The Call Of The Canyon, Zane Grey [good non fiction books to read txt] 📗
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- Author: Zane Grey
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Pitch Her Curiosity In Regard To The Mystery That Seemed To Cling Round
Glenn's Transformation Of Character. This Western Girl Really Knew More
About Glenn Than His Fiancee Knew. Carley Suffered A Humiliating Shock When
She Realized That She Had Been Thinking Of Herself, Of Her Love, Her Life,
Her Needs, Her Wants Instead Of Glenn's. It Took No Keen Intelligence Or
Insight Into Human Nature To See That Glenn Needed Her More Than She Needed
Him.
Thus Unwontedly Stirred And Upset And Flung Back Upon Pride Of Herself,
Carley Went Downstairs To Meet The Assembled Company. And Never Had She
Shown To Greater Contrast, Never Had Circumstance And State Of Mind
Contrived To Make Her So Radiant And Gay And Unbending. She Heard Many
Remarks Not Intended For Her Far-Reaching Ears. An Old Grizzled Westerner
Remarked To Hutter: "Wall, She's Shore An Unbroke Filly." Another Of The
Company--A Woman--Remarked: "Sweet An' Pretty As A Columbine. But I'd Like
Her Better If She Was Dressed Decent." And A Gaunt Range Rider, Who Stood
With Others At The Porch Door, Looking On, Asked A Comrade: "Do You Reckon
That's Style Back East?" To Which The Other Replied: "Mebbe, But I'd Gamble
They're Short On Silk Back East An' Likewise Sheriffs."
Carley Received Some Meed Of Gratification Out Of The Sensation She
Created, But She Did Not Carry Her Craving For It To The Point Of
Overshadowing Flo. On The Contrary, She Contrived To Have Flo Share The
Attention She Received. She Taught Flo To Dance The Fox-Trot And Got Glenn
To Dance With Her. Then She Taught It To Lee Stanton. And When Lee Danced
With Flo, To The Infinite Wonder And Delight Of The Onlookers, Carley
Experienced Her First Sincere Enjoyment Of The Evening.
Her Moment Came When She Danced With Glenn. It Reminded Her Of Days Long
Past And Which She Wanted To Return Again. Despite War Tramping And Western
Labors Glenn Retained Something Of His Old Grace And Lightness. But Just To
Dance With Him Was Enough To Swell Her Heart, And For Once She Grew
Oblivious To The Spectators.
"Glenn, Would You Like To Go To The Plaza With Me Again, And Dance Between
Dinner Courses, As We Used To?" She Whispered Up To Him.
"Sure I Would--Unless Morrison Knew You Were To Be There," He Replied.
"Glenn! . . . I Would Not Even See Him."
"Any Old Time You Wouldn't See Morrison!" He Exclaimed, Half Mockingly.
Chapter 6 Pg 94
His Doubt, His Tone Grated Upon Her. Pressing Closer To Him, She Said,
"Come Back And I'll Prove It."
But He Laughed And Had No Answer For Her. At Her Own Daring Words Carley's
Heart Had Leaped To Her Lips. If He Had Responded, Even Teasingly, She
Could Have Burst Out With Her Longing To Take Him Back. But Silence
Inhibited Her, And The Moment Passed.
At The End Of That Dance Hutter Claimed Glenn In The Interest Of
Neighboring Sheep Men. And Carley, Crossing The Big Living Room Alone,
Passed Close To One Of The Porch Doors. Some One, Indistinct In The Shadow,
Spoke To Her In Low Voice: "Hello, Pretty Eyes!"
Carley Felt A Little Cold Shock Go Tingling Through Her. But She Gave No
Sign That She Had Heard. She Recognized The Voice And Also The Epithet.
Passing To The Other Side Of The Room And Joining The Company There, Carley
Presently Took A Casual Glance At The Door. Several Men Were Lounging
There. One Of Them Was The Sheep Dipper, Haze Ruff. His Bold Eyes Were On
Her Now, And His Coarse Face Wore A Slight, Meaning Smile, As If He
Understood Something About Her That Was A Secret To Others. Carley Dropped
Her Eyes. But She Could Not Shake Off The Feeling That Wherever She Moved
This Man's Gaze Followed Her. The Unpleasantness Of This Incident Would
Have Been Nothing To Carley Had She At Once Forgotten It. Most
Unaccountably, However, She Could Not Make Herself Unaware Of This
Ruffian's Attention. It Did No Good For Her To Argue That She Was Merely
The Cynosure Of All Eyes. This Ruff's Tone And Look Possessed Something
Heretofore Unknown To Carley. Once She Was Tempted To Tell Glenn. But That
Would Only Cause A Fight, So She Kept Her Counsel. She Danced Again, And
Helped Flo Entertain Her Guests, And Passed That Door Often; And Once Stood
Before It, Deliberately, With All The Strange And Contrary Impulse So
Inscrutable In A Woman, And Never For A Moment Wholly Lost The Sense Of The
Man's Boldness. It Dawned Upon Her, At Length, That The Singular Thing
About This Boldness Was Its Difference From Any, Which Had Ever Before
Affronted Her. The Fool's Smile Meant That He Thought She Saw His
Attention, And, Understanding It Perfectly, Had Secret Delight In It. Many
And Various Had Been The Masculine Egotisms Which Had Come Under Her
Observation. But Quite Beyond Carley Was This Brawny Sheep Dipper, Haze
Ruff. Once The Party Broke Up And The Guests Had Departed, She Instantly
Forgot Both Man And Incident.
