The Breaking Point - Page 150/275

On the turn below Dick, Bassett saw him for the first time, and spoke to

him in a quiet voice.

"Hello, old man," he said. "I began to think I was going to miss you

after all."

His scrutiny of Dick's face had rather reassured him. The delirium had

passed, apparently. Dishevelled although he was, covered with dust and

with sweat from the horse, Livingstone's eyes were steady enough. As

he rode up to him, however, he was not so certain. He found himself

surveyed with a sort of cool malignity that startled him.

"Miss me!" Livingstone sneered bitterly. "With every damned hill covered

by this time with your outfit! I'll tell you this. If I'd had a gun

you'd never have got me alive."

Bassett was puzzled and slightly ruffled.

"My outfit! I'll tell you this, son, I've risked my neck half the night

to get you out of this mess."

"God Almighty couldn't get me out of this mess," Dick said somberly.

It was then that Bassett saw something not quite normal in his face, and

he rode closer.

"See here, Livingstone," he said, in a soothing tone, "nobody's going to

get you. I'm here to keep them from getting you. We've got a good start,

but we'll have to keep moving."

Dick sat obstinately still, his horse turned across the trail, and his

eyes still suspicious and unfriendly.

"I don't know you," he said doggedly. "And I've done all the running

away I'm going to do. You go back and tell Wilkins I'm here and to come

and get me. The sooner the better." The sneer faded, and he turned

on Bassett with a depth of tragedy in his eyes that frightened the

reporter. "My God," he said, "I killed a man last night! I can't go

through life with that on me. I'm done, I tell you."

"Last night!" Some faint comprehension began to dawn in Bassett's mind,

a suspicion of the truth. But there was no time to verify it. He turned

and carefully inspected the trail to where it came into sight at the

opposite rim of the valley. When he was satisfied that the pursuit was

still well behind them he spoke again.

"Pull yourself together, Livingstone," he said, rather sharply. "Think

a bit. You didn't kill anybody last night. Now listen," he added

impressively. "You are Livingstone, Doctor Richard Livingstone. You

stick to that, and think about it."

But Dick was not listening, save to some bitter inner voice, for

suddenly he turned his horse around on the trail. "Get out of the way,"

he said, "I'm going back to give myself up."