Wacos Debt

by J. T. Edson

  One of the attackers went down before he even made his horse; a second crumpled over the saddle and slid down. The remainder headed off fast. Cholla Jocelyn did not worry about leaving bodies behind; he was only concerned with saving his life. His horse was running fast now and he knew he would soon be out of range of the Winchesters the cowhands always carried. He heard the slap of a bullet passing his head and urged his horse on at a better speed.

  Waco swung down from his horse. It, like the rest of the cowhands’ mounts was hard run and could not hope to catch up on the fast-riding men. One thing was for sure though. He knew that man who was headed out in the lead. There was one sure way to find out and seeing the wagon, guessing what it meant, Waco did not feel any scruples in shooting the man down. He brought up the rifle, lining it and firing fast, working the lever. That was where Jocelyn made the final mistake of his mis-spent life. He heard the bullet whistle by and thought one of the cowhands must be using either a Sharps or Remington singleshot. He was wrong. The rifle Waco was using had almost the range of the two old singleshots but with the magazine capacity neither possessed. Four times he fired, flipping open the lever each time to throw another bullet into the breech. On the fourth shot the man stiffened in his saddle and came off the horse to crash into the grass.

  Doc Leroy gave a yell. The wagon was inching towards the edge of the slope now. Waco dropped his rifle and flung himself forward, bracing himself. He saw Keith and two of the cowhands leap to his side and even in that moment was pleased to see Keith was the first to move. The boy was going to make a hand, he’d make Molly a real good husband, the Lazy W a good boss.

  The heat bit at the men as they strained to force the wagon back. Straggles of burning hay fell. But slowly, as more of the hands came up, the wagon was moved back to safety and Doc Leroy slid a rock under the wheel then watched the others step back. Waco wiped the sweat from his face and turned with a grin to grip Red Blaze’s hand as the redhead reached them. It took a lot to put Red down for long and, despite his narrow escape, he was grinning broadly. ‘Howdy boy, you came back just in time. Everything all right?’

  ‘Sure, where’s Larry.’

  ‘I shoved him and the folks from the house down into the cellar. Reckon he’ll be some riled when he gets out. But I couldn’t let him come out here, one target was enough for them at one time.’

  The cowhands crowded around Red; their jeering comments hiding their relief at finding both Red and Larry safe. They admired the redhead all the more for shoving Larry to safety before going out to almost certain death.

  On the way down the slope Keith was introduced to the others, introduced in a far less formal manner than he’d been used to. He was given just the one name, Chicago, and no attempt was made to explain his presence. He did not know but none was needed; he was introduced by a friend and would be treated as an equal unless he gave cause for the cowhands to change their opinions. They’d noted the way he was the first to leap and help Waco hold the wagon and that was a point in his favour, that he’d ridden with them was another. He was accepted by the time they’d walked down the slope and reached the house. Then they heard hooves and fanned out fast, guns ready.

  Colonel O’Dea, Smethers and several nesters came riding up. They all held rifles or shotguns and eyed the cowhands suspiciously. Waco lowered his rifle and stepped forward, ‘Howdy Colonel.’

  O’Dea looked first at the cowhands, most of them still holding their rifles ready, then glanced up at the burning wagon. ‘What’s all this, boy?’ he asked.

  ‘A bunch of guns attacked Wilbens.’ It was Red who answered for the others. ‘Waco and the crew came just in time to stop them rolling that wagon down there.’

  ‘Now you’re going in to ask Wilben for a drink?’ a nester, a tall angry-looking young man, asked.

  ‘We’re surely hoping he’ll get one for us,’ Waco agreed knowing this man would be trouble unless handled correctly. ‘Got to get him and his family out of the cellar first.’

  There was danger in the air. The nesters were suspicious at finding the cowhands in such a position. The cowhands were angry. They’d ridden here, found two of their friends helping to defend the house, and stopped the blazing hay-wagon. Now these nesters were coming here and looking for trouble. The cowhand was for the most part an amiable, friendly soul, but not when met with ingratitude such as this. There were angry mumbles on both sides.

  Swinging down from his horse Colonel O’Dea walked forward and tried the Wilbens’ door. It opened and he looked back at the nesters. ‘I take it as trusting, leaving the door open when they’re fighting off an attack.’

