"TXT - Louis L'Amour - The Tall Stranger" - читать интересную книгу автора (L'Amour Louis)

mite short on rations, and you seem to be the best hunter among us."
"All right," Rock said. "I'll see what I can do after I get Crockett's wagon in
place."
Mulholland's head turned sharply. "Bannon, I'd let that girl alone if I were
you. No offense intended, but she ain't your kind. I ain't denyin' you've been a
sight of help to us. In fact, I don't know what we'd have done without you, and
we're glad you came along. But Sharon Crockett's another story. Her pa's bedded
down now, and in no shape to speak."
Bannon turned the steel-dust sharply. His face was grim and his jaw hard. "Did
he ask you to speak to me? Or did she?"
"Well, noЧnot exactly," Mulholland said uncomfortably. "But I'm headin' this
train."
"Then I'll thank you to mind your own business. Headin' this wagon train is job
enough for any man. Any time the Crocketts ask me to stay away, I'll stay, but
that's their affair."
Mulholland's face flushed and his eyes darkened with anger. "She ain't your
kind," he persisted, "you bein' a killer, and all."
Rock Bannon stared at him. "You didn't seem to mind my killing Indians!" he said
sarcastically. "In fact, you killed a few yourself!"
"Don't get me wrong!" Cap persisted. "I ain't denyin' you helped us! Without you
I don't know whether we could have beat off those Indians or not, but killin'
Indians and killin' white men's a different thing!"
"You're new to the West, Cap." Bannon's voice was rough. "In a short time you'll
find there's white men out here that need killin' a sight worse than Indians. In
fact, I'm not so sure those Indians jumped us without help!"
"What do you mean?" Mulholland demanded.
"I mean," Bannon said, "that Morton Harper told you there'd be no hostile
Indians on this route! I warned you of Buffalo Hide then, but he told you he
ranged further north. You took his advice on this trail, not mine!"
Pagones and Pike Purcell were coming up to join them. Pike heard the last remark
and his lean, lantern-jawed face flushed with anger.
"You ridin' Harper again?" he harshly demanded of Bannon. "He said this was a
better trail, and it is. We ain't had no high passes, and we had six days of the
best travel we've had since we left Council Bluffs, with plenty of water and
plenty of grass. Now we get a few bad days and a brush with Indians, but that
ain't too much!" He glared at Rock. "I'm sick of your whinin' about this trail
and Harper! I figure he's a darned good man. He was sure a help to me when I
needed it. Out of supplies and no medicine for the wife, and he staked me."
"I wasn't talking to you," Rock replied shortly, "and I don't like your tone. As
far as your loan from Harper, remember that you haven't heard from him on it
yet. I've a hunch he'll collect, and plenty!"
"I don't need no killer to tell me my business!" Pike snapped, reining his horse
around to face Rock. "And I ain't afraid of a reputation for killin', neither.
You don't bluff me none."
"Here, here!" Cap protested. "We can't afford to have trouble in camp. You'll
have to admit, Pike, that we'd have been in bad shape a couple of times in that
fight, if it hadn't been for Bannon. He's been a help. I don't agree with him on
Mort Harper, either, but every man to his own idea."
Rock swung the gray and cantered off toward the hills. Inwardly, he was
seething. He was a fool to stay on with the wagon trainЧhe understood that