by Saran Essex
The next half hour passed by fairly uneventfully. Emmett and Annie stayed on the dance floor, and so did Lonzo and Maria, but when the slow waltz they had been dancing finished, Lonzo asked Maria if she would excuse him. Although he was enjoying dancing with her, he did not want Leroy to think that he was mocking him in some way by leaving the glass of whiskey that he had bought for him untouched on the drinks table with Warren for too much longer.
Maria felt disappointed – she had been enjoying dancing with her new-found confidence – but she nodded. They were standing near to some of the tables where the homesteaders and ranchers were sitting, so Lonzo walked away from Maria, expecting her to maybe join her family members at their table, and he headed for the drinks table. However, Maria did not get the chance to join her family at their table, because both Leroy and Marvin Kilbey had spotted her standing by the tables, and both men quickly sprang up out of their chairs with the intention of asking her to dance – but it was Kilbey who reached her first, and he was the one she agreed to dance with.
Leroy groaned to himself as he sat back down at the table again. It didn’t look as though he was going to get a chance to dance with Maria.
Warren saw Lonzo approaching the drinks table, and handed him the glass of whiskey. Lonzo took the whiskey, and keeping out of the way of the dancers, strolled over to the tables on the opposite side of the room to find somewhere to sit. Leroy smiled at him in a friendly way as he approached the table where he was sitting.
Lonzo grinned and said, ‘Thanks for the whiskey,’ and then he sauntered past Leroy to sit down at an unoccupied table to the left of Leroy, between Leroy and Deke Hogan.
‘Hey!’ Leroy called to him, ‘I promise I won’t bite!’
Lonzo turned to look at him, and said with another grin, ‘You surely can’t want me to sit with you, I’m the biggest pain in the ass you’ve ever met!’
Leroy laughed, and said, ‘I reckon I can overlook that!’ and motioned Lonzo over with his hand.
Lonzo hesitated – he usually preferred to sit on his own – but as Leroy smiled and again motioned him over, he began to get to his feet. He had half risen out of his chair when there was a rush of movement and a lot of noise at the entrance door to the eating house. Barging their way through the door came a group of six ranch hands from the Cottonwood Ranch, the neighbouring ranch to Caleb Baxter, and following behind the ranch hands was the Cottonwood owner, Bart Jarvis. A few minutes earlier the Cottonwood men had all been drinking in the saloon, which stood to one side of the eating house, but they had been listening to the noise of the dance and wanted to join in.
The merry atmosphere in the room instantly changed. The musicians stopped playing, and low, concerned muttering could be heard coming from some of the folks in the room. Jeremiah Baxter and his brother, Caleb, were still on the dance floor with their wives, and they immediately stopped dancing at the sudden intrusion of the Cottonwood men, as did all the other dancers.
Jarvis and his ranch hands were not liked or trusted by anyone in the valley. They had long been suspected of rustling cattle from other ranchers at Browns Hole, and they had even tried to drive out a few homesteaders to take over their land. Jeremiah and his wife and family usually tried to put aside their concerns regarding the Cottonwood men. They would let them drink at the saloon, shop at the general store and eat at the eating house. It was easier that way, and it stopped any serious trouble from developing – but they didn’t want the men to cause a ruckus at the dance. At Browns Hole, the usual tradition was, that all celebrations and dances were attended by most of the valley residents – but no one wanted Bart Jarvis or anyone who worked for him at their celebrations.
Lonzo did not go over to join Leroy. He stayed where he was and sat back down in his chair. Both he and Leroy felt uneasy when they saw that Archie Burdett, Seth Roebuck, Eli Slater and Bill Gooch, the four men who had caused trouble for Leroy and Emmett in Green River, were among the group of Cottonwood ranch hands.
Warren hurried over to the men as they barged their way through the door, and told them (not too impolitely) that they were not welcome at the dance, and that they would have to leave. Caleb and Jeremiah quickly ushered their wives off the dance floor and over to the side of the room where the ranchers and homesteaders were sitting. They were followed by all the other people who had been dancing, including Emmett and Annie, and Marvin Kilbey and Maria. They all stood in straggly groups muttering amongst themselves further up the room from the tables where Leroy, Lonzo, Hogan and the other valley residents were sitting.
