Righteous Kill

by G. Michael Hopf

  “Say, how far till Great Falls?”

  “Another day.”

  “How do you do it?” Billy asked.

  “Do what?”

  “Stay married, yet be gone all the time?”

  “It’s a careful balance, but my wife met me when I was already a marshal, so she’s used to this life. I bring in a good wage, and she lives nicely compared to most. She’s not a needy woman and has grown quite accustomed to me being gone. Heck, I think when I come home now, I get in her way,” Hemsworth said.

  Billy nodded as he took in all the information.

  “What’s with the question about my marriage?” Hemsworth asked.

  “Just curious,” Billy said.

  “I suppose you’ll want to get hitched one of these days.”

  “One day.”

  “Say, what happened back—”

  “If you’re going to ask me about that night with the whore, I don’t want to talk about it,” Billy fired back, his casual demeanor now gone.

  “You can tell me. I’m your partner and I like to think I’m also a good friend.”

  “I don’t like whores,” Billy spat.

  “I understand that, but why the visceral reaction?”

  “On account that I don’t like them.”

  Hemsworth pulled back on his reins and stopped his horse. “Just tell me, for Christ’s sake.”

  “You want to know why?”

  “Yeah, I would, only because I’d like to know my friend.”

  “I happen to respect women, and I think that prostitution doesn’t honor them. They’re objectified and abused. I think it’s degrading,” Billy snapped.

  Taken aback by Billy’s forceful rebuttal, Hemsworth asked, “Have you ever been with a woman before?”

  Shocked by the question, Billy trotted ahead, pulling Al’s horse along with him.

  As Al rode by Hemsworth, he saw a shit-eating grin on Al’s face. Knowing he had asked a deeply personal question, Hemsworth rode up alongside Billy and said, “Please accept my apology for that stupid question.”

  “What does it matter if I’ve been with a woman or not? I’m a good man, I treat all good and decent people with respect, and I think highly of the fairer sex. Why is my behavior or lack of a certain type of behavior now subject to mockery?”

  “I wasn’t mocking you,” Hemsworth said defensively. He wished he’d just kept his mouth shut now, but it was difficult on these long rides.

  “It sure sounded like it.”

  “I’ve just never seen you act that way towards prostitutes…actually I’ve never seen you ever interact with one until then,” Hemsworth said. He thought about the years they’d been riding together, and it was true: Billy never talked to or gave any attention to prostitutes.

  “I like women, real women, not ones who sell their bodies and do vile things,” Billy said.

  “My friend, I do apologize. I meant nothing wrong. I was just curious.”

  “I don’t want to bed a whore. I wish to find a good, decent woman, get married, and have a family. Why is that so bad?”

  “It’s not, it’s not at all,” Hemsworth said.

  Al could be heard chuckling behind his gag.

  Billy stopped his horse, shot Al a harsh look, and barked, “Shut it.”

  Al continued to chuckle, knowing it annoyed Billy.

  Not hesitating to lash out, Billy pulled his horse back alongside Al’s and slapped him across the face, toppling him from the saddle and onto the hard ground.

  Al hit with a thump and began to holler.

  “Did you have to do that?” Hemsworth asked.

  “Yeah, I did.”

  “Get him up.”

  “You get him up,” Billy fired back.

  Hemsworth raised his brow and said, “As your superior, I’m giving you an order. I understand you didn’t like my personal question, but that doesn’t give you permission to defy an order from me.”

  Billy hopped from his saddle, grabbed Al forcibly, and pulled him to his feet. He got him back in the saddle and said, “There.”

  “I don’t think we’ve ever had a fight.”

  Straddling his horse, Billy said, “There’s a first for everything.” He took the reins of Al’s horse and trotted ahead.

  Hemsworth shook his head as he thought about the incident and said, “Note to self, never ever mention prostitutes to Billy again.”