  The trapdoor lifted carefully and Larry, gun in hand, looked out. He grinned and called down, ‘It’s all right, folks. We can come up now.’

  Wilben came out, rubbing his head. He walked across the room and gripped Red’s hand in his own, shaking it. ‘I’m riled with you, Red, so’s Larry, what’s the idea, shoving us down there while you go out and near get killed.’

  ‘He wants to hog all the honours,’ Larry scoffed, then as they reached the door they found the rest of the party standing around. ‘You came back just in time, Waco.’

  ‘Unless they were here all the time,’ the nester who’d been doing all the talking growled.

  Wilben stepped forward. He saw the anger on the faces of the cowhands and the suspicion of the nesters. ‘Hello Charlie, how’d you lot get here?’ he asked.

  ‘The Colonel was seeing us over at my place. We heard the shooting and saw the smoke from that wagon of yours and came over in time to see the bunch making for the house.’

  ‘The S.S.C. had a herd rustled, brought over here.’ Wilben knew the young farmer, Charlie Hedge, did not like cowhands and knew why. He also wanted to end the suspicion between the cowhands and the nesters. ‘The men who stole the herd stampeded it right at us. Red there, and Larry beat them here, turned the herd and helped me defend the house. If they hadn’t been here I wouldn’t have had a chance.’

  ‘Why’d anybody steal a herd just to stampede it over your place?’ Hedge asked, eyeing the Texans truculently.

  ‘To cause trouble between the nesters and us,’ Waco remarked. ‘They knew some damned fool would want to make trouble if it happened. And they were right.’

  ‘What’s that mean?’ Hedge snapped.

  ‘Some damned fool’s doing just that.’

  ‘Charlie!’ Wilben’s snapped out word brought the others to a halt as Hedge realised what Waco meant. ‘I know why you’re against these men and I’ve told you I believe what they told us about Ben Silver. Red and Larry came here, risked getting killed to help us. Red stayed up on that slope until the right time to light the hay which turned the herd, Larry carried my Sandy down here when he was shot. Then when the men were going to send that burning wagon down here Red shoved all of us down into the cellar where we’d be safe. Then he went out alone and tried to stop them doing it.’

  The other nesters listened to Wilben for they accepted his wisdom in anything. Waco watched them, then said, ‘Talk’s getting us no place. Let’s. get those bodies in here and take a look at their faces.’

  The cowhands mounted their horses and headed to bring all the bodies in, laying them in a row along the side of the house. Waco went along, removing the masks. The first man was the one Red killed with the Kentucky rifle.

  ‘That’s one of the Kell boys,’ Hedge growled. ‘Bought that small spread from Brarsand. They’ve allus been friendly when I met them in town.’

  ‘Was real friendly out there, too.’ Red’s tones were mocking. ‘Where’s the one who was trying to down me?’

  They went along the line and then, as they reached the last, Waco pulled down the mask and nodded. ‘Cholla Jocelyn. I thought it was him.’

  ‘Brarsand’s men. All of them, they were all hired by Brarsand.’

  Waco looked at Hedge. ‘Yeah, mister. Brarsand’s men, all of them. We’d best talk this out.’

  The men gathered round in a hal
f circle. Waco stood facing them, one of the youngest here. Yet there was something about him which made the others listen to what he had to say. Before he started to speak he saw Sandy Wilben standing at the door of the cabin. The youngster’s face was showing the same worry as it had that day in Whittle when Dave Tull died.

  ‘First,’ Waco said, ‘I’m Sunshine Sam Catlan’s boy. You know he was gunned down and I came to get the men who did it. I know why he was killed, or some of it. I know who ordered the killing.’ Then he remembered something Keith said to him. ‘Chicago, who was that hombre Jackson was with when you met him?’

  ‘Benedict of the Chicago and Texas Railroad. They’re thinking of running a spur line down to Whittle. He was after my father to invest in it.’ Keith realised he was betraying a confidence, but knew that the betrayal was necessary.

  ‘That’s the reason. Look at the lay of the land. The railroad would come down here, through your land, across the Ranse and along the S.S.C., Lazy W line.’