The Baxter brothers then left their wives, and started to hurry across the room towards Warren. They knew that he would need help in dealing with Jarvis and his men. Three of Caleb’s ranch hands followed behind them, but before they could reach Warren, Archie Burdett, who was at the front of the Cottonwood interlopers, laughed in Warren’s face, and then thrust the young man aside with so much force that he went crashing down to the floor, striking his head on the corner of one of the food tables as he fell. He lay unmoving on the wooden floor.
Dinah screamed at seeing her son fall, and both she and Annie tried to run to him, but they were held back by Emmett and Caleb’s wife, Elizabeth.
The room went very quiet and tense after Dinah’s scream.
Caleb, Jeremiah and the three ranch hands were still hurrying anxiously towards the fallen Warren, but they were brought to a sudden halt as Archie Burdett and the five other Cottonwood ranch hands intercepted them with their guns drawn. Holding their guns on the Baxter men, the six Cottonwood men spread themselves out in a line in front of them, and in a brusque, commanding voice, Burdett ordered the five men to get their hands up.
The tension in the dining room could now almost be felt.
From where he sat at the side of the room, Leroy wanted to do something to help Caleb, but he knew that all he could do for the moment was just sit still. Emmett and Marvin Kilbey, standing in a group of people further up from Leroy, also felt like running forwards to help Caleb, and Maria urged them to, but they wisely stayed with the group.
Lonzo sat calmly drinking his whiskey, but he was watching the situation with Caleb and the Cottonwood men intently. He would give his help if he had to, but only when he felt that the time was right.
Bart Jarvis, the owner of the Cottonwood ranch, a scrawny-looking man with long grey hair, stood to one side of the doorway. He had a slight grin on his face as he watched Burdett and his other men.
Caleb, his brother Jeremiah, and the three ranch hands who were facing the guns of the six Cottonwood men, all stared at each other in dismay – they knew that trying to make a grab for their own weapons would only get them all killed, so they grudgingly obeyed Burdett and raised their hands high. Burdett grinned at Caleb, and said, ‘Let’s hear you accuse me of rustling your stock now, Baxter!’
Caleb’s face was red with fury as he glowered at Burdett. He had been in quite a few clashes with the man in the past regarding the rustling of his cattle, and he hated being forced to back down to the Cottonwood foreman. He felt like making a bodily charge at Burdett, but he knew that such a move would be foolish.
Burdett laughed scornfully, and then turned to look at Jeremiah, who was standing next to his brother, and said harshly, ‘We don’t take kindly to folks telling us that we are not welcome, Baxter, so if you want to avoid any one getting killed here, you’d better ask us to stay at this party!’
Jeremiah exchanged looks with Caleb: he was feeling as furious as his brother. He did not like being threatened in his own eating house and at his wife’s party, but he knew that he would have to try to avoid any bloodshed. He was also worried about his son, Warren, whom he could see still laid out on the floor near the doorway. He looked towards Bart Jarvis, and shouted to him to call off his men.
Jarvis merely grinned derisively at him.
Leroy frowned as he observed Jarvis’s derisive grin: the Cottonwood boss clearly approved of what his men were doing. Then four of Caleb�
��s ranch hands, who were seated at a table to the right of where Leroy was sitting, looked meaningfully at each other, and keeping their movements slow, and their hands close to their guns, started to rise out of their chairs.
Leroy saw them starting to rise to their feet, and he noted that their hands seemed to be very close to their guns. He clicked his fingers at them to get their attention, and when they looked his way, he motioned to them with his hand to sit down, and not to try anything: he knew that if the men did open fire on Jarvis and his men, then it might result in a lot of people getting killed.
The four men understood what Leroy was trying to say to them, and they also reconsidered what they were about to do, and realized that Leroy was right. It would be very dangerous for everyone in the room if they were to draw their guns and open fire, so they sat back down again.
Lonzo had seen Leroy signal to the four men, and he smiled approvingly. Not only did Leroy have a subtle toughness and a fearless nature, but he also appeared to have a wise head.
