by Duane Boehm
“Aren’t you looking pretty tonight,” Kurt said and gave Mary his best grin.
“Pretty fat,” Mary replied with a smile.
“You wear it well. How do they say it? It becomes you, I believe is how it goes,” he said.
“Well, I’ll be glad when it becomes a baby and not my belly,” she said.
Kurt chuckled at her play on words. “I’m sure. I’ll have another beer,” he said.
Mary filled the mug and placed it in front of the ranch hand. “You know, Kurt, you should be careful with the company that you keep. I’m not too sure about those two,” she said.
“Aw, Danny and Lacey are alright. I grant you that both of them are on the lazy side, but they’re both honest enough. Don’t you worry, ma’am. I plan to make something of myself. I don’t hang around shady characters,” he said.
“That’s good to know. A person can go far if they set their mind to it and I think you’re one of those people. I sure never thought I’d own two businesses,” Mary said.
Kurt and Mary continued talking until he finished his beer. He ordered another one and then excused himself to make the rounds. The time had come to talk up the other cowboys and play some cards. Kurt loved to listen to the others gossip and complain about the ranch where they worked and to take their money at the card table. Both money and information were things that he found very useful.
Chapter 16
A week had passed since Gideon and Finnie’s return from killing the outlaws. News of the return of the bank money had gone a long ways in appeasing the mood of the town though Gideon still got the sense that the shine of his badge had diminished in the eyes of many people. Nonetheless, he and the deputy remained grateful for a quiet week in which to recover from their long journey.
Gideon made his morning walk of the town. The summer sun was already knocking the chill out of the air and the sky looked cloudless and robin egg blue. That morning he had gotten out of bed feeling like his old self again for the first time since returning and he walked with a spring in his step down the street. Just as he returned to the jail, Marcus Hanson rode up.
Seeing Marcus instantly put a damper on Gideon’s spirit. There could be no way that the rancher stopped at the jail for a friendly visit. Marcus had once been married to Abby and was Winnie’s father. He and Gideon were the same age and had gone to school together. Even back then, they had never been particularly close. Gideon respected Marcus’s honesty and work ethic, but considered his personality to be about two shades more engaging than a fence post. After Abby divorced Marcus and married Gideon, the animosity between the two men had grown considerably. And now that Winnie no longer resented Gideon, but considered him a second father, Marcus had become downright hostile towards Gideon and Abby.
“I need to talk to you,” Marcus said as he climbed down from his horse.
Gideon’s first inclination was to wonder what Winnie had said to her father on her last visit to see him. Winnie could be a willful child and there was no telling what she might have said if she had been upset with Abby.
“Come on in,” Gideon said, walking into the jail and sitting down at his desk.
Marcus followed and dropped into a chair in front of the sheriff. He sat hunched over with his legs wide apart and his arms dangling against his thighs. “I’ve been having a ranch hand stay with each of my herds since you can’t seem to find the rustlers and had to go chase bank robbers across the country that you let get away. Reese never came in this morning and I went looking for him. I found him dead and my cattle gone,” he said.
Sitting back in his chair, Gideon rubbed his scar and inhaled deeply before blowing out the air with his cheeks puffed up. The news surprised him too much to bother being irritated at Marcus’s insults. “I liked Reese and I’m sorry to hear that. When’s the last time that you saw him?” he asked.
“Three day ago,” Marcus answered.
“Three days ago? I know your spread is big, but it’s not so big that you couldn’t have had your men come check in each day. What kind of fool does something like that? That’s the silliest damn thing I’ve ever heard tell,” Gideon challenged.
“I’ll tell you what kind of fool does that – one that thinks he has an incompetent sheriff,” Marcus said as he arose to his feet.
“Well, I’d say you’re the one that looks pretty incompetent at this moment,” Gideon said as he stood up and leaned over the desk, bracing his arms to support his weight.
“You love this, don’t you? I’m sure you can’t wait to get home to bad mouth me to Winnie,” Marcus hollered.