  Talk welled up among the nesters. This was news of vital importance to them, far more so than to the cowhands. Hedge spoke up, ‘What do you make of it, then?’

  ‘I’ve got it all now. Molly was in Chicago, my pappy killed. They thought either to scare Mary Anne out, or break her.’ Waco went on to explain about the forged letter and what its consequences would have been. The men here knew the lay of the land and did not need it explained in detail. Then he told of his suspicions and the trip to Chicago to find proof. He finished off. ‘That raid on the S.S.C. when the young nester was killed, that was to scare off Mary Anne or stir up trouble which would make her even more willing to sell. Who’d haye known that pappy was going fishing that day?’

  ‘Nearly everybody who was in the tavern that night,’ O’Dea replied. ‘We’d been spinning windies about shooting and fishing and I bet Sam he couldn’t take Old Mossyhorn. He said he’d be going out next morning. Brarsand was stakeholder for us. He said he’d go out and see how Sam went on.’

  ‘Brarsand, did he go alone?’

  ‘He said he never went. I went out and looked over the ground, there’d been four men there,’ O’Dea replied.

  ‘How’d one man take all three of them?’ Waco shook his head. ‘Pappy wasn’t good with a gun, but him and the boys would be too much for one man.’

  ‘Not if they were watching your pappy playing a big bass,’ Red put in, pulling out his handkerchief and unrolling the phantom lure. ‘I found a real big bass and took this out of his mouth.’

  ‘And Sam’s line was bust when we found him,’ O’Dea said thoughtfully. ‘Brarsand faded out of sight just after the shooting. Della told us he’d gone east on business.’

  ‘Then Brarsand killed my pappy,’ Waco took the phantom from Red. ‘They’d all be watching the bass, not one of them would give him any attention. That was how he got them.’ He faced Sandy Wilben, eyes hard and voice dropping grimly. ‘All right, what happened the night Ben Silver was killed?’

  Sandy gulped. His eyes went to his father but Wilben ordered him to tell anything he could. ‘Ben and me went into the back room of the tavern. Dave Tull and the rest were there. They started to get us drunk, asked us if we wanted to go with them and have some fun. They were going to the S.S.C. to hooraw the hands. Ben was drunk, real drunk. I wasn’t so bad and I got scared. Said I was going out back and just as I was going I saw Tull give Ben one of his guns. I lit out for home and left Ben with them.’

  Hedge’s eyes were hard. He turned to Waco and held out his hand. ‘Looks like I owe you an apology, friend. It was just like you told it. What’s Brarsand expect to gain by all this?’

  ‘The railroad’ll pay good prices for the right of way they want. That land of your’n be worth more’n it was solid gold. The man who owned it all and the two ranches would make him a fortune. That was what Brarsand would be aiming for. Same as the saloon .he built. It wouldn’t pay any in a small town like Whittle. But when Whittle boomed open with the railroad he’d be ready. He’d have the first and biggest saloon in town, he’d pile money up before the others could be built.’

  ‘What’re we going to do, friend?’ Hedge asked for the other nesters. ‘Ben Silver was kin even though I never saw eye to eye with his old man and I don’t take to him being killed.’

  ‘I’m going to town after Brarsand. There’s one way to prove he killed the man in Chicago, look at his gun. I’ve never seen it, have any of you?’

  There was a chorus of noes to this and O’Dea stepped up to stand by Waco. ‘You haven’t enough proof to take him into court, boy.’

  ‘That’s right. But I’ll get it one way or the other.’

  ‘We’re with you,’ Wilben spoke for the nesters.

  ‘All right. We’ll ride by the S.S.C., pick up more shells, then head into town. It’ll be morning before we can do anything at all. Comes sun-up we’ll go for a showdown.’

  Mrs. Wilben came out. ‘Coffee’s on the boil, you’ll have time for a drink before you leave.’

  O’Dea came to Waco’s side as the other men gathered together, talking. ‘What’re you going to do, boy?’

  ‘What I came here for, get the man who shot down my pappy.’

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  MARY ANNE GETS HER CHANCE

  BRARSAND got the news of the failure of the stampede from one of the men who’d escaped. He got it in the back room of his saloon early in the evening. ‘Where’s Cholla?’ he asked.

  ‘Dead and the Kell boys.’