Jeremiah shouted again to Jarvis to call off his men. Jarvis grinned for a few more moments, then he said icily, ‘I’ll call my men off if you ask us all nicely to stay at your celebration.’
Jeremiah yelled back furiously to Jarvis, ‘If you don’t order your men to put their guns away and to get out of here right now, I’ll ban all of you at the Cottonwood ranch from using my saloon, store and this eating house: I’m the owner and I can do that, and I’ll hire help to keep you all out if I have to!’
His words caused an angry outburst of expletives from Burdett and the other Cottonwood ranch hands. Jeremiah’s saloon, general store and eating house were the closest for miles.
Jarvis immediately lost his grin at the furious threat from Jeremiah. His eyes grew fierce, and he drew out his gun and moved away from the doorway to stand in line with Burdett and his other ranch hands. Seven guns were now trained on Caleb and Jeremiah Baxter, and Caleb’s three men.
Jarvis’s fierce eyes menacingly scrutinized the five men standing in front of him. He saw that sweat was beginning to glisten on the foreheads of the three ranch hands, and that all the Baxter men were fidgeting nervously.
Jarvis barked at them all to stand still, and then he walked up closer to the furious Jeremiah, looked him in the face and snarled out, ‘You are in no position to make threats, Baxter – either you ask us to stay at your party, or we open fire and you die, and we’ll also gun down anyone else who tries to intervene!’
He meant it. Everyone in the room knew he meant it. Jarvis and his men were ready and eager to shoot and kill the five men standing in front of them, and anyone else who tried to help them.
Jeremiah and Caleb exchanged looks again. They did not want to give in to the demands of Jarvis and his men, but they had the safety of everyone else in the room to consider, and Jeremiah desperately needed to check on his son.
‘Well, Baxter!’ Jarvis demanded, ‘Are you going to ask us to stay?’ and he aimed his gun at Jeremiah’s chest.
The three Baxter ranch hands, who were standing next to Jeremiah, began to fidget nervously again; sweat was trickling in long streaks down their faces, and their eyes showed fear. They could no longer endure the mental anguish of their frightening situation, and they started to lower their hands in the hope of quickly drawing their guns before they were seen.
The tension in the dining-room was still very intense. Everyone was on tenterhooks watching the scene between the Cottonwood and the Baxter men, but only Leroy, Lonzo and Deke Hogan noticed that the three ranch hands were starting to lower their hands, and they felt alarmed: they knew that if they did manage to draw their guns and open fire, or if the Cottonwood men spotted them lowering their hands, then a ferocious gun battle would take place in the dining room and people would get killed or injured.
Hogan had felt out of favour with his boss, Caleb Baxter, lately, and he wanted to do something to impress him, and everyone else at Browns Hole. He was aware that at any second, the three ranch hands standing alongside Caleb and Jeremiah were going to draw their guns and open fire. He looked slowly around the room while trying to think of something to do (without getting hurt himself) to help and impress his boss.
His eyes were suddenly drawn upwards to the four large glass oil lamps hanging from ropes on the beams along the ceiling in the centre of the room. Two of the oil lamps were positioned above and between the group of Cottonwood men and the men from the Baxter ranch.
Deke Hogan grinned. He considered himself to be exceptionally fast and accurate with a gun, and he was certain that he would be able to draw out his gun and shoot down the two oil lamps that hung above and between the two groups of men facing each other before Jarvis and his ranch hands could notice what he was doing and open fire on him.
Hogan’s right hand was hidden from view under the table, and he quickly pulled out his gun and aimed at one of the ropes holding the oil lamps. His intention was to split the rope from which the oil lamp hung with his first shot, and then to swiftly fire at the rope holding the other oil lamp, and bring both lamps crashing down between the Cottonwood men and the Baxter men, and thus causing a diversion.
Hogan’s gun roared out twice, but it was not his bullets that brought the two oil lamps down with a tremendous shattering noise. Four shots were actually fired, but because of all the tense drama that was taking place in the room, no one was really sure of how many shots they had heard. Only one person saw what really happened.
