Riders Of the Dawn (1980)

by L'amour, Louis

  “And Park?”

  He looked at me sharply, a cool, measuring glance, as i f to see what inspired the remark. Then he said, “Morgan Par k is generally felt to see things as Maclaren does.”

  Is that your opinion?”

  He did not answer me, frowning as he stared out th e door. Key Chapin was a handsome man and an able one. I c ould understand how he felt about law and order. Basically , I agreed with him, but when I’m attacked, I can’t take it lyin g down.

  “Look, Chapin”—I leaned over the table—I’ve known a dozen frontier towns tougher than this one. To each came la w and order, but it took a fight to get it. The murderers, cheats , and swindlers must be stamped out before the honest citizen s can have peace. And it’s peace that I’m fighting for. You , more than anybody else, can build the situation to readines s for it with your paper. Write about it. Get the upright citizens prepared to enforce it, once this battle is over.”

  He nodded and then glanced at me. “What about you?

  You’re a gunfighter. In such a community, there is no plac e for such a man.”

  That made me grin. “Chapin, I never drew a gun on a man in my life who didn’t draw on me first, or try to! An d while I may be a gunfighter, ‘I’m soon to be a rancher and a solid citizen. Count on me to help.”

  “Even to stopping this war?”

  “What war? Ball had a ranch. He was a peaceful old ma n who wanted no trouble from anyone, but he was weaker tha n the Bar M or the CP so he died. He turned the ranch over t o me on the condition that I keep it. If protecting one’s property is war, then well have it for a long time.”

  “You could sell out.”

  “Run? Is that what you mean? I never ducked out of a good fight yet, Chapin, and never will. When they sto p fighting me, Ill hang up my guns. Until then, I shall continue to fight.”

  Filling my glass, I added, “Don’t look at the overal l picture so long that you miss the details.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Look for motives. What are the origins of this fight? I’d start investigating the participants, and I mean neither Maclare n nor Pinder!”

  Getting up, I put my hat on my head and added, “Eve r hear of a man named Booker at Silver Reef? A lawyer?”

  “He’s an unmitigated scoundrel, and whatever he doe s he’s apt to get away with. If there’s a loophole in the law h e doesn’t know, then nobody knows it.”

  “Then find out why he’s interested in this fight, an d when the Slade boys drift into this country, ask yourself wh y they are here. Also, ask yourself why Morgan Park is meetin g Booker in secret.”

  Olga was not in town, so I turned the buckskin towar d the Bar M. A cowhand with one foot bandaged was seated o n the doorstep when I rode up. He stared, his jaw dropping.

  “Howdy,” I said calmly, taking out the makings. -I’m visiting on the ranch and don’t want any trouble. As far a s you boys are concerned, I’ve no hard feelings.”

  “You’ve no hard feelin’s! What about me? You durne d near shot my foot off!.”

  I grinned at him. “Next time you’ll stay under cover.

  Anyway, what are you gripin’ about? You haven’t done a lic k of work since it happened!”

  Somebody chuckled. I looked around and saw Canaval.

  “I reckon he did it on purpose, Sabre.”

  “Purpose?” The injured man roared. Disgusted, h e turned and limped off.

  “What you want here, Sabre?” Canaval asked, still smiling.

  “Just visiting.”

  “Sure you’re welcome?”

  “No, I’m not sure. But if you’re wondering if I cam e looking for trouble, I didn’t. If trouble comes to me on thi s ranch now it will be because I’m pushed and pushed hard. I f you’re the guardian angel of peace, just relax. I’m courtin’.”

  “Rud won’t take kindly to that. He may have me orde r you off.”

  “All right, Canaval, if he does, and you tell me to go, I’l l go. Only one thing—you keep Park off me. I’m not ready fo r him, and when it comes I’d rather she didn’t see it.”

  “Fair enough.” He tossed his cigarette into the yard.

  “You’ll not be bothered under those circumstances. Only”—h e grinned and his eyes twinkled—you might be wron g about Olga. She might like to see you tangle with Park!”

  Starting up the steps, I remembered something. “Canaval!”

  He turned sharply, ready on the instant.

