Indian Charlie laughed loud enough for Frank to hear, scornfully saying:
“It’s a case of luck—nothing more. He’ll slip up in a minute. Why, he’s getting nervous now!”
Frank paid not the least attention to this, apparently not hearing it.
Thirty balls were broken! Two more would tie the Star and Bar man.
Every spectator was standing. Inza Burrage was confident, while Sadie Rodney was almost quivering with excitement. Miss Abigail looked calm and confident.
“Ther youngster is a wonder,” said Pecos Pete. “I’ll allow he kin shoot as well as ride, an’ that’s a right smart bit.”
Charlie carefully cleaned his gun and prepared for the trial.
It was agreed that the shoot-off should be to see who could make the most points out of a possible hundred.
In the choice to see who should shoot last Frank felt that he was fortunate, as he had secured that privilege.
Indian Charlie was ready, and he took his stand. Then he proceeded to break fifty balls without a miss.
Then, to the astonishment of all, Charlie missed the next ball.
That angered him, and he uttered a smothered exclamation. His anger did him harm, for he missed again.
The foreman of the Lone Star stopped to swab out his gun and cool off. He realized that it would not do to continue shooting till his nerves were perfectly steady.
When he started in once more he seemed to smash the balls with greater ease than before, and he made seventy-eight out of a possible eighty.
“That is more than enough to win,” he laughed.
Then he seemed to grow careless, for he missed again.
He finished by making ninety-six out of one hundred shots.
“There,” he said, “that is pretty bad, but it is good enough to beat the tenderfoot and have twenty to spare.”
Merriwell took the position Charlie had vacated, and then, to the amazement and disappointment of every one, missed the second ball.
No one was more surprised than Frank by the miss, but it did not rattle him in the least. He remembered the gun in his hands shot “close,” and resolved to take unusual care.
Then he went on shooting, and for the next fifty shots he did not make a single miss.
Frank followed up his success with twenty-five more without a break, and then missed one.
When eighty was reached, Frank was tied, having made seventy-eight.