by Tell Cotten
“That’s ’cause you’re scared to take on the bigger jobs,” Harris snarled. “Well, I ain’t yellow… me being here proves that.”
“How ’bout the rest of the boys; how do they feel ’bout it?” Kinrich wanted to know.
“They ain’t said nothing, but I figure when I show up and you don’t that they’ll decide to follow me,” Harris said smugly.
“So that’s it, is it?” Kinrich asked softly.
“That’s the way it is, Ben,” Harris grinned wolfishly.
Kinrich started stalling for time.
“Tell me, how’d you find me?”
“It weren’t easy,” Harris admitted. “And, it sure took a lot of doing. Finding you has been on my mind for a long while now, and this ain’t the first time I’ve tried. But, one thing I am is patient. Nobody can hide forever, including you, Kinrich.”
While they talked I eased around the corner of the pole corrals, and neither one of them saw me.
“I ain’t got a gun, Harris,” Kinrich was saying.
Harris smiled wickedly.
“I know; this is going to be easier than I thought.”
It was time to make my presence known.
“Think again!” I called out as I stepped out into the open.
Harris jumped with surprise. But he was also a professional, and he didn’t panic.
Harris kept an eye on Kinrich while he turned slightly and faced me.
“Well now, I take it you’re Button.”
“That’s what Kinrich calls me,” I replied.
Before Harris could respond, Kinrich shot me a dark look.
“Button, you stay outta this. You ain’t ready yet,” Kinrich said, and then he turned to Harris. “Harris, this here is between me and you. You let me get my gun, and then we’ll settle things, just the two of us.”
“I ain’t stupid, Kinrich,” Harris sneered. “I didn’t come here to have a fair fight, and you know it.”
“Just leave the kid out of it.”
“Not while he’s wearing that fancy gun,” Harris eyed my six-shooter.
I ignored Kinrich as I looked boldly at Harris.
“I’ve got a gun, all right, and if you don’t get on your horse and high-tail it outta here I’m going to use it,” I spoke calmly.
The feeling was starting to come over me, and I felt a strange confidence that I had never felt before.
Harris wasn’t impressed. He had faced up to a lot of fellers that looked tougher than I did, and he wasn’t worried.
“Talks big, don’t he?” Harris sneered.
I was staring straight at Harris, and soon as he said that I saw a flicker in his eyes, just like I’d seen in Tom Benson’s eyes.
We both grabbed for our six-shooters.
I made the straightest and smoothest draw that I had ever made, and my six-shooter was out and firing before Harris even had his six-shooter out of his holster.
From my hip I fired three shots in rapid fashion, and as Harris flew backwards he managed to fire one shot harmlessly into the ground.
Harris hit the ground hard, and just like that he was dead.
Chapter twenty-one
As I walked forward I discarded my empty shells and put new ones back in. I holstered my six-shooter and looked at Kinrich.
Kinrich was just standing there, looking at me as if he was seeing me for the first time.
“Well, Button, I didn’t figure you had it in you,” Kinrich said softly. “Do you know who you just killed?”
I didn’t reply, so Kinrich answered his own question.
“You just killed Glen Harris, the Colorado gunfighter!”
“I reckon he should have stayed in Colorado,” I replied bluntly as I turned towards the shack. “I’ll go get a shovel. We’d best bury him before dark.”
I rummaged through the shack, and when I returned Kinrich was knelt down beside Harris.
“Three shots, Button, and all three straight through the heart!”
I was irritated and didn’t feel like talking.
“He should have left when he had the chance,” I said curtly. “Where do you want to bury him?”
Kinrich showed me, and I got busy digging a grave.
While I worked I thought the situation over, and I wasn’t very happy about it.
Killing Harris didn’t bother me much, for it had to be done. But I had killed him with no hesitation, and I sure didn’t like the feeling it had given me.
I had heard that killers often killed just for the pleasure of killing, and that’s what I felt like for a split second. It was what Pa had always warned me about, and for the first time I was scared of myself. Here I was only fifteen, and already I’d killed two men.
I was quiet during supper, and Kinrich noticed it.
“Button, I’m not much on saying thanks, but I appreciate what you did,” Kinrich said earnestly. “You pulled me out of a jam for sure.”
“Don’t mention it,” I replied.
Kinrich stood and refilled his cup with coffee, and then he sat back down.
“Been doing some thinking,” Kinrich said.
I filled my own cup with coffee and leaned back.
“Oh?” I asked.
“You keep telling me that you want to get yourself a ranch job. Well, I have a better idea.”
“What’s that?” I took a sip of coffee.
Kinrich looked at me over the rim of his cup.
“Now that Harris is dead, I’m short a man. So, I’d like you to join up with us.”
I was surprised, and I burnt my tongue on the coffee.
“You mean become an outlaw?”
“You’re young, but you’ve learned fast,” Kinrich replied. “And especially with that gun of yours. You’re good, Button, real good. Remember when you asked if you could be as fast as me?”
I nodded.
“Well you ain’t yet, but you’re real close,” Kinrich said. “And that’s saying a lot, Button.”
I scratched my chin as I thought it over.
