BORDER SEARCH 10

maxine got up and marched off down the street mumbling that nothing could be so bad. del stood and watched and shook his head. from the other direction andy was comming at a shuffling walk.andy walked right up to del. "these guys bought everything i had left. which wasnt much, but they got plenty silver to pay with. i guess i need to go back to tucson for more stock. these folks are starving but they are afraid to leave thier claims . ime afraid to go back because of the bandits.what are we going to do?" del looked at andy like he couldnt believe what he heard" what you mean WE? i dont own a scrape of that wagon. i was hired to bring that spoiled woman down here. and even that may have been a mistake. her brother isnt to proud of her, she is determined to fall into the hands of the bandits and i feel guilty about it. i dont know what i can do to help you. if you get back to tucson you might need to hire some guards to come back with you. i think while those rurales are around the bandits will lay low. so now would be a good time to go. your little mules should be ok with a empty wagon.ill need to stay here and watch over that woman." del felt trapped. the next morning , a hour before sunrise andy cracked a whip over the little mules and started back toward tucson nobody but him and a few miners were aware he had a small fortune of smelted silver in the wagon under his bedding. del watched him until the dark swallowed him. then turned back to his fire and poured a cup of coffee. across the fire in the edge of the light from the fire lay maxine wrapped in her blankets and snoreing little puffy snores. her angelic face belied the nasty disposition it masked. del sat there with his coffee and stared at her.he knew if he escorted her below the border to harrys claim she would simply be bait for the mexican sharks . he hoped harry would show up this day.he knew that if the bandits were sharks the rurales were baracudas. there was no gurantee they would be any better than the bandits. the sound of walking horses across in the stret brought him out of the stupor he was in. looking to the sound he could see the out lines of riders and horses as they passed the buildings that lined the street. he quickly kicked dirt onto his fire. then grabbed his rifle and and stood faceing the street. behind him maxine slept with no knowledge of the danger. the group followem along the direction of andys wagon. he couldnt be any more than a hour down the road. del looked to maxine then back toward the riders who had passed.