“I’ve never once said a disparaging word about you to Winnie and I never will. I don’t need to do that to win her affection,” Gideon said.
Finnie had walked into the jail and sized up the situation. “Gentlemen, I suggest that you take your seats. Neither of your reputations will be well served if you two get into a brawl. Winnie will be the one that suffers,” he said.
Gideon glared over at his deputy before sitting down and Marcus followed his lead.
“We’ve got a murder on our hands and some cattle rustled from Marcus’s place,” Gideon said to Finnie.
“Then I suggest we get out there and have a look,” Finnie said.
“It could have happened three days ago,” Gideon said with disdain in his voice while looking at Marcus.
“Will we need a wagon to bring the body back?” Finnie asked.
“No, I’ll bury Reese on the ranch. He doesn’t have any family around these here parts and apparently had a checkered past. We never could pin him down on where he came from,” Marcus said as he stood again.
The three men took the road south to Marcus’s ranch and then headed east to the body. A trail of blood stretched for fifty yards from the remains and forced Gideon to look away for a moment to steel himself for the job at hand. He climbed down from the horse and flipped over the body. Reese had a gunshot to the chest that had apparently severed a major artery. Animals had nearly gnawed an arm off and chewed a gaping hole in his thigh. After being shot, the ranch hand had walked and crawled back towards the ranch before succumbing to his injuries. His horse also lay dead.
“I haven’t seen this much blood since the war,” Finnie remarked.
“Poor Reese. He really was a pretty fair ranch hand. He’d calmed down a lot in the last few years. He sure never deserved to go like this,” Marcus said before setting his jaw in a grimace.
“I would say he’s been dead for two, if not three days. Let’s try to figure out how many of them there were,” Gideon said and started walking around the pasture.
The men walked around for a few minutes scanning the ground.
“I come up with three horses. What about you?” Finnie asked.
“Same thing. I’d say we’re probably dealing with the same ones that stole Carter Mason’s cattle and Randall Jenkins’ herd while we were gone. They drove the herd east just like before,” Gideon said and spat on the ground.
“Except that this time they got bold enough to murder,” Finnie said.
“Yes, they did and I’d swear they have inside information on each of their thefts. Each one took days before anybody realized they’d been robbed,” Gideon said.
“I thought the same thing,” Finnie said.
“Marcus, we’re done here. Are you going to take care of Reese’s body?” Gideon asked.
“Yeah, I’ll get him buried. Gideon, I want to apologize for what I said earlier. I was upset with Reese’s murder and I took it out on you. I’m truly sorry,” Marcus said.
“We’re good. And Marcus, I’d never try to turn Winnie against you,” Gideon said.
“I know,” Marcus replied.
“Have you gone to see Joann’s baby? She’s a cute little thing,” Gideon said.
“No, I haven’t been out there in a while,” Marcus answered.
“Abby told me after I got back that Joann mentioned that you hadn’t been out yet. She thinks the world of you. You need to go.
You’re part of her family too,” Gideon said.
Marcus smiled and held his hand out to shake with Gideon.
“I’ll get out there and see the baby. The past is in the past. I’m going to let go of it. No more hard feelings,” Marcus said as they shook hands.
“I’d like that,” Gideon said.
Gideon and Finnie departed and began the journey back to town.
“This has been a strange day,” Finnie said as they rode.
“Tell me about it. I was in a good mood. If you hadn’t walked into the jail when you did, I fear Marcus and I would have come to blows. And we have to get this rustling stopped before somebody else dies. Nobody is going to keep this stealing up right under our noses,” Gideon said.
Once back in town, Finnie said, “I’m going to make a walk of the town. It can’t hurt for everybody to see we’re still on the job.”
“That’ll be good. I’m going to talk to your wife. She’s the best detective in this town,” Gideon said.
Walking into the Last Chance, Gideon sat down at his usual table and waited for Mary to bring him a beer. She busied herself slicing meat as Delta brought out food for the lunch crowd and didn’t notice him for a moment. When she did, she grabbed a mug and filled it.