  ‘You get their bodies clear?’

  ‘No boss. There wasn’t time. The cowhands were on to us foot, hoss and artillery. We was lucky to get clear alive.’

  ‘Were you?’ Brarsand snarled. ‘You damned, loco fool. I told you not to leave any bodies.’ There was no time for recrimination now, the young man called Waco would be coming here. Brarsand licked his lips. He thought fast. ‘Get the place cleared of all but our men, then lock it up. I want all the boys ready for a fight. They’ll be on us come sun-up at the latest.’

  The occupants of the saloon were considerably surprised to be told it was closing down. Brarsand’s men did not give them a chance to object but evicted them. Then the gunmen set to work to prepare the place for a fight that they knew must come. Della and the girls were set to work by Brarsand and within half an hour the place was silent, locked. Behind the walls the gunmen loaded their rifles and put out boxes of bullets ready for use.

  At the Hood City saloon Lafe Sanger and Jabe Spencer were both surprised and pleased by the sudden influx of customers who’d been evicted from the tavern. Sanger was worried when he listened to a cowhand’s voluble discussion on the fate which caused him to be turned out just when he’d hit him a lucky break. Picking up his hat the old-timer left the saloon and walked along the street towards the jail. He saw a man come out and recognised the angular shape of Talbot, the town marshal. Sanger was about to call out for, although he disliked the man, he always tried to co-operate with Talbot in any law matters. Then he shut his mouth for two more men left the jail, each loaded down with rifles, shotguns and ammunition. It was the supply held in the jail and Talbot should not be moving them at night. Sanger trailed the men around the back of the saloon. He saw a door open and Della Christine look out. The woman beckoned the other three men to enter and closed the door once more. Sanger went forward fast, his old Leech and Rigdon gun in his hand. He heard the click of the key turning in the lock and moved in closer to try and hear what was being said. All he could hear was a low muttering and drew back. Lafe Sanger was a wily old cuss and knew there was something afoot here, something concerned with Brarsand and that soft-talking young feller out at the S.S.C.

  Della Christine locked the door and dropped the key into her bag along with the Remington Double Derringer which lay there. ‘That all the weapons, Talbot?’ she asked.

  ‘Sure.’ Talbot held down his anger at this woman talking to him in such a manner.

  ‘Did anybody see you?’

  ‘No.’ Talbot w
ould not admit that he clean forgot to see what was going on in town and did not know if he’d been followed. ‘What’s goin on?’

  ‘We’ve got trouble,’ Della was mocking. ‘You’re going to start earning some of your pay right now.’

  Sanger withdrew, made his way home and collected his horse. He rode out for the S.S.C. and found a large party gathered there. All Mary Anne’s crew, the nesters and the Lazy W hands were there, eating a hearty meal, checking their weapons and stuffing boxes of bullets into their pockets. It took Sanger only a few minutes listening to give his approval to the capture of Brarsand although he gave a grave warning about the state the saloon was in.

  ‘They’ll take some getting, boy,’ he finished.

  ‘I know, but we’re going to get them.’

  Mary Anne and Molly came over as the men mounted. Waco gripped the girl by the arms and kissed her. ‘You stay on here, Rusty gal. We can handle this one without your help.’

  Mary Anne nodded with surprising mildness. Waco was expecting violent objections from both girls at being left out of things but they were not raised. Molly kissed Keith, the engagement ring once more on her hand. ‘Take care of yourself,’ she said.

  ‘I’ll do just that.’ Keith held her tight to him.

  The men mounted and Waco gave his last orders. ‘Remember, we’ll get all round the place in the dark. Don’t start in to shooting until it’s light enough to see who you’re shooting at. If any of them come out try and rope them. But don’t take chances, you’re up against trained gunhands. Shoot if you have to and shoot to kill.’

  Mary Anne and Molly watched the men riding out and waited until the hooves faded into the distance. They stood side by side and finally Mary Anne spoke. ‘Lil brother said we’d got to stay out here out of the way, didn’t he?’

  ‘Sure, and Chicago. We wouldn’t want to do anything they didn’t want us to, now would we?’

  ‘We sure wouldn’t.’ There was a light in Mary Anne’s eyes. ‘A woman should always do what the menfolks tells her.’