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Page 257

| in this manas well as several prime head of sheep!'' |

| Ashton lowered his rifle and slipped it into his gunboot. He gazed at the dead man, then looked slowly back at Stanford, the evidence too strong not to believe him. They had both lost a sheepherder in the same ugly wayand both had lost several head of sheep. |

| "So it seems there's someone we both have to keep an eye out for," Ashton finally said. He glanced at Crispin and saw in his glare that Crispin was not buying Stanford's story as quickly as Ashton. He looked back at the dead man, then at Stanford. "Any ideas who it might be?" |

| Stanford took a half-smoked cigar and a match from his inside coat pocket. He placed the cigar between his lips and scraped a thumbnail against the head of the match, lighting it. "Do you remember the kangarooer Ajax?" he said, placing the flaming match to his cigar. He sucked on the cigar until it was lit, then shook the match out and tossed it aside. |

| "Who could forget that son of a bitch?" Ashton said, patting his horse's head when the horse whinnied and began pawing the ground with its hoof. He forked an eyebrow. "What about him?" |

| "He came by here the other day," Stanford said matter-of-factly, closely watching Ashton as he talked. "He laid a few threats on me. Did he do the same to you?" |

| Ashton raked his fingers through his hair as he tried to recall what Ajax had said exactly. "Somewhat," he said finally. "What of it?" |

| "I think he's the one you should be accusin' of |

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