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following for the past five days had disappeared into a shallow-running creek. And, they were fresh, less than an hour old. This was a tactic Luther Talley and his gang had not used yet in their attempt to shake him from their trail. And they had used almost every method and trick known the past three times that Adam had chased them.
           His mouth tightened into a grim line at the thought that he might lose them again. The fact that Talley and his men had hit at least six banks within a four-month period was not the driving force behind his determination to bring them in to stand trial in Judge Isaac Parker's court. Even after hearing rumors that Luther Talley had been bragging that there wasn't a lawman alive who was smart enough, or good enough, to bring him and his men in, Adam had merely shrugged it off. He knew Talley and his gang were just two-bit crooks who would eventually be brought to justice, and they were not important enough to cause him any worry other than what came with his job. But that was before this last robbery, and before Luther ruthlessly gunned down a fellow deputy. That was when he made his big mistake.
           What made Adam so angry was that the shooting had been senseless and completely avoidable, that it had been a deliberate murder. It was a deep-seated anger that would not disappear until he saw Luther swinging from the end of a rope. That was what he had promised his friend's widow, and he intended to keep his word regardless of how long it took.
           However, Adam knew it would not be easy. His area to patrol had always been the eastern part of the Indian Territory, where the densely timbered hills and mountains, natural caverns, and thickets were as familiar to him as the back of his hand. But until he pursued Luther after that third bank job, he had never worked in the south-central area at all, and had only passed through once before.
           Talley wasn't dumb either; he soon realized the deputy chasing them was unfamiliar with the area and had to rely solely on his tracking skills, which enabled them to elude him each time.
           It did not take Adam long to decide that apparently they had a well-concealed hideout, because whenever he got too close, it seemed as though they disappeared into the bowels of the earth. And now whenever they were on the run, they headed straight for this region and that was Talley's second mistake.
           He underestimated Adam's ability to quickly learn the lay of the land; how he had questioned men familiar with the area until he had a general understanding of it, how, in his determination to catch him, Adam had forgone the luxury of even bringing along a pack animal to carry extra supplies.
           Adam reined his horse and let him drink from the cold running creek while he studied his options. It would slow him down considerably if he had to follow the creek bank. He'd have to watch either side for their exit, then—even with his being one of the best trackers under the judge's jurisdiction—there was always the outside chance the men could cover their exit tracks so well, he would overlook them. He had faith he'd pick them up eventually, but valuable time would be lost. Time he could not afford. Then, too, there were just enough underbrush and trees growing alongside the creek bank to make an ambush extremely tempting for a man such as Luther Talley. If only his dog were with him, there would be no cause for that particular concern; but the mongrel had not been seen since camp had been broken early that morning. Which wasn't unusual. The dog always fended for himself, and game was more than plentiful this time of the year.
           Deciding to approach the problem from a different direction, Adam nudged his horse away from the creek, climbed a steep rise, and stopped underneath a bushy tree for concealment. He figured if he could catch a glimpse of the men, he could circle around and set his own