"Make it short," he said gruffly.
"Five years ago," said the girl, ignoring the insolent suggestion; "my
father and mother died. My father had been a big cattle owner," she
added with a flash of pride. "He was very wealthy; he was educated,
refined--a gentleman. We lived in Texas--lived well. I attended a
university in the South. In my second year there I was called home
suddenly. My father was ill from shock and disappointment. He had
invested heavily in some northern enterprise--it will not interest you
to know the nature of it--and had lost his entire fortune. His ranch
property was involved and had to be sold. There was barely enough to
satisfy the creditors. Father died and mother soon followed him.
Grandfather, Bob, and I were left destitute. We left the ranch and
took up a quarter section of land on the Nueces. We became nesters and
were continually harassed by a big cattle owner nearby who wanted our
range. We had to get out. Grandfather thought there might be an
opportunity to take up some land in this territory. Bob was--well, Bob
took mother's death so hard that we didn't want to stay in Texas any
longer. The outlook wasn't bright. Bob was too young to work--"
"Lazy, I reckon," jeered Calumet.
The girl's eyes flashed with a swift, contemptuous resentment and her
voice chilled.
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