“I never figured on becoming an outlaw. Pa wouldn’t have liked it.”
“Your Pa’s dead; you ain’t,” Kinrich responded.
I frowned thoughtfully.
“I don’t know, Kinrich. I just don’t know.”
Kinrich pressed on.
“Tell you what, Button; here’s what we’ll do. You ride with me a few years, and during that time we’ll both save up some cash. Now, you heard what Harris said ’bout us not making much money, but he was wrong. We do all right, and I figure after ’bout three or four years that we should have a pretty good poke stashed away. After that you and me can quit, and we’ll get ourselves an outfit put together and start ranching. And we’ll do it honest too.”
“That sounds fine, but I still don’t like the idea of becoming an outlaw,” I answered.
“Listen, Button, being an outlaw ain’t as bad as you think,” Kinrich replied patently. “Ever since the war most banks have been mighty hard on us poor ol’ Southerners, and most folks in the South don’t mind it much when a Union bank gets robbed.
“Now you heard Harris say that I always play it safe, and I do. I plan all my jobs in advance, and I always plan ’em so there’ll be no killing if possible.”
I was tempted, but I was also hesitant. If I became an outlaw I would be going against Pa, and I told Kinrich just that.
“Tell you what, Button,” Kinrich said as he finished his coffee. “There’s no need for you to decide tonight. We’ve still got three weeks before I have to meet up with the rest of the boys, so you take some time and think it over good.”
I nodded.
“I’ll think on it,” I said.
“Good,” Kinrich replied.
It was silent, and then Kinrich looked back up.
“By the way; tomorrow I’ve got to be leaving for a few days, but I want you to stay here. Be a good chance for you to think things over.”
“Where are you going?” I asked curiously.
“Scouting trip,” Kinrich explained. “Between every job I have to go and set up the next job, that way I can tell the boys where to meet up again. Now, how ’bout a game of poker before we bed down?”
So that’s how it was. The next morning Kinrich saddled up and rode out, and for the next few days I fought with my conscience.
I knew Pa would have been against it, and deep down I knew better. But, I really didn’t have any other options to choose from.
I now knew how to live off the land, so I wasn’t scared of dying and such like I’d been before.
Yet Kinrich had already explained how hard it would be for a youngster like myself to find a ranch job. Ever since the war the price of beef in Texas had fallen drastically, and most ranchers in Texas were broke. And, those very few ranchers that were looking to hire somebody were looking for seasoned cow-hands only. At the time I didn’t know a thing about punching cows, and most outfits wouldn’t take the time to teach me.
But then, if I joined up with Kinrich I would already be a part of something. And if Kinrich was true to his word, then in just four years’ time we would quit and get our own outfit. That sounded better to me than anything, because Kinrich was the only friend I had.
As for the stealing and robbing part, I did know that it was the wrong thing to do. However, Kinrich had already explained that he mainly just stole from the Northerners, and even Pa didn’t like them Yankees none.
Kinrich rode back in a few days later, just before dark. He tended to his horse, and then we sat round the fire and cooked supper.
“Well, Button, have you decided if you want to join us?” Kinrich asked.
I swallowed hard and nodded.
“It’s been on my mind.”
“And?” Kinrich asked.
“I reckon it’s the only thing I can do,” I replied.
“Good boy!” Kinrich smiled, and even in the darkness I could see his white teeth shining. “You’ll like it, Button, you really will. One other thing ’bout it is that you’ll get to see the country, that’s for sure. You wait and see.”
I’d made Kinrich happy, and he talked for the rest of the night as he told me of all the adventures that were to come.
I tried to look excited, but deep down I was sad. Becoming an outlaw still didn’t thrill me, and I hoped wherever Pa was that he didn’t know about it.
Four years, I told myself, and then we quit.
But even as I thought it, I knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
Chapter twenty-two
We left two weeks later.
I noticed a change in Kinrich. Out here he was a salty character with no nonsense about him, and he withdrew into that hard shell of his often.
I found out real quick that Kinrich’s mood had changed for the worse. We were riding down a long, winding ol’ trail, and somehow I accidentally got in front of Kinrich.
Kinrich’s anger built up fast.
“Stay outta my way, Button!” Kinrich snapped.
Kinrich jobbed his horse hard with his spurs, and he forced me off the trail as he retook the lead.
Kinrich stayed sore at me for the rest of the day, and it wasn’t until breakfast the next morning that he finally spoke to me again.
After that I learned real fast to stay out of his way, and I also tried real hard not to irritate him because I sure didn’t like it when he got mad at me.
Before we left Kinrich told me that this job was going to be a close one, and that we’d be holding up a stagecoach. There was usually a Union payroll on that stage, and that’s what we were after.
We rode for three days, and that third night we arrived at the designated hideout.
There were four men sitting round a campfire.
Kinrich had never ridden in with anyone before, and they all looked at me curiously.
Kinrich stepped down off his horse and looked over at everybody.
“This here’s Button,” he said. “He’s riding with us.”
That was all he said, and I got down stiffly and unsaddled Slim next to Kinrich’s horse.
While I worked I felt everybody watching me, and it made me clumsy and nervous. Twice I dropped my saddle, and when I picketed Slim I tripped over the lead rope.
