Gale Young said, “What about this Jeb Cotton? What’s he done?”
“Well, the story is he shot an Indian he claimed had stolen a cow from him. He’s not known as a violent man, Gale, so it should be an easy arrest.”
Gale was a talkative young man at times, and he began speaking of things he planned to do in his life.
Ty was happy Gale was doing most of the talking, because he was still a bit overwhelmed with the conviction he felt for the life he’d led.
“You know what I want to do most of all, Ty?”
“What’s that, Gale?”
“I want to buy a small ranch. It doesn’t have to be a big one. And I want to marry Ellen Franklin.”
“Ellen Franklin? Who’s she?”
“Oh, she’s my childhood sweetheart. We both grew up in the same little town. Before I left there to come here, I asked her to marry me, and she said she would.”
“Most women wouldn’t like to be proposed to and then have the prospective bridegroom ride away.”
“She didn’t like it much. She begged me to stay. As a matter of fact, she even cried when I left.”
“I’m surprised you left her, Gale.”
“Well, I almost didn’t, but I told her I’d just try this for a while, that in all probability it wouldn’t last. I just want a small ranch and a wife. She’s waitin’ for me.”
“What do you plan to do then?”
“Well, I’ve had about enough of being a marshal. I want to go home, marry Ellen, and have some children and raise them. Then when I get older, I’ll be a grandpa and have the grandchildren all around my knees. I can tell them stories about what a great marshal I was and that I knew the great Ty Kincaid.”
“That wouldn’t impress ’em much.”
“Well, we don’t have anything, but Ellen says we ought to marry, even though we don’t have any money.”
Suddenly a strange thought crossed Kincaid’s mind. “You know, if I had a feeling like that about a woman, I’d do something about it.”
“What would you do, Ty?”
“I’d leave marshaling that very minute. I’d ride to her, and I’d get on my knees and beg her to marry me, and then I’d throw that marshal’s badge as far away as I could.”
Gale was surprised. “I thought you liked being a marshal.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Well, I’ve got to save some money first.”
“You’ll never do it on this job.”
“I know it.” He was silent for a time and said, “Maybe Ellen’s right.”
“About what?”
“That we ought to marry even if we don’t have any money.”
“If you really love the woman, Gale, do it.”
Gale turned and faced Ty Kincaid. “I think I will. This will be my last job.”
“Good for you, Gale. You get back to that woman. Marry her and have those kids. Maybe I’ll come and be a godfather to one of them.”
“I’d like that a lot.” Gale smiled.
Half an hour later the two rode into Jeb Cotton’s place. They found him scalding a hog.
Ty said, “Be careful. He’s not known to be a shooter, but you never can tell.” The two stepped out of their saddles, and Ty said, “Hello, Cotton.”
“Hello, Marshal. What you doin’ out here?”
“I’m afraid I’ve got to take you in. You got to stand trial for shooting that Indian, Jeb.”
Jeb was a tall, thin individual, almost gaunt. His eyes suddenly blazed with anger. “I was defending my property. That Indian had a gun, and he drew on me.”
“Well, that’s not the way we heard about it. There was a witness, you know.”
“Some witness! He was another Indian. You going to believe him over a white man?”
Ty saw at once that this was not going to be as simple an arrest as he had thought, but he was still determined to do it easily. “Come on, Jeb. If you’re innocent, Judge Parker will let you go. Let me have your gun.”
Ty fully expected that Jeb would pull his gun from the holster at his side and hand it over. Instead Cotton drew the gun and fired off a shot. It caught Ty off guard when the bullet struck Gale in the chest and knocked him down. Jeb turned the pistol to shoot Ty, but Ty drew his pistol and put one shot into the man’s heart. Ty knew Cotton was dead, so he went to Gale and saw that he had been hit bad. He pulled him up and saw that Gale’s eyes were open, but he was breathing in a shallow fashion.
“Ty—-”
“What is it, Gale?”
“You know what? I’ll never—-have Ellen—-now.” He breathed in short, quick puffs, and with his last gasp he said, “Ty, write Ellen. Tell her—-I loved her more than anything.”
“I’ll do that, Gale.”
Gale’s eyes fluttered, and he whispered, “Ty, don’t die like this. Don’t miss out on life.” The light went out of Gale’s eyes, and his body slumped.
Ty held him as a sense of utter frustration enveloped him. He hugged the man and shook his head. “You missed it all, Gale, and Ellen’s missed it, too.”
“Look, there comes Ty, and he’s got two men tied down on horses.” Heck Thomas stood with Judge Parker outside the courthouse.
“That wasn’t supposed to be a hard job. I hope that’s not Gale. He’s a fine young man.”
But when the two men approached Ty, he fell off his horse.
Parker said, “What happened, Ty?”
“I didn’t expect any trouble, Judge. Jeb’s not known to be a killer, but he drew and shot Gale before I could do anything. I got him, but it was too late. They’re both dead now.”
“What a shame,” Heck said. “Gale’s one of the finest young men I ever knew. He had a great life.”
“Did you know he was going to marry a girl named Ellen?” Ty asked Heck.
“He did mention it one time.”