  SOUTH OF GREAT FALLS, MONTANA

  Alice enjoyed the sojourn into town; it was nice seeing people and things. She didn’t do exactly what her mother would have wanted, as she took time to enjoy and tinker with all sorts of items in the mercantile store.

  She longed for turning eighteen, pledging to herself that she’d leave and go find a new life. However, her thoughts of freedom did leave her with guilt, as leaving was all but abandoning Martha to the hardships and emotional turmoil of their mother.

  She thought of taking Martha with her, but where would they go, and how would she support them both? Of course, she contemplated staying until Martha turned older, but her selfishness always won the debate. It wasn’t her fault her sister was her age, and was Martha really her responsibility? Of course, the practical answer was no, but her heart would scream out for Martha. It didn’t matter that Martha was only her sister; she did feel a deep responsibility for her care and well-being since Maggie wasn’t truly a mother.

  As she made her way around a turn, her house came into view. She slowed and looked to make sure it was safe to approach. Seeing no horses or anything out of place, she advanced farther. When she made the turn off the road and onto the long drive, a loud scream followed by what could only be described as wailing came from inside the house. She pulled back on the reins, forcing the horse to stop. She looked but saw nothing. She then ceased her breathing and listened.

  Nothing.

  Fear rose in her. Were the men back? Had someone else come to take advantage?

  The wails again reverberated from the house.

  This time she could tell it was her mother’s voice.

  The front door opened and out stepped Anne. She hobbled over to her rocking chair and sat down. In her right hand was a handkerchief. She brought it to her face and dabbed tears that were streaming from her eyes.

  Cries of agony once more came from the house.

  It was clearly evident something was wrong, but what? She saw her grandma and heard her mother; the one person she hadn’t seen or heard from was Martha. Was she okay?

  Frantic that something had happened to Martha, Alice whipped the reins against the horse’s back.

  The horse reared slightly and lurched forward.

  Alice whipped the horse repeatedly to drive it faster. She sped down the drive and pulled up to the front of the house.

  Anne looked at Alice and began to sob.

  “Grandma, what’s happened?” Alice asked, jumping from the wagon.

  “It’s your sister, dear.”

  Alice sprinted onto the porch and in through the open doorway of the house.

  Maggie’s cries of sorrow came from upstairs.

  Her heart beating fast, Alice raced towards her mother’s voice. Up the stairs she went and into Martha’s bedroom.

  “She’s gone. My baby girl is gone,” Maggie shrieked upon seeing Alice in the doorway.

  Shocked, Alice took a few steps into the room but stopped when she saw Martha’s small body lying motionless on the bed, her skin opaque. “What happened?”

  In between sobs, Maggie answered, “After, ah, after you left, ah, I came up. She, ah, your sister, she, ah, was just lying here as you see now.”

  “What do you mean?” Alice asked, still frozen in place only a few feet in the room.

  “I don’t know, you left and, ah, I found her like this,” Maggie said. She crawled up alongside Martha’s body and wrapped her arms around her still body.

  Alice took a few more steps into the room. She was now a foot from the bed. “But how?”

  “I don’t k
now.”

  “But I talked to her just last night. She, she told me she might come to my room if she got scared, but she never showed. I thought she had fallen asleep. I don’t understand how this could have happened,” Alice said. “Are you sure?”

  Maggie shot Alice an angry stare and snapped, “Of course I know. My poor baby’s body is cold and stiff. She must have died last night or early this morning.”

  “But from what? I don’t understand. She was fine last night. How could she just die?”

  “I can only assume that this is God’s judgment for my sins,” Maggie cried.

  Alice found the courage and pushed past her mother to get next to Martha’s body.

  “What are you doing?” Maggie cried out.

  “I’m looking her over,” Alice said. She ran her hands over Martha’s body, looking for anything that looked suspicious. She rolled her onto her side, but her head remained stuck to the pillow. She examined there and saw that her hair was stuck due to blood that had seeped from the wound on her head. Alice carefully looked and saw the gash in her head was far worse than she had been told. “Ma, I think she died from the hit to the head.”

