CHAPTER XXIV
Eight ruffians pushed into the cabin; one lay wounded behind the shed and one was dead. Zang they hailed with heavy oaths until a snarling command from him bade them respect the presence of the girl, unguessed by the outlaws and received as a distinct sauce to the situation. One man pawed through Original Bill's pockets and found the key to the handcuffs; he released his leader. Another cut free the wrappings of cloth about Hilma's hands and feet. He roughly helped her to rise from the bunk.
A grim and ugly place was that single room, still reeking with the fumes of battle; all the hideous detritus of violence lay scattered there. High-booted men with rifles stumped clumsily about the floor, marking with pointing fingers the scars and chips of bullets' work; their heels crunched shards of glass with every step. Empty brass shells slithered over the floor be-