“Well, he’ll never do it now.” There was bitterness in Ty’s voice, and he said, “I promised him I’d write her a letter, but I don’t know what I could say.”
“No, there’s not anything to say at a time like this.”
Raina heard about what had happened from one of the marshals who had come by their home. She and her father immediately got ready and left to attend the funeral that would be held two days later.
When they arrived in Fort Smith and spoke to Heck and Ty, her father was asked to preach a sermon at the service. After the funeral, she tried to find Ty, who had stood on the outer ring of the crowd, but he was gone.
Raina was worried about Ty, so she went to the barracks and found him there. “I’ve been looking for you, Ty.”
“I had to be by myself. I don’t feel much like talking.”
“Come along.” It was nearly dusk now, and the town had gone quiet. “Let’s go for a walk.”
“All right. If you say so.”
The two left the barracks, and for a time she simply walked beside him saying nothing.
Finally, when they were on the edge of the town, he looked over and saw that the sun was setting. “Look at that sun going down,” he said quietly. Then he added bitterly, “But it will come up tomorrow. Not like Gale.”
“I know it’s terrible for you, Ty.”
He turned to her and whispered, “He missed out on everything, Raina. He had a sweetheart named Ellen. He had decided to leave Fort Smith and go back and marry her, and now he never will.”
Raina was shocked. She thought of Ty as one of the toughest men she knew, but she could see his broken will and the tears standing in his eyes. She suddenly reached out, put her arms around him, and said, “He was a Christian, Ty. He told me that. He won’t have Ellen, but he’ll be safe. He’ll be with Jesus forever.”
“I know, but it scares me. He wanted Ellen and kids and a family and a home. That’s what I’ve always wanted.”
“Have you, Ty?”
“Yes, and it’s a lonely life, being without God.”
“You don’t have to be alone.”
He looked at her
with surprise, saying, “It’s all I know, Raina.”
“You’ve heard the Gospel. All you need is to find Jesus.”
“I don’t know how to do that. Wish I did.”
“Talk to my pa. You trust him, don’t you?”
“Sure, but—”
“Just do it.” She hesitated then said, “I think it’s easier to become a Christian than to be one from day to day.”
“I don’t understand that, Raina.”
“Just think, a man can become a married man in five minutes—but I think it takes years to be a good husband, for most men at least. You can become a Christian in an instant, but sometimes it takes years to be a good one.”
Kincaid blinked with surprise then whispered, “It sounds too easy.”
“It’s easy for us, but it was difficult for Jesus. He had to die to make a way for all of us to be saved.”
Ty Kincaid said, “I’m just not sure that you’re right about this, but I hope desperately that you are.”
CHAPTER 19
Ty received word that Heck Thomas wanted to see him, so he went at once to the man’s office. When he stepped inside, he asked, “You wanted to see me?”
“Yeah. Have you heard what’s happened at the Jordan ranch?”
“No, I thought all was pretty well quiet out there.”
“Well, Aaron Jordan came roarin’ in about as mad as a man can get. He claims the sheepherders killed about twenty of his prime head of cattle.”
“I was afraid of this. Did he have any proof?”
“No, not any, but he’s on the rampage, Ty. I heard him tell Judge Parker if he don’t send some marshals in, he’ll take care of the trouble himself.”
“Well, I don’t imagine the judge liked that. What’d he say?”
“Said he would do his best, but he was short of men. Then the judge told me to ask you to look into it. I guess he knows, like everybody else, that you have good relationships with both sides. He said to go on a longtime scout. Find out what’s goin’ on.” He stood up. He was not an impressive-looking man, this Heck Thomas, but he had a mind like a razor. “You’re a man who can find out things. This situation is bad, and it could get worse.”
“I’ll get right at it, Heck.”
Ty left Thomas’s office and immediately made preparations. He drew a packhorse and loaded it with all the supplies the animal could carry, then saddled his favorite horse. He was still preoccupied with his soul when he stepped into the saddle. More than that, he was more confused about this matter of God and his soul than he had told anybody.
He decided to go to the Jordan ranch first. When he arrived, Aaron Jordan was red in the face still with anger. “Come on. I’ll show you those dead steers.”
“All right, Aaron.” Ty saw there was little reasoning with the man, and he went out and looked at the ground. “I don’t see any tracks or sheepherders.”
“Well, you’re the tracker. You must have found something.”
“The only thing I found was that one horseman has been through here, and his horse is missing a shoe on the right foreleg.”
“Where does that get us?”
“Not very far, I don’t guess. If we found a horse like that, we wouldn’t have any proof that the man rode him here.”
The two rode back to the ranch, and Aaron rode off still muttering threats.
Leoma came outside and asked Ty to come in the house.
“Don’t have much time to stay, Leoma. Let’s sit outside instead.”
The two sat down on the porch, and he was quiet for so long, she said, “I know Gale Young’s death hit you hard.”
“Very hard. He was a fine young man, had his life before him. He was going to quit being a marshal and go back and marry his childhood sweetheart. A girl named Ellen.”
“He told you that?”
“Yes, he did. And I told him it was a good idea. He got to talking on our way out to Cotton’s place about what all he had missed in life.” Ty turned and looked at her, his expression sad. He ran his hand over his abundant black hair. “He had it all planned out. He was going to marry her even if they had no money.”