  “How can that be?” Maggie asked, her entire body trembling.

  Laying Martha’s body back and folding her arms over her chest tenderly, Alice replied, “It must have caused slow bleeding in her head. I’m not a doctor, so I don’t know.”

  “It’s my fault, all mine,” Maggie sobbed.

  “Ma, stop crying. It’s not your fault. Those men did this. They killed Martha,” Alice snapped.

  “No, no, it was because of the person I’ve become. I lost your father, and I, I couldn’t handle it. I took my pain out on you and Martha. I’m being punished for that,” Maggie cried.

  “No, Ma, it was those men who did this. You need to go into town and tell the sheriff.”

  “I can’t, no.”

  “Why? Why can’t you go tell the sheriff?”

  “Because it’s my fault, that’s why!” Maggie roared.

  “It’s not, those men came and did this. In fact, one man specifically hit Martha in the head; that’s what killed her.”

  Unable to stand any longer on her wobbly legs, Maggie sat on the edge of the bed. She put her face in her hands and cried. “I’m a horrible person.”

  “If you won’t go, then I will,” Alice declared.

  “And tell them what? Huh? I barely even know what they look like, and my reputation since your father died has not been good. The sheriff will question if I didn’t lure those men here,” Maggie said.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Your ma made some big mistakes after your father died,” Anne said from the doorway, startling the other two.

  “I don’t understand,” Alice said.

  Anne slowly walked into the room and sat next to Maggie. She took her hand into hers and said, “Your ma is a good woman, and I know it’s hard for you to see that, considering how she’s been since your pa died, but deep down, she’s still that mother who loved you for so many years.”

  “I remember, but you’re not answering my question,” Alice said.

  “After your pa died, she went to town to get some supplies. In her pain she ended up at a bar. I don’t remember the name and it doesn’t matter. After more than a few drinks, she did some things with some men that she doesn’t quite remember.”

  Alice searched her thoughts and now remembered the time her mother didn’t come back from town when she was supposed to. She recalled how Anne had gone looking for her and came back hours later. “Was it…”

  “If you’re thinking about the time I took Red and rode into town, yes, that time,” Anne said. Red was one of their horses.

  A surge of sympathy crashed over Alice upon hearing the real reason her mother was sensitive about talking to the sheriff. She dropped to her knees and took Maggie’s other hand. “I didn’t know, Ma.”

  “It’s not your place to know these dark things, and now this has happened. The sheriff won’t believe me. He’ll think I brought those men here; he’ll say this was my fault,” Maggie said.

  “He won’t, I promise,” Alice said.

  “Alice, we don’t know the men’s names, and my memory of that night, while vivid, is mainly of the pain. It was dark. I can’t truly recall what they looked like,” Maggie said.

  “It’s true, Alice. I can’t quite see their faces either,” Anne said.

  “I saw one specifically; I could pick him out of a crowd,” Alice said.

  “You can?” Maggie asked.

  “I can still see him clear as day standing in the lantern light from my room. I opened the door to my room and there he was in the hallway. He turned and came at me. I closed the door on him, but he got his arm through, but I stuck him with a knitting needle. Anyways, I saw him clear as day.”

  “But still, I’m sure he looks like any other man,” Maggie said.

  “I have something more than his description, I have his name,” Alice said.

  GREAT FALLS, MONTANA

  Standing frozen at the doorway to the sheriff’s office, Alice hesitated to go in. She had been so sure of herself the entire ride there, but when faced with the opportunity, she paused.

  The door opened and there stood Sheriff Amherst. “Is that you, Alice?”

  “Good day, Sheriff,” Alice mumbled.

  Amherst cocked his head and gave her an inquisitive look. “Is everything okay?”

  “No, something horrible happened.”

  Stepping out of the way, Amherst motioned with his hand for Alice to step inside.

  Nervously she came in and looked around the small space. Two desks sat opposite each other on the left and right, with a rifle rack mounted on the right back wall. On the left was an empty jail cell.