“Are you ever going to have that baby?” Gideon asked as she walked over to him.
“Doc says it could be anytime now. I’m ready,” Mary said.
“Can you sit down for a minute?” he asked.
Mary looked back towards the bar, before answering. “Your timing isn’t the greatest, but Delta can finish up,” she said.
Gideon jumped up and pulled a chair out for her, helping her scoot up to the table.
“Marcus had some cattle rustled and Reese was murdered,” Gideon said.
“Oh, no, that’s terrible. I liked Reese. He always behaved himself in here. Somebody is sure getting brazen,” Mary said.
“Exactly. It’s as if they know that the cattle herd won’t be checked on for a few days. Have you seen anything suspicious with your customers?” he asked.
“Gideon, I have a whole room full of cowboys in here on Friday and Saturday nights. Some of them are good and some of them aren’t, but they all mingle with each other. There hasn’t been anybody new in town or anything that stands out in my mind,” she said.
“That’s not what I wanted to hear. I thought with your ability to see the good and evil in men that you’d have some ideas for me. You’re the best lawman in town,” Gideon said before taking a drink of beer.
“Well, Deputy Mary is at a loss this time. I don’t know what to tell you,” she said before putting her hand to her stomach and wincing.
“Are you okay?” Gideon asked with concern.
“Yeah, the baby just gave me a real good kick. Want to feel?” Mary said.
Gideon rested his hand on Mary’s stomach and smiled. “I never grew tired of feeling Chance kick Abby. There’s something about it that is so miraculous,” he said.
“Spoken like a true man. You wouldn’t think it was so great if it happened to you constantly,” she said.
“Oh, just be glad that baby is showing you that it’s alive and healthy,” Gideon said.
“I am. I’m just teasing. Don’t be so literal. I couldn’t stand you getting all serious on me now,” Mary said.
“Well, I’m going to be serious one more time. I want you to know how happy I am for you and Finnie. I can’t think of two people that deserve happiness more than you two,” he said.
Mary smiled and patted Gideon’s hand. “Thank you. Me, you, and Finnie have had more changes in our lives in the last few years than the rest of the town put together,” she said.
“Have you picked out names yet? Finnie won’t answer me,” Gideon said.
“We have a boy’s name picked out, but I can’t tell you. We agreed to keep it a secret. We’re still fighting over what to call a girl,” Mary said.
“That sounds about right. That knot–head husband of yours would probably name a girl something awful if you let him,” he said.
“You can only imagine what he’s come up with. Some of them sound like Irish witch names to me,” Mary said and giggled.
Chapter 17
Gideon had kept postponing the conversation he needed to have with Abby the previous night until he missed his opportunity when she fell asleep. As they sat eating breakfast the next morning, he waited for the right moment to speak. He knew that she wouldn’t be happy and he dreaded ruining the morning.
“Abby, I’ve decided to go stay in Alamosa at the hotel for a few days to keep an eye on the railyard. It’s the only way that I can think of to maybe catch the rustlers. I know the cattle are getting shipped out there,” Gideon said.
Abby set her fork down and looked at her husband. “Gideon, you’ve been gone more than you’ve been here lately. The children need you. I need you. Can’t you come up with something else?” she asked.
“I wish I could. I don’t fancy the idea of being away from home either. My own bed suits me just fine, but I got to put a stop to this rustling before somebody else gets killed. These rustlers are good at what they do,” he said.
“Is it going to be like this forever?” Abby asked.
“Abby, you know that sometimes months go by with nothing more than a drunk getting rowdy. Now is not one of those times,” Gideon said.
“How are you going to know whether a herd is rustled or not?” Abby asked.
“I’ve been back in Last Stand long enough that I think I know all the brands and the cowboys that go with them. And if I don’t, I’ll use my keen sense of observation to spot the bad guys,” Gideon said, smiling at his attempt at humor.