“They really loved each other then.”
“Yes, you could tell that from talking to Gale.”
She waited for him to go on, but he was silent for so long, she said, “It really bothers you, doesn’t it?”
“Yes. You know why?”
“No. What is it, Ty?”
“It could happen to me. You know, one time I was going through the mountains, and I saw a deer. I got my rifle out to take a shot, but before I could get it out the deer just fell down.”
“Somebody else shoot him?”
“No,” Ty said. “That was the funny thing. I got to him and there wasn’t a mark on him. He hadn’t been hit by a bullet. I guess his heart just gave out, but he was dead, and the thing I thought of was this deer didn’t know anything about this. When he woke up this morning, he thought he would have as much life as he ever had, but he didn’t make it through the day.” He shifted his weight in the chair and leaned over and stared down at the floor. “That’s the way it was with Gale. It hit me hard.”
“Death always does that.”
“I guess so, but if a man’s eighty years old you don’t notice it so much, but he was just a young fellow. He had everything before him. He was even a Christian. He told me that.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“So am I. Well, I’ve got to go, Leoma.”
“Come back after you’ve done some looking around.”
“I’ll do that.”
For the next four days Kincaid looked over the ground. He stayed out away from the two men having the trouble, and at night he would build up a fire and read his Bible by the light of the flames. Most of the time he thought about Raina, but he couldn’t forget Gale’s death. He had written a letter to Ellen Franklin, which had been one of the hardest things he had ever done.
He spent a great deal of time trying to think how he could get right with God, and finally he went to the sheep camp. Raina was there, and he found he was a little bit restrained toward her.
It was Sunday, and he went to the church again. This time the sermon Vernay preached was on forgiveness. He read the scripture of the woman who was found in adultery and then brought to Jesus. Ty listened as Vernay read the story from the Bible: “‘The men who brought the woman asked Jesus, Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? But Jesus said nothing.’”
Ty had forgotten this part.
Vernay continued. “But Jesus simply knelt in the dust and began to write. The Bible says one at a time the men left.”
I wonder what He wrote. Maybe the sins of those men, Kincaid thought.
Then Vernay read the most telling part. “‘Jesus said, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.’”
The last words seemed to stick in Kincaid’s mind, “Go and sin no more.” Somehow he knew this was his problem. He had been a sinner all his life, that he well knew, but he had given little thought to changing. But now Jesus’ order to “go and sin no more” was glued to his mind.
Raina knew she liked George Fairfax, and as he rode up and dismounted, she was pleased. “I’m glad to see you, George.”
He smiled. “I’m delighted to see you, too.”
“That’s the way you English talk. No man ever told me he was delighted to see me before.”
They talked for a time, and finally George heaved a sigh. “I’ve always been an impulsive man, and I need to tell you something, Raina.”
“What is it, George?”
“Well, I’ve been thinking. I’m not getting any younger.”
“None of us are.” She smiled at him.
“And what I’d like to know is if you would entertain a proposal?”
“What sort of proposal?”
“I did
n’t think there was but one kind.” Fairfax smiled. “A proposal of marriage.”
Raina was caught off guard. She knew she liked Fairfax tremendously. He had qualities that no other man had ever shown to her. “Well, I’m not sure.”
“I think I’m going to court you, and I believe we could be very happy.”
“I’ve never thought of marriage for us.”
“Well, think of it. We could do anything you like. I have plenty of money. We could buy us a ranch. We could live in the city. We could travel. You could go see England, Ireland, lots of things.”
She stood waiting, and as she had expected, he put his arms around her and kissed her. It was a gentle kiss, and she liked that. She was surprised that she didn’t draw back, for she usually held off from men. As he kissed her, she thought of Ty’s kiss, and she knew she couldn’t compare the two men. They were too different.
“I’ll have to think about this,” she said when he lifted his head. “There are other things in marriages.”
“Yes. Some marriages. Well, you think about it.” He kissed her again then left.
Raina’s mind was in a whirl. Marriage to George Fairfax might be wonderful. She would certainly never want for anything. But was that enough? What about love? She thought about George’s proposal, but somehow Ty kept intruding into her thoughts. She wasn’t sure she even wanted to know what that meant.
Ty had spent several days riding around and finding mostly nothing. On the fourth day he was awakened in the middle of the night. It was a dark night with few stars in the skies and no moon except a tiny sliver. He suddenly heard the sound of sheep bleating. Sheep don’t move at night. He got to his feet and picked up his gun. Who would be moving sheep at this hour?
“Who’s out there?” he called, but several shots cut him off. One of them hit him in the chest. As he fell, Ty thought, I’m going to die like Gale, not having done anything good in my life. And then he knew nothing….
PART FOUR
CHAPTER 20
The ebony darkness was almost palpable. At times a light appeared far in the darkness, but then it would fade away so he could sense it no more. He had been one acquainted with the night, and under the darkness of the blackest evenings there was always a faint flickering of stars or something that told him he was alive, but now he felt nothing except the slow passage of time.
The Western Justice Trilogy Page 67
