A Gideon Johann Boxed Set Book 1 - 4 (A Gideon Johann Western 0)
Page 83
The Lucky Horse Saloon had been seized by the state when Gideon had arrested the owners for running a sex slave operation. The building had sat empty since that time after no bids were received to purchase it.
“Really? Are you and Mary planning to buy up the town?” Gideon asked.
“She thinks we could make a successful restaurant out of it,” Finnie answered.
“Mary is a smart one. She’ll be making so much money that you’ll quit on me and sit around getting fat,” Gideon said.
“I doubt that. I’ve been told by more than one person that it’s my job to keep you alive,” Finnie said before leaving.
Finnie and Mary had to wait their turn to present a bid to Judge Laurel for the Lucky Horse. In Mary’s absence, Delta bartended while Charlotte dusted the bottles behind the bar. A few patrons milled about and flirted with Delta to pass the time.
James Cooper walked into the bar and scanned the crowd. Some of the men gave him a glance, but none showed any signs of recognition. He swaggered up to the bar and ordered a glass of whiskey.
“Are you new in town?” Delta asked.
The outlaw smiled. “I’ve been here once before,” he said and turned his attention to sipping his drink.
Cooper nursed the whiskey before tipping the glass back and killing off the last of the drink. “Hey, little lady,” he called out to Charlotte as she squatted on the floor while restocking bottles. “I’ve got a five dollar gold piece here for you if you go tell the sheriff that James Cooper will be waiting for him out in the street.” He popped a gold coin down on the bar.
Standing, Charlotte looked at the coin and then to Delta. The bartender tilted her head towards the door and the girl scampered out. James Cooper ordered another whiskey. He killed the drink in one long gulp and walked out of the saloon.
Charlotte burst into the jail out of breath and found Gideon sitting at his desk cleaning a rifle.
“Sheriff, there’s a man in the saloon named James Cooper and he told me to come tell you that he’d meet you in the street,” Charlotte blurted out before gasping for air.
Gideon sat back in his chair, rubbed his scar, and took a big breath that he blew out with inflated cheeks. “Thank you, Charlotte.”
“Is he here to kill you?” the girl asked.
“He is. He’s an outlaw and I killed his brother,” Gideon answered.
“What are you going to do?” Charlotte asked.
Gideon smiled. “Let’s hope that I kill him instead of the other way around. You stay in here until this is over,” he said as he arose from his desk. Out of habit, he worked his revolver up and down in the holster until satisfied that it moved smoothly.
Finnie and Mary had left the courtroom feeling on top of the world. Judge Laurel hadn’t been pleased with a bid of five hundred dollars, but he nonetheless accepted the offer with the stipulation that back taxes be paid. The couple sauntered to the jail to retrieve the keys to the locked up saloon. Finnie looked down the street and spotted James Cooper standing in the middle of it just as he and Mary reached the jail door. Gideon opened it at that moment and Finnie hooked an arm around Mary’s waist and bulled into the jail, pushing Gideon with him as they went through the door.
“Cooper is out there,” Finnie said.
“I know. He sent word for me. I’m going out there to face him,” Gideon said.
“Damn it, Gideon, we’re the law. The outlaws don’t get to tell us how to capture them – we do. One of us can draw a bead on him at the window and the other at the door. There’ll probably be no bloodshed that way. We can take him alive. There’s no need to risk your life,” Finnie said.
“Finnie, I can’t run from a challenge. I’ve got to face him. What would the town think?” Gideon said.
“Since when did you give a damn about what anybody thought about you? And I’d hope that they’d think that they have a pretty smart sheriff. It sure beats them thinking about how silly you were for walking out into the street and getting yourself killed and leaving behind a widow and children,” Finnie said.
“Finnie, just let it go,” Gideon said and started to walk past the deputy.
Mary stepped in front of Gideon, blocking his path to the door. “Gideon Johann, you’re not running from a challenge. You are facing it on your own terms. Finnie is right. Why let Cooper make the rules? You are the sheriff, not a gunfighter. I swear to God if you go out there I’ll never speak to you again whether you’re dead or alive.”
Gideon grinned at her. “I wish I had a few more bossy women in my life. I’d never have to make a decision ever again if I did.”
Not trusting him, Mary remained firmly planted at the door.
“What’ll it be?” Finnie asked.
Gideon let out a big sigh. “Get two rifles. We’ll do it your way. Mary might scratch my eyes out and I’d have to face Cooper blind otherwise.”
Finnie retrieved two Winchesters from the rack and checked their loads before handing one to Gideon.
“You two women go back in the cell room,” Finnie said.
Still standing by the door, Mary asked, “Do I have your word that you are doing it Finnie’s way?”
“Yes, I’m not about to trick you. I’d never hear the end of it. Now get your butt back there,” Gideon commanded.
Finnie opened the window. “Are you ready?”
Gideon nodded before flinging the door open and taking aim from the cover of the wall.
“Cooper, there’s two Winchesters aimed at you. Throw down your gun,” Gideon yelled.
“Well, you yellow belly coward. I thought that you were a man. I planned on giving you a fair chance and you won’t do me the same,” Cooper yelled.
“This is your last chance. Now throw down your gun,” Gideon hollered.
Cooper paused and seemed not to know what next to do. He scanned both sides of the street before drawing his gun and firing at the jail while running towards a water trough. The two Winchesters roared simultaneously and Cooper did a little skip like a young girl playing hopscotch before dropping to the ground face first and not moving.
Gideon watched from the doorway until satisfied that Cooper was dead. Without looking back, he listened to Mary and Charlotte come barreling out of cell room. Time seemed to have slowed and his senses felt hyperactive. The clock ticking on the wall sounded like a drum and he could feel his pulse beating in his temples. He inhaled slowly and released the tension as he exhaled.