Peering at Gideon, Abby said, “You’re lucky that you’re so charming or I might start looking to replace you. And on a similar subject, you never gave me any details with how you and Marcus got along.”
Glancing across the room to make sure that Winnie remained preoccupied with playing with Chance, Gideon said, “It started out badly. We nearly came to blows, but things ended on good terms. In fact, I think we came to an understanding where things will be a lot better from here on out.”
“Good. We have several more years of dealing with Marcus until Winnie gets grown and it’s time for everybody to move on. Let’s go pack you some clothes,” she said before she shoved her last bite of bacon into her mouth.
After packing and telling the family goodbye, Gideon rode to town. Finnie already knew of his plans and after Gideon spent a few minutes with the deputy, he walked across the street to see the doctor. Doc had been so busy with his family that Gideon had barely seen him lately. He found the doctor sitting at his desk doing paperwork.
“So the town does still have a doctor,” Gideon said.
“Yes, people are complaining about me about as much as they are about the sheriff. Our popularity is on the wane,” Doc said.
“They’ll like us again the first time that they need us,” Gideon said as he sat down in a chair.
“Oh, I know. The family leaves in a week and I’m already dreading it. I’ve grown more attached to those grandkids than I ever thought possible. I still can’t fathom how it all happened, but they’re just so darn enjoyable to be around,” Doc said and rubbed his chin.
“Well, I can. I would be content to sit and hold Tess all day. You’re just not the crusty old heartless doctor that you like everybody to think you are,” Gideon said.
Doc smiled and pulled off his glasses. “I suppose, but I never claimed to be heartless, just crusty,” he said and chuckled.
“I’m going to be gone a few days. I’ll probably miss out on Mary having her baby like I did Joann,” Gideon said.
“Good God, you’d think you were married to her. I’m surprised Finnie puts up with you. She’ll be fine,” Doc said.
“Don’t say that in front of Abby,” Gideon said.
“Abby already knows. She loves you anyway and somehow understands your friendship with Mary. Not many
women would under similar circumstances,” Doc said.
“Crusty. Crusty. Crusty. I got to go,” Gideon said as he arose from his seat.
“Be careful,” Doc warned.
Not being in a particular hurry, Gideon rode the thirty some miles to Alamosa at an easy pace. Buck had put some of his weight back on and had to be reined in to keep from racing most of the way there. Gideon slipped his badge into his pocket before reaching the town in the afternoon. He rode straight to the hotel and checked in under an alias. Once finished there, Gideon walked down the street to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff sat in front of the jail reading a newspaper when Gideon walked up to him.
“Sheriff Johann, what can I do for you?” the sheriff asked.
“Can we talk inside your office?” Gideon asked.
“Sure,” Sheriff White said before folding his newspaper and walking into the jail.
“I’m going to be hanging around the railyard for a few days to see if any rustled cattle from Last Stand come in. I’m still having problems with rustlers and I know they’re bringing the herds here to be shipped. I’m staying at the hotel and I’m not letting anybody know I’m a sheriff,” Gideon said.
“Suit yourself and good luck. I hope you have better luck than I’m having. I’m still dealing with rustlers myself. Maybe they’re the same ones,” the sheriff said.
“Could be. I’m going to get out of here before somebody sees me with you. I’ll come get you if I find something,” Gideon said.
“Thanks for the heads–up. You be careful,” Sheriff White said.
Alamosa was only a slightly bigger town than Last Stand and staying inconspicuous would be the challenge. Gideon walked down to the railyard and covertly looked around, finding only empty cattle pens. With nothing else to do, he walked back to Buck and rode a wide circle around the town until his belly began growling too loudly to ignore. He dropped the horse off at the livery stable before dining alone at the hotel. Fearing he might be recognized at a saloon, Gideon retired to his room. Twice during the evening, he walked down to the pens. Though too dark to see, the quiet convinced him that no cattle occupied the pens. He gladly went to bed to end his boredom.