The table that Lonzo was sitting at was a few feet behind and to the right of where Hogan sat, and he had witnessed the foreman pulling out his gun and aiming at the ropes holding the oil lamps. He had realized at once what Hogan was going to do, and had pulled out his own Colt Peacemaker gun in case Hogan failed to hit his targets.
Hogan’s bullets missed the ropes, and Lonzo opened fire barely a split second after Hogan: in a whirlwind of motion, he fired at the ropes holding the oil lamps, severing the strands with his bullets. Then just as quickly, he placed his smoking Colt back inside his holster.
Only Leroy Parker had caught a glimpse of Lonzo’s amazing speed and precision with a gun, and he smiled, feeling a surge of admiration for Lonzo – and he wondered how many more surprises Lonzo was hiding.
When the shots were first heard and the two oil lamps began to plummet down from the beams, most of the people in the room had instinctively looked round, wondering who had fired the shots – and they saw Deke Hogan, sitting holding his gun and smiling as though in triumph. And Hogan himself assumed that his bullets had brought down the lamps.
Lonzo was happy for everyone to believe that Hogan was responsible for shooting down the lamps. He did not want anyone at Browns Hole to find out that he was also known as the Sundance Kid. He did not know that Leroy had witnessed his skill with a gun.
As the oil lamps suddenly and loudly crashed down in front of Bart Jarvis and his men, for an instant they were startled, and jumped back with cries of alarm. Shards of glass flew out at them, and some of the men even dropped their guns.
Standing opposite to them, the Baxter men had been equally startled by the loudly crashing lamps, and they too had to step back to try and avoid the shards of flying glass – but they got over their feelings of surprise and alarm more quickly than the Cottonwood men.
Jeremiah immediately ran over to his son, Warren, who had started to come round, but Caleb and his three ranch hands dodged the debris of the smouldering oil lamps and flung themselves at Jarvis and the other six hostile invaders. They started throwing punches at the men who were still disconcerted by the shock of the falling oil lamps.
Those Cottonwood men who had held on to their guns, tried to aim them at the oncoming attackers, but they were very soon disarmed. Emmett, Marvin Kilbey and some of the other ranchers and homesteaders ran over to join in the affray.
Flames were starting to rise up from the debris of the shattered oil lamps, but a major fire and catastrophe was averted by the quick thinking and actions of L
onzo and Leroy. The two men grabbed tablecloths from off some of the tables, and used them to smother the flames; they then joined the other men in fighting with the Cottonwood interlopers and throwing them out of the eating house.
In the early hours of the next morning when the sky was still dark, Leroy and Emmett, both with bruises on their faces from the brawl with the Cottonwood men, were sitting on the top rail of one of the corral fences at the Baxter ranch. The two friends had helped to clean up the dining room of the eating house, which had been left in a mess from the shattered oil lamps and the fight with Jarvis and his men, and they were feeling too restless for sleep. They talked about the events of the night before, and how lucky it was that no one had been killed in the tense and frightening incident that had taken place in the eating house.
Emmett then said, ‘I ain’t got no liking for Deke Hogan, but I reckon we should all be thanking him for shooting down those oil lamps and causing a distraction.’
Leroy sighed deeply. He knew the truth about what had really happened, but he felt reluctant to say anything. He had been thinking a few things over, and it was obvious to him that Lonzo did not want anyone to know about his skill with a gun as he had quite willingly let everyone believe that it was Hogan who had shot down the oil lamps.
Leroy also believed that he knew the reason why Lonzo wanted to keep his expertise with a gun a secret. Leroy had heard talk a few times in several different towns he had been in about a young man who was supposedly very fast and skilful with a gun. This young man was described as being extremely tough and surly, and he spoke with a slight eastern accent. He was known as the Sundance Kid. Leroy had caught a hint of an eastern dialect in Lonzo’s voice, and he now believed that Lonzo was the very same.
Emmett heard Leroy’s deep sigh, and he turned to stare at him in puzzlement. Leroy didn’t want to betray Lonzo’s secret, but Emmett was his partner, and he trusted him. He said quietly, looking at Emmett, ‘It ain’t Hogan we all should be thanking. . . .’
