Captain Jack
and the Gold Dust maverick nosed each other over the shoulders of their
dismounted riders.
"Oh, well, it don't matter," the Ramblin' Kid finally said, wearily; "it
don't matter, you're what you are an' I reckon you can't help it!"
Carolyn June said nothing.
"I--I--was goin' to turn th' filly back to th' range," he continued in
the same emotionless voice, "but--well, you can have her--I'll trade her
to you for--for--th' thing that started th' fight. You can ride th'
maverick till you go back east--"
"I'm not going back east," she said in a hurt tone, "at least not for a
long time. Dad is going to--to--get me a stepmother! He's going to marry
some female person and he doesn't need me so I'm going to live--most of
the time--with Uncle Josiah and Ophelia! Anyhow I--I--like it out
west--or that is--I did like it--"
There was another little period of silence between them.
"Ramblin' Kid," Carolyn June spoke suddenly very softly, "Ramblin'
Kid--why--why do you hate me?"
"Me hate you?" he answered slowly. "I don't hate _you_--I hate myself!"
"Yourself?" with a questioning lift of her voice.
"Yes, myself!" he replied with a short, bitter laugh.
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