  “A friendly warning,” I said. “Some of the people wh o don’t like me also want your boss out of here. To get him out , you have to go first. If you hear of the Slades in this country , you’ll know they’ve come for you and your boss!”

  His eyes searched mine. “The Slades?”

  “Yeah, for you and Maclaren. Somebody is saving me fo r dessert.”

  He was standing there looking after me when I knocked.

  Inside a voice answered that set my blood pounding. “Com e in!”

  Chapter 7

  As I entered, there was an instant when my reflectio n was thrown upon the mirror beside hers. Seeing my gaz e over her shoulder, she turned, and we stood there, looking a t ourselves in the mirror—a tall, dark young man in a dark blu e shirt, black silk neckerchief, black jeans, and tied-down holsters with their walnut-stocked guns, and Olga in a sea-gree n gown, filmy and summery looking.

  She turned quickly to face me. “What are you doin g here? My father will be furious!”

  “Hell have to get over it sometime, and it might as wel l be right now.”

  She searched my face. “You’re still keeping up tha t foolish talk? About marrying me?”

  “It isn’t foolish. Have you started buying your trousseau?”

  “Of course not!”

  “You’d better. You’ll need something to wear, and I w on’t have much money for a year or two.”

  “Matt”— her face became serious—“you’d better go. I’m expecting Morgan.”

  I took her hands. “Don’t worry. I promised Canava l there would be no trouble, and there will be none, no matte r what Morgan Park wants to do or tries to do.”

  She was unconvinced and tried to argue, but I was thinking how lovely she was. Poised, her lovely throat bare, sh e was something to set a man’s pulses pounding.

  “Matt!” She was angry now. “You’re not even listening!

  And don’t look at me like that!”

  “How else should a man look at a woman? And why don’t we sit down? Is this the way you receive guests at the Bar M?

  At the Two Bar we are more thoughtful.”

  “So I’ve heard!” she said dryly. Her anger faded. “Matt?

  How do you feel? I mean those wounds—are they all right?”

  “Not all right, but much better. I’m not ready for Morgan Park yet, but I will be soon. He won’t be missed muc h when he’s gone.”

  “Gone?” She was surprised. “Remember that I lik e Morgan. “

  “Not very much.” I shrugged. “Yes, gone. This countr y isn’t big enough to hold both of us even if you weren’t in it.”

  She sat down opposite me, and her face was flushed a little. She looked at me and then looked away, and neither o f us said anything for a long minute. “It’s nice here,” I said a t last. “Your father loves this place, doesn’t he?”

  “Yes, only I wish he would be content and stop trying t o make it bigger.”

  “Men like your father never seem to learn when the y have enough.”

  “You don’t talk like a cowhand, Matt.”

  “That’s because I read a book once.”

  “Key told me you had been all over the world. He checked up on you. He said you had fought in China an d South Africa.”

  “That was a long time ago.”

  “How did you happen to come west?”

  “I was born in the West, and then I always wanted t o return to it and have a ranch of my own, but there wasn’t anything to hold me down, so I just kept on driftin
g fro m place to place. Staying in one place did not suit me unles s there was a reason to stay, and there never was—before.”

  Tendrils of her dark hair curled against her neck. Th e day was warm, and I could see tiny beads of perspiration o n her upper lip. She stood up suddenly, uneasily. “Matt, you’d better go. Father will be coming and he’ll be furious.”

  “And Morgan Park will be coming. And it doesn’t matte r in the least whether they come or not. I came here to se e you, and as long as they stay out of the way there’ll be n o trouble.”

  “But, Matt—” She stepped closer to me, and I took he r by the elbows. She started to step back, but I drew her to m e swiftly. I took her chin and turned her head slightly. Sh e resisted, but the continued pressure forced her chin to com e around. She looked at me then, her eyes wide and mor e beautiful than I would ever have believed eyes could he, an d then I kissed her.

  We stood there, clinging together tightly, and then sh e pulled violently away from me. For an instant she looked a t me, and then she moved swiftly to kiss me again, and w e were like that when hoofs sounded in the yard. Two horses.