I walked over to the fire and sat down next to Kinrich. Supper was ready, and while we ate Kinrich finally made a round of introductions.
Besides Harris, there were five other men that rode with Kinrich.
The four fellers that had already arrived were named Brian Clark, Cliff Curtis, Luis Valdez, and Ryan Palmer.
All four were tough, seasoned gunmen, and by themselves anyone of them could be a handful. But together, with Kinrich leading them, they were really something to be scared of.
And here I was, right in the middle of them.
Brian Clark was an older man, probably in his mid-fifties. He had been an outlaw nearly all his life, and he was wanted for at least one felony in nearly every territory or state there was. He was always careful; he never took any chances unless he had to.
I eventually came to like Brian Clark more than the rest. He was quiet, and he had a gentle way about him that the others didn’t have. Everybody else always seemed real eager to kill, and the only thing that held them back was Kinrich.
Cliff Curtis was a very big man. He was in his mid-thirties, and he was built like an ox.
Kinrich told me later that Cliff once killed a man with his bare hands, and that he could also kill men just as easily with his guns. During the war he had ridden with Quantrill’s raiders, and he joined up with Kinrich soon afterwards.
As for Luis Valdez, he was a quiet, little Mexican with quick, observant eyes. Kinrich told me that his gun skills were very good, and that he was also real handy with a knife.
Then there was Ryan Palmer.
Tall and lean with curly, blond hair, he was only a couple years older than me.
I could tell that he had a very high opinion of himself, and he also thought that he was some hand with a gun. And of course, he was just itching for an opportunity to show everybody.
I could tell that me and Palmer were going to have trouble. As for the others, they might not have liked me being there, but Kinrich was the leader, and they grudgingly accepted me.
But Palmer wasn’t going to let it go. I could tell that he wanted to start something, but with Kinrich being there he didn’t have the nerve.
When we finished supper Brian Clark started cleaning up, and I jumped in to help.
Nobody said anything, but I could tell from the looks on their faces that me helping out went over real good.
That is, everybody but Palmer. He just sat there, twirling his six-shooter playfully as he sneered at me.
After we cleaned things up we all sat round the fire, and it was real quiet as we stared back and forth.
Brian Clark finally broke the silence.
“I’ve got some bad news, Ben.”
Kinrich looked up.
“Oh?”
“It’s about Frank.”
“Yeah, I was wondering where he was. It’s not like him to be late,” Kinrich remarked.
“He’s dead, Ben,” Brian Clark said matter-of-factly.
Kinrich took the news without even a frown. In this line of work you had to leave your feelings out of it, and I was learning that fact real fast.
“I figured as much,” Kinrich muttered. “How’d it happen?”
“He was over in Abilene ’bout two months ago, and he got caught cheating at cards,” Brian Clark explained. “A feller shot him dead right at the table.”
“Figured I taught him better than that,” Kinrich said softly.
Cliff spoke up.
“I wonder what’s keeping Harris. Hope he’s not laid up drunk somewhere.”
Kinrich was rolling himself a smoke. He finished it, and as he lit up he looked up at everybody.
“No, Harris ain’t drunk, and he ain’t riding with us no more neither. He’s dead.”
Nobody seemed disturbed.
Instead, everybody waited silently for an explanation.
But Kinrich didn’t offer one. Instead, he looked over at Brian Clark.
“Clark, come morning I want you to ride into town. You know a lot of folks. I want you to look around, and see if you can find us another man. And I don’t want no hotheaded Yankee . If you can’t find us a good, dependable man, then come on back alone.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Brian Clark nodded.
“And be careful that you don’t draw no attention to yourself,” Kinrich continued. “We’ve enough troubles as it is. We don’t want somebody recognizing you and getting yourself thrown in jail.”
“I’ll be careful.”
We bedded down after that.
I rolled my bed out next to Kinrich’s, and as I was pulling my boots off Kinrich rolled over and spoke real low.
“Button, you’re doing just fine. It’ll take the rest of the boys a while to warm up to you, so don’t you let ’em bother you none. One thing though; you’d best stay clear of that Palmer kid. He’s out to make a name for himself, and if you two were to tangle you’d end up killing him, and then we’d be short another man.”
“I don’t want any trouble,” I replied.
“Good boy. Come morning I’ll have a talk with Palmer, and that should end it. But you just watch yourself.”
Those were the first kind words that Kinrich had said to me since we’d left the valley, and I was sure relieved to hear them.
I crawled into bed, and it wasn’t until then that I realized what Kinrich had just said, about me killing Palmer instead of the other way around. It gave me an odd feeling knowing that Kinrich had that much confidence in me.
I just hoped I wouldn’t let him down.
***
We woke early. After breakfast, Brian Clark saddled up and rode out going towards town.
Kinrich saddled up too, but before he left he went over and gave Palmer a good talking to.
Palmer sure didn’t like it, but he stood there and took Kinrich’s lecture without saying a word. Obviously, this wasn’t the first time this had happened.
“Button, I’m riding on out to look the stage route over,” Kinrich said as he walked back over to me. “I’ll be back in a bit.”