Finnie called out, “Don’t get in my line of fire. I’m going to keep a bead on him until you get out there.”
Walking slowly toward the body, Gideon kept his hand resting on his revolver until he stepped close enough to see two exit wounds in the back close to where the heart and lungs would be located. He kicked the gun away and squatted down to check for a pulse. James Cooper lay dead.
Gideon stood up, looking down the street and then back down at the body. The sight made him wonder about his own life choices and how different things might have turned out if he and his pa had never volunteered for the war. He probably would have ended up a rancher like Ethan and may have never taken a man’s life. None of that really mattered anyhow because that path had not been taken and he couldn’t change any of it now. Conjecture was just a waste of his time. The two things that he knew for sure were that he was tired of killing and that he had his fill of being sheriff for that day. He just wanted to go home to be with Abby and his family.
Thank you very much for reading A Gideon Johann Boxed Set Book 1 - 4!
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Other Books By Duane Boehm
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Gideon Johann is the new sheriff of Last Stand, Colorado, hoping to put roots down in the place where he grew up. Set free from the years of running from his conscience, he still has trouble accepting that the past has forever unchained him as he navigates his romance with Abby and fatherhood with Joann while coping with a mysterious man intent on exacting revenge for Gideon’s past deeds.
Mary, the hard-luck whore, finds her status in life changed, but not the misfortune that seems to follow her like a shadow.
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Love, second chances, new beginnings, and dispensing justice – all set in the town of Last Stand, Colorado in 1880.
Sheriff Gideon Johann has left the past behind and is enjoying his new life with his childhood sweetheart Abby. He crosses paths with a down on his luck buddy from the war and takes on the challenge of aiding Finnie in the same way that his friends did for him. In the midst of helping Finnie, a whore is murdered in Last Stand and the sheriff realizes that he has a conspiracy to solve. Gideon has his hands full as he tries to keep Finnie on the straight and narrow, solve a crime that has implications for the whole town, and help his lifelong friend, Ethan, get back on his feet.
Mary, the former whore, is now the successful proprietor of the Last Stand Last Chance Saloon. She finds her life turned upside down when Gideon recruits her in his quest to get the charming little Irishman Finnie back on his feet.
Gideon’s daughter, Joann, comes for a visit from the Wyoming Territory. Her brief romance with Gideon’s friend, Zack, has ended and the two young adults find their new relationship angst-filled and a comical calamity.
If you love classic westerns spiced up with some romance and believe in second chances, you will enjoy Last Hope. Purchase on Amazon: Last Hope
Somebody is hanging innocent people in Last Stand, Colorado. Sheriff Gideon Johann has his hands full trying to solve the murders as well as all the other shenanigans that go on in a town of the Old West. He also is learning that fatherhood and a toddler are about as much work as catching outlaws.
Gideon’s daughter Joann is now married to Zack Barlow and the couple is finding out that marriage is a lot of give and take while still enjoying the joys of being newlyweds.
Deputy Finnie Ford and saloon owner Mary Sawyer continue their unlikely romance through the difficulties that life always seems to throw their way.
Duane Boehm has written another western novel with enough humor, heartbreak, love, and outlaws to keep you turning the page. Purchase on Amazon: Last Ride
Cattle are being rustled from ranches around Last Stand and seem to vanish into the night by the time they are discovered missing. The town and area ranchers begin to question Sheriff Gideon Johann's competency, especially after a ranch hand is killed guarding a herd and Gideon fails to prevent a bank robbery.
Gideon is about to become a grandfather and Deputy Finnegan Ford is expecting his first child - two births with life altering consequences.
Duane Boehm has written another western novel with enough humor, heartbreak, love, and outlaws to keep you turning the page. Purchase on Amazon: Last Breath
Seven bestselling western authors join forces in the time–honored tradition of the old West to deliver a collection of short stories featuring their most popular and beloved characters. Read about the adventures of Steve Dancy, Gideon Johann, Shad Cain, Lee Mattingly, the McCabes, Hunt–U.S. Marshal, and Jess Williams. Enjoy your favorite authors and discover new friends along the trail. Stories by James D. Best, Duane Boehm, Lou Bradshaw, Tell Cotten, WL Cox, Brad Dennison, and Robert J. Thomas.
Purchase on Amazon: Wanted: A Western Story Collection
In a tragic Christmas day car accident, Noah Saxon loses his wife and daughter, thirteen-year-old Samantha Bragg loses her best friend, and Willie Bragg begins to lose his daughter and his best friend as anger and guilt begin to take over their lives. Also complicating the situation is a gravely injured Golden Retriever puppy that was a Christmas gift from Noah to his daughter that due to circumstance, Samantha inherits. The three find themselves ill equipped to handle the seismic change that has come into their lives. Samantha’s and Noah’s lives spiral out of control and the two have continual confrontations, testing Willie’s loyalties as he vainly tries to save each of them from themselves and each other until it all comes to a head the following Christmas.
In Just One Moment examines the chaos that an accident brings to the lives of ordinary people and ultimately seeks to answer whether a man that loses everything including hope can find redemption and if an anger-filled girl can learn forgiveness. Purchase on Amazon: In Just One Moment
About the Author
Duane Boehm is a musician, songwriter, and author. He lives on a mini-farm with his wife and an assortment of dogs. Having written short stories throughout his lifetime, he shared them with friends and with their encouragement, he has written his second novel Last Stand. Please like his Facebook Page or visit his blog.
Subscribe to Duane’s newsletter to receive a free Gideon Johann Western Series short story and be the first to learn about his new novels.
Table of Contents
Last Stand
Last Chance
Last Hope
Last Ride
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
About the Author