  We stepped apart, but her eyes were wide and her fac e was pale when they came through the door, her breast heaving and her white teeth clinging to her lower lip. They cam e through the door, Rud Maclaren first and then Morgan Park , dwarfing Maclaren in spite of the fact that he was a big man.

  When they saw me they stopped.

  Park’s face darkened with angry blood. He starte d toward me, his voice hoarse with fury. “Get out! Get out, I sayy’

  “

  My eyes went past him to Maclaren.

  “Is Park running this place, or are you? It seems to m e he’s got a lot of nerve, ordering people off the place of Ru d Maclaren.”

  Maclaren flushed. He didn’t like my being there, but h e disliked Park’s usurping of authority even more. “That’ll do , Morgan! I’ll order people out of my own home!”

  Morgan Park’s face was ugly at that minute. But befor e he could speak, Canaval appeared in the door. “Boss, Sabr e said he was visitin’, not huntin’ trouble. He said he woul d make no trouble and would go when I asked him. He als o said he would make no trouble with Park.”

  Before Maclaren could reply, Olga said quickly, “Father , Mr. Sabre is my guest. When the time comes he will leave.

  Until then I wish him to stay.”

  “I won’t have him in this house!” Maclaren said angrily.

  He strode to me, the veins in his throat swelling. “Damn you , Sabre! You’ve a gall to come here after shootin’ my men , stealin’ range that rightly belon gs to me, an’ runnin’ my cattl e out of Cottonwood!”

  “Perhaps,” I admitted, “there’s something in what yo u say, but I think we have no diffe rences we can’t settle withou t fighting. Your men came after me first. I never wanted trouble with you, Rud, and I think we can reach a peacefu l solution.”

  It took the fire out of him. He was still truculent, stil l wanting to throw his weight around, but mollified. Right the n I sensed the truth about Rud Maclaren. It was not land an d property he wanted so much as to be known as the bigges t man in the country. He merely knew of no way to get respec t and admiration other than through wealth and power.

  Realizing that gave me an opening. -I was talking t o Chapin today. If we are going to be safe we must stop all thi s fighting, and the only way it can be done is through th e leadership of the right man. I think you’re that man, Maclaren.

  He was listening, and he liked what he heard.

  “You’re the big man of the community,” I added. “If yo u make a move for peace, others will follow.

  “The Pinders wouldn’t listen!” he protested. “You kno w that! You killed Rollie, but if you hadn’t, Canaval might have.

  Jim will never rest until you’re dead. And he hates me and al l I stand for.”

  Morgan Park was listening, his eyes hard and watchful.

  He had never imagined that Maclaren and I would tal k peace, and if we reached a settlement, his plans were finished.

  “If Pinder and the CP were alone they would have t o become outlaws to persist in this fight. If the fight continues , all the rustlers in the country will come in here to run off ou r herds while we fight. Did it ever fail? When honest men fal l out, thieves always profit. Moreover, you’ll break yoursel f paying gunman’s wages. From now on they’ll come higher.”

  Olga was listening with some surprise and, I believed , with respect. Certainly, I had gone farther than I had eve r believed possible. My own instinct is toward fighting, yet I h ave always been aware of the futility of it. Now I could se e that if the fighting ended, all our problems would be simpl e and easily settled. The joker in the deck was Morgan Park; h e had everything to lose by a settlement and nothing to gain.

  Park interrupted suddenly. “I wouldn’t trust all this talk , Rud. Sabre sounds good, but he’s got some trick in mind.

  What’s he planning? What’s he trying to cover?”

  “Morgan!” Olga protested. “I’m surprised at you! Matt i s sincere and you know it.”

  “I know nothing of the kind,” he replied shortly. “I’m surprised that you would defend this—this killer.”

  He was looking at me as he spoke, and it was then I sai d the one thing I had wanted to say, the hunch I could no t prove. At least,” I replied, “my killings have been in fai r fights, by men trying to kill me. I’ve never killed a man wh o had no gun and who would have been helpless against me i n any case!”

  Morgan Park stiffened and his face grew livid. Yet I k new from the way his eyes searched my face that he detected the undercurrent of meaning, and he was trying t o gauge the depth of my knowledge. It was D’Arcy I had i n mind, for D’Arcy had known something about Park and ha d been slain for what he knew, or because he might tell other s what he knew. I was sure of that.

