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turned back to Slim and led him back to the other horse, and then I unsaddled and picketed him out. I pulled my canteen off my saddle and returned to the camp. 
    The cowboy was still out cold, so I sat down across from him and hungrily looked at those cans of food. 
    Mebbe he wouldn’t mind if I borrowed a few cans , I thought.
    I was near starved, so I didn’t figure I should waste anymore time a-trying to wake him up and ask him.
    There was a knife by the fire, and I used it to open a can of peaches. I took a sip of the juice, and then I grabbed a peach. 
    Those cans of food weren’t near as good as Mrs. Day’s cooking. But, it sure did hit the spot. I gulped down one can after another, and before I knew it I had downed seven cans. I hoped this cowboy was the sharing kind, because I just about cleaned him out of food. 
    After I’d eaten, I took a long pull from my canteen and washed my food on down. Then, I leaned back against a log, full and satisfied. 
    “Thanks, mister,” I said softly. “You don’t know it, but I reckon you just saved my life.”
    I knew I should leave, but I was so comfortable that I sure hated to. My eyelids started to get heavy, and as I sat there listening to the cowboy snore I could barely stay awake. 
    I took another look at him, and that’s when I noticed his bedroll. That bedroll was so big that two people could fit in it!
    It was then that I made up my mind. I would sleep here for a bit and then pull out before he woke up.
    I pulled my boots off, and then I quietly slipped underneath the edge of his bedroll. 
    As I did I noticed a Henry rifle and a Colt six-shooter laying by his side, and I knew that I was taking a big chance in not waking him up.
    But I was just too tired to care. And besides, that bedroll was the most comforting thing that I had ever bedded down in.
    My head hit the ground and then I was out, sleeping almost as hard as the man beside me.       
     
     
     

Chapter thirteen
     
     
    Next thing I knew, it was daylight.
    I relaxed a bit before I remembered where I was.
    My eyes shot upwards, and I found myself looking directly into the face of the cow-puncher. He was sitting up, smoking a cigarette and looking back down at me with a real curious look.
    It was silent as we stared at each other, and then the cow-puncher took a long drag on his cigarette.
    “Well, Button, looks like you stayed out late last night,” he said in a soft, Texas drawl.
    I studied his face. He didn’t seem to be mad, so I relaxed a bit. 
    “Pretty late,” I agreed. “And, when I got here you was sleeping so hard I figured I’d just let you sleep.”
    He smiled at that and shook his head, kinda ashamed like. 
    “Yes, well, I usually don’t sleep that a-way, but I reckon I was pretty much done for.”
    Suddenly, he laughed out loud. I was surprised, and I jumped.
    “I’ll tell you something, Button; over the years I’ve woke up with all sorts of critters in bed with me, but this is a first. I think my ol’ heart even stopped beating when I rolled over and saw you.”
    I felt my face getting red, but before I could say anything the cowboy’s face suddenly got dark and serious. 
    “Button, you should know better than to go sneaking around in the dark. If I hadn’t been passed out I would’ve blown your head off.”
    I stiffened.
    “You was sleeping so hard somebody could’ve blown your head off too,” I replied.
    The cowboy thought on that, and his face lit back up.
    “You’re right, Button. Reckon we was both lucky.” 
    It was then that I noticed his shoulder. It was bandaged, and the bandages were soaked with blood. 
    “You’re hurt. Is it bad?” I asked.
    “Naw, it’s just a little scratch, is all,” he replied.
    He reached up and patted it, as if to show me. 
    “See? I’ll be good as new in a few days.”
    “What happened?” I asked without thinking. “Did you get into a gunfight?”
    The cowboy chose his words carefully. 
    “Me and