  Amherst closed the door and gently touched Alice’s shoulder. “Please take a seat,” he said, pointing to a chair in front of the desk on the right.

  Alice rushed to the chair and sat down.

  Instead of taking a seat in his chair, Amherst sat on the edge of his desk, just inches from Alice.

  Anxious, Alice fidgeted with a seam on her skirt and kept her gaze focused on the window behind the desk.

  “Tell me, what troubles a pretty little thing like you?” Amherst asked.

  She shot him a brief look then darted her eyes away.

  “It’s okay, you can tell me,” he said, leaning in and touching her cheek tenderly.

  She recoiled and said, “Please don’t do that.”

  “Sorry, you look upset, and I’m trying to ease your nerves,” Amherst replied defensively.

  “Well, Sheriff, you’re doing the opposite,” Alice declared.

  Sitting upright, Amherst folded his arms and asked, “Then tell me what I can do for you?”

  “We were attacked the other night,” she blurted out.

  “Attacked?” he asked, his brow furrowed. “Describe this attack. Where was it?”

  “At our house, men came looking for shelter. Ma ran them off, but they returned hours later. They hit Martha over the head and raped Ma and Grandma.”

  Amherst’s furrowed brow grew more intense. “Men raped your ma and grandma? Who were these men?”

  “I don’t know who they were, men from out of town, but I do have a name.”

  “And what’s the name?”

  “Joseph Paul King.”

  Amherst rubbed his chin and thought. “Never heard of him. How did you come by this name?”

  “My sister got his watch, and on the back of it, his name was etched,” Alice replied.

  “You do know that the watch may not have belonged to the man himself?”

  “But it’s a start, a clue for you to follow up.”

  “Were the men invited to come back?”

  Knowing where this was going, Alice barked, “Martha is dead!”

  Amherst swallowed hard and said, “Oh my, I’m sorry to hear that. And she died because of what happened? You’re sure abou
t this?”

  “Sheriff, you seem hesitant to help. Why is that? I came here because my family was attacked the other night, my sister died from her injury, and my mother and grandmother were raped; yet you have questions that seem to indicate you’re suspicious of my story,” Alice snapped.

  “Don’t get fussy with me, little lady,” Amherst shot back.

  “My sister is dead!” Alice barked.

  “I heard you the first time,” Amherst said. He stood up and walked around to his chair and sat. Taking a pencil, he asked, “What was the name?”

  “Joseph Paul King,” Alice replied. She watched carefully as he took down the name. “When can you send out a posse?”

  A smile stretched across his rugged face. “A posse? Listen, let me investigate this, and I’ll get back to you. Maybe it’s best you come back in a few days. I should have something about who this Joseph Paul King is by then.”

  “Sheriff, those men are out there and only a day’s ride out, if that. Maybe they’re camped somewhere local. These men are a menace to the area and need to be apprehended.”

  “Don’t tell me how to do my job. I was elected by the people of this county, and they trust that I carry out the law in an efficient manner,” Amherst bellowed.

  “These men are out there now. How come you’re not asking me questions about what they look like or how many?”

  “How many were there?”

  “Three, although four rode up initially,” Alice said.

  “Can you describe them?”

  “I can tell you about one of them,” she said as she described Joseph. “I stabbed him in the left arm, so if you find him, he’ll have a wound right about here.” She pointed to her own arm to show the place she stabbed him.

  “Anyone else you can describe?” Amherst asked.

  “No, I can’t.”

  He sighed and said, “Like I said, come back in a few days. If I get something sooner, I’ll head out to you.”

  “But, Sheriff, those men are close by. You should go looking for them now,” Alice pressed.

  “I need to investigate first,” he insisted.

  “Investigate what? My sister is dead and—”

  “I know what you said. I need to make sure of all the facts first,” he clarified.

  “What facts?”

  “How do I know these men weren’t invited to come to your house?”