  “It isn’t only rustlers,” I continued, to Maclaren, “bu t others have schemes they can only bring to success throug h trouble here. There are those who wish this fight to continu e so they may get rights and claims they could never secure i f there was peace.”

  Morgan Park was glaring, fighting for control. He coul d see that unless he kept his temper and acted quickly his plan s might be ruined. Something of what I’d said apparently touche d Maclaren, for he was nodding.

  “I’ll have to think it over,” Maclaren said. “This is n o time to make decisions.”

  “By all means.” Turning, I took Olga’s arm. “Now if y ou’ll excuse us?”

  Morgan’s face was a study in concentrated fury. He started forward, blood in his eye. Putting Olga hurriedly t o one side, I was ready for him, but Canaval stepped betwee n us. “Hold it!” Canaval’s command stopped Park in his tracks.

  “That’s all, Park. We’ll have no trouble here.”

  “What’s the matter?” he sneered. “Sabre need a nursemaid now?”

  “No.” The foreman was stiff. “He gave me his word, an d I gave mine. As long as he is on this place my word holds. I f the boss wants him to go, he’ll go.”

  In the silence that followed, Maclaren turned to me.

  “Sabre, I’ve no reason to like you, but you are my daughter’s guest and you talk straight from the shoulder. Remain as lon g as you like.”

  Park started to speak, but realized he could do nothing.

  He turned his heavy head, staring at me from under heav y brows. That gaze was cold and deadly. “We can settle ou r differences elsewhere, Sabre.”

  Olga was worried when we got outside. “You shouldn’t have come, Matt. There’ll be trouble. Morgan is a bad enemy.”

  “He was my enemy, anyway. That he is a bad enemy, I k now. I think another friend of yours found that out.”

  She looked up quickly, real fear in her eyes. “What d o you mean?”

  “Your friend D’Arcy. He comes of a family that does no t frighten easily. Did you ever have a note of acknowledgmen t from him?”

  “No.
”

  “Strange. I’d have said such a man would never neglec t such an obvious courtesy.”

  We stood together, then, looking out at the night an d the desert, no words between us but needing no words, ou r hearts beating together, our blood moving together, feelin g the newness of love discovered. The cottonwood leaves brushe d their pale green hands together, and their muted whisperin g seemed in tune with our own thoughts. This was my woman , the one I would walk down the years with. The leaves sai d that and my blood said it, and I knew the same thoughts wer e in her, reluctant as she might be to admit it.

  “This trouble will pass,” I said softly, “as the night wil l pass, and when it has gone, and the winds have blown th e dust away, then I shall take you to Cottonwood Wash—t o live.” Her hand stayed in mine, and I continued. “We’ll buil d something there to last down the years until this will all see m a bad dream, a nightmare dissipated by the morning sunlight.”

  “But could you ever settle down? Could you stay?”

  “Of course. Men don’t wander for the love only o f wandering, they wander because they are in search of something. A place of one’s own, a girl, a job accomplished. It i s only you who has mattered since the day I rode into th e streets of Hattan’s Point and saw you there.”

  Turning toward her, I took her by the elbows. He r breath caught and then came quickly and deeply. Her lip s parted slightly as she came into my arms, and I felt her war m body melt against mine, and her lips were warm and seeking , urgent, passionate. My fingers ran into her hair and along he r scalp, and her kisses hurt my lips as mine must have hur t hers. All the fighting, all the waiting, melted into nothingnes s then.

  She pulled back suddenly, frightened yet excited, he r breasts rising and falling as she fought for control. “This isn’t good! We’re—we’re too violent. We’ve got to be more calm.”

  I laughed then, full of the zest of living and loving an d seeing the glory of her there in the moonlight. I laughed an d took her arms again. “You’re not exactly a calm person.”

  “I?” A flush darkened her face. “Well, all right then.

  Neither of us is calm.”

  “Need we be?” My hands reached for her, and then I h eard someone whistling. Irritably, I looked up to hear fee t grating on the gravel path.