Next Day, Late In The Afternoon, When Carley Came Out On The Porch, She Was
Hailed By Flo, Who Had Just Ridden In From Down The Canyon.
Chapter 6 Pg 95
"Hey Carley, Come Down. I Shore Have Something To Tell You," She Called.
Carley Did Not Use Any Time Pattering Down That Rude Porch Stairway. Flo
Was Dusty And Hot, And Her Chaps Carried The Unmistakable Scent Of
Sheep-Dip.
"Been Over To Ryan's Camp An' Shore Rode Hard To Beat Glenn Home," Drawled
Flo.
"Why?" Queried Carley, Eagerly.
"Reckon I Wanted To Tell You Something Glenn Swore He Wouldn't Let Me Tell.
. . . He Makes Me Tired. He Thinks You Can't Stand Things."
"Oh! Has He Been--Hurt?"
"He's Skinned An' Bruised Up Some, But I Reckon He's Not Hurt."
"Flo--What Happened?" Demanded Carley, Anxiously.
"Carley, Do You Know Glenn Can Fight Like The Devil?" Asked Flo.
"No, I Don't. But I Remember He Used To Be Athletic. Flo, You Make Me
Nervous. Did Glenn Fight?"
"I Reckon He Did," Drawled Flo.
"With Whom?"
"Nobody Else But That Big Hombre, Haze Ruff."
"Oh!" Gasped Carley, With A Violent Start. "That--That Ruffian! Flo, Did
You See--Were You There?"
"I Shore Was, An' Next To A Horse Race I Like A Fight," Replied The Western
Girl. "Carley, Why Didn't You Tell Me Haze Ruff Insulted You Last Night?"
"Why, Flo--He Only Said, 'Hello, Pretty Eyes,' And I Let It Pass!" Said
Carley, Lamely.
"You Never Want To Let Anything Pass, Out West. Because Next Time You'll
Get Worse. This Turn Your Other Cheek Doesn't Go In Arizona. But We Shore
Thought Ruff Said Worse Than That. Though From Him That's Aplenty."
"How Did You Know?"
"Well, Charley Told It. He Was Standing Out Here By The Door Last Night An'
Chapter 6 Pg 96He Heard Ruff Speak To You. Charley Thinks A Heap Of You An' I Reckon He
Hates Ruff. Besides, Charley Stretches Things. He Shore Riled Glenn, An' I
Want To Say, My Dear, You Missed The Best Thing That's Happened Since You
Got Here."
"Hurry--Tell Me," Begged Carley, Feeling The Blood Come To Her Face.
"I Rode Over To Ryan's Place For Dad, An' When I Got There I Knew Nothing
About What Ruff Said To You," Began Flo, And She Took Hold Of Carley's
Hand. "Neither Did Dad. You See, Glenn Hadn't Got There Yet. Well, Just As
The Men Had Finished Dipping A Bunch Of Sheep Glenn Came Riding Down,
Lickety Cut."
"'Now What The Hell's Wrong With Glenn?' Said Dad, Getting Up From Where
We Sat.
"Shore I Knew Glenn Was Mad, Though I Never Before Saw Him That Way. He
Looked Sort Of Grim An' Black. . . . Well, He Rode Right Down On Us An'
Piled Off. Dad Yelled At Him An' So Did I. But Glenn Made For The Sheep
Pen. You Know Where We Watched Haze Ruff An' Lorenzo Slinging The Sheep
Into The Dip. Ruff Was Just About To Climb Out Over The Fence When Glenn
Leaped Up On It."
"'Say, Ruff,' He Said, Sort Of Hard, 'Charley An' Ben Tell Me They Heard
You Speak Disrespectfully To Miss Burch Last Night.'"
"Dad An' I Ran To The Fence, But Before We Could Catch Hold Of Glenn He'd
Jumped Down Into The Pen."
"'I'm Not Carin' Much For What Them Herders Say,' Replied Ruff.
"'Do You Deny It?' Demanded Glenn.
"'I Ain't Denyin' Nothin', Kilbourne,' Growled Ruff. 'I Might Argue Against
Me Bein' Disrespectful. That's A Matter Of Opinion.'
"'You'll Apologize For Speaking To Miss Burch Or I'll Beat You Up An' Have
Hutter Fire You.'
"'Wal, Kilbourne, I Never Eat My Words,' Replied Ruff.
"Then Glenn Knocked Him Flat. You Ought To Have Heard That Crack. Sounded
Like Charley Hitting A Steer With A Club. Dad Yelled: 'Look Out, Glenn. He
Packs A Gun!'--Ruff Got Up Mad Clear Through I Reckon. Then They Mixed It.
Chapter 6 Pg 97Ruff Got In Some Swings, But He Couldn't Reach Glenn's Face. An' Glenn
Batted Him
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