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Page 285

| Ashton's gaze roamed over the bloody mass of kangaroos. "Fair and square, huh?" he grumbled. "That depends on whether or not you're the kangaroo, don't you think?" |

| Ashton swung around, and his men followed his lead. He rode to Sasha and swung himself out of the saddle to go to her. He held her face between his hands. "Are you all right?" he murmured. |

| "Yes, but I will be much better after we leave this place of death," she said, shuddering. She searched Ashton's eyes. "Where is Ajax?" |

| "He's dead," Ashton said, glancing at Crispin as he dismounted and stepped to his side. "Do you believe the kangarooer, Crispin? Do you truly think he's dead?" |

| "There ain't no reason for them to lie to us," Crispin said, shrugging. "They're too interested in killin' the kangaroos to worry about reasons for lyin' to you." |

| Ashton nodded his head. "Then Ajax couldn't have killed Rufus," he said solemnly. "The bastard kangarooer was already dead." He kneaded his chin contemplatively. "So who in the hell did it?" |

| "Need you think further on it?" Crispin said, his eyes flashing angrily. "It was the son of a bitch Stanford Sidwell. And damn it, Ashton, he sent us on a wild goose chase and he's probably back home laughin' at us because of it." |

| "Do you mean that he killed his own sheepherder, tore down his own fence, and scattered his own sheep, just to cover up what he did to Rufus?" Sasha gasped. |

| "Seems likely enough," Ashton grumbled. He gazed down at Sasha. "But there is no proof." He |

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