"
"Man, you drive me mad! Did Lassiter kill Dyer?"
"Yes."
"Did he kill Tull?"
"No. Tull's out of the village with most of his riders. He's
expected back before evenin'. Lassiter will hev to git away
before Tull en' his riders come in. It's sure death fer him here.
An' wuss fer you, too, Miss Withersteen. There'll be some of an
uprisin' when Tull gits back."
"I shall ride away with Lassiter. Judkins, tell me all you
saw--all you know about this killing." She realized, without
wonder or amaze, how Judkins's one word, affirming the death of
Dyer--that the catastrophe had fallen--had completed the change
whereby she had been molded or beaten or broken into another
woman. She felt calm, slightly cold, strong as she had not been
strong since the first shadow fell upon her.
"I jest saw about all of it, Miss Withersteen, an' I'll be glad
to tell you if you'll only hev patience with me," said Judkins,
earnestly. "You see, I've been pecooliarly interested, an'
nat'rully I'm some excited. An' I talk a lot thet mebbe ain't
necessary, but I can't help thet.
"I was at the meetin'-house where Dyer was holdin' court. You
know he allus acts as magistrate an' judge when Tull's away. An'
the trial was fer tryin' what's left of my boy riders--thet
helped me hold your cattle--fer a lot of hatched-up things the
boys never did. We're used to thet, an' the boys wouldn't hev
minded bein' locked up fer a while, or hevin' to dig ditches, or
whatever the judge laid down.
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