accroupi à ses pieds et grognant de façon sinistre chaque fois qu'il levait la main. The voices came closer; the crashing burst on his very ears, and now, through the interstices of the shrubbery he saw the stranger swing into the saddle on Grey Molly and urge her to a gallop. He could follow them for only an instant with his eyes, but it seemed to Vic that Molly cantered under her new rider with strange ease and lightness. It was partly the rest, no doubt, and partly the smaller burden. C'était en partie le reste, sans doute, et en partie le fardeau moins lourd.

A deep beat of racing hoofs, and then the dusty roan shot out of the trees close by with the sheriff leaning forward, jockeying his horse. Un battement profond de sabots de course, puis le rouan poussiéreux sortit des arbres tout près, le shérif penché en avant, jockeyant son cheval. It seemed that no living thing could escape from that relentless rider. Il semblait qu'aucun être vivant ne pouvait échapper à ce cavalier implacable. Then right behind Vic a horse snorted and grunted—as it leaped a fallen log, perhaps—and he watched in alarm to see if the stallion would answer that sound with start or whinney. Puis, juste derrière Vic, un cheval s'ébroua et grogna - peut-être en sautant un tronc tombé - et il regarda avec inquiétude si l'étalon répondrait à ce son par un sursaut ou un hennissement. The black lay perfectly still, and instead of lifting up to answer or to look, the head lowered with ears flat back until the long, outstretched neck gave the animal a snaky appearance. The dog, too, though it showed murderous fangs whenever Vic moved, did not stir from his place, but lay flattening into the ground. Le chien, lui aussi, bien qu'il montrât des crocs meurtriers chaque fois que Vic bougeait, ne bougea pas de sa place, mais resta couché sur le sol.

"Cut to the right! Cut to the right, Harry!" came the voice of the sheriff, already piping from the distance as the last of the posse brushed out from the trees. dit la voix du shérif, qui résonne déjà au loin, alors que les derniers membres de la troupe sortent des arbres. "Yo hoi! Gus, take the left arroyo!" Two answering yells, and then the rush of hoofs fell away. They were cornering the stranger, no doubt, and Vic struggled to lift himself to his feet and watch until a faint sound from the dog made him look down. Bart lay with his haunches drawn up under him, his forepaws digging into the soft loam, his eyes demoniac. Bart était allongé, les fesses ramenées sous lui, ses pattes avant s'enfonçant dans le sol meuble, ses yeux démoniaques. Instinctively Vic reached for his absent gun, and then, despairing, relaxed to his former position. The wolf-dog lowered his head to his paws and there remained with the eyes following each intake of Gregg's breath. Le chien-loup baissa la tête sur ses pattes et resta là, les yeux suivant chaque inspiration de Gregg. A rattle of gunshots flung back loosely from the hills, and among them Vic winced at the sound of the sheriff's rifle, clear and ringing over the bark of the revolvers. Un vacarme de coups de feu retentit depuis les collines, et parmi eux, Vic grimaça au son du fusil du shérif, clair et retentissant par rapport à l'aboiement des revolvers. Had they nailed the stranger? The firing recommenced, more faintly and prolonged, so that it was plain the posse maintained a running fusilade after the fugitive. Les tirs reprirent, plus faibles et plus prolongés, de sorte qu'il était évident que le posse maintenait une fusillade en cours après le fugitif. After that fear of his own growing weakness shut out all else from the mind of Gregg as he felt his senses, his physical strength, flowing out like an ebb tide to a sea which, he knew, was death. Après cela, la peur de sa propre faiblesse croissante chassa tout le reste de l'esprit de Gregg, qui sentit ses sens, sa force physique, s'écouler comme une marée descendante vers une mer qui, il le savait, était la mort. He began to work desperately to bind up the wound and stop the flow of blood and it was fear which gave him momentary strength to tear away his shirt and then with his teeth and left hand rip it into strips. Il se mit à travailler désespérément pour panser la plaie et arrêter l'écoulement du sang et c'est la peur qui lui donna la force momentanée d'arracher sa chemise puis, avec ses dents et sa main gauche, de la déchirer en lanières. After that, heedless of the pain, he constructed a rude bandage, very clumsily, for he had to work over his shoulder. Ensuite, sans se soucier de la douleur, il a fait un bandage grossier, très maladroitement, car il devait travailler par-dessus son épaule. Here his teeth, once more, were almost as useful as another hand, and as the bandage grew tight the deadly, warm trickle along his side lessened and his fingers fell away from the last knot. Ici, ses dents, une fois de plus, étaient presque aussi utiles qu'une autre main, et à mesure que le bandage se resserrait, le filet mortel et chaud le long de son flanc diminuait et ses doigts se détachaient du dernier nœud. He fainted.